EcoCMUfall20H

Major land–use changes have occurred in the United States during the past 25 years. The total area of cropland, pastureland and rangeland decreased by 76 million acres in the lower 48 states from 1982 to 2003, while the total area of developed land increased by 36 million acres or 48%. What are the potential economic, social and environmental impacts of land use changes? How does land use change affect agriculture and rural communities? What are the important economic and environmental implications for commodity production and trade, water and soil conservation, open space preservation, and other policy issues? This article addresses some of these issues and their policy implications. https://www.choicesmagazine.org/magazine/article.php?article=49

 Back in high school, I used to take pictures all the time just because I wanted to improve my picture taking skills along with having a high quality background for my phone or computer by yours truly :) which is why I chose to talk about this technological improvement.  "Caltech’s Lihong Wang developed technology that can reach 70 trillion frames, fast enough to see light travel" according to Scitechdaily which I think is so crazy. I personally would love to see that. Wang and his team did further developments and made a camera that not only can record at a fast rate but also record in 3-D. The camera does this by using the vibrations from the light waves and put two pictures together like our eyes do.  I thought it would be cool to mention an invention that could take capturing picture to a whole new enjoyable level or somehow be used to benefit us in some way.  Aliyah Ashby 28 October 2020 Website:  https://scitechdaily.com/...

Michelle Almazan            The Endangered Species Act is the strongest law for protecting biodiversity passed by any nation. Over the past four-plus decades, the Endangered Species Act has repeatedly demonstrated that, when used to the full extent of the law, it works. The Act has been more than 99 percent successful at preventing extinction. It’s purpose is to prevent the extinction of our most at-risk plants and animals, increase their numbers and effect their full recovery and eventually their removal from the endangered list.  Currently the Act protects more than 1,600 plant and animal species in the United States and its territories, many of which are successfully recovering. The Endangered Species Act isn’t just keeping species from extinction, it’s also helping hundreds of species recover. And we have hard numbers to prove it. Ninety three percent are stable or improving and more than eighty percent are meeting the recovery targets established ...

 Land Use is defined  as the operations that occur on land that were man made, with the intention to obtain products and/or benefits through using land resources. Land cover  is commonly defined as natural or planted vegetation  or man-made constructions which occur on the water, ice, bare rock, sand and similar surfaces also count as land cover.   Land cover data documents how much of a region is covered by forests, wetlands, impervious surfaces, agriculture, and other land and water types. Water types include wetlands or open water. Land use shows how people use the landscape, whether for development, conservation, or mixed uses. The different types of land cover can be managed or used quite differently. https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/lclu.html https://www.canr.msu.edu/news/the_difference_between_land_use_and_land_cover

Due to climate change, industries have been trying to find a way to find way son how we can still live our lives without negatively impacting the Earth. In the article there are 10 energy trends, each with what company is dong the trend which is the picture below.  I will be talking about Quantum Computing which is focusing on developing new energy solutions, improving energy efficiency, and reducing the use of greenhouse gases. Two companies that re focusing o this is JoS Quantum and QC Ware. JoS Quantum is developing a cloud based software that solves complex issues for energy sectors. QC Ware is providing quantum computing solutions for optimizing energy utilization. I think these are super cool and hope they become incorporated into our lives soon.  Aliyah Ashby 21 October 2020 Website: https://www.startus-insights.com/innovators-guide/top-10-energy-industry-trends-innovations-2020-beyond/

 Michelle Almazan             Plant and animal extinctions are occurring at a rate of at least 1,000 times faster than the time before humans, a new study says. They say the main reason is attributed to habitat loss, as animals are left without places to live as areas around the planet are being taken over and changed by human presence. The study also warns with the continuing of deforestation and climate change adding to the loss of species, the study questions wether humans will be involved in the next one. That’s something scary and something we should look more into, I think so. However, authors write that there is still hope and I highly agree with that, if we all come together we could make a difference.  Website//  https://www.pbs.org/newshour/science/animal-extinctions

As I have said in previous blogs, I try to focus more on positive articles but I came across one that would attract more people due to the negative aspects and what climate change is doing to this specific thing: nuclear reactors.  During the last 20 years, water level has risen so high so quickly that it has threatened 57 nuclear power plants in the US. This affects us regular folks because it while disrupted how it is handled negatively. For example, the waste from the power plants can end up in our water systems or the power form the power plants won't be enough to provide electrical currents to everyone that uses them. The article also states that   facilities in the Midwest and South Florida would be affected the most. For a lot of people on campus the Midwest is their home so this could affect us more than we realize.   Aliyah Ashby  14 October 2020 Article Link: https: //www.scientificamerican.com/article/mounting-climate-impacts-threaten-u-s-nuclear-reac...

      Michelle Almazan             We always talk about the bad things going on around the world but we never talk about how to address them. In this article there’s twelve things we could do to stop animal extinction but I’m going to talk about the ones I felt were easier and more important. You want to start off by educating the younger generations about endangered animals in your area. Tell them what’s going on around the world they live in, show them pictures, news, articles like this one, anything that could show them proof. Secondly, you want to start walking a little more, don’t rely on your car to go everywhere. Drive less, walk more! The last thing that could help is not buying plastic products. Every time you go shopping take your own bags, reuse containers and properly dispose of lightweight plastics. Wild animals get tangled in these products and they end up in the ocean being infested by small fish and killing off beneficial micr...

 I was looking through science daily and happened to find an article about how a team collects more sunlight from the sun with advanced solar panel and personally, I think solar panels are cool. When I get a house I will be putting them on my roof and think everyone should because it could save money in the long run.  In the article, the team talks about finding a way to make solar panels more efficient since the material being used now which is silicone is not doing the job anymore. The team found that a material called  gallium arsenide phosphide, this is a  semiconductor and they chose this one because both materials are comparable together. They both absorb light however gallium arsenide phosphide does the job with less heat waste. Silicone might not the best at that but it can convert energy from infrared light at a fast rate.  The team puts it like this: "Silicone and gallium arsenide phosphide work like a team, some play...

      I had first learned about fracking on a show called Bojack Horseman where on an episode a campaigner was running against the idea of fracking due to it occurring behind his house; Later in the show the campaigner throws a anti-fracking party and during the party the house falls under ground due to the fracking.  fracking is the process of injecting liquid at high pressure into subterranean rocks, boreholes, etc. so as to force open existing fissures and extract oil or gas.Fracking is a hotly debated environmental and political issue. Advocates insist it is a safe and economical source of clean energy; critics, however, claim fracking can destroy drinking water supplies, pollute the air, contribute to the greenhouse gases that cause global warming, and trigger earthquakes. https://www.livescience.com/34464-what-is-fracking.html

 Michelle Almazan I found this article while scrolling through my social media and I thought it was interesting. This specific article talked about three bird species we lost in 2019 but I’m going to talk about my favorite one. The Poo’uli bird, their scientific name being Melamprosobs Phaeosoma. This bird is from Hawaii and was found by students attending the University of Hawaii in 1973. The Poo’uli can be found in native rainforests, they live in elevations of five thousand feet or higher. Fun fact, they only lay about one of two eggs. Two of the main threats to the poo’uli’s existence would be loosing their habitat and predators Lack of food. Despite all the attempts to help the bird, they say the last poo’uli died on November 26, 2004.  Website:  https://mauiforestbirds.org/poouli/