Join NOAA Planet Stewards March Book Club!

Last week, NOAA Planet Stewards held a dynamic discussion of Dr. Katherine Hayhoe's newest book, Saving Us: A Climate Scientists Case for Hope and Healing in a Divided World -  a wonderfully written, multi-layered look at science, faith, and the psychology surrounding conversations and climate change. If you haven't had the opportunity to read Dr. Hayhoe's book, we highly recommend it.   We welcome you to join us this month at our March book club where we'll talk about Jim Lynch's novel The Highest Tide. Details and discussion questions are below.  The Highest Tide by Jim Lynch Book Club Date & Time: Tuesday, March 14, 2023 @ 7:00 PM ET   Book Club Place: Video Meeting Link:  meet.google.com/ysi-wwhz-dku To Dial in Using Phone Only: +1 219-515-4315 Pin: 427 896 819# One moonlit night, thirteen-year-old Miles O'Malley sneaks out of his house and goes exploring on the tidal flats of Puget Sound. When he discovers a rare giant squid, he instantly becomes a local phenomenon shadowed by people curious as to whether this speed-reading, Rachel Carson obsessed teenager is just an observant boy or an unlikely prophet. But Miles is really just a kid on the verge of growing up, infatuated with the girl next door, worried that his bickering parents will divorce, and fearful that everything, even the bay he loves, is shifting away from him. As the sea continues to offer up discoveries from its mysterious depths, Miles struggles to deal with the difficulties that attend the equally mysterious process of growing up. Discussion Questions Miles, the main character and narrator in The Highest Tide, says: "most people realize the sea covers two thirds of the planet, but few take the time to understand even a gallon of it... Then they'll have a hard time not thinking about the beginnings of life itself and of an earth without pavement, plastic or Man" (pages 1 and 2). According to NOAA, coastal counties of the U.S. are home to over 128 million people, or almost 40 percent of the nation's total population, yet the coast accounts for less than 10 percent of the nation's land mass – making population density over five times greater in coastal shoreline counties than the U.S. average. This means that issues affecting the coasts affect a large proportion of Americans. How is America affected by: mangroves, salt marshes, seagrass meadows and coral reefs? What are some of the ecological issues facing coastal communities? How could we teach the 60% of the American population not living in coastal counties about the importance of these aquatic ecosystems? Every day Miles observes sea life - i.e., giant squid (page 8), organ-vomiting sea cucumber (page 56), horny phosphorescent worms (page 59), scarred and battered Ragfish (pages 59-61), giant sunflower star (page 75), moon jellies (page 131), etc. Are humans missing something exciting if we don't pay attention to the natural world? Why are these observations important? Why is citizen science so important? Miles references Rachel Carson. Is this author a typical reference point for a current day teenager? Phelps tells Miles that he's in love "with a spinster who's been dead for decades" (page 31). Phelps also tells Miles, "You're a freak... Why don't you use all your homo-reading to study something of value to us"... "like the G-spot?" (page 30). How and why does the author introduce male puberty into the story? In the book many strange events occur in the Sound during the summer: winds, weather, flooding; could these be attributed to rapid climate change? Miles says, "People lost interest once the explanations rolled in. Some even got angry, as if scientists were determined to squeeze the magic out of everything" (page 243). Given people's desire to fixate on mystical explanations for environmental events rather than rational ones, how likely does it seem that people will take responsibility for actions that have an environmental impact? In the novel, how does the media, feed this type of irrational response? If you'd like to see the books and discussion questions from previous NOAA Planet Stewards Book Club meetings, check out out our  Book Club Archives Page! Sign up to the NOAA Planet Stewards email list to receive our bimonthly newsletter The Watch. It's the best way to keep up with all NOAA Planet Stewards happenings, and get the latest information on upcoming educator and student opportunities, meetings, workshops and much more! NOAA Planet Stewards Education Program Stay Connected with NOAA's National Ocean Service Manage Subscriptions   This email was sent to stevenmagallanes520.nims@blogger.com using GovDelivery Communications Cloud on behalf of: NOAA's National Ocean Service · SSMC4, Room 9601 · 1305 East-West Hwy · Silver Spring, MD 20910