All posts by tahsinalam

Footprint

Ecological Footprint

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  1. My original footprint was 5.2, which means that if everyone in the world lived the way I did we would require that many earth’s to sustain ourselves, which is about the same as the national average of 5 earths.
  2. Three parameters that I maximized were my diet, transportation, and energy usage. Maximizing my meat consumption increased the number of planets to 7.1, maximizing my transportation increased the number of planets to 8.5, and maximizing energy usage increased the number of planets to 8.8. Changes I could make in my lifestyle to minimize the harm that I am causing to the planet is by eating less meat and buying my meat locally or completely cutting out meat and becoming a vegetarian or vegan. Also I could use more public transportation or walk to more places rather than using a car. I could also minimize the amount of energy that I use by using less energy at home and living in a smaller and more environmentally friendly home.
  3. As a society we need to make it easier and more convenient to become environmentally friendly. When it is easier for people to take these steps they will be more willing to do them. We need to give people an incentive to be active in protecting and sustaining this planet. Certain things we could do is by reducing the cost that goes into being environmentally friendly.

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AMNH

The Hall of Biodiversity

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While at the American Museum of Natural History I chose to observe The Dzanga-Sanga Rainforest and the Lives in Balance: Endangered Species exhibits. The first exhibit was a small replica of the rainforest consisting of various kinds of wildlife such as birds, mammals, insects, and trees. We were even told by the security guard that the rain forest had a secret gorilla that you could only see with a flashlight, but sadly I was not able to find it. The second exhibit showcased several endangered species such as the Siberian tiger, a panda, and some marine animals within a glass box.

While observing the Dzanga-Sanga Rainforest exhibit for fifteen minutes I tallied about 32 people most of whom were young elementary school students and high school students who were on field trips. Many of the young children seemed extremely excited and enthusiastic about this display because it was so realistic looking, and every time you looked at it you could find something different that you didn’t see before. The children seemed to have made it a game to see who could spot the most animals in the rainforest. One part of the rainforest that I observed was the area, which contained information about poaching. I was hoping to listen in on conversations of people talking about this topic but most just read the information on the display and moved on. I actually noticed that the children in the museum were much more interactive than the adults were.

While observing the Lives in Blalance: Endangered Species exhibit I tallied about 29 people observing the display. Once again most of the patrons were young elementary school children, but I didn’t mind because I found their conversations to be much more interesting and amusing than the adults who were observing the display. Many of the children were amazed that the animals were actually life size. Most of the children were especially interested in the Siberian tiger and would put their faces up against the glass wall and make animals noises. One of the comments a child made was how he wished the animals weren’t behind the glass box so he could pet them. I actually think having this display inside a glass box helps to reinforce the message that these species are endangered by showing how these animals are slowly becoming out of our reach and we’re losing them or it could just be used to prevent people from touching the animals in the display.

I think the main message both of these displays were trying to relay is about the conservation of biodiversity. I think both of these displays do an excellent job in reinforcing this message. These two displays tended to grab the attention of most of the people that walked into the Hall of Biodiversity. The Dzanga-Sanga Rainforest display does a great job in showing how diverse and rich the rainforest is and the gives great information for people to understand the problems that are arising due various threats many of which are caused by humans. The information on the displays helps to educate the visitor about the importance of conserving the rainforest and the steps that need to be taken. The Endangered Species display also gives great information about each of the animals that were in the display and the threats that they are facing.

 

 

 

What is Science?

Autism and Air Pollution

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In an article published by ScienceDaily, Amy Kalkbrenner, a researcher at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee has found evidence that has added onto past findings that links autism to air pollution. Kalkbrenner’s study found that the influence of pollution on autistic rates were similar to that of studies done in California. Kalkbrenner also found that women in their third trimester were more prone to the harmful effects of air pollution on their unborn babies.

Kalkbrenner’s research focused on PM10, a particulate matter that results from traffic-related air pollution. In order to study the effects of this matter Kalkbrenner gathered the data of children from specific regions in two different states in order to “simultaneously measure the level of particulate matter present, and know which children had autism in these regions.” In order to gather accurate information about the level of PM10 each child was exposed to the research team looked at the addresses the mothers where living in while they were pregnant. The research found that “the concentration of particulate matter was highest among children born in summer months in North Carolina and those born in fall and winter months in California.”

The author uses various types of evidence to support her claim. She uses evidence from past studies that also show similar results of finding a link between air pollution and autism which are due to the effects these pollutants have in the brain of the unborn child during the third trimester. Kalkbrenner shows evidence that supports her assumptions within her own research, which also showed “links between autism and altered brain network development.” The article and the evidence shown are both scientific because the methods that were used such as using a more precise tool to measure the amount of exposure to pollution helped to gain more accurate results. The author of the article does not seem biased, but she is able to persuade the reader in making the same assumptions by stating the results of her research and being able to support her research by using past findings. The evidence is not balanced because all the evidence that was shown was in favor of her findings and none of the evidence opposed or offered a different explanation for her findings. The findings of this article supports the idea that there is a link between autism and air pollution, in order to move on with these findings it is important to do more research in order to find out why there is a greater risk for unborn babies during the third trimester.

 

Bioblitz

Mosses

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To be quite honest I wasn’t really expecting to enjoy Bioblitz, I was actually dreading the day, but to my surprise Bioblitz turned out to be a very interesting and educational experience.

We started off the day by meeting our guide Rafael. From the very beginning Rafael showed great enthusiasm about mosses and very soon our entire group became quite interested in mosses, which I assumed would be a very boring taxa to observe. On the contrary, Rafael showed us how interesting mosses actually were. We saw several different types of mosses and each had a unique look and different habitat in which they grew. What was even more interesting was how different species of mosses could arise just by the slightest change in the environment. Some of the different species were growing in the same zone and only a few feet away from one another.

Unlike other groups who were given nets and binoculars to observe their taxa we were given microscopes to get a better view of the mosses. Rafael explained how many of us overlook and give little importance to mosses because we are just too big to appreciate its beauty. With the microscopes we were able to see how complex looking the mosses were. Under a microscope it looked as if there was an entire forest on the little patches of mosses we were holding.

It was amazing to see how in such an urban city such as New York so many different species of mosses can arise. This experience showed me how we can often overlook the biodiversity New York holds even in its smallest specimens. I really admired Rafael’s passion for what he does, seeing the way Rafael was able to identify each of the different types of mosses and knew where to look for each one, showed the vast amount of knowledge and dedication scientists put into their field of study even for something as seemingly simple as moss.