koalabunnybear - Tumblr blog

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Born to run

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iPad mini vs puppy mini?

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Puppy ecology. Sharpie for size or puppy for size?

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Vlog 7: there is a lot going on 

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Help me make a science vlog! Please :)

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Is it always sunny in the Netherlands? 

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Love is knowing he will be by my side no matter what happens. 

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We come to Fontainebleau for more than bouldering. This is what a whole weekend in the magical forest looks like...

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Vlog 2 :)

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Made my first vlog. A trip to the Dutch beach. We sure have missed the sunshine this winter

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Up, down and around

Suffering from depression never feels all down. Instead, it is a constant unpredictable roller coaster. Just when I think I know when to expect a heart stopping low, or a sweet high, everything swings sharply into a realm of feelings I wasn't yet aware of. 

When you are depressed it is not events or actions of others that bring you down, but your own internal negative voices. The worst bully is yourself because you know exactly what will hurt the most. What's more, negative thoughts are loud, so loud, and they are always on repeat; a hamster wheel of insult and hate. 

But sometimes there is a break. When the dark thoughts subside and I catch a wonderful glimpse of hope. I caught a break last week when I was searching through photos on my computer and came across this one. A selfie I sent to my boyfriend while I was away for a week. I look happy and at peace with myself. It sure didn't match the negative thoughts that were swirling around in my head. 

My mind went quiet. The photo issued a clear 'shut up!' to my negative voices. It said, "See, you are a lovely person, you do smile, you know how to enjoy life, you have so many things to be happy and grateful for! You have a wonderful family, friends all over the world, a great job with lots of free time to spend doing what you love and with the people you love. And you have found your person, a man who will love you and be with you no matter how loud the negative voices get."

I took a breath and enjoyed the moment. 

A single, true happy moment will trump every irrational, hateful thought. On dark days, hope may be hard to find, but I still hang on. I remind myself that this is a roller coaster, and no matter how down I feel, I will always come back up. 

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I don't just climb. By weekday I am a scientist- an ecologist. 

This week I am finishing up a proposal that will fund my stay in the Netherlands for a few more years. Prior to moving to the NIOO my studies and research focused primarily on microbes- the diversity and functional potential of all the tiny single celled organisms living in soils all over the world. I was very microbial focused and rarely incorporated plants into my research, even though obvioiusly plants are a critical component of the soil and our ecosystems! But at the NIOO I have expanded my work to include plant communities and this has been a great addition to my research. 

For this proposal we will explore the interactions between climate change, soil microbial communities and plant communities. One effect of climate change is increased drought events in the northern hemisphere. Europe is no stranger to extreme droughts in the summer, lasting 4, 5, or even 6 weeks. We know that, separately, drought is tough for plants and tough for soil microbes. Interestingly, not all plants are created equal, some do much better during a drought than other plants, and we think it is because of their close interactions with the soil microbes. I drew a picture of this (left), that I then made into a more fancy text book-like cartoon (right). 

So what if some plants do better than others when there is a drought?? The success of different plants can change biodiversity and even how ecosystems work (decomposing litter, cycling nutrients, etc). We are particularly interested in monitoring the plants that are moving ranges- meaning they used to only live in southern Europe but now are found all the way in the north. These range-expanding plants were able to move north with the help of climate change and humans, and in the northern communities can outcompete the original native plants and change biodiversity. 

How are the range-expanding plants doing so well in the north even with drought? Thats the questions we have set out to address. We think it has a lot to do with their interactions with the microbes. Either directly- where there aren't as many antagonistic fungi and bacteria that harass range-expanders. Or indirectly- where the nutrient cycling better supports range-expanders. We have designed a few large experiments to study the effects of drought on the microbial community and then we will test if changes to the microbes influence the success of the plants. 

Fingers crossed we get it funded! 

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So proud of Robin for sending two awesome boulders this weekend in Fontainebleau. Two very different boulders. Les Beaux Quartiers (8A): tension, overhang, crips, and slopers. Then at our last stop of the weekend Rainbow Rocket (8A): A huge dyno!  

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THE MAGIC OF FONTAINEBLEAU

The forest of Fontainebleau is a place of contradictions. It is all at once beautiful and cruel, calming and addicting, motivating and infuriating. 

It is fickle, with ever-fluctuating temperatures and humidity. The sandstone slopers and slippery feet are consistently stubborn. It will humble you when you least expect it (e.g. those 5s and 6s that start out as a warm-up but end up a project). 

At the same time the forest will never deter you from returning the next month. Instead, it will teach you patience. It will calm you in a way similar to the waves of the ocean. It will encourage you and push you to your highest potential. 

Therefore, you won't give up until you are either successful in your quest or destroyed, or both. You will return home without fingertips, with sore muscles and with satisfied exhaustion. You will dream about your next trip, about the moves you can and must make. You will relive the failures and convince yourself that the next time, you will succeed. 

Month after month, season after season the magic of the forest will call to you. And year after year you will find yourself returning. 

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Robin and I took an epic trip from AMS --> Iceland --> Denver --> Moab --> Vegas --> Bishop --> Santa Cruz --> San Fran --> Seattle and many more places in between here is the story and some nice photos. I made it in adobe slate- it was easy and fun to use. I hope to have more stories from our adventures this year! 

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31.7.15 Enjoy the summer sun. #NotreDame #paris #sunflowers