Save the World, O Jaded Souls

computer graveyard in Ghana : An example of a very specific environmental concern. What do we do with our old computers? ( watch the slide show), and then...

Post a Comment: find out how many tons of computers we dispose of each year in the US, and what happens to it; does it present an environmental  or ethical concern; what ought we to do? (Answer one of these questions, or your own, on the topic.)

So poke around to find a topic for your media essay on one small aspect of environmental concern.

 One thoughtless action  x    multiplied by many

causes catastrophe
for some.

(a small poem by me)

Perhaps also you could be on the lookout (give an ear?) to a piece of music that would be good background.
Start collecting quotes, facts, and images as you research your topic.
Give thought to what computer resources you have available or feel comfortable working with.  You may get as much help as you can finagle from your moms/dads/older siblings/friends.

Read: Comic Book Guide to the Environment, chapters 3-5 and please take notes of vocabulary terms.

btw, I think it is very appropriate to care passionately about the environment, and I do allow myself to feel strongly about many of these issues, even as I try to be objective and check facts. "The earth is the LORD's, and the fullness thereof" and we are the stewards of His creation.

Bacterios & Other Amazing Grossities

The Winogradsky Column is designed to demonstrate the growth of microorganisms. As a result of this activity, you should:

• learn about the metabolic diversity of prokaryotes, applying terms such as phototroph, chemotroph, autotroph, and heterotroph.  Also aerobic, anaerobic, microbial succession, and more.
• observe the cycling of mineral elements in natural environments, particularly sulfur.
• discover how microbes occupy a highly specific niche depending on environmental tolerance and energy requirements.

 First, to recapture what we are trying to understand with our Winogradski Columns, here are some sites:
http://www.sumanasinc.com/webcontent/animations/content/winogradsky.html Choose the "Narrated" box.

Read:
http://www.personal.psu.edu/faculty/j/e/jel5/biofilms/winogradsky.html

And then a 30 minute video on Microbial Interactions:
http://www.learner.org/resources/series121.html?pop=yes&pid=1370# ( click VOD button for #10 "Microbial Interactions"   Leave a Comment, please; for instance, a fact which astounded you, or a question that puzzled you, or a thought that occurred to you, perhaps even  a connection you made to other areas of study...

As always, it would be good to review vocabulary on quizlet, particularly on bacteria, chapter 19.1
http://quizlet.com/6473532/prentice-hall-biology-chapter-191-vocabulary-flash-cards/

Homework

Homework:  NOTE- Instead of study guide, do the Chapter 5 assessment, problems 1-23.
Tuesday:

1. Chapter 5.2 - Limits to growth, also page 128 "Does the Grey Wolf Population Need Protection?" (no study guide)
2. video- http://www.learner.org/resources/series209.html?pop=yes&pid=2272#The Habitable Planet: #4 Ecology (keep selecting the VOD button if it doesn't go there at first.)  30 min.
3. Interactive: play with this until you figure it out, then try to find a level where neither predator or prey goes extinct, and you reach the carrying capacity for prey.  http://nortonbooks.com/college/biology/animations/ch34a03.htm (need Shockwave)

Wednesday:

1. Chapter 5.3 - Human Population Growth  (no study guide)
2. Chapter 5 Assessment 1-23 
3. Review vocabulary -http://quizlet.com/1005540/prentice-hall-biology-chapter-5-vocabulary-flash-cards/

Friday's Homework

For Friday:

Read Chapter 5.1 - How Populations Grow - and answer questions in the study guide.
Then on page 123 Do the Analyzing Data/Population Trends, which means make the graphs and answer the question in written form.  This I would like you to hand in on Monday.

We may have a pop quiz on Monday; I will take the questions and vocabulary from the "Guide to Reading" on page 119 - the green Key Concepts and Vocabulary.  Be sure you are reading and understanding  the pictures and graphs.

Keep looking at your bacterial petri dishes and note changes/take photos.

Also, remember to water your EcoColumns.

Extra Credit Still Available: look for articles regarding bacteria and technology. For example:http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/lab-rat/2011/10/26/plastic-from-bacteria-now-in-algae/

Bacteria Madness

This week's homework: What a List!-
If you don't have a notebook, shame on you!

-Text: Bacteria, Chapter 19 section 1; answer questions in study guide

-30 minuteVideo: http://www.learner.org/vod/vod_window.html?pid=1370
  Here's the trick: click the button "VOD" for episode 8-Microbial Ecology, which will send you to the exact same page; then click that same button, and you should get the pop-up to watch.  I don't know why it works that way, O well.

-Start the new experiment with your petri dishes and ecocolumns.

-Limiting Nutrient experiment write-up: if you've lost your worksheet, go to page 81.  Describe the Problem, state your hypothesis and answer questions 1-4 from Analyze and Conclude.

-Turn in your cinquain or other type poetry about the pond trip. If you have not done so yet, work on those worksheets handed out when we started the ecocolumns.  Bring your folders to class on Thursday; we will "workshop" these a little.

-Extra Credit:  find a current event about bacteria (ideas-- bacteria generating hydroden for fuel cars, bacteria cleaning up oil spills, or just google "news bacteria technology", for example.)  Or find a youtube video on bacteria that you think will be helpful  or interesting for your classmates.  Extra credit is good for your grade and will also result in a donation to buy a goat for a family in Africa.

Keep Up with the Fish Observations...

Remember to change the water  as directed and to make observations, take photos, etc. 

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Joshua sent this in.  Thanks, Josh!   Have a great weekend!

Here is a link to our field trip photos at photobucket.  http://s712.photobucket.com/albums/ww123/vqharmon/Jim%20Bridger%20Biology/?albumview=slideshow

Current Events Plus +++++ Homework

First of all for homework there is the current event, which must be about a topic in biology; find an article online using one of the sites in the side bar, and be prepared to summarize it for the class and answer any questions from the class about it--you may use a 3x5 card for notes, but not read directly from the article.  Try for a 3-minute presentation.

From the Textbook/Study Guide:
Chapter 4.3 and 4.4  Land & Aquatic Biomes (2 sections) to complete by next Monday--No extra homework on Friday other than to change the water according to last Friday's directions, and to make observations.  Be on the lookout for :  different niches in your ecosystem, any ecological succession (when a new species starts to become more dominant), food chain & web, biotic & abiotic factors, everything we discussed in class, actually.  Keep notes.  Write that poem/cinquain about the pond observations.   Also observe your vials containing the limiting nutrient.

Keep up with the vocabulary for chapter 4: http://quizlet.com/4992488/prentice-hall-biology-chapter-4-flash-cards/