Kim MacDonald is an award winning broadcaster who has been at The Weather Network since 1998. Kim is also a spokesperson for Breast Cancer Canada. Kim talked about how cell phones and social media changed weather broadcasting and the potential impacts of AI on future forecasts. Kim said she started as a co-host on a morning show before moving to The Weather Network. Things started to change with the advent of social media and Facebook. The smart phone made everyone a weather watcher and on site reporter, sending videos, photos and data to the network. And now there is AI. By looking at photos of the atmosphere for the past 40 years AI can make an accurate (80%) seven day forecast. But climate change is making the 40 year historical data not as relevant today and the human touch is needed to adjust the AI forecasts. AI is being tested to provide weather reports for specific target areas.
Dante Hunter presented Lights Out, Stars On: How to Reduce Light Pollution in Your Neighbourhood. He is Manager of the Bayside Astronomy programme in Lion"s Head. He is a fifth-year student in Physics and Astronomy at McMaster and is an enthusiastic champion of Dark Skies. His presentation followed the Total Solar Eclipse – a heavenly set of events.
Dante told us that the sky is getting brighter; there has been a 49% increase in emissions world wide from 1992-2022. This has created a Light Pollution Crisis. The abundance of light not only diminishes the dark sky and obliterates the wonders of the stars, it also has serious negative ejects on wildlife, birds and trees. Babies that are hatched (reptiles, amphibians, birds) usually need lunar light to navigate themselves to shelter and water. Artificial light however confuses the newborns and often leads them to roads, yards and ultimately death. This leads to declining populations of songbirds, turtles, pujins to name a few.
Dante told us that the sky is getting brighter; there has been a 49% increase in emissions world wide from 1992-2022. This has created a Light Pollution Crisis. The abundance of light not only diminishes the dark sky and obliterates the wonders of the stars, it also has serious negative ejects on wildlife, birds and trees. Babies that are hatched (reptiles, amphibians, birds) usually need lunar light to navigate themselves to shelter and water. Artificial light however confuses the newborns and often leads them to roads, yards and ultimately death. This leads to declining populations of songbirds, turtles, pujins to name a few.
Marina Medeiros is on a New Generations Service Exchange to Rotary District 7090. As a practicing real estate lawyer in Brazil, she has a particular interest in the working s of the legal systems of both Canada and the United States. She has begun her trip in Hamilton and visited the Hamilton Legal Aid Clinic, Ross McBride and our Criminal courts. She noted the dijerences between the legal systems and is appreciative of the opportunity to be here. As a child of Rotarians, Marina is very familiar with the values of Rotary and the pleasures of being a member.
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