Bee Reflection

                           Bee Reflection

     The Boston Honey Bee Company is located in MA, GA, FL, and NY. They have about 2,200 hives in each state. The Honey Bee Company is owned by a small family which started in 1996. What he talked about was that bees are slowly dying year to year. Bee population is decreasing due to habitat destruction, pesticides, and lack of pollen/nectar. Our guests speaker also talked about different type of bees: Honeybees, Mason bees, Bumble bees, Yellow jackets, Wasps, and Hornets. Honeybees is where we get most of our honey and they collect pollen. They are controlled by a queen-bee and without her they whole hive is basically useless and then stress out. Yellow jackets adapt to colder weather but sadly they don't produce honey. Wasps sting you a lot repeatedly. Hornets are they most aggressive type of bees and are very dangerous.

     Honeybees are important to environmental science because they can produce pollen and nectar in large amounts. They keep our flowers alive and healthy. But sadly the bee population is dying out and their isn't much left of them. Honeybees provide us with food and without them who would get the job done? The only thing keeping them alive is the Japanese knob weed and purple loose strife. The only big problem with the 2 invasive plant species is that the Japanese knob weed can get really big and is a huge pain to get it removed.

scrAPES #15 Coffee spill: Thousands of coffee cans wash up in Indialantic

scrAPES # 15 Coffee spill: Thousands of coffee cans wash up in Indialantic
Published: 12/8/15
By: J.D Gallop

     This article talks about how a beach outside of Double Tree hotel was filled with thousands of coffee grains, Cafe Bustelo just lying in the shore of the beach. U.S coast guards and a marine science technicians where taking a stroll along the beach looking for any other hazardous or bacteria things along the beach. They believe that a cargo ship filled with thousands of Cafe Bustelo accidentally fell out the ship and into the ocean making its way to the beach. Luckily all they found was just the coffee grains and nothing else.

     The reason why I chose this article is because there is now a beach that could of been contaminated with other chemicals that could of poisoned us or sea animals. Cargo ship drivers need to be more careful while shipping imported goods to one place to another. What caught my attention was that their was people carrying garbage bags helping picking up and cleaning the beach.

     This article is important to environmental science because the beach is being contaminated with coffee grains which has a major affect on the beach. What many other people should start doing now is continue on helping picking up the remaining cans and cleaning the coffee grains out of the beach. If everyone helps then the beach would be clean in a day or two.

Parking Lot Data

                                Parking Lot Data

     In the Parking Lot Ecology lab we counted how many cars where in that specific brand (ex: Toyota: 18 cars, Honda: 9 cars, Nissan: 7 cars e.t.c). Then we used the Shannon Weiner equation to find the species richness, species evenness and its index. We mostly use Shannon Weiner Index to measure the likelihood of the next individual that will be the same species as the previous sample. After we collected out data we used the Shannon Diversity Index (which is the equation) to figure out if the species diversity would be high or low.

    What we did was we counted how many car brands was in the parking lot of EBHS. Each car brand was its own species. We divided the parking lot into 2 communities, community A and B. The community that was most diversity was B because it's Shannon Weiner Index (H) value was 2.59 and community A had .80 The most dominate species in community A was a Toyota because I believe of popularity. Toyota is a well known brand and it's very famous around the world. Also community B also had the same dominate species which was Toyota. Some opportunities for errors in our methods was that some cars can be emigrating and immigrating into the parking lot. Also many groups can argue with the color of a car. (Some groups chose to count the cars in colors) The species richness in community A was 16 and in B it was 20. The species evenness in community A was 2.01 and in B it was .87

scrAPES#14 There are sharks living in a volcano this is not a drill

scrAPES# 14- There are sharks living in a volcano this is not a drill
Published: July 10th 2015
By: Amelia Urry

     This article talks about how there are different types of sharks living in a volcano. Kavachi is an active volcanoes in the Solomon islands where they are hammerheads and silky sharks living in the bottom of the volcano. The Solomon island is a very dangerous place where some drivers got mild skin burns from acid water. There is also methane gas and carbon dioxide bubbles rising from the volcanoes and intoxicating the air. How is there animals living under the volcanoes? What will happen once the volcanoes erupts? Do the animals even know that they are under a volcano that can potentially erupt?
   
     The reason why I chose this article is because volcanoes can erupt any minute. There is animals in the bottom of the volcanoes and if it erupts all of the animals will die. Also if the volcanoes keeps producing methane gas or carbon dioxide it will effect the air making it not safe for humans to be around that volcanoes. Is it even possible for an animal especially sharks to survive under those types of conditions?

     This article is import rant to environmental science because there has to be a way to get those sharks out of that volcanoes. Also there has to be another way to stop the methane gas and carbon dioxide rising from the seafloor vents. If this all continues eventually the volcanoes will erupt making it harmful to live and there is a high chance that the sharks will die.

Save An Animal Reflection

                               Save An Animal Reflection

     A local animal that needs my help are the baby tortoises. Baby tortoises haven't been seen on Galapagos Island in over a century. If these tortoises continue to not be seen they will soon be extinct. The reason why these tortoises where going extinct was because rats where eating the eggs making the baby tortoises unable to hatch. But in 2012 biologist used helicopters to launch a poison only attracted to rats killing every single rat on the island.

     Now we begin to see many baby tortoises in the Galapagos Island. 10 new baby tortoises has been spotted and with these 10 new babies tortoises can now be saved from extinction. Tortoises reproduce by mating with a male and a female then weeks later the female lays eggs. One single mating can result to 30 eggs but these eggs wont be laid into one clutch. Once the female lays eggs she will need to nurture the egg and keep it safe until it hatches.
 
     What I can do to help is start to take extra good care of these eggs and help the tortoise with the eggs. Also once the eggs are hatched I can nurture the tortoise into not dying. I can feed the tortoise and give it a safe home. Once it's big enough that it can survive on it's own I will put the tortoise back to where it belongs. Later the tortoise will live in its original habitat and be ready to live on its own. What interests me the most is that tortoises are at the urge of extinction. It breaks my heart to see an animal being ready to be extinct because those animals bring so much to our world. They feed off of other animals that may cause problems to Earth. What surprises me the most is that scientists actually found baby tortoises meaning that there is a sense of hope still living with the tortoise family.  

Aquariarum Reflection

                               Aquarium Reflection 

     

     When I was walking up and down the ramps what fascinated me the most was the big tank in the middle. There was lots of biodiversity on that one tank itself. I saw many different types of fish, sharks, and a couple of turtles. I believe there where more than 2,000 different animals living in that one tank. Its amazing to see how different animals can live in that one tank and how they all get along so easily. When I went all the way to the top to the tank they gave a small presentation about the turtle. The turtle eats many different types of veggies like Brussels sprouts and lettuce. A new thing I learned was that the turtles are as old as the aquarium, they have been there since the first day the Aquarium was established.  

     The biodiversity of the tank is important to our planet because that tank has now saved a little more than 2,000 animals. All of those animals now have a home where they can be safe and loved. Biodiversity is a big key to our planet because the different types of animals will help the environment in some sort of way. If we killed/ gone all of the birds in our planet then what would happen to the animals that prey on birds? What would happen to all of the bugs or little animals that hurt our environment that can only be killed by birds. That is why the variety of different species affects our planet because if we remove a specific animal then everything would end up changing

     The reason why I thought the biodiversity in the huge tank in the middle of the aquarium was interesting, was because it was very unique to look at. Seeing many different types of animals and how they interact with each other grasped my attention. Their body movement with other aquatic animal, the way each different animal behaves and moves was very interesting to me. 

scrAPES#13

scrAPES- Bill to ban microbeads advances in U.S. House
Published: November 18 2015
By: Melissa Nann Burke
Topic: Microbeads

     This article talks about how microbeads are affecting the environment and the only way to stop it is by passing a bill to ban microbeads. Banning microbeads will lower intoxication due to high amounts in toothpaste, and beauty products. Microbeads may be small but once they are flushed down the drain it can cause serious problems to filtration systems at waste water treatment plants. Once the microbeads go to the oceans, lakes, rivers e.t.c they can be consumed by fish or any other aquatic animals. The toxic led by microbreads can even kill the aquatic animals. Banning micro beads might be the only way to stop all of the toxins being produced onto the water.

     The reason why I chose this article is because microbeads is a serious impact to the enviornment. Micro beads are everywhere! And especially in beauty products. I believe that we should ban microbeads in ALL products because they are causing a serious hazard to animals and to us. Sooner or later the micro beads may even reach to our drinking water. Contaminating our drinking water will be an extra and difficult problem to solve.

     This article is important to environmental science because if we stop the use of microbeads in products then the earth will be a lot cleaner. If they ban microbeads in products then all of this chaos of microbeads being in the water will stop and we wont have to worry about our aquatic animals dying or the toxins.

scrAPES #12 San Francisco Becomes The First City to Ban Sale of Plastic Bottles

scrAPES #12 San Francisco Becomes The First City to Ban Sale of Plastic Bottles
Link: http://www.globalflare.com/san-francisco-becomes-the-first-city-to-ban-sale-of-plastic-bottles/
By: Scott Jensen
Topic: Reducing Waste

     This article talks about how San Francisco passes a law that bans plastic bottles. They have been the first city in America to ban plastic bottles. Now in the following years there will be less plastic in the streets thanks to the new law. Reducing plastic bottle also reduces pollution and waste. It also states that if people violate this law they can be punished by fines being up to 1,000 dollars. By 2020 the city might have achieve the "zero-waste-goal" and no waste going into landfills.

     The reason why I chose this article is because I support the new law San Francisco passed. I believe that this will have a great impact on the city and the world. I hope that other huge cities like Boston can follow the same path. This is a great way to reduce trash and to live a healthy life. There will no longer be plastic lying around the streets or hurting anyone.

     This article is important to Environmental Science because reducing plastic is a great way to help the earth. If people reduce trash we can all live a healthy life by saving animals and plants. San Fransisco shouldn't be the only city doing this, more cities should follow San Francisco's idea because I do believe this will change the world.

scrAPES #11 - A California crab ban reveals trouble in the Pacific Ocean

scrAPES #11-A California crab ban reveals trouble in the Pacific Ocean
Published: November 6 2015
By: Azure Gilman
Topic: Endangered Species

     This article talks about how crabs in California are being intoxicated with domoic acid. Domoic acid is harmful to humans and animals. They have been found in dungeness crabs in the California coastline. The Domoic acid is produced by algae which are found in warm ocean temperatures. Many people are affected by the crabs being intoxicated. Especially the people who make money off of the crabs. One type of algae Pseudo Nitzschia has poisoned so much of the food web that it's affecting the marine ecosystems. It's also affecting sea lions which are suffering from seizures from Domoic acids.

     The reason why I chose this article is because I wanted to learn more about the crabs being intoxicated. It saddens me to see that these crabs are dying one by one. Also knowing that sea lions are also being affected breaks my heart too. Scientists from all over the world are trying to help and save these poor animals before its to late.

     This article is important to environmental science because many people and animals feed off of crabs. The food web will now be affected because many animals rely on crabs to get their energy and to live. Scientist should be able to find a cure to stop the toxic algae and to be able to save these crabs and sea lions.

APES Ecobook 19

#APESEcobook

#Omnivore

That is a picture of me! I am an example of an omnivore because I eat both plants and animals. Even though I'd prefer eating meat than plants, I still eat plants. 

APES Ecobook 18

#APES Ecbook

#WasteGeneration

This is an example of a waste generation because this is a broken computer charger. In the end people throw these chargers away because they can't be used again. Even though throwing these away can cause toxic chemicals to the air people still do it anyway. We just throw them away like nothing.

APES Ecobook 17

#APESEcobook1

#YourChoice #E-Waste

This is an example of E-waste because all of these smartphones can't be used again. They are old phones which are discarded. Us humans we just throw them away in the garbage disposal bins. Electronics can cause leaching or a toxic chemical which is very harmful to the environment. 

scrAPES #10 - Apple's New Solar Projects To Slash Over 20 Million Tons Of Emissions

scrAPES #10 - Apple's New Solar Projects To Slash Over 20 Million Tons Of Emissions
Published: 10/22/15
By: Valerie Volcovici and Julia Love
Topic: Renewable Source

     This article talks about how Apple will build 200 megawatts of solar energy in China. This will be equivalent to energy being used to more than 265,000 homes in China a year. This will allow China to supply clean renewable source. 4 years ago Chinese environmentalist blamed Apple for polluting the country by releasing toxic gas and emitting heavy metal sludge, and other particles. The results of this program will avoid more than 20 million tons of green houses gas emissions in China between now and 2020.

     The reason why I chose this article is because what Apple is doing is very smart. I believe that they are doing a fabulous job on renewing the use of energy source into building solar energy. This will reduce the amount of energy China is using. I just hope other big technology companies like Microsoft, and Samsung will follow Apple's footsteps and do the same thing.

     This article is important to environmental science because Apple is helping China on reducing energy. China has been using a lot of energy and wasting a lot of money on it. With Apple's idea it will bring light to China and save them money and time. China will be a better environment thanks to Apple.

APES EcoBook 16

#APESEcoBook

#FoodSecurity

This is an example of food security because most of my food is safe. Most of my food goes through some type of factory/place to make sure its safe to be consumed by people. Also this food makes me stay healthy and alive. 

APES EcoBook 15

#APESEcoBook

#PesticideUse

This pictures shows an example of pesticide use because pesticide allows to control diseases and pests from plants. It is used to control the different types of mosquitoes, rats, mice and other little bugs. Without pesticide use many plants would die because of the small bugs/animals hurting the plants.

APES EcoBook 14

#ApesEcoBook

#FoodChain 

This is an example of a food chain because the sun provides energy/food to plants. Animals eat plants and we also eat plants. Then other animals eat those animals. 

Reflection

Rain Garden Reflection

     Yesterday's field trip at Greenway we learned a lot about different types of plants they grow. We learned how there are some trees that connect with each other when they are grown right next to each other. This allows you to have different types of fruits or food in one tree which is called inosculation. They also have many different types of bugs to even the amount of plants they grow.  The main thing we learned was the Rain Garden. The Rain Garden is a small garden which is designed to gather up the moisture and the concentrations of nutrients that are found in rain or storm waters. This reduces rain runoff by allowing rain to soak into the grounds. Rain gardens improve water quality and they ensure that rain water is available for plants.

      The reason why Urban environments are important to our planet is because it helps us get around easier. Right outside our houses we can see many shops and restaurants. We don't need a car to get around in the city because places/stores are basically right in front of us. But some drawbacks are that most cities are very polluted. Cities can get crowded and make it hard for traffic and to move around. Urban sprawl gives a bad impact to the environment. Having lots of constructions and many highways it causes more cars to use gasoline and you travel back and forth through those highways. But the development of smart growth helps to limit the use of cars and fuels and helps to sustain a better place.

scrAPES # 9 Peru To Provide Free Solar Panels To Its Poorest Residents

scrAPES# 9 Peru To Provide Free Solar Panels To Its Poorest Residents

Published: August 11th 2015

By: Justin Gammill 

Article: Topic: Renewable Source 

     This article talks about how 66% of the population in Peru has running electricity in there homes. This has been a problem for Peru for many years but Jorge has developed a solution. The National Photovoltaic Household Electrification Program will give free solar panels to more than 500,000 households. They have already installed over 1,600 solar panels and there goal is to have at least 95% of the population in Peru to have solar panels. Overall they have estimated that they will waste about 200 million dollars. This project is estimated to end around the end of 2016. 

    The reason why I chose this article is because I consider this idea very smart. Using solar panels to run your electricity will save you money and will better shape up the economy. Solar panels may not be efficient in the night but you can always find different ways to adapt in the dark. The government is stepping up to help Peru in a better way, and I gladly support that. 

    This article is important to environmental science because solar panels is an example of a renewable source. Solar panels can be re-used naturally in the course of time. It is a great way to help the economy by not wasting electricity and to save money. Solar power lets us use electricity by not hurting other people and by saving a lot of energy.  

What's Your Number Reflection?

   Whats Your Number?

     Some things I learned in class today where that back in the 1600's there were 1 billion people in the world. Then once it hit 1900's through the 2,000 that's when population grew. Now there is currently 7 billion people and counting living on earth. Another thing that I learned was that women live longer than men. Women can live up to the age of 80 while men can live up to the age of 75. Also the USA holds up to 310 million people which to come and think about that is a lot of people living in the US. We are the top 3 most populated countries in the world while China is in the top with almost 1.3 billion people. India has 1.2 billion people making it the 2nd most populated country.

     I was the 6,107,748,388 person living on earth. As the population seems to go higher and higher every second it scares me, because I don't think the earth will be able to hold more people if we keep growing as fast as this rate. Sooner or later the earth will stop functioning due to over population and we will all go to panic mode. But technology will keep advancing  there will also be new ways to save land and not to over harvest. Having 7 billion people in this earth is huge! Lots of land use is being used and people will keep taking advantage of there ecological footprint. People will be consuming more than what they're expected and sooner or later we will run out of natural resources.

APES EcoBook 13

#ApesEcoBook

#Population

This is an example of population because we as a group of people are from a specific city. We all live in Boston and we make up a number of people in that city. 

APES Ecobok 12

#ApesEcoBook

#Community

In the picture below this is an example of a community. There is many people living in those same exact buildings. Those people make up a community and they all share a specific characteristics to represent each other. Most people living there are from the city of Boston. That's why they the picture is an example of a community because a group of people live there. 

APES Ecobook 11

#ApesEcoBook

#RenewableSource 

The picture below represents a tree. Trees are an example of a renewable source because they are used for lots of different things. Once they are chopped down people re-use the trees to make different buildings and certain items. They also help us breathe by cleaning out all the carbon monoxide. Once they are chopped down they are also re-used for paper, and furniture. 

scrAPES#8- Baby Tortoises Found On Galapagos Island For The First Time In Over 100 Years

scrAPES#8- Baby Tortoises Found On Galapagos Island For The First Time In Over 100 Years

By: Stephen Messenger

21st January 2015

Topic: Animal Extinction 

     In this article it talks about how tortoises are almost found to be extinct. In Galapagos Island of Pinzon there people have spotted the first Tortoises in over 100 years. Sailors in the mid-18th century triggered rats that ate the baby tortoises. Soon lots of rats started to devour all of the baby tortoises, and over a decade there hasn't been a single tortoise that has survived. But now researchers have started to take the baby eggs and nurture them until they are fully grown to go back to the island. But there is a small problem the rats. Helicopters produced a small chemical to kill rats. It's only meant to affect rats and not the whole Island. Now researchers  spotted about 300 tortoises and now they are now more than 500 estimated currently living on the island.

     The reason why I chose this article is because when an animal goes extinct it also affects the food chain. Many animals prey on Tortoises but if they go extinct then there wont be food for the animals. Also it's sad to see an animal go extinct because you know that there wont be much left of that animal. Animal extinction usually affects the environment in some type of way.

    This relates to environmental science because if tortoises goes extinct it affects the food chain. The next steps to do is to allow these animals to mate and have more baby tortoises. If they continue doing what they are doing like helping them eat. Not letting them die so soon then there will be enough Tortoises that they wont go extinct in a long time. 

scrAPES #7 BBC Coasting The Earth Lava: A Dangerous Game

Podcast- Lava: A Dangerous Game
Producer: Alasdair Cross
0-30 minutes
March 18th 2015
Link: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b055g73y
Topic: Natural Disaster

    This podcast is about how volcanoes are very deadly to the environment. The rate of volcanoes eruptions have gone up very high because of population growth and lots of global warming issues. Magma rises through the cracks in the earth's crust then magma explodes to the surface causing volcanoes to erupt. The 2010 eruption in Iceland has caused many damages in air travels for weeks. Costing the global economy about 4.9 billion dollars to repair everything. Many problems of small eruptions have caused people to realize that Iceland, Indonesia, or Central America can be spitted up apart.

   The reason why I chose this podcast was because even if Central America split up that would mean there would be lots of problems in El Salvador. My Family was raised in El Salvador and I would be deeply sad if Central America was split up. It would cause lots of money to repair all the damages that the volcanoes have done and it would take years to recover all the land that will be lost due to volcanoes.

   This podcast is important to environmental science because its causing a lot of natural disaster to happen just because of volcanoes eruptions. What I think we should do now is figure out a way to get everyone to safety and even if Central America is split it we should try to help them as much as possible.

APES EcoBook 1

#ApesEcoBook

#Habitat Destruction

As you can see bellow lies a small tree chopped down. This may be a small impact to society but it can create lots of damage to species. This tree could've been a home to birds, squirrels, and many different types of animals. This tree could've also given us fresh oxygen but now that it's destroyed it can't do any of that. 

APES EcoBook 2

#APESEcoBook

#Non Renewable Source 

Coal is an example of a Non Renewable Source because you can't re use coal. Once the coal is burned the molecules are destroyed. Also new coal takes so many years to form.

APES EcoBook 3

#APESEcoBook

#Habitat

Dirt is a part of a habitat, without dirt the plants wont be able to grow. Also worms use dirt for shelter and many bugs and insects also live deep underneath the dirt. Dirt  provides a habitat for burrowing mammals such as Armadillo, Chipmunks, Badgers, and simple insects like Ants. Dirt also gives plants and trees. 

Apes EcoBook 4

#ApesEcoBook

#Carnivore

The dog in the picture is an example of a carnivore. A carnivore is an animal that eats on flesh. Dogs eat meat which makes them carnivores. Also dogs can eat plants, which also makes them herbivores. Many "wild" dogs feed on flesh either its cooked or raw.  

APES EcoBook 5

#ApesEcoBook

#Producer

In picture below you can see a bird. This bird is considered a producer because it consumes other living organisms to get energy. Many bird species eat plants, animals, and seeds which makes them a producer. 

APES EcoBook 6

#APESEcoBook

#Air Pollution

In the picture below cars are an example of air pollution. Cars produce carbon monoxide which is toxic to humans. Once carbon monoxide is released to the air it's causing lots of damage to humans and animals. It makes it difficult for us to breath and once it encounters 35 parts-per motion (ppm) to human contact it can be very dangerous  making it more difficult to breath. That is why cars is an example of air pollution. 

APES EcoBook 7

#ApesEcoBook

#Abiotic

Water is an example of an abiotic factor. Abiotic is not associated with living organisms in other words abiotic are non-living things on earth. Since water is non-living, it is considered as an abiotic factor. 

ApesEcoBook 8

#ApesEcoBook

#ThrowAwaySociety

The picture below shows an example of a throw away society. Humans like us just throw away trash that hurts the environment. There is paper and plastic bottles that can be reused but people just throw them away in the streets. If only people just recycled these items there wouldn't be any harm like global warming or excessive trash in the streets. This world would be a little cleaner if people recycled but they just throw them away and take advantage. 

ApesEcoBook 9

#ApesEcoBook

#Producer

This picture is an example of a producer. My father and I have produced corn on our backyard. Corn is an example of a producer because it produces food through photosynthesis. It also serves a source of food through different animals in a food chain.  

ApesEcoBook 10

#ApesEcoBook

#Biotic

Fishes are an example of a biotic factor because there are living components in the ecosystem. Fishes are living animals which automatically considers them as a biotic factor. 

scrAPES#6 China's ozone pollution is wafting over.... US has achieved

scrAPES#6 China's ozone pollution is wafting over.... US has achieved
Published: Auguest 12th 2015
By: Zheping Huang & Akhat Rathi
Link: http://qz.com/476682/chinas-ozone-pollution-is-wafting-over-and-offsetting-half-the-reductions-the-us-has-achieved/
Topic: Air pollution

    The article is about China and how there being invaded my the chemicals of ozone. Ozone is a type of chemical which can be both useful and harmful. It causes respiratory illness and hurts the growth of plants. Even though the US has taken action to control ozone pollution it's not enough because China's growth on ozone has been to strong for them. Willem Verstraeten used data from NASA's Auro satellite to study the earth's ozone levels and air quality over the past 5 years. Between 2005 and 2010 he found that China NOx emissions went up 21% while the US dropped 21%. The rise of emissions has made a 7% increase in ozone in the lowest layer of the Earth's atmosphere and above China. Lots of pollution from the east of Asia is transported down to the western North America. China's ozone pollution is far to severe that its hurting many lives even ours.

    The reason why I chose this article is because polluted air from China is coming to the US. That troubles me because I live in the US and if the US gets polluted we wont be able to breath fresh air. Also China is the most populated space there and if China gets polluted with ozone then lots of lives will be lost there. Also US relies on China's products so does many other countries/places, without China it would be a lot harder finding resources.

  This article is important to Environmental Science because one of the worlds most populated space is being polluted by ozone. What I think people should do is invade the space and leave. At least go somewhere far far away from the ozone so you wont be able to get affected by it.

scrAPES #5 Algae Bloom Off B.c Coast Leads To Seafood Bans

scrAPES #5 Algae Bloom Off  B.C. Coast Leads To Seafood Bans
Published: August 5th 2015
By: Phuong Le
Link: http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2015/08/05/algae-bloom-bc_n_7942170.html?utm_hp_ref=green&ir=Green&ncid=fcbklnkushpmg00000044
Topic: Pollution
 
    What this article is about is the microscopic algae is up to 40 miles wide and 650 feet deep into the Pacific Ocean. This Algae Bloom now stretches to at least California to Alaska. They found lots of marine toxins in tested crab meat. The scientist/researches believe that the algae bloom is caused by global climate change but there is much more to it than that. The current Algae Bloom is releasing some of the highest concentrations of domoic acid. Domoic acid is very dangerous to people, sea creatures and marine life. It collects anchovies, sardines and other small fish that eat the algae. Marine mammals can get sick from eating the poisoned fish. If people consume the fish it can cause short-term memory loss. State heath officials tell us that the seafood in stores are safe to eat because its always tested. Even though there has been no reports of human illness this year's Algae bloom it doesn't mean that authorities are taking it easy with this matter.

   The reason why I chose this article is because I wanted to learn more about the seafood bans. After reading this article I never would of expected the Algae bloom affected the Pacific Ocean. There is fish there that if us people eat we may suffer from a terrible illness due to domoic acid. Even though I love sea food I will be more carefull next time on devouring a fish. I also worry about marine mammals because they can also get sick too if they eat the poisoned fish.

    This article is important to Environmental Science because many mammals are being affected by the Algae bloom. One of the most largest oceans in the world is being affected by the Algae Bloom. As it is being spread it's intoxicating more and more of the ocean. If it causes more toxic to the ocean we wont be able to eat sea food or taste fresh water. Water is one of the main reasons of a human need, and if we lose the pacific ocean it will be a lot harder to get food and water. The Pacific Ocean also provides shelter to many animals such as fish and marine mammals.

scrAPES #4 The west is so dry even a rain forest is on fire

scrAPES #4 The west is so dry even a rain forest is on fire
Published: July 13 2015
By: Sarah Kaplan
Link: http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2015/07/13/the-west-is-so-dry-even-a-rainforest-is-on-fire/?postshare=271438792457737
Topic: Habitat Destruction

   This article is about Washington State's Olympic National Park was so dry that the rain forest caught on fire. The rain forest was the wettest place in the U.S. It has 150 inches of rain which soaked the soil and made it very rich. The landscape of the rain forest was so pretty that it was so majestic that behind the mist a dinosaur could come stomping any minute. But saddly this year the tree trunks fell down at their base as they where being burned. The rain forest became very dry the fire passed from tree to tree. As they dropped the fire was spreading through the ground as well. The paradise fire has consumed about 1,600 acres of the forest and they don't expect to put down the fire until September 30. In lots of forest fire are just a part of natural cycle of growth.

    The reason why I chose this article is because whenever a rain forest is caught on fire it saddens me because we rely on the materials the rain forest provides. The most interesting thing that grabbed my attention was that the fire consumed about 1.600 acres of the forest that is a lot! That will take many months for those acres to be recovered. Something new I learned is that fire is just a part of the natural cycle of growth in a rain forest, I thought fire was the rain forests worse enemy.

   The article is important to environmental science because we need rain forests to survive. The rain forest provides us medicine, food, shelter, and oxygen basic human needs for us to survive in the world. Without rain forest it would be a lot harder for us to survive. If rain forests keep burning down we wont be able to grow food, discover new medicines, or breath fresh air. What we should do now is plant more tree's and recover all the damage the fire has done to the rain forest. We should keep protecting rain forests and discover a way to stop the fire.

scrAPES #3 Don't touch this plant; you could go blind

scrAPES #3 Don't touch this plant; you could go blind
Published: August 5th 2015
By: Dan Austin
Link: http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2015/08/05/blinding-plant-michigan/31125003/
Topic: Plant Danger
   The article talks about a plant called Hogweed which is a dangerous plant. If the sap of the plant touches your skin it will develop blisters or burns it can also cause blindness in contact with eyes. The Hogweed plant can reach up to 12 feet high with stems of 2 to 4 inches thick. The hogweed was seen in New England and the Northwest. The Hogweed usually blooms around late summer to midsummer. The Hogweed stem's have dark red or purple spots and bristles and it's a member of the carrot family.

   The reason why I chose this article is because I wanted to learn more about a dangerous plant just in case I come in contact with it. The only dangerous plant I know is poison ivy and I wanted to learn more dangerous plants other than poison ivy. The most interesting thing that grabbed my attention is the inflammation and blistering it has once the sap contacts the human skin. The skin gets really ugly and very severe it looks like if you have a deadly rash infection. When I was little I used to get lots of rashes but I never knew why, after seeing the pictures I feel lucky that my skin never turned like that.

  The article is important to environmental science because it's good to know that there is many other deadly plants out there that can cause serious injuries to your health. What I think they should do now is remove most of the Hogweed plant and stop the spreading of the plant. The more we now about deadly plants the more cautious we can be and protect our selves if we see any.

ScrAPES #2 Plastic In The Ocean

ScrAPES #2 Plastic In The Ocean
Podcasts:

World Sailors Call For Plastic-free Oceans : http://loe.org/shows/segments.html?programID=15-P13-00023&segmentID=3

Testing Boston Harbor for Plastic : http://loe.org/shows/segments.html?programID=15-P13-00023&segmentID=4

Meeting the Challenge of Plastic Marine Debris : http://loe.org/shows/segments.html?programID=15-P13-00023&segmentID=5

Topic: Plastic Waste

June 5th 2015 

      The podcast is about plastic being wasted through out the world and especially in the ocean. There is waste everywhere through schools, playgrounds, and everywhere else! 80 percent of the plastic comes from the land. 20 percent of plastic is from sea based human acts (boats, fishing gears). 50 percent of the waste comes from 5 countries in Asia. The U.S. is #20 on the list because we generate a large amount of waste regularly, there are a lot of people living on the coastal area, and 13% of that waste is made of plastic. Tyler O'Brien went to the Boston Harbor to explore more about the micro plastic. Micro plastics can come into the water from land-point sources, rivers, streams, and rain events. They can be bags, bottles, or wrappings. Micro plastics can have bad effects for the environment and human health. She then used 2 metal sieves to collect some micro plastic. On one metal sieve it has 300 micrometers and the other 63 micro meters. Micro plastic is not good for animals because the animals eat the micro plastic and they die and then WE eat those animals and then it moves on through the food web. Animals usually mistake micro plastic to plankton because its that small. 

     The reason why I chose this podcast was because it seemed very interesting and I new nothing about micro plastics before I heard the podcast. I can never imagine something very small can just pile and pile up and become this big huge bad thing for the environment. The amount of plastic just being thrown in the water is unbelievable. What was very interesting was that Sweden doesn't produce that much plastic waste to the environment.  

     This podcast is important to environmental science because it shows us how micro beads, micro plastic, and trash in general is affecting our life style. If we keep producing more and more trash into these oceans/lakes we will soon be swimming with the plastic! We can cut off on buying so much plastic, we can start recycling more plastic. We can also make a change on the type of products we use and to be sure when its necessary to use them. 

ScrAPES #1 She hasn't made any trash in 2 years

ScrAPES #1 She hasn't made any trash in 2 years
Published:November 23 2014
By: Joe Martino
Article: http://www.collective-evolution.com/2014/11/23/she-hasnt-made-any-trash-in-2-years-this-is-what-her-life-is-like/

Topic: Eliminating Trash

      This article talks about Lauren Singer's journey onto how she hasn't made any trash in 2 years. Lauren Singer is a is taking Environmental Studies at NYU. She is currently against big oil and wanted to help the environment in a positive way. How her journey started into not making any trash in 2 years was that she opened her refrigerate and realized that almost all of her items was wrapped in a disposable bag. Lauren also decided to bring her own bags wherever she went shopping. She also stopped asking for receipts and is no longer using personal are products. Her final thoughts into her journey on "zero waste" was that she saves money, she eats better and she lives a better life.

    The reason why I chose this article was that the title seamed appealing to me "Hasn't made any trash in 2 years" that sounded very crazy to me. No one can ever go 2 years without making waste in his/her life. A connection that I can make it when I tried to put myself into the habit on putting things correctly in the recycling bins. I used to put all the paper and plastic in the garbage cans not caring about the environment. But as years go on I realize that we only have 1 world to live in and that I should start recycling.

    This article is important to environmental science because it shows that 1 person can make a difference into the environment regardless on when you start. This article proves that anyone can make a change in the environment even if its "zero waste" What is very significant about this article is that she took her time and effort into changing herself on not wasting any trash. She went overboard and took the next step. Lauren brought her own bags, didn't ask for receipts. She even stopped wearing makeup! This article shows that anyone can do it and that it doesn't mater where you start its about how you are going to make a change in the environment.

My Connection To Nature

                      Connection To Nature 

What I think nature is that it's all about the environment. I see nature in many different types of forms but the most interesting thing about nature is the plants. The plants always seize to amaze me they are interesting in many ways. The color, the shape, and sizes and identifying what type of plant it is. What I wish to do to connect with nature is to help people plant trees or just start a garden in there backyard. To me gardening and planting is the best way to interact with nature. I help my dad with the garden and we are planting all sorts of stuff. Why I think its important to connect with nature is that without re planting plants and without taking care of the environment we wouldn't be living at all. Nature is just a part of me that will help me in many different way. But people take advantage and they tend to be very mean to nature.