April 4, 2010
In defense of this pesky plant which likes to spread itself around and choke out and tangle up the roots of our garden vegetables, I must say that I've learned something about its purpose. Because of its resilience when other foodcrops whithered away I am told that the Hawaiians ate it in order to avoid starving. It has a little edible nut at the end of the root that is linked by a fine hair of a root to another nut and another and another, which is exactly why its a garden pest.When you try to pull it out the fine hairlike root breaks, leaving the other nut, more deeply rooted into the soil, to remain and start a whole new colony of grasses. In my curiosity I actually cleaned one up and tried it. If you recall the smell of the chinese herbal stores down in Chinatown, it tastes just like that! In fact, it is a Chinese medicinal herb, called xiang fu, and is used to regulate qi. It affects the liver and triple healer channels, regulates menses, soothes the liver, and alliviates pain. It is a tuber that is native to Africa and it has really made its way around the globe! It is an indian ayurvedic medicine used to treat the digestive system, dysmenorrhea and fever, an Arab treatment (when roasted) used topically for bruises and wounds. "Modern" medicine claims its use for nausea, fever, inflammation, pain relief and muscle relaxation. Funny how they call it "modern" when this plant has been used in traditional native medicine for probably thousands of years or more for those same purposes.
I had the opportunity to take a closer look at this fascinating plant under the microscope recently. The image above is my homage to this pesky but useful rhizome, created from those images. The following is what the plant looks like in your garden:
This is what it looks like in your garden. You need to dig it out carefully, following the tiny root beneath the nut to the other little sneaky ones or else it will surely pop up again in a few days.
I am very happy to announce the news that I am a proud recipient of the Kosaki Award for my research proposal. I am very excited because this means that I now have the funds to look at more plants and insects using the new SEM- Scanning Electron Microscope at the University of Hawaii at Manoa. This microscope will enable me to take highly defined images "in the round" instead of the narrow focal length I get with the florescence and dissecting microscope. I can look at different things than I can with the others, enabling me to reveal a fascinating world that is unseen to the naked eye - especially by those of us who are not scientists. I look forward to posting some of these photos on my blog and making beautiful artworks with these images. The next step is for me to find an exhibition site to show the work I've done.
A few more things that I am very thankful for:
My BFA project is almost done and the opening is scheduled for April 25th at 2pm (the Awards Ceremony) located in the Art auditorium. The work will be in the Main Gallery of the Art Building. You are invited! The show runs from April 25 to May 14, 2010 Gallery hours are 10am to 4pm M-F Sunday 12-4pm.
I have been admitted to the MFA program at UH Manoa and will attend in the fall. Yay!
I am honored to be chosen to lead my graduating class as a student marshall at the commencement ceremony for Arts and Sciences. Wow!
I was chosen to receive awards for outstanding student in painting and for digital imaging and photography. I get to display work in the Commons Gallery for the Awards and Scholarship show which runs April 25th to May 7th, 2010.
I am so very, very, thankful. I couldn't do it without such positivity coming at me from the faculty at UH and from my family and friends at home. Thank you!
Now I gotta get to work!
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