Travis Hale - Science & Photography https://www.travishale.com Science, Photography & the Occasional Bad Pun Thu, 01 Oct 2026 08:04:50 +0000 en-AU hourly 1 https://i0.wp.com/www.travishale.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/cropped-C0_TH-Initials-Side-High-Res-Black.png?fit=32%2C32&ssl=1 Travis Hale https://www.travishale.com 32 32 97947215 Luminar Legacy Upgrade Offer: Get Luminar Desktop for $59 https://www.travishale.com/luminar-legacy-upgrade-offer-get-luminar-desktop-for-59/ Thu, 01 Oct 2026 08:03:22 +0000 https://www.travishale.com/?p=36941 Disclosure: I am an affiliate of the Skylum Luminar program. If you purchase through my link, I may receive a commission at no additional cost to you. Photography editing software changes quickly. Tools that photographers relied on a few years ago can look very different today as new features, workflows, and AI-assisted editing capabilities become part of the process.

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]]> 36941 ON1 NoNoise AI 2027: Can AI Clean Up High-ISO Photos Without Losing the Detail? https://www.travishale.com/on1-nonoise-ai-2027-can-ai-clean-up-high-iso-photos-without-losing-the-detail/ Thu, 01 Oct 2026 07:51:59 +0000 https://www.travishale.com/?p=36937 There is a point in almost every photographer’s life where getting the photograph means accepting some noise. For wildlife photographers, it might be a bird appearing at first light. The light is poor, the subject is moving and there is no opportunity to set up a tripod or wait for conditions to improve. The choice is often simple: raise the ISO and get the shot, or keep the ISO low and risk losing it to motion blur. The same problem […]]]> There is a point in almost every photographer's life where getting the photograph means accepting some noise. For wildlife photographers, it might be a bird appearing at first light. The light is poor, the subject is moving and there is no opportunity to set up a tripod or wait for conditions to improve. The choice is often simple: raise the ISO and get the shot, or keep the ISO low and risk…

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]]> 36937 34: Psychrophiles — life at temperatures below zero https://www.travishale.com/34-psychrophiles-life-at-temperatures-below-zero/ Wed, 30 Sep 2026 16:00:00 +0000 https://www.travishale.com/?p=34181 Psychrophiles are microbes that thrive in temperatures below zero. From Antarctic brine pockets at -20°C to 3-million-year-old Siberian permafrost, these organisms use specialized proteins and fatty acids to keep their cells functioning in extreme cold.]]> Within Antarctic glaciers, pockets of liquid brine remaining at -20°C still harbor active, reproducing bacteria. While most biological processes grind to a halt at such temperatures, a specialized group of microbes known as psychrophiles thrives in these frozen landscapes. Surviving sub-zero temperatures requires a complete overhaul of cellular chemistry. The primary challenge is the…

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]]> 34181 33: Thermophiles and hyperthermophiles — microbes that thrive in boiling water https://www.travishale.com/33-thermophiles-and-hyperthermophiles-microbes-that-thrive-in-boiling-water/ Mon, 28 Sep 2026 04:00:00 +0000 https://www.travishale.com/?p=34180 Thermus aquaticus and other heat-loving microbes thrive in environments that would destroy most life. From the hot springs of Yellowstone to deep-sea vents, these organisms produce heat-stable proteins. These adaptations led to the development of PCR, a foundational tool in modern genetics and molecular biology.]]> Thermus aquaticus thrives in boiling hot springs. The enzyme it uses to replicate its DNA at these extreme temperatures fundamentally transformed modern science. Microbes handle extreme heat in different ways, and they are generally categorized into two groups: thermophiles and hyperthermophiles. Thermophiles typically thrive in temperatures between 45 and 80 degrees Celsius.

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]]> 34180 41: Green Star vs. WELL — what’s the actual difference? https://www.travishale.com/41-green-star-vs-well-whats-the-actual-difference/ Mon, 28 Sep 2026 01:00:00 +0000 https://www.travishale.com/?p=33477 Both are building ratings. They measure very different things.]]> Both are building ratings, but they measure very different things. Green Star and WELL are the two frameworks you see most often in Australia. People usually talk about them as if they're alternatives, but they have different goals. You need to know the difference to decide which one fits your project. Green Star, run by the Green Building Council of Australia…

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]]> 33477 32: The ocean virome — viruses as ecological engineers of marine ecosystems https://www.travishale.com/32-the-ocean-virome-viruses-as-ecological-engineers-of-marine-ecosystems/ Fri, 25 Sep 2026 16:00:00 +0000 https://www.travishale.com/?p=34179 With 10^30 particles in the ocean, viruses are the invisible architects of marine life. From the viral shunt that releases 150 Gt of carbon per year to the regulation of cyanobacteria, these entities control biomass and drive genetic evolution across the global ocean.]]> The ocean is home to more viruses than there are stars in the observable universe. Most of these are bacteriophages, which play a fundamental role in shaping the structure of marine microbial communities. The numbers are staggering. With roughly 10^30 marine viruses in our oceans, if they were laid end to end, they would stretch 10 million light years. For years, the extent of this…

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]]> 34179 40: IEQ and green building — do they always go together? https://www.travishale.com/40-ieq-and-green-building-do-they-always-go-together/ Fri, 25 Sep 2026 01:00:00 +0000 https://www.travishale.com/?p=33476 A building can have a 6 Star Green Star rating and still make people sick.]]> A building can have a 6 Star Green Star rating and still make people unwell. That isn't a criticism of Green Star. It's just a reflection of what the rating was designed for—and what it wasn't. Administered by the Green Building Council of Australia, Green Star assesses environmental performance across energy, water, materials, transport, land use, and the indoor environment.

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]]> 33476 31: Waterborne pathogens — what lives in water that shouldn’t, and why https://www.travishale.com/31-waterborne-pathogens-what-lives-in-water-that-shouldnt-and-why/ Wed, 23 Sep 2026 04:00:00 +0000 https://www.travishale.com/?p=34178 Waterborne diseases have shaped human history. From the cholera pandemics of the 19th century to modern cases of Cryptosporidium, understanding how bacteria, viruses, and protists move through water systems is key to public health. This post explores the science of transmission and the historical lessons that led to modern water treatment.]]> From cholera and typhoid to cryptosporidiosis and legionellosis, many of history's most devastating infectious diseases have been waterborne. Understanding how these pathogens operate is the first step in preventing them. Waterborne illnesses are caused by three primary types of microbes: bacteria, viruses, and protists. Because each behaves differently in the environment…

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]]> 34178 39: The business case for investing in IEQ https://www.travishale.com/39-the-business-case-for-investing-in-ieq/ Mon, 21 Sep 2026 01:00:00 +0000 https://www.travishale.com/?p=33475 Better IEQ costs money. So does ignoring it.]]> Better IEQ costs money. So does ignoring it. The business case for investing in indoor environmental quality is well-supported. The problem is that the cost of improvement is immediate and visible, while the benefits—productivity, health, and staff retention—rarely show up in the same column on a spreadsheet. A 2014 report from the World Green Building Council on health, wellbeing…

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]]> 33475 30: Metagenomics and the tree of life — how sequence data keeps rewriting what we know https://www.travishale.com/30-metagenomics-and-the-tree-of-life-how-sequence-data-keeps-rewriting-what-we-know/ Sun, 20 Sep 2026 16:00:00 +0000 https://www.travishale.com/?p=34177 Metagenomics allows scientists to identify microbes without culturing them in a lab. From the Lokiarchaeota of the deep sea to the ultra-small CPR bacteria, sequence data is revealing missing branches of the tree of life and redefining the evolutionary relationship between archaea and eukaryotes.]]> Every few years, metagenomics uncovers an entirely new group of microbes that forces us to rethink evolutionary relationships. The tree of life is still being drafted. For decades, our knowledge of microbes was limited to those we could cultivate in a petri dish. The problem is that the vast majority of microbes simply refuse to grow in a laboratory setting. Metagenomics solved this by…

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