Sierra Journal

Happy Earth Day!

Happy Earth Day to all. I suggest we all take this day to do something for the planet. Even if it's just to take a moment to acknowledge it, its health, and its importance to all living beings. See below for the latest Repower America video from President Obama on closing the carbon pollution loophole with market-based caps - turning clean renewable energy into affordable and profitable energy. Makes a whole hell of a lot of sense to me!

Also check out the "I Blog for the Planet" ad campaign on the right. This is the One Million Acts of Green campaign (brought to you by Cisco). If you're a reader, please click on that badge, check it out and get involved if you so desire.

If you're a blogger, go to Typepad to embed the badge on your blog (there is code for all platforms). Six Apart (makers of Typepad, the software this blog is published on) will donate $1000 to The Climate Project for every 100k people who view this badge. Help them out!

Fight or Flight - What to Do in a Mountain Lion Encounter

It's a basic rule of the outdoors that's been repeated to every boyscout and Bay Area hiker since time immemorial. If you run into a mountain lion, stand your ground, look big, throw things.

Well, not so much, says a new study from UC Davis. Turns out under certain circumstances, running like hell might be your best bet.

So what should you do? Stand your Ground! No, wait. Run like hell! No, wait. Eh, who knows. Just pray it ain't hungry.

Via UC Davis:

A new UC Davis study of 110 years of mountain-lion attacks on people suggests the conventional wisdom of standing your ground may not always be the right course.

"Even though we found evidence that pumas will indeed chase, and capture, people who run, we also found that people who stand still are possibly more endangered," said the study's lead author, psychology professor Richard Coss, an expert on the evolution of predator-prey relationships.

"Immobility may be interpreted by the mountain lion as a sign that you are vulnerable prey, either because you are unaware of its presence, or because you are disabled and not capable of escaping."

Thus, running might be the smartest move, Coss concluded, if you are in a situation that allows you to run in a surefooted fashion with even strides -- for instance, on dry, flat ground rather than uneven, rocky terrain or deep snow.