I've read so many compost papers by now, that I have developed a fondness for certain authors. It's always nice to find another 'gem' in the form of a decades-old paper from people who have known their stuff for quite some time. Have I mentioned before that I do lit searches for fun? ;)

Permanence. A critical parameter when it comes to soil carbon preservation projects. A couple of years ago someone asked me how long it takes to estimate soil carbon permanence. They assumed that you would need multi-year trials at significant expense.

My favourite agronomic trials that test soil amendments standardise for nitrogen. Even better, standardise for available nitrogen. Too many studies have conclusions clouded by simple fertilisation effects.

Reading a materials science paper (non-biologists) and they just referred to pyoverdine as an 'enzyme'. I know not all enzymes are proteins but don't they at least have to be macromolecules? What term is best to use when referring to these interesting medium-sized molecules?

Assessing compost quality becomes difficult when you recognise that most of the indicators do not have a linear relationship across the full range of possibilities. A simple example is C:N. An ideal compost should have a C:N that is low, but also not too low.

More fascinating insights on iron formations: (this time with fossils!) theconversation.com/unusual-red-...

Yet another episode from @markowenmartin.bsky.social that I want to listen to multiple times 😊 There is so much rich and fascinating info, that is also broadly applicable to many important matters.

The other day I referred to a high functioning compost pile as an ‘extreme environment’. 70 deg C might not sound extreme to folks in other fields but then you consider the amount of oxidation that is also occurring. It’s a wonder that species (and many) not only survive this but absolutely thrive.

Fun fact for the day: angiosperm (flowering plants) and fungal diversity both increased after the Permian-Triassic boundary, as evidenced by coal analysis. Dai et al 2020 is a great review in this area, telling a story across the ages. 🌴🍄

My days are currently filled with chatgpt praising my thoughtful questions. It's nice to have a friend. 😂 In all seriousness though, why is chatgpt so bad at citations? eg. 'Smith et al says X' (link provided is Jones et al, who may or may not say X) Other preferred tool for trawling sci?

Stuck record time, but I feel compelled to repeat this anytime I hear evidence of a lack of appreciation of C:N Don’t compost food scraps without thinking about your carbon source.

It’s an exciting time at the intersection of physical chemistry and organic chemistry, introducing circularity into the energy transition. I’ve seen plenty of investment news pieces to indicate a growing momentum in biomass transformation. Hooray for the 21st century! It’s about time we got here.

If you’d like to learn more about innovation around biomass transformation: www.transformingbiosolids.org.au/research/imp... Improving technologies – Transforming Biosolids

Entrepreneurs are wise to seek out the ‘most urgent problems’ of their ideal customer. The customers with the most urgent problems are those most likely to carve out room for innovation (whether they like it or not).

It’s Plastic free July. This is the time to proudly stand up and show the many ways that you advocate for the minimisation of plastic. This is also the time that you proudly advocate for certified compostable plastics as an extremely useful transition tool.

I’m loving the news of the multiple new FOGO services rolling out across the country this month 🥰 #foodwaste #resourcerecovery #soilhealth

What is the bioeconomy? I enjoyed this episode of the ‘Activation Energy podcast’ where they define different activities in the broad swathe of possibilities and discuss the near future of this exciting area of deep tech with Dr. Robert Stoner of MIT: podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/a...

If you enjoy composting avocado pits then I want to be your friend

Cleaning out (one of) my email inboxes and it occurs to me that I should perhaps occassionally look up scary climate news on social media platforms. Probably best to have a good balance of hopeful and harrowing when it comes to this topic... #Climate #Canadawildfires

When reviewing studies that draw conclusions from compost application, I always head straight to the methods section to see how they outline parameters and conditions that describe exactly how the particular compost batch was made. Compost aint compost folks.

My bit to stop fake news: when someone posts "a recent study says" followed by bold claims but then doesn't cite the actual scientific study, be sceptical. 9 times out of 10 they will have either accidentally or willingly oversimplified the work and erroneously generalised the results.

I love the tune-ability aspect of biochemical catalysts. Want less methane? tweak your catalyst and operating milieu Want more methane? tweak conditions, adjuvants etc to get the opposite effect. Understading the mechanisms at play can be applied to both outcomes, like a two for one bonus :)

Public servants don't have a monopoly on overuse of acronyms. I just saw a scientific article where they deemed it necessary to abbreviate compost to CP 😅

OK here’s some more detail: when I say that high quality compost is about more than simple soil nutrition, and I talk about carbon forms this is the kind of thing I mean: Pyrroloquinoline quinone #biochemistry #soilmicrobes #metabolism

"No such thing as waste in nature" An oft-repeated catch-cry, but what does it bring to mind? I suspect that to many it brings up a vision of our friends the detritivores, happily recycling plant matter and thereby turning that 'waste' back into a resource.

Always so lovely to run into a scientist friend! And I’m grateful for the science communication meetup series that has been set up here in Canberra. #scicomm #biodiversity #science #appliedscience

What did you do on your RDO? Solo day rave while cleaning house while laughing off ridiculous ignorance and inaction. Best answer.

Are you familiar with the term ‘Naturalist’? To me it encompasses casual enthusiasts all the way up to leading experts. A professional botanist or ecologist might indulge in more holistic appreciation of nature on their ‘downtime’ with their naturalist hat on, rather than their scientist hat.

Scientific heroes: Selman A Waksman. Son of a farmer, he was a strong advocate for the beneficial substances that microbes make. His influence in the area of soil science is often overshadowed by his similarly excellent work in life saving antibiotics. Richness = myriad microbial transformations

Crazy times. I just spent my entire Easter w’end reanalysing data from an old study from 2008. Yesterday I thought nothing came of it. Of course it took a day at work for it to ‘click’ into place this evening.

Highlight of the day: when my non-scientist husband shares a highly interesting article on microbial metabolism to me 🥰 We’re following our own traditions where Easter weekend = study weekend

Sleuthing: I love it when you notice that a figure or some data otherwise presented in a scientific article didn’t get an explanation or any discussion. But going back to such articles with fresh, unbiased eyes and placing it within newfound context can be very illuminating!

Science yields a greater appreciation of life in all of its diversity - I just learnt about caldarchaeol - a cyclic lipid that allows hyperthermophilic to withstand high temperatures. Amazing stuff.

Tell me you understand the difference between mulch and compost without telling me you understand the difference between mulch and compost.

Understanding thermal analysis techniques really helps along your appreciation of carbon 😁

Proof that social media can produce wholesome content that warms the heart ⤵️ 🚲🚲

Apparently, Germans refer to two different classes of humus: Nutri-humus and, “perma-humus” The concept is useful. I think more people are familiar with nutri-humus. It’s not hard to make and as the name implies it’s great for hungry plants.

Cool stuff. I had heard that the carbon in soil completely eclipsed the amount in the atmosphere + living biomass combined but I just read that specifically the kerogen fraction is higher than the amount estimated in all living biomass. kerogen 10^16 tons living biomass 10^12 tons (ref Durand 1980)

That thrill that you get as a scientist when you learn something that convincingly challenges prior assumptions! Hard to beat. #thermodynamics #energysystems #transformations

Protein grown from air. Things are getting futuristic. Good to see #fermentation as a technology get some backing. agfundernews.com/gas-fermenta...

Some of my favourite books are when a scientist has written out a story in a narrative style :) They tend to be so rich with knowledge and observation, and more well-rounded that non-scientists might expect.

Can anyone share some peer reviewed publications that successfully tout the benefits of digestate? I’m always sceptical when I hear of fibre going into anaerobic digesters. It only comes out down graded IMHO. Happy to be convinced otherwise.

I’m tempted to stop giving airspace to people who say “we can’t do X because of Y”. Instead, I’m seeking out the people who say “if we had B then we could solve A”. Getting a specific ask ready is work worth valuing, and shows dedication to finding solutions (even if they still need massaging).

Have you heard others claim that 'no other animal or organism besides humans create waste'. I prefer to think that ecology is an emergent phenomenon that comes from waste valorization/exploitation 😁 (This is particularly evident on the micro scale)

I just praised an old friend/ex-colleague for not being fundamentalist/dogmatic with fertiliser choice. Inorganic fertiliser isn’t the devil, it’s just easier to abuse than manures etc. As always, good soil provides a forgiving base.

Burning stuff. It just seems so crude to me. I have a really strong bias against it. Anytime I learn about applications of uncontrolled, rapid, oxidation I figure there must be a better way. Things like the internal combustion engine, or burning biomass for heat or energy, etc. Biology gives hints.

I still struggle with the question “what are you up to this weekend?” How to answer: “I’m going to get some more self directed learning in by reading a few more geochemistry papers” 😁 (Also got a parkrun PB this morning, it’s not all nerdery all the time)

Imagine a cake recipe like this: Put x quantity of some dry ingredients in a bowl. Add some wet ingredients if you like. Heat will help. With no other information this will make a terrible cake. Similarly, oversimplification of compost education isn’t doing anyone any favours. (Quite the opposite)

Grant writing tip: 😐 Reading the eligibility criteria literally = scarcity mentality 😀 Thinking in ‘equivalencies’ = abundance mentality

Happy #Superb_Owl_Sunday! I love that this is trending 😸