https://padlet.com/17colemana/ucj8iamnubep en-us 2017-03-20 15:10:08 UTC 2017-03-25 18:35:58 UTC hello@padlet.com 17colemana https://padlet.com/17colemana/ucj8iamnubep/wish/161856186   A super bloom is described as a “sea of flowers,” by Los Angeles geologist, Janet Gordon. This beautiful phenomenon is currently occurring in California deserts, thanks to California’s recent unseasonably wet winter. California has been experiencing years of drought, and because of the amount of water being provided to the deserts, they are currently in a prosperous period of lush vegetation. Super blooms such as these are extremely rare, and therefore, the super bloom in California is causing an enormous amount of tourist attraction. Tourists from Europe, Africa, and Asia, as well as local residents, are venturing out into the deserts and National Parks just to witness the beauty. There are miles and miles of fields of flowers, ranging into areas that rarely see flowers, such as the badlands, home to snakes, bobcats, and coyotes, according to park ranger Steve Bier. The most intriguing thing about the super bloom is that a majority of the flowers that are blooming are coming from seeds that had been buried for thousands of years.]]> 2017-03-22 15:24:58 UTC https://padlet.com/17colemana/ucj8iamnubep/wish/161856186 17colemana https://padlet.com/17colemana/ucj8iamnubep/wish/162450836 China’s air and water pollution has always been an enormous environmental problem, and has contributed to a thick, perpetual fog that hangs over China’s cities year-round. This smog has caused reports of not being able to stay outside for more than twenty minutes without feeling dizzy, as well as the creation of bottled and canned air. According to Yuhang Wang, a professor in China, “Emissions in China have been decreasing over the last four years, but the severe winter haze is not getting better.” He goes on to cite reasons for this haze, and says that it is mainly due to a rapid change in the poles, where the sea ice is melting and snowfall is increasing, preventing the cold air from reaching China where it can flush out the air pollution. This is interesting, because the melting of the polar ice is mainly because of global warming as a result of CO2 emissions, which China is known to produce the most of. This perpetual haze has created reasonable alarm in China, causing the Chinese government to create strict regulations and targets for reducing emissions from industries and factories.]]> 2017-03-24 15:35:29 UTC https://padlet.com/17colemana/ucj8iamnubep/wish/162450836 17colemana https://padlet.com/17colemana/ucj8iamnubep/wish/162576211 A 31 year old Russian architect by the name of Alexei Umarov has lived in the city of Khabarovsk, a city that shares a border with China. He has a plan for a project, called the HyperFilter skyscraper, whose purpose is to clean the polluted air surrounding it. The building is to look like a huge tree, and will suck in and purify the city’s polluted air. Many other architects share the same vision of using different technological materials to remove smog and impurities from the surrounding air to improve its quality to make it suitable for breathing. One of these kindred architects is a widely-known Dutch architect, Daan Roosegaarde. Roosegaarde has attempted to make towers such as the HyperFilter in Beijing, but as of right now, no evidence stands to prove that constructions such as these have made an actual impact in the reduction of pollution; but that hasn’t stopped ambitious architects such as Roosegaarde and Umarov.]]> 2017-03-25 17:59:07 UTC https://padlet.com/17colemana/ucj8iamnubep/wish/162576211 17colemana https://padlet.com/17colemana/ucj8iamnubep/wish/162576305 The purpose of national wildlife refuges has almost always been as the name suggests; it provides a safe and protected area for the conservation of animals that should and need  to be protected. One of these such refuges is located in Alaska, and under Obama’s administration, a federal law was passed to prevent the hunting of bears, wolves, and other predators in these national wildlife refuges. However, it is now 2017, and we have a new president-- President Trump, the only man who has the ability to approve Congress’ overturning of the “Obama-era federal law,” which could mean big trouble for Alaska’s wildlife refuges. Recently, the rule passed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service with Obama’s approval, was voted to be appealed in the House, with a 32 voting margin for those in favor of appealing the law. As of right now, the law prevents hunters from shooting or trapping wolves in their dens, or using helicopters, wire snares and food baits to scout, trap and point-blank kill grizzly bears. Curbing certain species in national wildlife refuges has always been a factor in maintaining their populations, but there is a thin line that can cross into unethical cruelty that the overturning of this federal law would allow, concerning many environmentalists and animal activists alike.]]> 2017-03-25 18:00:48 UTC https://padlet.com/17colemana/ucj8iamnubep/wish/162576305 17colemana https://padlet.com/17colemana/ucj8iamnubep/wish/162576333 The mere idea of resurrecting extinct species is baffling, in and of itself. However, according to the New York Times, scientist can accomplish this monumental feat with enough “determination, money, and smarts.” Yes, it would be truly fascinating to see great woolly mammoths (prospectively created by splicing the genes from ancient mammoths into Asian elephant DNA) roaming around the Earth once more, but the real question is, does the Earth and its biomes/habitats hold the capacity to provide adequate resources for the resurrection of the beasts from long ago? A conservation researcher at Carleton University, Joseph Bennett, then raised the question, “Should society devote its limited resources to reversing past wrongs, or on preventing future extinctions?” He then goes on to say that, all in all, the “de-extinction” of species is simply not worth it. He claims that to resurrect an extinct species, you’d be making an ethical decision to bring back one species at the cost of three to eight others, which is ultimately counterproductive.]]> 2017-03-25 18:01:17 UTC https://padlet.com/17colemana/ucj8iamnubep/wish/162576333 17colemana https://padlet.com/17colemana/ucj8iamnubep/wish/162576423 The Two-Way explains that “coral bleaching occurs when living organisms that make up the coral reefs expel the colorful, photosynthetic algae that normally live inside their bodies, and provide them with food. Those algae give coral reefs their color and disappear when the reefs are exposed to stressful climatic conditions, such as temperatures even a few degrees higher than normal.” This sounds like a terrible, rare phenomena that humans would do anything in their power to prevent, in hopes of protecting their beautiful tourist attractions, vacation activities, and sightseeing, right? Wrong.This exact situation has occurred three times in recent years, with the last one being the most shocking and severely damaging to the coral reefs. Scientists had had hopeful hypotheses that the occurrence of one bleaching event would minimize the impact of the next one, but as the 2016 bleaching displayed, this is far from the case. In recent weeks, reports of another bleaching event that is occurring on the Great Barrier Reef has surfaced, and people are becoming more and more alarmed at the severity of the situation. However, the only way to stop these bleachings is to push for global action against the climate change that is prompting these bleaching, making this significantly more complicated.]]> 2017-03-25 18:02:48 UTC https://padlet.com/17colemana/ucj8iamnubep/wish/162576423