David Bradley – Page 10 – David Bradley

Nacreous, mother-of-pearl clouds

My sister sent me some photos she took of pearlescent clouds that appeared at dusk over her house today. I took a look outside myself soon after and could see a couple of small patches of these colourful clouds here too. We live at least a couple of hours drive apart. There have been lots of posts on social media of some beautiful nacreous clouds this week.

Nacreous cloud over Cambridgeshire in December 2003 — Nacreous cloud over Cambridgeshire in December 2023. I turned up the saturation slightly on the photograph so that you could see the phenomenon discussed more clearly in my photo.

The term nacreous refers to the iridescent, smooth internal sheen we see in several mollusc shells, often known as mother-of-pearl when it’s seen in oysters. The word’s etymology presumably lies in the Arabic word naqur “hunting horn”, from nakara meaning to hollow out, in reference to the shape of mollusc shells, but perhaps actual shells used as horns, such as conch shells.

Public domain photo of nacreous clouds by Stein Arne Jensen

Nacreous clouds are also known as polar stratospheric clouds and form in the winter polar stratosphere at altitudes of 15 to 25 kilometres where it is very cold (down to minus 78 Celsius) and dry. Indeed, clouds rarely form at this altitude because of the lack of water vapour. The clouds themselves are formed from ice crystals rather than liquid or water vapour. Under the right natural conditions, they might be seen further from the poles as has happened in the UK this week. The clouds are characterized by their vibrant and iridescent colours, including shades of pink, purple, and green. The colours show when the sun, as seen from ground level, is actually a few degrees below the horizon.

The shimmering and vibrant colours you might see result from the interference of light waves as they pass through the ice particles from which the cloud is composed. Incidentally, we could’ve been seeing the same patch of cloud given the altitudes we’re talking.

There is a second type of nacreous cloud that forms from supercooled water droplets and atmospheric nitric acid and is associated with ozone depletion.

Waxing lyrical in Bohemia

I was chuffed to bits to catch up with these delightful winter visitors not 20 minutes from home. There were just 4 of the 20+ that had been showing an hour or so before I arrived #waxwings.

Waxwing feeding on Rowan berries

There are ~~two~~ four flocks local to Cambridge, possibly more. Their preference is for Rowan berries so anywhere you see those, you might see Waxwings. B&Q car parks, bus stations, hospitals etc etc. See my previous post on this specific topic.

Waxwing feeding on Rowan berries

Given that it seems we are definitely seeing an irruption winter with sightings all across the UK and some relatively large flocks showing up, chances of catching sight of them are fairly high.

Waxwing feeding on Rowan berries

They tend to gather at the tops of tall trees, occasionally calling “trrrreeee, trrrreee, trreeeee” and then dropping down to feast on the berries. They can quickly strip even the most fecund of Rowan trees before moving on, leaving little for the resident blackbirds or any incoming Fieldfares or Redwings (also winter visitors, but thrushes). In the photo below you can perhaps see that the bird’s tongue appears to be barbed. If it is, then that is presumably an adaptation for being able to grab these berries so efficiently. Not how many “ends” on those twigs are missing a berry!

Waxwing feeding on Rowan berries

I hadn’t had a chance to see any since early in 2017, which i think was the previous irruption year.

Waxwing feeding on Rowan berries

Christmas Round Robin

Just received this rather charming Christmas Round Robin from a distant friend…

Dear Esteemed Recipients of our Distinguished Christmas Card,

Greetings and salutations from the heart of our grand abode! It is with the utmost pleasure, mixed with a dash of condescension, that I extend to you the honour of perusing our annual epistle—a riveting chronicle of the exciting occurrences that have transpired in our charmed existence over the course of this rather remarkable year.

First and foremost, our palatial estate continues to be a bastion of refinement and splendour. The East Wing renovations, featuring imported stone from the quarries of Brac one of the islands off Croatia’s Dalmation Coast and adorned with chandeliers that have been passed down through generations, have reached their completion. The resplendent ambiance now rivals that of Buckingham Palace, or so I am told.

In the realm of intellectual pursuits, our prodigious offspring have continued to exceed our already lofty expectations. Tar-quynn has mastered the art of debating the merits of monocles versus spectacles at his exclusive preparatory school, while Gwendolynne’s proficiency in the saddle has become the talk of the local equestrian club. One mustn’t forget to mention the accolades garnered by little Impresaria for her impeccable talent in watercolours – a skill he undoubtedly inherited from his forebears.

Our summer sojourn to the French Riviera was, as one might expect, a delightful tryst with opulence and gastronomic indulgence. The sunsets over Le Midi were only surpassed by the adulation we received at the elite social gatherings that punctuated our leisurely afternoons.

The commodious yacht, which was a mere trifle compared to our main vessel, provided a most agreeable setting for champagne-fuelled tête-à-têtes and ostentatious displays of nautical sophistication. The cultural enrichment garnered from private performances by renowned virtuosi was, naturally, the highlight of our maritime escapades.

On the domestic front, Aspen’s latest endeavour into the world of haute cuisine has resulted in a culinary masterpiece—her signature truffle-infused quinoa risotto. It has become the pièce de résistance of our dinner parties, attracting praise from even the most discerning gastronomes. Of course, we can’t ignore the addition of a personal mindfulness pavilion in the garden, a serene sanctuary for our pursuit of inner enlightenment and physical well-being.

In conclusion, as we bask in the glow of our self-created magnificence, we send our regards to you, dear friends and family. May your year have been half as extraordinary as ours, and may your holidays be filled with the kind of refinement and sophistication that only we can truly appreciate.

Yours, with an air of restrained magnanimity,

Giles and Aspen Urquhart-Smythe
The Croft
Tilbury

In case you were wondering, yes, this is an edited version of something I got ChatGPT to produce using the following prompt:

You are to act as a pretentious, over-privileged middle-class Englishman writing a “round robin” newsletter to include with their Christmas card. Imagine all the personal and boring news from the year you have to share with friends and family you rarely see and don’t really care about.

Domain names for sale

I have run a lot of websites over the years. First one was December 1995. I built up various topic hubs under specific names. However, things change, people move on. I am now selling some of the old domains associated with those hubs:

sciencetext.com

reactivereports.com

You can contact me directly, if you’d like to purchase any of them or simply visit the domain to get sale details. A direct sale could save us both money, however.

A decade of pantomime! Oh yes it was

As I’ve mentioned before. The Cottenham Theatre Workshop’s (CTW) longstanding Musical Director, the inimitable Barbara D, recruited me as guitarist for the pit band back in 2013. I actually played bass guitar that first year as regular cellist, David A, was treading the boards for the first time. David A was back in the pit for Cinderella and so I switched to six-string guitar and played that for every show thereafter.

2013 – A Christmas Carol

2014 – Cinderella

2015 – Puss in Boots (No band, MD was the late Debbie C)

2016 – The Wizard of Oz

2017 – Aladdin

2018 – Worzel Gummidge

2019 – Sleeping Beauty

2020 – No Panto (covid)

2021 – Treasure Island

2022 – The Nutcracker

2023 – Peter Panto

We usually had Rob W on clarinet except in 2023. Georgia D on flute for my first couple of shows, and also Michael K on saxophone. Matthew P on drums for the first couple, whom I replaced with Adam S (from C5 the band) John K understudied a couple of performances for Adam. Christian on cello, Tanara on clarinet and oboe.

From my privileged position in the pit, looking up at the stage, I’ve usually taken a few photos of the cast during rehearsals for CTW publicity, although I don’t seem to have started doing that until Oz in 2016. 2023 was a record-breaking year in terms of ticket sales, outstripping the previous record in 2022.

While I didn’t join in with CTW until 2013, I had been asked when we first moved to Cottenham in 1998 by Clive B to tread the boards, but didn’t have the confidence. I seem to remember talking to Barbara about her joining the pit band around about the turn of the millennium though and she was definitely onboard from around that time…

It will be all change musically in 2024…watch this space.

Twitching and dipping out a Waxwing

Word on the birding street is that this winter is going to be bright for lovers of one of our winter visitors – the Waxwing, Bombycilla garrulus. This bird is more formally known as the Bohemian Waxwing as opposed to the American bird, the Cedar Waxwing, B. cedrorum. There were quite a few sightings early on in Scotland as these birds that spend the summer much further north than that began to head south.

Waxwing, photographed in Newcastle

Sightings in England have been on the rise as of late November, early December 2023. The nearest relatively large flock for me is in Norwich. Too far for me to make that trip just for the birds. However, word went out that a solitary bird was in trees next to the recreation ground in a village just up the road, Stretham. Usually, the flocks tend to congregate in places with large plantings of berry-laden trees, like rowans, such as supermarket car parks, transport hubs and service stations, as I’ve mentioned before.

A Meadow Pipit in the Spring on Anglesey

It wasn’t such a long twitch to head to Stretham from here to have a look for the bird. I scanned every tree in the vicinity, took a long walk around the village scouting out rowans and cherry trees to no avail.

I didn’t see the Waxwing. I dipped out, as birders say (check out my tongue-in-beak birding glossary for definitions of such terms).

However, I had the Merlin app running on my phone all the while for audio birding, you might say. There was the off-chance that it would pick up the Waxwing calling and I might be able to find it. But, unfortunately, I didn’t. I heard various birds as did the app: Carrion Crow, Collared Dove, Common Pheasant, Common Starling, Eurasian Blue Tit, Eurasian Jackdaw, Eurasian Skylark, European Greenfinch, European Robin, Great Tit, House Sparrow, Long-tailed Tit, Meadow Pipit, Redwing, Rook. All of these birds are quite likely in the area.

The app, however, also claimed to have heard a Hooded Crow, but they are rather rare this far south and I haven’t seen one mentioned in Cambridgeshire for several years. So, I suspect it was a misidentified Carrion Crow call.

Hooded Crow, Northumberland

Collagen, wrinkles, and ageing skin

Collagen is a protein that plays a crucial role in maintaining the structure, firmness, and elasticity of the skin. As we age, several changes occur in the collagen of our skin, contributing to the visible signs of ageing, such as the appearance of wrinkles.

Here are some key aspects of how collagen changes with age:

Decreased Production: The synthesis of collagen decreases with age, leading to a reduction in the overall amount of collagen in the skin. This reduced production is influenced by both genetic and environmental factors, such as sun exposure and lifestyle choices, like smoking and alcohol consumption. a balanced diet rich in vitamins and minerals, can have a positive impact on collagen production.

Degradation: Collagen fibres can undergo degradation due to various factors, including exposure to ultraviolet (UV) radiation from the sun, pollution, and other environmental stressors. Enzymes called matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) play a role in breaking down collagen. This is heightened by exposure to sunlight and pollution. Antioxidants from our diet can help combat the effects of environmental stressors on collagen degradation.

Cross-linking: Collagen fibres undergo a process called cross-linking, where they become more rigid and less flexible. This can result in the loss of skin elasticity and the formation of wrinkles and fine lines. Excessive cross-linking is often caused by factors like prolonged sun exposure.

Changes in Collagen Types: The composition of collagen in the skin changes with age. In particular, there is a shift from Type III collagen, more prevalent in younger skin, to Type I collagen. That said Type III might be considered to be less flexible providing greater support when we are young.

Thinning of the Dermis: Collagen is a major component of the dermis, the deeper layer of the skin. As collagen decreases, the dermis can thin, leading to a loss of structural support for the outer layer of the skin (epidermis). Other factors, such as a reduction in the number of fibroblasts (cells responsible for collagen production) and changes in the extracellular matrix, also contribute to dermal thinning. This also gives rise to a more translucent appearance of the skin and allows underlying blood vessels to be seen in the skin more clearly.

Loss of Hydration: Collagen is also involved in maintaining skin hydration. As collagen decreases, the skin may become drier, contributing to the development of wrinkles and a less plump appearance. That said, while collagen is involved in maintaining skin hydration, the primary role in this regard is played by another protein called hyaluronic acid. Collagen indirectly influences hydration by supporting the structure of the skin.

These changes in collagen contribute to common signs of ageing, such as wrinkles, sagging skin, and a loss of skin firmness. While ageing is a natural process, certain lifestyle choices, such as protecting the skin from sun exposure, staying hydrated, and adopting a healthy skincare routine, can help support collagen health and minimize premature ageing effects.

What are nitazenes? Benzimidazole opioids

Benzimidazole opioids, also commonly known as nitazenes, were first synthesised by CIBA Pharmaceuticals in the 1950s as putative alternatives to morphine and heroin for use as strong painkillers. They have never made it into use in clinical medicine because the risk of addiction, respiratory depression, and death in use is too high.

Etonitazene — Etonitazene has hundreds of times the potency of morphine

The compounds are classified as opioid New Psychoactive Substances (opioid NPS). Their mode of action is to bind to the brain’s mu-opioid receptors, but their unique structure means that some examples are several hundred times more potent than morphine and stronger even than fentanyl.

The changing heroin market led to the emergence of nitazenes as drugs of abuse in the early 2020s if not earlier. They pose a major new problem for public health and law enforcement.

Nitazenes were first in the UK news in 2021, when an 18-year-old patient was treated for overdose. Since then, there has been a rise in nitazene abuse with more than fifty overdose deaths and perhaps many more that remain inconclusive. Several nitazenes are, as of this week, defined as Class A drugs in the UK.

On a point of chemical semantics, opiates are chemicals derived from opium or poppy straw. They are alkaloid compounds naturally found in the opium poppy plant, Papaver somniferum. The archetypal opiate is the compound morphine. The analgesic pro-drug codeine is converted in the body to morphine. Heroin (diamorphine) is extracted from the dried latex of the poppy and has a very similar chemical structure to morphine.

The term opioid is used to designate any substance, natural or synthetic, that binds to the opioid receptors in the brain. So, this includes morphine and heroin, but also compounds that are not chemically related to the opiates such as fentanyl, which is a piperidine, and the nitazenes, which are benzimidazoles. There are many different benzimidazoles used safely in pharmaceuticals for treating high blood pressure, fungal infections, parasitic worms etc.

Measles and immunity

The antivax brigade has a lot to answer for, not least the rise and rise of measles, which can be lethal, but is so easily staved off with vaccination. Even if it is not lethal for many, it can be a very problematic disease not least because in some ways it makes your immune system lose its memory of how to protect you from other diseases. While this effect may only be temporary in most cases, temporary can be long enough for another potentially lethal pathogen to take hold while you are vulnerable.

I’ve seen mention on social media of the notion that measles can delete your immune system’s memory of other diseases, and so its ability to fight infection. It’s not quite that simple, but the bottom line is that you are better off being vaccinated against it than not, as are your children.

I asked an immunologist contact to verify the following, which she did:

Measles infection itself does not delete your immune system memory, but it can have significant effects on the immune system that may indirectly impact immune memory. Measles is a highly contagious viral infection caused by the measles virus. The virus primarily targets and infects immune cells, particularly those involved in the adaptive immune response, such as memory B cells and T cells.

The immune system relies on memory cells to “remember” previous encounters with pathogens and mount a faster and more effective response upon re-exposure. In the case of measles, the virus can infect and destroy memory B cells, which are responsible for producing antibodies against specific pathogens. This can lead to a temporary weakening of the immune response and an increased susceptibility to other infections.

Additionally, measles can suppress the overall function of the immune system, leaving the individual more vulnerable to opportunistic infections. The severity of these effects can depend on various factors, including the individual’s overall health, nutritional status, and the presence of any underlying medical conditions.

It is important to note that while measles can have a negative impact on the immune system, the immune system is generally resilient, and in many cases, it can recover over time. Vaccination against measles is a highly effective preventive measure, not only protecting against measles itself but also helping to maintain overall immune system health. The measles vaccine stimulates the immune system to produce a protective response without causing the disease, and it does not have the same detrimental effects on immune memory as natural measles infection.

Where is the best place to see Waxwings?

Where is the best place to catch sight of one of the most beautiful of winter visitors, when it comes to birds? The Bohemian Waxwing, Bombycilla garrulus.

Waxwing closeup — At one point early in 2024, there were 30+ Waxwing feeding on rowan berries next to a local railway station

You might imagine it would be some delightful hill or vale, a nature reserve, or perhaps a remote woodland. Well, that’s not the case. This distinctive species heads south to the UK when it gets too cold for it in northern parts and when the supply of berries on which it feeds dries up. As of December 2023, it seems like we are in the middle of an irruption of these birds with relatively large numbers turning up in all sorts of places right across the UK.

Best places to see them are where there are lots of trees with lots of berries, rowans and other species. They seem to like to observe their “feeding station” from on high, so if there are other taller trees, like poplar and ash overlooking the rowans, all the better, but tall lamp posts might do just as well as a perch. So, where might those places be? Well, town planners and architects like to put these attractive trees on trading estates, retail parks, next to bus stops and bus stations, science parks, road junctions, brickyards, city parks, pub beer gardens, service stations, school playing fields, supermarket car parks and the like! If you’re very lucky and have a decent feast for them, you might even get them in your garden.

Waxwing feeding on berries in a tree, Newcastle — Waxwing feeding on berries in a tree next to a bus stop near Newcastle-upon-Tyne on a grey, drizzly day. This was my first chance to photograph the species.

Just scanning the Birdguides page for recent sightings during this wonderful 23/24 winter irruption of Boho Wx, here are some of the sites:

Tram stop, Didsbury
Quarry, Flintshire
Churchyard, Aldermaston
Cemetery, Romsey
Car park, Garforth
Road junction, Wharfedale
Canal towpath, Aylstone
Road junction, Skipton
Cobbler’s Walk, Bushy Park, London
Car park, Rodborough
Road junction, Leuchars
Road junction, Colchester
Road junction, East Hunsbury
Community centre, Watford
Pub, Tonbridge
Pub, Chafford Hundred
Retail park, Middlesborough
Road bypass, Nescliffe Hill
High School, Earlston
Roundabout, Maresfield
Caravan park, Fife
Airbase, Brize Norton
Road junction, Waltham Cross
Historical building, Rodborough
Car showroom, Elgin
Cricket club, Long Hanborough
Shop, Hailsham
Station car park, Merstham
Roundabout, Thringstone
Nature reserve car park, Hesketh