Forest Understory All

* What do you expect to observe when we visit the forests of the H.J. Andrews?

Before reading this book, I didn’t have many expectations of visiting the forests. I expected trees, a stream or two, and lots of bug bites. I typically think of research as strictly in a lab, so I certainly did not think about how people ran experiments within the forest, or how different of an experience it would be to stray from the given paths. Now, I am excited to see the awe-inspiring beauty that motivated the incredible poetry and stories that people wrote about the forest. I expect to feel very small in comparison to the massive trees and the diverse nature, and hope to forget about the real world – the disruptive, manufactured, “concrete jungle” – for as long as possible.

* What are some different ways of telling the story of these forests? How do methods of creative reflection support scientific inquiry and vice versa?

The way the forest’s story is told depends on the perspective of the storyteller. A scientist’s viewpoint differs from that of a poet, which differs from that of an artist. The scientist sees the perfect venue to run an experiment; the poet finds his muse, and the artist sees a landscape to put on canvas. You, hearing the story second hand, would get a very different idea of what the forest is like if you heard from the three different sources. However, you might get the best picture of what it is like when considering all possible perspectives. Creative reflection allows you to analyze how it looks, whereas scientific inquiry lets you figure out how it works, what happened to make it look that way, and predict how it might look in the future. The different perspectives compliment each other because to further appreciate the beauty during reflection, you have to understand the history of the forest, how it grew, and the science that keeps it alive. Additionally, during scientific inquiry, you have to reflect upon your surroundings to see the worth in the experiments that you worked so hard to conduct.

* Why is the long-view critical to understanding the role of humans in the natural world?

I read a metaphor about unsustainable practices, which is as follows:

“The Earth is 4.6 billion years old. Scaling that to 46 years, we’ve been here 4 hours, and our industrial revolution began just one minute ago. In that time we’ve destroyed more than 50 percent of the world’s forests.”

That really speaks to me as far as the long-view goes because we are not using our natural world, forests in this case, sustainably. Looking at the long-view, we can predict what our forests will look like in the future, and they might be completely gone with no intervention and deforestations continues. Understanding our role can help us change our practices, and hopefully create a long-view that includes forests that are still natural and flourishing.

* Why was this theme chosen (e.g., Research and Revelation for Part One) to tell the story of the H.J. Andrews Experimental Forest?

The big revelation from part one is the importance of the forest and that we need to work to preserve it. This theme was chosen as one of the major parts of the story because if the revelation had not occurred, deforestation might still be happening at rates as high as described in the 1930’s. The revelation came as a result of the research conducted in the forests, which is why it is another important theme to this part of the book.

* What do you expect the landscape to look like from the passages in this section?

I expect to see a variety of landscapes, some which have been affected by deforestation and others that have not. Since the research that stopped deforestation was conducted fairly recently, the effects of people viewing the forest as “large saw timber” should still be visible (p 62). In the places affected by this, I expect an area that is in recovery and trying to regrow. In places that were not affected, I’m pretty much expecting just a stereotypical forest dense with tall trees and lots of other greenery.

* Provide an example or two of how the scientific context presented in the Ground Work essay is reflected in creative storytelling for the section.

The ground work describes the forest as being incredibly diverse with over 4000 species. This diversity was discovered through the research conducted since 1970s, also known as the “golden era of old-growth research” (p 63). I thought the amount of diversity was well portrayed in Vicki Graham’s poem, “Cosymbionts.” She uses asyndeton, the absence of a conjunction like and, when listing the different pieces of the forest and to describe some of the animals found there. Asyndeton is used to make a list of things seem even larger, which helps her to illustrate the enormity of the forest and its inhabitants.

* What’s a question you have about the forest from reading these passages?

I wonder how much the research that is conducted in the forest alters how the forest would be naturally. I’m sure the researchers are cautious not to change anything, but their presence surely scares some of the animals, or where they step might affect how some of the vegetation grows. This question isn’t one that can be answered when we go there, because there’s no way of knowing what it would look like without interference, but all the same, I am curious about it.

• Why was this theme chosen (e.g., Research and Revelation for Part One) to tell the story of the H.J. Andrews Experimental Forest?Change and continuity juxtapose each other while still being complementary pieces of the overall subject of this section. The first Ground Work Essay entitled “Disturbance” best explains this: “… despite all this disturbance, ecosystems are resilient” (p 122). People tend to hold a negative connotation with the word “disturbance,” but it has been found that routine disturbances in the Andrews Forest are necessary to help the forest’s ecosystems further develop. Although the disturbances cause change to the landscape, they foster continuous change and growth within the forest, thereby helping it to evolve.
  • What do you expect the landscape to look like from the passages in this section?

Based on this section, I expect a lot of diverse life, even in areas that have been recently subjected to a disturbance. A few of the passages talk about the organisms that are able to thrive in what first looks like debris and destruction, which makes me think that there will be different types of plants and animals in areas that have been subjected to different conditions over the past few decades.

• Provide an example or two of how the scientific context presented in the Ground Work essay is reflected in creative storytelling for the section.

The poem “Clear Cut” on page 149 talks about the negative effects of disturbances, specifically man-made ones like logging. It illustrates the difficulties that some of the animals face when their ecosystem has been destroyed, and how long it takes for it to recover. The author even “wants time to hurry” so that the forest can regrow, even though he knows he will not be alive by the time this happens (p 149). “New Channel” tells the other story of the forest after a disturbance. The author calls out those who “focus always on the destruction and not the regeneration,” which includes the author of “Clear Cut” (p 123). Although many animals die and trees fall, causing more debris, other organisms are able to thrive in the aftermath of a disturbance, which is what we should focus on when studying the change and continuity in the forest.

• What’s a question you have about the forest from reading these passages?

This passage makes me wonder how much change has occurred in the forest in the past couple decades. Additionally, with each disturbance like a wildfire or logging, how much adaptation occurs to recover from the event, and how much is the course of evolution within the ecosystem altered?

* Why was this theme chosen (e.g., Research and Revelation for Part One) to tell the story of the H.J. Andrews Experimental Forest?

Borrowing Others’ Eyes was chosen for this section because it explains the full sensory experience of the forest. You use your other senses to understand or see the parts of the forest that you could not find with only your eyes. For example, you would not think to turn around to see an animal if you did not hear it moving from behind you. All senses are necessary to fully experience the forest.

* What do you expect the landscape to look like from the passages in this section?

This section didn’t necessarily give me any expectations for the landscape, but it made me want to experience it differently – with all of my senses, and not just my eyes. I expect to be more attuned to the different sounds and smells of the forest, and the various textures of the trees and leaves of the environment. The only new expectation I gained from this section is to have a complete sensory experience.

* Provide an example or two of how the scientific context presented in the Ground Work essay is reflected in creative storytelling for the section.

My favorite poem from this section is “This Day, Tomorrow, and the Next” by Pattiann Rogers. The opening line is “When the blind and the deaf walk/ together in the forest,” which then goes on to explain how the two are able to complement one another by working together with the senses that they have (p 174). Usually we think of just seeing, or just hearing something, and sound and sight are two completely different entities. However, these two with their respective disabilities have to work together to get a more complete experience in the forest. Likewise, when a person with all of their senses goes to the forest, they have to let their sight and sound work together to better and more fully appreciate the forest.

* What’s a question you have about the forest from reading these passages?

This section makes me wonder how much sound will affect how I view the forest. Similarly, I wonder how different of an experience I would have on this trip had I not read this book – would I be as alert to the sounds of the forest, and would I see or understand as much if I was not paying attention to the different sounds?