https://padlet.com/19darmom/t6svob7i4ek5 AP Environmental Science Mrs. Alpert en-us 2017-10-12 14:26:49 UTC 2017-12-22 15:58:00 UTC hello@padlet.com 19darmom https://padlet.com/19darmom/t6svob7i4ek5/wish/200100793 It may be mid-October, but that doesn't mean that fall weather has settled upon the US yet. In October, the temperatures have ranged from six to eight degrees higher than the normal. According to Jon Gottschalck of the National Weather Service, the anomaly is caused by warm southwesterly winds that have been shifted north by a combination of high and low pressure. While this may allow some people to attribute the warm weathers to climate change, Gottschalck warns that this claim is a stretch. It may take years for scientists to find definitive proof of climate change. While he does see that there are long-term trends occurring, it does not necessarily have to be climate change. Over the years, there was definitely been a warming trend in the United States; last year October was just as hot. So, even though October continues to shock the public with just how high the temperatures have stayed, there is no need to hand the blame to climate change--at least for now. ]]> 2017-10-24 17:05:46 UTC https://padlet.com/19darmom/t6svob7i4ek5/wish/200100793 19darmom https://padlet.com/19darmom/t6svob7i4ek5/wish/202923127 Climate change is a very controversial topic in America at the moment. The biggest debate being if it even exists. Although, seeing as Alaska's permafrost is thawing, it doesn't seem like there she be a doubt in anyone's mind that climate change is blanketing the world. One huge factor in the permafrost melting is how permafrost is made up almost entirely of carbon from organic matter. Even more dire, permafrost is thought to have twice the amount of carbon as the atmosphere does. If the permafrost in Alaska actually is melting, that carbon will be released, causing the earth to warm. This is the textbook steps of climate change occurring. The thawing takes a trained eye to be able to spot, and scientists are currently working towards figuring out just how just emissions are coming from Alaska and the thawing of the permafrost. If this process continues, it is assumed that temperatures could rise up to two degrees Fahrenheit. ]]> 2017-11-02 14:31:10 UTC https://padlet.com/19darmom/t6svob7i4ek5/wish/202923127 19darmom https://padlet.com/19darmom/t6svob7i4ek5/wish/202923894 It is a well known fact that each year, an enormous amount of plastic is dumped into the oceans, whether commercially or industrially. In fact, over 200 species in the vast oceans have been recorded to ingest this plastic. Recently, it has been discovered in lab experiments that even coral, a seemingly basic organism is consuming small granules of plastic. Furthermore, certain chemicals in the plastic may taste like food the coral typically eats. This creates a major problem because the coral will still not be able to differentiate its normal food source from the dangerous plastic. While it is still not known exactly how the plastic will harm the coral, it is assumed the ingested plastic could effect the digestive process of the coral. Currently, scientists are working towards knowing exactly what chemical additives attract the coral and other invertebrates. From this, scientists could find a way to make the plastic taste the exact opposite--repulsive--so the organisms would not longer ingest plastic. ]]> 2017-11-02 14:32:28 UTC https://padlet.com/19darmom/t6svob7i4ek5/wish/202923894 19darmom https://padlet.com/19darmom/t6svob7i4ek5/wish/203916134 Invasive species are a species of organism that are non-native to the area they are in that causes economic or environmental harm or harm to human health. Biologist Leslie Anthony chronicled the effects that invasive species had on a global scale. According to her, invasive species are continually growing, expanding, and showing up in more places due to human intervention. Examples of this include fishermen releasing bait fish and earthworms or even reckless pet owners releasing their exotic lizards and snakes into the wild when they don't want to care for them anymore. These invasive species invading areas they shouldn't be cause major harm to not only the environment, but the economy. Leslie Anthony even goes to say that it costs the government up to $145 billion dollars annually. And while environmental groups and scientists are working to stop this growth, the struggle to intercept species is an issue that is continually growing. ]]> 2017-11-06 15:06:42 UTC https://padlet.com/19darmom/t6svob7i4ek5/wish/203916134 19darmom https://padlet.com/19darmom/t6svob7i4ek5/wish/203927605 Of recent, Trump's administration has been known to either disregard or reject the idea of climate change and environment in general. Now, another powerful lawmaker, Congressman Rob Bishop, wishes to breakdown the Endangered Species Act. Even scarier, he is getting very close to his goal. Rob Bishop's reason for wanting to change this legislation is because he believes that the true intentions of the Act were never followed through on. Instead, he believes the ESA was used to control land area, and keep it out of the hands of private property owners. By dismantling the law, Rob Bishop also believes that it will help economically because the ESA did not consider the fiscal effects, only the scientific impacts. Supporters have pointed out that since the ESA began in 1973, only three species have been taken off of the list. ]]> 2017-11-06 15:21:49 UTC https://padlet.com/19darmom/t6svob7i4ek5/wish/203927605 19darmom https://padlet.com/19darmom/t6svob7i4ek5/wish/204026111 From the youngest age, the mystery of exactly how the dinosaurs went extinct has been taught in classrooms around the world. In a recent study, data has showed that the demise of dinosaurs may have benefited numerous species, causing them to change their behaviors there forward. Furthermore, the study suggests that this might have been the switch from animals being nocturnal, to them emerging in the daylight. After much research, it is thought that the first mammal to live in the daylight was from around 65.8 million years ago. This time range is strikingly close to the supposed date that dinosaurs went extinct, only 200,000 years off. The overarching theme in the studies allowed scientists to guess that the mammals had chosen to be nocturnal in order to survive as the dinosaurs were great predators. The next step for scientists and researchers is to find more statistics that back up their hypothesis. ]]> 2017-11-06 17:59:21 UTC https://padlet.com/19darmom/t6svob7i4ek5/wish/204026111