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tragedy of the commons

Science Corner: It’s Not That Easy Being Blue

viburnum tinus photo
The metallic quality is not apparent to me here; I suspect the polarization gets lost in the photographic reproduction chain. (Photo by berniedup )

“Why is the sky blue?” is a perennial question of young children. It is also somewhat notorious for producing incorrect or incomplete answers, even from fairly credible sources. The typical answer for why ‘x’ is whatever color it is has to due with the wavelengths of light it absorbs. What we see is what is not absorbed but instead reflected, so if an object absorbs light from the red end of the spectrum it will look more blue, and vice versa. The sky appears blue for a different reason, though. Some white light from the sun not headed directly to our eyes gets deflected or scattered from its straight line path and gets redirected towards us; blue light is more easily redirected and so we see more of it than other colors. As it happens, there is still yet another way to look blue, and a common berry is the latest to be found using that route.
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Science Corner: No Lefts Make a Right

ups step van photo
Even more efficient is not driving the truck at all, but then no one would get their packages. (Photo by *hajee )

In light of uncertainty about the US government’s regulatory approach to climate change, I figured we could use some encouragement from the private sector. Over a decade ago, UPS found a way to nearly eliminate left turns from their delivery routes. Recently announced results of this program reveal significant reductions in fuel consumed, carbon dioxide emitted, and dollars spent; they’ve even been able to cut down on total vehicles in service. UPS was not obligated to make this change. They did so because it made economic sense to use fewer fossil fuels. Economic considerations alone may not yield all of the reductions needed to mitigate climate change, but it is heartening to know that at least some reductions will occur regardless of government mandate.
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