Salmon in Scarborough: Back to Highland Creek

This piece, posted as part of my Wild City series, tells about salmon in Scarborough's Highland Creek, and is also a tribute to my dad.

http://bunchfamily.ca/highland-creek-salmon-run/

Just Breathe at the Riverdale Ponds

How often do you think about your breathing? How about your child's breathing?

Recently I thought about breathing quite a lot.

Read more at my latest Bunch post:
http://bunchfamily.ca/riverdale-ponds/

Photo: Debbie Buehler

Farewell Summer Dragonflies and Damselflies

I say farewell to this year's dragonflies and damselflies, and give out a few fun facts about these prehistoric creatures - like the fact that the secret of baby dragonfly hunting is butt propulsion!

Read the whole post here:
http://bunchfamily.ca/dragonflies-and-damselflies/

Photo: Ken Sproule

Feeling Nature Deficit? There is a program for that - K.I.W.I.

Feeling boxed in? Glued to a screen? Are your kids boxed in too? Check out this program that helps get Kids In The Woods! 

http://bunchfamily.ca/kids-in-the-woods-rouge-park/

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Photo: K.I.W.I. Kids in the Woods

Escape to the Lower Don: Crothers Woods

Need a bit more vacation? Discover the Lower Don Valley and hike Crothers Woods. I've written about out recent trip for Bunch.
http://bunchfamily.ca/escape-to-the-lower-don-crothers-woods/

The Toronto skyline as seen from Crothers Woods.

Miracle on Leslie Street: The Spit

Ever feel like you need a mental health break?

I've just written about one of my favorite escapes in Toronto.

http://bunchfamily.ca/leslie-street-spit/ …

Laser PRK, Parenting, and seeing my toes in the shower for the first time in years!

The P in PRK is for Patience - and for me it is also for Parenting. 

I write about my experience with laser PRK surgery here: http://bunchfamily.ca/p-is-for-patience/

 












PHOTO: RICHARD WILKINSON

Women’s contribution to science goes unheard

There shouldn't be symposium speaker line ups that look like this one from 1934, in 2013, but for many complicated reasons, there sill are.

The 9th Aircraft Engineering Research Conference, 1934. NASA

I posted for The Conversation UK on a recent article in the Journal of Evolutionary Biology. In a nutshell we showed that high quality science led by female academics is under-represented in comparison to that of their male counterparts and that this may have to do with men accepting more speaking invitations than women.

Why is this the case? We don't know, but it is important to discuss it.
http://theconversation.com/womens-contribution-to-science-goes-unheard-15532. 

Also check out the excellent comment stream on Athene Donald's blog
http://occamstypewriter.org/athenedonald/2013/06/24/all-male-invited-speakers-its-complicated/

The bigger picture is important: If this dearth of female voices in conferences harms women’s advancement within academia, then society as a whole is also losing some of its best scientists.

Wild Homes and Invaders in Rouge Park

New post in Wild City:
http://bunchfamily.ca/rouge-park/

Swift Scientists

New post on Bunch about how the kids and I discovered chimney swifts.

http://bunchfamily.ca/chimney-swift-watching-with-kids/