Boston Flora

Tag: University Of Massachusetts Amherst

  • Thursday, December 3, 7:00 pm – Plant Life Through the Ages: A Mural of Plant Evolution

    The Smith College Botanic Garden is proud to unveil a new 60-foot mural, consisting of eight panels depicting great moments in plant evolution. While there are numerous depictions of animal evolution, until now there has been no mural devoted specifically to the evolution of plants. Seeing this opportunity, the Botanic Garden stepped in to commission a mural and fill the void. The stunning paintings were created by muralist Robert Evans. With a specialty in natural history, ethnography, and history, his work can be found at the Smithsonian, Mount Vernon, and numerous museums, zoos, and aquaria. This is his first installation at a botanical garden.

    To celebrate the opening of Plant Life Through the Ages, they have invited paleobotanist James W. Walker to speak about plant evolution and the mural. The lecture will take place in the Campus Center Carroll Room. Dr. Walker is Paleobotanical Consultant on the Mural and Emeritus Professor of Biology, University of Massachusetts, Amherst. The talk will be followed by a reception and viewing of the mural at the Lyman Plant House.

    The eight panels will permanently reside along the corridor to the Palm House.

  • Wednesday, November 18, 7:00 pm – Moose: Life History, Ecology, and Current Research

    Join the Athol Bird & Nature Club on Wednesday, November 18 at 7 pm at the Northfield Mountain Recreation Center, 99 Millers Falls Road in Northfield, for a fascinating evening exploring moose in Massachusetts. Dr. Stephen DeStefano, one of the foremost experts on moose in the Northeast, will share highlights from current research focusing on habitat use, distribution and movements. Steve will discuss how he and his graduate students tag area moose and use high tech equipment to monitor their movements throughout central and western Massachusetts. The current population estimate is over 1,000 moose in Massachusetts! This is a great opportunity to learn more about the largest mammal of our Massachusetts’ forests and how it uses the landscape. This free program is co-sponsored by Northfield Mountain and the Athol Bird and Nature Club. Stephen DeStefano is Leader of the Massachusetts Cooperative Research Unit and a research professor at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst. He directs a program of research, education and service focused on fish and wildlife ecology, as well as human-wildlife interactions and the impact of human activities on wildlife populations. His work has numerous implications for wildlife management and conservation biology. For ages 12 and older. FREE, and no pre-registration required. Image below is a GPS collared moose in the Quabbin Reservoir area, courtesy of www.amherst.edu.

  • Thursday, October 22, 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm – All About Apples

    The Trustees, Massachusetts’ largest conservation and preservation organization, announced an exciting line up of culinary, health, and wellness programs being offered throughout the month of October in the KITCHEN at the Boston Public Market on Congress Street in Boston. As the programming partner for the state-of-the art KITCHEN space at the nation’s only all-locally sourced Market of its kind, The Trustees offers programs during Market opening hours designed to connect Boston residents, commuters, and visitors to local food and healthy, active living. Programs include a diverse selection of free and paid hands-on classes and workshops, demos, lectures and special events. For a full line up of currently scheduled program offerings and to register, visit: thetrustees.org/KITCHEN. For more information, email kitcheninfo@thetrustees.org or call 617.542.7696 x2117.

    On Thursday, October 22, from 6:30 – 8:30, Dr. Wes Autio of the University of Massachusetts, Amherst discusses the techniques for growing apples in the landscape, including both horticulture and pest management. The program will end with a tasting of many of the apple varieties grown at the University of Massachusetts’ Cold Spring Orchard. Fee: Free.

  • Saturday, April 11, 10:00 am – 1:00 pm – Invasive Plants in Massachusetts

    Randall Prostak, co-author of Pest Identification Guide for Weeds, Insects and Diseases of Woody Ornamentals, will speak on Invasive Plants in Massachusetts on Saturday, April 11, from 10 – 1 at French Hall, University of Massachusetts, 230 Stockbridge Road in Amherst. This presentation will explain the characteristics that make a plant invasive and where these plants are considered to be troublesome in New England. Suggestions for effective management of several of the most common invasive culprits will be provided. The talk is part of the Mass Aggie Seminar Series, and you may register and pay ($50) on line at https://classic.regonline.com/builder/site/?eventid=1670276.

  • Saturday, March 28, 9:30 am – 5:00 pm, and Sunday, March 29, 10:00 am – 4:00 pm – Mineral, Jewelry & Fossil Show

    The Connecticut Valley Mineral Club celebrates its Diamond Jubilee with a Mineral, Jewelry & Fossil Show on Saturday and Sunday, March 28 & 29, at the Clarion Hotel & Conference Center, 1 Atwood Drive in Northampton.  Show hours are Saturday, 9:30 – 5, and Sunday, 10 – 4.  The Club is a non profit organization supporting science education.  Free rock and mineral identification will be offered during the show by the University of Massachusetts Geology Department.  Admission $5 per person, 12 and under free with adult.  For more information and directions visit www.cvmineralclub.org.

  • Friday, March 27, 12:20 pm – 1:10 pm – Red Foxes in the Arid Steppes of Mongolia: Ecology of a Declining Carnivore and Impacts of Landscape Change

    The University of Massachusetts Amherst College of Natural Sciences announces the Department of Environmental Conservation Spring 2015 Seminar Series, to be held Fridays from 12:20 – 1:10 in Holdsworth Hall Room 105.  On Friday, March 27 hear James Murdoch of University of Vermont discuss Red Foxes in the Arid Steppes of Mongolia: Ecology of a Declining Carnivore and Impacts of Landscape Change.  For more information contact Brett Butler at bbutler@eco.umass.edu.

  • Friday, March 13, 12:20 pm – 1:10 pm – Conservation Hydropower

    The University of Massachusetts Amherst College of Natural Sciences announces the Department of Environmental Conservation Spring 2015 Seminar Series, to be held Fridays from 12:20 – 1:10 in Holdsworth Hall Room 105. On Friday, March 13, Joerg Hartmann will discuss Conservation Hydropower. For more information contact Brett Butler at bbutler@eco.umass.edu.

  • Wednesday, March 4, 7:00 pm – Unnatural Selection

    Join author Emily Monosson at Porter Square Books, 25 White Street (Porter Square Shopping Center in Cambridge) on Wednesday, March 4 at 7 pm for a discussion on her latest book Unnatural Selection: How We are Changing Life, Gene by Gene.

    Gonorrhea. Bed bugs. Weeds. Salamanders. People. All are evolving, some surprisingly rapidly, in response to our chemical age. In Unnatural Selection, Emily Monosson shows how our drugs, pesticides, and pollution are exerting intense selection pressure on all manner of species. And we humans might not like the result.  Monosson reveals that the very code of life is more fluid than once imagined. When our powerful chemicals put the pressure on to evolve or die, beneficial traits can sweep rapidly through a population. Species with explosive population growth — the bugs, bacteria, and weeds — tend to thrive, while bigger, slower-to-reproduce creatures, like ourselves, are more likely to succumb.

    Monosson explores contemporary evolution in all its guises. She examines the species that we are actively trying to beat back, from agricultural pests to life-threatening bacteria, and those that are collateral damage — creatures struggling to adapt to a polluted world. Monosson also presents cutting-edge science on gene expression, showing how environmental stressors are leaving their mark on plants, animals, and possibly humans for generations to come.

    Unnatural Selection is eye-opening and more than a little disquieting. But it also suggests how we might lessen our impact: manage pests without creating super bugs; protect individuals from disease without inviting epidemics; and benefit from technology without threatening the health of our children.

    Emily Monosson is an environmental toxicologist, writer, and consultant. She is an adjunct professor at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, author of Evolution in a Toxic World: How Life Responds to Chemical Threats, and editor of Motherhood: The Elephant in the Laboratory.

    For more information visit www.portersquarebooks.com.

  • Friday, February 20, 12:20 pm – 1:10 pm – Stream Ecosystem Functioning in Stressed Landscapes

    The University of Massachusetts Amherst College of Natural Sciences announces the Department of Environmental Conservation Spring 2015 Seminar Series, to be held Fridays from 12:20 – 1:10 in Holdsworth Hall Room 105.  On Friday, February 20 Cathy Gibson of Skidmore College will present Stream Ecosystem Functioning in Stressed Landscapes.  For additional information contact Brett Butler at bbutler@eco.umass.edu. Image from www.esciencenews.com.

  • Monday, November 4, 12:30 pm – 1:45 pm – Road to Paris via Warsaw

    The Fletcher School of Tufts University will hold a panel discussion on key issues in the lead up to the Warsaw Climate Change Conference.  The event will take place Monday, November 4, from 12:30 – 1:45 in Mugar 200 at The Fletcher School, and is hosted by CIERP’s Energy, Climate and Innovation Program.  The panel includes Kelly Sims Gallagher, chair, Director and Associatie Professor of Energy and Environmental Policy at The Fletcher School. Sivan Kartha, Senior Scientist at Stockholm Environment Institute, Gilbert Metcalf, Professor of Economics at Tufts University, and Mukul Sanwal, Visiting Scholar at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and former Advisor to the Executive Secretary of the UNFCCC.  A light lunch will be served. For more information visit http://fletcher.tufts.edu/CIERP/Events.

    http://unfccc.int/files/inc/graphics/image/jpeg/cop19_logo_173.jpg