Building a Half Billion Dollar Plus Shipyard at Wrangell?

 

I asked A.I. about the context of building a half to three quarter billion dollar shipyard at Wrangell.

Gary- Do you think there is a market sufficient to invest in building a three quarter of a billion dollar ship repair facility at wrangell alaska?

A.I.– A $605 to $726 million shipyard in Wrangell faces major economic hurdles. A standalone commercial market alone is likely insufficient to justify this massive price tag, so the project’s viability depends on public-private partnerships, securing federal defense contracts, and capitalizing on the Coast Guard’s expanding Arctic operations. [1, 2, 3]

Key Market Variables

• Sky-High Costs: Full build-out estimates range from $605 million to $726 million. The project requires aggressive phasing to be digestible. [1]
• Target Customers: The proposed 500-foot shipyard relies heavily on securing contracts with the U.S. government, U.S. Navy, U.S. Coast Guard, and research vessels. Private commercial vessels (e.g., state ferries) alone cannot carry this level of capitalization. [1, 2, 3]
• Partner Backing: The City and Borough of Wrangell has established a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Seattle-based JAG Marine Group and Miami-based Pearlson & Pearlson to navigate port feasibility and secure state and federal funding. [1, 2, 3]
• Geopolitical Drivers: Proponents are pitching the facility to federal officials as vital to national security and Arctic patrol maintenance. [1, 2]

Actionable Information

• Review Project Proposals: Read the initial assessments on the Wrangell Economic Development page.
• Current Feasibility: Keep an eye on ongoing 30% design phase deliverables that will dictate long-term funding requirements. [1]

Gary- Can a population of 2000 people afford that sort of thing?

A.I. No. A local population of 2,100 people cannot afford a project of this scale through local taxes or municipal debt.

The project relies entirely on external funding, with the local community acting as a host rather than a financial backer.

The Funding Reality

• Zero Local Funding: Wrangell’s municipal budget cannot support a $700 million project. Local residents will not pay for the construction through property or sales taxes.
• Federal Defense Dollars: Proponents are targeting federal funding. This includes the Department of Defense, Department of Transportation (MARAD), and federal infrastructure grants.
• Private Capital: Private partners like JAG Marine Group are expected to bring external investment to cover commercial operational costs.
• State Support: The State of Alaska may provide economic development grants, as the facility would boost the regional maritime economy.

Local Risks and Impacts

• Infrastructure Strain: A massive shipyard brings hundreds of temporary construction workers and permanent contractors. A small town must upgrade its housing, utilities, and medical services to handle the influx.
• Economic Boom: If funded externally, the facility would create high-paying year-round jobs. This would diversify a local economy currently reliant on seafood and tourism.

To help evaluate if this project makes sense for the region, tell me what concerns you most:

• The environmental impact on the local waters?
• The potential boom-and-bust cycle for housing and schools?
• How it compares to competing shipyards in Seattle or Ketchikan?

Let me know what area you would like to explore next.

Gary- All three

A.I.-Building a massive $605M to $726M shipyard in a town of 2,100 people creates intense friction between economic opportunity and small-town stability. [1]

1. Environmental Impact on Local Waters

Heavy marine industrialization introduces severe localized environmental risks to Wrangell’s pristine waters. [1]

• Contaminants and Runoff: Large-scale ship repair involves hull blasting and painting. This releases toxic anti-fouling copper or tin paints, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and microplastics directly adjacent to marine habitats. [1, 2, 3]
• Industrial Noise & Dredging: Operating a 38,000-ton lift and servicing 500-foot vessels generates significant underwater noise and light pollution. This can disrupt local marine mammals and migratory salmon corridors. [1, 2, 3, 4]
• The “Brownfield” Advantage: On the positive side, Wrangell plans to place this facility at the 6-Mile Mill property. Because this is a former timber mill site, it is already an altered industrial footprint rather than untouched, pristine coastline. [1, 2, 3]

---

2. The Threat of a Boom-and-Bust Cycle

Bringing an estimated 150 permanent shipyard jobs—plus hundreds of transient construction workers—into a tiny community triggers a classic infrastructure shock. [, 2]

• The Housing Crisis: Wrangell already suffers from a severe housing shortage. Local officials note it is a “chicken and egg” problem; developers won’t build without guaranteed buyers, yet the workforce cannot arrive without housing. The borough is proactively designing 60-unit complexes at the old hospital site and expanding sub-divisions to get ahead of the crush. [1]
• Utility & School Strain: The influx will heavily tax local water systems, electricity grids, and medical clinics. While a population boost could save local schools from declining enrollment, a sudden exit if a major federal contract expires would leave the town holding massive debt for over-expanded infrastructure. [1, 2]

---

3. Competition with Ketchikan and Seattle

Wrangell is entering a highly competitive and protective Pacific Northwest maritime market.

• The Ketchikan Rivalry/Alliance: Nearby Ketchikan already features a world-class shipyard owned by the state (AIDEA) and operated by the exact same company partnering with Wrangell: JAG Marine Group. JAG recently secured a $99.6M federal NOAA contract for Ketchikan. While JAG claims a Wrangell facility would “complement” Ketchikan by expanding overall Alaskan capacity, the two sites will inevitably compete for a limited pool of skilled labor and state resources. [1, 2]
• The Seattle Monopolies: Major vessel operators and the Alaska Marine Highway (state ferries) traditionally send their largest ships to massive, deeply entrenched shipyards in Seattle, Washington or Portland, Oregon. Wrangell’s advantage is geography—it is thousands of miles closer to the opening Arctic defense theater. However, convincing unions and private operators to move logistical hubs up to an isolated island community is a steep hill to climb. [1, 2, 3]

---

Would you like to look closer at how the town plans to build housing for these workers, or examine the specific types of Coast Guard ships they are trying to attract? [1, 2, 3]

Gary– What are alternative businesses that might attract as much employment to wrangell

To match or exceed the job footprint of a major shipyard (roughly 150 permanent trades jobs), Wrangell has a few alternative pathways. Because the town wants year-round, high-wage, “blue-collar” industrial employment rather than seasonal or minimum-wage work, alternative solutions focus on leveraging Wrangell’s low utility costs, deepwater port, and existing natural assets. [1, 2, 3]

1. Expanded Marine Service & Haul-Out Center

Instead of building a $700M mega-shipyard for 500-foot federal vessels, Wrangell could expand its existing Wrangell Marine Service Center. [1, 2]

• The Concept: Focus on private commercial fishing fleets, tugboats, yachts, and regional barges.
• Employment Potential: Expanding the current haul-out yard and adding support trades (welding, machining, fiberglass repair, electrical) could support 50 to 100 year-round jobs.
• The Advantage: Much lower infrastructure costs, less environmental risk, and direct support for the local fishing fleet. [1, 2, 3]

2. High-Tech Green Data Centers

Wrangell has some of the lowest electrical rates in Alaska due to regional hydropower. Local officials have already discussed sharing the 6-Mile Mill site with data center infrastructure. [1, 2]

• The Concept: Partner with companies like Greensparc to build localized data centers cooled naturally by the Alaskan climate.
• Employment Potential: While the data centers themselves require few permanent staff, combining them with a renewable energy generation hub or tech manufacturing could bring 30 to 50 tech and maintenance jobs.
• The Advantage: Clean industry with a tiny physical and environmental footprint compared to heavy industrial ship repair. [1]

3. Healthcare Hub Expansion (SEARHC)

According to the Wrangell Economic Conditions Report, healthcare has already quietly overtaken government and seafood as Wrangell’s largest economic cornerstone. [1]

• The Concept: Formally establish Wrangell as a specialized, regional healthcare hub for Southeast Alaska, anchored by the Southeast Alaska Regional Health Consortium (SEARHC). [1, 2]
• Employment Potential: Healthcare already accounts for 171+ jobs and $15.2M in annual wages. Expanding long-term care facilities, specialized therapy, or regional medical training programs could easily add 50 to 70 high-paying, year-round positions. [1]
• The Advantage: Highly stable, high-wage jobs that naturally attract families and do not suffer from industrial “boom-and-bust” cycles. [1]

4. Advanced Seafood Processing & Mariculture

The traditional seafood sector is struggling with weak salmon returns, but ocean farming presents a major pivot. [1]

• The Concept: Scale up regional kelp and oyster mariculture alongside an automated, year-round value-added seafood processing plant (producing ready-to-eat products rather than just freezing raw fish). [1]
• Employment Potential: Transitioning from seasonal canning to year-round specialized processing and mariculture logistics could sustain 80 to 120 jobs.
• The Advantage: Strengthens Wrangell’s cultural identity and supports local fishermen while building an eco-friendly export market. [1]

5. Tourism and Waterfront Expansion

Wrangell is currently entering its strongest tourism period in two decades. [1]

• The Concept: The borough is actively trying to expand its waterfront by adding a second cruise dock to capture more boutique and mid-sized cruise ships. []
• Employment Potential: Tourism easily generates over 100 jobs, but they are heavily skewed toward the summer months. [1]
• The Advantage: Low capital costs for the town, but it fails to meet the borough’s stated goal of creating year-round, trades-based blue-collar employment. [1]

---

If you were advising the town, would you prioritize expanding the stable healthcare sector or trying to revive the industrial waterfront with green tech and mariculture? [1]

Gary- I would pursue each

A.I.-Pursuing all five pathways simultaneously is a smart, balanced approach known as economic diversification. By spreading the town’s eggs across multiple baskets, Wrangell can build a resilient economy that avoids the vulnerability of a single-industry town.

Here is a roadmap for how Wrangell can coordinate these five alternative sectors without overextending its limited resources.

The Phased Diversification Plan

Phase 1: Immediate Growth (1-2 Years)

├── Expand SEARHC Healthcare Center 

└── Build Boutique Cruise Dock & Waterfront

│

Phase 2: Waterfront Shift (3-5 Years)

├── Expand Existing 300-Ton Marine Haul-Out

└── Launch 6-Mile Mill Kelp & Seafood Processing

│

Phase 3: High-Tech Future (5+ Years)

└── Install Hydropower Data Center at 6-Mile Mill

1. Phase 1: The Quick Wins (Years 1–2)

Focus first on the sectors that already have momentum and require the least amount of municipal debt.

• Healthcare Expansion: Partner closely with SEARHC to add specialized regional services (like elder care or physical therapy) to the new hospital facility. This brings immediate families and high-wage spending into the local economy.
• Waterfront Tourism: Complete the planned second cruise dock to capture the booming boutique cruise market. Use the immediate seasonal tax revenue to fund the next phases of infrastructure.

2. Phase 2: The Working Waterfront (Years 3–5)

Shift focus to the blue-collar, year-round trades by upgrading existing assets rather than building from scratch.

• The Marine Service Center: Instead of a $700M mega-lift, invest a fraction of that amount to upgrade Wrangell’s existing boatyard. Adding covered work bays and a slightly larger travel lift allows local vendors to capture regional fishing and tugboat maintenance year-round.
• Mariculture Hub: Utilize part of the 6-Mile Mill site for kelp and oyster processing facilities. This pairs perfectly with the marine service center, as kelp harvesting vessels will need local boatyard support.

3. Phase 3: The Green Tech Anchor (Years 5+)

Once the housing and utility infrastructure has stabilized from the growth in Phases 1 and 2, target the high-tech sector.

• Data Centers: Allocate the remaining footprint of the 6-Mile Mill site for climate-cooled data storage. By this time, the town’s upgraded hydropower grid will be ready to support the tech sector without raising electricity rates for local residents.

Balancing the Master Plan

By staggering these projects, Wrangell can grow its workforce incrementally—perhaps 30 to 40 new jobs at a time—rather than shocking the system with 150 jobs all at once. This gives local builders time to construct housing naturally and allows the school district to absorb new families smoothly.

To look into how the town can fund this multi-pronged approach, would you like to explore available federal infrastructure grants, or look at how the town is currently zoning the 6-Mile Mill site to accommodate both mariculture and tech?

Gary– Each

A.I.-Wrangell is already using a layered strategy, mapping out funding while carefully zoning the 40-acre, borough-owned 6-Mile Mill site to balance heavy industry, green technology, and mariculture. [1, 2]

---

Part 1: How Wrangell is Zoning the 6-Mile Mill Site

Purchased by the borough for $2.5 million, the former timber mill is being divided into a co-location ecosystem rather than a single massive shipyard. [1, 2]

• The Shipyard & Freight Anchor: The borough approved a three-year lease with JAG Marine Group for the deepwater tidelands. This allows them to pursue shipyard feasibility while immediately establishing a new barge ramp and freight yard to improve regional shipping. [1, 2]
• The High-Tech Footprint: The Planning and Zoning Commission voted to recommend a lease to Greensparc to build a compact, small-scale data center on a slice of the 6-Mile property. [1, 2]
• The Power Grid Catch: Local zoning approval for tech has been highly debated. Because data centers consume significant power, residents are pushing for safeguards so the facility does not drive up utility rates or strain Wrangell’s Tyee Hydroelectric plant during extreme winter cold spells. [1, 2]
• The Mariculture Buffer: The remaining acreage is zoned for light industrial and maritime support, leaving a physical footprint available for localized kelp and oyster processing facilities that can share the upgraded dock space. [1]

---

Part 2: The Federal Grant Playbook

Wrangell cannot fund this on its own, so local leaders are aggressively applying for external grants under an initiative titled “Wrangell’s Economic Revival: Anchoring the Future, Empowering the Region.” They are targeting distinct pools of federal money: [1]

Grant Type / Agency	Target Project Component	Why Wrangell Qualifies
EDA Disaster Supplemental	Industry Transformation Portfolio	Offsets regional economic losses from declining salmon returns and a shrinking traditional maritime sector.
MARAD PIDP(Port Infrastructure Development)	6-Mile Deep Water Port Infrastructure	Specifically funds the engineering and design phases to transform idle timber mills into active cargo hubs.
USDA Southeast Alaska Sustainability Strategy (SASS)	Mariculture & Local Food Systems	Provides millions in community-led funding to transition the Tongass region from old-growth logging to sustainable ocean farming.
Federal Transit / AMHS Funds	Passenger Waterfront & Second Cruise Dock	Captures federal infrastructure dollars meant to optimize multi-modal marine transport and regional transit hubs.

---

Part 3: Progress Across the Alternative Sectors

Wrangell’s other key industries are moving forward independently of the 6-Mile site:

• Healthcare: The Southeast Alaska Regional Health Consortium (SEARHC) continues to be the town’s primary economic stabilizer. It generated $15.2 million in local wages and grew employment by over 50%, acting as the quiet cornerstone while seafood and timber fluctuated. [1, 2]
• Tourism: The town has approved a 40-year lease agreement with American Cruise Lines (ACL) to build and operate shared public-commercial passenger docking facilities. This infrastructure will directly support the town’s massive visitor spike—climbing from 45,000 cruise visitors to nearly 80,000 cruise visitors. [1, 2]

Would you like to explore how the town is managing the public pushback over the data center’s power usage, or examine the 30% design plans for the new freight barge ramp?

Global Atmospheric CO2 Level Continue to Rise- Major Parties Fail Rational Remediation Planning

 The Trump administration obviously promotes fossil fuels over alternative, sustainable energy development. Yet the global percent of atmospheric CO2 continues to increase. It is the worst it has been in three million years. A lot of CO2 makes people dumb. Democrats are not an alternative that would fix the economy and secure the well being of the nation. They promote homsexuality, atheism, defunding police, war with Russia over Ukraine, abortion, open borders etc.

Democrats exploit global warming concerns to lever more political power disingenuously, judging from history. There is not a real, effective political policy well designed to end CO2 emissions from industrial and mechanical sources in either party. Each party pursues classical economics and wealth for-themselves in short-term programs. Neither party has a viable plan to eliminate public debt. Those are facts of life. I asked Gemini;

Gary-Has the CO2 content of the atmosphere steadily increased the past 50 years and is it likely to continue?

Gemini-Yes, the carbon dioxide (\(CO_{2}\)) content of the atmosphere has steadily and rapidly increased over the past 50 years, and it is highly likely to continue rising for decades. [1, 2]

According to tracking by agencies like the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and NASA, atmospheric \(CO_{2}\) has not only risen but the rate of its growth has significantly accelerated. [1, 2, 3]

The Last 50 Years: A Continuous Rise [1]

• The Numbers: In 1976, global atmospheric \(CO_{2}\) sat at roughly 332 parts per million (ppm). In 2026, it reached approximately 430 to 431 ppm. This marks a massive 30% increase in just half a century.
• Accelerating Pace: The growth rate has tripled over time. In the 1970s, \(CO_{2}\) levels rose by about 1 ppm per year. Over the last decade, they have averaged an increase of 2.4 to 2.6 ppm per year.
• Historical Context: The atmosphere has not seen \(CO_{2}\) concentrations this high in at least 3 million years, long before modern humans existed. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8]

Why It Is Likely to Continue Rising

Atmospheric \(CO_{2}\) concentrations will continue to rise as long as net global greenhouse gas emissions remain above zero. Even if global emissions begin to stabilize or slightly decline, the total accumulation of \(CO_{2}\) in the atmosphere will still grow. [1]

• Sustained Fossil Fuel Use: While renewable energy is growing rapidly, global fossil fuel emissions have not yet peaked and remain near record highs.
• Future Projections: Under the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) climate scenarios, \(CO_{2}\) levels will continue to climb. The intermediate scenarios—which most closely mirror current global policies—project that \(CO_{2}\) levels will surpass 500 to 600 ppm by the year 2100, pushing global temperatures up by 2.7°C or more.
• Delayed Effects & Natural Sinks: Natural carbon sinks (like oceans and forests) absorb roughly half of human carbon emissions, but they are becoming saturated and less efficient as global temperatures rise. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]

To reverse or even stop this trend, global emissions must reach net-zero—where human carbon output is completely balanced by active carbon removal. [1, 2]

If you would like to explore specific aspects of this data further, please let me know. I can provide details on how climate models project specific emission pathways, explain the role of natural carbon sinks, or look into how current international policies aim to alter this trajectory.

Israel Should Restore the Ecosystem of Southern Lebanon in the Interim

 Since Israel plans to make a border buffer zone in Southern Lebanon and make the Litani River the boundary, they should at least clean up the Litani River as a service to Lebanon.

Lebanon is the world's third most polluted country. It needs electric cars to platforms for low cost to replace the aged and dirty fossil fuel powered fleet. Before the Lebanese civil war it was a decent country. Hezbollah and other bad actors have used it as a base to attack Israel. The P.L.O. didn't help. Lebanese efforts to have a fair and balanced government didn't work because of political assassinations of leaders that weren't puppets to terrorists. Bani Sadr was one casualty of the early era when Christians could still be elected to the highest office.

So environmental restoration work is one of the lowest priorities for the troubled nation. The Litani River is the country's best water source yet dangerously polluted. Even raw sewage flows into it in addition to other toxic substances. Restoring the river to health would require solar compost toilets to replace the existing systems of human waste processing, or something more advanced like solar electric or solar microwave processing.

Israel plans to destroy housing and buildings that can shelter terrorists and make the region barren. That presents a great opportunity to begin a long range project of restoring the environment to health before future Lebanese return to reoccupy it when or if the terrorist danger to Israel from Lebanon is past.

Comparing Viking and Berengian Refugia Cold Weather Environments, Diet and Genetic Adaptations -written by Grok

 

From Beringia to the Vikings: Ancient Journeys Through Ice and Adaptation

In the vast tapestry of human history, few stories captivate like those of populations who thrived in the planet's harshest cold environments. The Beringian standstill—a pivotal chapter in the peopling of the Americas—and the rise of the Vikings in Scandinavia offer fascinating parallels and contrasts. Both groups navigated extreme climates, evolving unique adaptations that shaped their genomes, bodies, and cultures. Yet, their paths diverged dramatically: one led to the Arctic indigenous peoples like the Inuit, while the other forged the Norse seafarers who raided and settled across Europe.

This article delves into the histories, daily lives, climatic challenges, and genomic legacies of these groups. Drawing from archaeological, genetic, and paleoclimatic evidence, we'll explore how isolation in icy refugia molded human resilience—and what echoes remain today. Note: While some popular notions link European haplogroups like H to Beringia, genetics tells a different story; Beringian migrants carried distinct lineages, highlighting separate evolutionary trajectories.

The Beringian Standstill: A Frozen Pause in Human Migration

Around 25,000 to 15,000 years ago, during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), a group of ancient Siberians became isolated on the now-submerged land bridge known as Beringia. This vast region, stretching from eastern Siberia to western Alaska, was an ice-free refugium amid global glaciation. The "standstill" hypothesis posits that these migrants were stranded for 2,400 to 9,000 years (not 11,000 as sometimes overstated), due to massive ice sheets blocking southward paths into the Americas.

Beringia wasn't a barren wasteland but a steppe-tundra ecosystem supporting megafauna like woolly mammoths, horses, and bison. Paleoecological records show a cold, arid landscape with sparse vegetation, high winds, and low precipitation—winters dipping to -20°C or lower, with brief summers around 4°C cooler than today. Humans here were hunter-gatherers, relying on big-game hunting, fishing, and gathering hardy plants. Tools like microblades and bone artifacts from sites like Swan Point in Alaska reveal sophisticated survival tech, including insulated clothing from animal hides.

This isolation fostered genetic divergence. Mitochondrial DNA haplogroups A, B, C, D, and X (particularly X2a) dominated, originating from East Asian founders—no trace of European-linked haplogroup H or its subclade H2a, which arose later in the Near East and Europe. Post-standstill, around 15,000 years ago, warming climates opened ice-free corridors, allowing migration into the Americas and the eventual emergence of diverse indigenous cultures, including the Thule ancestors of the Inuit.

universityofcalifornia.edu

nps.gov

Viking Origins: From Post-Glacial Pioneers to Norse Raiders

In contrast, Scandinavia's human history began as the LGM ice sheets retreated around 12,000–11,000 BCE. Early settlers were Mesolithic hunter-gatherers from southern European refugia (Western Hunter-Gatherers) and eastern Baltic regions (Eastern Hunter-Gatherers), arriving via land routes through modern Denmark and Germany. By 7,000 BCE, stable communities thrived, hunting reindeer and seals in a thawing landscape.

The Neolithic era (~4,000 BCE) brought Anatolian-derived farmers, introducing agriculture and mixing with locals. A major influx came around 2,800–2,000 BCE with Indo-European steppe herders (Yamnaya culture) from the Pontic-Caspian region, carrying R1a and R1b Y-chromosomes and Proto-Germanic languages. This genetic cocktail—~40-50% hunter-gatherer, 30-40% farmer, 20-30% steppe—formed the Nordic Bronze Age, evolving into Iron Age Germanic tribes.

The Viking Age (793–1066 CE) emerged from overpopulation, climatic shifts, and technological advances like longships. Vikings weren't a unified people but Norse farmers, traders, and warriors from Norway, Sweden, and Denmark, expanding to Iceland, Greenland, and beyond. Haplogroup H, peaking at 40-50% in Scandinavians, reflects this European heritage, with no Beringian ties.

reddit.com

allinonehomeschool.com

Climate Showdown: Beringia's Extremes vs. Scandinavia's Temperate Edge

During the LGM, Beringia was a cold, dry steppe-tundra, with July temperatures ~4°C cooler and January ~2°C cooler than modern equivalents—overall harsher than habitable European zones. Scandinavia itself was largely ice-covered, forcing humans to southern refugia like Iberia, where winters were milder (4-8°C cooler) with more precipitation and diverse resources.

Post-LGM, Europe warmed rapidly, fostering forests and agriculture by 10,000 BCE. Beringia remained Arctic-like, with persistent cold driving adaptations in its descendants. Viking-era Scandinavia experienced the Medieval Warm Period (~900–1300 CE), aiding expansion, but winters were still brutal—sea ice trapped ships, and storms delayed voyages. Beringia's isolation amplified selection pressures, while Scandinavia's connectivity allowed cultural exchanges.

Daily Life: Survival in the Deep Freeze

Beringian life revolved around mobility: hunting megafauna with atlatls, fishing in icy rivers, and sheltering in semi-subterranean dwellings insulated with sod and bones. Diets were high in protein and fat from seals and caribou, with minimal carbs—essential for thermogenesis in -20°C winters.

Vikings, in a more temperate yet variable climate, farmed barley and rye in short summers, herded sheep and cattle, and fished cod. Winters meant indoor activities: storytelling, crafting, and feasting on preserved foods like butter-laden porridge. High-fat dairy and meat diets (35-40% fat) fueled them through dark months, with no evidence of widespread heart disease due to intense activity and short lifespans (30-40 years). Social adaptations included communal longhouses for warmth and Viking raids for resources during harsh years.

Genomic and Physical Adaptations: Evolving for the Cold

Beringian descendants, like the Inuit, exhibit profound cold adaptations per Bergmann's and Allen's rules: shorter limbs, broader chests/torsos to minimize heat loss, and flatter facial features (including potentially smaller breasts) to reduce frostbite risk. Visceral fat storage around organs provides insulation and energy, enabled by genes like CPT1A for efficient fat metabolism on marine diets rich in omega-3s. These mutations lower LDL cholesterol and insulin, aiding survival but raising modern risks like diabetes with Western diets.

Scandinavians show milder adaptations: stockier builds and pale skin for vitamin D synthesis in low sun, but more external fat storage (e.g., in hips and breasts) due to calorie surpluses from farming. Haplogroup H may link to metabolic efficiency, but Vikings relied more on cultural tools—wool clothing, skis, and ships—than genetic extremes. Larger breasts in some European women tie to estrogen and nutrition, not cold selection.

gjia.georgetown.edu

downtoearth.org.in

nordicperspective.com

livescience.com

Aftermath: Legacies in a Warming World

Beringian migrants populated the Americas, their adaptations persisting in Inuit genomes, now challenged by climate change—melting ice disrupts hunting, while dietary shifts amplify health issues. Vikings' expansions faded with the Little Ice Age (~1300 CE), but their genes influence modern Scandinavians, who face fewer cold extremes thanks to technology.

These stories remind us: Human adaptation is dynamic. As global warming reshapes the Arctic, understanding these ancient resiliences could inform future survival strategies.

What do you think—could Viking butter feasts or Inuit fat-metabolism genes inspire modern diets?

Existential Data Points in Nature ( a poem)

 

Since the Younger Dryas
when the glacial melt woke
Mankind felt being and becoming
life was hard like a cruel joke

Wondering a portion of mystery
data points of science to perceive
got the mind and the woman
it is just info that ah need

Come on baby you know I have heard
an ecosphere leads to reason
sending me to lips I gotta love
such are phenomenal daydreams
flying days and nights away
while money kills the environment’s health
puttin nature down on a shelf
it ain’t gotta say

Complex ecosphere data stimulates the brain
branches and iterations, leaves are layered and lain
come on to the river were time flows
to a preponderance of galaxies spinning the same direction
a green place forever grows
life continues together
while wicked fallout would set us aglow.

https://suno.com/s/aNGMO6IrRc5EP6vu The poem as song lyrics

Red Chris Mine in Canada Presents Dangers for American Fish Downstream

 There is a proposed expansion of the Red Chris mine in Canada upstream of the Stikine River from Wrangell. It is an open pit mine and they hope to make tunnels through substrate and then blast to collapse the overhead and extract low grade ore from the  rip rap for rock crushing.  The mining technique is called block caving.

Water running through new underground channels take toxic minerals with it, and that can persist for centuries. Good luck with getting Canadians to be concerned about downstream American fish. There are a couple of books on U.S. experience with the problem. I doubt the current President would care.

https://riveroflostsouls.com/river-of-lost-souls/

https://islandpress.org/books/leadville#desc

In Reply to A Few Good Ad Hominems

Someone criticized me for writing that I don’t expect political leadership to appear that supports a competent, realistic plan for a complete national change to ecological economic; I said the political leaders aren’t intelligent enough.  The following is just my reply.

High percent of falsehood in your post. I didn’t mention Musk incidentally yet he has no ecological economic remake plan or intent although electric cars are nice. That sort of plan need be public and fact checked prior to an election. He hasn’t done anything like that and isn’t likely to. Vested interest of Wal Street oppose changing the way things are.

https://www.udio.com/songs/pqrd6Z6RCdCSG93JoKfUmz

About b.s. being overwhelming; it is what it is. Having listened to the irrelevant ideas that won’t change the political economy to ecological economics sustainability and knowing how the election cycle works I won’t expect to see a single competent candidate or party platform the next 12 years. Being 70 years old I rationally don’t expect to see the revolutionary change required in my lifetime. You say that makes me a loser. Oh well, everyone may be a loser if James Lovelock’s ‘The Final Warning’ actualizes. With so many people ordinarily being so rude that reduces the prospects for necessary change and adaptation. A will to work cooperatively to bring about radical change and economic upgrade transforming from unsustainable economics to a new and different foundation is de rigeur if that magnitude of political action is to occur.

I like the falsehood that I have hidden in education with a cushy job for years. I wish that were so. It is really enjoyable fiction of great quality!

Biden more competent than Trump; not at all in the past four years. Even in his 1980 presidential campaign he was plagiarizing speeches.

Arctic Ice Cap Looks Kinda Thin for the Middle of February

 I like more ice in the drink in the middle of February; it looks kinda thin and sparse. Cryosphere Today aka Sea Ice Today by N.O.A.A. has daily and annual satellite images of the ice cap. If the Trump administration gets rid of those so they can claim the atmosphere isn't heating up because of all those people driving fossil fuel vehicles that would be a practical ostrich policy. How Pres Trump can be so right on ending the senselessly polluting Ukraine War costing countless lives and wrong on something as simple as atmospheric heating is beyond me.

Make California Great Again with Ukraine War Pork

Instead of sending another dime’s worth of federal deficit adding dollars and weapons to Ukraine that Pork should be diverted to make California great again with fireproof and energy independent homes for the homeless. Pacific Palisades could be a shining city on a hill or beach instead of one smoldering because it’s federal lifeline went to reduce Ukraine to smoldering ruins.

Stop the war and make California a place rebuilt by Americans instead of illegal aliens. Elect a governor that secures borders and isn’t detached from good sense. Modern governors should should have good environmental economic ideas that are economically progressive. California rebuild should have great leading eco infrastructure that are good examples for the nation. At a minimum L.A. should desalinate salt water using clean energy and keep its fire hydrant perennially full.

Governors and parties that lead with acrimony and litigation to national division on the attempt to enrich themselves and pack government expansively with partisan voters while deficit spending are a devastating waste of time providing no concept completion to the other major party.

AI Changes on a Small Town

Since 1990 I lived much of the time in a small Alaska town where the logging mill that was the major employer closed down a year or two later. The population hasn’t increased since the logging mostly stopped. World population is right and a half billion. Wrangell has around 2000 people. It is located in America’s last great coastal forest. Ever year young workers leave, yet dome wildlife recovers while fishing declines. AI will probably affect human conservation practices.

AI will make it more difficult for writers too. AI will soon write custom novels for anyone with an app the way it’s going, as if it were making a custom pizza. Musk said there may be 10 billion robots within 20 or 30 years. There is supposed to be a super AI upgrade next. Trump has that 500 billion dollar Stargate AI project going. Who knows where that will lead?

I would guess that traditional ponzinomics where population grows and increases resource consumption so the population can stay working age will be replaced by smart robot workers while the human population ages and decreases in number to some ecologically sustainable level.

Lots of changes ahead if WW 3 doesn’t happen. Wrangell may be lucky enough to just observe the changes for some time. It’s funny how science fiction is becoming fact.

I didn’t use FB’s AI grammar rewrite version in this comment. That version said Wrangell can observe and adapt to the changes. Fait accompli I guess.

Democrat's Bundle Bungling Gives Win to Trump

 Independents probably voted for Trump because the Harris-Biden campaign included a move to  initiate World War Three in their bundle of what they would do if Harris had won the 2024 Presidential election. World War Three is a hard sell to the American public even if abortion for women votes was also included in their political bundle.

President Trump alternatively was the peace candidate who sought to move toward business as usual, and though he included fossil fuel development in his bundle, his bundling of policies was more discrete and less uniform. Like buying a television entertainment cable package Trump had fewer onerous disincentives in his package to offend independent purchasers.

Because future and past President Trump is more independent in his package bundling- more inclined to change the policies and programs included within a political package bundle, he may discover that solid state batteries will probably replace fossil fuel vehicles as the power train of choice before the end of his term. Toyota plans to field a 1000 mile per charge solid state battery by 2029. Most home owners with usually sunny skies would rather pay zero per mile for fuel than 60 dollars each time they need to fill up a gas tank.

President Trump is an urban guy and doesn’t value the wilderness the way Teddy Roosevelt did while creating the National Park system. Yet he should know that it is almost impossible to replace wilderness areas once lost, and that keeping habitat intact for a healthy ecosphere and to stop the loss of endangered species is important to many independent voters, and should be for future Republican politicians too that develop a better global idea of the need to keep a healthy planet even while humanity expands its capitalist enterprises.,

The social security system could easily be fixed if it had a more need based basis for existing. When it was created it was seen  as a way to keep people out of the absolute poverty created during the Great Depression. It wasn’t intended to be a kind of 401 K system to give more than 2000 dollars monthly to people with very adequate retirement savings. Probably payments should halt at $2000 per month and the minimum monthly payment should rise to $1000 monthly.

Though President Trump is a global warming denier, the future Republican party cannot be. It is in fact only because the Democrats include abortion and loose border security in their political bundle each election that they find it challenging to get a majority of votes. In 2028 if Democrats can promise to have zero illegal immigration and set abortion aside to let the states decide they will have a bundle without two poison pills and a better chance to get millions of independent votes. The Democrats bundling a global heating reduction plan that can be accomplished without adding to public debt through incentives should have a fairly easy time winning the 2028 Presidential election.

If President Trump includes the policy directions mentioned above in his operating political package the next term he could set the stage for a more updated Republican Party. The majority of the world population is in warm sunny countries and those people will want to buy lose cost Chinese electric cars and solid state batteries. For the United States to be viewed as a leader in liberating humanity the Republican party will need to support rapid expansion of low cost electric car exports with solid state batteries while demonstrating that a healthy ecosphere can be kept for wildlife in developing nations. Of course it will help if President-elect Trump can restore peaceful relations with Russia and settle the Ukraine-Russia boundary dispute. 

https://electrek.co/2024/11/06/catl-pushes-forward-all-solid-state-ev-batteries/

Would a Harris Win Enable a Chaotic Crash of the Dollar?

  A Trump win might generate fairly predictable consequences ( good economy, compiling public debt, peace with Russia etc). A Harris win alternatively could start a series of chaotic challenges to American leadership competence with consequences for the poor as well as average Americans.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/digital-assets/2024/11/02/cataclysmic-collapse-tesla-billionaire-elon-musks-radical-357-trillion-plan-to-avert-financial-emergency-spurs-huge-bitcoin-price-bets/

The Harris commitment to pursue conflict with Russia over Ukraine and her lack of historical understanding of the nation's position in the currents of world political evolution might engender the crash of the dollar while global warming accelerates. Secure borders and a commitment to excellence and supporting the development of every American citizen to be the best they can be is necessary if the country is to have much control of it's own political destiny in one nation under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all.

Kamala Harris major selling point is that she is female. She has of course signed off on the Democrat's party platform, yet I am not aware of a single new idea she has. Low expectations need to be adjusted downward.

Wittgenstein, Cohen, Quine, Kripke, Language, Wars etc.

 Wittgenstein's Blue and Brown books presented a simple anthropology of language development. It was a somewhat more pragmatic approach than Heidegger's investigation of language and concept meanings with depth in etymology. His thought about language was a part of the development of linguistic or analytic philosophy yet very early. Realism and nominalism questions about words were better understood toward the later half of the 20th century Applying logic to language and meaning as elements of epistemology developed later with people like Cohen, Strawson, Quine and Kripke. 

A thought about wars of the distant future... Weapons like scalpels will be applied to scale of conflict. To destroy a planet or galaxy different tools would be used than to excise opposition forces amid some friendly forces. If people remain stupid enough to have wars they will probably annihilate themselves anyway.

Apparently scientists already bred an ape with a human and aborted the foetus, otherwise there would have been a better alternative to Joe Biden. Seriously though, 16 million years ago a major eruption occurred- with vast left-wing lava extrusion (The Columbia River Basalt Province) from the Yellowstone hotspot and before that the Deccan Traps extrusion 66 million y.b.p. Humans have been around from about 100,000-200,000 years ago and no they wouldn't naturally evolve to a super-being in just 100,000 more years. Many people including James Lovelock and the late Jacques Cousteau have said that humanity will probably destroy the livability of the Earth within 200 years. It does seem likely. 

https://www.usgs.gov/volcanoes/yellowstone/science/summary-yellowstone-eruption-history

Unicorns in the Old Testament. Apparently Re'em was a unicorn as well as the rhino mentioned earlier ( "the scientific name for the Indian Rhino is 'Rhinoceros Unicornis") It had to do with horns. Stipes was the upright stick Jesus was crucified on and the unicorn was a symbol of Christ. I will quote a relevant piece on unicorns from a google search... "The Hebrew word re'em is mentioned nine times in the Bible and is often translated as "unicorn" in English translations. However, some modern translations use the term "wild ox" (aurochs) to describe the re'em, which is the correct meaning". I tend toward being a KJV only reader myself so far as Bibles go, because I like the language, although the Good News version is sometimes interesting too.