| Empathy and Compassion for the Common Good Universe Forelaws, Meaning and Purpose Cosmic Genealogy and Climate Change Launching a Compassionate/Cooperative Global Society on Earth The Forelaws Party and Albedoism From United Nations to United Albedo Regions The Cosmic Community of Intelligent Life "the human brain is the most complex and orderly arrangement of matter in the universe." - Isaac Asimov (1920-1992), professor of biochemistry at Boston University, USA. (describes that of all intelligent life in the cosmic community of intelligent life). "We don’t expect perfection from ourselves or others; this is a process and we know that people can improve." - Citizen's Climate Lobby. "We believe in a safe climate and a better future — a just, prosperous, and equitable world built with the power of ordinary people." - 350.org. Every 230 million years Earth, its inhabitants and the Sun (our star) orbit the center of the Milky Way Galaxy. The Milky Way is the galactic home of humankind and untold numbers of fellow counterparts - many far more advanced than humankind respecting empathy and compassion for the common good - Universe forelaws, meaning and purpose - as a cause, norm and way forward on all planets with intelligent life. "This focus on altruism for message content has several advantages." - Douglas Vakoch, President, METI (Messaging Extraterrestrial Intelligence) International. "SIMPLY PUT, the common good is the well-being of a community considered as a whole. Pursuing the common good involves thinking about how the various parts and their interrelationships can be maintained, developed, and corrected so that the whole community flourishes in a way that enhances the well-being of its various parts." - from Defining "Common Good" in the Digital World, by Deanna B. Marcum, ITHAKA, USA. Cosmic genealogy . . . in which, from infinity to infinity, cosmic dissemination of intelligent life by intelligent life (CDIL) sustains empathy and compassion for the common good . . . occurs in a setting where no two star systems with intelligent life in terms of solar radiation are exactly the same - a phenomenon explaining intelligent life "races" before amalgamation. Aimed at ensuring conscious human participation in CDIL, evolutionary science (which includes evolutionary psychology) continues progress made by astronomers Sir Fred Hoyle (1915-2001) and Chandra Wickramasinghe whose pioneering investigation in the 1970/80s of organic matter in space gave birth to the science discipline astrobiology (merging astronomy and biology). Chandra Wickramasinghe is currently director of Buckingham Centre for Astrobiology, UK, focused primarily on the role of comets and related materials (including cosmic dust) as apparent/specific DNA carriers. Since 1996 notable progress in astrobiology has been chronicled by Brig Klyce, author of Cosmic Ancestry and the website Cosmic Ancestry (Life Comes From Space Because Life Comes From Life). "When Jon (Jon Larsen, Project Stardust) first came to me I was dubious. Many people had reported finding cosmic dust in urban areas before, but when they were analysed scientists found that these particles were all industrial in origin." – Matthew Genge, Department of Earth Science and Engineering, Imperial College London. "This was our first view of the comet dust. We are the first people in the history of the planet to see comet dust." - Donald Brownlee, Cosmic Dust Group, Department of Astronomy, University of Washington. "To suppose that Earth is the only populated world in infinite space is as absurd to believe that in an entire field sown with millet, only one grain will grow." - Metrodorus of Chios (Greek Philosopher, Fourth Century BC. "In less than 20 years, we have gone from not knowing if any other planets exist in the universe, to being able to look out at the night sky and realize that essentially any star we can see has at least one planet, and a good number of those are likely to be habitable." - Alan Boss, Science Working Group, NASA Kepler Mission. "The historian of science may be tempted to claim that when paradigms change, the world itself changes with them." - from The Structure of Scientific Revolutions (Thomas S. Kuhn, 1962, 2nd ed. 1970). ---------------------------------------------------- "The solar energy reflected from Earth is a fundamental component of the Earth’s energy balance, and processes that define the albedo of Earth are of elementary relevance to the Earth’s climate . . . Joint analyses of surface solar flux data that are a complicated mix of measurements and model calculations with top-of-atmosphere (TOA) flux measurements from current orbiting satellites yield a number of surprising results . . . " - The Albedo of Earth, from Reviews of Geophysics, March 2015. "Location, topography, and the exchange of radiant energy between the sun and Earth ultimately determine weather" (from Retrieval of Surface Albedo from Space, December, 2002.) - John Maurer, University of Hawaii at Manoa. Terra Mission (NASA, 1999) . . . "carries five instruments that observe Earth's atmosphere, ocean, land, snow and ice, and energy budget. Taken together, these observations provide unique insight into how the Earth system works and how it is changing." On Earth, curtailment of fossil fuels production and usage, and carbon emissions reduction generally, remain prerequisite and a credible starting point for successfully addressing climate change through planetary albedoism. Climate change addressed by optimizing planet atmosphere and surface reflectivity of solar radiation (referred to as planetary albedo) for benign/relative stability in weather and climate - i.e. planetary albedoism - describes the pathway beyond 194 nation-states to a compassionate/cooperative global society. Progenitor of United Albedo Regions on Earth, planetary albedoism brings together and unifies - purposively and meaningfully for the common good (among other life and non-life components) - geopolitical science, the plant kingdom, atmospheric and planetary sciences, civil engineering, architecture with buildings no higher than three floors, urban and rural planning, materials technology (development of materials changing color with temperature changes), desalination. Planetary< albedoism stabilizes climate change ranging from droughts to ice ages (taking into account desertification, floods, tornadoes, hurricanes, lightning-induced wildland fires, subsidence); at the same time recognizing and responding remediably to (by neutralizing and phasing-out) nuclear weapons/energy vulnerability to climate change, to natural disasters, and to global terrorism - compounded by nuclear waste disposal. The next ideological and geopolitical era and an all-important step toward the age of empathy and compassion on Earth - highlighting the potential of global sisterhood - united albedo regions takes humanity beyond nationalism, militarism, war, nuclear weapons/energy, racism, global terrorism, and capitalism . . . to a cooperative global society characterized by empathy and compassion, and the common good. Among associations not specifically committed but relevant in the movement to united albedo regions is Washington Geoengineering Consortium at American University, Washington, DC, USA. - "In this effort, we convene and report on meetings, invite written and other contributions both from important figures representing the full spectrum of views on geoengineering, and support robust public and civil society interactions . . . The definition and use of the term ‘geoengineering’ is not fully agreed upon, and given what is at stake, can be contentious." -------------------------------------------------------- "This Pope has become a figure like Gandhi, or President John F. Kennedy, going beyond their own cultural surroundings." (concerning climate change) - V. Ramanathan, Director, Center for Clouds, Chemistry and Climate, UC San Diego, USA “After I had given just a few talks about the climate, I realized that the actions I was suggesting to my listeners to take, while essential, were not a match for the problem." - Marshall Saunders, Founder and President, Citizens' Climate Lobby. "Global warming is no longer a philosophical threat, no longer a future threat, no longer a threat at all. It's our reality." - Bill McKibben, Co-Founder, 350.org "a globally-recognized expert on helping disparate interests find common ground on energy, public policy, and the environment" - recounts the work of Mark Reynolds, Executive Director, Citizens' Climate Lobby. "Among U.S. states, Maryland, Virginia, and DC are exceptionally vulnerable to climate change. The states have more than 5,000 miles of Chesapeake and Atlantic shoreline, almost every inch of which would be degraded or inundated completely by the projected sea-level rise of up to three feet." - Chesapeake Climate Action Network. -------------------------------------------------------- Empathy and compassion unites past, present and future generations of intelligent life in the cosmic community of intelligent life. Ethnicity revisited, astrobiology and discovery thus far of over 4000 exoplanets, the growth of veganism, and the emerging forelaws party are exemplars of empathy and compassion on Earth. Challenges for forelawsism moving humanity to united albedo regions and CDIL - headed by war, terrorism, racism, capitalism - include nuclear weapons/energy disposal - problematic overpopulation - ample freshwater and food - fossil fuels elimination - making obsolete international trade wars - energy conservation with solar energy available on a global grid - natural (unmodified)/organic foods such as stevia, a plant replacing refined sugars - future activism in CDIL - digital direct democracy - accelerated desalination (freshwater from seawater) - globalizing industrial hemp production, total recycling and land-fill disappearance. "We believe we as a country can be a trailblazer for a new age of renewable energy sources," - German Chancellor Angela Merkel (on phase-out of nuclear energy). "Several states have used civilian nuclear reactors as a cover to make nuclear weapons. The "spent fuel" waste produced by a civilian reactor contains plutonium that, if separated out, can be used to make a bomb." Graham Allison, Nuclear Terrorism, USA. "Despite the end of the Cold War over two decades ago, humanity still has over 15,000 nuclear weapons. Some of these are hundreds of times more powerful than those that obliterated Hiroshima and Nagasaki . . . " - Future of Life Institute. "We should phase out all (nuclear) plants beginning with those that are close to heavily populated areas." - Larry Bogart (1914-1991), Coordinator, Citizens Energy Council. "Other nations, such as Germany, are increasing renewable energy sources, while creating jobs, as they phase out nuclear energy and seek to reduce carbon emissions.” - Lloyd Marbet, anti-nuclear and peace activist. --------------------------------------------------------------------- Universe forelaws, meaning and purpose manifest in early emergence of the Forelaws Party - advancing empathy and compassion for the common good - reflects evolving science and society at a critical time for humanity and all life on Earth. The forelaws party prioritizes empathy and compassion in conflict resolution, in education, science and technology, in energy, economics and politics, in animal rights - with proper emphasis on creative/productive employment availability, public-supported quality health care, public-supported education at all levels, and public-funded quality housing. The forelaws party and the democrathon process concentrate as well on benign/relative stability in weather and climate - consolidating the movement to united albedo regions. "We must move forward together, as one, in a renewed spirit of fraternity and solidarity, cooperating generously for the common good." - Pope Francis, speaking to the United States Congress. “These scientific studies countervail the influential claims of the Kants, Nietzsches, and Rands about the nature of human goodness." - Dacher Keltner, author of "Born to be Good: The Science of a Meaningful Life" and co-founder of Greater Good Science Center, UC Berkeley, CA, USA. Part and parcel of naturalist Nature (everything is connected to everything else), intelligent life remains a gift with indefinable promise and potential for empathy and compassion for the common. Cosmic genealogy and CDIL explaining "races" - early emergency of the forelaws party, albedoism and united albedo regions (responding to climate change uniting all humanity - with every flower and tree contributing to planetary benign, relative stability in weather and climate) - the democrathon process - freshwater from seawater - Cosmic Ancestry - Buckingham Centre for Astrobiology - and Global Sisterhood - both inspires and symbolizes the potentiality and destiny of humankind . . . and the beginning of a compassionate/cooperative global society on Earth. "Worldwide concerns can no longer be addressed effectively without acknowledging the centrality of half of humanity to solving them." - The Sisterhood is Global Institute. "It (darwinism) proclaimed that our true relation is that of competitors and combatants in a struggle for mere survival . . ." - George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950), socialist, author, playwright, vegetarian. The cosmic community of intelligent life translates into empathy and compassion for the common good, settling the question of why the Universe and intelligent life exist. Forelaws on Board forelaws_on_board@forelawsonboard.net www.forelawsonboard.net/ Residents of Beijing, China's capital, could be drinking freshwater from desalinated seawater within five years. As part of China's eleventh five-year plan, this source could become a main supply in efforts to deal with the water shortage (National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) People's Republic of China.) The current growth rate of desalination at coastal locations bodes well for direct transport of freshwater from seawater to inland points such as Beijing. Mandated and coordinated by progressive efforts the world over, dramatically accelerated, expanded and sustained seawater desalination - receiving important impetus from the International Desalination Association - aims at (1) globally plentiful freshwater and food surpluses, (2) relief for low-lying communities vulnerable to sea-level rise, (3) favorably enlarged land mass/biomass (4) replenishment of aquifers with significantly increased freshwater storage in belowground areas including those where once resided coal and petroleum. "A UK researcher (Philip Davies, Aston University) has proposed a new process to decompose waste desalination brine using solar energy that could allow desalination plants to act as a sink rather than a source of atmospheric carbon dioxide, and help to neutralise ocean acidity." - Chemistry World, 22 January 2015. Global freshwater from seawater envisages a growing network of overland pipelines (new &/or converted to freshwater use) carrying freshwater from desalination plants - and from seaports (forwarding points for freshwater transported by tanker ships) - to interior locations for local and regional needs including irrigation and replenishment of aquifers. Interport transportation of freshwater converted from seawater can be expected to take advantage of surplus marine tanker capacity coincident with ongoing trends to green energy sources. The same is true concerning existing overland pipelines (in the future a medium for the transport of freshwater) now used in moving petroleum and petroleum products. "CAMBRIDGE, Mass. — A new approach to desalination being developed by researchers at MIT and in South Korea could lead to small, portable desalination units that could be powered by solar cells or batteries and could deliver enough fresh water to supply the needs of a family or small village. As an added bonus, the system would also remove many contaminants, viruses and bacteria at the same time." . . . . . Source: “Direct Seawater Desalination by Ion Concentration Polarization,” by Sung Jae Kim, Sung Hee Ko, Kwan Hyoung Kang, and Jongyoon Han. Nature Nanotechnology, March 21, 2010. - from MIT News 23 March 2010. ". . . we have found a way to make a membrane (for use in seawater desalination) that can produce higher amounts of water compared to the commercial membranes being used today, while using the same process." - Mohammed Rasool Qtaishat, Water for All. "Concerns about global warming, energy consumption and increased demand for potable water sources are causing a dramatic expansion of the desalination industry. These changes present an exciting opportunity for IDA to play a more centralized role in speaking for the industry to increase public awareness of the many benefits of desalination, including drought-proof reliability, expandability, availability and potentially unlimited production." Lisa Henthorne, International Desalination Association. ------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "Vote Hemp seeks the full normalization of and a free market for industrial hemp in America. Vote Hemp's mission is to educate consumers, business owners, farmers and legislators about the many benefits of industrial hemp and to mobilize voters to elect pro-hemp politicians. Hemp is one of the few issues on the national debate that enjoys tremendous bipartisan and cross-cultural support. Democrats, Libertarians, Progressives, Greens and Republicans, farmers and hippies, global corporations and small mom-and-pop businesses are all part of the broad coalition in favor of industrial hemp.Vote Hemp seeks the full normalization of and a free market for industrial hemp in America. Vote Hemp's mission is to educate consumers, business owners, farmers and legislators about the many benefits of industrial hemp and to mobilize voters to elect pro-hemp politicians. Hemp is one of the few issues on the national debate that enjoys tremendous bipartisan and cross-cultural support. Democrats, Libertarians, Progressives, Greens and Republicans, farmers and hippies, global corporations and small mom-and-pop businesses are all part of the broad coalition in favor of industrial hemp." Vote Hemp, Inc. P.O. Box 1571 Brattleboro, VT 05302 Email: hempinfo@votehemp.com. Any product made from petroleum (not excluding high octane gasoline and plastics) can be made from industrial hemp. Industrial hemp seeds can produce food such as bread, hempburgers, milk and ice cream. Hemp fiberboard has been demonstrated to be twice the strength of wood fiberboard. "Hempcrete" blocks, "lighter, stronger and easier to work with than masonry concrete", have been manufactured at the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota (start-up costs were under $10,000.00.) As humanity transitions to albedoism and united albedo regions products made from industrial hemp - and industrial hemp itself as a growing plant - will make a major contribution. A plant requiring no genetic modification, industrial hemp can be cultivated with and without irrigation in countries like Afghanistan, Columbia, Mexico, and the USA - and processed into upwards of 10,000 useful products which include paper, food and building materials. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Forerunner of digital direct democracy, the democrathon process ("people power") - functioning in unison with the Initiative and Referendum currently available in some form in 24 States in the USA and continuing to grow globally (with prospects and efficacy significantly more practicable and widespread since the advent of Internet communication) - is a strategic and effective political-educational-fundraising tool, instrumental as a cornerstone of the emerging forelaws party. DEMOCRATHONS ("people power") can achieve important changes in controversial areas where legislatures have failed to act for the common good. To be an educational tool with maximum citizen participation for the common good (both within and beyond the political jurisdiction of the considered Initiative) a commensurate forum is necessary. To be successful at the polls and for carrying out stated goals for the common good (both within and beyond the political jurisdiction of the considered Initiative) a commensurate funding device is needed. DEMOCRATHON fundraising centers on the generation of pledges/contributions per each l,000 valid signatures needed to place subject Initiative or Referendum on the ballot, that is, $.50, or $l.00, or $5.00, or $l0.00 . . . per each l,000 valid signatures. Contributors include private citizens of all ages, public/private organizations, corporations, schools, churches, and others. Signature collectors are the lifeblood of direct/participatory democracy and their contribution in the framing of DEMOCRATHONS is earnestly solicited. The democrathon process is designed to promote and enact common good legislation while at the same time furthering worthy causes of contributors, in addition to those of subject DEMOCRATHONS - through both education and funding (provided by monies over and above DEMONCRATHON costs). MODEL - DRAFT COPY ONLY - MODEL Note: The DEMOCRATHON as proposed below underscores the educational aspect of DEMOCRATHONS (key to issue education and voter approval), e.g. "Location, topography, and the exchange of radiant energy between the sun and Earth ultimately determine weather" (from Retrieval of Surface Albedo from Space, December, 2002.) - Dr. John Maurer, University of Hawaii at Manoa. (______) DEMOCRATHON 2015/16 (Planetary Albedoism) Add to preamble of State Constitution: "The people of the State of _______, in order to ensure resident awareness of generational monitoring, adjustment, and refinement of the atmosphere/surface of Earth (for reflectivity of solar radiation conducive and basic to benign energy/weather/climate stability, i.e. albedoism), do, accordingly, call upon the _______ Legislative Assembly to commit to such funding at all levels of education (and in all age groups) as may be appropriate to advance human societal evolution beyond nation-states to albedoism and United Albedo Regions on Earth." Targeted valid signatures _______. Valid signatures collected ________. --------------------------------------------------- Disbursement of Surplus Monies (Over and above DEMOCRATHON Costs). $_______________For Recipient ________________________________________ $______________ For Recipient ________________________________________ $______________ For Recipient ________________________________________ $_______________For Recipient ________________________________________ $_______________For Recipient ________________________________________ $______________ For repeat DEMOCRATHON in event Initiative is not qualified, or is unsuccessful at the polls. $______________Toward (a) establishment of Initiative and Referendum where not currently available in USA and (b) toward a fund for I&R development nationally and internationally. Forelaws on Board forelaws_on_board@forelawsonboard.net www.forelawsonboard.net/ "That leads me to my next point, which is how we can more broadly engage each of you – students, educators, researchers, engineers, and the larger academic community – in our nation's cybersecurity efforts. To meet the challenges I've discussed, DHS needs a world-class cybersecurity team – a strong, dependable pipeline for the future." - Janet Napolitano, former Secretary, Department of Homeland Security, at San Jose State University, April 16, 2012. "This is one of the defining battles of our age, one that takes place for the most part out of the public eye." - Mark Bowden, author of Worm: The First Digital World War (Atlantic Monthly Press, 2011.) "The first law of ecology is that everything is related to everything else" - Barry Commoner (1917-2012), author of The Closing Circle. ". . . to understand how our knowledge about the brain maps onto the world we live in, and how we can structure things at a government level . . . to make a better place, given the knowledge we have." - David Eagleman, Baylor College of Medicine, USA. "A scientific and lay community that understands the neural basis for empathy and compassion and uses newly developed insights and tools to create methods to enhance the ability of humans to practice these mental states." - Center for Empathy and Compassion, University of California at San Diego, USA. "A human being is part of the whole, called by us "Universe," a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts and feelings as something separated from the rest - a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest to us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty." - Albert Einstein. "You would then want to draw on research findings from a wide range of disciplines to try to determine the kinds of interventions with the greatest likelihood of success in pushing the system in this direction." - from Compassionate System Design, by author Jonathan Leighton. "To realize we are all in the same boat and need to walk in each other's shoes." - Edwin Rutsch, founder and director of Center for Building a Culture of Empathy, USA. “Love and compassion are necessities, not luxuries. Without them, humanity cannot survive.” – His Holiness the Dalai Lama. “…respect for oneself, understanding and compassion for others, and a sense of responsibility for the world, its citizens and its future.” - Mary Gordon, founder of Roots of Empathy and author of Roots of Empathy: Changing the World, Child by Child (2005.) "We have discussed five modes of using mathematics as a tool which partly overlap and are partly heterogeneous in kind. The instrumental use of mathematics is not governed by a single scheme. Rather, the heterogeneity of tools and of tool usages teaches a lesson about the limits of mathematization." - from Mathematics as a Tool, by Johannes Lenhard and Martin Carrier, Philosophy Department, Bielefeld University, 2/2015. ". . . . . I believe a non-Platonist position gives us greater freedom of thought. If we accept that mathematics is invented, rather than discovered, we can be more daring, ask deeper questions, and be motivated to create further change." - Derek Abbott, University of Adelaide, Australia, from "Is Mathematics Invented or Discovered?" (Huffpost Science, 9/13/2013). “A man can do what he wants, but not want what he wants.” - Arthur Schopenhauer. "Even though we can't conceive of the number of stars in the Milky Way or the number of neurons in the human brain, equating the two gives people a sense of enormity. And as conscious beings we like to find patterns, and we find equivalencies interesting, especially when the things being equated are "important" or "epic" (like neurons and stars)." - Scitable by Nature Education. "It would be good to prevent the vast suffering and countless violent deaths caused by predation." - Jeff McMahan, Department of Philosophy, University of Oxford, UK. "The initiative already has led to six completed science textbooks in Tibetan and English, with two more textbooks in various stages of completion." - from the Robert A. Paul Emory-Tibet Science Initiative, Emory University, USA. "I suspect that the cosmic quality of microbiology will seem as obvious to future generations as the Sun being the centre of the solar system seems obvious to the present generation" - Sir Fred Hoyle (1915-2001) - "The Relation of Biology to Astronomy". "I endorse wholeheartedly The Forelaws Principle" - Brig Klyce, Director, Astrobiology Research Trust, USA. "Win-win sees life as a cooperative arena, not a competitive one. Win-win is a frame of mind and heart that constantly seeks mutual benefit in all human interactions." - Author Steven R. Covey (1932-2012.) “From the right to know and the duty to inquire flows the obligation to act.” - Sandra Steingraber ("Rachel Carson of the 21st Century"), author of Living Downstream (1997, 2010.) "Selecting and implementing a common language will be a major development not only for the nearly 500 million people of the EU, but also for the more than 6 billion people who populate the rest of the world." - Author Philip Yaffe. "The globalization process has brought great opportunities as well as new challenges, especially within communication:" - The Future Global Language. ". . . Which then means that everyone has their own perception or version of `reality'. That's because each of us `physically' perceives the external world slightly differently, and each of us carries a unique baggage of a life-time's concepts and assumptions which further influence those perceptions." - Ray Dickenson, Editor, Perceptions. "There is no such thing as a B12 deficiency, even in 100% raw vegan food eaters. They do not have to eat dirt, animal products, or take pills to secure coenzymes of B12. Bacteria in the intestinal tract make it for us, and the metabolically usable and necessary forms of coenzyme B12 are contained in unprocessed, fresh natural plant foods, particularly in nuts and seeds. The real problem in so-called B12 deficiency is a failure of digestion and absorption of foods, rather than a deficiency of the vitamin itself . . ." - Virginia Vetrano, D.C., M.D., D.Sc. "We are particularly interested in the science of prosocial emotions, including moral elevation, compassion, empathy, and altruism." - The Saturn Lab, Sarina Saturn, Director, Oregon State University, USA. "We may have different religions, different languages, different colored skin, but we all belong to one human race." - Kofi Annan, former United Nations Secretary-General. "D. But greatest of all would be the effect upon our ethical and aesthetic culture if we made ourselves consistent with that primate nature which was built over long ages into our very genes. We have tried to operate a church and a schoolhouse at one end of the street and a slaughterhouse at the other, to fill our minds with kindness and our stomachs with tortured flesh; to teach peace and eat like beasts of prey. But we have overlooked the moral in the story of Diomedes. Each generation has run amok and torn us to pieces in turn for the ugly lies which it has been taught - viz. that animals must be killed for food and people for military objectives." - from The Recovery of Culture (Diet and War) by Henry Bailey Stevens, 1949. "As a joint initiative between the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and NASA . . . . . Landsat represents the world's longest continuously acquired collection of space-based moderate-resolution land remote sensing data. Four decades of imagery provides a unique resource for those who work in agriculture, geology, forestry, regional planning, education, mapping, and global change research. Landsat images are also invaluable for emergency response and disaster relief." - NASA Landsat Science. "USGS LCI (Land Cover Institute) is a focal point for advancing the science, knowledge, and applications of land use and land cover information." - USGS LCI, USA. "The dialogue is now shifting gears from climate science to climate action. There's still a lot we need to learn about the science, but the events of the past year have ended much of the lingering debate and controversy." - Jane Lubchenco, former administrator of The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 2009 to 2013; currently a distinguished professor in the department of integrative biology at Oregon State University, while serving as adviser to the university on marine studies issues. "I look forward to working with the Steering Committee, Second Nature, and our growing network of universities and colleges to tackle society's most difficult climate challenges." - President Wim Wiewel, Portland State University, USA (Chair, Steering Committee, American College and University President's Climate Commitment.) "Life comes from space because life comes from life." - Brig Klyce, Director, Astrobiology Research Trust, USA. ". . . herald a new worldview that I hope will unite the many nations and races of people that inhabit our planet." - Chandra Wickramasinghe, Director, Buckingham Centre for Astrobiology, UK. "But the climaxing observation appeared in year 2002. How exceedingly ironic that 30 years after Fred Hoyle pointed to NGC 7603 as a crucial system which must force out acceptance of the existence of discordant redshifts - after a generation has passed - the luminous link between this active Seyfert and its appendage is observed to have two high redshift, quasar-like objects in it." - Halton C. Arp, American astronomer, Max Planck Institute for Astrophysics, and author of Seeing Red, Apeiron, 1998 (refuting "Big-Bang" theory). "Toward that end (veganism) Gentle World has served as a clearing house of information for nearly 40 years, helping children, teens and adults embrace a lifestyle that incorporates their values." "Whatever you can do . . . . . or believe you can . . . . . begin it Boldness has magic . . . . . power . . . . . and genius in it." Johnne Goethe Forelaws on Board forelaws_on_board@forelawsonboard.net www.forelawsonboard.net/ |