http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu Trees have stories to tell, their annual growth rings cataloging changes in the environment, including climate. Many tree-ring scientists focus on conifers, but Neil Pederson, a scientist at Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, believes that the less-studied broadleaf trees in temperate forests, such as magnolia, tulip-poplar, maple and birch, have much to teach us. Thu, 23 May 2013 18:56:44 +0000 en-US hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.5.1 http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2013/05/06/out-of-the-woods/ http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2013/05/06/out-of-the-woods/#comments Tue, 07 May 2013 00:38:13 +0000 Neil Pederson http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/?p=36200 When we walked into the Sheraton in Springfield, Massachusetts we were greeted by none other than a wall full of cross sections from trees perfectly sanded to reveal the rings. “No way” I say. “I forgot the camera!” says Neil. We were just walking into the Northeast Natural History Conference, along with Dario and Jackie from the Tree Ring Lab. When I pictured my freshman year of college last summer, I pictured a lot of things. I did not picture getting to go to a conference to present a poster on my own research.]]> http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2013/05/06/out-of-the-woods/feed/ 0 http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2013/04/05/visual-skateboarding/ http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2013/04/05/visual-skateboarding/#comments Fri, 05 Apr 2013 23:57:27 +0000 Guest Blogger http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/?p=35454 “You can do math on excel?” I ask. I immediately imagine a face-palm response, but Dario, one of my advisors, is nice enough to hide it. I’ve collected tree core samples, I’ve prepared them and cross-dated them. Now what? Oh, right. The Science.]]> http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2013/04/05/visual-skateboarding/feed/ 0 http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2013/03/28/ill-go-on-a-cross-date-if-you-show-me-some-rings/ http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2013/03/28/ill-go-on-a-cross-date-if-you-show-me-some-rings/#comments Fri, 29 Mar 2013 01:04:08 +0000 Guest Blogger http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/?p=35286 Ever since I've started learning to cross-date tree core samples, I've learned I have a type. I prefer my tree cores to be black oaks, middle-aged, with some nice big rings to show me. Alright, fine, I can deal with some smaller rings every now and then. As long as they’re some nice marker rings. Unfortunately, the trees don’t seem to be trying to impress me.]]> http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2013/03/28/ill-go-on-a-cross-date-if-you-show-me-some-rings/feed/ 0 http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2013/02/28/are-you-using-this-idea-for-your-thesis-research/ http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2013/02/28/are-you-using-this-idea-for-your-thesis-research/#comments Fri, 01 Mar 2013 01:53:00 +0000 Neil Pederson http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/?p=34728 “Are you using this idea for your thesis research?” I heard this as I stood in front of a classroom full of old-growth forest ecology students. The question had come from Neil Pederson, who was sitting directly in front of me. He was asking this question because I had just spent the past 12 minutes discussing the intricacies of land snail biology and ecology that would make them great organisms to use for ecological modeling in regards to disturbance.]]> http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2013/02/28/are-you-using-this-idea-for-your-thesis-research/feed/ 0 http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2012/11/04/the-zen-of-sanding/ http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2012/11/04/the-zen-of-sanding/#comments Sun, 04 Nov 2012 16:56:13 +0000 Guest Blogger http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/?p=31837 By Ana Camila Gonzalez “But can’t you see the rings already?” I ask, wondering why I’ve been asked to sand a sample- it sounds to me like one would damage a sample by subjecting it to the mechanical screech of a sander.   “Yes, but under the microscope they look foggy if you don’t sand [...]]]> http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2012/11/04/the-zen-of-sanding/feed/ 2 http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2012/09/21/dipping-your-feet-in-the-water-a-first-years-experience-with-fieldwork/ http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2012/09/21/dipping-your-feet-in-the-water-a-first-years-experience-with-fieldwork/#comments Fri, 21 Sep 2012 14:07:48 +0000 Guest Blogger http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/?p=30765 My feet are soaking wet and I’m playing a game of Marco Polo, but I’m nowhere near a pool. It’s my second day on the job. It’s my second week of college. I have no idea what to expect.]]> http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2012/09/21/dipping-your-feet-in-the-water-a-first-years-experience-with-fieldwork/feed/ 0 http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2012/09/06/epic-wetness-in-the-greater-new-york-city-region-and-what-broadleaf-trees-have-to-say-about-it/ http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2012/09/06/epic-wetness-in-the-greater-new-york-city-region-and-what-broadleaf-trees-have-to-say-about-it/#comments Thu, 06 Sep 2012 12:32:12 +0000 Neil Pederson http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/?p=30071 2012 is turning out to be an exceptional year in the eastern US. Starting out with what was essentially a #YearWithoutaWinter, followed by a heat wave in March, a hot summer, Macoun and Cortland apples coming in 2-3 weeks early, and the continuation of a severe drought in the Southern US that expanded into the Midwest [...]]]> http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2012/09/06/epic-wetness-in-the-greater-new-york-city-region-and-what-broadleaf-trees-have-to-say-about-it/feed/ 3 http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2012/07/29/brief-broadleaf-forest-happenings-tulip-goodness-delighted-about-turkey-and-drought/ http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2012/07/29/brief-broadleaf-forest-happenings-tulip-goodness-delighted-about-turkey-and-drought/#comments Sun, 29 Jul 2012 12:12:23 +0000 Neil Pederson http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/?p=29149 I have to call myself out. Earlier I had professed to being a former coniferphile. That was, of course, silly. I like coniferous trees very much. Half of my business is made from this lovely branch of the tree family. This introduction is a lead in to say that this blog will be quieter while [...]]]> http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2012/07/29/brief-broadleaf-forest-happenings-tulip-goodness-delighted-about-turkey-and-drought/feed/ 1 http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2012/06/17/finally-some-true-turkish-delight-discovery-of-some-tasty-oaks/ http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2012/06/17/finally-some-true-turkish-delight-discovery-of-some-tasty-oaks/#comments Sun, 17 Jun 2012 15:53:32 +0000 Neil Pederson http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/?p=28096 After a few days of mild frustration, the sampling of potentially old umbrella pine lifted our spirits and put us in a good frame of mind to conduct our last day of research in the temperate rainforest region of northeastern Turkey. We headed out of Borçka and met with a forest officer in charge of forests [...]]]> http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2012/06/17/finally-some-true-turkish-delight-discovery-of-some-tasty-oaks/feed/ 0 http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2012/05/15/what%e2%80%99s-a-tree-like-you-doing-in-a-place-like-this-or-west-meets-east/ http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2012/05/15/what%e2%80%99s-a-tree-like-you-doing-in-a-place-like-this-or-west-meets-east/#comments Tue, 15 May 2012 11:13:32 +0000 Guest Blogger http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/?p=26670 In the northeastern part of Turkey, the highest Pontic Mountains meet the Black Sea. Here altitude drops from more than 3900m to sea level in a less than 30 miles. Both the orographic effect of mountains and the lake effect (well, better sea effect) cause very high precipitation allowing for rich and productive temperate forest to grow.]]> http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2012/05/15/what%e2%80%99s-a-tree-like-you-doing-in-a-place-like-this-or-west-meets-east/feed/ 2