I love pollen by brookenovak @ flickr
From Denny: Check out these just wonderful science facts about pollen from Science Daily:
* Under human-induced climate change we expect higher wind speeds and more frequent storms will move pollen and seeds even farther from the source.
* The older a tree gets, the more pollen it produces each year.
* Long-distance dispersal of transgenic pine pollen is a potential problem only if that pollen is viable.
* Until then, the highest pine pollen had ever been found in the atmosphere was 1000 feet
* The odd thing is that pollen germination did not decline as distance increased ... You would expect germination to gradually drop off as pollen floats further away, but that's not the case.
* Pine pollen can travel up to 1800 miles in a short amount of time.
OK, everyone, do you get the idea that the plant world just might be mad at humanity and this is their revenge? As it was I ran across a study of growing hay fever plants in a carbon dioxide rich environment that caused the plants to produce 61% more pollen. Supposedly, we cannot blame the sooty air all on car emissions as apparently plants and trees make up 80% of the pollution.
So, this is what humanity can expect, just in time for the 2012 predictions of the end of the world as we know it: Climate change is causing faster winds and more storms to blow pollen our way from the ends of the earth that we have never experienced. Trees on this planet are arriving in old age so they are having a last fling at reproducing themselves with the ladies so they are sending out Viagra moments at an alarming rate. Pine pollen is like a blood hound; it likes to travel ridiculously long distances and arrive on your doorstep.
Quote
* I used to wake up at 4 A.M. and start sneezing, sometimes for five hours. I tried to find out what sort of allergy I had but finally came to the conclusion that it must be an allergy to consciousness. - James Thurber
*** For the full post with many more funny quotes, a funny allergy season customer service tech support joke and lots of entertaining photos - and your very own special link to a pollen count in your area - hike on over to The Social Poets for Cheeky Quote Day:
Funny Allergy Quotes - Cheeky Quote Day 7 Apr 2010
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