Jessie+Li

**Week Three** **How many species are there on Earth? media type="youtube" key="GGcZrqP4f98" height="364" width="445" While watching Dee Boersma, who was //very// passionate about penguins, speak about the penguins that suffer from oil spills, I thought of this Dawns commercial. I think commercial is an effective way of spreading awareness of the danger of oil spills and its effect on the animals. This way, they can bring a lot more attention to the problem.

[|http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1989883,00.html] **Even though we have been inhabiting this planet for hundreds of thousands of years, we still do not know every specie that exists on Earth. More and more species are being discovered every year. One significant discovery was made on a 2008 expedition to the Foja Mountains in New Guinea. Scientists we explored the highs and lows of the region known as the Lost World have identified many new species, including a new species of dwarf wallaby, a large woolly rat, and a pair of new imperial pigeons and a tree frog with an inflatable nose. This month-long expedition was led by Conservation International as part of its Rapid Assessment Program (RAP). This organization was first developed in 1990 to send scientists on trips to different part of the world to discover and observe wildlife in order to gather and send information that can be used by policymakers to protect new and endangered species. Not only did this trip reveal to the world animals it has never seen before, but more importantly it has inspired and encouraged other federal agencies to develop similar programs for exploring oceans and investigating oil spills and other toxic events. After all, "It's always easier to argue for conservation when we know what we're conserving and just where it lives."

//"The Foja Range is a poster child for Darwin's theory," says Beehler, "combining isolation with novel habitat and adding a bit of time — at least a million years" (Time)////.//

**Week Two** **World Population: fact or fiction?** **media type="youtube" key="vZVOU5bfHrM" height="360" width="580" I found this video to be very interesting because it dismisses overpopulation as merely a ****myth. It mentioned that people have been miscalculating and making wrong predictions about when the world will come to an end due to this crisis. Basically the idea is that it hasn't happened yet and will never happen because all previous predictions have been inaccurate and all efforts in trying to prevent it are useless. I personally believe that this idea is ridiculous and plain ignorant. There are many facts that points to overpopulation as being real and becoming a crisis that needs to be resolved. In any case, what is your opinion on this topic?** ** **

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[]  This article, on the other hand, talks about overpopulation as a real crisis that is happening right now. However, instead of looking towards the researchers and scientists as leaders to help solve the problem, this article is telling our religious leaders to step up and be the enforcers because they " **have a reach and an influence far beyond that of most political entities. Religious leaders teach values and provide guidance to their congregations." 85% of the world population practice a religion, and many of the sacred texts provide us evidence of the fact that the world population is increasing at an extremely rapid pace since ancient times. Religious leaders can help by preaching a doctrine of fewer children and help couples realize that there nothing shameful about having fewer children. ** **//<span style="display: block; font-family: Georgia,serif; text-align: left;">"...religious leaders make up the single most effective values-message distribution channel on the planet. //<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 14px;">//<span style="display: block; font-family: Georgia,serif; text-align: left;">We need our religious leaders to preach a doctrine of fewer children, to help couples (and their families) learn that fewer children isn't something to be ashamed of, but something celebrated for its contribution to the greater good and glory of their creator " (CNN). // **=====

<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">**Week One** **<span style="color: #a1f40b; display: block; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 24px; text-align: center;">SustainAbility : the capacity to endure  ** <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">In **ecolog** <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif; line-height: 19px;">**y** <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">, it means how biological systems remain diverse and productive over time For **humans**, it is the potential for long-term maintenance of wellbeing, which in turn depends on the wellbeing of the natural world and the responsible use of natural resources



[] This is an article I found on CNN that discuss the potential benefit of a new technology called "smart dust," which are these wireless sensors that can be spread throughout the world (a project called "The Central Nervous System for the Earth"). These devices would check to see if the ecosystem is healthy, detect earthquake quicker, and monitor energy use. This would ultimately help with sustainability of the earth and maintain our wellbeing. Many companies announced that they will be on board in a few years, such as HP (who said they plan on taking on the project in about two years). One concern researchers have regarding this technology is security/privacy control. It's pretty fascinating check it out! <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;"> One sensor they are developing are designed to measure vibrations in factories and oil refineries to detect problems and inefficiencies of machines before they can cause big problems. If this was developed a few years earlier perhaps the oil spill disaster that's happening could have been prevented.

//"The idea is that accidents could be prevented and energy could be saved if people knew more about the world in real time, instead of when workers check on these issues only occasionally" (CNN).//