Fracking can be changed, if we are willing to do so

I read the article Strong Rules on Fracking in Wyoming Seen as Model written by Kate Galbraith for the New York Times on the subject of the new Fracking laws put in place in Wyoming
Link: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/11/23/business/energy-environment/wyomings-strong-fracking-rules-may-be-a-model.html?action=click&module=Search&region=searchResults%230&version=&url=http%3A%2F%2Fquery.nytimes.com%2Fsearch%2Fsitesearch%2F%3Faction%3Dclick%26region%3DMasthead%26pgtype%3DHomepage%26module%3DSearchSubmit%26contentCollection%3DHomepage%26t%3Dqry890%23%2FFracking&_r=0

Fracking is one of the most important ways of obtaining fossil fuels for fuel companies. Fracking brings in lots of money for the fuel companies but the environmental dangers that go along with it are just as costly to our environment as the fuel the companies are getting is wealthy. But companies and the government are starting to realize the effects that fracking has on the environment and rules are starting to be put in place to help stop some of it's effects on the environment, while still allowing this form of drilling to still take place.

You may ask, what is fracking? Fracking is a form of drilling that obtains the fuel/oil and gas by drilling deep into the ground, and then obtaining fuel from shale rocks. After the drill drills deep enough, it moves horizontally across the shale rock. After a high power water/ sand/ chemical solution is shot at the shale rocks causing the shale rocks to "fracture" and allow the valuable fuel and oil escape from inside them. After the fuel pumps up and out of the well and flows out of the top of the well, which it is then obtained.

But fracking has major impacts on the environment and that is why reforms to it's process are starting to be put in place. Wyoming was the second state to adopt tougher regulations on how much gas and oil is allowed to emit into the wild from fracking and Wyoming is also the first state to adopt even tougher standards on fracking, especially testing the water around the fracking site, before and after it takes place to see how the fracking had effected the water.

Fracking's effect on the environment can be dangerous to both the water and it's animals as well as the environment around it. Fracking is known to cause earthquakes between a magnitude of 1-2. Well this may seem as small earthquake it can still have the potential of effecting the trees and people around the area of the fracking from these earthquakes. Fracking can be dangerous to the environment and it's water as well from the gases and chemicals it can give off. The chemicals that are mixed with water and sand that are shot into the water can also leak out from the ground or the pump and runoff into near by waters or soil, polluting the area and causing serous effects to the environment around it. Also the chemicals that are used are not forced by law, to be available to the public because companies competitors could steal their chemical formulas and use it in their own drilling solutions. But now there is a case being heard in court about changing this and making it a law for the companies to undisclose the chemicals being used to the public so that they know what is being put into the environment through fracking.

Fracking directly relates to biology class along with the movie The Lorax. In The Lorax the Lorax tries to stop the factories from polluting the water, but they didn't listen to the Lorax and all of the fish in the lake left to go to a better place. This is just like what is happening with fracking the chemicals and fuels that are involved in fracking are effecting the environment, and the effects that they have with the environment needs to be monitored more closely to ensure that they aren't effecting the environment drastically, and if they are they must be regulated to ensure that the environment surrounding the area of fracking isn't hurt by the fracking that takes place, and to ensure the animals and plants in the area are safe as well, before any huge damage takes place.

Fracking is a very important industry to our country and it can't just go away without the effects of it hurting the fuel business and our countries economy. But monitoring it's effects on the environment and it's life can give us a better understanding of how we can make it a safer business. Through these new laws being made in Wyoming a blueprint for how our country understands and enforces fracking can be put in place. These new laws being made in Wyoming may seem small now but some day it can be looked back on, as a step towards a better environment and a better world.

Citations

Galbraith. Kate. Strong Rules on Fracking in Wyoming seen as model. New York Times. New York Times. Accessed 3/10/14.  http://www.nytimes.com/2013/11/23/business/energy-environment/wyomings-strong-fracking-rules-may-be-a-model.html?action=click&module=Search&region=searchResults%230&version=&url=http%3A%2F%2Fquery.nytimes.com%2Fsearch%2Fsitesearch%2F%3Faction%3Dclick%26region%3DMasthead%26pgtype%3DHomepage%26module%3DSearchSubmit%26contentCollection%3DHomepage%26t%3Dqry890%23%2FFracking&_r=0

What is fracking and why is it so controversial?. BBC. BBC News. Accessed 3/10/14. http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-14432401

Pictography

Picture of Fracking. Drawing. Bigger Pie Forum. http://www.biggerpieforum.org/How-does-fracking-work

A Step Closer to a Cure

            Recently I read the article “ New Advance: Engineered immune cells seem to block HIV” by Ryan  on March 5, 2014 on CBS News http://www.cbsnews.com/news/gene-therapy-engineer-t-cells-block-hiv/ .

            The article talks about how scientists believe they have taken another step towards finding the cure for HIV. In the human body, there is a protein that lies on the surface of white blood cells called CCR5. CCR5 allows HIV to enter the host cell and infect it. This infection can lead to other diseases such as AIDS.

            Scientists modified T cells in the immune system to lower the amount of CCR5 proteins on the surface of the cell. This process is known as gene editing.. They did this because of the proteins is not of the surface of the immune cell, HIV cannot enter the cell.  The CCR5 change has the ability to make people unable to catch HIV. Most of the research is being done at the University of Pennsylvania and at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston.

            In order to see what happens when you change the protein, scientists and researchers put about 10 billion SB-728-T cells into two groups of patients. T cells are a type of white blood cell. This went on from May 2009 to about July 2012. Less than half of the cells were modified.

            After about a week, every patient saw that the number of T cells in their body started to decrease. Researchers also saw that the number of modified T cells did not go down as much as the ones not modified. This is what made researchers think that they had just created a security against HIV.

            Jay Johnson, 53, got this procedure done to him. After about three years, he is feeling well and the modified cells are still moving along his body. When talking to Dr. Jon LaPook, a CBS medical correspondent, he says, "It makes me very excited. Hopeful, and it makes me want to ... shout out to the world that there could be an end to this".  HIV has taken over Jay’s life, and the idea of having a cure to this disease makes him extremely happy, as it would make anyone.  

            In reaction to the research found in this procedure, Dr. Mark Kay and Dr. Bruce Walker said "This proof-of- principle study is an important first step, not just in the treatment of those infected with HIV but also for genome editing in a broader sense". The doctors are saying that the study just preformed is just one step out of many to come. They still have a large number of work to do, and plan on making the treatment help a lot of people.

             

            This relates to our biology class because we were talking about the different types blood cells in the circulatory system unit. We leaned that white blood cells help fight infection.  I liked this article because I want to be a nurse when I am older, and this takes place in the medical field. It is interesting to know that a cure to an awful infection could be on the way. Many lives would be saved if researchers can find a cure to HIV. A cure to HIV would be start to find many other cures for deadly diseases such as cancer. 

 

HIV attacking T cells

Photo from: bonaccorsojenna.blogspot.com 

             

Where have all the whales gone?

Today I read the article, "Court Hears Arguments on Whaling by Japan" written by Marlise Simmons published on June 26th, 2013 on the NY Times website.
Link: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/27/world/asia/court-hears-arguments-on-whaling-by-japan.html?ref=whalesandwhaling

This article talked all about the never ending debate about whether or not it is okay for the Japanese and other Pacific Nations to participate in whaling in the Southern Pacific Ocean. After years of hundreds and whales being slaughtered Australia and New Zealand had enough of Japan's action and in June of last year took their case to the International Court of Justice.

This article recaps what has transpired in the case as of the published date. Australia believes that Japan has violated the 1946 international convention regulating whaling and the 1986 moratorium on commercial activity set by the International Whaling Commission. The Australian government believed that Japan has since killed more than 10,000 whales. A quote the article used, '“We are saying what Japan is doing is blatantly commercial, it’s not science, it has to stop,” Bill Campbell, who heads Australia’s legal team, said in a telephone interview from The Hague. “You don’t kill 935 whales in a year to do scientific research, you don’t even need to kill one whale.”'

Minke Whale
Link:
 http://wildwhales.org/wp-content/themes/wildwhales/images/minkebreach_popup.jpg

Although Japan is one of three nations that participate in whaling, Iceland and Norway being the other two, is it the only one claiming to be whaling on behalf of science and in the Southern Pacific Ocean around Australia and New Zealand who have claimed that water as a place for whales to be free.

Australia and Japan were to make their cases before 16 judges at the United Nations’ highest judicial body, in an international equivalent of a civil suit.

Japan’s hunt is mostly minke whales and some fin whales in the Ocean close by Antarctica which is allowed by the whaling convention and the International Whaling Commission, which also allowed for the killing of whales for scientific research.

The Japanese delegation said that the minke whale population was more than 500,000 in the Antarctic region and that their research needs of about 815 minke whales per year were sustainable and well below the mammals’ reproductive rate.

I thought this article was very interesting and a topic very close to me. I'm very interesting and marine biology and do not find that whaling is a good thing for the marine ecosystem. The marine ecosystem suffers from many different things including oil spills, destruction of coral reefs, and whaling among many more. I think that saying they need over 800 dead whales to conduct scientific experiments is absurd and preposterous. I don't understand their need for whales, but I find it wrong. Personally I would have to side with Australia and New Zealand on this case because there are regulations on whaling and Japan is not really following them. 

This relates to biology class because if we think back to when we learned about food webs and food chains, we know that the presences of an animal in an ecosystem is crucial to how the ecosystem functions and how the populations of animals survives. Although whales are commonly at the top of the food chain, they eat other animals so if they aren't there to eat these organisms then their populations will explode. Which in return will shrink their population because with more of that kind of organism around they will be in need for food. Since they need more food then they will eventually eat the other organisms into extinction. 

I think whaling is a major problem in the world and it either needs to stop or be substantially cut down. I think Australia is right for cracking down on Japan.

A Wild World of Waste

I read the article “Bangladesh Pollution, Told in Colors and Smells” by Jim Yardley which was published on July 14 2013 in the New York Times

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/07/15/world/asia/bangladesh-pollution-told-in-colors-and-smells.html?pagewanted=1&version&_r=0&action=click&region=searchResults%230&module=Search&url=http://query.nytimes.com/search/sitesearch/%23/water%20pollution/365days/

Can you imagine trying to concentrate in school with an odor so strong and foul you feel dizzy? Well that is what it is like for kids in Savar Bangladesh. The article “Bangladesh Pollution, Told in Colors and Smells” describes Bangladesh’s severe pollution problems and the effects that this pollution has on those who live there.   

Bangladesh is a country in South Asia and is the world’s second leading clothing exporter, just behind China. But the making of clothes comes at a price for the environment. Bangladesh is filled with many rivers but it is sad to say that many of them are severely polluted. A number clothing factories have been illegally dumping waste water into rivers to avoid the extra cost of water treatment.

The dumping of waste water into rivers is one of the leading causes of Bangladesh's severe pollution problems. Mohammed Abdul Kader, Savar’s mayor stated that, “The whole country is suffering from pollution. In Savar, we have lots of coconut trees, but they don’t produce coconuts anymore. Industrial pollution is damaging our fish stocks, our fruit produce, our vegetables.” It is sad that their natural resources like the coconut trees are no longer active. Also the rivers are a different color every week because of the dye from the clothing factories. A local English teacher, Tamanna Afros, said, “Sometimes it is red. Or gray. Sometimes it is blue. It depends on the colors they are using in the factories.”

But the damage doesn't stop their. Not only does the pollution affect the environment it also hurts many people, especially the students and faculty of Genda Government Primary School. A polluted canal runs behind the school where many factories dump their waste. The odor that rises from the canal is so foul that it can be suffocating on its worst days. Imagine trying to study with an awful odor coming in through the window. Concentrating is difficult for both students and teachers and it is said in the article that “Students often become lightheaded and dizzy. A few boys fainted in late April. Another retched in class.” This is not a safe place for learning.

As I was reading this article I instantly connected it to the Lorax which I watched in my Biology class. The factory in The Lorax was dumping all their waste into the rivers and harming the animals in the rivers. All the animals ended up having to move because they could no longer live in their home because it was so polluted by the factories waste. This is very similar to how the factories in Bangladesh are dumping their waste into the rivers and polluted the rivers and harming the organisms inside. But, the animals like fish and the plants cannot just get up and walk out of these rivers so it is very important to reduce the amount of pollution by reducing the amount of waste being poured into rivers. Also the factory owners are only thinking about themselves and their companies success in this situation, they don't care that they are severely harming the environment. This is similar to how in The Lorax the Once-ler only cares about the success of his business and doesn't care that he is ruining the environment around him which is the home to many creatures just like our environment.

Big Oil Spill, Big Problems

The article Fla. sues BP over oil spill environmental damage by Jennifer Kay, http://theadvocate.com/home/8559098-125/fla-sues-bp-over-oil , written on March 6 2014 is about how Florida is filing for a lawsuit against the British Oil Company BP because of the damage to the natural resources that resulted because of the tragic oil spill back in 2010.

The article states, “Those resources include Florida’s sandy beaches, salt marshes, wetlands, estuaries, submerged aquatic vegetation, deep water communities and coral reefs. As well as wildlife such as manatees, oysters, sea turtles, birds and fish.”  So this oil spill did not just affect the resources but also the wildlife. It has been four years since the spill and they are still trying to restore the Gulf of Mexico.

Not only did this massive oil spill harm many animals and resources but it also triggered an explosion that killed 11 workers. This oil spill clearly had a big effect on the environment and the people living in it.

When I read this article I thought about when we learned about ecosystems in Biology class. I learned that when an organism is pulled out of the ecosystem they have a huge effect on every other organism within the ecosystem. So when all those types of wildlife were harmed from the oil spill it affects the organism that eats it and the organism that it eats. If they go extinct, the organism that eats them will go hungry and die but the organism that they eat will over populate and that will affect other organisms.

I really liked this article because it really explained that they are not filing a lawsuit for economic issues due to the oil spill, but they are filing it because of the natural resources being destroyed. I think that the British Oil Company should be held responsible for the oil spill. 

Carbs, Calories and Cravings

I read the article “How Carbs Can Trigger Food Cravings” by Anahad O’ Connor on June 27, 2013 at 12:02 am in the New York Times. http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/06/27/how-carbs-can-trigger-foodcravings/?_php=true&_type=blogs&action=click&module=Search&region=searchResults%230&version=&url=http%3A%2F%2Fquery.nytimes.com%2Fsearch%2Fsitesearch%2F%3Faction%3Dclick%26region%3DMasthead%26pgtype%3DHomepage%26module%3DSearchSubmit%26contentCollection%3DHomepage%26t%3Dqry929%23%2Fcarbs+lead+to+cravings&_r=0

This article talks about how a new study shows that all calories are not the same. The new research shows that processed carbs that are known to cause abrupt spikes and falls in blood sugar stimulate parts of the brain involved in hunger and cravings. The findings of the new study were published in the “American Journal of Clinical Nutrition” and suggest that high-glycemic foods, like bagels, doughnuts and french-fries, influence the brain in a way that might make some people to overeat.

Dr. David Ludwig, the lead author of the study and the director of the New Balance Foundation Obesity Prevention Center at Boston Children’s Hospital said “For those who are particularly susceptible to these effects (referring to overeating), avoiding refined carbohydrates might reduce urges and potentially help control weight.”  If people cut out or lower their intake of the calories leading to cravings, they will eat less therefore seeing a decrease in weight and they won’t have nearly as much cravings. No matter what diet they chose, people who have lost a large amount of weight have a hard time keeping it off. Luckily a few studies of weight loss maintenance, including one in The New England Journal of Medicine in 2010, showed some success with diets that limit high-glycemic foods.

              Along with raising blood pressure, sugary food triggers the part of the brain involved with reward. Earlier studies showed that these parts of the brain light up more  for a slice of chocolate cake than for vegetables, and the activity tends to be greater in the brains of obese people than it is in those who are healthier.

              To gather more information on this subject, Dr. Ludwig found a dozen obese men and then fed them milkshakes on two different occasions separated by several weeks. The milkshakes were nearly identical both flavored with milk and vanilla, and containing the same amount of calories, carbohydrates, protein and fat. On one occasion, the shakes were made with high-glycemic corn syrup; on the other, they were made with low-glycemic carbohydrates.

              As suspected, their blood sugar rose more quickly after drinking the high-glycemic milkshake. However, the researchers were surprised in what happened several hours later, about the time most people are ready for their next meal. They found that blood sugar levels had plummeted into the hypoglycemic range, the men said they had more hunger, and brain scans showed greater activity in parts of the brain that regulate cravings, reward and addictive behaviors. Dr. Gardner of Stanford University, said “it was clear that the conventional approach of the past few decades was not working. A more helpful message than “eat less,” he said, may be “eat less refined carbohydrates and more whole foods.”

              This article relates to our biology class because it has a lot to do with nutrition, it also touches base on carbs, lipids and proteins which we learned about in biochemistry. I have also learned about this from my mom who is a health teacher. She always tells me to limit my intake of foods like bagels and chips so I don’t crave them even more. I agree with this article because it is really pointing out that high glycemic foods are bad for you and I agree with that. If we limit our intake of high glycemic foods we could limit a lot of obesity and have a healthier world.

http://www.med-health.net/Refined-Processed-Carbohydrates.html

 

Want to see a passenger pigeon?

For this post I read "The Mammoth Cometh" by Nathaniel rich, with the New York Times (http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/02/magazine/the-mammoth-cometh.html?ref=science).

If you do, you may be in luck. Scientists are currently working on "bringing back" extinct species, starting with the passenger pigeon. Ben Novak, in particular, is dedicated to advancing the research, and works full-time at Revive & Restore, a company that is helping advance "de-extinction". As a child, he was fascinated by passenger pigeons, who as recently as 1860, were spotted in flocks said to be billions of birds strong. Being so numerous, however, they were excessively hunted and went extinct back in 1914.

http://www.georgiabigfootsociety.com/Passenger_Pigeon_horz.jpg

Novak and other scientists are working towards bringing back animals such as the passenger pigeon by gathering DNA of the species from preserved specimens. They then look for the non-extinct species that is the closest genetically, and use their DNA to help put together the DNA of the extinct animal. The formulated DNA is then injected into an egg from the non-extinct species, causing the child to have either sperm carrying the extinct species' DNA (if it is male), or eggs carrying the extinct species' DNA (if it is female). By breeding these animals that fall in between the two species together, some of the offspring will end up being from the recently existing species.

There are many proposed reasons as to why it is a good idea to ring back dead species, but my personal favorite involves fixing what we have broken. One hundred years ago the passenger pigeon went extinct, because humans made some very bad choices. If we are offered the ability to reintroduce passenger pigeons, (along with other species), it would help to right the ecological wrongs that we as a species have caused.

As for criticism from the public, the article states, "If the new, synthetically created bird enriches the ecology of the forests it populates, few people, including conservationists, will object." This means that as long as the new bird (or animal) is able to fill the role of an animal from the extinct species it was modeled after, there won't be much public objection.

This relates to our biology class because we are just like the Once-ler from The Lorax (which we watched earlier on in the year). He realized too late, just as the last tree was killed, that what he was doing needed to be stopped. We too have realized the consequence too late: we killed off all of the passenger pigeons in the world. Fortunately, we can also be like the Once-ler in another way. He kept a truffula seed, and gave it to the narrator so that he could plant it. We too can attempt to stop passenger pigeons from disappearing completely, by using DNA to make new passenger pigeons. With any luck, we will have learned from our mistakes, and the passenger pigeons of today will fare much better that the ones of the past.

I, personally, think that it is a great idea to fix the harm that we (humans) have caused to the environment. The damage has already been done, there is no bringing back any of the pigeons that were hunted, but maybe one day in the future, people will once again be able to walk outside and listen to the cooing of the passenger pigeon.