Geopoetry4
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Tale of a Carbon Atom
I am a wild carbon atom, To others I’ve sometimes been bound, Not locked in some hard, rocky stratum, I’m telling you: I get around!
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Iron Fingerprints
Metals galore in deep Earth, But at the sea surface, a dearth. Iron is key For greening the sea … To planktic cells, gold has less worth.
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Australopithecene Dental Calculus
Across a mixed landscape, Au. sediba plods Sometimes on two feet, and sometimes on four, Munching on fruits and leguminous pods, Nuts and some seeds … C3 foods galore!
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Dancing in the Darkness
In deep darkness, cunning lights are softly luring prey, Drawing closer to the glow, only some will flee … Subtle bodies, clear as glass, with organs on display, Exquisite dances only certain piercing eyes can see.
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Apophis
You may have heard the recent cries: An asteroid towards us flies! Apophis, a rocky mass, Some years from now will closely pass…
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Lake Goo Clue
The lands of Africa’s Horn, Great Valleys sliced by a Rift, By drought and famine are torn … What drives such a large rainfall shift?
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Some Do Not Like It Hot
The Great Dying, The Big One — The Permo-Triassic! (In a time machine, not sure if that’s where I’d aim …) As extinctions go, this one’s a blockbuster classic, When most of Earth’s species dropped out of the game.
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Unexpected Sisters
An ancient island’s trove of treasure: Madagascan fauna Tenrec, fossa, lemur, hippo, dugong, bat, iguana. A giant bird – O, wondrous beast! – a half a ton, and tall, Laid foot-long eggs, had beefy legs, and did not fly at all.
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Weak Underbelly
Antarctica’s uncertain fuse, A “weak underbelly,” said Hughes. Pine Island and Thwaites, Thrown open, the gates? As humans, what path should we choose?

During COP30—the 2025 UN Climate Change Conference taking place November 10–21 in Belém, Brazil—experts from Columbia Climate School and Columbia University will be contributing to key events, sharing insights, and helping shape the dialogue toward ambitious, science-based solutions. Learn More
