• A disturbance in the forest

    The forests of Scandinavia look beautiful in the autumn. What secrets do they hold? Color changes are beginning. The red coloration you see here is surprising, because it is mostly North American species that turn red – European species are overwhelmingly more likely to turn yellow. The explanation for this pattern remains a matter of…

  • X-rays and leaves

    X-rays and leaves

    X-rays aren’t just for peering at broken bones. A few years ago I wondered if they could also be used to look at the structure of leaves – especially the venation network, which is the plant’s equivalent of a skeleton combined with a circulatory system. Looking at leaf veins with x-rays is an attractive idea…

  • Mushroom season

    Mushroom season

    Autumn is mushroom season, which for me means rainy forays into the woods. The appeal of fungi is difficult to explain. Perhaps it is the temporary appearance of these life-forms, or maybe the strange appearances they have. Or just the thrill of the hunt. In any case, a day in the woods is rarely spent…

  • Farm distribution

    Farm distribution

    Denmark is a country where the grocery stores sell cucumbers and bell peppers individually shrink-wrapped in plastic, and økologisk (organic) can mean a small bag of vegetables flown in from Chile. But this is not the entire community – I’ve been exploring other parts of the food world, joining the equivalent of a community-supported agriculture…

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