Today, on February 19, I decided to take the time to do one-hour of uninterrupted visualization. I was not able to do the one-hour of uninterrupted listening. It would proved to be pointless and almost impossible for me to do. To be honest, I think one-hour of uninterrupted visualization is the more challenging than one-hour of uninterrupted listening.
The location I decided to sit down and “watch” is in a corner of a classroom at David King Hall. It is where my wife and her classmates were working on their assignment for their structure lab class. The teacher and everyone do not mind me being in the classroom because it is a very laid-back environment, unlike my previous classes I’ve taken for finance major. It seems to me that everyone enjoy doing things for their assignments because they actually love geology. I cannot help but look around the room and noticed how chaotic it would seem to someone new to this room. There are rocks, microscopes, textbooks, maps, and pictures of biomes ranging from deserts to rainforest to tundra.
I see people smiling and laughing while busy doing their work. They seem to really love doing their geology work. My wife likes to help people so it was no surprise to me seeing her helping her fellow classmates. She would make a great teacher someday. In fact, that is what she really wants to do is to be a college professor. There was a guy named Joe in the classroom that seems to be the “class clown” and everyone always seem to laugh every time he opens his mouth.
It is interesting to see the students come and go as they please. Some go to get some lunch and bring it back to eat. The teacher is also eating something Chinese from the Johnson Center. Still, people are up and about helping each other and asking questions. After 30 minutes went by, people still seem to not mind that I am here doing my own thing – that is watching them like an anthropologist and taking notes. I just looked around the room scanning for something unusual to happen or something to happen, period. It seems like a normal day in the classroom.
I noticed that, occasionally,, my wife look over to me and smile but only for a brief second because she is busy doing her own work and helping others as well. I could see stuff on the board that has a lot of concepts about striations and degrees and angles for rocks. Pretty intense stuff if you don’t know what you are doing. Nonetheless, I sill feel more at home here than I do in a business class setting. The people are very friendly and enthusiastic about their fields. After an hour went by, I laid my head down and rested my eyes. By this time, I was visually exhausted.
Saturday, February 20, 2010
Monday, February 15, 2010
#5 Open Topic (freewrite, 10 minutes)
This week I am going to be talking about snow. I know that many of you are sick of it by because of the inconveniences it causes. Seeing all the snow seems new and exciting to me because both my wife and I are from North Florida so we do not get any snow. If and when we do, it melts when it hits the ground. In fact, when the temperature drops below freezing, the weather service issues a freeze warning. I know, right? Here in Virginia, we deal with freezing temperature for several weeks, if not several months at a time. We are used to it. However, we are not used to the amount of snow that had been dumped all over the area. I can only imagine those people up north in regions where massive amounts of snow are the norm but they are better prepared for it than we are.
Even though, I am originally from Florida, I love the cold. I rather have the cold weather than the hot weather, especially when it comes to humidity. People ask me why would we even move out of Florida. The sunshine beaming down on the state and wearing flip-flops almost all year long seems very appealing to them but it is not to us. We lived in Florida for more than 15 years and we have had all the heat and humidity that we can bear. Now, we welcome the cold weather and the snow. To be honest, I would not mind moving further up north but my wife is not too keen on the idea. Maybe I can convince her someday when we can afford snow blowers, heated driveways, an actual garage and definitely a 4x4 vehicle.
Even though, I am originally from Florida, I love the cold. I rather have the cold weather than the hot weather, especially when it comes to humidity. People ask me why would we even move out of Florida. The sunshine beaming down on the state and wearing flip-flops almost all year long seems very appealing to them but it is not to us. We lived in Florida for more than 15 years and we have had all the heat and humidity that we can bear. Now, we welcome the cold weather and the snow. To be honest, I would not mind moving further up north but my wife is not too keen on the idea. Maybe I can convince her someday when we can afford snow blowers, heated driveways, an actual garage and definitely a 4x4 vehicle.
RESEARCH PROBLEM TEMPLATE
(*) Introduce the issue to be studied.
The general public wants and needs to know if the global warming is actually a concern or not. In fact, there are a growing number of skeptics believing the climate change is a farce. To defeat this skepticism, a need for a clear line of communication between the scientific community and the general public is of paramount. The general public needs to know that the consequences will be disastrous if nothing is done to combat global warming. Today, if not yesterday, it is the job of scientists and politicians to find a middle ground to get to the bottom of the problem and hopefully find a viable solution. Also, they should inform people of what will happen if nothing is done to curb global warming.
(*) Introduce to background of the research area.
Global warming is a controversy since early 1990s when we began to see an alarming trend that the Earth is warming. Secondly, we have noticed some huge chunks of ice shelves being broken off Antarctica. We also see depletion of sea ice from the Arctic regions. Unfortunately, that is not enough to convince people. It does not help that the during winter of 2010, we have experienced a massive amount of snow from back to back snowstorms in which we do not see any hint of global warming.
What people do not understand is that global warming can cause extreme weathers. We have to act as if global warming is a potential runaway truck barreling down a hill with no brakes and do everything we can do stop this from happening.
(*) State the key issue, the overall research problem, and specific research question/s. There may be 1-3 separate questions connected to research problem area. Should be formulated in a very clear language in a form of a question.
What are the consequences that humankind will face if global warming progresses?
Will the sea level rise if all the ice melts or the ice melting will stop the thermohaline circulation and cause another ice age?
What exactly can we do to stop global warming from happening?
(*) Statement of relevance to the field. Define your audience of experts.
This research is mainly for scientists geared towards learning and understanding the climate change and its effects. Those scientists should understand not only the importance of understanding the Earth Dynamics but also know how to inform the public with small margins of error. These errors can and have cause skepticism, which defeats the purpose of educating the general public as well as politicians. At the same time, this is done to also reach out to anyone with desire to understand global warming and its consequences.
(*) Justify the research problem area with references to references to journal articles (and in some cases also popular articles) pinpointing the importance of the research area.
1. http://ga.water.usgs.gov/edu/watercycleice.html - Pertains to information about Cryosphere such a: Water Storage in Ice and Snow, Facts about glaciers and ice caps, and Influence of weather from ice caps.
2. http://nsidc.org/index.html – An official website – National Snow and Ice Data Center at University of Colorado in Boulder, Colorado. It shows news and events as well as publications involving anything about earth’s cryosphere (ice, snow, ice caps, sea ice, ice sheets, etc)
3. http://www.glims.org/ - GLIMS – Global Land Ice Measurements from Space - A websites verifying sources of measurements of ice on land from space. Plethora of publications, data and news pertaining to world’s glaciers.
4. http://www.unep.org/geo/geo%5Fice/ - Global outlook for Ice and Snow. A website investigating the linkage between snow, ice and climate change.
5. http://ice.nasa.gov/ - NASA’s cryospheric science program – They monitor the sea ice and
6. http://www.arcus.org/arcss/ - The National Science Foundation’s Arctic System Science Program – studies the Polar Regions and its processes.
(*) Introduce your proposed methods of study, in brief, if you can at this time.
I plan on using all these websites and consolidating the facts hoping to find the real truth in climate change, global warming, and Earth and its cryosphere. Some of these websites will have different set of facts, data, and even opinion so I will have to find the most credible and sound arguments and present them in terms that not only scientist but an average person can understand.
(*) Introduce limitations of the study, if you can at this time.
Massive amounts of money and research grants has been poured into studying Earth and its Dynamics since the start of a concern for a global warming, especially when it comes to cryosphere. The limitations of this research is that as much as you can study and collect data, there can be only be strong evidences but at the end, no one really knows exactly what will happen to the Earth’s climate in the future. We can come up with concrete answers to what has happened in the past and maybe foresee its trends – only the consequences will be different because now there are billions of people on the planet.
(*) Include bibliography of sources. Provide in-text citations where appropriate.
http://www.glims.org/
http://nsidc.org/links/index.html
http://www.unep.ch/iuc/info/ccinfokit/Infokit%20-%202001.htm
http://www.unep.org/geo/geo%5Fice/
http://nasadaacs.eos.nasa.gov/articles/2008/2008_seaice.html
(*) Note scholarly publications (1-3 publications, by title) where you might be able to publish the resulting paper you would write.
http://www.wired.com/wiredscience
http://nsidc.org/pubs/notes/
http://www.science.doe.gov/grants/
The general public wants and needs to know if the global warming is actually a concern or not. In fact, there are a growing number of skeptics believing the climate change is a farce. To defeat this skepticism, a need for a clear line of communication between the scientific community and the general public is of paramount. The general public needs to know that the consequences will be disastrous if nothing is done to combat global warming. Today, if not yesterday, it is the job of scientists and politicians to find a middle ground to get to the bottom of the problem and hopefully find a viable solution. Also, they should inform people of what will happen if nothing is done to curb global warming.
(*) Introduce to background of the research area.
Global warming is a controversy since early 1990s when we began to see an alarming trend that the Earth is warming. Secondly, we have noticed some huge chunks of ice shelves being broken off Antarctica. We also see depletion of sea ice from the Arctic regions. Unfortunately, that is not enough to convince people. It does not help that the during winter of 2010, we have experienced a massive amount of snow from back to back snowstorms in which we do not see any hint of global warming.
What people do not understand is that global warming can cause extreme weathers. We have to act as if global warming is a potential runaway truck barreling down a hill with no brakes and do everything we can do stop this from happening.
(*) State the key issue, the overall research problem, and specific research question/s. There may be 1-3 separate questions connected to research problem area. Should be formulated in a very clear language in a form of a question.
What are the consequences that humankind will face if global warming progresses?
Will the sea level rise if all the ice melts or the ice melting will stop the thermohaline circulation and cause another ice age?
What exactly can we do to stop global warming from happening?
(*) Statement of relevance to the field. Define your audience of experts.
This research is mainly for scientists geared towards learning and understanding the climate change and its effects. Those scientists should understand not only the importance of understanding the Earth Dynamics but also know how to inform the public with small margins of error. These errors can and have cause skepticism, which defeats the purpose of educating the general public as well as politicians. At the same time, this is done to also reach out to anyone with desire to understand global warming and its consequences.
(*) Justify the research problem area with references to references to journal articles (and in some cases also popular articles) pinpointing the importance of the research area.
1. http://ga.water.usgs.gov/edu/watercycleice.html - Pertains to information about Cryosphere such a: Water Storage in Ice and Snow, Facts about glaciers and ice caps, and Influence of weather from ice caps.
2. http://nsidc.org/index.html – An official website – National Snow and Ice Data Center at University of Colorado in Boulder, Colorado. It shows news and events as well as publications involving anything about earth’s cryosphere (ice, snow, ice caps, sea ice, ice sheets, etc)
3. http://www.glims.org/ - GLIMS – Global Land Ice Measurements from Space - A websites verifying sources of measurements of ice on land from space. Plethora of publications, data and news pertaining to world’s glaciers.
4. http://www.unep.org/geo/geo%5Fice/ - Global outlook for Ice and Snow. A website investigating the linkage between snow, ice and climate change.
5. http://ice.nasa.gov/ - NASA’s cryospheric science program – They monitor the sea ice and
6. http://www.arcus.org/arcss/ - The National Science Foundation’s Arctic System Science Program – studies the Polar Regions and its processes.
(*) Introduce your proposed methods of study, in brief, if you can at this time.
I plan on using all these websites and consolidating the facts hoping to find the real truth in climate change, global warming, and Earth and its cryosphere. Some of these websites will have different set of facts, data, and even opinion so I will have to find the most credible and sound arguments and present them in terms that not only scientist but an average person can understand.
(*) Introduce limitations of the study, if you can at this time.
Massive amounts of money and research grants has been poured into studying Earth and its Dynamics since the start of a concern for a global warming, especially when it comes to cryosphere. The limitations of this research is that as much as you can study and collect data, there can be only be strong evidences but at the end, no one really knows exactly what will happen to the Earth’s climate in the future. We can come up with concrete answers to what has happened in the past and maybe foresee its trends – only the consequences will be different because now there are billions of people on the planet.
(*) Include bibliography of sources. Provide in-text citations where appropriate.
http://www.glims.org/
http://nsidc.org/links/index.html
http://www.unep.ch/iuc/info/ccinfokit/Infokit%20-%202001.htm
http://www.unep.org/geo/geo%5Fice/
http://nasadaacs.eos.nasa.gov/articles/2008/2008_seaice.html
(*) Note scholarly publications (1-3 publications, by title) where you might be able to publish the resulting paper you would write.
http://www.wired.com/wiredscience
http://nsidc.org/pubs/notes/
http://www.science.doe.gov/grants/
#4 What did you see on your way to school/work/etc. (pick one commute)? (freewrite, 10 minutes)
On a normal morning during the weekday, my wife would drive to school because she likes driving in the morning. I do not mind because it gives me the chance to wake up. I look around the neighborhood and see how quiet it is. The parking lot is nearly empty. It should be because it is past 9 a.m. and people are at work. We live in a townhouse in Sterling, which is 30 minutes away from school (on a good day). Most of the time, I see birds flying around and squirrels bouncing around on trees and running on the fence. In fact, I saw them today with snow is still on the ground but the animals seem to be ok with that.
We always take route 28 all the way down to interstate 66. We take Interstate 66 to Fairfax Co. Parkway. Then we would take Fairfax Co. Parkway to Braddock Rd to get to School. We have learned that it is the easiest and fastest commute for us. Every time we drive down route 28, I cannot help but see the big building on the left with letters saying Harris. I know that Harris communication is a government contracting business. Then shortly on my right, I always see the Ferrari/Lamborghini dealership next to the Dulles 28 center, which is filled with stores and restaurants. Ah, a man can only dream of driving those cars someday.
The past couple days have been different from our normal commute because of the snow. I see trees and branches that have been broken down because of the weight of the snow from the first snowstorm. I was amazed to see how many have snapped and/or toppled over to the ground. I can only imagine what an even more severe snowstorm would do. The roads are dirty from the mix of salt, snow, and dirt. Not a pretty sight compared to the ones that are away from the roads. On the drive to school, you get to see the mountains and recently it is interesting because you can see the snow on the ground on the mountains.
It is just a commute. Once you’ve done it many times, it becomes a routine. All the things you see on the way becomes a daily occurrence and it gets old fast. It is not that special but the snow did make things interesting. Thank goodness life is not that boring.
We always take route 28 all the way down to interstate 66. We take Interstate 66 to Fairfax Co. Parkway. Then we would take Fairfax Co. Parkway to Braddock Rd to get to School. We have learned that it is the easiest and fastest commute for us. Every time we drive down route 28, I cannot help but see the big building on the left with letters saying Harris. I know that Harris communication is a government contracting business. Then shortly on my right, I always see the Ferrari/Lamborghini dealership next to the Dulles 28 center, which is filled with stores and restaurants. Ah, a man can only dream of driving those cars someday.
The past couple days have been different from our normal commute because of the snow. I see trees and branches that have been broken down because of the weight of the snow from the first snowstorm. I was amazed to see how many have snapped and/or toppled over to the ground. I can only imagine what an even more severe snowstorm would do. The roads are dirty from the mix of salt, snow, and dirt. Not a pretty sight compared to the ones that are away from the roads. On the drive to school, you get to see the mountains and recently it is interesting because you can see the snow on the ground on the mountains.
It is just a commute. Once you’ve done it many times, it becomes a routine. All the things you see on the way becomes a daily occurrence and it gets old fast. It is not that special but the snow did make things interesting. Thank goodness life is not that boring.
# 2 What are your strengths? (freewrite, 10 minutes)
My strength that I consistently use throughout my entire life is perseverance. When things are hard, I do whatever I can do to get things done. There are times where I am so stressed out and not sure if I could do it and those times I really hate because it makes me doubt myself. During those times is where perseverance comes in play. I know that it has to be done so I just sit there and do it until it gets done. I have no choice in the matter.
It is funny that the older I got, the more I doubt myself. It has a lot to do with growing up and because I am not a little kid anymore. There were many people in my life that helped me and took it easy on me because I was deaf. Truth be told, the help that I received all my life had hindered me. It was a shocker when I first started college. I tell myself that there are many people in the same boat as me – clueless with the work –especially when it comes to college.
In order to do the workload in college, I have to be persistent because sometimes I teach myself the subject. Sometimes things bear repeating until you get it right. So both perseverance and persistent is what gets me going. If I had to say what strength do I have that would help me throughout college and my future career would be perseverance. It will help to strive for complete dedication to achieve the goals that I have and my wants out of life.
It is funny that the older I got, the more I doubt myself. It has a lot to do with growing up and because I am not a little kid anymore. There were many people in my life that helped me and took it easy on me because I was deaf. Truth be told, the help that I received all my life had hindered me. It was a shocker when I first started college. I tell myself that there are many people in the same boat as me – clueless with the work –especially when it comes to college.
In order to do the workload in college, I have to be persistent because sometimes I teach myself the subject. Sometimes things bear repeating until you get it right. So both perseverance and persistent is what gets me going. If I had to say what strength do I have that would help me throughout college and my future career would be perseverance. It will help to strive for complete dedication to achieve the goals that I have and my wants out of life.
#1 Researching/Writing Goals and Aspirations (freewrite, 10 minutes)
My goals and aspiration would be perfecting my research as well as writing skills. In time, I can utilize this skill set towards my field. If I am to go into Atmospheric Science and do some advance research in the field, I would undoubtedly need these skills to produce credible research papers so I can be a trusted and reputable scientist who knows exactly what he is talking about.
If I had to produce a research paper to get the grants I want to continue on my research, I would need to know how to communicate to other scholars of the field. Knowing how to write scholarly will help me get my points across to my peers and researching efficiently will help me look up reputable sources as effectively and efficiently as possible. This class will help combine writing and researching into numerous activities that you may have to do in your field of study.
That being said, I intend to do well in this class and learn as much as I possibly can. It never hurts to keep writing and writing to the point that it builds up writing skills because eventually it will come naturally to you. Same goes for research, as the The Craft of Research book says, almost 99% of the people in any profession will do some research at one point in time. In fact, researching is a HUGE part of our daily lives. Only this class will augment the researching abilities and take it a next step further – a scientific research to find answers or ask the right questions.
If I had to produce a research paper to get the grants I want to continue on my research, I would need to know how to communicate to other scholars of the field. Knowing how to write scholarly will help me get my points across to my peers and researching efficiently will help me look up reputable sources as effectively and efficiently as possible. This class will help combine writing and researching into numerous activities that you may have to do in your field of study.
That being said, I intend to do well in this class and learn as much as I possibly can. It never hurts to keep writing and writing to the point that it builds up writing skills because eventually it will come naturally to you. Same goes for research, as the The Craft of Research book says, almost 99% of the people in any profession will do some research at one point in time. In fact, researching is a HUGE part of our daily lives. Only this class will augment the researching abilities and take it a next step further – a scientific research to find answers or ask the right questions.
Saturday, February 13, 2010
Science Article #15
Can Sea Level Rise and Fall With Lightning Speed?
Berardelli, P. “Can Sea Level Rise and Fall With Lightning Speed?” ScienceNOW Daily News. February 11, 2010. Retreived February 13, 2010 From http://sciencenow.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/2010/211/3
The fluctuations of ice ages have been quite perplexing as it is amusing for most paleoclimatologists. Some spend lifetimes defining the cycles of these ice ages. In fact, recent study ran into a brick wall in figuring out the behaviors of sea level during the last several ice ages. Inside a coastal cave off the coast of Mediterranean Sea on a Spanish Island called Mallorca, showed some evidence in a dramatic rise in sea level so fast that it is unthinkable to believe that ice can melt that quickly. This evidence was shown on stalactites encrusted with calcite and like bathtub rings, they measured the watermarks on them showing high and low water levels. They measured these encrustations and it indicated that the sea level might have risen 2 meters per century. In geologic time, glaciers melting that fast is probably considered lightning fast.
These findings were not exactly discovered recently but discovered back in 1970s. However, the lack of technology back then could not measure and date them accurately until now. This discovery is strange and mysterious enough to ask some serious questions that might do some rethinking about the earth’s dynamics. In other words, there is still a lot to learn on how Earth and its Cryosphere works.
Berardelli, P. “Can Sea Level Rise and Fall With Lightning Speed?” ScienceNOW Daily News. February 11, 2010. Retreived February 13, 2010 From http://sciencenow.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/2010/211/3
The fluctuations of ice ages have been quite perplexing as it is amusing for most paleoclimatologists. Some spend lifetimes defining the cycles of these ice ages. In fact, recent study ran into a brick wall in figuring out the behaviors of sea level during the last several ice ages. Inside a coastal cave off the coast of Mediterranean Sea on a Spanish Island called Mallorca, showed some evidence in a dramatic rise in sea level so fast that it is unthinkable to believe that ice can melt that quickly. This evidence was shown on stalactites encrusted with calcite and like bathtub rings, they measured the watermarks on them showing high and low water levels. They measured these encrustations and it indicated that the sea level might have risen 2 meters per century. In geologic time, glaciers melting that fast is probably considered lightning fast.
These findings were not exactly discovered recently but discovered back in 1970s. However, the lack of technology back then could not measure and date them accurately until now. This discovery is strange and mysterious enough to ask some serious questions that might do some rethinking about the earth’s dynamics. In other words, there is still a lot to learn on how Earth and its Cryosphere works.
Science Article #14
Martian Dune Mystery Solved By Bouncing Sand Grains
Grossman, L. “Martian Dune Mystery Solved by Bouncing Sand Grains.” Wired –Science. February 11, 2010. From http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2010/02/martian-dune-mystery-solved-by-bouncing-sand-grains/
The planet Mars have perplexed many scientists for many reasons. It is known that the atmosphere on Mars is very thin so it does not have the weather or the wind-blown erosions like we do. Because of this fact, it is a mystery how some of Mar’s landscape was transformed. Recently, scientists have discovered how a particular sandy surface known as Barchan dunes was formed. The study found that the formation of sand dunes and ripples that are normally formed by winds.
In fact, when Mars atmosphere experiences any winds, the sand grains are flown until they are dropped to the surface. Take golfing for example. What happens when you swing a golf ball in the air and it lands on sand? It causes a ripple effect. Once the particles or sand grains are in the air, they increase in speed so when they land, it actually “slams” itself on the surface. Thus, over period of time, the sand grains had made dunes from these impacts. However, these sand grains do not need a lot of winds on Mars for saltation – a process formed by sand particles taking short wind-borne hops.
This study had concluded how some of its sand dunes are formed but there are several other mysteries of Mars yet to be discovered.
Grossman, L. “Martian Dune Mystery Solved by Bouncing Sand Grains.” Wired –Science. February 11, 2010. From http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2010/02/martian-dune-mystery-solved-by-bouncing-sand-grains/
The planet Mars have perplexed many scientists for many reasons. It is known that the atmosphere on Mars is very thin so it does not have the weather or the wind-blown erosions like we do. Because of this fact, it is a mystery how some of Mar’s landscape was transformed. Recently, scientists have discovered how a particular sandy surface known as Barchan dunes was formed. The study found that the formation of sand dunes and ripples that are normally formed by winds.
In fact, when Mars atmosphere experiences any winds, the sand grains are flown until they are dropped to the surface. Take golfing for example. What happens when you swing a golf ball in the air and it lands on sand? It causes a ripple effect. Once the particles or sand grains are in the air, they increase in speed so when they land, it actually “slams” itself on the surface. Thus, over period of time, the sand grains had made dunes from these impacts. However, these sand grains do not need a lot of winds on Mars for saltation – a process formed by sand particles taking short wind-borne hops.
This study had concluded how some of its sand dunes are formed but there are several other mysteries of Mars yet to be discovered.
Science Article #13
Sat-nav device face big errors as solar activity rises
Palmer, J. “Sat-nav devices face big errors as solar activity rises." BBC – Science and Technology. February 10, 2010. Retrieved February 12, 2010 From http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/8494225.stm
How many of you have an iPhone? How many of you use your iPhone for guidance of GPS? For the past decade or so, we have been growing more and more dependent on technology – especially when it comes to satellites. Everyday people rely on satellites for GPS (global positioning system) but more importantly, people such as airplane pilots and ship captains rely heavily on these technologies to get where they want to go. The synchronization of three satellites otherwise known as triangulation will help pinpoint where exactly the user is located –this method is used by sat-nav (satellite-navigation).
Recently, researchers say that the sun’s solar activities will increase after years of being in-activity. The activities from the Sun may expel solar flares full of high-energy particles along with electromagnetic spectrum ranging from low-radio waves to high-energy gamma rays towards the vulnerable Earth. Most of the satellites orbiting the Earth will be susceptible to these solar flares causing worldwide confusion with sat-navs. This sensitivity to solar flares will affect the maritime, aviation, as well as military critical for accurate readings of sat-navs.
The aftermath effects of these solar flares are not known because during the last solar storm, the sat-navs were barely in the market. Also, the ionosphere – Earth’s outermost atmosphere – will determine the weakness and how fast these signals will travel to the navigation systems. This unsteady flow of signals will cause errors for tens of minutes – blinding the navigator from accurate travels.
Palmer, J. “Sat-nav devices face big errors as solar activity rises." BBC – Science and Technology. February 10, 2010. Retrieved February 12, 2010 From http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/8494225.stm
How many of you have an iPhone? How many of you use your iPhone for guidance of GPS? For the past decade or so, we have been growing more and more dependent on technology – especially when it comes to satellites. Everyday people rely on satellites for GPS (global positioning system) but more importantly, people such as airplane pilots and ship captains rely heavily on these technologies to get where they want to go. The synchronization of three satellites otherwise known as triangulation will help pinpoint where exactly the user is located –this method is used by sat-nav (satellite-navigation).
Recently, researchers say that the sun’s solar activities will increase after years of being in-activity. The activities from the Sun may expel solar flares full of high-energy particles along with electromagnetic spectrum ranging from low-radio waves to high-energy gamma rays towards the vulnerable Earth. Most of the satellites orbiting the Earth will be susceptible to these solar flares causing worldwide confusion with sat-navs. This sensitivity to solar flares will affect the maritime, aviation, as well as military critical for accurate readings of sat-navs.
The aftermath effects of these solar flares are not known because during the last solar storm, the sat-navs were barely in the market. Also, the ionosphere – Earth’s outermost atmosphere – will determine the weakness and how fast these signals will travel to the navigation systems. This unsteady flow of signals will cause errors for tens of minutes – blinding the navigator from accurate travels.
Science Article #12
Climate change will make world more ‘fragrant'
Walker, M. “Climate change will make world more ‘fragrant’." BBC-Earth News. February 9, 2010. Retrieved February 12, 2010 From http://news.bbc.co.uk/earth/hi/earth_news/newsid_8503000/8503823.stm
Ever imagine what plant life was like millions of years ago when the climate was warmer? Scientists are getting closer to answers to those questions. The fact that more CO2 is lingering in the atmosphere, temperatures increase. It is this greenhouse effect that will affect plant life significantly. As temperature increases, the plants will emit a higher level of BVOS (biogenic volatile organic compound). Such increase will enable the planet Earth to be more fragrant. Biogenic Volatile Organic Compound serves as a communication technique with other plants as well as defense tactic against pest and herbivores.
According to the scientist leading this major scientific review, the world may have already becoming more fragrant. However, if the temperature increases even more, the emissions of BVOS will exponentially increase. It is important to monitor this because any changes to BVOS; the plants will undergo drastic changes. According to Professor Josep Penuelas, “The increased emissions will likely affect physiology and ecology, i.e. the function of life”.
Also, the warmer climate will increase vegetation in other parts of the world, especially the in the high latitudes where permafrost dominates the terrain. Even though study shows that plant life will be altered and emit higher levels of BVOS, its consequences are still unknown.
Walker, M. “Climate change will make world more ‘fragrant’." BBC-Earth News. February 9, 2010. Retrieved February 12, 2010 From http://news.bbc.co.uk/earth/hi/earth_news/newsid_8503000/8503823.stm
Ever imagine what plant life was like millions of years ago when the climate was warmer? Scientists are getting closer to answers to those questions. The fact that more CO2 is lingering in the atmosphere, temperatures increase. It is this greenhouse effect that will affect plant life significantly. As temperature increases, the plants will emit a higher level of BVOS (biogenic volatile organic compound). Such increase will enable the planet Earth to be more fragrant. Biogenic Volatile Organic Compound serves as a communication technique with other plants as well as defense tactic against pest and herbivores.
According to the scientist leading this major scientific review, the world may have already becoming more fragrant. However, if the temperature increases even more, the emissions of BVOS will exponentially increase. It is important to monitor this because any changes to BVOS; the plants will undergo drastic changes. According to Professor Josep Penuelas, “The increased emissions will likely affect physiology and ecology, i.e. the function of life”.
Also, the warmer climate will increase vegetation in other parts of the world, especially the in the high latitudes where permafrost dominates the terrain. Even though study shows that plant life will be altered and emit higher levels of BVOS, its consequences are still unknown.
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Science Article #11
Australia, Antarctica Linked By Climate
Beradelli, P. “Australia, Antarctica Linked By Climate”. ScienceNow Daily News. February 8, 2010. Retrieved February 10, 2010 From http://sciencenow.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/2010/208/1
There is an adverse weather conditions between Australia and Antarctica. Climate researchers have seen that when one continent experiences drought, the other experiences precipitation. The southwestern corner of Australia is suffering a drought whereas the eastern Antarctica is consistently getting a barrage of snowstorms. This scientific finding needed further investigation so they took ice core samples from an ice field directly south of Australia’s southwestern tip. According to climate scientist Tas van Ommen and Vin Morgan, researchers of the Australian Antarctic Division in Tasmania, they have found evidence that the area of Antarctica has been experiencing an unusual amount of snowfalls for few decades. In fact, this anomaly is similar to the droughts that have occurred in Australia.
The researchers are convinced that these weather anomalies are linked together and may have been intensified by human/environment interactions. They monitored precipitations, atmospheric circulation patterns as well as measuring particles in ice cores. The evidence for human causes are strong because of human-made carbon dioxide as well as reduction in ozone had created a drier air in the southwestern regions of Australia. Inversely, Antarctica experiences wetter and snowier conditions. Researching this is crucial for the farming regions of Australia because without rainfalls, the farming industry will receive a devastating blow. This is a fine example of global warming in the works.
Beradelli, P. “Australia, Antarctica Linked By Climate”. ScienceNow Daily News. February 8, 2010. Retrieved February 10, 2010 From http://sciencenow.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/2010/208/1
There is an adverse weather conditions between Australia and Antarctica. Climate researchers have seen that when one continent experiences drought, the other experiences precipitation. The southwestern corner of Australia is suffering a drought whereas the eastern Antarctica is consistently getting a barrage of snowstorms. This scientific finding needed further investigation so they took ice core samples from an ice field directly south of Australia’s southwestern tip. According to climate scientist Tas van Ommen and Vin Morgan, researchers of the Australian Antarctic Division in Tasmania, they have found evidence that the area of Antarctica has been experiencing an unusual amount of snowfalls for few decades. In fact, this anomaly is similar to the droughts that have occurred in Australia.
The researchers are convinced that these weather anomalies are linked together and may have been intensified by human/environment interactions. They monitored precipitations, atmospheric circulation patterns as well as measuring particles in ice cores. The evidence for human causes are strong because of human-made carbon dioxide as well as reduction in ozone had created a drier air in the southwestern regions of Australia. Inversely, Antarctica experiences wetter and snowier conditions. Researching this is crucial for the farming regions of Australia because without rainfalls, the farming industry will receive a devastating blow. This is a fine example of global warming in the works.
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
#3 (this is not a freewrite) Survey of Current Topics in Your Field
Greenhouse Gases/Global Warming – A Global Issue
Atmospheric scientists, Climatologists, Geologists, and pretty much any anyone linking their jobs to environmental science are racing to looking for clues and answers to understand what is really going on with planet Earth. There is an increasing concern with global warming and the consequences we may face with it. The main concern with global warming is that it is undergoing a greenhouse effect. Greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and chlorofluorocarbon that linger high up in the atmosphere cause this effect. The problem with these gases is that it causes the atmosphere to heat up. Atmospheric scientist measure these particles in the atmosphere in parts per million and determine how dense they are in the atmosphere. Climatologist studies the climate changes and extreme weather that it is causing. For example, warmer waters of the Gulf in which the ocean temperature was slightly higher than usual spawned Katrina, a category 5 hurricane. This small change in temperature was responsible for an extreme weather and other regions will experience their weather to the extreme.
In our day-to-day life, we may not think twice about rain or thunderstorms because it is part of natural process that mankind experience for several millennia. However, when we have a warmer Earth, we would be experiencing severe weathers that affect millions or even billions of people across the world. The variation of extreme weathers such as tornados, snowstorms, hurricanes, and even droughts will be even more severe that it can affect not only our lives but our economy as well. For example, during February 5th through 10th the Mid-Atlantic region had experienced almost back-to-back snowstorms that disrupts our lives and possibly hurt our incomes by not being able to go to work. It is so important to understand weather, that even politicians and businesses are willing to spend billions upon billions of dollars to understand or even avoid them.
Sea Ice (Melting or Increasing) – Cryosphere in Danger?
Sea Ice – Is it melting? Or is it Increasing? For many years, scientists had been telling everyone that sea ices are melting or decreasing at an alarming rate. It is a cause for concern because the melting of the sea ice, glaciers, ice shelves, or icebergs is a strong indicator that the Earth is warming up. What happens if all the sea ice, glaciers, ice shelves and icebergs melts or disappears? It is an important question that has all scientists scratching their heads for answers. It is speculative to say that sea level will rise and cause worldwide catastrophe among coastal inlands and other low-lying surfaces. Another speculation is that the melting of glaciers, ice shelves, and ice sheets will stop the thermohaline circulation (an oceanic current that acts as a warm-cold conveyor belt bring warmer waters from the equator to the north, thus keeping northern hemisphere from freezing up). If the thermohaline circulation halts that may bring the northern hemisphere into an ice age. This disruption of thermohaline circulation would be caused from the melting of freshwater pouring into the ocean in which would cause a change in ocean salinity.
Scientific communities such as NASA, NSF (National Science Foundation), and NSIDC (National Snow and Ice Data Center) are closely monitoring the levels of sea ice via satellites, ice cores, etc. It is still mysterious to them and any answers are pure theories. One can hope that we will understand the Earth’s Crysophere – the frozen environments of our planet – before it is too late.
Weather Forecasting – Meteorology
For some, a typical morning consist of having breakfast, getting ready for school/work and turning on the news or weather channel to see what the weather is like for the day. After seeing what the weather is like one would grab an umbrella because it may rain later or grab a coat because it is cold. Meteorology is a relatively new field that has been studied extensively for at least a hundred years. In the past few decades, there has been a great stride in technological advances in predicting weather by using radars, satellites, and other devices that measures current or future weather. They monitor the air temperature, humidity, type and amount of cloudiness, type and amount of precipitation, air pressure, and the speed and direction of the wind. It is said that climate is what you expect and weather is what you get.
Meteorologist otherwise known as weatherman is responsible for studying the atmosphere and the conditions of the atmosphere at a given time and place. It is their job to predict the weather as accurately as possible for the next minute, the next hour, next day or even next week. Everyone relies on this forecast to do his or her jobs. It is very much part of the economy as it is environmental. For example, the aviation industry relies heavily on weather and the atmosphere to fly its cargo and passengers safely. Still, meteorology is not 100% accurate but as technology becomes more advance, the accuracy of weather forecasting will increase. Because it is very much involved with our day-to-day lives, the field of meteorology is expected to grow faster than average for the next decade.
Atmospheric scientists, Climatologists, Geologists, and pretty much any anyone linking their jobs to environmental science are racing to looking for clues and answers to understand what is really going on with planet Earth. There is an increasing concern with global warming and the consequences we may face with it. The main concern with global warming is that it is undergoing a greenhouse effect. Greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and chlorofluorocarbon that linger high up in the atmosphere cause this effect. The problem with these gases is that it causes the atmosphere to heat up. Atmospheric scientist measure these particles in the atmosphere in parts per million and determine how dense they are in the atmosphere. Climatologist studies the climate changes and extreme weather that it is causing. For example, warmer waters of the Gulf in which the ocean temperature was slightly higher than usual spawned Katrina, a category 5 hurricane. This small change in temperature was responsible for an extreme weather and other regions will experience their weather to the extreme.
In our day-to-day life, we may not think twice about rain or thunderstorms because it is part of natural process that mankind experience for several millennia. However, when we have a warmer Earth, we would be experiencing severe weathers that affect millions or even billions of people across the world. The variation of extreme weathers such as tornados, snowstorms, hurricanes, and even droughts will be even more severe that it can affect not only our lives but our economy as well. For example, during February 5th through 10th the Mid-Atlantic region had experienced almost back-to-back snowstorms that disrupts our lives and possibly hurt our incomes by not being able to go to work. It is so important to understand weather, that even politicians and businesses are willing to spend billions upon billions of dollars to understand or even avoid them.
Sea Ice (Melting or Increasing) – Cryosphere in Danger?
Sea Ice – Is it melting? Or is it Increasing? For many years, scientists had been telling everyone that sea ices are melting or decreasing at an alarming rate. It is a cause for concern because the melting of the sea ice, glaciers, ice shelves, or icebergs is a strong indicator that the Earth is warming up. What happens if all the sea ice, glaciers, ice shelves and icebergs melts or disappears? It is an important question that has all scientists scratching their heads for answers. It is speculative to say that sea level will rise and cause worldwide catastrophe among coastal inlands and other low-lying surfaces. Another speculation is that the melting of glaciers, ice shelves, and ice sheets will stop the thermohaline circulation (an oceanic current that acts as a warm-cold conveyor belt bring warmer waters from the equator to the north, thus keeping northern hemisphere from freezing up). If the thermohaline circulation halts that may bring the northern hemisphere into an ice age. This disruption of thermohaline circulation would be caused from the melting of freshwater pouring into the ocean in which would cause a change in ocean salinity.
Scientific communities such as NASA, NSF (National Science Foundation), and NSIDC (National Snow and Ice Data Center) are closely monitoring the levels of sea ice via satellites, ice cores, etc. It is still mysterious to them and any answers are pure theories. One can hope that we will understand the Earth’s Crysophere – the frozen environments of our planet – before it is too late.
Weather Forecasting – Meteorology
For some, a typical morning consist of having breakfast, getting ready for school/work and turning on the news or weather channel to see what the weather is like for the day. After seeing what the weather is like one would grab an umbrella because it may rain later or grab a coat because it is cold. Meteorology is a relatively new field that has been studied extensively for at least a hundred years. In the past few decades, there has been a great stride in technological advances in predicting weather by using radars, satellites, and other devices that measures current or future weather. They monitor the air temperature, humidity, type and amount of cloudiness, type and amount of precipitation, air pressure, and the speed and direction of the wind. It is said that climate is what you expect and weather is what you get.
Meteorologist otherwise known as weatherman is responsible for studying the atmosphere and the conditions of the atmosphere at a given time and place. It is their job to predict the weather as accurately as possible for the next minute, the next hour, next day or even next week. Everyone relies on this forecast to do his or her jobs. It is very much part of the economy as it is environmental. For example, the aviation industry relies heavily on weather and the atmosphere to fly its cargo and passengers safely. Still, meteorology is not 100% accurate but as technology becomes more advance, the accuracy of weather forecasting will increase. Because it is very much involved with our day-to-day lives, the field of meteorology is expected to grow faster than average for the next decade.
#5 Learning Styles (freewrite, 10 minutes)
The learning styles have pointed out that I am very visual learner in which I have scored 9 out of 10. It is not surprising because of my deafness. I had to learn by seeing my whole life. I rather look at pictures, graphs and charts that explained the concepts. I learn faster when things are explained visually. In fact, when I am in class and explanations are given verbally, I do not understand it so I go home and teach myself the subject. Because I am a visual learner, it helps to learn things in a sequential manner. Again, this visual and sequentially learning needs to have a strong facts and practical information in which sensory comes in.
Again, not surprisingly, I scored really high on Naturalistic (67%). I love being outdoors with nature so learning about ecosystems, species of animals, natural processes and physical geography come easy to me. It is said that people with Naturalistic intelligence should become scientist and that is exactly what I intend to do. The next highest score was logical-mathematical learner (56%). This fits the bill because I am always curious about how things work, especially with environment, weather, and earth processes. This goes with my sensory learning abilities to look for rational explanations with concrete facts. Other learning styles that I have scored are Bodily Kinesthetic (8%), Musical (0%), Interpersonal (44%), Intrapersonal (46%), Visual-Spatial (25%), and Verbal-Linguistic (25%).
Again, not surprisingly, I scored really high on Naturalistic (67%). I love being outdoors with nature so learning about ecosystems, species of animals, natural processes and physical geography come easy to me. It is said that people with Naturalistic intelligence should become scientist and that is exactly what I intend to do. The next highest score was logical-mathematical learner (56%). This fits the bill because I am always curious about how things work, especially with environment, weather, and earth processes. This goes with my sensory learning abilities to look for rational explanations with concrete facts. Other learning styles that I have scored are Bodily Kinesthetic (8%), Musical (0%), Interpersonal (44%), Intrapersonal (46%), Visual-Spatial (25%), and Verbal-Linguistic (25%).
Monday, February 8, 2010
#4 Refine Your Research Topic/Question/Problem (freewrite, 10 minutes)
1. How much of the sea level will rise if all the ice in Greenland and Antarctica melts?
The concern of global warming is that the surface, air, and ocean temperature will continue to rise as the percentage of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere increases, therefore melts ice sheets, ice shelves, glaciers off Greenland and Antarctica. The reason for this concern is that if the greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, chlorofluorocarbon (CFC) builds up in the atmosphere, it will cause the temperature to rise. The gases absorb the heat and emit its energy in all directions, rather than heat radiating outward away from the surface. If the melting does occur, how much of the world’s sea level will rise? Taken into account that Antarctica and Greenland holds almost 90% and 10% of world’s total ice masses, respectively.
My hypothesis is that the melting of both Antarctica and Greenland will be responsible for worldwide sea level rising, flooding coastal areas and other regions at or near sea level. These regions may include the state of Florida, the Amazon Basin, and parts of Europe maybe be submerged under water. The melting of the ice masses will cause approximately a rise of 200 ft above current sea level. That is why prominent scientists and respectable scientific community is racing against time to understand global warming and its consequences before it is too late. Unfortunately, this process may or may not be stopped because at a global scale, one cannot foresee any solution to reverse the process – in other words – you cannot really stop Mother Nature.
The concern of global warming is that the surface, air, and ocean temperature will continue to rise as the percentage of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere increases, therefore melts ice sheets, ice shelves, glaciers off Greenland and Antarctica. The reason for this concern is that if the greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, chlorofluorocarbon (CFC) builds up in the atmosphere, it will cause the temperature to rise. The gases absorb the heat and emit its energy in all directions, rather than heat radiating outward away from the surface. If the melting does occur, how much of the world’s sea level will rise? Taken into account that Antarctica and Greenland holds almost 90% and 10% of world’s total ice masses, respectively.
My hypothesis is that the melting of both Antarctica and Greenland will be responsible for worldwide sea level rising, flooding coastal areas and other regions at or near sea level. These regions may include the state of Florida, the Amazon Basin, and parts of Europe maybe be submerged under water. The melting of the ice masses will cause approximately a rise of 200 ft above current sea level. That is why prominent scientists and respectable scientific community is racing against time to understand global warming and its consequences before it is too late. Unfortunately, this process may or may not be stopped because at a global scale, one cannot foresee any solution to reverse the process – in other words – you cannot really stop Mother Nature.
Sunday, February 7, 2010
#6 Open Topic (freewrite, 10 minutes)
I am going to write about how excited I am for this summer. My wife and I are going to travel to parts of Europe and going to Africa. This will be the last summer of complete freedom before we succumb to a world of complete responsibilities such as rent, bills, food, jobs, etc. After we graduate, we will be looking for jobs, working full time and finding a place we called our own. So, this summer is going to be an adventure of a lifetime. At the end of this semester, my wife will be going away on a field camp for 6 weeks to Ireland studying everything about geology, more specifically, hydrology, glaciations, and its geomorphology. It is required for her to graduate with a geology degree. After that six week is up, I am going to fly over to London and meet her there. We will be doing some exploring around England, Wales, Scotland, and Ireland for little less than two weeks. This will be exciting but not as exciting as going to Africa at the beginning of August. We will be going to Soysambu conservation in Kenya for an environmental course of GMU for two weeks. We will be flying into Nairobi, Kenya and then by bus heading to the conservation. The “expedition” will be lead by her geology professor, Dr. Julia Nord. We will be studying the East African Rift Valley, which is ridden with active volcanoes. We will be climbing mountains and sampling rocks and minerals created by theses volcanoes. Not only we will be seeing unique physical geography of the area, we will also be able to see some of its wild animals such as lions, giraffes, elephants, flamingos, and other various animals. In fact, we will have guards with guns with us at all times just in case. I am so excited for this and cannot wait to go.
#2 What Are You Passionate About? (freewrite, 10 minutes)
One of the things I enjoyed the most is being outdoors. Whether it is going hiking, camping, or even canoeing, I enjoy the heck out of it. I can’t say that I have tried kayaking but I would love to do that someday. In fact, during the snowstorm this past weekend my wife and I went trekking through massive amounts of snow because it is so beautiful and awe-inspiring. We even took photographs of different perspective of snow and cannot get enough of it. The more and more I am studying this new major other than finance, I am finding myself liking the world of Cryosphere – frozen parts of our world regarding to ice, snow, glaciers, sea ice, ice bergs, ice sheets, etc. This is why I loved being at Grand Teton Range in Wyoming that was filled with snow. Seeing the mountains and breathing the mountain air does my mind and soul good. Actually, I look forward to a weekend at the family cabin in the mountains about 2 hours from where I currently live. Wife and I briefly lived at the cabin for more than 2 months between February and April. It was one of the best experiences of my life. Another reason why I like snow so much is because not only it can be beautiful, it is also very serene and clean – kind of like a clean slate. Sure, it is cold but I rather deal with the cold than hot. Maybe I can link my passion for nature to a field that I could work and wake up everyday looking forward to a cold day at work!
#1 Recent Dream (freewrite, 10 minutes)
Recently, I had a dream about me moving to Alaska to work as a roughneck working on the Alaskan Pipeline. I had a job offer to work for this guy who would like me to work for him during the winter months of Alaska, as he needed an extra hand. I had no experience but he was willing to take me under his wing and teach me the ropes. Life in Alaska is pretty harsh during the wintertime. The terrain is unforgiving with temperature plummeting down to -40 below and whiteout dense enough to hinder you from seeing what is in front of you for several meters. You see nothing but snow and mountains everywhere. The air is so cold that if you sweat, you actually get hypothermia and possibly die. You learn a few things like never turn off your car in a temperature below -30 degrees. All these things sounds exciting to me so I accepted the job offer plus the money was very good but it is not without risk. The only downfall of this job is being away from my wife for weeks at a time but she still had to finish school at George Mason so it is going to be couple months before we see each other again. In fact, the money was so good we could not pass up this opportunity so she accepted the idea. What is 3 months when it actually flies by when you are in school? After working for him, it made me into a better person and respect what precious life has to offer. My wife had flown to see me during her school break and I showed her around the area and how to survive the Alaskan way of life. Instantly, she fell in love with Alaska as much as I did. Soon after she graduated, she decided to work as a Geologist up in Alaska and we started a whole new life there.
Science Article #10
Human Ancestors Were an Endangered Species
Gibbons, A. “Human Ancestors Were an Endangered Species”. ScienceNow Daily News. January 19, 2010. Retrieved February 7, 2010 From
http://sciencenow.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/2010/119/2
Can you imagine human beings ever been close to being endangered or even extinct? Driving down I-66 on the way to school with so many people on the road is enough to even disagree that humans were EVER that close but millions of years ago, evidences had shown this had happened. After several catastrophic events such as super volcano erupting in Indonesia that caused a devastating nuclear winter and migration of our ancestors out of Africa, the populations had dwindled down to between 15,000-26,000.
That is a real small number compared to current population of 6.8 billion people. It is hard to even think about this small number, but population geneticist has reasons to believe that these numbers are a close approximation with populations of our common ancestors. They used the differences of two genome to see how large of a population were at the time. To arrive with this number, they also examine the mutations in our DNA.
This study is important to know and see how our DNA and all of its mutations, faults and superiority had arrived to our present state. We are close enough to know and understand our genetics but there are still a few secrets that have yet to be unlocked. It is a never-ending quest to understand how and why our species have flourish to be where we are now.
Gibbons, A. “Human Ancestors Were an Endangered Species”. ScienceNow Daily News. January 19, 2010. Retrieved February 7, 2010 From
http://sciencenow.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/2010/119/2
Can you imagine human beings ever been close to being endangered or even extinct? Driving down I-66 on the way to school with so many people on the road is enough to even disagree that humans were EVER that close but millions of years ago, evidences had shown this had happened. After several catastrophic events such as super volcano erupting in Indonesia that caused a devastating nuclear winter and migration of our ancestors out of Africa, the populations had dwindled down to between 15,000-26,000.
That is a real small number compared to current population of 6.8 billion people. It is hard to even think about this small number, but population geneticist has reasons to believe that these numbers are a close approximation with populations of our common ancestors. They used the differences of two genome to see how large of a population were at the time. To arrive with this number, they also examine the mutations in our DNA.
This study is important to know and see how our DNA and all of its mutations, faults and superiority had arrived to our present state. We are close enough to know and understand our genetics but there are still a few secrets that have yet to be unlocked. It is a never-ending quest to understand how and why our species have flourish to be where we are now.
Science Article #9
Better to React Than to Act
Wogan, T. “Better to React Than to Act”. ScienceNOW Daily News. February 3, 2010. Retrieved February 7, 2010 From http://sciencenow.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/2010/203/1
Have you been in a life-threatening situation that enabled you to react much faster than you anticipated? I have and what a rush it was. Some people believe that acting out something rather than reacting to something would prove to be faster. That is not true according to this article. There is this study where it examines the brain’s ability to move our muscles much faster than we believe we can – base on our reaction to a given situation.
Believe it or not, the reactive senses of our brain can outdo the decisive sense in a grave situation that only means life and death. Remember the cowboys in the Wild West and how they can be the fastest gunslingers? Well, the study shows that during gunfights, its better for them to react to others rather than leading. In fact, it is the person drawing the gun first usually the one gets shot because the other gunslinger is reacting to the other guy’s action and is considerably faster.
Truer words were never spoken, especially when it is the matter of life and death. This study is actually for understanding how our brains and our motor skills coordinate together in hopes of combating motor impairment from, say a stroke patient or even paralysis. Even though a world-renowned physicist, Bohr, already understood our reactive nature, it helps to understand it at a deeper level so we can help patients in need of regaining motor skills.
Wogan, T. “Better to React Than to Act”. ScienceNOW Daily News. February 3, 2010. Retrieved February 7, 2010 From http://sciencenow.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/2010/203/1
Have you been in a life-threatening situation that enabled you to react much faster than you anticipated? I have and what a rush it was. Some people believe that acting out something rather than reacting to something would prove to be faster. That is not true according to this article. There is this study where it examines the brain’s ability to move our muscles much faster than we believe we can – base on our reaction to a given situation.
Believe it or not, the reactive senses of our brain can outdo the decisive sense in a grave situation that only means life and death. Remember the cowboys in the Wild West and how they can be the fastest gunslingers? Well, the study shows that during gunfights, its better for them to react to others rather than leading. In fact, it is the person drawing the gun first usually the one gets shot because the other gunslinger is reacting to the other guy’s action and is considerably faster.
Truer words were never spoken, especially when it is the matter of life and death. This study is actually for understanding how our brains and our motor skills coordinate together in hopes of combating motor impairment from, say a stroke patient or even paralysis. Even though a world-renowned physicist, Bohr, already understood our reactive nature, it helps to understand it at a deeper level so we can help patients in need of regaining motor skills.
Science Article #8
Climate Scepticism ‘on the rise’, BBC polls shows
“Climate Scepticism ‘on the rise’, BBC polls shows”. BBC NEWS. February 5, 2010
Retrieved February 7, 2010 From
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/8500443.stm
It is hard to believe after a snowstorm that we just recently experience that climate change is really happening. In fact, there has been a rise in climate change skepticism. According to BBC NEWS Poll, “the number of people in Britain who are skeptical about climate change is rising”. Like us, they have experience a really cold and snowy winter in the past month. In December, the entire country of England was blanket in snow causing severe delays in air traffic and shortage in salts for the roads all over the country. It is easy to see why this increase in skepticism is happening.
However, the poll indicates that the increased in skepticism is quite sudden. Back in November, there was approximately 1 out of 5 people believed that global warming is a farce or an exaggeration. Now, the poll indicates that 1 out of 3 people believed the same thing. This has shown an 8% increase in skepticism since November.
This growing skepticism is a cause of a concern. The reason for a concern is because people who are skeptical of climate change and that humankind is the catalyst is beginning to think it is an exaggerated threat. The experts are afraid that this skepticism will hinder people from actually doing something to curb the climate change such as using less water, recycle, or anything that is beneficial for the environment. If we can reverse this skepticism and prove that the climate change is actually happening, maybe we can do some good because we all need to pitch in ensure our way of life on earth continues.
“Climate Scepticism ‘on the rise’, BBC polls shows”. BBC NEWS. February 5, 2010
Retrieved February 7, 2010 From
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/8500443.stm
It is hard to believe after a snowstorm that we just recently experience that climate change is really happening. In fact, there has been a rise in climate change skepticism. According to BBC NEWS Poll, “the number of people in Britain who are skeptical about climate change is rising”. Like us, they have experience a really cold and snowy winter in the past month. In December, the entire country of England was blanket in snow causing severe delays in air traffic and shortage in salts for the roads all over the country. It is easy to see why this increase in skepticism is happening.
However, the poll indicates that the increased in skepticism is quite sudden. Back in November, there was approximately 1 out of 5 people believed that global warming is a farce or an exaggeration. Now, the poll indicates that 1 out of 3 people believed the same thing. This has shown an 8% increase in skepticism since November.
This growing skepticism is a cause of a concern. The reason for a concern is because people who are skeptical of climate change and that humankind is the catalyst is beginning to think it is an exaggerated threat. The experts are afraid that this skepticism will hinder people from actually doing something to curb the climate change such as using less water, recycle, or anything that is beneficial for the environment. If we can reverse this skepticism and prove that the climate change is actually happening, maybe we can do some good because we all need to pitch in ensure our way of life on earth continues.
Science Article #7
Evolution Shrank Some Primates Brains
Ghose, Tia. “Evolution Shrank Some Primates Brains”. Wired Science. January 27, 2010. Retrieved February 7, 2010 From
http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2010/01/evolution-shrank-some-primates-brains/
Nature has a funny way of running its course. Research as proven that evolution is responsible for how species came to be the way they are today. An interesting piece of study is realizing that primate brain did not grow but actually shrank in time. Apparently, there was no need for primates to have larger brains to survive.
According to Nick Mundy, an evolutionary geneticist, “it was assumed that brain sizes generally get bigger through primate evolution”. In fact, the primate brain size actually reduced in size. This includes the brains of Marmoset and Lemurs of Madagascar, which has shown a drastic reduction in size
It is not known why the brain of some primates actually shrank but there are some speculations. It may be from the scarcity of food that causes this reduction or a way to conserve the energy consumption as a means to survive by reducing its intelligence.
This study may open doors to explanations of our ancient ancestors and the bones that were discovered. The discoveries of some unique bones of our ancestors had perplexed some experts but understanding the reasons behind the uniqueness might come from looking into our closest cousins – primates. Some things are just hard to explain but each and any clue for understanding mankind is invaluable.
Ghose, Tia. “Evolution Shrank Some Primates Brains”. Wired Science. January 27, 2010. Retrieved February 7, 2010 From
http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2010/01/evolution-shrank-some-primates-brains/
Nature has a funny way of running its course. Research as proven that evolution is responsible for how species came to be the way they are today. An interesting piece of study is realizing that primate brain did not grow but actually shrank in time. Apparently, there was no need for primates to have larger brains to survive.
According to Nick Mundy, an evolutionary geneticist, “it was assumed that brain sizes generally get bigger through primate evolution”. In fact, the primate brain size actually reduced in size. This includes the brains of Marmoset and Lemurs of Madagascar, which has shown a drastic reduction in size
It is not known why the brain of some primates actually shrank but there are some speculations. It may be from the scarcity of food that causes this reduction or a way to conserve the energy consumption as a means to survive by reducing its intelligence.
This study may open doors to explanations of our ancient ancestors and the bones that were discovered. The discoveries of some unique bones of our ancestors had perplexed some experts but understanding the reasons behind the uniqueness might come from looking into our closest cousins – primates. Some things are just hard to explain but each and any clue for understanding mankind is invaluable.
Friday, February 5, 2010
Science Article #6
Climate Change Causes Wolverine Decline in Canada
Walker, M. “Climate Change Causes Wolverine Decline in Canada”. BBC – Earth News.
Retrieved February 5, 2010 From
http://news.bbc.co.uk/earth/hi/earth_news/newsid_8494000/8494397.stm
In the scientific community, there are evidences of climate change. The climate change does have an impact on the biodiversity of animals that lives and survives in cold environment. It has been said that the shrinking polar ice in the Arctic Circle is responsible for the decline of Polar bears. Unfortunately, Polar bears are not the only species that are being affected by this climate change. The Wolverine is showing a decline in its populations in various parts of the world.
The reasons for its declining population could be from the reduction of the snowpack as well as the lack of prey it feeds on. The climate change is responsible for less and less snowpack – layers of snow that accumulates over time in different regions or high altitude. The wolverine and other animals rely on snowpack for insulation, as funny as that sounds to build a shelter.
The lack of snowpack is also responsible for driving its prey such as rodents and hares away for the same reason – shelter. Without food and shelter, this would dramatically affect the population of the Wolverine. The cold and unforgiving terrain of the north does tend to kill off the weakest of the species such as elks, moose, and caribou and Wolverines feed of its carcass. The warmer weather would help those animals survive longer and the Wolverines would not have that much meat to store as energy.
Any changes in its means of survival will change the Wolverines way of life and eventually stop procreating. It is an evolved animal to be a lean, mean, survival machine of the winter wonderland and without snow it takes away its sole purpose.
Walker, M. “Climate Change Causes Wolverine Decline in Canada”. BBC – Earth News.
Retrieved February 5, 2010 From
http://news.bbc.co.uk/earth/hi/earth_news/newsid_8494000/8494397.stm
In the scientific community, there are evidences of climate change. The climate change does have an impact on the biodiversity of animals that lives and survives in cold environment. It has been said that the shrinking polar ice in the Arctic Circle is responsible for the decline of Polar bears. Unfortunately, Polar bears are not the only species that are being affected by this climate change. The Wolverine is showing a decline in its populations in various parts of the world.
The reasons for its declining population could be from the reduction of the snowpack as well as the lack of prey it feeds on. The climate change is responsible for less and less snowpack – layers of snow that accumulates over time in different regions or high altitude. The wolverine and other animals rely on snowpack for insulation, as funny as that sounds to build a shelter.
The lack of snowpack is also responsible for driving its prey such as rodents and hares away for the same reason – shelter. Without food and shelter, this would dramatically affect the population of the Wolverine. The cold and unforgiving terrain of the north does tend to kill off the weakest of the species such as elks, moose, and caribou and Wolverines feed of its carcass. The warmer weather would help those animals survive longer and the Wolverines would not have that much meat to store as energy.
Any changes in its means of survival will change the Wolverines way of life and eventually stop procreating. It is an evolved animal to be a lean, mean, survival machine of the winter wonderland and without snow it takes away its sole purpose.
Science Article #5
Can Thin Mountain Air Make You Slim
Couzin-Frankel, J. “Can Thin Mountain Air Make You Slim?” ScienceNOW Daily news.
Retrieved February 5, 2010 From, http://sciencenow.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/2010/204/2
There is a new weight loss plan and it is unconventional. Apparently, being at high altitude where the air is thinner, it helps shed pounds off you. There were 20 obese men staying for week high up in the mountains of Germany at an environmental research station. During the course of the week, they were to eat as much as they wanted and do nothing strenuous as if they were still at home. Each one of those men were monitored by a pedometer for heart rate and gave blood to see any changes in hormones that affected their appetite and obesity.
The results were good. The altitude had caused these men to lose an average of 1.5kg from their weight of 105kg, which is equivalent to 231 pounds. The reason behind this weight reduction is the thin air. The thinner the air, the harder it is to breath, therefore the heartbeat faster. When the heart beats faster, it burns more energy or metabolism. However, the reduction in weight for 20 men remained uncertain.
Another Contributing factor is the loss of appetite, which is common in higher altitudes. The study is just the beginning but it might even explain that residents living in higher altitude are the least obese than others at near sea level. It is an unconventional way to lose weight but it is definitely worth researching a bit further.
Couzin-Frankel, J. “Can Thin Mountain Air Make You Slim?” ScienceNOW Daily news.
Retrieved February 5, 2010 From, http://sciencenow.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/2010/204/2
There is a new weight loss plan and it is unconventional. Apparently, being at high altitude where the air is thinner, it helps shed pounds off you. There were 20 obese men staying for week high up in the mountains of Germany at an environmental research station. During the course of the week, they were to eat as much as they wanted and do nothing strenuous as if they were still at home. Each one of those men were monitored by a pedometer for heart rate and gave blood to see any changes in hormones that affected their appetite and obesity.
The results were good. The altitude had caused these men to lose an average of 1.5kg from their weight of 105kg, which is equivalent to 231 pounds. The reason behind this weight reduction is the thin air. The thinner the air, the harder it is to breath, therefore the heartbeat faster. When the heart beats faster, it burns more energy or metabolism. However, the reduction in weight for 20 men remained uncertain.
Another Contributing factor is the loss of appetite, which is common in higher altitudes. The study is just the beginning but it might even explain that residents living in higher altitude are the least obese than others at near sea level. It is an unconventional way to lose weight but it is definitely worth researching a bit further.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)
