This video, a clip from the BBC Series Human Planet, is a really interesting example of long term thinking. Can you imagine conceiving and designing a bridge that would require the roots of a tree to grow over many lifetimes to build it? I suppose you might think it isn’t really practical to think that way if a problem can be solved in the short term. ...

Last week I started a 4 week enrichment class at the University of Denver called Water in the World and the West.  Water, or the lack thereof, is a major issue in the West.  I grew up in Kentucky where there always seemed to be plenty of water.  After moving to Colorado I learned that it was illegal to capture the rain water falling on my roof to water my plants....