Forester's tips to keep your Christmas tree evergreen

+ how does a floating wind turbine work? why weasels matter US Edition - Today's top story: Christmas trees can stay fresh for weeks – a well-timed cut and consistent watering are key [View in browser]( US Edition | 10 December 2022 [The Conversation]( Up to 30 million Christmas trees are sold every year in the United States. If you’re one of the people who invest hard-earned bucks at a retailer or time and energy in cutting one down, you likely want to keep that evergreen looking good for as long as you can … at least until Santa’s made his appearance, if not all the way to Epiphany in January. Curtis VanderSchaaf, an extension forester at Mississippi State University, has some tips that will [help keep your conifer fresh](. One fact I didn’t know: A stump that’s sticky with sap is a good sign when you’re selecting your cut tree. This week we also liked stories about [gift-giving mistakes](, why Native Hawaiians believe the [Mauna Loa volcano should be treated like a person](, and one about [Ada Lovelace, known as the first computer programmer](, who was born in 1815. Maggie Villiger Senior Science + Technology Editor Some tips can help your tree look as good as it did on the lot for longer. The Good Brigade/DigitalVision via Getty Images [Christmas trees can stay fresh for weeks – a well-timed cut and consistent watering are key]( Curtis VanderSchaaf, Mississippi State University From picking the tree to getting it home to setting it up, the choices you make can help it stay fresher – and safer – longer. Will gridlock mean the new Congress won’t get anything done? mathisworks/Getty Images [Sinema out, Warnock in – Democrats narrowly control the Senate and Republicans the House, but gridlock won’t be the biggest problem for the new Congress]( Matt Harris, Park University With Democrats running the Senate and the GOP in control of the House, there’s concern that Congress won’t get anything done. Turns out, unified government isn’t very productive in the first place. Equinor’s Hywind Scotland became the world’s first floating wind farm in 2017. Øyvind Gravås/Woldcam via Equinor [How do floating wind turbines work? With 5 companies winning the first US leases to build wind farms off California’s coast, let’s take a look]( Matthew Lackner, UMass Amherst Some of the most powerful offshore wind is over water too deep for a standard wind turbine. Engineers found a way around the problem. - [The 4 biggest gift-giving mistakes, according to a consumer psychologist]( Julian Givi, West Virginia University Finding good gifts can be tricky. Here are some research-backed tips to help you with your holiday shopping. - [Ada Lovelace’s skills with language, music and needlepoint contributed to her pioneering work in computing]( Corinna Schlombs, Rochester Institute of Technology Lovelace was a prodigious math talent who learned from the giants of her time, but her linguistic and creative abilities were also important in her invention of computer programming. - [Risers, founders, planners and fillers: 4 career paths to get to the top at nonprofits]( Christopher Justin Einolf, Northern Illinois University Until now, little research has been done about how people become nonprofit executive directors and how well-prepared those leaders are for their jobs. - [Weasels, not pandas, should be the poster animal for biodiversity loss]( - [Native Hawaiians believe volcanoes are alive and should be treated like people, with distinct rights and responsibilities]( - [Orthodox Judaism can still be a difficult world for LGBTQ Jews – but in some groups, the tide is slowly turning]( - [Pharma’s expensive gaming of the drug patent system is successfully countered by the Medicines Patent Pool, which increases global access and rewards innovation]( - [White teachers often talk about Black students in racially coded ways]( The Conversation Quiz 🧠- Here’s the first question of [this week’s edition:]( What Native American nation is fighting to get a nonvoting delegate in Congress, nearly 200 years after being promised one in the same treaty that led to the infamous Trail of Tears? - A. Wampanoag - B. Tlingit - C. Cherokee - D. Navajo [Test your knowledge]( - - About The Conversation: We're a nonprofit news organization dedicated to [helping academic experts share ideas with the public](. We can give away our articles thanks to the help of foundations, universities and readers like you. [Donate now to support research-based journalism]( [The Conversation]( You’re receiving this newsletter from [The Conversation]( 303 Wyman Street, Suite 300 Waltham, MA 02451 [Forward to a friend]( • [Unsubscribe](