Wednesday, December 22nd, 2010 by Geoff, Executive DirectorcloseAuthor: Geoff, Executive DirectorName: Geoffrey McQuilkin Title: Executive Director About: Geoff's goals for the Committee are: assuring Mono Lake's continuing protection, restoring Mono Lake's tributary streams, developing a permanent education program, and assuring that the strong tradition of scientific research at Mono Lake continues. A graduate of Harvard in the history of science, Geoff has worked for the Committee since 1992 and was an intern and volunteer before that. He's happy to live close to the lake with his wife Sarah and their daughters Caelen and Ellery.See All Posts by Geoffrey (97) Contact Geoffrey
Rays of light pierce winter storm clouds above Mill Creek and Mono Lake. Photo by Arya Degenhardt.
As the year draws to a close many non-profit organizations send out a snowstorm’s worth of emails requesting year-end donations. Here at the Mono Lake Committee we take a more modest approach, but the bottom line is the same:
Donations from members and friends are what power the Mono Lake Committee’s successful protection, restoration, education, and science programs.
Today—right now—is the perfect time to make a year end gift to benefit Mono Lake. We even make it easy to do online, plus we have fantastic limited-time thank you gifts.
Wednesday, December 22nd, 2010 by Geoff, Executive DirectorcloseAuthor: Geoff, Executive DirectorName: Geoffrey McQuilkin Title: Executive Director About: Geoff's goals for the Committee are: assuring Mono Lake's continuing protection, restoring Mono Lake's tributary streams, developing a permanent education program, and assuring that the strong tradition of scientific research at Mono Lake continues. A graduate of Harvard in the history of science, Geoff has worked for the Committee since 1992 and was an intern and volunteer before that. He's happy to live close to the lake with his wife Sarah and their daughters Caelen and Ellery.See All Posts by Geoffrey (97) Contact Geoffrey
Bacteria gathered at Mono Lake can substitute arsenic for phosphorus in their DNA, reported a NASA science team led by Dr. Felisa Wolfe-Simon earlier this December. The remarkable finding—no other organism on earth is known to do this—drew a huge amount of public attention worldwide (for example, see our wrap-up of network news coverage). It was pretty darn exciting for those of us here at Mono Lake as well, since we know many of the researchers and fielded a deluge of calls after the announcement.
The significance of this finding is tremendous. In short, it changes (more…)
Tuesday, December 14th, 2010 by Geoff, Executive DirectorcloseAuthor: Geoff, Executive DirectorName: Geoffrey McQuilkin Title: Executive Director About: Geoff's goals for the Committee are: assuring Mono Lake's continuing protection, restoring Mono Lake's tributary streams, developing a permanent education program, and assuring that the strong tradition of scientific research at Mono Lake continues. A graduate of Harvard in the history of science, Geoff has worked for the Committee since 1992 and was an intern and volunteer before that. He's happy to live close to the lake with his wife Sarah and their daughters Caelen and Ellery.See All Posts by Geoffrey (97) Contact Geoffrey
Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa has nominated a new General Manager for the Department of Water & Power, the Los Angeles Times reports.
Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa has selected a Seattle-based energy consultant to run the Department of Water and Power, offering him up as the sixth general manager to lead the agency since he took office.
Ron Nichols, managing director of the energy practice of Navigant Consulting Inc., was making the rounds of City Hall on Tuesday to discuss his nomination with City Council members, who will vote on the mayor’s choice.
Monday, December 6th, 2010 by Geoff, Executive DirectorcloseAuthor: Geoff, Executive DirectorName: Geoffrey McQuilkin Title: Executive Director About: Geoff's goals for the Committee are: assuring Mono Lake's continuing protection, restoring Mono Lake's tributary streams, developing a permanent education program, and assuring that the strong tradition of scientific research at Mono Lake continues. A graduate of Harvard in the history of science, Geoff has worked for the Committee since 1992 and was an intern and volunteer before that. He's happy to live close to the lake with his wife Sarah and their daughters Caelen and Ellery.See All Posts by Geoffrey (97) Contact Geoffrey
The Sacramento Bee editorialized Sunday on the remarkable announcement from NASA and Dr. Felisa Wolfe-Simon about arsenic-incorporating bacteria found here at Mono Lake.
And their take home point is a great one:
Her blockbuster discovery, fascinating by itself, also demonstrates the serendipity of science.
Mono Lake would not even exist in anything close to its current form but for the efforts of environmental and conservation groups. In 1941, the Los Angeles Aqueduct reached into the Mono Lake basin, diverting most of its inflow. By 1982, the lake level dropped by 45 feet, the lake lost half its volume, and its salinity doubled.
The Mono Lake Committee, the National Audubon Society and others went to court, and the State Water Resources Control Board ordered the lake’s restoration.
Monday, December 6th, 2010 by Geoff, Executive DirectorcloseAuthor: Geoff, Executive DirectorName: Geoffrey McQuilkin Title: Executive Director About: Geoff's goals for the Committee are: assuring Mono Lake's continuing protection, restoring Mono Lake's tributary streams, developing a permanent education program, and assuring that the strong tradition of scientific research at Mono Lake continues. A graduate of Harvard in the history of science, Geoff has worked for the Committee since 1992 and was an intern and volunteer before that. He's happy to live close to the lake with his wife Sarah and their daughters Caelen and Ellery.See All Posts by Geoffrey (97) Contact Geoffrey
Many news sources around the globe have written about the Mono Lake bacteria discovery by NASA and lead researcher Felisa Wolfe-Simon (read more on the discovery here on the Mono-logue).
The ability of the remarkable GFAJ-1 bacterium to use arsenic instead of phosphorus in its DNA is unmatched by any other known organism and changes the fundamental knowledge about what comprises all known life on Earth.
Friday, December 3rd, 2010 by Geoff, Executive DirectorcloseAuthor: Geoff, Executive DirectorName: Geoffrey McQuilkin Title: Executive Director About: Geoff's goals for the Committee are: assuring Mono Lake's continuing protection, restoring Mono Lake's tributary streams, developing a permanent education program, and assuring that the strong tradition of scientific research at Mono Lake continues. A graduate of Harvard in the history of science, Geoff has worked for the Committee since 1992 and was an intern and volunteer before that. He's happy to live close to the lake with his wife Sarah and their daughters Caelen and Ellery.See All Posts by Geoffrey (97) Contact Geoffrey
The news of NASA’s Mono Lake bacteria discovery is being reported extensively worldwide (read more on the discovery here on the Mono-logue).
The ability of the remarkable GFAJ-1 bacterium to use arsenic instead of phosphorus in its DNA is unmatched by any other known organism and changes the fundamental knowledge about what comprises all known life on Earth. This has been an exciting day here at the Mono Lake Committee–and we’re sure proud that decades of citizen effort to protect Mono Lake have assured a place for this incredible discovery to happen!
Here’s a wrap-up of today’s network news coverage. And don’t miss the fantastic scenic Mono Lake film footage in the promo for the Mono Lake Committee’s film that is in production.
NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams
CNN (includes interview with lead researcher Felisa Wolfe-Simon) (more…)
Thursday, December 2nd, 2010 by Geoff, Executive DirectorcloseAuthor: Geoff, Executive DirectorName: Geoffrey McQuilkin Title: Executive Director About: Geoff's goals for the Committee are: assuring Mono Lake's continuing protection, restoring Mono Lake's tributary streams, developing a permanent education program, and assuring that the strong tradition of scientific research at Mono Lake continues. A graduate of Harvard in the history of science, Geoff has worked for the Committee since 1992 and was an intern and volunteer before that. He's happy to live close to the lake with his wife Sarah and their daughters Caelen and Ellery.See All Posts by Geoffrey (97) Contact Geoffrey
With this morning’s press conference concluded, NASA has released a statement on the tremendous findings made by Felisa Wolfe-Simon and her NASA team. Wow—certainly another reason why Mono Lake is worth saving.
Check out the feature on NASA’s website and the statement below.
Dec. 02, 2010
RELEASE: 10-320
NASA-FUNDED RESEARCH DISCOVERS LIFE BUILT WITH TOXIC CHEMICAL
WASHINGTON -- NASA-funded astrobiology research has changed the
fundamental knowledge about what comprises all known life on Earth. (more...)
Wednesday, December 1st, 2010 by Geoff, Executive DirectorcloseAuthor: Geoff, Executive DirectorName: Geoffrey McQuilkin Title: Executive Director About: Geoff's goals for the Committee are: assuring Mono Lake's continuing protection, restoring Mono Lake's tributary streams, developing a permanent education program, and assuring that the strong tradition of scientific research at Mono Lake continues. A graduate of Harvard in the history of science, Geoff has worked for the Committee since 1992 and was an intern and volunteer before that. He's happy to live close to the lake with his wife Sarah and their daughters Caelen and Ellery.See All Posts by Geoffrey (97) Contact Geoffrey
“an astrobiology finding that will impact the search for evidence of extraterrestrial life. Astrobiology is the study of the origin, evolution, distribution and future of life in the universe.”
Internet discussion is abuzz and many speculations expect the announcement to include Mono Lake, in particular discussion of arsenic-loving bacteria within the lake, perhaps a newly discovered species. We’ll wait for the announcement, but Mono Lake’s bacterial residents may well reveal that entirely new and unexpected forms of life are possible on other planets.
More news as we hear it. The press conference is scheduled for December 2, 2010 at 2:00 pm Eastern Time (that’s 11am to us Mono Lake folks). Oh, and though many media reports are saying Mono Lake is within Yosemite National Park, don’t forget that the lake actually lies just outside the popular park, right in the heart of the Mono Basin National Forest Scenic Area!
Wednesday, November 17th, 2010 by Geoff, Executive DirectorcloseAuthor: Geoff, Executive DirectorName: Geoffrey McQuilkin Title: Executive Director About: Geoff's goals for the Committee are: assuring Mono Lake's continuing protection, restoring Mono Lake's tributary streams, developing a permanent education program, and assuring that the strong tradition of scientific research at Mono Lake continues. A graduate of Harvard in the history of science, Geoff has worked for the Committee since 1992 and was an intern and volunteer before that. He's happy to live close to the lake with his wife Sarah and their daughters Caelen and Ellery.See All Posts by Geoffrey (97) Contact Geoffrey
Two young Monophiles enjoy the Mono Lake Tufa State Natural Reserve at Old Marina. Photo by Arya Degenhardt.
After the disappointing failure of Proposition 21 in early November, many people are wondering: what’s next for California’s state parks? Here in the Mono Basin, we are particularly concerned about the Mono Lake Tufa State Natural Reserve and nearby Bodie State Historic Park. (more…)
Monday, October 4th, 2010 by Geoff, Executive DirectorcloseAuthor: Geoff, Executive DirectorName: Geoffrey McQuilkin Title: Executive Director About: Geoff's goals for the Committee are: assuring Mono Lake's continuing protection, restoring Mono Lake's tributary streams, developing a permanent education program, and assuring that the strong tradition of scientific research at Mono Lake continues. A graduate of Harvard in the history of science, Geoff has worked for the Committee since 1992 and was an intern and volunteer before that. He's happy to live close to the lake with his wife Sarah and their daughters Caelen and Ellery.See All Posts by Geoffrey (97) Contact Geoffrey
Here at the Committee office we’re very excited to see nine wonderful solar panels covering the roof of our “ice house” office building! It’s a group project with big thank yous going out to Committee members for financial support for the project and to Jim, TJ, and Isabel at Sierra Solar (760-937-0307) for donating their installation labor. The Sierra Solar team was fast and efficient as you can see from this time-lapse video!
