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A zoo can be an awesome place to see animals first hand and learn about what they eat, their habits, environment, and all sorts of other interesting facts about animals. Another name for a zoo is zoological garden.

Today zoos are becoming better and better places for animals. In the past some zoos were somewhat cruel to animals. Placing animals in environments they were not suited for and often not keeping the animal's best interest in mind. However, today many zoos do wonderful work in animal research and take great care of their animals.

Photo by Ducksters

Some good things that many Zoos do today include:

Acting as sanctuaries for endangered animals. They provide a safe environment for animals that are being threatened by changes in the environment. Often zoos will work to breed and maintain endangered animal populations. Sometime animals are nearly extinct in the wild and the only place they survive is in zoos.

Education on wildlife. Zoos provide a great opportunity for us to learn more about creatures from distant lands.

Research on wildlife and how we can help animals survive radical changes. Zoos do veterinary medicine research as well.

Today's modern zoos house animals in enclosures that are similar to the animal's natural habitat. This can include buildings made for nocturnal animals where they are bright at night, so the animals can sleep, and dark during the day, so zoo visitors can see the animals moving about. Also, climates are controlled in some zoo enclosures for animals like penguins and polar bears. Many zoos have great open spaces as well where animals may graze together. Some zoos have an area where you can take a mini-safari or ride around in a truck or bus to hopefully see the animals up close.

Perhaps the most famous zoo is the San Diego Zoo in Southern California. Many modern zoo practices were pioneered at the San Diego Zoo. The largest zoo in number of animals is the Bronx Zoo with over 6000 animals. The largest zoo in land size is the North Carolina Zoo with 535 acres.

Photo by Ducksters

Seeing an elephant, giraffe, lion, polar bear, penguins, seals, or other incredible creatures at the zoo can be an amazing experience. Be sure to check out your local zoo and get the opportunity to see some awesome animals and learn more about nature.

Another great place to see animals, similar to a zoo, is at an aquarium. Most states have an aquarium where they display all sorts of fish and some sea mammals.More on endangered species:
Amphibians in Danger
Endangered Animals
How Animals Become Extinct
Wildlife Conservation
Zoos

Back to Animals

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Learn about the zoo. History and types of zoological gardens. List of Zoos with interesting animals.

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How do you feel about keeping animals in zoos? Read both sides of the argument to help you decide.

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Some of the most widely used AZA statistics, updated annually.

Annual Survey Results

AZA members (Individual Professional category members and Primary Contacts of Conservation Partner, Commercial, Related Facility and Institution Members) may log in and download the results of the most recent AZA Annual Survey of Members.

Accreditation

237 accredited zoos and aquariums in 13 countries (Updated September 2023)

USA: 213 in 46 states and the District of Columbia

Canada: 7

Mexico: 4

Bahamas: 1

Bermuda: 1

Dominican Republic: 1

Argentina: 1

Colombia: 1

Spain: 1

Hong Kong: 1

Singapore: 2

South Korea: 2

United Arab Emirates: 2

15 accredited related facilities
Accreditation occurs every 5 years
Approximately 25 facilities undergo the accreditation process every 6 months

Types of Accredited Facilities

134 zoos

59 aquariums

9 both zoo and aquariums

16 safari and theme parks

15 science and nature centers

2 aviaries

2 butterfly houses

54% non-profit

35% public

11% for-profit

Animals in AZA-Accredited Facilities

Over 780,000 animals in the care of AZA-accredited zoo and aquarium professionals

Over 8,600 species

Over 800 Vulnerable, Endangered, Critically Endangered, and Extinct In The Wild species as categorized by the IUCN Red List

Species Survival Plan® (SSP) Programs

42 Taxon Advisory Groups (TAGs)

Nearly 500 Species Survival Plan Programs

AZA Reproductive Management Center

Supports SSP ® programs by monitoring the safety and efficacy of contraceptives used for all mammalian species and helping bring new contraceptive methods to the zoo, aquarium, and wildlife community

AZA Population Management Center

Population planning for 500 species for the next 100 years

Conservation

$252.2 million was spent on field conservation in 119 countries in 2022

232 species and subspecies that benefited are listed as Endangered or Threatened under the U.S. Endangered Species Act

$29 million was spent on AZA SAFE: Saving Animals From Extinction species programs in 2022

AZA's Conservation Grants Fund

Over $8.7 million supporting over 470 conservation projects since 1991

Economy

In the most recent survey in 2018, AZA-accredited zoos and aquariums:

Contributed more than $22.5 billion to U.S. economy

Supported more than 198,000 full-time jobs in the U.S.

Served more than 200 million annual visitors worldwide (183 million in the U.S.)

Informal Science Education

Based on the Education Programs survey data from 2019,

AZA members provided teacher professional development, curriculum resources and free planning visits that reached more than 96,000 teachers

5.5 million individuals were reached through field trips, outreach programs and education resources targeted to K-12 students

124 facilities reported more than 1,200 education programs that include content about connecting to nature, reaching more than 33 million.

(Updated April 2023)

Over 785 zoo and aquarium professionals have completed in-person AZA courses from 2020-present

Almost 250 zoo and aquarium professionals participated in virtual AZA courses from 2021-2022

AZA offers 18 in-person courses that are team-taught by professionals in the field, designed to develop a variety of animal management, education, and leadership skills

AZA's Executive Leadership Development Program prepares the next generation of executive leaders to successfully advance the zoo and aquarium movement in the future. More than 80 leaders have completed the program since 2014, with 27 having been promoted to the role of Executive Director or CEO.

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Learn more about the Association for Zoos and Aquariums' members, educational programs, and conservation efforts, as well as the kinds of facilities we support.

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Real sanctuaries are safe, comfortable places for animals to live after they've been rescued from not-so-nice places like circuses or laboratories. People can sometimes visit these sanctuaries, which is an awesome way to learn about and see animals without supporting businesses that hurt them, like roadside zoos or wildlife parks. Roadside zoos and wildlife parks use animals to make money. It's confusing because they sometimes call themselves "sanctuaries" or "rescues" to bring in more customers, because they know that people don't want to visit roadside zoos, but they're being dishonest when they do that.

It's important not to get these horrible places confused with actual sanctuaries. But how can you tell the difference? It's easy! There are a few simple questions you can ask about a place to figure out whether it's helping or hurting animals the animals who live there.

You can find answers to these questions by browsing a facility's website and social media pages (your parents can help):

1. How are animals housed?

Real sanctuaries make sure that an animal's living space is as close to their natural habitat as possible. Animals should live with others of their own kind so they can have friends. It's mean to keep them all alone in small, dirty pens with concrete floors and nothing to do-and you should stay away from places like that.

2. What kinds of activities do the animals get to do?

The animals' living area should have lots of ways for them to play and enjoy themselves! For example, there should be a large structure for chimpanzees to climb on, water for bears to soak and splash in, and large fields for roaming and exploring. Animals need these things if they're going to be healthy, happy, and comfortable.

Animals should also live with others of the same species so they can communicate with each another easily and form relationships and groups. In many sanctuaries, the animals who already live there help teach the newcomers how to get back in touch with their natural instincts and enjoy life again.

3. How big is the facility?

Animals should be given enough space to explore, roam, climb, and forage. And a real sanctuary NEVER takes the animals out of the facility to show them off.

4. Are visitors allowed to touch or hold the animals?

True wild-animal sanctuaries (with big cats, bears, primates, or wolves) NEVER allow visitors to touch or hold the animals, even babies, and that includes taking photos with them. This would be scary for the animals and dangerous to the visitors, too!

5. Where did the animals come from?

The animals who live there probably came from a place where they were mistreated, so they have a sad and painful past. The staff will want to share each animal's story so that visitors can learn about the various places that hurt animals (like laboratories, circuses, and roadside zoos). Real sanctuaries provide animals with a permanent home for the rest of their life. They NEVER trade, borrow, or loan animals.

6. Does the facility breed animals?

Sanctuaries NEVER breed animals, meaning that they don't make any of the animals have babies. Places that do breed animals are using them to make money-that's not right, and that's not a sanctuary.

7. What is it like to visit a sanctuary?

Most sanctuaries only allow very limited visits. Usually a guide takes people on a small tour of the place and doesn't let them walk around by themselves.

8. Is it accredited?

True sanctuaries are accredited by the Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries (GFAS), a group that makes sure sanctuaries follow strict rules to protect the animals who live there, like the ones listed above.
*****
All living, feeling beings deserve a comfortable place to live where people aren't always staring at them. A true sanctuary puts the needs and wants of the animals first. So if you care about animals, NEVER visit a roadside zoo or a wildlife park, and explain to your friends and family why places like that are bad for animals!

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8 Ways to Tell a REAL Sanctuary From a Roadside Zoo | PETA Kids

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Roadside zoo or animal sanctuary? This list will explain the difference-so you can figure out if a place is hurting or helping animals.

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This is an archived article and the information in the article may be outdated. Please look at the time stamp on the story to see when it was last updated.

The N.C. Zoo is one of only two state-operated zoos in the country. While more than 60 percent of its operating budget comes from the state, all of its conservation, research and education programs - and even the animals exhibited at the park - are purchased with private funds raised by the North Carolina Zoological Society.

Karen Brown with the Zoo Society says the "Adopt an Animal" program features a list of animals that can be "adopted" for a year.

Those who "adopt" an animal get a certificate, a photo of the animal and a fact sheet about the species.

Funds raised through the program benefit the Zoo's Animal Enrichment Program, which allows the Zoo to pay for additional training for zookeepers as well as purchase treats for the animals.

Some of the most popular animals for "adoption" are the African elephant, the polar bear, the zebra, the giraffe and the chimpanzee.

For more information about "adopting" zoo animals, visit nczoo.com or call the Zoo Society at (336) 879-7250.

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NC Zoo's 'adoption' program benefits animals, zookeeper training

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The N.C. Zoo is one of only two state-operated zoos in the country. While more than 60 percent of its operating budget comes from the state, all of its conservation, research and education programs - and even the animals exhibited at the park - are purchased with private funds raised by the North Carolina Zoological [...]

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Smithsonian's National Zoo: We Save Species

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/ CBS News

WASHINGTON - The National Zoo has a reputation as a leader in animal care, science and cute photo opportunities such as the naming of Bao Bao the baby panda earlier this month.

But a CBS News investigation has learned that behind the scenes, there are insider allegations of mismanagement involving animal care. Five sources with more than 35 years' combined experience at the National Zoo have raised concerns to CBS News about recent animal injuries, deaths and escapes.

The sources don't want to be identified for fear of retaliation. They say problems began last year when the zoo decided to double the population of the Cheetah Conservation Station, adding a half dozen new species but no extra space. Besides cheetahs, the CCS also houses zebras, gazelles and other species.

CBS News asked animal biologist and ethicist Marc Bekoff to look at the complaints. He was an independent reviewer of a 2005 National Academy of Sciences investigation of the zoo that found "systemic problems at the highest levels."

Of the newly raised issues, Bekoff said: "I call it 'fetch and pray.' You get the animals and then you pray that the project will work out."

The CCS' new animal mix didn't always work out. Issues identified by the zoo sources include two newly acquired hornbill birds that were kept in an indoor shack for seven months because their exhibit yard wasn't ready. Only after a volunteer complained were the birds allowed in an outdoor space. But the wallaby that had to share its yard with these new arrivals became frightened, according to sources, bloodied its nose and spent much of its time frightened and hiding.

One of two new red river hogs quickly became malnourished and died of an infection. The other hog, along with oryxes and sitatungas (two types of antelopes), sometimes became overly aggressive when mixed together, and some were injured in vicious fights.

It's not unusual for animals to spar, but the zoo sources say management failed to predict easily foreseeable conflicts between species and genders, and had ineffective backup plans for separating and protecting the animals when the conflicts arose.

"It's no surprise to me as a field biologist that so many of them do not work out," Bekoff told CBS News. "They're just too hastily put together and they're not well thought through."

Zoo spokeswoman Pamela Baker-Masson says the National Zoo meets the highest industry standards and the animals always receive the best care.

"We take great care in introducing our animals to these various habitats and transitioning them. Ideally, these things wouldn't happen, of course," said Baker-Masson. "I think my colleagues were very well aware and they know these species and they know how to take care of these species. ... Every single animal has a very specific course of action and a plan."

Bekoff says the zoo's plans appear to have been inadequate. "They should only be able to get the animals when it can be shown that they can properly house them and care for them."

Two animals in the CCS, a Dama gazelle and a pregnant kudu (another type of antelope), died when they got spooked on separate occasions and ran into barriers in their confined spaces, breaking their necks.

The gazelle death happened last month after a zebra attacked a veteran zookeeper. The commotion apparently frightened the gazelle, which is on the endangered species list. Zoo sources say it wasn't found for hours. The pregnant kudu died last June. Zoo sources say as the animal lay suffering with a broken neck, workers were unable to quickly locate necessary veterinary records.

Baker-Masson says Dama gazelles and kudus are skittish animals by nature and were housed in adequate spaces that met the requirements of the American Zoological Association, which recently re-accredited the facility.

As for the hornbill birds that were keep indoors for eight months, Baker-Masson says the space was "more than adequate and it gave the staff a very good amount of time to prepare and work with the hornbills" but "ideally they would have [had] access to their outdoor yard space more quickly."

Bekoff calls the lengthy indoor confinement "totally unacceptable."

"There's not one single excuse that I would accept," he said. "Basically this is a form of animal abuse and animal neglect. ...They get an 'F' in this project.'

Zoo sources also expressed concern about two escapes from the CCS: a vulture whose wings were allegedly not properly clipped and a red panda who managed to climb out of its exhibit. Both animals were later recaptured and zoo officials say the failures that allowed the escapes have been fixed.

CBS News has learned that the zoo convened a task force last summer to investigate the internal complaints about animal care at the CCS. The task force made findings last August and Baker-Masson says some of its recommendations are already being implemented.

Zoo officials refused CBS News' repeated requests to release the task force report even though, under public records law, it's considered public material.

As to why the National Zoo is withholding the information, Baker-Masson provided a number of rationales. First, she said that the task force report was still only a draft, four months after it was scheduled to be completed. However, when CBS News asked for the draft, she would not provide that either.

Later, in an interview, Baker-Masson said that the task force report is finished, but that the zoo isn't ready to release it.

"We're more than happy to [release the task force report]," Baker-Masson told CBS News. "But we have to do it in a thorough and process-oriented way that makes sense."

She acknowledged that some of the concerns investigated were founded.

"Absolutely," Baker-Masson said. "Anytime a concern is raised, it's looked at very seriously and we have to examine, you know, what changes are appropriate for that particular species, what changes are appropriate for the staff, what changes are appropriate for the facility itself. So yes, absolutely, some changes have been made."

Another incident the zoo is keeping mum about is the November zebra attack on the zookeeper. Baker-Masson says that AZA standards require that there always be a barrier between a keeper and zebras, which can inflict serious bite wounds. But the zoo says three weeks after the attack, it still has not identified how the zebra got to the keeper and it would not release the incident report or other public information about it. The injured zookeeper was recently released after several weeks in the hospital.

Sharyl Attkisson

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Are there animal care problems at National Zoo?

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Behind the scenes, there are insider allegations of mismanagement involving animals at famed D.C. facility

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I would like to begin by defining “zoo.” It is a park-like area in which live animals are kept in cages or large enclosures for public exhibit. Hold on, large enclosures? More like tiny cages. As zoo funds are cut, cages become smaller wi

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This piece is a response to "The Modern Zoo" from the May 2008 issue of Teen Ink. I volunteer at the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo and have gotten to know its keepers, veterinary staff, and other workers. According to the writer of "The Modern Zoo," staff torture animals, do not provide adequate living space, and keep the animals merely to entertain. In my three years of volunteering, I have never seen, nor had any reason to suspect, any foul play at my zoo. The allegations in "The Modern Zoo" that all zoos are inhumane and cruel is false, I believe.

According to the article in Teen Ink, "Zoos claim to educate visitors. Yet we've all seen the one-sentence signs that describe monkeys. What can be learned from this? Certainly not enough to justify inhumane captivity." One-sentence signs are not the end of zoos' efforts to educate. At my zoo an entire department is devoted to educating the public about conservation of animals and our planet. If zoos didn't care about education, why would they have this? While exhibits may display signs with brief information, staff work daily at the zoo to educate visitors about conservation and other critical topics.

Some zoo employees visit schools and businesses to educate the public about how to be more responsible with our environment. This department even organizes conservation projects around Ohio, such as the community effort to remove waste from Big Creek. Volunteers spent a day restoring the creek to a more healthy ecosystem. The zoo is also part of a national conservation campaign called Year of the Frog, dedicated to saving amphibian species from extinction. Zoos put forth tremendous effort to educate people, and to say that they do not is just not true in my experience.

"Zoo animals endure inadequate living conditions with no space," claims the article. It's not fair to make this generalization. My own zoo, for example, is planning a one-of-a-kind, spacious exhibit for its elephants. The exhibit encompasses many acres, and will be large enough to support a breeding population. If zoos didn't care about adequate space for their animals, why would they waste time raising millions of dollars to build this type of exhibit? Also, my zoo cares a lot for its animals; it houses the second oldest hippo in North America and its polar bears are twice the age of those in the wild.

I witnessed a life-saving surgery on a 13-year-old wolf. Veterinarians worked for two hours to save his life. Thirteen is very old for a wolf. Zoos do care for their animals, and do what they can to keep them strong and healthy.

"These animals are simply meant to entertain," claims "The Modern Zoo." That too is false. At the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo, animals are never forced to do anything for the sake of visitors' entertainment. We believe in positive animal/ human interaction. Zoo staff never force or coerce an animal due to this policy.

The author of "The Modern Zoo" is obviously very passionate in his opinion about zoos. I am also very passionate. I have not written this to personally attack him. Rather, I am simply stating facts. "The Modern Zoo" paints zoos as cruel, inhumane facilities, but it is both unfair and untrue to claim this about all of them. Many have state-of-the-art veterinary facilities and work hard to save endangered species.

I hope that readers will see that zoos seek to protect and save endangered species, as well as educate and encourage the public to do the same.

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This piece is a response to "The Modern Zoo" from the May 2008 issue of Teen Ink. I volunteer at the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo and have gotten to know its keepers, veterinary staff, and other workers. According to the writer of "The Modern Zoo," staff torture animals, do not provide adequate living space, and keep the animals merely to entertain.

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Why Zoos Matter

We at the Saint Louis Zoo are passionate about the work we do. We not only care about the work we're doing, we are fostering animals that are threatened or endangered and supporting their perpetuation into the future.

Making a Difference

The world around us is changing fast. Species of wildlife are facing global extinction on a massive scale. About 41 percent of all amphibian species and 26 percent of all mammals are now threatened with extinction, and fully half of the world's primates - our closest relatives - teeter on the edge of existence. We face the loss of one in eight of all bird species. Overall, the extinction rate has increased a hundred-fold over the last century, and today we estimate that over 18,000 species face oblivion. Zoos are in a unique position to make a difference. Zoos are focused on offering the very best possible nutrition, enrichment and environment for animals in their care.

The many committed people at zoos care deeply about animals, working with an incredible variety of species, from one-celled creatures to elephants. Our research on behavior, reproductive biology, nutrition, animal health and genetics is valuable to wildlife managers, field researchers and other scientists.

For example, the Saint Louis Zoo has been doing a mother/infant bonding study with antelope and other hoofed animals at Red Rocks for 14 years. The data we've gathered - how often and when a species typically nurses, who initiates nursing, proximity, grooming, nuzzling - has provided information to field researchers that would be hard to come by otherwise.

We are animal experts

Zoo professionals are experts on breeding small populations of endangered species. That knowledge, too, has become valuable to scientists working with wildlife populations. Nowadays animals in wild habitats are often found in small, fragmented groups because of agriculture, logging or other human activity.

We collaborate with organizations worldwide on conservation breeding, habitat preservation, community development, public education and research.

Explore our conservation efforts

From Fence to Field

In 2004, the Saint Louis Zoo established the WildCare Institute to work in conservation hotspots locally and around the globe.

From Forest Park and Missouri streams to the Horn of Africa or the coastline of Peru, the Zoo is taking a holistic approach to wildlife conservation. While the Zoo has been involved in helping save endangered species for decades, our goal today is create a sustainable future for wildlife and for people around the world. Ultimately, we need to help save the ecosystems on which animals and humans depend. WildCare Institute addresses three key ingredients in conservation success: wildlife management and recovery, conservation science, and support of the human populations that coexist with wildlife.

Connecting people to animals

People learn at zoos. They learn in our formal classes, lectures, camps, teacher workshops, distance learning, zoo tours, overnights and outreach programs. Informally they learn from keeper chats, docent volunteers, interpreters, signage and special exhibits. Most important, they learn from observing zoo animals.

On a scale of 1 to 10, our visitors rate their educational experience at the Saint Louis Zoo as a 9.1.

Unique Experiences.

Zoos are a place where families can have unique experiences together every time they visit. Today's families are more conscious than ever of the need to teach their children about the natural world and respect for living creatures.

Why do people come to the zoo?

Why do zoos matter?

Because we care.

We want to keep this planet's amazing wildlife around for future generations.

Donate to our Conservation Fund

If you'd like to contribute financially to our conservation efforts, you can make a donation through the Saint Louis Zoo.

Learn more

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The Saint Louis Zoo is dedicated to saving species and bringing people and wildlife together. Home to over 16,000 animals, many of which are endangered, entry is free every day for everyone, an important part of our commitment to people and animals - always.

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Experts say zoos need to better meet the needs of animals. For a mother and kids at the Philadelphia Zoo, in Pennsylvania, it was a close encounter of the ferocious kind. Directly in front of them was a Siberian tiger.…

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7 Reasons Why Animals in Captivity  Deserve Freedom | Animal Videos | Kids Videos | @PETAKids

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Instantly access over 40,000 of the best books & videos for kids on Epic

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Get unlimited access to 40,000 of the best books, audiobooks, videos, & more for kids 12 and under. Try it free.

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No, because Animals are not free in their Wild Life

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No, because Animals are not free in their Wild Life

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AP

New York City's do-gooders are at it again, this time looking to put a 10-cent fee on each plastic bag that stores normally provide to their customers without charge.

This isn't just another burden on the city's beleaguered small retailers, it's also a terrible idea for public health.

When then-Mayor Mike Bloomberg pushed a similar proposal a few years back, it never even got a hearing. But the new bill already has 19 City Council members signed on as co-sponsors.

And Deputy Mayor Anthony Shorris told WNYC radio this month that the fee is a direction the de Blasio administration is "very supportive of."

I long ago lost count of how many regulations of the past decade have unintended, bad consequences that hit the city's small retailers the hardest.

These beleaguered store owners already face an army of enforcement agents who treat them like a cash cow. The city's bids to promote "the public good" never take into consideration the health of these stores or the neighborhood economies that they support.

Our local army of regulators belongs to what the author Saul Bellow called the Good Intentions Paving Co.

This company's projects are always well-meant, but when they turn out to have undesired costs, tradeoffs and side-effects, the company leaders sincerely believe that none of the blame can possibly attach to them. After all, their intentions were good!

The irony here is that the bag fee poses a direct threat to New Yorkers' health.

The point of the bag tax is to force consumers to substitute reusable bags for the no-longer-free plastic ones.

Problem is, reusable bags play a significant role in food contamination unless they're properly washed on a regular basis - something people rarely do.

In a public-health study done at the University of Arizona, researchers found that only 3 percent of shoppers with multi-use bags said they regularly washed them. The same study found bacteria in 99 percent. Half carried coliform bacteria, and 8 percent carried E. coli - an indicator of fecal contamination.

"I classify them as pretty dirty things, like the bottom of your shoes," said Ryan Sinclair of the Loma Linda University School of Public Health, a co-author of the study.

As the study showed, the reusable bags function as a Petri dish for all kinds of contaminants. Further, three-fourths of their users acknowledged that they don't use separate bags for meats and for vegetables, and about a third said they used the bags for, well, all sorts of things (storing snacks, toting books).

A study by the Centers for Disease Control verified the dangers: "Reusable bags, if not properly washed between uses, create the potential for cross-contamination of foods.

"This potential exists when raw meat products and foods traditionally eaten uncooked (fruits and vegetables) are carried in the same bags, either together or between uses. This risk can be increased by the growth of bacteria in the bags."

What about the environmental benefit? At best, it's smaller than the do-gooders imagine.

It takes less energy to make plastic bags than the canvas ones that the "reusers" usually push - and, in fact, consumers find multiple post-store uses for the plastic, from in-home trash bags to padding in a storage box.

Yes, most wind up in the garbage eventually - but before we restrict them, let's figure out ways to make plastic-bag recycling more efficient - something that the Department of Sanitation has failed to do.

Polls throughout the country find that people overwhelmingly reject bans and regressive taxes. Imagine the results if people knew more about the health threat posed by reusable bags.

Let's shelve the bag fee and search for better ways to aid the environment that don't burden our small businesses and threaten our citizens' health.

Brad Gerstman is a lawyer, lobbyist and co-founder of the New York Association of Grocery Stores.

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The City Council's plan to promote E. coli

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New York City's do-gooders are at it again, this time looking to put a 10-cent fee on each plastic bag that stores normally provide to their customers without charge. This isn't just another burden...

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*may be one that you want to steer students toward during Session 12 “Who Said What? Studying Perspective”

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Plastic retail bags - the kind you get from your grocer or at the corner store - are being targeted for bans and taxes in communities around the country, regardless of the unintended consequences. Bans and taxes have a negative impact on working families and seniors on fixed incomes, but they don't help the environment in any meaningful way-in fact they can cause bigger problems.

Banning and taxing recyclable, reusable products doesn't make sense, even in the most well-intentioned scenarios. Keep reading to find out why.

Environment
Plastic bags are the most environmentally friendly option at the checkout. Find out the surprising green truth for yourself.

Recycling
Plastic bag recycling is simple and effective, thanks to thousands of recycling drop-off locations across the country.

Jobs and Economy
Bag bans and taxes make trips to the grocery store more expensive, especially for low- and fixed-income families - with no meaningful impact on the environment to back them up. They also threaten thousands of U.S. manufacturing jobs.

Health
Be mindful with your reusable canvas and non-woven bags. Without frequent washing and appropriate storage, reusable bags can harbor dangerous bacteria.

Reuse
Nearly 90% of Americans reuse plastic bags. What do you do with yours?

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Bans and taxes have a negative impact on working families and seniors on fixed incomes, but they don't help the environment in any meaningful way-in fact they can cause bigger problems.

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Explore National Geographic. A world leader in geography, cartography and exploration.

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California’s bag ban hurting the job market? Video

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California’s bag ban hurting the job market? Video

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(0–1:38); (2:40–3:09).

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Where Will Your Plastic Trash Go Now That China Doesn’t Want It?

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Last year, China drastically cut back its imports of plastic waste to recycle. Now the U.S. and other wealthy nations must figure out what to do with their discards.

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Extreme Sports Facts

Check out our range of extreme sports facts.

Learn about the summer and winter X Games, different types of extreme sports, the surfaces and environments such as water, land, snow and air, as well as lots more interesting facts and information.

Extreme sports, sometimes called action sports or adventure sports, do not have an exact definition but are generally considered to be activities that are seen as having a high level of potential danger.

Extreme sports often involve high speeds, dangerous heights, the requirement for a high level of specialist technical skill, and highly specialized gear or equipment.

Success in extreme sports usually involves judging panels scoring athletes based on visual and technical criteria and completion of a 'trick'.

Height based extreme sports include Bungee jumping, skydiving, BASE jumping, paragliding and hang gliding.

Water based extreme sports include scuba diving, windsurfing, kitesurfing, wakeboarding surfing, whitewater kayaking and rafting.

Wheel based extreme sports include BMX, skateboarding, mountain biking, inline skating, rally car and motocross.

Winter based extreme sports include skiing, snowboarding, and snowmobile.

Cliff and cave based extreme sports include rock climbing, ice climbing, caving, free diving, mountaineering and cave diving.

The X Games are an annual extreme sports event, organized by the U.S. sports broadcaster ESPN. Participants compete to win gold, silver, and bronze medals along with prize money.

The first Summer X Games were held in 1995 in Newport, Rhode Island. The first Winter X Games were held in 1997 at Mountain Resort, Big Bear Lake, California.

X Games are typically held in the USA. The winter games are held in January or February and the summer games are usually held in August.

X Games have also been held in Asia since 1998 and Europe since 2010.

The X Games competitions often makes heroes of those athletes who are talented and brave enough to pull of a new and exciting 'trick' such as Tony Hawk's 900 in skateboarding, Travis Pastrana's double backflip in freestyle motocross, Heath Frisby's first snowmobile front flip or snowboarder Torstein Horgmo's triple flip.

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Extreme Sports Facts - Information About X Games, Action Sports & More

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Extreme Sports Facts Check out our range of extreme sports facts. Learn about the summer and winter X Games, different types of extreme sports, the surfaces and environments such as water, land, snow and air, as well as lots more interesting facts and information.

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Slopestyle can be dangerous. But is it too risky at Sochi Olympics?

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Slopestyle can be dangerous. But is it too risky at Sochi Olympics?

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Is your kid obsessed with becoming the next X Games star, Olympic medalist, or YouTube stuntman? Young kids often have no fear when it comes to taking risks, but are extreme sports like dirt bike riding and bungee jumping dangerous for kids?
Related: Sports Safety Tips for Your Child
Though traditional sports like football, basketball, and hockey aren't exactly going out of style, the world of extreme sports is growing in popularity. Kids and adults alike are participating in increasing numbers in these risky-if not sometimes downright dangerous-sports. But why?

From skateboarding and snowboarding to BMX biking and rock climbing, pop culture and social media have collided to amp up physical activity and make super-sized stunts seem like the norm. Long gone are the days when peer pressure from classmates, neighbors or older sibs drove younger children to drop into a half-pipe or launch their bike off a crazy incline.

Today's kiddos are also influenced by...well, influencers. YouTube stars, TikTok creators, and even Olympic athletes have turned extreme sports from something that only the wildest child would attempt to everyday activities.

If your littles are begging to do extreme sports and you're totally new to these types of activities, read on for more info on the risks, benefits, times to encourage your kiddo, and when to flat out say a big 'ol, " NO."

Extreme Sports Growing More Popular with Kids

Some kids are happier riding their skateboards than dealing with the structure of soccer practice. Others like cruising around on their BMX bikes until their legs just quit, surfing themselves silly, or spending the entire weekend learning new tricks on their inline skates.

Of course, young kids are also attracted to extreme sports because they're cool. And who doesn't like being on the cutting edge? Snowboarding, the bad-boy little brother of skiing, was legitimized by sports traditionalists when it became an official Olympic event at the 1998 Nagano Games.

Fast-forward to the 2020 Tokyo Olympics (which were actually held in 2021 thanks to the pandemic) and skateboarding, sport climbing, and surfing became legit gold, silver, and bronze events!

Studies Show Fewer Kids Are Joining School Sports Teams

Have the days of dribbling a ball down a court or passing a puck gone the way of the dinosaurs? According to stats from Project Play, in 2021 the most popular youth sports for children ages six through 12 were bicycling, basketball, and baseball. Even though more than 5.2 million children biked in 2021, this was a significant change from way back in 2008.

The Project Play statistics show that only 18 percent of children reported bicycling in 2021, while a whopping 27.7 percent got active on two wheels in 2008.

Basketball team play dropped from 16.6 percent to 14.5 percent participation and baseball from 16.5 percent to 12.6 percent between 2008 and 2021. The number of children playing other popular team sports, such as soccer, tackle football, and flag football, also dropped during the same time frame.

Basketball is Less Popular But Bicycling is Big with Teens

The same downward trends didn't happen for teen participation in all traditional sports. Bicycling participation grew from 16.8 percent to 21 percent between 2008 and 2021 and baseball play rose from 8.2 percent to 9.5 percent.

What could account for the overall downward trend in team and individual youth sports play? There isn't one reason. But some of the possible explanations include an increasingly competitive climate, the high cost of intensive travel sports (such as hockey), or interest in other activities -such as extreme sports.

Dangerous Sports: Kids in BMX, Climbing, and Bungee Jumping?!

We spoke to Paul Vail, 29, a BMX freestyle bike rider for more than 14 years to learn more about the kinds of extreme sports kids are trying.

Vail says that when it comes to extreme sports, "Today's kids who've been riding skateboards or BMX bikes since they were 12-year-olds will become the parents who say, 'Yes, skateboarding, bike riding -- perfectly acceptable sports for my kid to do. And don't tell me they have to play football or be on the basketball team to be accepted, because that's no longer true.'"

Vail balks at the term "extreme sports." "People have been skydiving, skiing, riding bikes, doing tricks, and taking jumps forever. I think the extreme sports label is a gimmick. I like the term 'alternative sports'."

Extreme or not, it's important to encourage kids to express themselves physically, whether their athletic tastes are trendy or traditional. Both solo and team-oriented sports can build self-confidence, relieve stress, and promote physical fitness -- all of which are vital to growing kids and adults alike.

Kids in "alternative" sports are expressive, highly skilled athletes. And sports like rock climbing, snowboarding, inline skating, surfing, skateboarding, extreme skiing, and mountain biking (to name just a few), require significant technical ability as well as strength and endurance. Plus, alternative sports can help your kids develop positive qualities like discipline, persistence, and determination.

Kids in Ski Jumping or Snowboarding

BMX, skateboarding, and bungee jumping aren't the only extreme sports kids flock to. Even though ski jumping might seem like a new adventurous activity, it made its Olympic debut way back in 1924.

Of course, this doesn't mean kiddos were climbing up mountains, whooshing down slopes, and flying into the air on two skis a century ago. While this soaring sport isn't exactly new, its youth appeal has spiked in recent years. According to Women's Ski Jumping USA, five to eight years old is the age average for ski jumpers to start the sport!

Like ski jumping, snowboarding is a winter-time extreme sport that has skyrocketed in popularity. Again, snowboarding became Olympic-official in 1998. Almost a decade later, in 2006, then-19-year-old Shaun White made his first bid for the gold. But White certainly wasn't the last teen to take this extreme sport up a level and put it center stage.

Seventeen-year-old Chloe Kim became the youngest women's Olympic halfpipe competitor to nab the gold in 2018 at the PyeongChang games. With role models like White and Kim to follow, a whole new generation is getting into the halfpipe!

Not only do today's kiddos follow these, and other top athletes, but during the Olympics, they can watch the extreme antics of snowboarders on YouTube, TikTok, and just about every other social media site.

Kids and Sport Injuries

How dangerous are extreme sports? As a parent, your child's safety is priority number one. And that's why you're not so sure about your kiddo's extreme activities. Even though extreme sports do often come with, as the name implies, extreme risks, these aren't the only athletics that can result in serious injuries.

According to Stanford Medicine Children's Health, each year over 3.5 million children (14 and under) are injured during sports play. This includes more than 775,000 kiddos who require ER treatment. The majority of the injuries requiring hospital-level care are the result of collisions, falls, overexertion (during informal recreational activities) or object-related impacts.

When it comes to the most injuries per sport, football takes the top spot-with nearly 215,000 five- to 14-year-olds treated in hospitals in one year. This number is higher than what you find with some extreme sports. But in general, more children play this type of traditional team sport than engage in extreme activity.

A 2015 study published in the Orthopaedic Journal of Sports Medicine looked at the prevalence of head and neck injuries in extreme sports. The researchers found that between 2000 and 2011 there were more than four million total injuries from these types of activities (this includes adult injuries).

Over 11 percent of these were head and neck injuries. Of these head and neck injuries, the extreme sports with the highest number of incidents included skateboarding, snowboarding, skiing, and motocross.

Fear is probably the number-one reason many of us avoid taking risks. For athletes in extreme sports, conquering fear is part of the adventure of sport. When a skateboarder is practicing tricks on a 15-foot ramp (commonly called a half-pipe), or a mountain biker is flying down a rock-strewn single-track trail, and he makes a mistake and falls -- well, it's going to hurt a little. Okay, maybe a lot.

But the athletes we spoke to didn't complain about injuries. In fact, most have enjoyed relatively injury-free experiences in their sports. Brian Krause, a competitive skydiver for the U.S. Army's Golden Knights, has taken thousands of jumps out of airplanes without so much as a sprained ankle.

But Matt Donovan, a pro downhill mountain bike racer from Massachusetts, said that when he first got serious about racing, his season was "very injury-laden. I had two concussions, a separated shoulder, a broken hand, multiple cuts, and lacerations. And I cracked a rib."

There are two kinds of sports injuries:

1. Chronic Repetitive or Overuse Injuries

Overuse injuries can cause stress fractures, muscle tears, or progressive bone deformities.

2. Acute Injuries

Acute sports injuries occur as a result of trauma from contact with a major force. Acute sports injuries include fractures, broken bones, dislocations, and more serious spinal and brain injuries.

Is It Wrong to Let Children Do Extreme Sports?

Should safety concerns stop your child from trying an extreme sport? There's no one-size-fits-all answer to this question. If your adventure-loving kiddo is all about skateboarding, snowboarding, parkour, BMX biking, or any other high-octane activity, you will need to think about:

Your Child's Age and Developmental Level

Is your child developmentally ready to handle the challenge? What is their skill level when it comes to basic coordination and athletic tasks like running, jumping, and balancing? Can you trust them to act responsibly, follow an instructor's directions, and wear safety equipment correctly?

Your Child's Motivation

Does your child want to become the next Tik Tok star? If your tween has dreams of easily twisting a BMX bike around in mid-air like their fave influencer or thinks videos of teens crashing their skateboards into just about anything and everything is hilarious, they may struggle to stay safe while engaging in an extreme sport.

The Instructor or Coach

Who will teach your child about the sport? A YouTube video or IG video are not a substitute for the real deal. Only a qualified instructor or professional should instruct your child.

The Safety Equipment

Do you know what safety equipment your child will need? Will they wear it? You may need to learn more about the equipment standards before you allow your child to participate in extreme activities.

What types of equipment do children need? The specific items depend on the sport. These could include a helmet, shoulder pads, shin pads, elbow pads, or wrist guards.

According to Seattle Children's Hospital, skiers and snowboarders should wear a helmet that meets ASTM, CEN, or Snell standards. Skateboarders should wear one that conforms to the ASTM F1492 standard. Children who ride bikes or scooters should wear a helmet that meets CPSC or Snell standards, knee pads, and elbow pads.

When is an extreme sport too extreme? If you don't feel comfortable with your child engaging in the activity or don't feel that they can follow safety directions, it's okay to just say no. Some sports are not age-appropriate for younger kids, and you should wait until they're a bit older to try them out.

It's also okay to talk to ask questions, talk to a pro, or take your time gathering facts, stats, and any other info about the adventurous activity! Learn more about extreme sports by taking our quiz here.

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Kids and Extreme Sports: Should They Be Allowed?

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Should kids do extreme sports? BMX riders, snowboarders and X Game stars weigh in on the benefits and risks of kids doing extreme sports.

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Do you like the excitement of extreme sports? If so, you might be an 'adrenaline junkie'. Find out more about white-water rafting and parkour in this video.

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/ CBS News

Extreme sports bring excitement, and are starting to draw big bucks.

But are the athletes putting too much on the line?

The daring participants say extreme sports are all about the thrill, the rush of adrenaline they get. They're climbing higher, jumping farther and moving faster, all in the name of personal glory.

Still, when things go wrong, they pay a heavy price.

Humans aren't supposed to fly, but Jeb Corliss comes pretty close.

His extreme exploits have a huge following. One video of him in action alone has gotten almost 9 million views.

Corliss hurt in stunt jump
Uncertainty clouds recovery of skiier Sarah Burke

On Monday, Corliss was seriously injured on Table Mountain in Cape Town, South Africa. Moments after he stepped off a cliff -- a 3,500-foot drop -- he hit the wall, breaking both his legs. He had to be taken by helicopter to a hospital.

Only a day before that, another extreme athlete, ice climber John Roberts, died after a 60-foot fall in Colorado.

And last Tuesday, free-skier Sarah Burke was critically injured during a training run in Utah.

All of these athletes take risks and are at the leading edge of extreme sports -- a one-time bit player on the sports scene that has exploded in recent years, thanks in part to social media and TV coverage.

The extreme athletes known as "Birdmen" even attracted the attention of "60 Minutes" in 2010.

Sponsorships have helped extreme athletes soar to new heights. Corliss has eight sponsors, including camera company GoPro.

GoPro CEO Nick Woodman says what Corliss does is risky, but not nearly as risky as most people would think, because he's so good at it.

Corliss jumped without permission from South African authorities, a jump that not only put him in danger, but his rescuers, as well -- one of the many reasons why big brands tend to shy away.

"A lot of big brands, (and) rightly so, don't want to take that chance. You don't want to see blood spattered all over a logo that you've invested millions and millions of dollars in," says sports marketer Joe Favorito.

But, Favorito adds, athletes who are determined will find a way. "What they're trying to do is offset costs and take it to another level as, quote, a professional athlete," he said. "And people think, when you're associated with sponsors, that makes you a professional. Sometimes, it makes you become a little more risky."

Professional skier and base-jumper JT Holmes knows how dangerous extreme sports can be. He knew Burke, and watched his close friend, Shane McConkey, die after jumping off a 2,000 ft cliff. Holmes was also the subject of the Steve Kroft "60 Minutes" story on "Birdmen," and was a stunt man for the film "Transformers." Holmes insisted on "CBS This Morning" that he engages in extreme sports because they're "just good, clean fun." He admitted he thinks about the possibility the activities could kill him. "Certainly," Holmes said. "Every single jump, every single ski run, you have to be aware of the (possible) consequences and, if you're going to choose to put yourself in these perilous situations, you need to be prepared."

To see the entire interview, click on the video below.

Trending News

Jeff Glor

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They've become big business, but a death and some injuries have led some to question whether they're worth the money, thrill

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Sarah Burke's Death: Extreme Sports Dangers

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Sarah Burke's Death: Extreme Sports Dangers

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Overconfidence and a lack of training and a habit of not wearing safety gear, especially helmets, help cause more than 40,000 head and neck injuries nationally a year in sports like skateboarding.

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Slopestyle can be dangerous. But is it too risky at Sochi Olympics?

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The Extreme Sports Addiction [Infographic]

"The more fearful a certain sport makes you, the greater the release of chemicals. The greater the release of these chemicals, the greater the addiction-like symptoms." -Dr. Marvin Zuckerman, Professor Emeritus, University of Delaware CHASING THE HIGH WHAT IS THE E TREME SPORTS ADDICTION? What is it that drives risk-takers to pursue dangerous situations willingly and repeatedly? Who are they and what makes them keep going back for more? Does this "addiction factor" contribute to the advancement of action sports as well? Krush takes you behind the scenes of the extreme sports addiction to give you some answers! WHAT ARE THEY ADDICTED TO? THE ADRENALINE RUSH Adrenaline, aka Epinephrine A hormone released from the adrenal gland in the body when faced with stressful or dangerous situations (fight or flight response), elevating your heart rate and giving you a boost of energy and alertness. It can give people a sense of superhuman strength, HO speed, and other abilities that allow them to respond to traumatic situations. OH но The release of adrenaline (the adrenaline rush) stimulates the brain's reward system, triggering the release of dopamine... THE REWARDING BUZZ Dopamine A chemical in the brain that is responsible for the "high" or euphoric feeling you experience when you overcome danger or perceived extreme risk. When dopamine is HO released it provides feelings of pleasure and satisfaction. Chronic risk-takers or extreme sports enthusiasts tend to have a higher saturation of dopamine in the brain. HO DOPAMINE LEVEL IN RISK-TAKERS VS. NON RISK-TAKERS Normal Level Risk-taker -the amount of dopamine released in the brain due to a rewarding experience + "In high novelty-seeking individuals, the brain is less able to regulate dopamine [thus releasing a greater amount], and this may lead these individuals to be particularly responsive to novel and rewarding situations that normally induce dopamine release." -Dr. David H. Zald, Ph.D., Professor of Psychology at Vanderbilt University THE EUPHORIC FEELING DOPAMINE GIVES EXTREME SPORTS ENTHUSIASTS WHEN IT FLOODS THE BLOODSTREAM WHO ARE THESE PEOPLE ? "TYPE I" 10-15% | * Type T (for thrill-seeking) personality types of the population are classified as Type T. can be described as "risk-takers and adventurers who seek excitement and stimulation wherever they can find or create it." (Psychologist Frank Farley) * These types of people tend to seek out unique experiences, the theory being that they need to stimulate low dopamine levels. Sensation-seeking trait is about bU% genetic THE DANGEROUS SIDE OF TYPE T PERSONALITIES DRUG ABUSE ALCOHOL ABUSE GAMBLING Using stimulating drugs such as amphetamines or cocaine synthetically raises the amount of dopamine in the brain, producing a short-lived artificial high. EXTREME SPORTS ADDICTION LEADS TO PROGRESSION THE ENDLESS PURSUIT... * Sensation seekers can become addicted to the "high" they get from the adrenaline and dopamine rush. This addiction drives them to chase the next high repeatedly. * Tolerance builds as the body gets used to the same rush over and over, which is why extreme sports athletes are constantly pushing the envelope and upping the ante. "You need risk to trigger reward and the body gets used to risk. In other words, just like drug addicts who need to take more and more of a substance to get back to the level of high they desire, action sports addicts need to up their danger quotient to achieve the same effect." -Dr. Greg Berns, M.D., Ph.D., Professor of Neuroeconomics at Emory University THE SEARCH FOR THE NEXT BIG THING, THE NEVER BEEN DONE BEFORE TRICK, IS WHAT DRIVES THE CONSTANT PROGRESSION OF EXTREME SPORTS A FEW EXAMPLES... THEN NOW fmx 2X WHAT'S NEXT Ist Backflip Double Backflip 2006 2002 skydiving WIHAT'S NEXT Became a sport BASE Jumping Wing Suit Flying 128,000 ft. jump mid-1950's 2012 snowhoarding Double Alley-Oop Rodeo & Double McTwist 1260 2012 McTwists & 1080's 720's & 900's 1998 2005 3.5x SPINS 2x FLIPS WHAT'S NEXT 15 IL 11.5 t HALFPIPE WALL HEIGHTS HALFPIPE TRICKS & AIR HEIGHT WITH EXTREME SPORTS ATHLETES CONTINUING TO CHASE THE ELUSIVE HIGH AND PUSH THE BOUNDARIES, IT'S NO WONDER WE VE SEEN THE TRICKS BECOME INSANELY MORE TECHNICAL AND THE LEVEL OF RISK RAPIDLY INCREASING. WE CAN ONLY WONDER, WHERE WILL THE EXTREME SPORTS ADDICTION TAKE US NEXT? SOURCES KRUSH K http://www.jneurosci.org http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/7802751.stm https://dana.org/media/detail.aspx?id=23620 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2748420/pdf/nihms85634.pdf https://dana.org/media/detail.aspx?id=23620 http://www.accessmylibrary.com/article-1G1-177868123/action-sports-participation-consumer.html http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1869106,00.html?iref=werecommend?id=perma_share http://www.livestrong.com/article/532699-dopamine-sports/ http://news.vanderbilt.edu/2008/12/risk-takers-drug-abusers-driven-by-decreased-ability-to-process-dopamine-69546/ -seekers-chasing-a-craving/ w.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-playing-field/200803/the-addicitve-nature-adrenaline-sport .ca/2012/01/thrill- http://www. http://www. http://www.summitpost.org/living-on-the-edge-extreme-sports-and-their-role-in-society/214107 http://www.dailycamera.com/ci_13126284 http://www.springerlink.com/content/j7578873352trx0g/ http://www.webmd.com/fitness-exercise/features/extreme-sports-whats-appeal?page=2 .charlatan. "The more fearful a certain sport makes you, the greater the release of chemicals. The greater the release of these chemicals, the greater the addiction-like symptoms." -Dr. Marvin Zuckerman, Professor Emeritus, University of Delaware CHASING THE HIGH WHAT IS THE E TREME SPORTS ADDICTION? What is it that drives risk-takers to pursue dangerous situations willingly and repeatedly? Who are they and what makes them keep going back for more? Does this "addiction factor" contribute to the advancement of action sports as well? Krush takes you behind the scenes of the extreme sports addiction to give you some answers! WHAT ARE THEY ADDICTED TO? THE ADRENALINE RUSH Adrenaline, aka Epinephrine A hormone released from the adrenal gland in the body when faced with stressful or dangerous situations (fight or flight response), elevating your heart rate and giving you a boost of energy and alertness. It can give people a sense of superhuman strength, HO speed, and other abilities that allow them to respond to traumatic situations. OH но The release of adrenaline (the adrenaline rush) stimulates the brain's reward system, triggering the release of dopamine... THE REWARDING BUZZ Dopamine A chemical in the brain that is responsible for the "high" or euphoric feeling you experience when you overcome danger or perceived extreme risk. When dopamine is HO released it provides feelings of pleasure and satisfaction. Chronic risk-takers or extreme sports enthusiasts tend to have a higher saturation of dopamine in the brain. HO DOPAMINE LEVEL IN RISK-TAKERS VS. NON RISK-TAKERS Normal Level Risk-taker -the amount of dopamine released in the brain due to a rewarding experience + "In high novelty-seeking individuals, the brain is less able to regulate dopamine [thus releasing a greater amount], and this may lead these individuals to be particularly responsive to novel and rewarding situations that normally induce dopamine release." -Dr. David H. Zald, Ph.D., Professor of Psychology at Vanderbilt University THE EUPHORIC FEELING DOPAMINE GIVES EXTREME SPORTS ENTHUSIASTS WHEN IT FLOODS THE BLOODSTREAM WHO ARE THESE PEOPLE ? "TYPE I" 10-15% | * Type T (for thrill-seeking) personality types of the population are classified as Type T. can be described as "risk-takers and adventurers who seek excitement and stimulation wherever they can find or create it." (Psychologist Frank Farley) * These types of people tend to seek out unique experiences, the theory being that they need to stimulate low dopamine levels. Sensation-seeking trait is about bU% genetic THE DANGEROUS SIDE OF TYPE T PERSONALITIES DRUG ABUSE ALCOHOL ABUSE GAMBLING Using stimulating drugs such as amphetamines or cocaine synthetically raises the amount of dopamine in the brain, producing a short-lived artificial high. EXTREME SPORTS ADDICTION LEADS TO PROGRESSION THE ENDLESS PURSUIT... * Sensation seekers can become addicted to the "high" they get from the adrenaline and dopamine rush. This addiction drives them to chase the next high repeatedly. * Tolerance builds as the body gets used to the same rush over and over, which is why extreme sports athletes are constantly pushing the envelope and upping the ante. "You need risk to trigger reward and the body gets used to risk. In other words, just like drug addicts who need to take more and more of a substance to get back to the level of high they desire, action sports addicts need to up their danger quotient to achieve the same effect." -Dr. Greg Berns, M.D., Ph.D., Professor of Neuroeconomics at Emory University THE SEARCH FOR THE NEXT BIG THING, THE NEVER BEEN DONE BEFORE TRICK, IS WHAT DRIVES THE CONSTANT PROGRESSION OF EXTREME SPORTS A FEW EXAMPLES... THEN NOW fmx 2X WHAT'S NEXT Ist Backflip Double Backflip 2006 2002 skydiving WIHAT'S NEXT Became a sport BASE Jumping Wing Suit Flying 128,000 ft. jump mid-1950's 2012 snowhoarding Double Alley-Oop Rodeo & Double McTwist 1260 2012 McTwists & 1080's 720's & 900's 1998 2005 3.5x SPINS 2x FLIPS WHAT'S NEXT 15 IL 11.5 t HALFPIPE WALL HEIGHTS HALFPIPE TRICKS & AIR HEIGHT WITH EXTREME SPORTS ATHLETES CONTINUING TO CHASE THE ELUSIVE HIGH AND PUSH THE BOUNDARIES, IT'S NO WONDER WE VE SEEN THE TRICKS BECOME INSANELY MORE TECHNICAL AND THE LEVEL OF RISK RAPIDLY INCREASING. WE CAN ONLY WONDER, WHERE WILL THE EXTREME SPORTS ADDICTION TAKE US NEXT? SOURCES KRUSH K http://www.jneurosci.org http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/7802751.stm https://dana.org/media/detail.aspx?id=23620 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2748420/pdf/nihms85634.pdf https://dana.org/media/detail.aspx?id=23620 http://www.accessmylibrary.com/article-1G1-177868123/action-sports-participation-consumer.html http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1869106,00.html?iref=werecommend?id=perma_share http://www.livestrong.com/article/532699-dopamine-sports/ http://news.vanderbilt.edu/2008/12/risk-takers-drug-abusers-driven-by-decreased-ability-to-process-dopamine-69546/ -seekers-chasing-a-craving/ w.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-playing-field/200803/the-addicitve-nature-adrenaline-sport .ca/2012/01/thrill- http://www. http://www. http://www.summitpost.org/living-on-the-edge-extreme-sports-and-their-role-in-society/214107 http://www.dailycamera.com/ci_13126284 http://www.springerlink.com/content/j7578873352trx0g/ http://www.webmd.com/fitness-exercise/features/extreme-sports-whats-appeal?page=2 .charlatan.

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The Extreme Sports Addiction [Infographic]

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What is it that drives risk-takers to pursue dangerous situations willingly and repeatedly? Who are they and what makes them keep going back for more?

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A Pennsylvania man says his emotional support alligator helps him deal with his depression.

This is Wally, a five-foot long alligator.

And 65-year-old Joie Henney says despite being cold-blooded, Wally likes to snuggle and give hugs.

The man says he didn't want to go on medication for depression, so his doctor allowed him to register Wally for emotional support.

According to Henney, the four-year-old gator has never bitten anyone and is even afraid of cats.

And just like a dog, Wally frequently goes out for meet-and-greets at places like senior centers and minor-league baseball games.

The reptile was rescued from outside Orlando at 14 months old and is still growing.

He could be 16 feet long one day.

Henney says Wally eats chicken wings and shares an indoor plastic pond with a smaller rescue alligator named "Scrappy."

He also acknowledged his pet is still a dangerous wild animal but says he's never been afraid.

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COLD-BLOODED COMFORT: Meet Wally, the emotional support alligator

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The five-foot long reptile helps his owner deal with depression.

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Pros and Cons of Keeping Wild Animals as Pets

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Pros and Cons of Keeping Wild Animals as Pets

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You know all those people that told you that video games are bad for you? They were wrong. Read this to find out more.

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How did a quiet 16th birthday celebration turn into a full-scale riot? Read this to find out what happened when a Dutch teenager made a Facebook error.

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Pros and Cons of Technology in Classrooms

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Pros and Cons of Technology in Classrooms

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Technology in education is the biggest change in teaching we will ever see. For years, policy makers, teachers, parents and students alike have been weighing the potential benefits of technology in education against its risks and consequences.

Prior to March 2020, some would say that technology allowed you to experiment in pedagogy, democratize the classroom and reach Generation Z students. Others may have argued that technology in the classroom could promote cheating. But after 2020, technology in education has become essential-especially as the COVID-19 pandemic forced higher ed and public schools to swap face-to-face instruction for distance learning.

Below, we share 20 best practices for using technology in the classroom-and offer workable solutions that will help you meet the needs of your students. You can also download our free guide, which highlights how five acclaimed educators use technology to help their students excel in any course.

How technology can support learning outcomes for today's students

Students are digital natives. They've grown up with technology; it's woven into their lives. In fact, it's one of the basic 21st-century skills that they'll need in school and the workplace.

Technology integration in the classroom now begins during elementary school and carries through to high school and higher education. But using computer technology in the classroom isn't just about digital devices in class-it relates to anything that facilitates an interaction between teacher and student. Technology in education programs could be seen as a culprit, or it could be harnessed to improve student engagement and effectiveness-and that's what we'll discuss below.

"Digital education is generating new learning opportunities as students engage in online, digital environments and as faculty change educational practices through the use of hybrid courses, personalized instruction, new collaboration models and a wide array of innovative, engaging learning strategies," says David Goodrum, Director of Academic Technology and Information Services at Oregon State University.

"Furthermore, a 21st century view of learner success requires students to not only be thoughtful consumers of digital content, but effective and collaborative creators of digital media, demonstrating competencies and communicating ideas through dynamic storytelling, data visualization and content curation," Goodrum says.

Types of classroom technology

Education technology allows you to engage, interact with, and inspire students in and out of your class. Plus, certain types of technology tools like podcasts or video streaming platforms can help meet the unique learning styles of your cohort. Many of the technologies below are used to operate online education programs-including lectures, labs, group meetings or class tutorials. Plenty of higher education institutions have already integrated some of the following technology tools into their degree programs today.

Learning management systems (LMS) such as Canvas, Moodle and Blackboard allow you to manage courses, assign homework and tests, and track student grades.

Digital courseware such as ebook products by Pearson, McGraw-Hill and Macmillan can be used to create and distribute teaching resources (such as textbooks or question packs) to students as a way to create engaging homework experiences.

Classroom response systems including iClicker and Poll Everywhere help students reflect on their learning via polls or discussions in class.

Virtual classroom tools like Microsoft Teams and Zoom are used to host synchronous online lectures and let participants engage in breakout rooms or 'share their screen' with one another.

Remote proctoring software like Proctorio and Honorlock help maintain academic integrity by monitoring student behavior during tests and flag behavior indicative of cheating.

This article looks at the pros and cons of using technology in the classroom. We'll also share the advantages and disadvantages of technology in the classroom when incorporating new digital teaching and assessment techniques into your lesson plans.

8 pros and cons of using technology for student engagement

The pros:

1. Technology in the classroom helps ensure full participation

Online polling and other digital tools help to engage all students, including shy students who wouldn't normally raise their hands in class. Online engagement systems allow you to regularly check in with students for feedback on course materials and assignments. Student insights can also be used to help spot areas where learners might be struggling.

Student response systems help learners measure their understanding of a topic while professors can see what areas they need to review. For instance, iClicker offers questions that may be multiple choice or true or false. Students are then asked to identify a correct answer to a question in exchange for participation points from a professor. Clickers, virtual classroom software and assessment platforms like Socrative or Kahoot! can make for great engagement tools for educators looking to enhance their lectures. Student response systems help foster digital citizenship in the classroom and give students an opportunity to engage in class and get rewarded for it at the same time.

Another active learning technique that education technology can facilitate is offering students quizzes (not for credit). At the beginning of the class, students can gauge familiarity with a subject by taking a quick, anonymous quiz on the topic you're teaching-and this can also inform and direct what you need to focus on. At the end of the class, facilitating the same quiz again allows all students to gauge what they do and don't understand.

2. Using technology in the classroom allows you to experiment more in pedagogy and get instant feedback

Technology allows for more active learning. You can increase engagement through online polling or asking quiz questions during online lectures, with instantaneous results. If you're using a digital textbook, subject matter is dynamic and timely with embedded links to relevant materials or immersive multimedia.

Whether adding a single tool for a specific project or term, or making a more dramatic change such as a flipped classroom, being well-versed in technology can help build credibility with students and even fellow colleagues. Video conferencing software, live polls and discussion boards are all ways to form feedback loops with your students. An LMS such as Moodle and polling software like Poll Everywhere can also help educators get an instant understanding of student comprehension.

3. There are countless resources for enhancing education and making learning more fun and effective

From apps and e-textbooks to organizational platforms, there's no shortage of tools that can transform the classroom. Some instructors are turning toward classroom 'gamification,' the use of competitive scenarios, and the distribution of points and rewards to make the online classroom more fun and engaging. The key to ensuring these methods are also effective is designing them to support your course learning objectives. Digital storytelling, where students use simulations to immerse themselves in a fictional environment, can make learning more exciting and relatable for students. Gamification also allows for interactive lessons and can reduce passivity in the classroom.

Some gamification activities introduce healthy competition to your class. In role play, for example, students are asked to pose arguments on behalf of historical figures. Technology can greatly aid the implementation of classroom games, while students may be incentivized to complete their assessments. Blended learning can also play an effective role here, whereby student curriculum is partially delivered in person and partially via digital means.

4. Technology makes it simple for students to collaborate and engage in group work outside of class

Gone are the days when one student was tasked with creating a PowerPoint presentation for a group. Through technology, students can start working on a project together in class and seamlessly collaborate, communicate and bounce ideas off one another using social media, interactive whiteboards and more. Physical and social barriers no longer exist, letting students work together from anywhere and at any time. Technology has also enabled students to engage in spontaneous discussions and find instant answers to problems or questions they may have about a topic.

The cons:

5. Technology in the classroom can be a distraction

Tech savvy students may find it hard to concentrate in class when a wide range of digital devices are around them. It can be hard to keep students' attention while lecturing behind a screen, but James Lang, Professor of English and the Director of the D'Amour Center for Teaching Excellence at Assumption College, has a solution. Lang argues that change renews attention-meaning that if students are starting to tune out, it's time to incorporate opportunities for class discussions. Lang calls these moments 'signature attention activities' as they are designed to spark engagement in the midst of a slump.

Matthew Numer, an assistant professor in the School of Health and Human Performance at Dalhousie University, says in an article for The Chronicle of Higher Education that banning laptops is an "insult" to students. "Our students are capable of making their own choices, and if they choose to check Snapchat instead of listening to your lecture, then that's their loss. Besides, it's my responsibility as an educator to ensure that my lecture is compelling. If my students aren't paying attention, if they're distracted, that's on me." To Numer, students glancing at their mobile devices may indicate that a course's curriculum and instruction needs to be revamped.

This makes the notion of creating a structure and culture of respect all the more important from day one. Identify specific projects, opportunities for breaks and your intentions for participation and engagement using technology in the classroom. Creating expectations and guidelines for students-and sticking to them-will be important for them in respecting your boundaries.

6. Technology can disconnect students from social interactions

Many people are skeptical of technology and what it does to students', and everyone else's, ability to verbally communicate.

By creating assignments in class that use both technological tools as well as oral presentations and group collaboration, student learning has the potential to become more dynamic and interactive. Participation can also go beyond verbal communication. Consider how your LMS, discussion board or live chat can be leveraged to increase student engagement.

7. Technology can foster cheating in class and on assignments

Students have always found ways to cheat, but the digital age makes it even easier-from copying-and-pasting someone else's work to hiring an essay-writer from an online essay mill. Here, digital technology could end up hindering students' professional development.

While technology could be seen as yet another avenue for cheating, it's possible to structure assignments and exams in a way that makes cheating difficult. Alternatively, you can make exams open-book and focus on problem-solving and mastery rather than retention. Some classroom software allows you to set questions that are subtly different for every student, making them focus on the technique rather than the answer. Ed tech software such as Turnitin is already well-established in most higher education settings. With COVID-19, some institutions have relied on proctoring software to maintain academic integrity from a distance. These assistive tools can help professors maintain academic integrity.

8. Classroom technology doesn't necessarily make students more accountable

While it can certainly help, technology use in the classroom doesn't always mean students are more likely to stay on top of their deliverables. For example, it can be tricky to know if your students are viewing the full lecture recordings or coming to class having completed their assigned readings. Social media and other ed tech platforms don't necessarily indicate completion. Some LMS providers may show if a student has opened a file, but that only says so much. Whether students have reviewed, absorbed and are able to retain that information is a question that-like traditional learning materials-not all classroom tech can solve.

7 pros and cons of using classroom technology to increase flexibility

The pros:

9. Technology can automate a lot of your tedious tasks

Automation can speed up tedious, time-consuming tasks, such as keeping track of student attendance and performance. Engagement tools can help streamline grading for writing assignments, discussions and participation, as well as answer common student questions, which otherwise could seem daunting due to their objective nature.

The canonical example of this? One professor at Georgia Tech coded an artificially intelligent teaching assistant. ' Jill Watson' was able to answer a selection of student questions and pass any that she couldn't handle to a real person. Integrating technology in the classroom has the potential to reduce the amount of time spent on minor tasks.

10. Technology in college classrooms gives students instant access to fresh information that can supplement their learning experience

There is value in having textbooks and course materials that are always up to date, which can even include additions suggested by students. This also fosters a more collaborative learning environment-students can share information, work together on group projects and interact with their instructor online. Collaboration between professors and their students is put into practice through a learning management system (LMS) such as Moodle or Blackboard, where professors upload new content for students to review online.

Educational technology enables students to engage in an ongoing cycle of learning: before, during and after class. Student response systems such as clickers can also help learners apply their understanding of concepts covered in class and can indicate areas that need to be reviewed. For Generation Z, technology is arguably the best way to meet student needs. Demian Hommel, Senior Instructor of Geography and Environmental Sciences and Marine Resource Management at Oregon State University, uses a classroom response system to poll students every few minutes during lectures. "Using technology to help students understand the trends and patterns that are going to affect them is transformative," he says.

"Using technology to help students understand the trends and patterns that are going to affect them is transformative." -Professor Demian Hommel

11. Students have the choice to learn in real time or at their own pace

Using technology in the classroom has given students more choice in, and control over, their learning experiences. Learning tools have also given professors the flexibility in how to deliver their lectures or labs. For instance, students can tune into live-streamed lectures hosted at a specific time, while others can view lecture recordings on their own if they're unable to attend a live session. Plus, real-time lessons in online learning can help students feel a great sense of belonging and camaraderie that would otherwise be lost.

Asynchronous learning provides a new level of flexibility for both students and educators. For example, instead of waiting for students to show up at your office, host your office hours via Zoom and let your students know that they're free to drop by during a given time frame. Additionally, technology can be used to help students take asynchronous tests. Just make a test available on your LMS for a 48-hour period so that students can take their assessment at a time and place that works for them.

12. Address the Universal Design for Learning (UDL) guidelines with thoughtful technology use

Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is a framework for ensuring your course delivery meets the needs of all students. It's the ultimate way to provide flexibility in how, when and where learning takes place. The three tenets of this framework are providing multiple means of engagement, representation and expression.

In order to represent content in a variety of ways, you might consider complementing a textbook reading with a podcast. Alternatively, multiple ways of expressing students' understanding could mean offering students learning opportunities through journal articles or video reflections. Finally, multiple forms of engagement might mean gauging students' interests at the start of the term through icebreakers or a student interest inventory-and then use these insights to tailor your units of study accordingly.

The cons:

13. Lesson planning might become more labor-intensive with technology

The task of adapting technology into your classroom can seem daunting or overwhelming. In many ways though, using technology can become as natural to you as any daily activity.

When you're choosing classroom technology, it's important to engage with the software vendor and make sure you have the appropriate level of support in place. Some questions you should ask include whether they supply training or onboarding, and what their reliability statistics and support functions are. After all, you don't need to be the person all the students come to if the technology goes offline.

The most important factor is to allow yourself time to learn how to use a new ed tech tool and make sure you ask for, and receive, the support that you need.

14. Students don't have equal access to technological resources

An online education should be accessible to students. But some students can't afford iPads or even the textbooks required for class. Others simply do not have reliable Internet access. Point these students in the direction of your institution's library or community resources, or create assignments that allow them to work in groups and share resources. You might also consider using open educational resources (OER), which provide a cost-effective alternative to the traditional college textbook. Don't make technology the focus of your class, and don't make it a barrier. Incorporate it in a holistic and inclusive manner-and ensure you do your part to find equitable learning solutions.

15. Technology in education can create privacy concerns

Video conferencing or web-hosting solutions have brought with them some concerns around data protection. For example, do platforms offer end-to-end encryption in basic plans provided to students? Social media handles set up as part of a tutorial or learning activity can also lead to student information being accessed by a wider audience than intended. What's more, Zoombombing-disruptive intrusions into a video conference call-became a common occurrence during the COVID-19 pandemic.

And though they maintain academic integrity, remote proctoring solutions can make test-takers feel uncomfortable. Students may not want to have their homes shown in front of a proctor and being monitored can increase stress and anxiety.

5 pros and cons of using technology to aid instructional design

The pros:

16. We live in a digital world, and technology is an essential life skill

Being digitally literate is more than obtaining "isolated technological skills," according to the NMC Horizon Report: 2017 Higher Education Edition. Rather, it's about "generating a deeper understanding of the digital environment, enabling intuitive adaptation to new contexts and [the] co-creation of content with others." Here, the traditional whiteboard is almost extinct, while technology has never been more essential in the virtual classroom. Creating presentations, learning to differentiate reliable from unreliable sources on the Internet and maintaining proper online netiquette are all vital skills that students will learn to develop in the classroom.

Technology use can also help universities deliver a better return on the investment students pay for their education-as well as make learning relevant to a primarily Generation Z audience. Mobile technology in classrooms is a must-have if students want to be prepared for almost any career today. Student achievement may be boosted if they have the means to continue working on projects outside of the classroom.

17. Classroom technology is a cost-effective alternative to traditional course materials

Technology can help save students hundreds during a semester. Rather than asking students to buy a copy of five different textbooks, some professors might want to direct students to their institution's library or adopt open source textbooks.

Using technology in the classroom has its benefits for the environment as well. Institutions can reduce the amount they spend on ink and paper by distributing important documents in a centralized digital location. As opposed to asking students to buy a print book from your campus bookstore, authoring your own digital, interactive book can help students save big. Katie Thompson-Laswell, Senior Instructor of Human Development and Family Science at Kansas State University, was able to save her students $70 on course materials in the spring 2019 semester. Two years later, new cohorts of students continue to enjoy a low-cost, interactive homework experience from anywhere.

The cons:

18. The quality of research and sources students find may not be credible

The Internet is a blessing and a curse. Your students may need guidance on identifying legitimate and unreliable sources. Many colleges have writing centers that can help with this. You can also use OER-ranging from lecture notes, examinations, assignments and textbooks-and adapt them to fit the needs of your course and students. How can you tell if content is written by a competent authority? Use these tips to find effective OERs. Top Hat's Catalog-filled with hundreds of low-cost, interactive textbooks-is also a reliable source of OER you can use, regardless of your discipline or teaching modality.

19. Some classroom technologies could eventually replace professors

Classroom technology has helped position educators as a 'guide on the side' versus a 'sage on the stage.' But that shift in the role that professors play has the potential to put them on the sidelines-especially with online learning. Technology has automated many learning processes such as grading. With asynchronous online learning especially, it's possible that students could now have little-to-no interactions with their educators compared to their experiences in the traditional classroom.

Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs), which prioritize unlimited participation and open access, let students gain an unrestricted learning experience without a professor present. Platforms like Coursera let students watch on-demand video lectures from leading universities and companies for a fraction of the cost of a university degree. These platforms even offer selective degree and certificate programs. Other platforms like LinkedIn Learning prioritize skill-based learning, which allows students to complete courses or learning modules at their own pace-without the guidance of an instructor.

20. Institutions' lack of IT support can make it challenging to evaluate and implement new classroom technologies

Where do you begin if you're new to teaching? Educators may understandably feel overwhelmed when adopting new tools and platforms to meet the needs of their Generation Z students. While colleges may have a site-wide license for a particular LMS, educators are often left to their own resources to decide how to bring their material to life. Depending on the scale and quality of instructional design services offered at their institution, this can be a lengthy and uneasy process.

How classroom technology can help you meet your teaching goals next semester

This past academic year has highlighted the essential role that technology plays in student learning. No matter where you're teaching next semester, the best practices for using classroom technology below can help make your course more engaging, interactive and active. For additional advice, download our free guide on how to effectively use technology in your next face-to-face, hybrid or online classroom.

Eliminate distractions in class

1. Use frequent polls to make sure students pay attention-and to hold them accountable
2. Begin lessons with a game or icebreaker to encourage focus and collaboration from the start of class

Allow students to learn at their own pace

1. Adopt a flipped classroom model where students can view lecture modules and complete quizzes in advance of live lectures
2. Complement live activities with self-paced exercises such as blog posts or video journal responses, which students can share in your LMS

Create a classroom environment where students feel comfortable speaking out

1. Incorporate an anonymous discussion board during in-class polls
2. Ask your teaching assistants to respond to, and acknowledge, students' contributions in and out of class

Help students stay accountable for their learning outside of your classroom

1. Adopt or author your own digital interactive textbook that includes comprehension questions throughout
2. Keep a digital repository of discussion board prompts or quiz questions and re-quiz students on these concepts in future homework assignments to check for subject mastery

Provide instant feedback on student performance

1. Consider employing low-stakes, multiple choice quizzes that can be auto-graded
2. Grade assignments using a built-in rubric in your LMS and provide personalized feedback upon student request

Technology in the classroom: The final verdict

It's clear that the benefits of technology in the classroom outweigh the cons. But the key to technology in the classroom is always going to be the teacher-student relationship, because that's where the education happens. Technology can be a highly effective tool, but that's all it is-a tool. In today's hyper-connected world, sensible use of technology can enhance education. By using technology as an aid in the classroom, educators can create memorable and impactful learning outcomes for their diverse group of college students. For best practices on how to integrate technology in your classroom next semester, download our free guide packed with tips and tools five professors have used to give their course delivery a boost.

References

1. Kelly, R. (2018, January 11). 7 Ed Tech Trends to Watch in 2018. https://campustechnology.com/Articles/2018/01/11/7-Ed-Tech-Trends-to-Watch-in-2018.aspx?Page=1

2. Dhami, H. (2020, August 13). James Lang's Distracted: Why Students Can't Focus and What You Can Do About It. [Blog post]. https://tophat.com/blog/james-lang-distracted/

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How to Take Advantage of Ed Tech In The Classroom | Top Hat

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Get best practices for enhancing technology in your classroom. Plus, download Top Hat's free guide to make ed tech tools work for your course.

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It is important to acknowledge that students are already interested and engaged in using technology, this creates many amazing opportunities for schools and teachers to benefit from integrating some forms of technology in the classroom and to make teaching and learning more effective. Here are some of the main benefits of using technology in the classroom. Improves engagement
When technology is integrated into lessons, students are expected to be more interested in the subjects they are studying. Technology provides different opportunities to make learning more fun and enjoyable in terms of teaching same things in new ways. For instance, delivering teaching through gamification, taking students on virtual field trips and using other online learning resources. What is more, technology can encourage a more active participation in the learning process which can be hard to achieve through a traditional lecture environment.
Improves knowledge retention
Students who are engaged and interested in things they are studying, are expected to have a better knowledge retention. As mentioned before, technology can help to encourage active participation in the classroom which also is a very important factor for increased knowledge retention. Different forms of technology can be used to experiment with and decide what works best for students in terms of retaining their knowledge.
Encourages individual learning
No one learns in the same way because of different learning styles and different abilities. Technology provides great opportunities for making learning more effective for everyone with different needs. For example, students can learn at their own speed, review difficult concepts or skip ahead if they need to. What is more, technology can provide more opportunities for struggling or disabled students. Access to the Internet gives students access to a broad range of resources to conduct research in different ways, which in turn can increase the engagement.
Encourages collaboration
Students can practice collaboration skills by getting involved in different online activities. For instance, working on different projects by collaborating with others on forums or by sharing documents on their virtual learning environments. Technology can encourage collaboration with students in the same classroom, same school and even with other classrooms around the world.
Students can learn useful life skills through technology
By using technology in the classroom, both teachers and students can develop skills essential for the 21st century. Students can gain the skills they will need to be successful in the future. Modern learning is about collaborating with others, solving complex problems, critical thinking, developing different forms of communication and leadership skills, and improving motivation and productivity. What is more, technology can help develop many practical skills, including creating presentations, learning to differentiate reliable from unreliable sources on the Internet, maintaining proper online etiquette, and writing emails. These are very important skills that can be developed in the classroom.
Benefits for teachers
With countless online resources, technology can help improve teaching. Teachers can use different apps or trusted online resources to enhance the traditional ways of teaching and to keep students more engaged. Virtual lesson plans, grading software and online assessments can help teachers save a lot time. This valuable time can be used for working with students who are struggling. What is more, having virtual learning environments in schools enhances collaboration and knowledge sharing between teachers.
To learn more about different ways of incorporating technology in the classroom, visit the Webanywhere website.

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Top 6 Benefits of Technology in the Classroom - Advancing Education

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Explore the top 6 benefits of technology in the classroom. Enhance your teaching methods with School Jotter.

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When he was a kid, Alex Vardakostas helped out in his parents' restaurant. "As soon as standing on top of a milk crate made me tall enough to reach the counter, I was making sodas for customers," he told TIME for Kids. Before long, Vardakostas was working the grill alongside adult employees. He estimates he's flipped 50,000 burgers.

Now, Vardakostas co-owns a burger joint. It's a restaurant called Creator, in San Francisco, California. But he doesn't stand over a grill flipping burgers. Neither do his employees.

VCG/GETTY IMAGES

At Creator, burgers are cooked and assembled by machine. Vardakostas a device. It grinds meat, cuts vegetables, grates cheese, and applies seasonings. The end result tastes just as good as-or better than-a burger made by hand. It costs less, too. That's because it's less expensive to the machine than to pay a kitchen full of employees.

Robo-Workers

Creator is just one example of a growing trend: is taking over many jobs. That means work is done by machines or computers, not people.

THOSSAPHOL-GETTY IMAGES

According to a 2017 report from McKinsey Global Institute, between 400 million and 800 million people could be forced out of jobs by 2030. McKinsey predicts that as technology improves, some tasks will be done more quickly or cheaply by machine. So businesses will install robots or computer programs to perform them. That means there will be less work for human employees. Many people could lose their jobs. Or they might have trouble finding new ones.

"There's going to be a big disruption in the next 10 or 20 years," says Martin Ford. He is an author and futurist. That is someone who studies trends and makes predictions about the future.

KIM KULISH-CORBIS/GETTY IMAGES

A Human Touch

Some jobs are more likely to be automated than others. Machines can do jobs that have three qualities: they are routine, repetitive, and predictable. "It's the kind of job where you come to work and work on the same kind of thing again and again," Ford says. Some of these jobs pay low wages and require little education. But others pay well and demand an advanced college degree. Taxi drivers, cashiers, lawyers, and doctors all perform some tasks that can be done by machines.

FRANCOIS GUILLOT-AFP/GETTY IMAGES

So what human jobs are safe? "Anything where you're thinking outside the box and coming up with new ideas," Ford says. "Or things that involve interacting with other people, having , and building relationships." Jobs in engineering, science, the arts, therapy, and nursing are examples.

Stop & Think! How does the writer help a reader visualize robots at work? How does word choice affect a reader's response to the topic?
Assessment: Click for a printable quiz. Teacher subscribers can find the answer key in this week's Teacher's Guide.

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When he was a kid, Alex Vardakostas helped out in his parents' restaurant. "As soon as standing on top of a milk crate made me tall enough to reach the counter, I was making sodas for customers," he told TIME...

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Newsela | Instructional Content Platform

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Newsela is an Instructional Content Platform that supercharges reading engagement and learning in every subject.

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Opinion: Why these friendly robots can't be good friends to our kids

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Opinion: Why these friendly robots can't be good friends to our kids

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Newsela | Instructional Content Platform

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Newsela is an Instructional Content Platform that supercharges reading engagement and learning in every subject.

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Robot helpers stand in for kids who are sick

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Robot helpers stand in for kids who are sick

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Newsela | Instructional Content Platform

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Newsela is an Instructional Content Platform that supercharges reading engagement and learning in every subject.

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Cell Phones at School: Should They Be Allowed?

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Cell Phones at School: Should They Be Allowed?

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We’ve created the ultimate pros and cons list to help you decide if cell phones should be allowed at school. Are cell phones good to have in the classroom?

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You love your video games, but how much is too much? Find out in this article for kids.

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The popular social app TikTok is in big trouble. It’s just been hit with a fine for not protecting the privacy of its younger users.

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Czech zoo cheers birth of endangered eastern black rhino

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Czech zoo cheers birth of endangered eastern black rhino

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Newsela | Instructional Content Platform

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Newsela is an Instructional Content Platform that supercharges reading engagement and learning in every subject.

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Is Florida's panther release program working?

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Is Florida's panther release program working?

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Newsela is an Instructional Content Platform that supercharges reading engagement and learning in every subject.

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Costa Rica To Close Its Zoos And Release Animals Into The Wild

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Costa Rica To Close Its Zoos And Release Animals Into The Wild

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Costa Rica To Close Its Zoos And Release Animals Into The Wild

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The silky anteater, shown here, could be climbing trees in its native forests soon.

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Zoo kills a giraffe and many ask: Was there another way?

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Zoo kills a giraffe and many ask: Was there another way?

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Newsela | Instructional Content Platform

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Newsela is an Instructional Content Platform that supercharges reading engagement and learning in every subject.

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Owl attacks on Dutch town- Residents in the northern Dutch town of Purmerend have been advised to take umbrellas out at night after a series of attacks by an owl. Dozens of residents have suffered head injuries over the past three weeks because of a European eagle owl. Two runners were attacked on Tuesday, with one requiring stitches for five separate head wounds. The European eagle owl's usual prey are small mammals and birds. One of the sites of the attacks has been a home for the disabled. A Spokeswoman for the home said that residents and workers had suffered at least 15 separate attacks by the nocturnal bird, which remains still on site. During the day there is no problem for the town, but at night people now only go outside armed with umbrellas, helmets and hats, to protect themselves.

Animals rescued from overcrowded zoo in Mexico- More than 100 animals have been rescued from an overcrowded private zoo in Mexico, after complaints from visitors. Mexican environmental officials raided the zoo after many visitors had complained about the potential danger. The officials found overcrowded and cramped cages piled on top of each other and unsafe conditions for visitors. Among the animals rescued were lions, tigers, jaguars, pumas, bears, buffalos and camels. The zoo in Tehuacan in the south east of Mexico City is owned by Sergio Gomez (senior Mexican politician). Officials said they had seized 101 of the 240 animals held at the zoo.their hands into the cages. However the officials say they are trying their hardest to find suitable homes for the animals.

The animals were kept in terrible and unsafe conditions and lacked proper care and had no proper ventilation, the animals were cramped together which was making the animals aggressive. Visitors were also not properly protected and said that they could insert

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Designing zoo habitats that promote animal well-being

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Designing zoo habitats that promote animal well-being

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No longer are zoo habitats with green tile walls and floors, looking more like a large bathroom than an animal's natural environment, the norm. Today, many zoologic institutions strive to create habitats for their collections that are hospitable and stimulating.

In his Oct. 11 AVMA Animal Welfare Forum presentation, "Steering the ark toward Eden: facility design for animal well-being," zoo design expert Jon C. Coe explained how zoological habitats can enhance animals' lives.

In the 1970s, large, lushly landscaped displays modeled after natural settings replaced the sterile, tiled enclosures. The shift toward naturalistic settings was followed by a rather hands-off approach to husbandry. Naturalistic displays were considered by many to be stimulating enough for the captive animals.

Coe noted that, although this approach worked well, it did not stop animals from growing bored with their environment. Boredom can have harmful effects, he added.

"Some people think the key to zoo animal welfare is to provide large, natural enclosures," said Coe, senior principal at CLR Design in Philadelphia. "An exhibit may look great, but it isn't doing much for the animal unless it also incorporates a choice of behavioral opportunities, variety, and novelty."

Behavioral and physical problems were once thought to be unrelated to an animal's environment. Yet there is growing evidence of a link between these problems and a lack of physical activity and inhospitable habitats. Research has also shown that providing captive animals with choices through an enriched environment lowers stress levels.

Several zoo exhibits over this past decade have done just that. The Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle and Sea World Florida allow some of their animals to search for and catch their food. Orangutans at the National Zoological Park in Washington, D.C., are able to travel across the zoo on overhead ropes to visit friends and potential mates.

One recent innovation brought to the United States from Europe is the rotating exhibit. In traditional displays, animals might spend their entire lives in the same space. The rotation concept allows the animals to visit several areas each day. Gorillas at the Louisville Zoo, for instance, can choose between large, naturalistic outdoor habitats or a circular arrangement of indoor rooms.

Rotation exhibits are in the works at zoos in California, Washington state, and Sydney, Australia.

Stimulating environments enhance animal well-being by promoting activity and curiosity, resulting in improved physical and mental fitness. These exhibits aren't inexpensive, however, because additional staff with greater expertise are needed, and mechanical failure is a risk. But the benefits to animal well-being far outweigh the costs, according to Coe.

In addition, zoos in Honolulu and Australia are planning elephant exhibits featuring large pools in which the animals can participate in low impact aerobic exercise.

Coe advocates more research into these activity-based zoo exhibits to more accurately assess their effects on animal health and well-being. He envisions the next stage in the evolution of zoologic designs to be when the "monkeys really do run the monkey house."

In today's paradigm, animals are entirely dependent upon their human keepers. Yet for millions of years, ancestors of today's captive animals prospered in a world of fierce competition. Indeed, it has been demonstrated that captive primates can lower their stress levels by taking control of the situation.

Coe is looking forward to the day when captive species can acquire their food through foraging or simulated hunting, and can customize their own environments, as when bears and elephants trigger fans or cooling showers without the aid of their human keepers.

These kinds of environments, Coe noted, will have their greatest applicability in wildlife sanctuaries and those institutions that reintroduce animals into the wild.

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Designing zoo habitats that promote animal well-being

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Many zoologic institutions strive to create habitats for their collections that are hospitable and stimulating.

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Costa Rica Closes Zoos—Where Will the Animals Go?

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Costa Rica Closes Zoos—Where Will the Animals Go?

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Explore National Geographic. A world leader in geography, cartography and exploration.

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Zoos step in to help save wild animals around the world

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Zoos step in to help save wild animals around the world

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Newsela | Instructional Content Platform

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Newsela is an Instructional Content Platform that supercharges reading engagement and learning in every subject.

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Zoos: An Idea Whose Time Has Come and Gone

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Zoos: An Idea Whose Time Has Come and Gone

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Animals in Entertainment: Circuses, SeaWorld, and Beyond | PETA

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Animals in entertainment suffer immensely. Find out how PETA is putting an end to elephant rides, horseraces, roadside zoos, and safari parks.

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Williamson high school students pitch exhibit to zoo

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Williamson high school students pitch exhibit to zoo

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The Nashville Zoo was pitched a new idea for an exhibit, thanks to 19 Williamson County high school students.

The students, who are involved in the ACE (architecture, construction or engineering) Mentor Program, presented the plan for a native Tennessee wildlife exhibit to Dale McGinnity, curator of Ectotherms, at the Nashville Zoo on April 22.

"If the Zoo goes forward with their concept, the thinking these young professionals-to-be have done, as well as the detailed preliminary narratives, site plans and 3-D model they've created, will hopefully help better refine the educational exhibit and aid in securing the funds necessary to build it," team leader Brittany Shepherd, an estimating engineer with Turner Construction Company and representative of the Nashville ACE affiliate, said in a prepared statement.

The Tennessee Aquatic Conservation Center would provide a look at the state's wildlife before European immigrants arrived and focus on endangered species. It would also include a facility for breeding and scientific studies, and be open for patrons to view.

The team included Lukas Barr, Jonathon Cole, Ryley Fodra, Stedman Howard, Claudia Santiago, Elijah Slaughter, Seth Thomason and Cross Yang of Independence High School; Nicholas Buhl, A.J. Fekete and William Woods of Centennial High School; Matthew Crispi of Summit High School; Lillian Powell of Page High School; and Jack Butler, Kyra Frank, Jacob Hunter, Francis Nunez, Austin Pytleski and Matthew Yeomans of Franklin High School.

Mentor companies were Turner Construction, Envision Advantage, Johnson Johnson Crabtree Architects, Littlejohn and Stanley D. Lindsey & Associates.

For more information about the ACE Mentor Program, visit www.acementor.org.

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Williamson high school students pitch exhibit to zoo

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Williamson high school students pitched an idea for an exhibit to the Nashville Zoo.

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Opinion: The voice missing from the elephant trophy debate? Africans.

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Opinion: The voice missing from the elephant trophy debate? Africans.

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Newsela | Opinion: The voice missing from the elephant trophy debate? Africans

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Africans need a seat at table of elephant trophy hunting debate

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Curious Kids is a series by The Conversation, which gives children of all ages the chance to have their questions about the world answered by experts. All questions are welcome: you or an adult can send them - along with your name, age and town or city where you live - to curiouskids@theconversation.com. We won't be able to answer every question, but we'll do our best. Is global warming heating up the Earth? - Raphael, aged 11, Auckland, New Zealand.
The simple answer to this important question is "yes".

We know that both the planet's air and its oceans have been getting warmer over the last 100 years or more. We know this because it has been measured directly, by weather scientists called "meteorologists".

Almost all parts of the world have reliable weather records going back many years. These records have been used for a long time to describe and explain what "normal" weather is like around the world. But more recently, they have shown how "normal" weather has changed over time.

The new normal

Of course, the weather changes a lot naturally; from season to season, and day to day. But we know what sort of patterns to expect. For example, we know it's cold in winter and warm in summer.

These patterns are what we call the "climate": normal weather, plus its daily and seasonal differences.

So when scientists talk about "climate change", they mean important and out-of-the-ordinary changes to normal weather. This includes extreme weather like storms, floods, droughts and heatwaves happening more often.

The weather records tell us that the 20 warmest years on record all happened in the past 22 years. They also tell us that no one under the age of 34 has lived through a single month which was colder than "normal".

The obvious question is: why is this happening? Scientists know that the Earth has gone through periods long ago when it's been warmer or cooler than it is now. But the chances of the recent run of warm years happening naturally is very, very small.

We know that, because it's never been measured before: the last 30 years has probably been the warmest period of the last 1,400 years.

The only way to explain the steady warming of the past century, and especially the faster warming in the past 30 years, is through the effect of human activity.

Burning up

Fuels such as coal and oil are burned to power cars, trucks, trains and aeroplanes; to run offices, farms and factories; to heat and light homes.

These fuels are made from a material called carbon, and when they are burned, they make a gas called carbon dioxide. This gas escapes into the atmosphere and stays there for a long time, maybe even hundreds of years.

Science experiments have shown that this carbon dioxide gas is good at trapping heat, so when there's more of it in the air, the world warms up. About half of all the carbon dioxide that's ever come from burning carbon fuels was created in the last 30 years, which is also when the fastest warming has happened.

A warmer world

The effects of warming temperatures can already be seen in many ways around the world. Unfortunately, most of these effects cause trouble for people.

More frequent and longer-lasting droughts and heatwaves are likely, which will make it hard for people working outside in jobs like farming or construction. And it will probably be harder to grow food crops in drier soils.

In cold places like the Arctic, the warming climate melts extra snow and ice, adding water to the oceans that will cause the sea to eat away at many coasts.

In the world's high mountain ranges, melting snow and ice make water, which flows into major rivers. But this river water will eventually be lost, as the weather gets warmer and there's less and less snow and ice.

Many of these changes will make life harder for people, who may then want or need to leave their homes and move to other places.

It's easy to feel unhappy, thinking about the effects of global warming. But it's really important to remember that the future isn't fixed: what eventually happens is up to us. If we make changes - for example, by using renewable energy and wasting less food - we can change the future for the better.
If you'd like to see Richard Hodgkins answering more questions about climate change, you can find an extended Q&A here. More Curious Kids articles, written by academic experts: Click here to subscribe to our climate action newsletter. Climate change is inevitable. Our response to it isn't.

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Curious Kids: how is global warming heating up the Earth?

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Curious Kids is a series by The Conversation, which gives children of all ages the chance to have their questions about the world answered by experts. All questions are welcome: you or an adult can send them - along with your name, age and town or city where you live - to curiouskids@theconversation.com.

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Climate change describes a change in the average conditions in a region over a long period of time.

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People are seeing change all over the world. Arctic sea ice is melting earlier and forming later. Glaciers are disappearing. Heat waves, storms and floods are becoming more extreme. Insects are emerging sooner and flowers are blooming earlier. In some places, birds are laying eggs before they're expected and bears have stopped hibernating.

So what's going on? Our planet is getting warmer, and even a small increase in temperature can change our climate. And when our climate changes, we're all affected.

A Natural Greenhouse

Earth is the only planet we know of that can support life. The reason Earth is different than the rest relies on a number of factors. We get just the right amount of energy from the sun (if we were any closer, we would burn up; if we were any further, we'd freeze). Our atmosphere is a layer of gases surrounding the Earth that absorbs ultra violet radiation and prevents temperatures from rising too high or getting too cold. The greenhouse effect is the process that causes the surface of the Earth to be warmer than it would be if we had no atmosphere. Without these three factors, most like on Earth couldn't exist.

The Greenhouse Effect

Natural Cycles

Several natural cycles of the Earth keep it and its atmosphere in perfect balance. Carbon is essential to life and the carbon cycle keeps it moving throughout all Earth's systems. Water is one of the most important things to our survival, and the water cycle keeps it moving around and around our Earth and atmosphere - even through our bodies.

Weather Versus Climate

Weather is what's happening with the atmosphere that surrounds us. It's not the same as climate, which refers to the pattern of weather we expect to see in a particular place. The weather is always driven by the sun's energy, whether it's warm outside or snowing due to the circulation of warm air to cold places and cold air to warm places by the atmosphere. This, combined with the movement of the oceans and the amount of moisture in the air creates everything from perfect sunny days to terror-filled tornadoes.

Even though the weather changes frequently, the climate of a particular place should always be about the same. In Alaska, for example, there shouldn't be any tropical-like weather. In California, it shouldn't snow too much in the winter.

The fact is, while the Earth's climate has changed many times over millions of years (ice ages, for example, happen naturally every 100,000 years or so), it really shouldn't be changing much during any one person's lifetime. We're still recovering from the last ice age, which is said to have wiped out the dinosaurs. While temperatures do rise gradually over time after an ice age, today our planet's surface temperatures seem to be rising faster now than they were 100 years ago. And this is what has many people worried.

Balancing Act

Our planet is always changing and its systems are constantly working together to keep a kind of balance. All forms of life, including humans, depend on this balance for their existence.

All living things are connected to each other in ecosystems by food chains and food webs. Plants get energy from the sun. Herbivores (species that don't eat meat) get energy by eating plants. Carnivores (that eat meat) get energy by eating herbivores. This is how energy flows through all ecosystems - starting from the sun.

When any one part of an ecosystem chain breaks, the survival of the entire system, along with every living thing that depends on it for survival, hangs in the balance. For example, if someone decides to spray a poisonous pesticide on plants to keep bugs from eating them, then lizards may accidentally ingest that poison when they eat the plants and cats may be poisoned, too, when they catch and eat the lizards. With no cats around, the rat population could explode - and rats carry diseases that are even more dangerous for humans.

Another example is when a volcano erupts. If the eruption is very big, it could do a lot of damage besides killing thousands of people. A volcanic eruption spreads huge amounts of ash and gases into the atmosphere and around the globe, which could cause temperatures worldwide to fall. And when temperatures change dramatically like this, it affects crop patterns and could lead to massive food shortages.

Temperature Rising

Whether you believe in global warming or not, the fact is that the 11 hottest years recorded in the last 100 years have all happened after 1995. The world is definitely getting warmer.

When the world's temperatures get warmer, a few things happen. The water cycle speeds up, causing more rain, droughts, wildfires and extreme heat waves. There will be more greenhouse gases in the air, as the atmosphere reaches capacity of how many gases it can absorb. Arctic ice will melt sooner and faster and won't be as thick or expensive when it reforms. The oceans will warm and cause sea levels to rise more quickly, which can cause flooding on land and water contamination. Glacier ice will melt.

Greenhouse Gases

These gases help keep the world from being too hot or too cold. But the amounts of some greenhouse gases in the atmosphere are increasing, making our planet warmer. Greenhouse gases include water vapor (mostly natural source), carbon dioxide (mostly human source), methane (mostly human source) and nitrous oxide (mostly human source).

Far North & South

The most global warming has been seen in the Earth's coldest places, like the Arctic, Antarctica, Alaska and parts of Canada, Scandinavia and Russia.

Arctic temperatures are rising twice as fast as anywhere else on Earth. There has been a huge amount of ice loss in the last 20-30 years. While some is natural, global warming seems to be the main culprit. Ice shelves that have been around for tens of thousands of years have collapsed due to lower temperatures, which causes sea levels to rise. Permafrost has started to melt, which results in forests and even towns and cities to crumble as the ground beneath them thaws.

Because the far north and south have very fragile ecosystems, when one part of the chain breaks the effects can be seen almost immediately. As the ice disappears, so are tiny sea creatures called krill are dying - and so are the many fish, birds and whales that eat them. Polar bears spend most of their time on sea ice hunting seals and other sea animals. As the ice melts, the bears' hunting season is shortened and female bears, with lowered body weights, can't seem to produce cubs. Warmer summers also mean certain pests' life cycles are longer than before. For example, the spruce bark beetle, which is only supposed to live for one summer, is now surviving for two. This tiny bug destroys an unimaginable number of trees in Arctic forests - and now it can do it two years in a row instead of just one.

Polar Bear on floating ice

The World Ocean

Most of the Earth's surface is covered by a single ocean. All forms of life - even those that don't actually live in the ocean itself - depend on it for survival. For example, our ocean helps control the Earth's temperature with its currents, by constantly keeping cold and warm water moving. Ocean water dissolves lots of substances, including carbon dioxide gas. All ocean creatures and even sea birds depend on microscopic plankton - tiny plants that take in carbon dioxide to grow - for food and survival.

But when the ocean warms (which it has been), it can't dissolve as much carbon dioxide, plankton can't survive and the currents change (which greatly affects the weather and other things on dry land). Also, the sea level rises, so certain islands that are currently above water may actually disappear in the next 100 years.

The effects of global warming on things that live in the ocean are massive. We already talked about plankton, but what about other species? Coral reefs - home to many ecosystems and living creatures - can die as water temperatures rise. Sea turtles depend on beaches to lay their eggs, but many beaches are disappearing thanks to rising sea levels. Whales, who depend on krill who depend on plankton, die. Fish stocks fall, translating into food shortages for humans.

Where is global warming going?

We All Live On Land

What changes are we seeing on land as a result of global warming? We're seeing longer periods of drought, more wildfires, growing deserts (which can't support farming), glacier melt and deforestation. In fact, every second a chunk of forest the size of a football field is cut down or burned somewhere in the world.

In terms of living things, the effects of global warming are causing huge changes and disruptions. Plants and insects are moving upward (north) and causing distress to the natural, original ecosystems of those areas. Birds are also moving further north and some are even laying their eggs earlier, which can be a problem when it's out of sync with insect hatchings (since birds are insects' main predators). The winter of 2006 was so warm that mountain bears in Spain decided not to hibernate (sleep for the winter).

And what about us humans? How does and will global warming affect us, our lives and our survival as a species? First off, all human needs fresh water to survive. But changing rainfall patterns and melting glaciers will cause severe droughts, during which crops will fail, causing huge food shortages. We can also expect more heat waves. In 2003, Europe experienced such an extreme spell of hot weather that more than 20,000 people died as a direct result of the heat. Also, mass extinction of many other species we depend on for survival will mean big trouble for humanity.

Our Energy Use

There is no doubt that it's our own fault the world's temperature is rising and global warming is happening. We depend too much on fossil fuels that release deadly amounts carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. We need to start considering alternative sources of energy quickly, like nuclear, solar and wind. We cut down trees, which use carbon dioxide in their natural life cycles, so less of the poisonous gas can be absorbed naturally.

Humans are high energy consumers. Every day, we each exhale 1 kilogram (2.2 pounds) of carbon dioxide into the air. We keep ourselves warm in cold places by burning huge amounts of fuel. We use tons of energy pumping, cleaning, heating and then disposing of water. The food we eat is a huge source of greenhouse gases: fossil fuels used in fertilizers and farm machinery, food processing, transportation, packing and cooking. Construction requires all kinds of building materials that can only be made with massive amounts of energy. Our major sources of transportation are huge consumers of energy - ships, jets and cars. Electricity isn't captured magically - it takes the burning of massive amounts of fossil fuel to convert energy into electrical current. And all the "things" in your life - clothes, cell phones, toothbrushes, etc. - are made using energy... and so are the packages all these things come in.

You CAN Help!

The problem seems so big, it may be hard for you to imagine that anything you do can really help at all. But it will. Here are some changes you can make in your life to help prevent global warming:

Plant trees

Start a seed bank (keep the seeds of many varieties of plants stored away safely)

Switch every light in your house to an energy-saving bulb

Reduce, reuse, recycle

Wear a sweater instead of turning up the heat in your house

Wear lighter clothing when it's hot instead of turning on a fan

Turn lights, computers and all your chargers off and unplug them when they're not in use

Only do full loads of laundry

Take shorter showers

Skip the car ride and use your bike, or walk or take the bus

Don't buy bottled water; drink tap water, and filter it if you like

Eat lower on the food chain (less meat) and eat fewer processed foods

Knowledge is power. Change can only happen if all of us read about, listen to and discuss what's happening in the world today.

Planet Power

If scientists are right, each one of us is at least a little bit responsible for global warming. So each of us has to decide what we're going to do about it, and what kind of world we want to live in.

Our planet has been around for almost 5 billion years. It's gone through so many changes during that time - global warming may be the Earth's next big change.

No matter what changes lie ahead, our planet isn't going anywhere. And neither are we. But what we do now could have a big effect on what our lives could be like in the near future. This is our planet - let's make sure in the future it stays as wonderful a place to live in as it is now.

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We are seeing change all over the world. Arctic sea ice is melting earlier and Glaciers are disappearing. Heat waves and storms are becoming more extreme. Learn all about Global Warming on Kidzworld!

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Today scientists released a new report that details how climate change is affecting weather and climate across the United States and how future changes in climate could play out across the country.

The Climate Science Special Report (CSSR), created by a U.S. government organization that coordinates and integrates federal research on changes in the global environment and their implications for society, also lays out the current state of science relating to climate change and its physical effects.

"It is extremely likely that human influence has been the dominant cause of the observed warming since the mid-20th century."

"It is extremely likely that human influence has been the dominant cause of the observed warming since the mid-20th century," the report concludes. "For the warming over the last century, there is no convincing alternative explanation supported by the extent of the observational evidence."

And the observational evidence is manifold. Thousands of studies outlined in the report document rising surface, atmospheric, and oceanic temperatures; melting glaciers; diminishing snow cover; shrinking sea ice; rising sea levels; ocean acidification; and increasing intensity and frequency of rainfall, hurricanes, heat waves, wildfires, and drought. The report meticulously outlines how these effects can be largely traced back to human activities and associated emissions of radiatively important gases and particles.

Underlying the report is a broad scientific consensus: The farther and the faster the Earth system is pushed toward further change, the greater the risk is of unanticipated effects, some of which are potentially large and irreversible.

For example, without major reductions in emissions, the increase in annual average global temperature relative to preindustrial times could reach 9°F (5°C) or more by the end of this century. Although emission rates have slowed as economic growth is becoming less carbon intensive, this slowing trend is not yet at a rate that would limit global average temperature change to 3.6°F (2°C) above preindustrial levels by century's end.

And there's more. Sea levels are likely to continue to rise, and many severe weather events are likely to become more intense. Brace for more record-breaking high temperatures, including multiday heat waves, and more severe precipitation when it rains or snows. Drought could plague the western United States for decades to come. Atlantic and Pacific hurricanes are expected to get even more intense.

In other words, the report shows that our current emissions trajectories will bring our planet into a very different climate state than it is today, with profound effects for the United States.

An Authoritative Voice on the United States' Climate Future

The report is designed to serve as the foundation for efforts to assess climate-related risks and inform decision-making about responses.

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Get the most fascinating science news stories of the week in your inbox every Friday.

The CSSR was created by the U.S. Global Change Research Program (USGCRP) as volume 1 of the Fourth National Climate Assessment (NCA4) [ Wuebbles et al., 2017]. USGCRP oversaw the production of this stand-alone report of the state of science relating to climate change and its physical impacts. CSSR is designed to be an authoritative assessment of the science of climate change, with a focus on the United States, to serve as the foundation for efforts to assess climate-related risks and inform decision-making about responses.

The CSSR serves several purposes, including providing (1) an updated and detailed analysis of the findings of how climate change is affecting weather and climate across the United States, (2) an executive summary and 15 chapters that provide the basis for the discussion of climate science, and (3) foundational information and projections for climate change, including extremes, to improve "end-to-end" consistency in sectoral, regional, and resilience analyses.

The CSSR integrates and evaluates the findings on climate science and discusses the uncertainties associated with these findings. It analyzes current trends in climate change, both human induced and natural, and projects major trends to the end of this century.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is the lead administrative agency for the current report. Other agencies involved include NASA and the Department of Energy; representatives from national laboratories, universities, and the private sector also helped write the report.

The report underwent several drafts and multiple reviews, including one by the public, and expert reviews by the 13 USGCRP agencies and the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. What results is a comprehensive document on the state of climate science, with assessments of statistically likely scenarios of climate in the United States through the end of the century.

Advances in Science Since the Last Assessment

The CSSR represents the most comprehensive assessment of the science done for an NCA. As such, the report reflects a number of advances in climate science since the Third U.S. National Climate Assessment (NCA3) was published in 2014.

Researchers can now more closely pinpoint the human influences for individual climate and weather extreme events.

For example, since NCA3, stronger evidence has emerged for the ongoing, rapid, human-caused warming of the global atmosphere and ocean. Researchers can now more closely pinpoint the human influences for individual climate and weather extreme events.

In addition, significant advances have been made in understanding extreme weather events in the United States and how they relate to increasing global temperatures and associated climate changes. The new report also discusses the extent to which atmospheric circulation in the midlatitudes is changing or is projected to change, possibly in ways not captured by current climate models.

For the first time in the NCA process, sea level rise projections incorporate geographic variation based on factors such as local land subsidence, ocean currents, and changes in Earth's gravitational field. In an examination of potential risks, the CSSR found that both large-scale state shifts in the climate system (sometimes called "tipping points") and compound extremes have the potential to generate unanticipated climate surprises.

Report Highlights: Global Perspective

At the heart of the report are some indisputable facts. The global atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO ₂) concentration is now everywhere more than 400 parts per million (ppm), a level that last occurred about 3 million years ago, when both global average temperature and sea level were significantly higher than today. Continued growth in human-made emissions of CO ₂ over this century and beyond would lead to an atmospheric concentration not experienced in tens to hundreds of millions of years.

What's more, the past 115 years are now the warmest such time span in at least the last 1,700 years. Global annually averaged surface air temperature has increased by about 1.8°F (1.0°C) since 1901 (Figure 1).

Many other aspects of global climate are changing. For example, global average sea level has risen by about 7-8 inches since 1900, with almost half (about 3 inches) of that rise occurring since 1993. Human-caused climate change has made a substantial contribution to this rise, contributing to a rate of rise that is greater than during any preceding century in at least 2,800 years.

Global average sea levels are expected to continue to rise, by at least several inches in the next 15 years and by 1-4 feet by 2100. A rise of as much as 8 feet by 2100 cannot be ruled out.

What Does This Mean for the United States?

Annual average temperature over the contiguous United States has increased by 1.8°F (1.0°C) over the period from 1901 to 2016; over the next few decades (2021-2050), annual average temperatures are expected to rise by about 2.5°F for the United States, relative to the recent past (average from 1976-2005), under all plausible future climate scenarios.

The report documents how, across the board, the higher temperatures projected for the United States and the world are expected to increase the intensity and frequency of extreme events. Changes in the characteristics of extreme events are particularly important for human safety, infrastructure, agriculture, water quality and quantity, and natural ecosystems.

Below are peeks into some of the realms in which the United States is expected to face profound change. What's striking here is that events that we consider to be extreme may become the new normal by century's end.

Coastal Flooding. Global sea level rise has already affected the United States; the incidence of daily tidal flooding is accelerating in more than 25 Atlantic and Gulf Coast cities. Sea level rise is expected to be higher than the global average in some parts of the United States, especially on the East and Gulf coasts of the United States. This is due, in part, to changes in Earth's gravitational field from melting land ice, changes in ocean circulation, and local subsidence.

Larger Precipitation Events. Heavy precipitation, as either rainfall or snowfall, is increasing in intensity and frequency across the United States (Figure 2) and the globe. These trends are expected to continue. The largest observed changes in extreme precipitation in the United States have occurred in the Northeast and the Midwest.

Heat Waves. Heat waves have become more frequent in the United States since the 1960s, whereas extreme cold temperatures and cold waves have become less frequent. Recent record-setting warm years are projected to become common in the near future for the United States as annual average temperatures continue to rise.

Forest Fires. The incidence of large forest fires in the western contiguous United States and Alaska has increased since the early 1980s and is projected to further increase in those regions as the climate warms, with profound changes to regional ecosystems. The frequency of large wildfires is influenced by a complex combination of natural and human factors.

Drought. Annual trends toward earlier spring snowmelt and reduced snowpack are already affecting water resources in the western United States, with adverse effects for fisheries and electricity generation. These trends are expected to continue. Under the highest emissions scenarios and assuming no change in current water resources management, chronic, long-duration hydrological drought is increasingly possible before the end of this century.

Recent droughts and associated heat waves have reached record intensity in some U.S. regions. At this time, the report notes that evaluating the human effect on recent major U.S. droughts is complicated. Little evidence is found for a human influence on observed precipitation deficits, but much evidence is found for a human influence on surface soil moisture deficits due to increased evapotranspiration caused by higher temperatures.

Hurricanes. Physical processes suggest, and numerical modeling simulations generally confirm, an increase in tropical cyclone intensity in a warmer world, and Earth system models generally show an increase in the number of very intense tropical cyclones. For Atlantic and eastern North Pacific hurricanes, increases are projected in precipitation rates and intensity. The frequency of the most intense of these storms is projected to increase in the Atlantic and western North Pacific and in the eastern North Pacific.

Atmospheric Rivers. These narrow streams of moisture account for 30%-40% of the typical snowpack and annual precipitation on the U.S. West Coast. They are also associated with severe flooding events when they shed their moisture. The frequency and severity of landfalling atmospheric rivers will increase because rising temperatures increase evaporation, resulting in higher atmospheric water vapor concentrations.

A Fate Dependent on Emissions

The magnitude of climate change beyond the next few decades will depend primarily on the amount of greenhouse gases (especially carbon dioxide) emitted globally. And without significant cuts to emissions, annual average global temperatures will almost certainly rise beyond 2°C by the end of the century.

Choices made today will determine the magnitude of climate change risks beyond the next few decades.

In other words, the oft-stated goal of keeping globally averaged temperature change at or below this level to minimize potential impacts on humans and ecosystems can be met only through substantial reductions in emissions before 2040: Choices made today will determine the magnitude of climate change risks beyond the next few decades.

With significant reductions in emissions, the increase in annual average global temperature could be limited to 3.6°F (2°C) or less. Figure 3 shows the projected changes in U.S. temperature for two possible future pathways.

The science is in, and the CSSR documents it in a way that's both comprehensive and revelatory. It also provides important input to the development of other parts of NCA4, which will focus primarily on the human welfare, societal, economic, and environmental elements of climate change. Volume 2 of NCA4, with an emphasis on the impacts of climate change, is planned for publication in late 2018.

Acknowledgments

Writing the CSSR required the concerted effort of a large, diverse, and experienced author team of climate scientists from across the United States working for many months. The USGCRP provided organization and guidance for the overall process, NOAA provided oversight as the lead agency, and NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information provided technical, editorial, and production support for the document drafts and final product. We appreciate the independent reviews from the public and that conducted by the National Academy of Sciences.

References

Wuebbles, D. J., et al. (Eds.) (2017), Climate Science Special Report: Fourth National Climate Assessment, vol. 1, U.S. Global Change Res. Program, Washington, D. C.

Author Information

Donald Wuebbles (email: wuebbles@illinois.edu), Department of Atmospheric Sciences, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana; David W. Fahey, Earth System Research Laboratory, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Boulder, Colo.; and Kathy A. Hibbard, Earth Science Division, NASA Headquarters, Washington, D. C.

Editor's note: The authors of this Eos feature are the lead authors of the Climate Science Special Report. Donald Wuebbles was employed at the Office of Science and Technology Policy in Washington, D. C., and the National Science Foundation in Arlington, Va., while the report was being prepared.
Citation:
Wuebbles, D.,Fahey, D. W., and Hibbard, K. A. (2017), How will climate change affect the United States in decades to come?, Eos, 98, https://doi.org/10.1029/2017EO086015. Published on 03 November 2017.

Text © 2017. The authors. CC BY-NC-ND 3.0
Except where otherwise noted, images are subject to copyright. Any reuse without express permission from the copyright owner is prohibited.

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How Will Climate Change Affect the United States in Decades to Come? - Eos

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Today scientists released a new report that details how climate change is affecting weather and climate across the United States and how future changes in climate could play out across the country. The Climate Science Special Report (CSSR), created by a U.S.

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When a great white shark is born, along with up to a dozen siblings, it immediately swims away from its mother. Born on the east and west coasts of North America, the south of Africa and southwest Australia, baby sharks are on their own right from the start. Their mother may see them only as prey. At birth the baby shark is already about 5 feet (1.5 meters) long; as it grows it may reach a length up to four times that. The pup (which is what a baby shark is called) will live its life at the top of the ocean’s food chain. But before it grows larger, the pup must avoid predators bigger than it is—including other great white sharks. Many baby sharks do not survive their first year. Young great white sharks eat fish (including other sharks) and rays. As they grow, the sharks’ favorite prey becomes sea mammals, especially sea lions and seals. Sharks count on the element of surprise as they hunt. When they see a seal at the surface of the water, sharks will often position themselves underneath the seal. Using their tails as propellers, they swim upward at a fast sprint, burst out of the water in a leap called a breach, and fall back into the water with the seal in their mouths. They can smell a single drop of blood from up to a third of a mile (0.53 kilometers) away. Sharks don’t chew their food; they rip off chunks of meat and swallow them whole. They can last a month or two without another big meal.

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How Can We Stop Sharks From Going Extinct?

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The ISAF 2022 shark attack report

The Florida Museum of Natural History's International Shark Attack File investigated 108 alleged shark-human interactions worldwide in 2022. ISAF confirmed 57 unprovoked shark bites on humans and 32 provoked bites.
"Unprovoked bites""Provoked bites"Learn about other bite classification descriptions occur when a human initiates interaction with a shark in some way. These include instances when divers are bitten after harassing or trying to touch sharks, bites on spearfishers, bites on people attempting to feed sharks, bites occurring while unhooking or removing a shark from a fishing net and so forth. are defined as incidents in which a bite on a live human occurs in the shark's natural habitat with no human provocation of the shark.
Of the remaining 19 cases, four involved bites to motorized or non-motorized marine vessels ("boat bites"), two sea disasters where victim's boats sank, and four involved shark-inflicted post-mortem bites ("scavenge"). Three cases were regarded as "doubtful," or incidents that likely did not involve a shark. These included one case attributed to a bluefish and one collision with a shark.

In three cases, the nature of the incident was unclear with the available data ("No assignment could be made"). An additional two cases could not be confirmed as a shark-human interaction ("Not confirmed"). ISAF will continue to investigate these cases in collaboration with local law enforcement and medical professionals until they can be resolved satisfactorily.

2022 at a glance

Global total of unprovoked shark bites significantly lower than average

The 2022 worldwide total of 57 confirmed unprovoked cases is lower than the most recent five-year (2017-2021) average of 70 incidents annually. There were nine shark-related fatalities this year, five of which are assigned as unprovoked. This number is in line with the 5 year annual global average of six unprovoked fatalities per year.

Annual fluctuations in shark-human interactions are common. Despite 2021's spike in fatalities, 2022 was a return to typical long-term trends which show a decreasing number of annual fatalities. Year-to-year variability in oceanographic, socioeconomic and meteorological conditions significantly influences the local abundance of sharks and humans in the water.

U.S. leads world in number of unprovoked bites

Consistent with long-term trends, the United States recorded the most unprovoked shark bites in 2022, with 41 confirmed cases. This is lower than the 47 incidents that occurred in the U.S. in 2021. The 41 cases represent 72% of the worldwide total. This is an increase from 2021 when 64% of the worldwide unprovoked bites occurred in the U.S.

Australia 's total of nine unprovoked incidents was lower than the most recent five-year annual average of 15 incidents for the region. Four bites occurred in New South Wales, four bites occurred in Western Australia, and a single incident occurred in Victoria.

Egypt and South Africa each reported two incidents, all of which were fatal. Brazil, New Zealand and Thailand all reported single incidents in 2022.

Florida had most unprovoked bites in U.S.

For decades, Florida has topped global charts in the number of shark bites, and this trend continued in 2022. Florida's 16 cases represent 39% of the U.S. total and 28% of unprovoked bites worldwide. This is lower than Florida's most recent five-year annual average of 22 incidents.

In total, unprovoked bites by state were New York (8), California(4), South Carolina (4), Hawaii (5), North Carolina (2) and single incidents in both Texas and Alabama. One of the incidents in Hawaii was fatal.

In Florida, Volusia County had the most shark bites (7), representing 44% of the state's total. This represents a decrease from the five-year annual average of nine incidents in the area; however, Volusia County experiences considerable variation in the number of bites from one year to the next. Of the nine remaining bites, four occurred in Monroe, and single incidents were reported in Martin, Nassau, Pinellas, Brevard and Palm Beach counties.

Most bites related to surfing and board sports

Breaking from recent trends, surfers and those participating in board sports accounted for less incidents (35% of the total cases). Swimmers and waders accounted for the majority of incidents at 43%. Snorkelers/free divers accounted for 9%, and the remainder of activities were too varied to combine. These included jumping in the water, floating on a raft, and scuba diving (13%).

Risk of being bitten by a shark remains extremely low

Short-term trends show both fatal and non-fatal bites to be decreasing. The total number of unprovoked shark bites worldwide is extremely low, given the number of people participating in aquatic recreation each year. Fatality rates have been declining for decades, reflecting advances in beach safety, medical treatment and public awareness.

ISAF offers resources for reducing your risk of a shark bite and instructions for what to do if you encounter a shark.

Members of the press are also encouraged to check out our "Media Resources" page.

Gavin Naylor, Ph.D.
Program Director, International Shark Attack File
Florida Program for Shark Research
Florida Museum of Natural History - University of Florida
Gainesville, FL 32611 USA
(352) 273-1954
Email: gnaylor@flmnh.ufl.edu

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The Florida Museum of Natural History's International Shark Attack File investigated 108 alleged shark-human interactions worldwide in 2022. ISAF confirmed 57 unprovoked shark bites on humans and 32 provoked bites. "Unprovoked bites" "Provoked bites" Learn about other bite classification descriptions occur when a human initiates interaction with a shark in some way.

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Two shark researchers who came face to face with what could be one of the largest great whites ever recorded are using their encounter as an opportunity to push for legislation that would protect sharks in Hawaii.

Ocean Ramsey, a shark researcher and conservationist, told the Associated Press that she encountered the 20ft (6-metre) shark on Tuesday near a dead sperm whale off Oahu. The event was documented and shared on social media by her fiance and business partner, Juan Oliphant.

The Hawaii department of land and natural resources said it was aware of photos of the great white and that tiger sharks also had been feeding on the whale.

Oliphant, who photographed the now viral images, said it was unclear if the shark was the famed Deep Blue, believed to be the largest great white ever recorded.

"She looks the part right now," Oliphant said. "Maybe even more exciting that there is another massive, you know, super-size great white shark out there. Because their populations are so dwindling."

The shark photographed could be Deep Blue, thought to be the largest ever recorded. Photograph: @OCEANRAMSEY/AFP/Getty Images

Ramsey, who operates the Oahu-based One Ocean Diving and Research with Oliphant, said she had been pushing for several years for a bill that would ban the killing of sharks and rays in Hawaii and hoped this year the measure would become law.

She said the images of her swimming next to a huge great white shark proved the predators should be protected, not feared.

There's not a lot of sympathy for sharks because of the way they're portrayed in media

Ocean Ramsey

Still, the veteran shark diver doesn't think the general public should recklessly get into the water with the giants, especially around a food source like a rotting whale carcass.

Ramsey said extensive training and time spent studying shark behavior had kept her team and customers safe. She teaches people about how to act and, more importantly, not act when they encounter a shark in the water. She said she had swum with the huge shark on research trips to Guadalupe Island, Mexico, and also led cage-free shark diving tours.

Unlike many marine mammals, sharks are not a federally protected species, though there are laws against the sale of their fins.

"There's not a lot of sympathy for sharks because of the way they're portrayed in media and they don't have the cute cuddly appearance," Ramsey said. "You can't hate them for being predators. We need them for healthy marine ecosystems."

Ocean Ramsey reviews footage of her encounter. Photograph: Caleb Jones/AP

Ramsey and Oliphant want to make sure that people realize that shark bites are uncommon.

"The idea that they see people as a food source, that is rubbish and that needs to go away because really that's ultimately leading to the demise of these animals," Oliphant said.

Ramsey said it was impressive that the great white had survived a "gauntlet of human death traps".

"I don't know how old she is," Ramsey said. "But for her to survive through so many longline fisheries and, you know, gill nets and team nets and fishermen who might just kill her because they think that she is a monster ... it's very special."

Shark protection legislation, sponsored by the Hawaii state senator Mike Gabbard, is planned to be reintroduced this year.

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Diver filmed with huge great white: sharks must be 'protected not feared'

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Two shark researchers who came face to face with what could be one of the largest great whites ever recorded are using their encounter as an opportunity to push for legislation that would protect sharks in Hawaii.

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The answer to the question 'will killing sharks save lives' is: maybe. We may never know if the shark cull has made Western Australia's beaches safer.

Targeting large sharks using drum lines and no nets is a novel approach. Previous efforts in NSW, Queensland, South Africa and Hawaii only passingly inform it. Shark experts are reluctant to predict if the WA programme will reduce shark bite incidents.

The history of shark control programmes is littered with claims of success and failure. But these need to be viewed with temperance. The infrequency of incidents make them statistically unreliable and a large number of variables affect shark attack rates. Changing lifestyles and uses of the ocean, growing coastal populations and potential (but unknown) fluctuations in shark numbers create a cryptic puzzle that defies definitive assessment of shark control programmes. We will certainly not know anything by April, when the WA policy is set to expire.

There are unanswered questions relating to the research underpinning this policy. The government seems to have conducted a wide-ranging canvass of opinions in the scientific community. But one of the major scientific assessments of WA shark management recommended that drum lines and nets should be avoided. More than one hundred scientists have urged the government to desist on the grounds that the policy is misinformed. The scientific community has generally condemned the cull, mostly on the basis of by-catch. Although by-catch from drum lines is less than from nets. There have also been concerns raised over the attractiveness of baited hooks and caught animals to large sharks. I have not been able to find any research that can confirm this theory, nor can it be ruled out. If there is so much opposition from scientists, by what criteria was the information provided to government assessed and formed into policy?

The intention to target individual sharks after a fatal attack is, to my mind, the most cynical aspect of this policy. It is intended to appease community anger towards sharks, yet has little foundation in reality. The identification of an individual shark is near impossible and there is little evidence to support the 'rogue shark theory' that a killer will kill again.

Many opponents of the cull, especially on social media, have told Western Australians to 'just swim somewhere else'. This is unsympathetic and unhelpful. While it is not untrue, this attitude fails to acknowledge the practical impossibility of driving to a safe coastline when you live in WA. It also ignores the deep, heartfelt connection many people have with the sea and the pain they must experience from not feeling safe enough to enjoy it.

Stepping away from the morality and assessing the policy on its stated aims is important, but it is not the definitive answer to the WA shark problem. If the cull was certain to be effective (which it isn't) the response would still have to take into account the impact of by-catch on biodiversity. Finally, we must ask ourselves what motivates our hand - research or revenge?

Note: For those of you outside Australia, I'll dip back into the blog tonight (9pm AEST, 10am GMT) so your comments will not be in vain!

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The answer to the question 'will killing sharks save lives' is: maybe. We may never know if the shark cull has made Western Australia's beaches safer. Targeting large sharks using drum lines and no nets is a novel approach. Previous efforts in NSW, Queensland, South Africa and Hawaii only passingly inform it.

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It's not a fair fight.

In the "battle" between people and sharks, it's not even close. On average, humans kill about 100 million sharks around the world each year, with most targeted by commercial fishermen for their fins and flesh.

And despite their fearsome reputation and often breathless media attention, sharks kill only about six people a year worldwide, according to the Florida Museum of Natural History's International Shark Attack File.

In the U.S., on average, one person dies each year from a shark attack.

In 2017, there were 155 incidents of alleged shark-human interaction worldwide, according to the International Shark Attack File. Closer investigation found 88 of those incidents were "unprovoked" attacks that occur without provocation from humans.

Sharks killed five people worldwide last year.

Through the first six months of 2018, there have been 25 shark bites around the world, only one of which was fatal (off the coast of Recife, Brazil, in early June). Of those 25 attacks, seven have occurred in the U.S.

Maybe we should blame shark mania on " Jaws". The national fear of shark attacks got its start some 43 years ago with the release of the movie blockbuster that unleashed the primal fear of being eaten alive while swimming.

Since then, shark attacks continue to get plenty of media coverage, despite their rarity. How rare? The odds of being killed by a shark in the U.S. are 3,748,067 to 1.

Amazingly, bees, wasps, dogs and snakes are responsible for far more deaths each year in the U.S. than sharks, the Shark Attack File said.

According to a recent study, most U.S. deaths are not actually due to wild animals like mountain lions, wolves, bears, or sharks, but are a result of deadly encounters with farm animals, insect stings or dog attacks

At the beach, you're actually in more danger just walking along the shore than in the water, according to the Shark Attack File. From 1990 to 2006 there were 16 U.S. deaths due to falling in a hole at the beach compared to 11 shark attack deaths.

If you're clamoring for more about sharks, check out Nat Geo Wild's 2-week-long SharkFest, which premieres Sunday, July 15, at 8 p.m. ET. The network's sixth annual summertime special has "the latest insights from the top shark researchers, a comprehensive look at the many shark species in all their glory and two weeks of our top shark shows," the channel said in a statement.

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Sharks vs. humans: At 100 million deaths against 6 each year, it's not a fair fight

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In the "battle" between people and sharks, it's not even close. On average, around the world, humans kill some 100 million sharks each year. And despite their fearsome reputation and often breathless media attention, sharks kill only about six people a year - worldwide.