Since then, the bark beetle inquiry has taken on a life of its own, becoming a perfect expression of David’s longtime conviction that artists can contribute in significant ways to science.  The acoustic behavior and communication of bark beetles was previously unstudied by entomologists, and now he’s being called to consult with scientists studying not only the piñon pine beetle, but also the mountain pine beetles ravaging larger higher-elevation and higher-latitude pines, as well as insect pests of the non-beetle persuasion.

This past week, a long article appeared in several Canadian newspapers, providing the most detailed look yet at David’s beetle odyssey.  It’s an excerpt from a new book by Andrew Nikiforuk, Empire of the Beetle: How Human Folly and a Tiny Bug Are Killing North America’s Great Forests.  The article dubs David “the tree whisperer,” though so far he hasn’t quite figured out how to calm the outbreaks; in fact, the research so far seems to be leading more toward driving beetles crazy than calming them.  But after forgiving the headline writer, we can sink into the article itself, which is the most detailed, entertaining version yet of David’s beetle adventures.

This is super-cool: an ongoing study of the soundscapes of old WWII bunkers!

Check out Nick Sowers’ work here on the Design Observer Places blog, described wonderfully in words and sound.

And some back stories on his personal blog.

Check it out here.

A Times editorial on June 1 was disgruntled about the new policy:

“Why this more urgent push for silence at the center of this wonderfully boisterous metropolis? Why forbid singing and guitars, even if the tune is not always in harmony with some of the park’s ritzy neighbors? A similar impulse to keep the park tidy has led to rigid limits on demonstrations and political rallies on the park’s Great Lawn. Adrian Benepe, the city’s parks commissioner, said that with Central Park getting 38 million visitors a year, the city is “trying to avert the tragedy of the commons,” where too little regulation destroys a good thing for all. A saxophonist playing at Bethesda Terrace, anewly designated quiet area, could wipe out the gentle sound of the Bethesda Fountain for everyone else.

While that may be true, the new zeal in enforcing the rules seems an odd use of park police….This is New York, a very big noisy place that should not be forced to keep quiet.”

This spurred a flurry of letters, most of which supported the attempt to keep a few areas of the park somewhat free of extraneous human noise-making. Some excerpts:

People visit Central Park for many reasons, but surveys clearly indicate that the most common reason is peace, quiet and relaxation. Many people also enjoy the live music they encounter in the park, but the sound of a horn or a drum should not impinge on visitors who wish to enjoy the sound of birds or water, or to sit in the sun with a good book.

You draw exactly the wrong conclusion. Yes, New York City is a “very big noisy place,” but that is just the reason its residents should be able to have some peaceful, quiet places to escape the noise — without having to leave our city.

One of the great joys of walking through Central Park (and there are so many) is hearing the sound of live music. The Bethesda Fountain, especially on weekends, is a festival of sound where young musicians gather to the delight of visitors to the park. What is Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg going to banish next? Talking in the street?

Noise is one of the prime causes of the “tragedy of the commons” in 21st-century America, where too little regulation destroys a good thing for all. Preserving islands of quiet in an otherwise bustling metropolis provides calm and serene places that preserve mental and physical health. There are some places where quiet should be enforced.

This year, there’s a Kickstarter project going, which if successful will fund 6 artists for the trip, and assure that the program continues.  If you’re not familiar with Kickstarter, it’s an online platform where entrepreneurs, artists, and others raise funds for worthy projects and product development; in return for your donation, you receive some of the fruits of the enterprise.  In this case, recordings!  Pledges are made now, and the project only proceeds if they meet their funding goal, at which point your pledge is paid out.

Let’s make it happen!

And here it is, hopefully working seamlessly, as an embed:

Audio Bee Booth

The prototype of the audio bee booth, an amplified habitat installation, has been hosted by the Toronto Zoo.  It is home to wild, solitary-dwelling bees.

Click through here to read more about this project, and view videos of the booth in action.

Odes to Solitary Bees

View/hear video poems by Stephen Humphrey and Sarah Peebles.   Macro video with micro audio!

For more info, see http://resonatingbodies.wordpress.com/ or contact sarahpeebles at gmail dot com

Mamori Sound Project is a 2-week workshop/residency for professional and semi-professional sound artists and composers with previous experience in the area of sound experimentation and field recordings. It takes place at Mamori Lake, in the middle of the Brazilian Amazon, and involves theoretical/discussion presentations, field work and studio work. The workshop/residency has a special focus on creative approaches to the work with field recordings, through an extensive exploration of natural sound environments. It does not have a technical character but is instead conceived and directed towards the development and realization of a collective project of sonic creation with the interaction of all participant artists/composers.

Francisco López, director of “Mamori Sound Project”, is internationally recognized as one of the major figures of the experimental music and sound art scene. He is also a Ph.D. ecosystem biologist, with more than twenty years of teaching experience in Spain and Latin America. His experience in the field of sound creation and work with environmental recordings spans over a period of thirty years. His work has been released by more than 200 record labels worldwide and he has been awarded three times with honorary mentions at the competition of Ars Electronica Festival. He has realized hundreds of field recording projects, commissions, live performances, sound installations and workshops, as well as research in entomology and ecosystem dynamics, in 60 countries in the five continents, with a particular emphasis on tropical areas in the Americas, Africa and Australasia. He has been directing and organizing “Mamori Sound Project” since 2005 and he has a detailed sonic knowledge on its surrounding environments.

Anyone interested, please contact Francisco López directly: e-mail: 
franciscolopez@franciscolopez.net

http://www.franciscolopez.net

Deadline for registration: June 1st, 2011

The piece quotes Emily Thompson:
“There can be aestheticized ways of listening,” says Emily Thompson, a professor at Princeton specializing in the cultural history of sound. “You really are listening for rhythms, consonances or dissonances in a way that allows you to makes cultural sense of your environment . . . I think turning your environment into art is something that anyone can do.”