Science Blog 2/29 -3/7

en.wikipedia.org 

      This week in science, I learned about sediment. I learned that sediment can harm fish, and help them. I also learned that sediment are tiny pieces of rock, usually in a group. An example is something like gravel and sand. I also learned that the deer population was drastically affecting the environment around them. I learned that the sediment and acid rain might have been the reason why the fish were dying. I also learned about how much sediment all the different streams had in them by conducting an experiment we did in class.

SP1: Asking questions and defining problems

I defined a problem when I figured out that acid rain may only be only affecting some of the rivers. This is because the rivers have specific rocks that neutralize the acids. I determine what questions have yet to be answered when I studied the acid rain and sediment files, and tries figured out why some of the streams were affected by the sediment or acid but not others. I then figured out that the sediment may be coming from the logging, because it is near the upper and lower Misstersippi River. I am talk about the Misstersippi because that was the only river affected by the sediment. I figured out that there is to much sediment in the water when I conducted the experiment in class between all the river.

Weekly Blog 2/22 - 2/29

     This week in science, I learned little about what could be harming the fish in Gray Bay. I learned that the Fo River is being polluted by chlorine from the water slide park. The chlorine may not be the only problem cause the fish to die. I also learned that water fleas are bio-indicators. I learned that bio-indicators are sensitive organisms that can tell you how healthy the ecosystem is. This is what I learned this week in science.

SP1: Asking questions and defining problems


I determine what questions have yet to be answered when I was trying to find out what was harming the fish in the Gray Area. We could tell that the chlorine was harming the river at least because when they did the test with the water fleas, they found out it was positive for chlorine. They also did another test with a chemist, and found out the was none. I believed that the chemist was lying. I thought the chemist was lying because the chemist was working for the waterslide park owner, which may mean she is lying, to get a pay raise or something in that sort. These were my questions and the problem I defined.

Writing Across the Curriculum (WAC) Should China Build more hydroelectric dams?

    My WAC is about my perspective on if China should build more Hydroelectric dams. My perspective may vary from person to person and what they think. My personal opinion is No. China should not build more Hydroelectric dams. Here are my reasons why.

     My first reason concerns the Eco-system. Yes, the Hydroelectric dam is said to be "Eco-Friendly", but this is only affecting the pollution they have their. This Dam is their act to "Go Green", but it's not entirely what it seems. This is only if they are using electricity from the dam, instead of using coal, But this dam only supplies 9% of the electricity. However, these dams are destroying the homes of several animals and unbalancing the ecosystem. I know this because in the text it says "Pollutants from flooded cities and factories are altering the oxygen and nutrient levels of the reservoir water and damaging the rivers wildlife." This means that this Dam isn't entirely "Eco-Friendly" because it's affecting the ecosystem around it and the wildlife and that's not OK.

     My second reason is concerning the people being relocated, especially the farmers. These farmers are going to be forced to go into the city, where they will have no idea what to do because all they were taught to do was farm for generations. Their only other choice is to farm on less fertile land prone to mudslide. I know this because in the text it says "Approximately 1.4 million people have been relocated 1/3 of the people were peasant farmers whose families have worked the land for generations." This is very important because these farmers are being forced to move to places where it is just unfair for them. They will also lose their homes and besides, all they know what to do is farming.

     My final reason concerns the important archeological sites submerged under the water. These Archeological sites contain crucial information. These sites could still be explored, and are losing a lot of valid artifacts. I know this because in the text it says "Important archeological sites have been submerged under the three gorges dam reservoir." This is important because these archeological sites provide solid evidence for research. There is also hard evidence of fossilized humans in those caves.

     This concludes my report on the Hydroelectric dams in China. I feel very strongly that they shouldn't build more hydroelectric dams. If they build more, they will be in big trouble because of all the conflicts. There are several important archeological sites that are yet to be explored submerged in the dam. This will also affect the Ecosystem and disbalance it. This is why I think China shouldn't build more dams.

Weekly Blog

www.california-flyfishing.com

      This week in science, we studied the San Joaquin river in San Francisco. We learned about things like river deltas and delta bays. I learned what a flood plain was, and how it looks. The water goes through the land, and make rivers inside and water streams. I also learned what a delta is and how its formed. They form when the water separates into different streams to go into the bay or ocean. I learned a lot about oceans from how they are formed to how they look like. I also learned how they affect the environment around us. They provides us with fresh-water and fish. In conclusion, I learned that river's are important because they provide us food, water, and energy.

SP1: Asking questions and defining problems

I established what is already known when I did my diagrams showing where the parts of a river are. I asked question about how a lake works and how it helps us. I determined how a river works and what are the main parts and sources of the river. I also asked question about how an alluvial fan works, and why it is important. I asked question about what type of sediment is the easiest to carry in a river from place to place.

Projects Blog - Erosion/Soil conservation project

biocycle.atmos.colostate.edu

Summary

This week our class did our Erosion/soil conservation project. In this project, I learned about a place in North Carolina called cape Hatteras. I learned about different ways to prevent coastal erosion, and methods that you should probably avoid. I learned about barrier islands, why they are helpful, and how they are created. This is the summary of my project.

Backward-Looking

Before we started this project, I didn't know anything about cape Hatteras. I didn't even know what a barrier island was before we started this project. By doing this project, it taught me how to prevent coastal erosion and what a barrier island is. The only thing that I knew about before the project was the subject around coastal erosion and how its harmful. This is how much I knew before we started this projects.

Inward-Looking

I feel that my group did fairly well on this project. I am quite surprised that our presentation actually went that smoothly, depending on the fact that our slides did not lign up with the script. The part I particularly like would have to be our script. I liked this part because I spent a great amount of time on it, and it was organized so everybody had a fair share in what they had to say, and sounded very articulated and professional. The part I disliked would have to be our slide to script co-ordination. I say this because the slides were mixed up on the script, so we had to flip do different pages for different slides. What I enjoyed most whilst working on this project would have to be the script. These are my different aspects of my project

Outward-Looking

I would give this project a solid A. I say this because our script sounded very nice in flow and very professional in my opinion. Our slides were strait to the point and simple. Each slide and each person bestowed a great amount of information Everybody had a fair share in what to say and sounded nice and clear. This is why I would give my project this grade.

Forward-Looking

What I would change if I were to do this script over again would have to be the coordination between the script and the slides. I would do this because a lot of our slides were mixed up. That is compared to the script. For the most part, I think we did good. That is what I would change if I were to do it over again.

Project Blog

mistletoe.com

Summary

The topic of this project blog was my project, the Charity-Fair. In the charity fair, I learned what a carbon footprint is. A carbon footprint is how much CO2 you are releasing into the air by transporting your product and making it. I also learned more about the history of the mistletoe and what the purpose of the mistletoe (such as the tradition, and how its made). This is the summary of my project blog.

Backward-Looking

I knew that mistletoes were a big part of the christmas tradition. knew that when a mistletoe is something that you have to kiss under if you go under it. I wasn't absolutely sure how the mistletoe looked like though. I also knew that there are lots of animals that get abused each year. With this project I got to go more into that subject with my charity.

Inward-Looking

I feel that this particular piece of work was quite professional looking. We designed it to look like an actual mistletoe. I feel good about the project quality wise. I particularly enjoy the quality of the poster. I feel like I did a great job on the poster compared to the crappy job I usually do. My posters usually don't come out that good so i'm quite happy about that. In my opinion it looked pretty nice and neat. What I dont really about this project was the video we made for our charity. In my opinion it didn't strike my as the "amusing type". As well as it did to many others. There was slow calming music in the background music and just seamed like us running our mouths about how good this charity was, even though we spent lots of time and effort on trying to find information about this particular subject. Like I mentioned before I definitely enjoyed the poster we did, but I also definitely liked the amount of knowledge we knew about the charity. We definitely spent a lot of time on researching this A+ rating charity.

Outward-Looking

I would give my project the grade of an overall A. I believe that this is a fair grade, considering everything consisted in the project. The charity video + Script, Poster board, sales, and product. I think that the charity wasn't are best but had a lot of information in it. The script was extremely long and consisted a lot of information, so I think honestly that deserves a B- or so. The poster board definitely deserves and A. I think this because our poster board consisted of all the information required and far above and beyond. I included the history and a lot of other bonuses and stayed up quite a while printing all the stuff and making the titles, and Pierson also made most of the Mistletoes, but I also helped him on making it. The poster board also had a lot of valuable information from the project. Next is the sales. That definitely deserves and A on my part at least. When we we presenting and selling our product to people, not to be bragging or have an ego, but a lot of the parents said I was very convincing and presented lots of crucial fact persuading them very well to buy it. And we also got quite a bit of money, $60 is quite a lot for me definitely acceded my expectations. And finally for the product. I would give that an A also. Pierson did a great job on the product of the Mistletoe. He made it look professional and stunning. I also helped in the begging, but he did the rest because he had the supplies.

Forward-Looking: 

To be truly honest I think that I wouldn't really change much. The only thing that I would significantly change is the video. I would make the video a lot shorter and add more action. I would make the music quieter so the audience can here as well. These are the things that I would change into the project if I were to do it over.

Weekly Blog 12/14

insego.com

Summary
This week in science, I did my carbon footprint for the charity. I also did my research from our soil project. I learned about how far china is from the USA. I also learned where my products were made and how important it is. Another thing I learned is that going by ship releases less CO2 in the air than airplanes. I also learned how important soil is for the earth. Soil provides a lot of our food and important things we need to survive. I also learned what a carbon footprint is.

SP1: Asking questions and defining problems

I Formulated a testable question when I wrote about how I can reduce my carbon footprint. This helped me better define carbon footprint and how much less CO2 is released into the air if it goes by ship instead of plane. My question was how I could reduce my carbon footprint. I tested it by using one of my materials and changed how it being shipped. The difference was huge of how much CO2 was being released.