Mississippi River Rising: Flood of the Century

Photo by Dave Martin/AP

From Denny: This weekend I traveled downtown in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, to take a look for myself at the above flood stage Mississippi River in my home town proverbial back yard. Can I tell you it was a regular "shock and awe" moment?

Just imagine for a moment a herd of elephants gone rogue and running fast and furious down hill. They are a herd packed tight and fanning out three miles wide. The Old Man River looked like those elephants were just under the water, the top of their heads barely seen in the rough choppy water.  The surface of the water looked like a 60 mile an hour wind was pushing it yet the reality was there was barely a slight breeze.

The Soul Calendar: Why Is The Arctic Warming Faster Than Rest Of Our Planet?

Polar bears in the Arctic near the North Pole with the USS Honolulu - Image via Wikipedia

The Soul Calendar: Why Is The Arctic Warming Faster Than Rest Of Our Planet?: "At what rate is the Arctic currently warming than the rest of the planet? Try twice as fast. And everyone in the scientific community has been trying to figure out why.

Greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide warm up the climate while some aerosols like sulfate, from fossil fuel combustion, are a cooling influence on global warming, acting as a counterbalance.

Energy balance on Earth affected by aerosols and clouds

Arctic clouds and aerosols are thought to influence the loss of sea ice, carving out a niche as important roles in the energy balance on Earth. We all know what a cloud is but do you know what an aerosol is?"