My Roller Coaster

Sachmokido

Roller Coaster Project

In science, we are making roller coasters out of paper towel tubes, milk cartons, and other common items. The requirements of the roller coaster are:

-it has to have at least three hills

-it has to have at least one other roller coaster feature

-it must be completed in the time given

-you must buy all materials using "Omega Money" that you earn from teachers

Our group's roller coaster, which we have decided to name "Sachmokido" for the two first letters of everyone's name in our group, unfortunately does not meet requirements. Though Sachmokido does not meet requirements, my group and I had fun assembling it. While this assignment was a lot of fun, it also related to Newton's laws. For example, the marble does not move until it is dropped into the start of our roller coaster, as stated in Newton's First law of motion. Newton's Second law is demonstrated by the marble picking up more speed at some points, and slowing down slightly at others. Our roller coaster relates to Newton's Third law because when the marble hits the tape we put at the end to stop it, we then tilt the roller coaster the opposite way, making the marble go in the opposite direction it was going before it hit the tape. I think this was a very fun and very educational assignment, and my group and I enjoyed it a lot. If only all assignments were this much fun...

LCD televisions vs. the enviroment

Yes, your LCD television is destroying the world around you. But the real question is, how? One reason is that producing plasma screen televisions releases a greenhouse gas called nitrogen trifluoride, which is about 17, 000 times more destructive than carbon dioxide. It is even more of a concern because the levels of this gas have not been measured, and it is not known wheather it is "captured on sight or broken down before release into the atmosphere". Nitrogen trifluoride is not covered by the Kyoto protocol, an enviromental treaty that was established at a United Nations conference. This is because in 1997, when the treaty was signed, nitrogen trifluoride was only produced in small amounts, because LCD televisions were not popular yet. As their populariy grew, and more needed to be manufactured, more harmful gasses were released into the air. It is estimated that 4,000 tons of nitrogen trifluoride was produced in 2008, and it is likely to double in 2009. What a cheerful way to kick off the new year!

In my opinion, nitrogen trifluoride should be included in a future treaty like the Kyoto protocol. If this is not put into effect, the enviroment will become even more damaged, and some animal species may become extinct.

Article by Yahoo! Green http://green.yahoo.com/blog/ecogeek/624/are-lcd-tvs-worse-than-coal-plants.html

Dissecting Owl Pellets

In science class, we are dissecting owl pellets from a barn owl. Owl pellets, although many people mistake them for feces or vomit, are regurgitated matter which an owl can't digest. This includes the bones and fur or feathers of the animals that the owl ingested. The prey of barn owls is mostly vertebrates, or a group of animals characterized by a segmented spinal column and a well differentiated head. Rodents seem to be the most popular kind of prey for a barn owl. Though barn owls aren't picky eaters-- they eat practically anything they can get to that's more than a beakful. So far, my partner and I have found two rodent skulls, a rib, and a bone we have not yet identified. I think that this assignment is educational and unique, and helps students both learn and better understand predators and prey.

Symbiosis

In science class, we are learning about symbiosis. Symbiosis is a close relationship between two organisms in which one organism lives near, on, or even inside another organism and in which at least one organism benefits. There are three kinds of symbiosis: mutualism, parasitism, and commensalism. Mutualism is when both organisms involved in the relationship benefit. Parasitism is when one organism benefits, and the other is hurt. In a commensal relationship, one organism benefits and the other is neither harmed nor helped.

Symbiosis is believed to be one factor that makes evolution possible. This is because it is said that evolution is based on co-operation, interaction, and mutual dependence. Also, it is typically only the symbiotic relationships that are lifelong and involve biochemical contact can be considered symbiotic. This means that typically only relationships that last for an organism's entire life that are involved with the process of chemicals through an organism can be considered symbiotic. Another fact is that at one point in its life, an animal is a host to one or more parasites, in a parasitic relationship.

I know that symbiosis is vital to the life of all organisms. I think that the most important role that symbiosis plays is aiding evolution. Without symbiosis, humans may have never existed. I also feel that although it is neccisary, parasitism is unfair to a parasite's host. A parasite can kill its host, although its relationship is neccisary, which is unfair to the host.

Sources:

Wikipedia.com-- symbiosis: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Symbiosis biochemical: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biochemical

Which Species Should We Save?

As you have probably heard, many species of animals are starting to become extinct. Rather than try to save every species that is beginning to die off, scientists in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences are now trying to decide which are the most crucial. These are the animals with the greatest genetic diversity, the team reported two weeks ago. Marc W. Cadotte, a researcher on the team, said, "Given that we are losing species from ecosystems around the world, we need to know which species matter the most -- and which we should pour our resources into protecting," . Taking one part out of an ecosystem may mean losing the whole ecosystem. For example, if all of the polar bears in an arctic ecosystem become extinct, the decomposers have no food. If there are no decomposers, the producers can't survive, and if producers can't survive, niether can herbivores. Once all the herbivores are gone, the carnivores die off, and the ecosystem is gone. So the scientists researching this have a really important decision to make- if they decide wrong, it can destroy many other ecosystems, ultimately leading to us- every ecosystem is ultimately linked together, called the biosphere. Scientists are saying that this is the second biggest extinction the world has seen, only to be beat by the extinction of the dinosaurs about 65million years ago. I am not sure how well this plan will work- every ecosystem in the world is connected via the biosphere, so it will ultimately affect us- I think it may be easier to save the most important parts of the ecosystem than to save every endangered species in the world.

Article by Yahoo! Green http://green.yahoo.com/news/livescience/20081021/sc_livescience/scientistsdeterminingwhichspeciestosave.html

New Study on Bottled Water

Scientific testing by the Washington- based Enviromental Working Group revealed that bottled water, which had been thought of as much purer than tap water, actually has some of the same contaminants. The major brands were tested, and they all seemed to comply with the federal health standards. The study of the ten major brands of bottled water revealed thirty- eight chemicals. Some of these chemicals are bacteria, caffeine, pain reliever acetaminophin, fertilizer solvents, plastic- making chemicals and the radioactive element strontium. Researchers said that some of the chemicals may have been from the tap water that some companies use, and others from the plastic bottles. The study, which was two years long, has found the contaminants in bottled water purchased in Washington, D. C. and nine other states. The study showed that all but two brands turned out to be pure enought to exclude them from further testing. I feel that bottled water should not be from a tap, and that it should be purified more by the companies. If this were to happen, less contaminants would be found in the water, and studies such as this would not be required.

Article by Yahoo! Green http://green.yahoo.com/news/ap/20081015/ap_on_sc/impure_bottled_water_1.html