Texas Drought May Have Killed 500 Million Trees
According to the Texas Forest Service, as many as 500 million trees in the state — roughly 10 percent of the forests there — have been killed within the last year alone as a result of 2011’s bizarre lack of rainfall. To make matters worse, the massive die-off may just be the first in a long line as climatologists predict more severe drought to come as climate change worsens over the next century. Forestry officials recently surveyed trees throughout 63 million acres of drought-riddled Texas and say what they found that months of record heat and stiflingly arid conditioned have left anywhere between 100 million to as many as half-a-billion trees dead
Does Arctic Amplification Fuel Extreme Weather in Mid-Latitudes?
Dr. Jennifer Francis of Rutgers University presented new research in review for publication, which shows that Arctic sea ice loss may significantly affect the upper-level atmospheric circulation, slowing its winds and increasing its tendency to make contorted high-amplitude loops. High-amplitude loops in the upper level wind pattern (and associated jet stream) increases the probability of persistent weather patterns in the Northern Hemisphere, potentially leading to extreme weather due to longer-duration cold spells, snow events, heat waves, flooding events, and drought conditions.
Israeli Woman Draws Rosa Parks Link After Refusing to Give Up Bus Seat to Ultra-Orthodox Jewish Man
A Israeli woman is being compared to U.S. civil rights activist Rosa Parks after refusing to bow to ultra-Orthodox Jewish customs and relinquish her seat on a public bus to a man. Tanya Rosenblit took a Jerusalem-bound bus from her native Ashdod recently when an ultra-Orthodox Jewish man demanded she move to the back of the bus. In ultra-Orthodox Jewish communities, mingling between sexes is forbidden, and women are relegated to the back of buses when men are present. Rosenblit refused the order, which led to an argument. The bus driver then pulled the bus over, and the police were called, but Rosenblit maintained her position. The bus carried on to its final destination. The act of defiance has sparked a national discussion in Israel on the issue of gender segregation. On Monday, the disagreement turned violent when ultra-Orthodox Jews in the Israeli town of Beit Shemesh clashed with police. Hundreds of men in the ultra-Orthodox community took part in the unrest. Members of local news crews were reportedly hurt in the clashes, and at least six Beit Shemesh residents were arrested. An estimated 10,000 people are expected to turn out in the community today to protest the exclusion of women, as well as violence against girls and women by Haredi extremists.