Laura Hollister

Benedikt Pleyer/Nomadic Nostoc filmed these tiny ostracods collected from the beach of a Japanese island.

Vargula hilgendorfii live in marine sand & emit a mix of luciferase & luciferin that lights up to deter predators.

The same chemicals produce firefly glow.

海蛍: umihotaru = "Sea fireflies"

A tabby cat lay, stretched out on a blue and white rug, while a Britney dog stares through a hallway door way while worrying in green sweater, looking very confused as he stands next to a piano

Yosemite has declared himself heater vent king. Jasper just wants his bed.

Sigh

California Conglomerate Clast Collection Seeks New Home Conglomerate clasts were collected from 279 sites by Vic Seiders and Brett Cox for their report, "Place of Origin of the Salinian Block, California, as Based on Clast Compositions of Upper Cretaceous and Lower Tertiary Conglomerates," USGS Professional Paper 1526 (https://pubs.usgs.gov/pp/1526/report.pdf). This is an extremely important comprehensive collection. Localities are principally in or near the Salinian Block in western California, but cover from Anchor Bay (Stewarts Point quad, 4,281,400N, 462.390E) to Cabo Vizcaino in Baja California, including a bit of western Arizona. At least one locality, on Highway 92 near Pilarcitos Creek (site WO-268, Woodside quad, 4,149,080N, 555.710E), is now inaccessible, having been encased in Caltrans concrete. In the mid 1990s, when the USGS closed their rock storage depository in Menlo Park, throwing irreplaceable collections in the trash, the Seiders and Cox collection was given by Brett Cox to Kathleen Burnham for safe keeping. However, she used only one of these clasts in her own work, has no further need of them, and has run out of room to store them. The collection is entirely pebbles, size range 0.4-6.0 cm, mainly 0.4-3.0 cm, and samples were etched overnight in 5% hydrofluoric acid solution, to aid in identification. The rocks are neatly stored in boxes measuring 12" x 9.5" x 5". At present the stack is 6 by 3 by 6 boxes, which comes to 108 boxes, and the stack measures 69" x 39" x 30", roughly 47 cubic feet. The boxes are marked and numbered. One box was partially damaged, however, no clasts or markings on the box were lost. Kathleen used the Seiders and Cox locations for some of her own collection, and reports that despite their work pre-dating GPS, their sample locations are extremely accurately specified in their publication. If this collection would be useful to you, and/or you can give these rocks a home, DM me and I’ll pass on your name.

clean etched pebbles from the collection

Boxes of the collection, each one clearly marked and annotated

Here's a long shot: a big orphan pebble collection from the USGS, yours if you can take and treasure it. See alt text

Graph from NOAA showing the Snohomish river in the purple flood stage currently at 33.5 feet. It was expected to crest in the model at 33.4. I suspect there are several inches more to go based on current rate.

My Buddy lives in Snohomish and the river has just surpassed its record flood. Observed numbers are running slightly higher than the model.

Key Messages for Washington Flooding Catastrophic and life threatening flooding to continue through Friday Catastrophic Flooding Impacts, Especially Along the Skagit and Snohomish Rivers, to Continue through Friday Major and/or record river flooding is ongoing, which will bring a significant risk to life and property. Overtopping of levees is likely. Considerable Flooding Impacts Across the Western Cascade Foothills to the Puget Sound to Continue through Friday Considerable small stream and moderate-to-major river flooding is ongoing. Widespread Urban and River Flooding Urban and minor-to-moderate river flooding is possible through early Friday throughout the remainder of western Washington. Potential For Landslides Landslides remain possible in areas of steep terrain within the considerable and catastrophic regions. For the latest rainfall forecasts, visit www.wpc.ncep.noaa.gov

The National Water Center has issued an updated Key Messages for the ongoing Catastrophic flooding impacts this week in Washington. More info: water.noaa.gov #flooding #wawx

Something tells me Finn is working on a strategy to get in. 😆

Rescuers in a watercraft. Text says driving into flood waters also puts rescuers' lives at risk,.

People think because their vehicle is heavy, it will do just fine. That simply isn't the case. When approaching a flooded roadway remember, Turn Around Don’t Drown! #wawx

Cars underwater. Text says most flood fatalities can occur in vehicles. 12 inches of water can sweep a car off the road.

People often underestimate the power of flowing water. A mere 6 inches of fast-moving flood water can knock an adult off their feet. Most vehicles begin to lose contact with the road in six inches of water. They can be swept away in 12-18 inches of flowing water. This includes pickups & SUVs #wawx

a road closed sign is shown. Text says never drive around barricades.

There's lots of water over roads right now and some cities and counties may not be able to get road closed signs up fast enough. If you see a road closed sign, don't go around it. A flooded road may have hidden dangers such as washed out roadbeds or underwater obstructions. #wawx

YouTube video by EMDPrepare Evacuation Tips in Washington state

A reminder on evacuations:
Level 1 means be ready. Be alert. There is a threat in your area.
Level 2 means get set to leave at a moment’s notice. Have an emergency kit.
Level 3 means go. Leave now. You are in immediate danger.

Find more details in this video: www.youtube.com/watch?v=BXim...

For your latest, local road and community alerts, opt in to alerts at mil.wa.gov/alerts#local

Ensure your wireless emergency phone’s alerts are turned ON so you don’t miss critical life safety information.

Text: Stay clear of flooded roads: Most flood deaths occur to people while driving. - Don't drive around barricades. - Do not attempt to judge water depth and drive through - Even if water appears calm, stronger current can be hidden durther down in deeper waters. - Debris in the wter can be deadly. - 12"-24" of moving water can sweep your car off the road.

Excessive rain has triggered major flooding of rivers across western Washington. Remember to NEVER drive into water flowing over the road. Check in advance before traveling at the WSDOT real-time travel map: wsdot.com/Travel/Real-time/Map/

Wow!

I’m so sorry. I hope everyone is safe. I have a friend who teaches in Snohomish and shared pics of the river yesterday. It was shocking.

Nice. I like how they can’t rip all the grass out.
Maybe this will be a project for my upcoming break.

This is a neat way to grow cat grass. Did you buy it or make it?

Science educators, this is a great post to read as we help teach our students both how to read and interpret graphs and data.

screenshot of my post

Big new blogpost!

My guide to data visualization, which includes a very long table of contents, tons of charts, and more.

--> Why data visualization matters and how to make charts more effective, clear, transparent, and sometimes, beautiful.
www.scientificdiscovery.dev/p/salonis-gu...

YouTube had an ad for ICE tonight. Maybe that’s a sad clue.

Oh ugh. I hate this for you. And for all women.

It’s like for many men they are the center of the world and if everyone and everything doesn’t bend toward them they get mad.

I like this analogy.

Perfectly said.

National weather service documenting down slope winds along the central coast/Big Sur

Wild temperature spread on the Central Coast this morning. The Salinas Valley is in the 30s, most of Monterey Bay is in the low 40s, and downslope winds off the Santa Lucias are compressing the air and boosting temperatures into the 70s near Big Sur. #adiabaticcompression #CAwx

Yes!!!!!

‘We’ll need to see a warrant’: the group teaching businesses a vital tool to fight ICE raids Siembra in North Carolina gives owners fourth amendment rights trainings should federal agents show up at their door

If you're a business owner interested in pushing back against ICE, this might be of interest. www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

As I tell Z these days: “Some people just suck”. 🤦‍♀️

This mother in the bookstore just told her daughter to pick one book to relax your brain and is fun and one to challenge your lifestyle.

Explaining a guilty pleasure to her child she said, we don’t always have to be thinking. This is all great advice.

When we say, “Remember, there is organized and there is disorganized and sometimes disorganized is its own kind of organized,” it speaks to how communities often adapt when they know they’re being monitored. In many movements, people have intentionally shifted away from predictable