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Today, I saw my mom watering our indoor plants at home. I looked inside the pot and realized that we use a special type of soil for the plants—potting soil. We used potting mix soil because they’re a special type of mix that contains peat, a mixture of decomposed plants that is spongy and holds water. Since it is an indoor plant, the potting mix also contains mixtures of sand for good drainage. This relates to environmental science because it depicts the different soil mixtures available showing how a person can choose the best mix that fits their needs. For instance, a person growing a cactus most likely wouldn’t use a sandy soil because it drains water quickly.

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The main thing that pesticides produce is groundwater contamination. This happens when it is sprayed onto the ground, it goes much further than what we think. It travels below the surface and can even reach water-aquifers. This also begins to hurt our marine life if too many chemicals are reaching the oceans . Also if a pesticide is sprayed, it can contribute to air pollution as it is picked up by wind and placed in different areas. Before using pesticides we should remind ourselves that WE are in THEIR home. What may seem like a harmless act, is actually affecting ourselves and other organisms who are living where they are supposed to be. While we may not like “pests” like cockroaches and ants, they need to find homes just like us.

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These two terrariums are on day 78 of their creation. They have not been opened since then! The inside is completely self sustaining just by sitting on a windowsill, and the plants continue to grow large and healthy because of the soil! The soil is a mixture of backyard soil, sphagnum moss, sand, and activated carbon. Mixed throughly, the soil is able to drain excess water that condensates on the glass keeping the roots from rotting. The nutrients it supplies the plants constantly gets renewed from plants and other organic material from insects decomposing. The make up of the soil (in any environment) is crucial to what can grow and thrive in it, and in this case, the ability to drain and purify water while still being able to give nutrients is what makes the terrarium so successful.

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Our family tries to grow some of our fruits/vegetables at home. This is our peach tree. This peach tree plays a small role in benefiting the planet and being sustainable. This tree takes in Carbon Dioxide and releases Oxygen, resulting in cleaner air. The veggies and fruits we buy in grocery stores typically travel long distances in huge trucks to arrive at our supermarkets. This requires a lot of fossil fuel energy to power these long drives. Growing your own food can help reduce these effects.

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Metamorphic rock is made when all the rocks are subjected to high temperatures and pressures. The pressure causes physical and chemical changes. That is why there are lines of different colors in the marble and each one is unique and different. The pressure is also exerted from the overlying rock layers or by tectonic plates. This piece of marble is has gone through all of that process to end up like this.

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My mom "borrowed" some aquatic plant clippings from a nearby neighborhood's lake. Surprisingly, they grew well even though they had no root system. She then gave one to Mrs. Van Kampen who's vicious crawfish sliced clean through. The piece should grow again however even with the lack of a root system. This shows that water, like soil, has nutrients that help plants grow.

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This is Mr. Recycles and thank you for joining us for another segment of 'Sustain-That-Thing!'. On today's segment, we are looking at a set of solar panels sitting on top of a roof of someone's house. Solar panels are a new popular clean energy source that people use to take advantage of our sun's rays and turn it into usable energy. Using it to light our rooms and power our utensils, the use of solar panels can effectively save you money and help push towards a more sustainable environment!

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Aquafina - the eco friendly water bottle is 50% less plastic. It involves the purifying process called the HydRO-7 Purification System and is purified by reverse osmosis. It is also driving additional environmental benefits by producing the bottle at purification centers where filling occurs by eliminating cardboard base pads, which will contribute to saving 20 million pounds of corrugate.

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In our house, If there are food remains or fruit, vegetable peels or rotten fruits, we collect them and place it in this Compost bin. Few days later, we add earth worms to make the mixture a compost or organic fertilizers to help plant grow. Instead of using chemical fertilizers which hurt the soil, organic compost adds more nutrients to the soil and can be created from everyday trash. It is also a means of recycle as the food peels and waste doesn't go to trash but is added back to the ground to grow more plants.

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Taylor Tolman - Energy Efficient Washers

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Taylor Tolman - Energy Efficient Washers

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I took a photo of my washing machine as my photo for the second six weeks. Even though I have used this washing machine over a 100 times over the past few years, I've never really understood the advantages it had until now. It is made with energy saving technology, which helps save and reduce water usage and reduces the amount of electricity to run a full load. In turn, this lowers our ecological footprint as we aren't wasting as much water and energy on things that are easily able to be reduced.

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This is a trash can in my neighborhood park. This helps protect the environment because people who are outside can throw their trash away instead of leaving it on the ground. If there was no trash can, some people would litter which would be harmful towards the environment.

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Since fall has begun, my yard has seen more and more leaves fall. These fallen leaves join what is known as the O horizon, which includes various organic detritus that are decomposing. Eventually, these leaves will decompose to the point that they will join the A horizon, or topsoil.

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Backyard Vegetable Garden - Prasanna Raparti

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Backyard Vegetable Garden - Prasanna Raparti

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My family has a vegetable garden in our backyard. It started off small, but over the past six years, we have planted dozens of fruits and vegetables, as well as a variety of flower plants. We get at about 6 meals per week (although not at once), and probably much more if we had the patience to pick them all. This plants are grown without the use of harmful pesticides or strange fertilizers, giving us a happy, healthy meal in contrast to the processed products we may have otherwise consumed. Although it is quite a small-scale venture, I believe that if everyone could start and maintain their own little gardens, we could drastically improve our lives as well as the quality of food around us. The thought that such little effort can result in such a bounty goes to show that the fruits of labor are plenty, if only we take the time and care to try.

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I’ve had this quartz for a long time, and it makes me questions about how it was formed in the Earth. The rock cycle allows for minerals and particles to undergo change and transition into different phases. Factors like heat, pressure, and the composition of what the rock is made of determines which phase the rock will go into next. I googled how quartz are formed, and most of them are chrystallized from molten lava or are formed from a precipitate from hydrothermal veins.

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This is a plastic plant I keep in my bedroom. As mediocre as a plastic plant may sound, they are extremely beneficial for those who like me, don't want to take the time to water a plant. Many people buy plants but choose to neglect them which lead to the plant's untimely deaths. This applies to APES because plastic plants achieve stability by preventing people from buying plants which are essential to our environment and leading them their death through neglection.

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This is the recycling bin that we keep in our garage until the garbagemen come to collect it. Our recycling bin is actually bigger than our garbage bin and there's currently more waste in our recycling bin than in our trash can. This is a huge step made towards obtaining stability because the amount of waste in our landfills could multiply by an unimaginable amount if not for recycling. This relates to APES because recycling is a huge step for preserving our environment and preventing the earth from being one giant garbage ball.

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Addy-Parker Loveless
My Lorax is in Big Creek, Mississippi in a cotton field.
99% of our cotton is made in the USA, which means that we need a lot of space to grow it and harvest it. Many farmers have to use big machinery to pick all of the cotton and take the seeds out. The advantages of the large machinery is that it makes production move a lot faster and can get a greater quantity of cotton in a short amount of time. The disadvantages are that they cost a lot of money and if you plant other crops you will have to use a different machine. Although the cotton looks perfect, they have used a lot of pesticides to keep it from ruining the cotton. Pesticides can be difficult to get rid of when they start attacking your crop. To keep that from happening this field is rotated after every season.

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Veronica Rojas’s , period 4. Lorax name Emily.

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Veronica Rojas’s , period 4. Lorax name Emily.

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Lunch Mate ham !
Hello!! This is my Lorax and her name is Emily.She has taken a picture with the “ deli selected smoked uncured ham “ The reason why we choice the ham is because it relates to the current unit we are studying of Agriculture.. This food is a very common eaten product where we eat it daily, during all 3 meals during the day. It is important to know that the relationship between what humans eat and their income. In our household we try to get the less fat ham( even though it’s more expensive ) but it  has no preserves or added hormones. In today times many of our meats have been injected with many different chemicals that the company injects their animals with so they produced  more meat over less time. Therefore my family is against what companies do and make sure to buy only “Lunch Mate “ ham because they have proved that they believe the same as us. No animal should face being injected with hormones.

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Lunch Mate
Hello!! This is my Lorax and her name is Emily.She has taken a picture with the “ deli selected smoked uncured ham “ The reason why we choice the ham is because it relates to the current unit we are studying of Agriculture.. This food is a very common eaten product where we eat it daily, during all 3 meals during the day. It is important to know that the relationship between what humans eat and their income. In our household we try to get the less fat ham( even though it’s more expensive ) but it  has no preserves or added hormones. In today times many of our meats have been injected with many different chemicals that the company injects their animals with so they produced  more meat over less time. Therefore my family is against what companies do and make sure to buy only “Lunch Mate “ ham because they have proved that they believe the same as us. No animal should face being injected with hormones.

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While on a run in my neighborhood park this week, I noticed several stations along the path that were meant for cleaning up any waste that your pet may leave behind on a walk. This reminded me of how often times in CAFOs, waste and manure from animals that are forced into tight confines with one another are often cleared away and eventually run off into water sources within the community. Although it is not the same scenario, our community has put this sign up to prevent the waste from animals from contaminating the beautiful parks and natural areas within Katy.

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In an environment where any given action can potentially hurt and disrupt the whole ecosystem, little things such as fenced off trees can help defend maturing trees from the elements. As seen in this picture, my family planted a tree that continues to grow everyday. With two dogs wondering around my backyard, this small fence acts as a barrier from my dogs and their digging paws. These fences can be seen anywhere, from urban cities to even small rural towns. Although not bulletproof, these fences are a great way to keep unwanted pests away from some of the vital parts of our ecosystem. Small contraptions like this can in turn help save lots of trees lives and sustain a healthy environment.

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After reading the first chapter of this unit, I realized how fortunate my family and I are because we have food security. We have an Aldi a street away from our house that we often go grocery shopping at. After our most recent trip, I also realized that we were also fortunate enough to be able to buy healthier food. Food insecurity is high globally, even in the United States. Some people may have access to food but not the vegetables and fruits because they tend to be more expensive. Furthermore, the population of the Earth continues to grow. To continue feeding the people, livestock production increases drastically to meet the demand. In turn, livestock take up land and resources as well, such as corn. Food security in conclusion is a privileged; however, food security or not, livestock and other animals are being killed more and more to continue to feed us.

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This is a picture of an orange from my backyard. My family grows a multitude of fruits (and vegetables) by ourselves, which decreases out reliance on groceries stores that often ship non-organic fruits from thousands of miles away. Fruits, especially, can be dangerous to buy if they are not organic, as the pesticides that are sprayed can easily seep through the thin skin of many fruits and be consumed by grocery store patrons. Thus, by growing our own fruit, my family can ensure that we have fresh, organic fruit and are doing our part in decreasing the reliance on mass-produced and insecticide- or pesticide-grown fruits.

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After an event at Randolph Elementary, lots of paper signs were thrown away. This is very bad for the environment because this paper will pile up in a landfill. It would have been better if this paper had been recycled.

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This is part of my own garden. This relates to what we are studying because we are learning about farming and plants and GMO’s. I don’t grow any crops, but as far as I know, this garden is organic. I don’t use any pesticides that could possibly hurt the environment, and they are watered naturally

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Old Spice's deodorants and aerosols contribute to global warming in their own way. While the  do not directly lead to the depletion of the ozone layer, as they do not contain chlorofluorocarbons, they do contain hydrocarbons and other compressed gases like nitrous oxide. These aerosol bottles emit volatile organic compounds which contributes to the increase of ground-level smog and other pollution. Each time someone uses these products, they are ever so slightly raising their carbon footprints.

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Pesky mealybugs always take over any kind of plant (especially fruits and vegetables) that I plant in the backyard. By buying ladybugs every year on amazon, and then releasing them to the backyard, these pests are kept in check without causing other environmental damage. By also using an organic spray that targets white flies and mealy bugs that breaks down in the soil, any remaining ones are killed as well. The one or two that make it usually end up in the nearby spider web. It is important not to disturb the other natural cycles occurring, it ensures sustainability in the soil and all the living things inhabiting it.

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Soil is the habitat for many insects. Soils are the environment in which seeds grow. They provide heat, nutrients, and water that are available for use to nuture plants to maturity. These plants form together with other plants and organisms to create ecosystems.

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Since the Katy area has been experiencing a lot of rain, in our household we didn’t want the water coming down from the roof to run off, so we added 5 others tubs as the tub shown below. We used the conserved water to wash our cars and water the plants after the rain has stopped for days. Rain water is best for plants as it wasn’t purified and has a lot of minerals.

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The best by date on this can of sparkling water says that it’l be good until June 2019. Most foods today contain some amount of genetically modified ingredients which can make food last a much longer time than it would if it were organic. This relates to APES because in agriculture, commercial farming is mostly reliant on GMO crops such as corn and soybeans. Both crops are the most abundant and produced in the U.S. which allows for GMOs to be easily accessible and difficult to avoid. The same can be said for processed foods as well, the “cheapness” and convenience make it impossible to stay away from. Something to help move people towards a sustainable lifestyle would be to have a mini garden of sorts and produce some amount of food for yourself that does not contain GMOs.

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This is an non GMO drink that provides great health benefits to those who buy it. This super food relates to APES because it shows that we can provide health through an easy method for a relatively low price.

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This is a family sized bag of Doritos that can be accessed by many families in America. This relates to APES because this sort of food is produced in high quantities and because of it's cheap price, people who can't afford better quality food buy this. Overall this also contributes to the health epidemic in America as well.

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Cruelty Free Non- GMO Tea Tree Oil- Valeria Hare

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Cruelty Free Non- GMO Tea Tree Oil- Valeria Hare

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This is what i use for my acne when I need to dry it off. I choose this not only because it is not genetically modified, but because it is cruelty free, meaning they do not test on animals. I try to stay away from products that test on animals because I think we need to stand up for those who do not have a voice. While there are alot of debates over animal testing, I have always believed that it shouldnt be done because we are allowing the possibility to harm animals that have nothing to do with it. By choosing this organic treatment that is a little more expensive than the rest, not only am i taking a stand for animal cruelty but also advocating that there are products that work without having to be tested on the vulnerable animals. I know it is not a lot, but if everyone had the same mindset, we would be stopping a lot of cruelty, it only takes one person to make a difference!