Amateur Naturalist: Banyan Trees Also Called Strangler-Figs
Picture 1: A set of banyan tree roots are covering the trunk of the support tree. Courtesy photo
Picture 2: Trunk-like branches grow horizontally and have roots growing downward. Courtesy photo
By BOB DRYJA
Los Alamos
Darwin asserted that species most fit for their environment were more likely to survive and pass their attributes on to the next generation. This is the so called “survival of the fittest”.
Tall trees with an extensive covering of leaves provide a one kind of environment. The resulting environment at the base of such a tree is very shadowy. It is not conducive for seeds to grow since Read More
Dannemann: Making New Mexicans Healthier
By MERILEE DANNEMANN
Triple Spaced Again
© 2026 by Merilee Dannemann
The president’s nominee for Surgeon General of the United States, questioned by a Senate committee, was asked about her views on vaccines and birth control medications. She gave similar responses on both issues. She said both vaccines and contraceptive medications have side effects that may affect some people more than others, and patients or parents should have in-depth conversations with their doctors.
The nominee is Dr. Casey Means. This interview was in late February. As of the date I’m writing this, her nomination Read More
Op-Ed: New Mexico Is Open For Doctors — And That’s Good News For All Of Us
By ANNIE JUNG
Executive Director
New Mexico Medical Society
If you have ever waited six weeks to see a specialist, driven an hour each way to find a doctor who takes your insurance, or been told your community clinic is closing, you already understand the stakes of physician recruitment and retention. It is not an abstract policy debate. It is your health, and your family’s health, on the line. New Mexico has faced a physician shortage for years — and this session, our state took the most significant action in a generation to fix it.
A Landmark Fix to Medical Malpractice: HB 99
No single issue has driven Read More
McQuiston: Driving In Los Alamos Is Unlike Anywhere Else
By ALLEN MCQUISTONJemez Insurance Agency
Serving Los Alamos Since 1963
Los Alamos isn’t just a town, it’s a landscape. The roads wind through canyons, hills, and mesas, where weather and wildlife create challenges that outsiders rarely anticipate. Even seasoned locals sometimes underestimate how quickly conditions can change.
- Microclimates That Change in Minutes
You might leave your house on a clear street only to encounter ice a few blocks away. Shaded roads, canyon curves, and higher elevations mean frost and slick spots appear suddenly. Locals know the worst trouble spots: Diamond
An Open Book: At The Passover Seder Table
By DAVID IZRAELEVITZ
Los Alamos
Family gatherings at the Ellis household were a symphony of activity, conversation, and food, with my mother-in-law, Faith, serving as both conductor and principal violinist. Like any esteemed musician, she had her favorite pieces. She was famous for her pepper-infused boiled fish balls, or gefilte fish, a dish as much a part of the Passover season as a recital of Handel’s Messiah is to Christmas observance.
Having grown up without the benefit of extended family nearby, I found those multigenerational gatherings of grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins Read More
Home Country: Christmas In Spring
Home Country
By SLIM RANDLES
Spring mornings are a lot like Christmas. Each day we get up and go out into the yard or walk along the creek or visit the horses in the pasture. And each day, each morning, we find something new the sun has brought us.
Pinfeather leaves of an unbelievable green now start showing on cottonwoods that have stood like stark ghostly frames all through the cold winter. Hopeful blades of grass peek through clumps of brown left over from last summer’s verdant pasture. Everywhere we look there is something new and different.
A lot of this Christmas-in-spring is kept just among us, Read More
Travel: Easter Island Offers Visitors A Unique Blend Of Culture, Legend And Landscape
Ahu a Kivi. Photo by Debbie Stone
Rano Kao. Photo by Debbie Stone
By DEBBIE STONE
Santa Fe
As I gazed at the massive monolithic figures before me, I experienced a sense of awe and wonder, amid an aura of mystery. These enigmatic statues, called moai (meaning “to exist”), were carved by ancient civilizations centuries ago and they are found on Easter Island, also known as Rapa Nui.
This remote volcanic island is located in the southeastern Pacific Ocean and is part of Chile. It requires some effort and expense to reach this legendary destination, as you first need to get to Santiago, on mainland Chile, Read More