9/24 Moon snail, energy facilities permit moratorium, AI, WSF hybrid-electric ferries, octopuses and fish

 

Moon snail [Casey Cruikshank]

Moon snail Euspira lewisii
One of the best-known invertebrates in the sandy intertidal zone is the Moon Snail, both because it is a large (up to 13 cm in diameter) species and because its egg masses are especially notable. Moon Snails are voracious predators on the clams that share their habitat. They find a clam, presumably by chemoreception, and envelope it in their big foot and often drag it more deeply into the sand. The radula has seven rows of teeth, with which they dig a hole (easily recognizable as made by this species because countersunk) into the clam shell. A gland on the proboscis secretes enzymes and even hydrochloric acid to help accomplish this. The snail then rasps and sucks out the clam’s tissues over a period of a day or so. (UPS)

Today's top story in Salish Current: Heading in the right direction: White Rock unveils accessibility mat on its historic pier / Failing our students: The consequences of politicizing school boards

Moratorium put in place on accepting permits for energy facilities on ag land
The Skagit County Board of Commissioners passed an interim ordinance Monday that places a moratorium on accepting permit applications for energy generation or storage facilities on county farmland. The moratorium lasts six months, but may be extended by the board if necessary, according to a county news release. The Skagit County Planning Commission is discussing a proposed amendment to county code that would exclude energy generation or storage facilities on land zoned Ag-NRL. (Skagit Valley Herald)  See: Battery farms, energy industry’s new darling, lining up to enter Pacific NW Don’t you be my neighbor, say some to proposed fields of big batteries Tom Banse reports. (Salish Current)

Learning tool or BS machine? How AI is shaking up higher ed
As students and their professors head back to college classrooms and lecture halls this fall, the elephant in the room is ChatGPT. The large-language model and others like it can correctly answer exam questions, write papers that would have taken hours to research, summarize complicated readings in convenient bullet points, and respond directly to professors’ feedback — all in a matter of seconds. Stephen Howie reports. (KUOW)  See: An election in the age of artificial intelligence Tech entrepreneur and AI expert Shawn Kemp to discuss AI’s potential impact on the upcoming U.S. election and the risks of misinformation, in speaker series event. Rena Kingery reports. (Salish Current)

Conversion of Washington ferry to hybrid-electric power is delayed
When Washington State Ferries took its Jumbo Mark II vessel, the Wenatchee, out of service last September to convert it from diesel to hybrid-electric power, the plan was for the boat to be back in action sometime around late summer this year. The agency now says it anticipates the project will take until summer 2025 to complete. Bill Lucia reports. (Washington State Standard)

Octopuses and fish share leadership — and enforcement — in group hunting
The Red Sea, sandwiched between northeast Africa and the Arabian Peninsula, is teeming with life, including octopuses and more than a thousand species of fish...[A] new study published in the journal Nature Ecology & Evolution...argue[s] that the creatures are sharing leadership as they make hunting decisions. Ari Daniel reports. (KUOW/NPR)

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Here's your tug weather—
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  301 AM PDT Tue Sep 24 2024    
TODAY  N wind around 5 kt, backing to NW this afternoon. Seas  4 to 6 ft. Wave Detail: W 6 ft at 12 seconds. Areas of dense fog  this morning. Patchy fog early this afternoon. A slight chance of  showers late.  
TONIGHT  W wind 5 to 10 kt, becoming SW 10 to 15 kt after  midnight. Seas 4 to 6 ft. Wave Detail: W 6 ft at 13 seconds.  Showers.

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