Oh, it's Spring!! ...And Leaving Already?

Pinks among the new greens

A few weeks ago, it seemed Spring had finally come. I no longer had to brace myself for an icy chill when walking out of a building, and to my utmost delight, there were glimmers of greens on tree branches. People on the streets seemed more relaxed, swinging their arms about, and embracing the sunlight. When passing shops and supermarkets, I could hear lyrics with acoustic melodies singing of the season "of new love", "hope" and "awakening of memories". Last year's popular spring song "Bom Bom Bom" (In English: "Spring Spring Spring") by Roy Kim flowed out of open car windows. I was incredibly happy at the coming of the new season; it felt serene and liberating (free of thick coats, suffocating scarves and gloves?). I wandered around delightedly - there were so many signs of new life, bursting near the brick walls of the library, by dust bins and next to lamp posts. I felt so blessed to be able to capture such tranquil beauty not only onto digital images but also onto my mind. 

"National cherry blossom bloom season"
and "cherry blossom festivals" are popular searches
(3/30/2014)

But there was tiny thought tugging at me; it was that the change in seasons was proceeding too quickly. The temperatures were not lingering around 8℃ to 13℃, rising little by little but reaching nearly 24℃ in just a week. Before I realized, the weather report was informing us of the imminent early summer weather. Spring festivals usually start in March and end in May; but by looking at the recent temperature changes, it seemed summer would be here much sooner than we expected. 

Shades of purple among crumpled leaves - anyone know what
these adorable flowers are called??

So what is responsible for such drastic changes in our seasons? Global climate change - an answer that is now neither informative nor unexpected. Yet, if we delve into the various effects and consequences of this new spring pattern (which will keep on changing throughout the years) we can grasp a fuller understanding of how our Earth is evolving. Plus, we will find ourselves asking questions that scientists and agencies all over the globe are pondering over. 




I have outlined some major points that give us a fuller picture of the changes in spring:

Right now, it seems like spring's just come
 - but summer is just around the corner!

1. The alteration of one of nature's most important cues, the arrival of spring warmth, means different organisms will react differently. Some species - those that manage to adapt - will benefit from this change whereas others will face a severe threat. 

2. Seasonal relationships between species can be disrupted. According to UK's Natural Environment Research Council, "different species change their seasonal timing to different degrees". The change in the action-reaction of behavioral patterns among organisms can bring about adverse changes in breeding rates and population size. 

3. Seasonal pattern changes occur differently by region; this means there can be further confusion among migrating animals as species from altered climate will interact with those from normal climate.

4. Short springs and longer summers mean mosquitoes and tics can be around for longer. Since they are capable of transmitting diseases, this is a threat to the vast majority of animal species including humans.

Humans activities are also affected: 

Both human and other species' activities are affected 

5. Businesses are among those who have to alter their strategies. According to Kook Min Il Bo News, fashion brands are hurriedly releasing their summer collections in Korea. Summer items are becoming more popular than spring items; accessories such as sunglasses which have been typically sold in "summer months" are now quickly being purchased in the "spring months". 

6. The distribution of number of visits to places such as public parks and water parks is changing. As weather becomes unpredictable, customer behavior that served as a model to businesses and governments is becoming unreliable. 

* Not directly related to the current Korean climate but another important point for when spring comes too early: If plants begin their fruition too soon, a later frost can destroy the foods produced. This affects not only animal species that rely on the foods but also farmers who depend on its produce. 

Final post for the blogpost series 'Should I be Worried?' to come soon-!

http://www.livescience.com/19679-climate-change-seasons-shift-mismatch.html

http://www.forbes.com/sites/alicegwalton/2012/03/21/early-spring-may-signal-darker-climate-changes-ahead/

http://time.com/30638/the-end-of-spring-in-a-warming-world/

http://www.ceh.ac.uk/sci_programmes/shifting-seasons-uk.html

http://news.kukinews.com/article/view.asp?page=1&gCode=cul&arcid=0007178958&cp=nv

'Should I Be Worried?' 3 - Drinking Rain

Image from http://www.cloudjuice.com.au/Size_Matters.html

Clouds are usually pictured as wispy fluffs floating about in the skies. But what if you could 'squeeze' them like oranges and get 'juice'? Haha, I'm sure that's not exactly possible. But "Cloud Juice" is the name of an Australian bottled water brand - and quite an appropriate name it is! * This example is quite significant in this series of blogposts for it deals exclusively with the question of whether we can drink rainwater for its safety as well as taste. 

Drinking rainwater is something Professor Han strongly advocates. According to the professor, rainwater is the cleanest water on Earth. Koreans usually assume streams of water deep in the mountains are quite hygienic. Since such water is actually rainwater, the professor argues that Koreans should then have no problems with drinking rain even in industrialized areas. The Korean peninsula has a highly mountainous terrain; thus, it is quite common to see veins of clear water flowing past when up hiking. 

Some of us may have doubts about drinking rain, but the professor holds a strong belief in rainwater. In the book is described a trip to a remote village near the city of Hanoi, Vietnam. Professor Han and his team of several university students built rainwater collecting units in some individual houses to provide the villagers with water for drinking as well as farming and cooking. The villagers needed this new source of water badly- until then, they had to do with Arsenic-contaminated underground water. What I found the most remarkable was the simplicity of the unit: it is easy to set up and requires materials that are not difficult to find. I attached a photo in the book for you to see! The facility can be divided into three main parts: catchment (for collecting rain directly), bucket (for filtration) and series of tubes (for storing rainwater). The simplicity of the apparatus means it can easily be set up by the villagers themselves. Although I am yet to reach a definite conclusion about acid rain, it surely is a much better alternative to the poisonous water . 

Image from the book 'Rainwater And You' 

by Professor Moo Young Han and Chang Rae Kang

Through the explanations of such projects, the book discusses the importance of rain as a resource. All of us are familiar with the environmentally-friendly way rain is used in buildings. But like the rainwater collection units, we may be able to find even simpler solutions to solve the problem of water shortage.

*http://www.cloudjuice.com.au/Size_Matters.html