Bronxville HS Core Chemistry: December 2014

Thursday, December 18, 2014

Birds Fled 'day Before' US Tornadoes.

William Bogatyrenko

Webb, Jonathan. "Birds Fled 'day Before' US Tornadoes." BBC News. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Dec. 2014.

http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-30531060

The article I read was about how golden-winged warblers, very small songbirds weighing about nine grams each, left the general area of the April string of tornadoes a day or two before the tornadoes occurred, while they were hundreds of miles away. The scientists knew this because they had put geolocators onto some of the birds, and data showed that they had “taken unprecedented evasive action…” (Webb). Also, you could see that there were many less birds than there normally were just by birdwatching in the area of the tornadoes. After the tornadoes had ended, all of the birds with geolocators on them had returned to their nests. However, it wasn’t just the golden-winged warblers who had sensed the tornadoes and left the area; many other birds and animals left too. Scientists think that birds and other animals sensed the tornadoes because of the “deep rumble that tornadoes produce, well below what humans can hear” (Webb). The rumbling is in what is called the “infrasound” range, which “travels thousands of kilometres, and may serve as something of an early warning system for animals that can pick it up” (Webb). As well as using infrasound for sensing tornadoes, researchers think that other birds, such as falcons, use infrasound to navigate. The fact that the birds left was surprising to the researchers because even though it is known that birds can change their migration route, it is unheard of that they well leave their nesting site and established breeding ground once they are done migrating. This is the first time that birds were ever documented taking evasive action from things that could pose a danger, such as tornadoes.

This article could very positively affect humanity. It could increase our knowledge on birds and their movement patterns. It could also help us learn more about the infrasound range. We could make infrasound detectors to help us predict when tornadoes and other natural disasters would come, and we could develop a warning system for people in danger of these natural disasters. This could save hundreds of lives and could prevent hundreds of people from getting severely injured and/or losing everything, including homes and jobs.

Webb’s article was pretty well written, although there are some improvements he could have made to it. Webb incorporated quotes from the researchers, and informed the reader very well of how this was an important study, which was that it was the first time that birds were ever documented taking evasive action from things that could pose a danger and that it is unheard of that they well leave their nesting site and established breeding ground once they are done migrating. One thing the author could improve upon is explain the effects of this new research on the world, or the new uses it could have if it were developed further. He could also have connected the research to humanity. For example, he could have included a prediction of future uses of this research, like a warning system for tornadoes based on predictions using infrasound.

A Great Moment’: Rover Finds Methane, a Clue That Mars May Harbor Life

Current Events 10 Sean Curran

Chang, Kenneth. "‘A Great Moment’: Rover Finds Methane, a Clue That Mars May Harbor Life." The New York Times. The New York Times, 16 Dec. 2014. Web. 19 Dec. 2014. <http://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/17/science/a-new-clue-in-the-search-for-life-on-mars.html?ref=science>.

I read the article ‘A Great Moment’: Rover Finds Methane a Clue That Mars May Harbor Life by Kenneth Chang. This article talked about how life on Mars is still a possibility that life exists or has existed on Mars due to the discovery of methane on the planet by the Mars rover Curiosity. As it states in the article,” A year after reporting that that NASA’s Curiosity rover has found no evidence of methane gas on Mars, all but dashing hopes that organisms might be living there now, scientists reversed themselves in Tuesday.” Finding methane on Mars is important because methane can’t last long on Earth, so any methane found must have been created recently. Methane has been found on Mars before, but the data retrieved was never conclusive, because the instruments used found there data within their margin of error, until now.

The concepts proposed by this article will greatly affect humanity in the future. As of now, Earth is the only known planet that has or as the possibility of sustaining life. However, the discovery of methane on Mars open up the possibility that life could be sustained on Mars, or even that their might be some organisms living on Mars right now. This discovery also has a big impact because it furthers the cause that human life could possibly be supported on Mars, do to the facts that ases may be being made their naturally.

There were both strengths and weaknesses in this article. One strength is how the author incorporated quotes into his article from NASA scientists, giving his article legitimacy. Another strength in this article was how the author was able to use more sophisticated language, yet still get his points across. One weakness in this article was how had almost no opinion but just facts, making the article a little boring. To improve this, the author could just provide his opinion on some of the concepts in the article.

3.6 Degrees of Uncertainty

Gillis, Justin. "3.6 Degrees of Uncertainty." The New York Times. The New York Times, 15 Dec. 2014. Web. 16 Dec. 2014. <http://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/16/science/earth/is-a-two-degree-limit-on-global-warming-off-target.html?ref=science&_r=0>.

3.6 Degrees of Uncertainty, by Justin Gillis written for the New York Times, discusses the increase in the worlds climate. Negotiators are trying to keep the world below 3.6 degrees Fahrenheit in the further over the course of many years. However, it is proven that the world has increase in one degree Celsius since the Industrial Revolution. Although that may seem small, it is a significant amount. Throughout history, global warming has been an issue but have only realized the consequences of it recently. It is said that if the Greenland ice sheets will begin to melt if global warming increased 1.9 degrees Celsius. “The climate is now out of equilibrium with the ice sheets...They are going to melt,” Andrea Dutton, a geochemist at the University of Florida. As a result of the Greenland ice sheets melting, the ocean would expand 23 feet over an unknown period. On the other hand, “the ocean, which covers 70 percent of the earth’s surface and absorbs considerable heat, will pull down the average. But the warming over land tends to be much greater,” (Gillis, page 3). Scientist still suggest the same ways to prevent global warming as much as possible. A climate scientist at Pennsylvania State University, Richard Alley, said, “All delay is costly, but it helps whenever you start.” Global warming include extreme weather patterns. This can harm humans, animals, and pants. With ice melting, it puts many animals at risk.

I thought this article was very well written. It was very informational. But because there was a lot of information, it was difficult to read and did not define terms. The author could have formated the information in a clear way so that any person, most or less advanced in science, could fully understand.

The Path to Zero Ebola Cases

Kevin Hendrick 12/17/14

Chemistry C135 Mr. Ippolito

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/12/opinion/jim-yong-kim-world-bank-the-path-to-zero-ebola-cases.html?module=Search&mabReward=relbias%3Aw%2C%7B%222%22%3A%22RI%3A15%22%7D&_r=0

“The Path to Zero Ebola Cases”

By Jim Yong Kim

I read the article, “The Path to Zero Ebola Cases”, by Jim Yong Kim, which describes the steps required to fully extinguish the Ebola epidemic in Western Africa. First, the author writes that resources need to keep being sent to Western Africa to aid the patients. Kim states, “For Senegal, the cost to treat one patient and all of his contacts was more than $1 million . For Nigeria, one infected person led to 19 other cases, and more than 19,000 contacts traced by over 800 health care workers at a cost of more than $13 million.” It will cost a lot of money, but to quell the spread of Ebola it is worth the money to the millions of innocent lives. The second and third steps are about the people tracking down the virus, and the scientists analyzing the data to see if Ebola is further spreading. The fourth step is that national agencies must adapt to the conditions of local towns, and if this is done right than the number of patients and their contacts will drop greatly. Finally, the fifth step is that not only regional groups need to keep fighting the virus, but international powers such as the United States and the United Kingdom need to keep sending resources to fight Ebola. If all these steps are taken, then one of the most fearsome epidemics in the Modern Age will be removed, and the scare of Ebola will end.

Although there has not been a case of Ebola in the United States, this affects me because Ebola has been spreading for almost a year now, and I believe that that is way too long for these innocent lives to be put at fatal risk. I chose this topic because I wanted to know how close we were to stopping the spread of Ebola. Obviously, this would have a momentous impact on the rest of the world, primarily Western Africa. If Ebola was extinguished, than that already devastated region could move on from this time of loss and tragedy.

Jim Yong Kim wrote an impressive article on what is still such a pressing topic in our world. I liked that he elaborated on each of the five “steps” which could help to stop Ebola, and also the statistics he gave on the disease. For example, he wrote, “More than 11 months into the crisis, thousands of people are dead and more than 17,000 have been infected.” I thought Jim could have given a background on Ebola and its effects, and also he did really expand on the specific resources necessary to stop the spread. Overall, Jim Yong Kim wrote a great article on an important topic that is affecting the lives of millions, and is in the sorrowful minds of billions.

Tuesday, December 16, 2014

Ancient Pharaoh Statue Rises again In Egypt

I read an article entitled ‘Ancient Pharaoh statue rises again in Egypt’ by Katia Hetter for CNN. This article talked about how around 3,000 years ago, a statue of Pharaoh Amenhotep (iii) was toppled over in an earthquake. Then, the statue was restored in the city of Luxor, Egypt by Egyptian and German archaeologists. Back in March, the same group of archeologists, led by the German archaeologist Hourig Sourouzian created two other statues of Pharoh Amenhotep (iii) in March. The same archaeologist heads the temple of Amenhotep (iii) conservation project. The temple of Amenhotep (iii) was erected between 1390 and 1353 BC, according to the World Monument Fund. It was 100 meters wide, and 600 meters long, and only the lower sections remain today. The newly restored statues, the article states, can be found at the funerary temple of Amenhotep (iii.)

This article is very important to humanity today, and the study of the past. It is very important to study the aspects of our past so that we can learn from them, and it is important to restore aspects that are lost over time. Now that we have restored this statue and temple, we can continue to learn from them, studying the type of design that they used, and the techniques that they used to build it. Now that we have practiced the technique of restoring artifacts that have been destroyed or damaged, we can use it in the future to help fix ancient objects that are broken. This process will allow us to further understand the ancient world, as we can restore the objects for further reference.

This article was very informative, but there are a couple of things that could be improved upon. One thing that could be improved is the spacing of the article. I found it confusing when the author began talking about a temple rather than the original statue, and I think that spacing the article out in paragraphs would have helped make the article easier to understand. Another thing that could have been improved upon is how the article strays off of topic, and this made the article confusing at times. Overall, I think that this was a very informative and interesting article, and I was able to learn a lot from it.

http://www.cnn.com/2014/12/15/travel/feat-egypt-amenhotep-iii-pharoah-statue/index.html?hpt=hp_t4

Citation: Hetter, Katia, James Durston, and Karla Cripps. "Ancient Pharaoh Statue Rises Again in Egypt." CNN. Cable News Network, 15 Dec. 2014. Web. 16 Dec. 2014. <http://www.cnn.com/2014/12/15/travel/feat-egypt-amenhotep-iii-pharoah-statue/index.html?hpt=hp_t4>.

The Programmable World

Kenny Taylor

Campbell, Thomas A., Skylar Tibbits, and Banning Garrett. "The Programmable World." Scientific American Nov. 2014: 61-65. Web.

The Programmable World is written by several scientists who have been working on solving problems with devices that assemble themselves or can change shape or use automatically or remotely. Skylar Tibbits, a research scientist at MIT, has been trying to build machines without the conventional tools: wires, motors or electronics. His devices are printed as flat rectangles, but change shape when they touch water. These types of objects are referred to as being “4-D printed” because after they are printed in three dimensions, they change over time (the fourth dimension). Christopher Williams, a scientist at Virginia Tech, has figured out a way to print circuits onto 4-D objects. These can be used to send a signal that changes the shape of the object. He envisions this idea eventually being used in anything from robots that fix themselves to self-assembling buildings! Thomas Campbell, also from Virginia Tech, has figured out a way to insert nanomaterials (materials which have properties that affect things on a small scale) and objects into 3-D printed designs. Once attached, the nanomaterials can then be used to change the shape or use of the object.

4-D printing is interesting to me because it could really change my everyday life. For instance, airplane wings that change shape with different weather conditions would make planes safer. If someone loses their keys, they can print more. Right now the authors can do things like print 4-D models of their schools’ logos, but things like machines that repair themselves are not yet ready. Also, programmable objects could also be hacked and taken over by people who want to be destructive. This means that while 4-D printing could be very useful, it could bring a new set of problems as well. Whether mainly good or bad, 4-D printing will change the world I grow up in and I am excited to see what develops.

The authors talk about many possible uses of 4-D printing. They do not explain, however, why shape changing plastics are better than, say, a robot that uses motors and electricity to self-assemble. In other words, they do not look at the cons: plastics are weak materials that have low melting points.