The sobering truth about preventing climate change

Listening to the various Government announcements (including the UN) and international science debates on climate change and the reduction of Green House Gas (mainly CO2) emissions, a very subtle difference in tone has occured in recent years. Although much of the rhetoric is still focussed on reducing carbon emissions to prevent more than a 2 degree C climb in temperature, increasingly the terminology has shifted to "adaptation" and "transformation". In essence although the focus has remained on message, slowly but surely there is a dawning realisation that turning around carbon emissions from the current production-oriented world cannot occur in sufficient time and with the required level of magnitude to prevent a change in the world's climate. Therefore the direction has moved to adapting to a warmer and more unpredictable climate with changes in building design, settlement patterns, agricultural crop location, choice  of crop species and so on. 'Sustainability' has in reality become a cover word for survival.

Svalbard: Securing the world's food supply - optimism or faint hope ?

Svalbard - Courtesy: Norwegian Ministry of Food and Agriculture

Svalbard is not a name which evokes much recognition apart from the novels of Philip Pullman (His Dark Materials trilogy) and polar bears, however it has special significance being the largest and most ambitious of the world's seed banks, located at this desolate spot managed by the Norwegian Ministry of Food and Agriculture as part of the arrangements under the UN Convention on Biodiversity. The Svalbard Global Seed Vault is a backup for all the world's seed banks (around 1,400 of them) and holds samples of all of the planet's food crop seeds stored in vaults deep inside the permafrost of a sandstone mountain, where even global warming cannot reach them.Svalbard has an isolated position far out in the ocean, between 74° and 81° N and only 1000 kilometres from the North Pole. and the archipelago is characterised by an undisturbed nature. Of note, the vault was originally established by conservationist Cary Fowler and is still supported by a not-for-profit foundation which has redoubled its efforts this year to search the earth for the last remaining wild relatives of wheat, rice, barley, lentils and chickpeas to arm agriculture against climate change.

How important is Svalbard? Immeasurably. The world's population will cross the 7 billion mark in September 2011 and food security (and 'scarcity') has never been more pronounced. Coupled with this continuing demand is the sobering fact that the number of plant species available for food sources has been in near catastrophic decline with fewer and fewer varieties of fruit and vegetable available. In 1983 the Rural Advancement Foundation International concluded, after surveying listings of seeds sold in commercial seed houses in the US, that 93 % of varieties had gone extinct. Humans are now dependant on a handful of commercial varieties of fruit and vegetables and many of these are susceptible to changes in climate.

Biofuels - CO2 emissions may increase

One of the key planks in reducing both CO2 emissions and reliance on traditional fossil fuels for energy use has been the development of the biofuel industry as a substitute but how effective is this alternative in reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions ? The European Union has adopted an ambitious target of reducing GHG emissions by 20 % by 2020 including replacement of 10 % of transport fuel with biofuels. However the Institute for European Environment Policy has estimated that 4.1 to 6.9 million hectares of land must be cleared to meet these target which would correspondingly lead to an 80 % to 169 % increase in carbon emissions during the 2011 to 2020 period (than if conventional fossil fuels were retained). The various energy options to replace current fossil fuel consumption are continuously appearing to have greater pitfalls than first thought. The food famine of a few years ago in parts of the World was partly attributable to the conversion of previous food crop land to biofuel crops mainly in South America and served as one example of the complex challenges of reorienting the world to a new reality.

To wine or not to wine - The value of red wine for health

The debate on the dangers of alcohol consumption versus the value of red wine in providing protection against heart disease have not as yet shown much signs of being resolved however some progress has been made with isolating and developing the magic key of red wine. Resveratrol, the molecule which is believed to provide red wine with its protective power is the focus however it's notoriously unstable and difficult to synthesise into compounds useful for human use. Likewise the polyphenols which plants derive from resveratrol to protect themselves from fungi are so small in quantity that it has been impossible to isolate and utilise them in the laboratory. 

Columbia University however has made progress with developing some polyphenols from compounds similar to, but not, resveratrol itself including an alternative process for synthesising additional compounds with an array of potential health properties including anti-cancer values in addition to protection againt heart disease. One of nature's most beneficial but hard to replicate secrets may yet be unlocked.

United States - calculating the cost

US Debt Clock - going up - (click here)

Just how far will the US debt level rise ? The US Congress has approved a new debt ceiling but judging from the debt clock, the reality is stark already.

Film Review -Tree of Life by Terrence Malick

Jessica Chastain in silhouette in 'Tree of Life'

Terrence Malick's latest film 'Tree of Life' won the Palme d'Or at the 64th Cannes Film Festival and like his other film work is considered to be a masterpiece by those whose taste is strong on visual aesthetics, the use of metaphor, allegorical meaning and a foundation in existentialist narrative. For this reason, this is not an easy film to view and the juxtaposition of various exploratory questions of life, the concepts of beginning and ending together with movement between present and past timeframes for the central characters can make the film seem choppy and disjointed.

With a quotation from the Book of Job, the film commences with "Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation...while the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy?" A mysterious blueish wavering light that resembles a flame emerges and will reappear throughout the film and at the conclusion.

The central story revolves the relationships in a family consisting of two parents and their three adolescent sons with most focus placed on the eldest son and his authoritarian father (Brad Pitt). Commencing at a later point in time, Mrs. O'Brien (Jessica Chastain) receives a telegram informing her of her second son's death at age 19 with Mr. O'Brien being notified by telephone. There is palpable grief for the parents as the family struggles to cope with the news.

In adult life, the eldest son, Jack O'Brien (Sean Penn) is an architect but is increasingly lost in his work and when in contact with his father by phone, he admits to constantly remembering his deceased brother. On seeing a tree being planted in front of his tall building, the central reminiscences of family life commence - the vast majority of the film focusses on a very narrow timeframe of a couple of years of family life when the boys are adolescent so the father-son relationship is defined within a micro lense.

The film mixes the family drama with the formation of the universe. With galaxies expanding, planets forming within giant gas clouds, the voices of the family members are heard asking various existential questions.The development of life on earth is presented through the images of various dinosaur species and forest and concludes with the image of an asteroid heading to and striking the earth heralding the end of an era of evolution.

The O'Brien family appear again living in a different, much older home in tree-lined, wide expanse yards of a residential neighbourhood in Waco, Texas (the location is conveyed through a municipal labelled truck spraying DDT insecticide slowly driving down the local streets). Images of the happy young couple, besotted by baby Jack, with his two brothers quickly following dominate, as the family grows. With this context established the film settles on the family dynamics as the ledest son, Jack (Hunter McCracken) reaches adolescence. Mr. O'Brien is a stern, physical, authoritarian man caught in a struggle to balance a sense of paternal duty with the unambiguous love he has for his three sons. His boxing training for his eldest son contrasts with his shared love of playing music with his middle son. Yet he can be deeply affectionate and nurturing towards all of them. Mrs. O'Brien is portrayed as softer and empathetic, having a more permissive attitude towards her sons yet still commanding their respect.

Mr. O'Brien has regrets with his life, particularly for not pursuing his interest in becoming a  musician and while  he files patents for various enigineering inventions, nothing of substance comes from them and he remains disappointed. While he is away on an overseas trip his son Jack experiences, elements of rebelliousness, commiting acts of vandalism and animal cruelty while responding to urging from other boys.

With the closure of Mr. O'Brien's plant and his forced relocation to another job elsewhere with his family, he reconciles with Jack seeking forgiveness for his harsh treatment.

The film concludes with the adult Jack, walking on rocky terrain and through a wooden door frame,almost part of a ruin strangely erected on the rocks. On a wide expanse of beach leading to a sandbar, Jack is reunited with all the people lodged in his memory and his family in particular. The film ends with the same mysterious, wavering light seen at the opening.

This is not a film with much dialogue for its' characters but relies on an array of visual images and the conveyance of meaning, behaviour and moods through expressions and mannerisms. It can be frustrating, if not confusing at times and therefore it is a film for enthusiasts of this genre of almost abstract performance-art storytelling (some scenes are reminiscent of Stanley Kubrick) and the directorial style of Terrence Malick.