1. Black Rock Forest is a nature preserve, privately owned by for the purpose of “field based research and education” (http://www.blackrockforest.org). The forest is composed of an extensive array of topographies, ecosystems and biodiversity. The park is located in New York’s Hudson Highlands and is a common site for class trips for all kinds of students. Sustainability and biodiversity are important parts of this reserve’s existence. Biological diversity excels due to the different types of ecosystems, which include the New Jersey highlands and the New York Hudson Highlands, and the forest management practices several measures of sustainability. For example, the forests’ abundance in acorns is a typical indication of the weight of deer and their number in the area. The more acorns yielded every summer and fall, the more the deer eat and the heavier they get for the winter. However, if they have too much to eat their population may grow too fast and a method of curbing the growth of deer population is allowing hunting seasons for some time. In this manner, the reserve offers an opportunity for others to interact with the forest (with proper regulations of course) and for the park’s ecosystem to remain in control and in balance. While visiting the forest’s consortium we observed the solar panels nearby that power and the buildings ability to hold and accommodate large amounts of people while being energy efficient. The toilets are even waterless!

2. Black Rock Forest strikes a resemblance to Central Park mainly due to its extensive management. The two parks however, are not nearly similar in size and biodiversity. Black Rock Forest is a space for students, visitors and lovers of nature, and primarily scientists. This is evidenced by the facilities the forest offers for trips and scientists visiting the area. Central Park is aimed for a large demographic as well; joggers, sports players, casual visits, tourists, and the occasional passerby. The two parks preserve rarespecies of animals and plants as well, but Black Rock Forest blows Central Park away in terms of abundance and density of ecosystems. Central Park seeks to integrate New Yorkers with its facilities such as the zoo, ice skating ring, boathouse, etc. Black Rock Forest succeeds in being such a vast preserve because it is remote and a safe enough distance away from urban life.

3. The Black Rock Forest that we descended onto a few weeks ago is very different from its original state 14,000 years ago. This change can be attributed to two factors: evolution of the forest and the influence of man. In terms of natural evolution, the forest has continuously changed in response to long-term and short term climate fluctuations. For instance, while the  forest originally was dominated by trees like the northern conifers such as spruce and fir, the retreat of a large glacier gave way to various hardwood trees like oak and Chestnut. However, this slow evolutionary change is nothing in comparison to the rapid caused by the influence of man in the forest. When Native Americans settled in the forest, the land was used for large settlements, intensive farming, and the use of fire as a forest management tool. When Europeans arrived, degradation of black rock increased even further. They participated in activities such as clear cutting for fuel and timber, mining for iron ore, extraction from trees, and charcoal production. As a result of this degradation the forest bares little resemblance to the forest we saw on November 5th. The forest was saved when it was purchased by the Stillman family in 1928 and designated as a research and demonstration preserve.

The changes in Central Park, as compared to those as relative to its creation and purpose. As compared to Black Rock, Central Park was a man-made park. The purpose of the park was to bring nature to the concrete jungle that is New York City. While the changed in Black Rock forest during the last few centuries caused it to be preserved from increased  use by the general population, Central Park, has become increasingly more open to public use than at the time of its original construction. Now, large meadows and ball fields are prevalent throughout the park. These mark an increased openness utilization by the public. On the other hand, Black Rock has been designated a reserve and research location, greatly decreasing utilization and increasing specified use by scientists and students. These differences can largely be attributed to their differences in origination and purpose.

4. The concepts of nature presented and managed in Black Rock Forest are the concepts of park design, biodiversity, sustainable development, social use, and recreation. Before 1949 there was a significant amount of mining, and logging. This amount of human usage accounted for its depletion in value, and productive resources. Enough Land was found for a Dr. Ernest Stillman to create Black Rock Forest for research and demonstration purposes. A forester named Hal Tyron and a small crew was hired to rid of unwanted species and trees. In 1949 Harvard University inherited the forest. The forest was improved and maintained its original purpose. The biodiversity in the park is maintained for its educational, and research purposes. There are invasive plants that scientists keep out in order to continue the research projects that scientists take part of in the forest. The Oak project is one that the tour guide talked about. He also told us the great extent taken by the scientists to study everything from roots up, including the water, and its changing pH. To promote sustainability green houses were built in the middle of the forest with facilities, classrooms, and laboratories. The forest itself serves as a natural laboratory which is its social/ scientific use.

The only recreational use of the forest is the hiking trail that was created. The design of the forest is meant to stay natural in order to do scientific research. Nature in our readings has been described as a place that is a phenomenon of the physical world. It is undisturbed by human action. Parks are meant to reflect the nature while still being structured and designed. In many ways the forest is more of a reflection of nature then recreational parks. This is true in that it is not fully landscaped like parks are. However it is sustained to be beneficial, and productive for scientific research. There were trails created, and aesthetically pleasing structures made also. Finally, the forest is maintained to be environmentally friendly. There are green houses, composting toilets, and more.

5. Members of the Black Rock Forest Consortium do science at the Forest.  The consortium consists of several organizations and institutions of higher education.  Some of the institutions include Hunter College, The Central Park Conservancy and the American Museum of Natural History.  There is currently research being done in the fields of paleoecology, wildlife biology, forest ecology, ecophysiology and biogeochemistry. One specific study going on in the park right now is the ”Cycling of Mercury in Terrestrial Environments,” which is being done by Hunter professor, Allan Frei, along with another CUNY professor. Researchers at the Black Rock Forest have access to a wide array of data regarding different aspects of the forest.  Researchers can look at decades worth of data regarding the forest’s environment and climate as well as information about its flora and fauna. Scientists also have access to the parks wet and dry laboratories (located in forest friendly green buildings) as well as equipment to collect data in the field. For precise research the forest also gives researchers access to three ecological reserves, canopy towers that allow the study of very high and low points of the forest, tagged turtle populations and thirteen deer enclosure sites amongst many other scientific resources.

6. As we all hiked Black Rock Forest stumbling along the rocks, I failed to think, or perceive the forest as a laboratory, or a place where scientific research is taken place. However, Livingstone questions what most people have been accustomed to believing scientific endeavors take place. Scientific research is influenced by its spatial settings, and when thinking of these setting, a hospital, laboratory, and the image of great science equipment come to mind. Although Livingstone goes into great deal about the impact spatial settings have on the scientific works he also described an environment that isn’t a typical thought. The forest itself does not resemble his settings but the green houses, classrooms, science center, and the equipment used for the science research by college universities do reflect Livingstone’s settings. These settings do in fact control human behavior in the space. Livingstone says “it can restrain or promote certain interactions” which is what the science research areas do to students and scientists that research at Black Rock.

7. Black Rock Forest is a bit of an exception as the site is not only a place of public science, but it is in and of itself the private laboratory setting. This causes some problems, as the managers need to maintain the natural biodiversity in order to uphold the credibility of their results as they apply to a setting untouched by man, but, as it is also a place of presented science, adding drama and theatrics will of course compromise the naturalness of the environment. Nevertheless, the administration has taken some liberties when it comes to creating a realm of public science. For example, the hiking trail that provided a path for the tour was entirely manmade. Even the logs and shrubbery that spotted the trail were placed there for “theatrical” purposes, as Livingstone would put it. Furthermore, there are a number of placards that demonstrate visually some of the research and elements of the forest that have been documented. A telling example of how these are clearly an attempt to demonstrate public science is the board titled “Sphagnum Pond Ecosystem”. The board presents very simple descriptions of the setting, the wildlife and the plant life and is accompanied with a number of sketches. Further inspection of the board reveals that a 6th grade elementary school class created it. It is clear that having an elementary school class create a demonstration is a blatant attempt to make science more publically accessible. However, I must say that the time with the tour guide was a rather different experience. It didn’t feel as though it was trying to be theatrical or dramatic. The explanations of the tour guide, conversely, made me feel as though I was following a private tour of a scientist’s laboratory. Black Rock Forest, therefore, is a carefully crafted dichotomy of public and private science.

8. If we’re measuring the forest’s success by the management’s ability to uphold it as a nature preserve, then Black Rock Forest clearly works. As mentioned earlier, biological diversity excels due to the different types of ecosystems, and due to the forest management practicing several measures of sustainability. Furthermore, the management strives to minimize human influence on the environment. For example, when choosing a sight to build their field station facilities, the administration picked a site that was formerly owned and maintained by a farmer for his personal use. By using this sight, they had chosen a place where man already had disturbed nature and therefore the park management didn’t have to disturb it any further. Finally, the administration doesn’t aim to attract recreational users. In doing so, they can focus their attention on maintaining the appropriate environment for scientific study. By using Central Park as a reference point, Black Rock Forest is much more successful at being a site of nature.