electric fungi

ShroomsEleusinian Mysteries

Secret religious rites in ancient Greece

The Eleusinian Mysteries (Greek: Ἐλευσίνια Μυστήρια, romanized: Eleusínia Mystḗria) were initiations held every year for the cult of Demeter and Persephone based at the Panhellenic Sanctuary of Eleusis in ancient Greece. They are the "most famous of the secret religious rites of ancient Greece". Their basis was an old agrarian cult, and there is some evidence that they were derived from the religious practices of the Mycenean period. The Mysteries represented the myth of the abduction of Persephone from her mother Demeter by the king of the underworld Hades, in a cycle with three phases: the descent (loss), the search, and the ascent, with the main theme being the ascent (ἄνοδος) of Persephone and the reunion with her mother. It was a major festival during the Hellenic era, and later spread to Rome. Similar religious rites appear in the agricultural societies of the Near East and in Minoan Crete.

A votive plaque known as the Ninnion Tablet depicting elements of the Eleusinian Mysteries, discovered in the sanctuary at Eleusis (mid-4th century BC)

The rites, ceremonies, and beliefs were kept secret and consistently preserved from antiquity. For the initiated, the rebirth of Persephone symbolized the eternity of life which flows from generation to generation, and they believed that they would have a reward in the afterlife.[citation needed] There are many paintings and pieces of pottery that depict various aspects of the Mysteries. Since the Mysteries involved visions and conjuring of an afterlife, some scholars believe that the power and longevity of the Eleusinian Mysteries, a consistent set of rites, ceremonies and experiences that spanned two millennia, came from psychedelic drugs. The name of the town, Eleusís, seems to be Pre-Greek, and is likely a counterpart with Elysium and the goddess Eileithyia.

The rites, ceremonies, and beliefs were kept secret and consistently preserved from antiquity. For the initiated, the rebirth of Persephone symbolized the eternity of life which flows from generation to generation, and they believed that they would have a reward in the afterlife.[citation needed] There are many paintings and pieces of pottery that depict various aspects of the Mysteries. Since the Mysteries involved visions and conjuring of an afterlife, some scholars believe that the power and longevity of the Eleusinian Mysteries, a consistent set of rites, ceremonies and experiences that spanned two millennia, came from psychedelic drugs. The name of the town, Eleusís, seems to be Pre-Greek, and is likely a counterpart with Elysium and the goddess Eileithyia.

Etymology

Eleusinian Mysteries (Greek: Ἐλευσίνια Μυστήρια) was the name of the mysteries of the city Eleusis.

The name of the city Eleusis is Pre-Greek, and may be related with the name of the goddess Eileithyia. Her name Ἐλυσία ( Elysia) in Laconia and Messene, probably relates her with the month Eleusinios and Eleusis, but this is debated.

The ancient Greek word whence English mystery derives, i.e. μυστήριον mystḗrion, means "mystery or secret rite" and is related with the verb myéō (μυέω), which means "(I) teach, initiate into the mysteries", and the noun mýstēs (μύστης), which means "one initiated". The word mystikós (μυστικός), whence English mystic, means "connected with the mysteries", or "private, secret" (as in Modern Greek).Persephone

Further information: Demeter

Triptolemus receiving wheat sheaves from Demeter and blessings from Persephone, 5th-century BC relief, National Archaeological Museum of Athens

The Mysteries are related to a myth concerning Demeter, the goddess of agriculture and fertility as recounted in one of the Homeric Hymns (c. 650 BC). According to the hymn, Demeter's daughter Persephone (also referred to as Kore, "maiden") was assigned the task of painting all the flowers of the earth. Before completion, she was seized by Hades, the god of the underworld, who took her to his underworld kingdom. Distraught, Demeter searched high and low for her daughter. Because of her distress, and in an effort to coerce Zeus to allow the return of her daughter, she caused a terrible drought in which the people suffered and starved, depriving the gods of sacrifice and worship. As a result, Zeus relented and allowed Persephone to return to her mother.

According to the myth, during her search Demeter traveled long distances and had many minor adventures along the way. In one she taught the secrets of agriculture to Triptolemus. Finally, by consulting Zeus, Demeter reunited with her daughter and the earth returned to its former verdure and prosperity: the first spring.

Zeus, pressed by the cries of the hungry people and by the other deities who also heard their anguish, forced Hades to return Persephone. However, it was a rule of the Fates that whoever consumed food or drink in the Underworld was doomed to spend eternity there. Before Persephone was released to Hermes, who had been sent to retrieve her, Hades tricked her into eating pomegranate seeds (either six or four according to the telling), which forced her to return to the underworld for some months each year. She was obliged to remain with Hades for six or four months (one month per seed) and lived above ground with her mother for the rest of the year. This left a long period of time when Demeter was unhappy due to Persephone's absence, neglecting to cultivate the earth. When Persephone returned to the surface, Demeter became joyful and cared for the earth again.

In the central foundation document of the mystery, the Homeric Hymn to Demeter line 415, Persephone is said to stay in Hades during winter and return to her mother in the spring of the year: "This was the day [of Persephone's return], at the very beginning of bountiful springtime."

Persephone's rebirth is symbolic of the rebirth of all plant life and the symbol of eternity of life that flows from the generations that spring from each other.

However, a scholar has proposed a different version, according to which the four months during which Persephone is with Hades correspond to the dry Greek summer, a period during which plants are threatened with drought.

The Malheur National Forest contains the largest known organism (by area) in the world: an Armillaria ostoyae (fungus) that spans 2,200 acres (8.9 km2) and is located high on a ridgeline immediately west of Clear Creek (44.4731°N 118.4816°W).

Thallus of Pellia epiphylla

A thallus usually names the entire body of a multicellular non-moving organism in which there is no organization of the tissues into organs. Even though thalli do not have organized and distinct parts (leaves, roots, and stems) as do the vascular plants, they may have analogous structures that resemble their vascular "equivalents". The analogous structures have similar function or macroscopic structure, but different microscopic structure; for example, no thallus has vascular tissue. In exceptional cases such as the Lemnoideae, where the structure of a vascular plant is in fact thallus-like, it is referred to as having a thalloid structure, or sometimes as a thalloid.

Although a thallus is largely undifferentiated in terms of its anatomy, there can be visible differences and functional differences. A kelp, for example, may have its thallus divided into three regions. The parts of a kelp thallus include the holdfast (anchor), stipe (supports the blades) and the blades (for photosynthesis).

The thallus of a fungus is usually called a mycelium. The term thallus is also commonly used to refer to the vegetative body of a lichen. In seaweed, thallus is sometimes also called 'frond'.

The gametophyte of some non-thallophyte plants – clubmosses, horsetails, and ferns is termed "prothallus".

Lichens and nitrogen cycling

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Some types of lichen are able to fix nitrogen from the atmosphere. This process relies on the presence of cyanobacteria as a partner species within the lichen. The ability to fix nitrogen enables lichen to live in nutrient-poor environments. Lichen can also extract nitrogen from the rocks on which they grow.

Nitrogen fixation, and hence the abundance of lichen and their host plants, may be decreased by application of nitrogen-based agricultural fertilizer and by atmospheric pollution.

The nitrogen cycle

The nitrogen cycle is one of the Earth's biogeochemical cycles. It involves the conversion of nitrogen into different chemical forms. The main processes of the nitrogen cycle are the fixation, ammonification, nitrification, and denitrification. As one of the macronutrients, nitrogen plays an important role in plant growth. The nitrogen cycle is affected by environmental factors. For example, in the subarctic heath, increase in temperature can cause nitrogen fixation to increase or decrease based on season, while overall climate warming indirectly caused the vegetation change which in turn affected the nitrogen fixation process.

Lichens

Lichens are symbiotic organisms that play an important role in the biogeochemical cycle on Earth. The characteristics of lichens, such as strong resistance to factors such as desiccation, ability to grow and break down rocks allow lichen to grow in different types of environment including highly nitrogen limited area such as subarctic heath. While it does not occur often, formation of akinetes (type of cell formed by cyanobacteria which are resistant to cold and desiccation) was observed in nitrogen fixing lichen. Depending on its partner, lichens derive the carbon and nitrogen from algal and cyanobacteria photobionts (which fixes nitrogen from the air). Lichen fungi can fix nitrogen during the day and night, as long the dark period is not too long.

Nitrogen-fixing and non-nitrogen-fixing lichens

Both nitrogen-fixing lichens and non-nitrogen-fixing lichens take up nitrogen from the environment as a nutrient. Both type of lichens secrete many different organic compounds to absorb minerals from the substrates.

luminum and iron can be related to soil water.

Rock and soil

Earth's mantle contains non-atmospheric nitrogen in the form of rocks and in the soil. Weathering of the rocks and stone are normally caused by physical, chemical and biological processes. Plants cannot absorb nitrogen from rocks, but fungi can. Fungi within lichens can extract nutrients from mineral surfaces by secreting organic acids. The organic acids (e.g. phenolic acids) are important in solubilizing nutrients from inorganic substrates. A study was conducted to test rock phosphate solubilization by lichen-forming fungi. Bacteria that were attached to biotic or abiotic surfaces stimulate exopolysaccharide synthesis. While lichens have the ability to absorb nitrogen from rock, this only accounts for a small portion of the nitrogen cycle compared to the conversion of atmospheric nitrogen as it is more easily available.

Effects on vegetation

Photobionts will become less dependent on fungal nutrient supply when nitrogen deposition increases, as it will be able to access its own nitrogen, and primary producers' nutrient limit will also be reduced.

Nitrogen is one of the more limiting nutrients and the addition of nitrogen stimulates the photobiont, building up its cell, which subsequently increases its photosynthesis and its carbon input. Multiple nitrogen compounds can be assimilated by lichens, such as NH4+, NO3− and organic nitrogen compounds. Nitrogen deposition reduces the nutrient limitation of primary production. Increase in nitrogen deposition will allow the photobiont to access its own nitrogen which makes it less fungal dependent but only up to certain point.

Depending on the environmental nitrogen availability, the addition of nitrogen can either increase and decrease the growth of the lichen. If the lichen cannot increase its photobiont growth, high nitrogen uptake may result in a higher concentration than it physiologically requires which will negatively affect the lichen and its host plant as the other nutrients are too limiting.

Lichen's response to nutrient enrichment is both species-specific and dependent on environmental factors such as nutrient concentration, light availability and water supply.

The Red Forest (Ukrainian: Рудий ліс, Rudyi lis, literally "ginger-color forest") is the ten-square-kilometre (4 sq mi) area surrounding the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant within the Exclusion Zone located in Polesia. The name "Red Forest" comes from the ginger-brown color of the pine trees after they died following the absorption of high levels of ionizing radiation from the Chernobyl accident on 26 April 1986. In the post-disaster cleanup operations, the Red Forest was bulldozed and buried in "waste graveyards". The site of the Red Forest remains one of the most contaminated areas in the world today.