Learning to write all over again

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I might be crazy, but I’ve decided to keep a blog in Spanish. I’m not linking it to FB – but if you want to read it, you can find it here: A Través de la Niebla (Through the Fog). Actually, if you speak Spanish, I’d appreciate feedback from time to time. Learning to write in another language involves going through the process of learning how to write all over again. I suddenly feeling a lot of empathy for my students – all those times I’ve returned papers slathered in red ink.

The theme photo for my Spanish-language blog 'Through the Fog' - courtesy of the California landscape.

The theme photo for my Spanish-language blog ‘Through the Fog’ – courtesy of the California landscape.

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Should I ban wifi in my classes?

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Would there be cries of outrage if I asked students to turn off their cell phones and shut the lids of laptops and tablets? I’ve never really cared much about students using wifi in my classes. I guess I’ve figured that if they can’t control their own tendencies toward distraction, that’s their problem – and they need to figure out how to deal with it. But maybe it’s not just their problem.

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Climate, Culture, and the Cauca River in Santa Fe, Colombia

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Those of you carrying around an image of Colombia as a lush tropical haven are not far off when it comes to many parts of the country, I’m sure. But in a country with so many mountains, you’re bound to have a rain shadow somewhere. That would be where you would find the pueblo of Santa Fe. Resting in a topographic pocket between two cordilleras of the Andes, this place sees little rain. Surrounded by wilted vegetation and crispy golden grasses, I could almost imagine I was in California.

Santa Fe's landmark church in the Central Plaza.

Santa Fe’s landmark church in the Central Plaza.

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NASA’s Earth Exchange – Innovating ways to communicate climate change

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I would love to see someone I know win $25,000 for designing an app to use data on NASA’s Earth Exchange (NEX). I’m so excited to see what’s happening with NASA’s Virtual Workshop and Challenge. One of the purposes of this blog is to keep track of really cool things I come across in my reading – online or otherwise – and share it with all of you. This particular opportunity is worth noting. (Note: This blog post will definitely be categorized under ‘Geeky Science’). Continue reading →

On Being A Student…Again

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I have a secret. One I’d rather not let any of my students know about. But I figured I should get it out in the open. In July I was attending a week-long workshop in Boulder at the National Center for Atmospheric Research. I signed up for the workshop with my grad student, so we could learn how to use a popular weather research and forecasting model to study climate. Each day we had ~6 hours of lecture, followed by an afternoon lab/practice session. The lectures covered everything from how to operate the model, to discussions of the theory and physics behind it. Each day: 6 hours of lecture. Guess what happened? Continue reading →

Medellin, Colombia – The ‘Berlin’ of South America?

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Standing in the middle of Plaza de Cisneros in central Medellín makes you feel as though you’ve been transported to a futuristic sci-fi novel. The plaza contains a forest of concrete pillars more than 50 feet tall that light up concrete waterways and a small (real) forest of bamboo at night. The artist who proposed the design in 2002 called it an ‘urban poem.’ It reminded me of something I’d see in Europe. And that’s when it occurred to me the Medellín is on it’s way to becoming a major destination in South America. In fact, I was originally going to title this post the ‘Paris of South America’ – but then I realized that Buenos Aires already holds that title. I think Berlin is a better fit. So, what else is it about Medellín that reminded me of Berlin?

Pillars of Light, in Plaza Cisneros, Medellín

Pillars of Light, in Plaza de Cisneros, Medellín

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An Introduction to South American Climate

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Another title for this post: What It Is That Scientists Do at Those Meetings, Anyway?

Last winter, in the midst of a deep freeze, and up to my neck in class work, I came across an announcement for a meeting on South American climate change. Specifically, the focus of the conference was climate change and human interactions with climate over the last 2000 years (for more info see Lotred-SA Symposium). I had explicitly stated in my sabbatical proposal that I would attend a conference focusing on my new research direction in order to meet people and get a feel for what type of work is going on in the field. This was perfect. It combined my interest in pursuing research on South American climate change, with my experience studying paleoclimate. The meeting was in Medellín, Colombia – some place warm and tropical, and not far from where I will stay during my Fulbright (after all, Ecuador is just across the border) – the perfect sabbatical kick-off. Continue reading →