Spreading the Network With the Santa Fe Spore

i attended a paul stamets presentation at a Science Cafe* in Olympia, his hometown. I'm about 1/4 the way through his book Mycelium Running**. So far, I've learned about mycofiltration***, connections between dark matter and the internet, and details on which mushrooms contain which antibacterial and antiviral properties, among many other items of interest.

One story I particularly liked from his talk goes as follows:
Paul knows that many Agarikon mushroom strains are very active against smallpox and tuberculosis, and that they usually grow on the snaps (broken branches) where eagles have been. He was on a boat with other scientists using binoculars to see snaps where Agarikons might be found. After six hours, the crew had not found a single specimen. They spotted a rock outcropping decorated with ancient cave paint. As they moved closer, they realized that this was some sort of shrine. Agarikons were all over the place, hanging from the surrounding trees. There was even a rock shaped like an Agarikon. The general shape of the mushroom is that of a fertile female torso from behind, theoretically.

Instead of giving away too many fun facts, I will highly recommend checkin out Paul's videos, interviews, books, whatever you can get your hands on.

After the discussion, I biked a couple miles down the road to the Evergreen State College's forest. I walked alone in the near-black woods, and was rather frightened at first. Gradually, this chant I learned in class which comes from an indigenous African tribe (all of the lyrics translate to "Darkness Is Good") rounded itself about my head and I felt restful. I both glided and stumbled through the ferns and gulleys (respectively) til I found a campfire at the mini-bluff overlooking the Sound, the exact place I had wanted to lay out my sleeping bag. As I approached this gathering of freshmen (most of them getting in the last blast of fun before they go back to live with their parents for the summer), I heard the ominous phrase "never have i ever.." and almost turned around. However, I firmly stood my ground, was greeted with a warm, drunk welcome, and sat quietly drawing a mermaid (which they loved when I showed it to them as they packed up and headed out -- without their trash).

I had brought my roommate's bike light to use for reading, plus a tape recorder for found sounds, tunes, and rambling. After I'd crawled into my cozy bag (also my roommate's), I tried to use both of these items, but neither would function.. and they were working before I entered the forest. I wonder.

I'm so glad that interest in mycelium is growing -- there is so much to do. I've only just begun to learn about mushrooms.

*Science Cafe meets every second Tuesday of the month at the Black Lake Blvd Barnes & Nobles in Olympia, WA. Last month (unfortunately, i was not present) they had someone from Seattle-based Theo Chocolate speak about the whole process of chocolate-making (http://www.theochocolate.com/). This month was the glorious Paul Stamets. Next month's discussion, scheduled for July 14, is entitled "New and Reemerging Infectious Diseases: Be Afraid, Be Very Afraid (Or at Least Be Concerned)".
**my copy is all nice and signed now! yeee
***the process by which mycelium can alter toxic properties in water
http://www.yet2.com/publish/techofweeks/tow0035807/20050403_stamets01.jp...