THE COW BURP MYTH....

For years we have been told that cow burps produce methane which is responsible for global warming so stop eating meat!.   The problem with this concept is that scientists are conflating methane with CO2 in error. CO2 is the primary cause of warming. I will make all this as simple and understandable as I can and I’ll post a very geeky video which explains this with citations.  OK here goes.

Methane is emitted from cow burps...methane has a life span of 10 years and then it is converted to CO2 and is stored in the ground.  CO2 is primarily released from industry like factories, cars, and other fossil fuel burners. This CO2 is released into the atmosphere and has a 1000 year life span.  If cow herds are maintained at current size climate stability is maintained.  Fossil fuel burners are continually feeding the atmosphere so the CO2 rises exponentially.  This takes me back to Al Gores lectures on fossil fuels and the climate.  

If there is an increase in cows then methane  help to increase global warming so we need to be very careful to prevent this.  To go a step further we can reduce the current effect of cow burps by covering lagoons on dairy farms and converting the entrapped methane to fuel that is more sustainable and ecologically healing rather than harming since this step will contribute to global cooling.

here is the very geeky video, trust me its really good.

I am an advocate of regenerative ranching rather than factory farming and ranching.  There are wonderful benefits.  They are:

    Improved soil health and fertility-using rotational grazing, cover crops and no tilling.

    Increased carbon sequestration- rotational grazing and cover crops bolster the soil's organic matter                which stores more carbon that is not released into the atmosphere.

    Reduced input costs-  by decreasing operating expenses, increasing efficiency and profits for the                       rancher.

    Boosting health through enhanced biodiversity-  rotational grazing contributes to balanced                         ecosystems and overall health of pastures, livestock and improved productivity.  This safeguards                 natural resources.  

    Opportunities for soil carbon farming.-Carbon credits can be traded increasing profit margins.

    Cattle welfare- utilizing sustainable ranching benefits cattle by giving them a more nutritious diet, less             disease and stress and a stable habitat giving consistent forage availability

                                        (http://maiagrazing.com)

Well there you go.  Now you are armed with the science that dispels the myth of cow burps!  The erroneous conflation of methane and CO2 seems to be enough to contribute to our mistrust of everything in the media.  The answer is do your own research or read blogs like this one and watch the videos on this subject  

Until then, 

I am Happe to help...call me: 775 230-1507 or email me: mhappenow.happe@gmail.com

Be well, 

Michele

Aspie ish!

Aspie ish!

Michele Happe MA

February 12 2016

I have coached a number of people with Aspergers as well as a few parents with Aspergers kids.  When I approach a new issue in my practice I do a lot of research and learn from my clients.  When I had my radio show I did a long segment on Aspergers and autism as part of my research.  After the show a number of people approached me telling me that they took the test I provided and sure enough, they were on the spectrum.  I took the test and I was not even though I identified with a number of characteristics such a social uncomfortability and anxiety, hypersensitivity to certain types of stimulation and others.  

Then I started thinking about my dad.  He was a strange and interesting dude .  He was a materials engineer who worked at Jet Propulsion Lab where he had experiments on the voyager spacecraft.  His gig was manufacturing glass in zero gravity.  He was also an inventor and a musician.  He was super smart but spacey and neglectful as a father.  He was also lascivious and pervy.  I figured out after the fact that my dad was Aspie.  One of his favorite stories was how when he was 12 he got in trouble with his mom at the dinner table and she threw one of those large carving forks at him.  It embedded shallowly in his stomach and he refused to remove it, walking around all afternoon with a fork hanging out of his soft, obese belly.  THAT was my dad!  He was a very strange dude, a true eccentric.  I believe he was on the spectrum.  

Just to be clear let me include a list of characteristics for Aspergers:  

"Obviously, not all highly intelligent adults have Asperger. With no or few features from the list one does not have the condition. Even with a high score, one should realize a diagnosis can not be made on this basis, but requires interviews and observation in person next to psychological testing. Although GAIA was originally conceived to detect Aspergoid features, it may actually be measuring a more general disposition for psychiatric disorders without in itself being able to point to one specific disorder.

The Inventory

 Write complaint letters to authorities, professionals, companies etc.

 Read full manual before taking equipment into use

 Severely bullied at school

 Little or no facial expression

 Not well able to read another's facial expression

 Flat or monotonous voice

 Rigid day or week schedule (repetitive patterns)

 Strong interest in arcane subjects (either scientific, occult or trivial)

 Lack sensitivity to nonverbal cues and social codes

 Employed below ability level

 Poor work record

 Never had a steady job

 Social isolation

 Educated below ability level

 Never married

 Never had an amorous relationship

 Still virgin

 Fetishism

 Read reference works from A to Z

 Motor clumsiness

 "Talk too much"

 "Talk too little"

 Low "social skills"

 Little eye contact

 Shy

 One-sided eating habits

 Capable of sustained rigorous hard work

 Savant

 Not taken seriously or misunderstood in face-to-face situations

 Neurotic habits or tics

 Diagnosed Schizophrenia

 Diagnosed Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder

 Diagnosed any Personality Disorder

 Very honest

 Peculiar or (for males) too high-pitched voice

 Not emotional

 Highly sensitive to criticism

 Lack "common sense"

 Bitten by dogs

 A-rhythmic speech or abnormal speech rhythm

 Teased by children in adulthood

 Clumsy or exaggerated gestures when talking

 Unrightfully punished at school

 Perfectionist

 Longing for death or suicidal thoughts

 Eating disorder (like anorexia)

 Depression or on anti-depressant

 Attached to animals or things rather than humans

 On tranquillizers

 Drug addict

 Homeless

 Sleeping problems

 Stilted and overformal in social interaction

 Oversensitive to particular sounds"

* http://paulcooijmans.com/personalitytests/asperger.html

So this is a very exhaustive list that is meant as a test to see if you have Aspergers.  One funny note:  My dad was famous for writing complaint letters.  He actually got toothpicks on one of the airlines by exhaustively writing letters.  He would also write letters to Chinese Restaurants complaining about the fact that they didn't serve coffee...he was not so successful there.  

So I guess I am a child of an Aspie or Aspie ish.  As I like to say.  I don't qualify but I do identify.  I think if you asked people who know me you would hear that I am unusual, or unique...not quite eccentric but close.  I have arranged my life so that I can be comfortable.  I work at home.  I need lots of alone time even though I love people...in very small doses.  This includes my husband who is also Aspie ish.  His dad qualifies and one of his brothers is most probably on the spectrum.  I hate parties unless I have a specific job like cutting carrots or if I can hide in a corner and have a deep philosophical conversation with someone one on one.  

I like who I am.  Aspie ish works for me.  As a friend who qualifies said to me..."I wear it as a badge of honor".  I was disappointed and remain so when the distinction Aspergers was subsumed into the Autism Spectrum Disorder classification.  I don't see Aspergers as a disorder at all.  We do have our challenges but we are a sweet eccentric tribe as far as I can tell.  We generally are verbally gifted and can cruise around in the world with only lifting a few eyebrows occasionally.  As an Aspie ish person, I have a deep understanding and compassion for those who are in the tribe as I was raised by one.  I get it even though I don't qualify as "one".  I want to be a member of the tribe as a supporter who is fortunate to have many of the "qualities" that high functioning Aspies share.  Call me a groupie if you want.  

I love working with Aspies.  It is fun to coach someone on how to be a bit more social, how to network and set priorities.  I enjoy empathizing and cheering them on toward self acceptance and ultimately self approval.  I advocate setting up a life that may not look the way other people's lives look but it is a life that works well.  I also believe this about relationships.  We must tailor our relationships to fit our personality and our proclivities.  This means that we need to quit comparing ourselves to "typicals".  Aspies are only typical to our own tribe which in my view includes Aspie ish types like me.  

My hope is that this little blog will touch others who might identify as Aspie or Aspie ish.  I also hope that whoever you unidentified tribal members are you might do a little work on honoring yourself as being a member of a very special tribe of people who are collectively responsible on many levels for making the world a better place.  It is the geeks and scientific types who are such contributors due to their exhaustive energy and brilliance.  Many of them are in our tribe.  I believe it is a tribe to be celebrated.

Until then, be well.