Darwin's Theory of Evolution

My professsor Mr. Jimenez brought several turtles/tortoise to our class on October 2, 2008. This was an adventure for my daughter and I. As a class were able to view each turtle/ tortoise and try to determine if they were land or water creatures, what they ate, and if they had web or claw feet. We had a wonderful time trying to figure out each and we did a pretty good job at it. This exercise was carried out as a result of us finding out about Darwins theory of evolution as the survival of each turtle depended on Darwin's theory "the survial of the fittest". Different turtles lived in diferent areas, ate different things, and had diferent features yet they all survived.
Darwins recieved his inspiration of the evolution through his visit of the Galapogos Islands, off the coast of Ecuador.

A summary of Darwins Theory:

A species is a population of organisms that interbreeds and has fertile offspring.

Living organisms have descended with modifications from species that lived before them.

Natural selection explains how this evolution has happened:

More organisms are produced than can survive because of limited resources.

Organisms struggle for the necessities of life; there is competition for resources.

Individuals within a population vary in their traits; some of these traits are heritable passed on to offspring.

Some variants are better adapted to survive and reproduce under local conditions than others.

Better-adapted individuals (the "fit enough") are more likely to survive and reproduce, thereby passing on copies of their genes to the next generation.
Species whose individuals are best adapted survive; others become extinct.

Pollution (Mini-Project #5)

Superfund Site

A Superfund site is an uncontrolled or abandoned place where hazardous waste is located, possibly affecting local ecosystems or people. Over the past 20+ years, Superfund has located and analyzed tens of thousands of hazardous waste sites, protected people and the environment from contamination at the worst sites, and involved states, local communities, and other partners in cleanup. Superfund measures its cleanup accomplishments through various criteria including construction and post construction completions of hazardous waste sites.

Superfund Regions Cleanup Sites

The superfund site that is closet to my home is region 4 on the map. This region serves ,Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee. Region 4 is located at the Sam Nunn Atlanta Federal Center, 61 Forsyth Street, SW, Atlanta, GA 30303-8960.

Grocery List

Genetically Altered Food

Genetically altered foods are produced that have been genetically altered through genetic engineering.The most common modified foods are derived from plants: soybean, corn, canola, and cotton seed oil.

A list of Genetically modified foods are:

• Kellogg's Corn Flakes
• General Mills Total Corn Flakes Cereal
• Post Blueberry Morning Cereal
• Nestle Carnation Alsoy Infant Formula
• Quaker Chewy Granola Bars
• Nabisco Snackwell's
• Granola Bars
• Ball Park Frank
• Duncan Hines Cake Mix
• Quick Loaf Bread
• MixUltra Slim FastQuaker
• Yellow Corn Meal
• Light Life Gimme Lean
• Aunt Jemima Pancake Mix

Endangered Species

The Jamaican Iguana

The Jamaican Iguana (cyclura collei) is on the world endangered species list as the adult population is thought to be below 200. It was once thought to have been common in Jamaica around the seventeenth century, around drier parts of the south coast. However, its numbers declined dramatically in the latter part of the nineteenth century, following the introduction of the Indian mongoose, which kills and eats juveniles and their eggs. By 1948 the Jamaican Iguana was considered extinct.

The American Crocodile

The American Crocodile is endangered. It lives in marshy areas and rivers. The American Crocodiles lives in Jamaica and other countries such as Belize, Columbia, Florida, etc. They are protected in 7 countries and can be found in the Everglades National Park. It is illegal to feed, tease, harass, molest, capture, or kill an American Crocodile. The greatest threat to survival for the animal is loss of habitat.

Carbon Cycle

The Carbon Cycle

Carbon Cycle

The Carbon Cycle is the movement of carbon in its many forms between the biosphere, atmosphere, oceans and geosphere. Carbon is formed in various forms of the earth. Below the ground, it is stored as the many fossil fuels used for energy. Various levels of carbon are found in the air. The concentration of carbon in living matter (18%) is almost 100 times greater than its concentration in the earth (0.19%). So living things extract carbon from their nonliving environment. For life to continue, this carbon must be recycled.

The Carbon Cycle Diagram

The pupose of the carbon cycle diagram is to exemplify the natural balance of carbon and the process that appears.

The carbon cycle is basically a two step process which involves photosynthesis and respiraton. Green plants undergo both photosynthesis and respiration. Fungi and animal life only respire. Carbon is "cycled" from green plants to the atmosphere and back to the plant.

The two steps are:

1. Photosynthesis

During photosynthesis plants use radiant energy to convert water and carbon dioxide into carbohydrates, which are high energy molecules.

2. Respiration

During the respiration step, the plants turn the carbohydrates back into water and carbon dioxide, releasing the energy that was used to build the carbohydrates. This is this energy that the plant uses to live during the night.

Animals also undergo the process of respiration. When humans and animals eat plants, the carbohydrates are converted back into water and carbon dioxide, both of which are exhaled. The energy released during respiration is used to make Adenine Triphosphate (ATP), which is necessary for human and animal cells to function.

What happens during Carbon Cycle

Although photosynthesis and respiration form the basis of the carbon cycle they don't paint the picture of everything that hapens in the process. During the carbon cycle process carbon dioxide is released and fossile fuel is formed.

Release of Carbon Dioxide

When a green plant dies the carbohydrate are broken down by decomposers (bacteria or fungi ). The Fungi and bacteria undergo respiration, which allows them to release the carbon back into the atmosphere as carbon dioxide.

Formation of Fossile Fuel

Fossil fuels were formed as green plants or plantlike protists (single celled organisms) that underwent photosynthesis and then died. They sank to the bottom of the ocean. Some of the protists were eaten by decomposers. Over time, the ones that weren't eaten became what we know as fossil fuels. As layers of carbohydrate-rich material accumulated on the ocean floor, they were covered by sediment that fell to the bottom. Over time, the pressure of the layers helped convert the carbohydrates into oil and natural gas.
Coal is also a fossil fuel that came into being as a result of the carbon cycle steps, forming when plants die in a swamp rather than in the ocean. The environment of swamp water is very acidic, warm, and oxygen poor, creating conditions in which decomposers cannot survive. In this ecosystem, layers of undecomposed plant material built up, and the pressure forced the hydrocarbons to lose their hydrogen atoms. The end result of this pressurization over time is anthracite coal.

The importance of the Carbon Cycle

When people burn fossil fuels, the carbon that was originally taken up from the atmosphere by the plants is released as carbon dioxide. New carbon atoms aren't produced and introduced into the atmosphere. The carbon atoms that exist in the world today have been in existence since the beginning of time. These atoms, which are necessary to sustain life, are still here because they have been recycled countless times via the carbon cycle. If the carbon cycle can no longer function properly, life as we know it will be changed drastically.

Sources

http://wikipedia.org/

http://users.rcn.com/

http://www.hobart.k12.in/

http://greenliving.lovetoknow.com/

Environmental Organizations

Greenpeace

Misson

The mission of greenpeace is to change attitudes and behavior, to protect and conserve the environment and to promote peace by:

• 
  
  catalysing energy revolution


• 
  
  defending our ocean


• 
  
  protecting the world's acient forest


• 
  
  working for disarmament and peace


• 
  
  creating a toxic free future


• 
  
  campaining for sustainable agriculture

Analysis

The mission of Greenpeace seems practical as for a mission to be far fetched peoples attitude and behavior towards a particular area of concern needs to come from the values within them. It is through people that the mission will be lived. When we as a people realize the importance of us working together to achieve the purpose for which we are striving then it becomes easier for us to protect and conserve what's important to us and thus maintain an attitude of peace.

National Resource Defence Council

Mission

The mission of NRDC is to work to safeguard the Earth; its people; its plants and animals and the natural systems on which life depends.

Analysis

This mission of the National Resource Defence Council is important as we need to protect the earth in which we live and its inhabitants as without the earth and its inhabitants we will no longer be in exsitence.

Wildlife Spots Foundation

Mission

The mission of the Wild Spot foundation is to save habitats of endangered species around the world through the a variety of programs that promote, defend, and protect biodiversity through education, visual arts, ecotourism, science and technology.

Analysis

Wild Spots mission is about saving homes of animals using different methods that will help to protect and defend the animals that are endangered. If the mission is lived then there will be hope for the habitats of endeangered species.

Reason for Joining

After examining and analyzing the three Enviromental Organization above I would join the National Resource Defense Council. My reason is simply the fact that their mission unmbrella's all life on earth like people, plants, animals (everything that is life, and is important to our welbeing). Life is important, and as human we need to safeguard the environment in which we live. When we do that we will be able to live in a much better environment.