With warm air, a control gene, called PIF4, activates the flowering pathway, but at lower temperatures the gene is unable to act.

"What is striking is that temperature alone is able to exert such specific and precise control on the activity of PIF4," said Dr Phil Wigge.

Previously, it has been shown that PIF4 is vital for controlling other aspects of plant responses to warmth, for example growth, but this is the first time that the gene has been shown to be necessary for the activation of flowering by temperature.

Flowering is activated by a special molecule, called Florigen. Florigen is activated by many signals, including the longer days of spring. Some plants rely more on temperature, others more on daylength to control key stages in their life cycle such as leaf emergence and flowering. This is reflected in the old saying "Ash before Oak, you're in for a soak; Oak before Ash, you're in for a splash."

Article continues at ScienceDaily. 

On average, global temperatures in 2011 were lower than the record level hit the previous year but were still 0.40 degrees Centigrade above the 1961-1990 average and the 11th highest on record, the report said.

WMO Secretary-General Michel Jarraud warned that the consequences of global warming could be permanent. "The world is warming because of human activities and this is resulting in far-reaching and potentially irreversible impact on our Earth, atmosphere and oceans," he said.

La Nina, a natural weather phenomenon linked to heavy rains and flooding in the Asia-Pacific and South America and drought in Africa, was one of the strongest in the past 60 years and stayed active in the tropical Pacific until May 2011.

Further signs of man's contribution to climate change will put the biggest polluters in the spotlight after they agreed for the first time last December at U.N. climate talks in Durban to limit greenhouse gas emissions.

Critics of the agreement have said that the plan was too timid to slow global warming.

The WMO, part of the United Nations, said that elevated temperatures had contributed to extreme weather conditions such as intense droughts and flooding and droughts in east Africa and North America.

Global tropical cyclone activity was below average last year but the United States had one of the most destructive tornado seasons on record, the report said.

Another impact of high temperatures was shrinking Arctic sea ice and its extent was the second-lowest minimum on record and the volume was the lowest.

The WMO also said that the decade between 2001-1010 was the warmest ever recorded across all of the world's continents ahead of the release of its 'Decadal Global Climate Summary'.

2010 tied for the warmest year since data started in 1880, capping a decade of record high temperatures that shows mankind's greenhouse gas emissions are heating the planet, two U.S. agencies said.

To read the rest of this article please visit this page at Reuters.com.

Scientists at Germany's Potsdam Institute for Climate Research used physics, statistical analysis and computer simulations to link extreme rainfall and heat waves to global warming. The link between warming and storms was less clear.

"It is very likely that several of the unprecedented extremes of the past decade would not have occurred without anthropogenic global warming," said the study.

The past decade was probably the warmest globally for at least a millennium. Last year was the eleventh hottest on record, the World Meteorological Organization said on Friday.

Extreme weather events were devastating in their impacts and affected nearly all regions of the globe.

They included severe floods and record hot summers in Europe; a record number of tropical storms and hurricanes in the Atlantic in 2005; the hottest Russian summer since 1500 in 2010 and the worst flooding in Pakistan's history.

Last year alone, the United States suffered 14 weather events which caused losses of over $1 billion each.

NOT NORMAL

The high amount of extremes is not normal, the study said.

Even between March 13 and 19 this year, historical heat records were exceeded in more than 1,000 places in North America.

For some types of extreme weather, there are physical reasons why they would increase in a warming climate. For example, if average temperature rises, then so will the number of heat records if all else remains equal, the study said.

Natural weather patterns like El Nino or La Nina can also cause highs in global temperature or increased precipitation which leads to floods.

"Single weather extremes are often related to regional processes, like a blocking high pressure system or natural phenomena like El Nino," said Stefan Rahmstorf, co-author of the study and chair of the institute's earth system analysis department.

"These are complex processes that we are investigating further. But now these processes unfold against the background of climatic warming. That can turn an extreme event into a record-breaking event."

Recent years have seen an exceptionally large number of record-breaking and destructive heatwaves in many parts of the world and research suggests that many or even most of these would not have happened without global warming.

To read the rest of this article please visit this page at Reuters.com.

Scientific estimates differ but the world's temperature looks set to rise by six degrees Celsius by 2100 if greenhouse gas emissions are allowed to rise uncontrollably.

As emissions grow, scientists say the world is close to reaching thresholds beyond which the effects on the global climate will be irreversible, such as the melting of polar ice sheets and loss of rainforests.

"This is the critical decade. If we don't get the curves turned around this decade we will cross those lines," said Will Steffen, executive director of the Australian National University's climate change institute, speaking at a conference in London.

Despite this sense of urgency, a new global climate treaty forcing the world's biggest polluters, such as the United States and China, to curb emissions will only be agreed on by 2015 – to enter into force in 2020.

"We are on the cusp of some big changes," said Steffen. "We can … cap temperature rise at two degrees, or cross the threshold beyond which the system shifts to a much hotter state."

TIPPING POINTS

For ice sheets – huge refrigerators that slow down the warming of the planet – the tipping point has probably already been passed, Steffen said. The West Antarctic ice sheet has shrunk over the last decade and the Greenland ice sheet has lost around 200 cubic km (48 cubic miles) a year since the 1990s.

Most climate estimates agree the Amazon rainforest will get drier as the planet warms. Mass tree deaths caused by drought have raised fears it is on the verge of a tipping point, when it will stop absorbing emissions and add to them instead.

Around 1.6 billion tonnes of carbon were lost in 2005 from the rainforest and 2.2 billion tonnes in 2010, which has undone about 10 years of carbon sink activity, Steffen said.

To read the rest of this article please visit this page at Reuters.com.

Garden growing pride can be damaged when you wake up and find that your garden has been eaten by a deer, rabbit, or other pest. All that work of soil planning, seed gathering, planting and care can be easily wiped out by the mouths of hungry invaders. With many options out there, choose to try to protect your space without harming it or the invaders.

In our garden we use a few simple techniques to ensure that we still have food for our consumption without killings, trappings, alarms or chemicals. We even allow animals like deer, rabbits and birds on our property but we try to deter them from entering our garden space.

Birds are an enjoyable accent to any property, so we encourage them to come around with feeders. We deter them from the garden by providing a variety of seeds and suet’s on the opposite side of the house as our garden. It’s amazing how they will lazily choose to feed from a feeder then scavenge in our vegetable patch. Just as a side note in the winter we put a feeder in the garden space to encourage the digging and droppings from the birds thus energizing our soil. It may be small, but every dropping counts!

For deer we simply extended the fence to be higher than eight feet. I say simply because we already had a standard fence and extended it by using materials that we had laying about. We happened to have a set of old, rusty golf clubs that would otherwise be garbage. We twined them to the fence posts to extend the height. Next we used a heavy duty butcher string to make three connections from golf club to golf club to act as a deterrent for the deer. It doesn’t actually take much to prevent a deer from jumping. They just need to see that there is something in the way. It doesn’t have to be strong. Now I know that a fence made out of string and old golf clubs is not the most attractive thing, but it is just around our garden and can’t be seen from the road. Plus, it didn’t cost us anything. So be creative, see what you have laying around and extend your fence to keep the deer out.

For rabbits and other pests that may scavenge or attack just a few plants we use the share technique. This means that we plant more then we want and assume that some of the plants will be taken over by pests or eaten by rabbits. Share your garden instead of using harsh chemicals. Think about it. If the rabbit will be harmed from eating your spray do you really want to eat it? Another side note: we use clover as our ground cover because it is a good nitrogen fixer. As it turns out the rabbits would rather eat the clover then our vegetables.

Companion planting vegetables, herbs and flowers can greatly boost your garden growth!

Companion planting is a method used to help with small pests like insects and mould. This is a method where you plant certain vegetables beside each other and they naturally protect one-an-other. For example they may attract good insects or deter bad ones. Take dill and cabbage: the dill plant attracts wasps that eat the pest insects that normally attack the cabbage plant. A companion planted garden is a beautiful and intriguing set up and is one of the techniques in permaculture design.

So protect your garden while also protecting the environment by not harming these critters unnecessarily. A garden is a beautiful thing to share.

Looking for a professional freelance writer?  Lynda is offering these services over at literarymaid.com

Even with many people trying to buy local, a large footprint is created by trucking food from the farm to the table.  Imagine if you could grow some of that food in your own yard no matter the size of your lot.

I moved from a city apartment to 2.5 acres of mostly forested land where my partner and I are restoring a half acre Victory garden.  We are not horticulturalists, environmental scientists or farmers and yet our garden yielded enough to (almost) cut out produce from our grocery bill.  Now I believe that everyone who can should build a garden.

Know what you grow and start from seed.  Garden stores often hold start of the year specials to promote you stocking up. Be wary of seedlings as they may be sprayed with chemicals.  Try not to buy genetically modified plants or seeds.   Buy heirloom, organic and local.  If your seed comes from a local company then there is a better chance that it will grow in your climate (but you should always check your climate zone).  Keep in mind that every garden is different with regards to sun exposure, wind and drainage.  It may take a few seasons to discover what grows best.

I tend to buy a large variety of seeds to experiment with.  Last season, for example, we learned that kale and pak choi do really well in our soil so this year we are trying similar plants.  Likewise, our carrots and beet crops failed because of pests so this year we are trying companion planting with onions for the carrots and mint for the beets.

Be sure not to miss your planting schedule window or your plants may not finish growing by the end of the season.  Some plants thrive if you start by direct sow while others need to be started indoors.  For starting your seedlings indoors there is a wide variety of mediums but I prefer potting soil.  For outdoor planting there are many techniques but the biggest question you should ask yourself is: to till or not to till?

We chose to till but we are currently researching the no till philosophy to try another season.

A tip for tilled lots: plant clover over your entire garden space.  It is easy to till, easier to weed then grass, helps push out other unwanted plants, replenishes nitrogen into the soil and attracts pollinating bees.  Although clover is easier to weed out then most other plants, it can out grow more delicate vegetables.  To make room for our planted vegetables we till rows into the clover and mow the remaining clover down to keep it from going to seed.  If it starts to spread into our tilled rows we pull or rake it out.   A border box can also help.

Look out the window and picture your yard with a garden; fresh salad, squash or berries.  Browse the seed selection at your local garden store, in catalogues or online.  This year get out there and get a garden going!

Looking for a professional freelance writer?  Lynda is offering these services over at literarymaid.com

Totally wish I could give these away to all of you...

What do you win, you ask?  You win… uhhhh… this brand spanking new article to read.  Awesome right!?  Ok, so it’s not that great, I apologize… but maybe if this article is an interesting read, it’ll make up for that.

It probably won’t.  I’m sorry.

Anyways!  On to why you’re here, and why I asked you to “Click Here” in the first place.  Well, we’re in the middle of trying to make a decision.  We’re trying to decide what comes next and we’re really not sure.  Our environment is pretty key in this whole thing and we’re trying to come up with a way to fix it.  Or at least, prolong its lifespan so that technology can come out like pollution processors or garbage disposal black hole-a-trons.  I know… it’s a long shot, but it’s worth a try, right?

“But what if we put all this time and money into making our world awesome and it turns out that Global Warming was a hoax!?”  Well, you sir/ma’am just answered your own question.  We get an awesome world

Let’s go for that, “Awesome world.”  You “Clicked Here” to make our world more awesome.  Are you cool with that?  Hope so!  What you’ve done exactly is interact with the website, which is a key role in Searther’s success because right now, Searther is sort of that struggling artist guy just trying to get to the next level.  But you’re here, which means you are helping us get there.

Thank you.

Our next move… well, we haven’t figured that part out yet.  So we thought that maybe we could get some ideas from the real people behind Searther, the community (ie. you).  You can email us, at talk@searther.org.  Or you can leave a comment or interesting response below.  Or come leave us a message on facebook!  Add us on Twitter @Searther.  There… now there is no excuse!  Can’t wait to hear from ya!

On the plus side, the company is doing pretty much everything it can to make its products, and stores, as energy-efficient and sustainably produced as possible as part of its programme of ‘neverending improvements’. The flat-packs that make it so easy to lug furniture home? They also mean that the company can transport more furniture from factory to store at a time, reducing the level of emissions generated. Brown cardboard, the company trumpets, makes the products cheaper and is environmentally friendly. The minimalist, lightweight designs the company has pioneered mean that less materials are used in the fabrication of each item of furniture, while again reducing the emissions involved in transporting them. Getting you to assemble the furniture at home again cuts emissions – by reducing the number of automated assembly lines IKEA uses – while lowering the cost of the furniture.

IKEA says that it is moving towards powering all of its stores with renewable energy, and has been working to cut its power consumption levels since 2005 – although it is yet to set a deadline for either target. In fact, there is a certain ambiguity to a lot of the company’s more ambitious-sounding sustainability plans. Take its scorecard system. In 2010, IKEA launched an internal tool to measure the sustainability of each product it sells based on a series of 11 metrics. In its sustainability report released the same year, the company said that it wanted everything it sold to be ‘more sustainable’ by 2015 – a slightly opaque measure, although it also aims to reduce the amount of energy used in producing its white goods by 50 per cent by 2015, and the amount of water used in all of its products over the same period.

By the same token, IKEA literature trumpets plans to install solar panels on 150 stores and distribution centres worldwide to meet 10 per cent of its energy needs but by December 2010, only seven panels had been installed on just 17 buildings. The company plans to increase this to 40 by the end of 2011. IKEA also likes to sell its ethics, and by all accounts has worked hard to make sure that the materials it uses, and the labour used to produce it, is sustainably sourced and meets international regulations. The ‘IKEA Way’ is a set of rules and regulations for its suppliers, which it hopes to see fully enforced by 2012. They include rules on where wood is sourced from, and oblige suppliers to provide annual reports on the origin, volume and kind of wood used in their products. The Rainbow Alliance, meanwhile, audits the company annually. IKEA also has strict rules on child labour, and demands that all of its suppliers recognise the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. If a supplier is found to be using child labour, IKEA says it will be asked to end the practice or have its contract revoked.

Article continues: http://www.theecologist.org/green_green_living/behind_the_label/1098324/behind_the_brand_ikea.html

“We thought that this evidence should not be enough to convince us that snow -shoveling is potentially dangerous, ” says Adrian Baranchuk, a professor in Queen’s School of Medicine and a cardiologist at Kingston General Hospital.

Dr. Baranchuk and his team retrospectively reviewed KGH patient records from the two previous winter seasons and discovered that of the 500 patients who came to the hospital with heart problems during this period, 7 per cent (35 patients) had started experiencing symptoms while shoveling snow.

“That is a huge number,” says Dr. Baranchuk. “7 per cent of anything in medicine is a significant proportion. Also, if we take into account that we may have missed some patients who did not mention that they were shoveling snow around the time that the episode occurred, that number could easily double.”

A heart attack results from the interruption of blood supply to a part of the heart, causing heart cells to die. This is most commonly due to occlusion (blockage) of a coronary artery following the rupture of a vulnerable portion of the wall of an artery. The resulting restriction in blood supply and ensuing oxygen shortage, if left untreated for a sufficient period of time, can cause damage or death (infarction) of heart muscle tissue.

Classical symptoms of acute myocardial infarction include sudden chest pain (typically radiating to the left arm or left side of the neck), shortness of breath, nausea, vomiting, palpitations, sweating, and anxiety (often described as a sense of impending doom). Women may experience fewer typical symptoms than men, most commonly shortness of breath, weakness, a feeling of indigestion, and fatigue.

The team also identified three main factors that put individuals at a high risk when shoveling snow. The number one factor was gender (31 of the 35 patients were male), the second was a family history of premature coronary artery disease (20 of the 35 patients), and the third was smoking (16 out of 35 patients). The second two factors may carry much more weight than the first, however, since the team could not correct for high rate of snow shoveling among men in their sample.

For further information: as a heart attack, results from the interruption of blood supply to a part of the heart, causing heart cells to die. This is most commonly due to occlusion (blockage) of a coronary artery following the rupture of a vulnerable portion of the artery wall. The resulting restriction in blood supply and ensuing oxygen shortage, if left untreated for a sufficient period of time, can cause damage or death of heart muscle tissue.

Classical symptoms of acute myocardial infarction include sudden chest pain (typically radiating to the left arm or left side of the neck), shortness of breath, palpitations, sweating, and anxiety (often described as a sense of impending doom). Women may experience fewer typical symptoms than men, most commonly shortness of breath, weakness, a feeling of indigestion, and fatigue.Approximately one quarter of all myocardial infarctions are silent, that is without chest pain or other symptoms.

For further information:  http://www.queensu.ca/news/articles/scoop-dangers-snow-shoveling

Environment Minister Tony Burke said the park would cover almost 1 million square km — an area the size of France and Germany combined — and would help protect fish, pristine coral reefs and nesting sites for sea birds and the green turtle.

"The environmental significance of the Coral Sea lies in its diverse array of coral reefs, sandy cays, deep sea plains and canyons," Burke said. "It contains more than 20 outstanding examples of isolated tropical reefs, sandy cays and islands."

The new park would also cover ships sunk in the Battle of the Coral Sea, a series of naval engagements between Japanese, American and Australian forces in 1942, considered the world's first aircraft carrier battle.

Three U.S. ships were known to have sunk in the northeastern area of the Coral Sea, the USS Lexington, the USS Sims and the USS Neosho, Burke said.

The government will finalize what limits will be imposed on the Coral Sea marine park, which will be within Australia's economic zone, in 90 days.

Photo credit: R. Greenway, ENN

Article continues: http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/11/25/us-australia-coralsea-idUSTRE7AO04K20111125