Out of Thin Air

Out of Thin Air https://thinair.site Out of Thin Air Wed, 16 Jun 2021 20:19:08 +0000 https://thinair.site en Home Page https://thinair.site/Home-Page Fri, 28 Feb 2020 16:46:01 +0000 Out of Thin Air https://thinair.site/Home-Page <img width="1387" height="111" width_o="1387" height_o="111" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/ae608309ac4e6e919d105e7dfbbfcf164b963b2d337640a6e74cabfe6367b19a/Thinair_logo.png" data-mid="62483466" border="0" data-scale="45" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/ae608309ac4e6e919d105e7dfbbfcf164b963b2d337640a6e74cabfe6367b19a/Thinair_logo.png" />   using scent to talk about forest succession & atmospheric science ︎ 1 https://thinair.site/1 Fri, 28 Feb 2020 16:46:01 +0000 Out of Thin Air https://thinair.site/1 precontact prospect park, brklyn basswood, aka American linden, Tilia americana, bloom bitternut hickory, Carya cordiformis, nut oil eastern white pine, pinus strobus, resin oak moss, Evernia prunastri, lichen spicebush, Lindera benzoin, bark, foliagetulip tree, Liriodendron tulipifera, bloom <img width="1800" height="2698" width_o="1800" height_o="2698" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/160e10b5cb1f3e33fcdb2dd3225cd68ac1ead949e379d3a2f7006370173b4d72/eastern-pine.png" data-mid="104466502" border="0" data-scale="39" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/160e10b5cb1f3e33fcdb2dd3225cd68ac1ead949e379d3a2f7006370173b4d72/eastern-pine.png" /><img width="2836" height="3326" width_o="2836" height_o="3326" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/3a1152309e98a8c41eb96ff07ddc27e81f44bd128dc2d4d334ddd9270da88bfc/tulip-tree.png" data-mid="73991538" border="0" data-scale="37" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/3a1152309e98a8c41eb96ff07ddc27e81f44bd128dc2d4d334ddd9270da88bfc/tulip-tree.png" /> Prospect Park, designed by Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux, opened in 1867. They left undisturbed two primary forests, called the Ravine and the Midwood, dominated by oak, hickory, and chestnuts. By 1911, not one chestnut remained due to the Great Chestnut Blight.1 The tree species we selected—basswood, tulip tree, and eastern white pine—are the most fragrant of those present pre-European settlement in such a forest type. Also included: hickory nuts as a carrier oil, and a lichen traditionally used in perfumery that grows on oak bark.    1. Newman, Andy. “Returning Chestnut Trees to City Where Blight Was First Found.” New York Times, City Room, 23 March, 2011.︎ Tinctures https://thinair.site/Tinctures Tue, 06 Apr 2021 23:15:03 +0000 Out of Thin Air https://thinair.site/Tinctures 3 https://thinair.site/3 Fri, 28 Feb 2020 17:04:04 +0000 Out of Thin Air https://thinair.site/3 near future  prospect park, brklyn ginkgo, Ginkgo biloba, foliage, fruit white mulberry, Morus alba, foliage, bloomwild persimmon, Diospyros virginiana, fruitsweet gum, Liquidambar styraciflua, resintree of heaven, Ailanthus altissima, foliage, bloom   <img width="776" height="999" width_o="776" height_o="999" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/30bcf4f556b8ae2942db1a8e88a122c5113cae44a3670ada70f1212667455307/tree-of-heaven2.png" data-mid="105169114" border="0" data-scale="37" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/776/i/30bcf4f556b8ae2942db1a8e88a122c5113cae44a3670ada70f1212667455307/tree-of-heaven2.png" /><img width="1158" height="1325" width_o="1158" height_o="1325" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/839d018381cab38f9a7d0bdb2e12c694ce79c62fc05cd4aa0c1c6a5479422240/gingko-copy.png" data-mid="105168998" border="0" data-scale="36" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/839d018381cab38f9a7d0bdb2e12c694ce79c62fc05cd4aa0c1c6a5479422240/gingko-copy.png" /> Foresters are experimenting with ‘assisted migration’ planting southern trees species in northern states as “…the climate will [likely] change 10 times faster than many tree species can move.”3 Using an experimental forest in Rhode Island as reference, we included temperate species predicted to do well in this region, such as wild persimmon. Also included is the odorous Tree of Heaven which tolerates nutrient poor or salty soils, pollution, and heat.  2. Velasquez-Manoff, Moises. “Can Humans Help Trees Outrun Climate Change?” New York Times, 25 April, 2019. ︎ Explanation https://thinair.site/Explanation Tue, 10 Mar 2020 23:26:07 +0000 Out of Thin Air https://thinair.site/Explanation “The aroma of a pine forest on a warm summer day is down to volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Cedar, cypress and eucalyptus owe their pungent aromas to their unique blends of these organics. With climate change, we are set for more VOCs and a more fragrant world.” 5 The Science       The chemical profile of a forest—determined by ecosystems, plant matter, and environmental conditions—results in a unique ‘cocktail' of atmospheric reactions.4 These in turn affect the level of tropospheric ozone and aerosols in the atmosphere, which can both reflect and absorb solar energy and, when combined with anthropogenic pollution, lead to effects like ozone smog which impact climate and human health. The type of trees in a forest, take for instance a rainforest replaced by a palm oil plantation, “will shift the chemistry in the sky above.”5 However, the complexity and invisibility of these interactions make it hard for us to comprehend such changes. Interestingly, the volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that trees emit are also responsible for the smells we perceive on a walk in the woods. 4. Toma, S., and S. Bertman. "The atmospheric potential of biogenic volatile organic compounds from needles of white pine (Pinus strobus) in Northern Michigan.” Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics, vol. 12, no. 4, 2012, p. 2245. 5. King, Anthony. “A Volatile Question”. Chemistry, 28 January, 2016. The Project       Forests pre-logging smelled different from today's forests, and that smell is ever-changing as forest succession and climate change march on. This research is a sensory teaching tool to talk about the delicate complexity of our forests in a warming climate. We use ethnobotanical processes, such as distillation, tinctures, and smoke, to create scent combinations that map forest succession in Prospect Park, Brooklyn—from precontact to future scenarios. Our olfactory sense triggers memories—and by association, one might say that smell is linked to time in human perception. .  ︎ Smoke https://thinair.site/Smoke Tue, 13 Apr 2021 17:48:06 +0000 Out of Thin Air https://thinair.site/Smoke . Information https://thinair.site/Information Fri, 28 Feb 2020 16:46:02 +0000 Out of Thin Air https://thinair.site/Information ︎ About       What did native Brooklyn forests smell like prior to European settlement? And, how has that distinct aroma shifted given the mass migration of people and plants over the subsequent centuries? Or, in the near future, given a warming climate? This research uses plant essences—derived using distillation, smoke, and tincture techniques—from fragrant plant species to map forest succession in Prospect Park, Brooklyn. To learn more, watch a video essay on the project. OUT OF THIN AIR, initiated by Pratt Institute faculty member Jean Brennan, received a 2020 Research Seed Grant. This project is a sensory teaching tool to talk about forest science and was developed in conversation with faculty from the University of Michigan Biostation. Contributors        Steve Bertman, Professor, Department of Chemistry, Western Michigan University; Faculty, University of Michigan Biostation Jean Brennan, Lead Researcher, Adjunct Professor, Graduate Communications Design, Pratt Institute Ali Chen, Research Assistant, MS ‘20, Pratt  Ann Chang, Research Assistant, MS ‘20, Pratt Arianna Fouse, Research Assistant, BFA ‘21, PrattRobert Pillsbury, Associate Professor, Department of Biology and Microbiology, University of Wisconsin; faculty, University of Michigan Biostation Get in touch       Jean Brennan jbrennan@pratt.edu <img width="3024" height="3024" width_o="3024" height_o="3024" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/3b6b59028fceac0f50bd537a1fde6d537376b20d0a854029265035fe12d9ead1/IMG_7639.jpeg" data-mid="63107133" border="0" data-scale="84" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/3b6b59028fceac0f50bd537a1fde6d537376b20d0a854029265035fe12d9ead1/IMG_7639.jpeg" /> <img width="4032" height="2442" width_o="4032" height_o="2442" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/870526aaeb5138d135574041d298ae5791d3fabb0aa557c08af83dc688685e6a/IMG_7950_cropped.jpg" data-mid="105156233" border="0" data-scale="84" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/870526aaeb5138d135574041d298ae5791d3fabb0aa557c08af83dc688685e6a/IMG_7950_cropped.jpg" /> Blotters https://thinair.site/Blotters Wed, 16 Jun 2021 20:19:08 +0000 Out of Thin Air https://thinair.site/Blotters .