Wednesday, November 12, 2014

Christina Brumbaugh
11/12/14
Earth Science IH / D Odd


Shogren, Elizabeth. "Ahead of UN Climate Summit, Global Treaty on Warming Looks Unlikely." News.nationalgeographic.com. National Geographic, 21 Sept. 2014. Web. 11 Nov. 2014.


One hundred and twenty heads of state held a meeting in New York City, supervised by President Obama,  to discuss ideas on how to handle the growing  potential dangers due to climate change. This meeting was not to put anything into action, whereas a meeting in December 2015 will be held by the United Nations. It is intended that all countries will have the ability to have a say in solving these crises. The choice of how each country will attack this problem depends on its financial circumstances and economic priorities. Despite the efforts of smaller countries to suggest a treaty, it seems unlikely that any treaty will be formed in this next meeting . The three largest pollution producers, China, India, and the United States. are unwilling to risk the stability of their economies. A legally binding treaty would cut down pollution emissions and take away from countries’ liberty. Instead of a treaty, the U.S would prefer to take voluntary action in reducing pollution. However, other countries worry that it will not be enough: “We refuse to accept that someone says it cannot be legally binding and everybody has to live with it because [larger countries] are so powerful,” says Jumeau, the ambassador for climate change for the island of Seychelles. As this issue continues to grow, it also becomes more financially complex as certain countries will be overshadowed by larger and more affluent nations.
Bringing awareness to the urgent need of altering the ways in which we function as a society is key to cultivating a cleaner planet, as no one country can do this on its own. These meetings allow the world to brainstorm their ideas and come together to fix the problem. Scientists warn that if the world’s pollution emission is not reduced by 40%-70%, there would be “catastrophic outcomes” by 2050. Many may immediately regard this plan as unrealistic; for most of the world’s products are made in factories. Examining this conflict causes people to question the balance between money and production versus the good of our planet. The possibility of small islands submerging under water may also be considered a catastrophic outcome. If we do not cut down production by at least 40% in 2050, serious thoughts of alternative ways of living must be considered. For instance, massive boats would be an option to keep people afloat and alive once their homes go underwater.
The article offered perspectives from several educated and passionate people, who held different viewpoints from each other and from the author, making it more interesting to read as it lets you form your own opinions. It seems as if the title was not representative of what was written in the article. The passage mostly consisted of hypothetical thoughts and opinions from different sources and named useful facts to help the reader further comprehend this subject. It focused on more than just treaties, so a title change would be appropriate. I also felt that the author’s voice was not impactful enough; she mostly stated facts and other people’s opinions, but none of her own to emphasize the significance of the issue.



Sunday, November 9, 2014

Maddie Pettit
11/9/14
Earth Science/C Block Even Mrs. McClellan                                                                                       Fazekas, Andrew. "Stunning Snapshot Shows Birth of Alien Solar System." National Geographic. National Geographic Society, 06 Nov. 2014. Web. 09 Nov. 2014. http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/11/141106-starstruck-protoplanetary-disk-exoplanet-science/                                               
The article I read was about the image of the birth of a new solar system. The picture of this alien solar system was captured by the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array, or ALMA. The high-resolution capabilities of ALMA allow scientists to observe the birth of this solar system in a way that was never before possible, leading to the gain of lots of new information about solar systems and planets throughout space. One thing that scientists were able to observe- and had never seen before- was the rings separated by gaps in the dust disk. Astronomers believe that planets are beginning to form in these gaps between the rings around the sun-like star in the middle, HL Tau. However, it is strange that planets are forming around this particular star as HL Tau is no more than 1 million years old, and young stars don’t usually have planets to produce the structures seen in the image taken. The article next described the dust disk and the planet-forming process. Over time a disk of dust and rocks forms around a newly-born star. Within the disk planets begin to form and collect debris clearing its orbit around the star. At the same time the planets gravitationally capture the remaining debris into tight rings around its orbit. This explains the rings and gaps seen in the image taken by ALMA. Finally the article talked about seeing this yourself. HL Tau, along with its protoplanetary disk, is hidden behind clouds and dust making it unable to see through the naked eye. However planets are forming in the Great Orion Nebula as well, and with binoculars or a telescope you are able to see the fluorescent cloud of dust and gas.
This discovery is definitely relevant and significant. This image helps us better understand the process in which solar systems are created. With this very detailed image we can comprehend not only how planets throughout the universe form, but how our solar system formed. It is important for us to understand where we live, and part of understanding where we live is recognizing how where we live was created. With this information we will also be able to learn more about other solar systems and planets throughout the universe and compare them to our solar system. This image has opened many doors for scientists and our knowledge of solar systems.

            Overall I enjoyed reading this article and thought that it supplied a sufficient amount of information without making the article too long. The author of the article did a nice job making a confusing topic easy to understand through giving lots of detail and using vocabulary that the general population would understand instead of a bunch of scientific terms. The author included lots of quotes from experts and used factual information instead of opinions, so there was definitely enough evidence to back up all the author’s statements. However, I do wish that more background information about ALMA was included in the article like how it works and when it was built and whether this was the first time it was used or not. All in all, the article was informative and engaging.  

Thursday, November 6, 2014

Sean Curran
11/3/14
Earth Science/ D Block Odd Mrs. McClellen


Rogers, James. "Experts: Virgin Galactic Crash Will Change the Face of Space Tourism." Fox News. FOX News Network, 3 Nov. 2014. Web. 4 Nov. 2014.

The article I read was about how the recent crash of a Virgin Galactic ship will affect space tourism. The ship that crashed this week, the Virgin Galactic SpaceShipTwo, was going on a test flight over the Mojave desert. The crash happened while the plane applied it re-entry system, and it ended up killing the co-pilot and seriously injuring the pilot. As it states in the article,” However, NTSB Acting Chairman Christopher Hart said that investigators are still a long way from finding the cause of the crash, adding that it could take months of investigation.” While the crash was tragic, it also caused a huge loss of profit for Virgin Group, the company that owned the ship. This is because the ship was selling seats to customers for $250,000 a seat, with 80 million dollars worth of seats already booked. The crash of SpaceShipTwo came just mere days after an unmanned rocket headed to the International Space Station exploded seconds after launch.
This crash has a very large impact on space tourism, a promising new industry that could soon take ordinary people, with a unordinary amount of cash, into space. The crash has a big impact on space tourism because it brings safety into perspective. While bringing ordinary citizens into space is a huge step for mankind, many consider the journey not safe enough, mostly because of this crash, to risk. Richard Branson, owner of Virgin Group, shoots down the idea the space travel will always be this risky, stating ,” In the early days of aviation, there were accidents, and then aviation became very safe.” This crash has been a dark moment for space tourism, and experts, such a Chris Carberry, executive director of Explore Mars, predict that the following months not be good for space tourism.
The writing of this article had both good and bad moments. There were several things I thought were good in this article. One strength was how the author was able to get quotes from experts on the topic with both promising and bleak outlooks for space tourism. Another strength was how the author  was able to have paragraphs that were short and to the point, not long ones that kept rambling on and on. How ever, while the were many strengths in this article, there also were a few weaknesses. One weakness was how the author ended his article on a paragraph that sound like it should be in the middle of the article, not the concluding one. Another weakness in the article was how the article didn’t include several important facts about the ship, like how much it cost to make and how old it was, that left the reader constantly wondering throughout the article.

Brian DePaul Current Event

Brian DePaul         11/4/14
Earth Science            Current Event



Harwood, William. "NASA: No Danger to Space Station after Supply Rocket Blows up."        

CBSNews. CBS Interactive, 29 Oct. 2014. Web. 04 Nov. 2014.


NASA: No danger to space station after supply rocket blows up


An Orbital Sciences Corp. Antares rocket making its fifth flight exploded seconds after launch from the Virginia coast Tuesday. The explosion that this rocket had made destroyed an uncrewed Cygnus cargo ship. It took about fifteen seconds for the rocket to explode. For the first moments of the take off all was going great. The cause of this terrifying accident was the fact that the exhaust plume had greatly intensified, which then was followed by a detonation at the bottom of the rocket. The booster of this rocket fell back to earth up in flames, leaving a  liquid oxygen and refined kerosene propellants ignited in a huge fireball. When the object came to impact with the surface burning debris flew into the night sky making it look like fourth of July with a background of gray smoke. The explosion took many tolls on not only NASA but many other companies and resources. The loss was a major setback for Orbital's plans to establish routine space station access under a $1.9 billion contract with NASA calling for delivery of 20 tons of hardware over at least eight flights through 2016. This was also a major setback for this space station program. More than 5,000 pounds of cargo and supplies, including research hardware, student experiments, spare parts, food and crew supplies, 32 small nanosatellites and other gear, were lost in the mishap. Many officials went on to say that losing supplies was not nearly as bad as losing a life, and this is why that this is not seen as bad as it could have been.
This tragedy could have many effects on society. The more the awful space explorations failures, the more people feel uncomfortable and unconfident in todays technology. This will also take a giant toll on the space industry. If anyone has ideas of travelling to space, then all ideas are shattered because of the feeling of safety. This is also along the lines of Virgin Galactic’s incident recently. These mishaps keep occurring which is making space travel less of an option to many.
The strength of this article are the fact that there are videos, great evidence, pictures, and a trusty source. The weaknesses of this article is that it doesn't really have an analysis from the author. For some that don't know much about this topic, it could be difficult to understand. Overall, this article was strongly written and gave me a new perspective on space travel and its expenses.

Tuesday, November 4, 2014

Pete Meyers Current Event - In a Dome in Hawaii, a Mission to Mars

Peter Meyers
11/3/14
Earth Science
Current Event 1

Chang, Kenneth. "In a Dome in Hawaii, a Mission to Mars." The New York Times. The New
York Times, 20 Oct. 2014. Web. 04 Nov. 2014.

In part of a volcano in Hawaii six people are preparing to spend eight months in a dome. This is an experiment created by NASA to see how people are psychologically affected after living in almost complete isolation for a long period of time. They will live in a small dome on a volcano mimicking the terrain of Mars. NASA would like to know what the long term effects of these living conditions can have on people before they send anyone to Mars which is hopefully around 2030.  It is also to see how they get along and work together. The actually mission that NASA hopes to complete to Mars is over two years round trip. NASA is slightly worried about how these people will be affected. They will not send anyone to Mars until they fully understand the risks. This is not the first mission that has been done like this. Other missions with similar amounts of people have ended with the subjects losing productivity and developing sleep disorders. The people in the dome are completely cut off from society except for email which takes more than 20 minutes to send and receive. The people in the experiment are given some luxuries real astronauts on Mars would not get. For example, they can check certain websites to monitor their real lives and have a cell phone for extreme emergencies. The six people were chosen out of 150 applicants based on past experience with NASA and similar backgrounds. The three men and three women are all in their 20’s to 30’s and some aspire to go to space. So far they are getting along swimmingly and enjoying themselves greatly. It seems everyone is ver yexcited to start this mission and each person will be conducting experiments. NASA will be looking out for something called 3rd quarter syndrome. BAsically in the 1st quarter everything is new and fun, in the 2nd they begin to develop a routine. In the 4th quarter you are excited for the end but in the 3rd quarter it can be pretty miserable.
This article is relevant to us because space travel could be key to our survival. It seems that we are moving very slow in space exploration but every tiny step and experiment can be crucial. If this turns out to be a success and the people get along well perhaps we could be going to Mars sooner than we thought. And once some people go to Mars maybe we could live there. When the Earth becomes a red giant it will envelop Earth but Mars is farther away from the Sun so we could move there and it could buy us a few million years. The possibilities are infinite but we have to take it one step at a time and this experiment is a small step. Also this could have un space related benefits to humans. We can learn more about how the human brain works.

I think this was a very well written article. It was very easy to understand. The paragraphs were short and sweet and I found it very interesting. Every time I had a question the next paragraph answered it. The only thing I did not like is why it is a big deal. It seems like such a small thing in the grand scheme of things and while it is interesting I am not sure why someone wrote an article about it. The article got into great detail and explained everything you needed to know about the experiments however they could have mentioned the outcomes of similar experiments. Overall it was a very interesting and well written article.

Matthew Bato
11/4/14
Earth Science/C odd/ Mrs. McClellan

Raymo, Chet. "FINDING MY PLACE IN THE PARALLEL UNIVERSE."Proquest.com. Proquest, 10 June 2003. Web. 4 Nov. 2014. <http%3A%2F%2Fsearch.proquest.swb.orc.scoolaid.net%2Fdocview%2F405526927%2FE1437A83C12B4878PQ%2F2%3Faccountid%3D84027>.


I am probably a billionaire with with the biggest house in the world however I would be on another universe. Scientist have proven that there are infinite number of universes out in space and we aren't alone. In the article written by Chet Raymo, he states that parallel universes really do exist. Nonetheless, if parallel universes exist then that means everyone on earth has a duplicate of themselves on another universe but because there are infinite universes then everyone has an infinite number of duplicates, except not all universes are exactly like ours. However, we can observe over 40 billion light years away but other universes are in regions so far away their light hasn’t reached us yet and because most universes are infinite in extent a lot of them are unobservable. We won’t be able to visit any new universes because of the distance. However, one theory states that the action you are doing in one universe you are doing that same action somewhat similar  in another.

Understanding the different universes is such a significant impact on our society because we know that there is more to everything than just the human race. By knowing that there is more in the universe we can expand our exploration and make new discoveries. One main reason this article is important is because in billions of years we are going to need a new habitable planet to settle on and we know that there are other universes similar to our so I don’t think I would be much of a challenge to find a new home. But just thinking about the fact that we aren't alone in this life and there are more of us far from here just seems very fascinating.

However, the author of this article provided great evidence to support his theory. The author always explained his thoughts and ideas very well. The author was really helpful and I think he didn’t use too complex of word so that almost no one could understand him. Except, after reading this article I had on major question for the author. How do we know that there infinite number of universes except they are unobservable.

"A County Resents Oil Drilling, Despite the Money It Brings In."

Nate Moore
11-4-14
Current Events

Batheja, Aman. "A County Resents Oil Drilling, Despite the Money It Brings In." The New York Times. The New York Times, 30 Oct. 2014. Web. 02 Nov. 2014.

The article, "A County Resents Oil Drilling, Despite the Money It Brings In.”, was extremely interesting and provided insight into the power that oil companies have over small farmers. For generations small farms have been providing sustenance for thousands of people throughout Texas. Often theses farms have been passed down from generation to generation. Now, with the advent of modern day oil drilling, these farms are in risk of disappearing. In many other regions of the U.S. this would not be a problem. However, the majority of farmers in Texas sold their mineral rights dozens of years ago, often in order to survive. In turn, this does not protect the common farmer from oil corporations drilling on, or near their land. Drilling causes extreme loss of nutrients in the soil, this prevents farmers from producing as plentiful a crop as they might have. Even those not involved with farming, believe that the oil drilling is detrimental to the community as a whole. Wherever the drills dig in, a road must be paved to the main road as a way to transport the crude oil. According to multiple farmers, any crops within a five acre radius of the road will no longer grow. However, there is nothing the farmers can do as they no longer have mineral rights. Often, in an attempt to assuage the farmers complaints, oil companies will pay farmers to cover damages (10,000$/ well) but often this is inadequate. The article also discusses the loss of tranquility within the region. There are always people coming and going and litter dots the once clean ground. Thousands of oil workers are also present near the wells. These employees often live in temporary housing, which contributes to the loss of peacefulness. Due to the influx of people in the community, accident rates have also increased by 500% over the last five years.

This topic is relevant to our country today and could have a long term impact on the U.S. economy. As farmers grow more and more displeased, this topic will continue to divide America further adding the the duality in American politics and opinions. Unless the issue is addressed now, it will soon become headlines all over the country, not just in regions affected by the drilling. Although the authors view appears to be biased, it would appear as if the farmers have the advantage. Although legally, the oil corporations have the right to build wells there, morally it is wrong and legislative action should be taken to prevent further takeover. On the other hand, although it is hurting some peoples lives, the wells also benefit hundreds of peoples lives. This topic looks to be headed toward the classic “big corporation versus small businesses” situation. If this were to be brought to national attention, the big corporation would take the majority because of the economic benefits that the wells provide. This article is also important because it touches on the growing despair within the U.S. agricultural community. Farming is becoming less and less important to the U.S.  economy, and the oil wells are just one example of the dominance of industry over agriculture.
Overall, this article was extremely well written and brought forth a very relevant topic. One section that I felt was very well done was the explanation of the despair the farmers are feeling. The author was able to truly express the bleak situation for the farmers, through both quotes from farmers as well as statistics. However, I would have liked to see the author develop his ideas about the ethos of why people are drilling wells. As I mentioned earlier, the article seemed biased towards the farmers side, even if it was objective. This article raises a couple of major questions, one of which is the future of localized agriculture in the United States. Will it fade away as oil becomes more prominent or will it continue to coexist with the oil buisness.

Virgin Galactic Is Rattled, but Undeterred by Deadly Space Plane Crash



Chang, Kenneth. "Virgin Galactic Is Rattled, but Undeterred, by Deadly Space Plane Crash." The New York Times. N.p., 1 Nov. 2014. Web. 4 Nov. 2014. <http://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/02/science/space/virgin-galactic-is-rattled-by-crash-but-undeterred.html?rref=science/space&module=Ribbon&version=origin®ion=Header&action=click&contentCollection=Space%20%26%20Cosmos&pgtype=article>.

The Virgin Galactic space plane that broke apart in the Mojave Dessert, is now being investigated by 15 investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board which severely injured the pilot and killed the co-pilot. The pilot survived the accident The entire goal of the of Virgin Galactic is to take tourists and average people on short flights into space. According to the article, over 700 celebrities including Ashton Kutcher, Tom Hanks, and Katy Perry have reserved seats on Virgin Galactic. Not sure what went wrong, investigators are determined to find out.
This is considered huge progress in space travel since this will allow tourists and others to travel into space despite the pricy tickets to reserve a seat on Virgin Galactic. Hopefully, with more investigations on the accident, Virgin Galactic flights will be safer so more people would be willing to participate.
Overall, I thought the article was well written and gave some information on the company itself. I also thought it did a great job describing the crash. However, I wish the author gave more information on how the idea or the company was born. Other than that, I really enjoyed reading this article.


Ara Atayan
11/4/14
Earth Science/ D Odd Mrs. McClellan
Howard, Jacqueline. "First-Ever 'Dead Heart' Transplants Performed By Surgeons In Australia." The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, 29 Oct. 2014. Web. 04 Nov. 2014.
          In this article we learn that it is now possible to have a successful heart transplant, with a ‘dead heart.’ A dead heart is a heart from a donor, which has stopped beating from an extended period of time before it was transplanted to a patient.  This amazing accomplishment was done first at St. Vincent’s Hospital in Sydney, Australia. The hearts used in these procedures had stopped beating for about 20 minutes, and were able to save three people’s lives. Patients are now doing great and functioning normally.  The biggest question is how did they keep these ‘dead hearts’ working? The hospital was able to keep these hearts functioning through a machine known as “heart in a box,” which was developed by TransMedics, based in Andover, Massachusetts.  This machine warms the heart and fusions it with blood rich in oxygen, in addition a solution to preserve heart cells so they do not dye before the surgery.  This new medical device and operation could save many lives in the future.
          This new discovery is very important to us in our society, because heart diseases and failures effect people and families every day. With this new technology and operation doctors have estimated that 30% more human lives will be saved, since more hearts will be credible for the operation.  Additionally, this new technique can advance the medical field because if we can do this with a heart we may be able to do it with other ‘dead organs.’           This would affect the lives of individuals and their families. Also, if we are able to do this with other organs we could possible extend the lives of people who have cancerous organs.  By replacing them with other new organs.

          I found this article very interesting because of the possibilities it offers to the science of medicine. Also, I felt it was very well organized and enjoyed the two videos, which showed how the heart in a box worked and the local Australian news network.  Additionally, I had a personal connection with the article since two of my relatives have had several major heart surgeries.  So this article was very interesting and it was very nice to see the advancements that have occurred in the caring of our hearts.  
“In Traveling to the Stars, Risk and Cost”
Mouawad, Jad. "In Traveling to the Stars, Risk and Cost." The New York Times. The
New York Times, 03 Nov. 2014. Web. 04 Nov. 2014. <http://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/04/business/in-traveling-to-the-stars-risk-and-cost.html?ref=science&_r=0>.

      Space enthusiasts and the government have controlled space travel in the past but now, billionaire entrepreneurs and private companies are backing space travel. The article discusses the hazards of government run space travel and private run space travel and its benefits while showing how private run space companies are changing the course of the way space travel will be done.  Billionaires such as, Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon, are setting up companies, Jeff for example, founded Blue Origin. Two other big names in private space travel started by entrepreneurs are SpaceX and Virgin Galactic. Two recent accidents are bringing up the case whether or not private space travel is safe. One accident was a Virgin Galactic space plane explosion during a test flight and the other was an orbital sciences rocket carrying supplies. Virgin Galactic is sending costumers into space but they are also receiving heavy criticism after this accident. Although few were killed or injured, it does bring up the risks of space travel. There are also benefits to having private owned space companies. Most of these private companies are searching for ways to reduce the costs of space travel this allows NASA to advance technology for pubic benefits such as, planetary science. For example, Orbital Sciences is trying to reuse old soviet rocket engines and refurbish them, at the same time, SpaceX is trying reusable Falcon 9 rockets. Overall, the article sheds light on the dangers of space travel, private owned and government run and shows the benefits to having both government run space programs and private owned space programs run by billionaires.  

            This article is relevant because of recent cuts on the NASA space program. With recent budget cuts, NASA is restricted from innovating new and cheaper rockets. Private owned space companies could be a helpful with these budget cuts because while they are inventing cheaper ways of using the budget, NASA can continue to innovate. This is also relevant because it shows how companies and billionaires such as, Jeff Bezos from Amazon, are now having an impact in space. It shows that now space is going from a purely scientific endeavor to a profitable market for businessmen. This affects society because it could become an entirely new market of business and it could become more popular for people to travel into safe if made safer. This could potentially benefit NASA because that way more money would be given to NASA and there would be a greater need for safer space travel. My opinion on private owned space companies is that they do benefit space travel. These companies are able to take more risks than NASA and perform more experiments because of their less limited budgets. They are also more motivated to find cheaper ways of going into space because of the business profits to their companies. They also give NASA competition so not only are they more motivated but NASA now has competitors to worry about. I also believe that there should be more money spent on programs such as, NASA because of their importance to science. It is amazing how little we know about the universe and how we have never been to another planet. This is important because it will further our knowledge of these planets and the more we know about our universe, we will be able to discover more about earth and find a more exact end date.

            This article is good because it shows both the strengths and weaknesses of having privately funded space travel. It shows two good current examples of space travel failures in our lives but the article could have included more of these failures and concerns for space travel. I also wish this article went into even further depth on how this is changing the way space travel is being viewed from a business perspective. The article does an excellent job in explaining the differences between what private owned companies' goals are and what NASA's goals are. I also wish that the article had gone into even more depth in NASA's struggle with budget cuts and how this is effecting their research. Overall, this article is great because of the little bias between private owned space companies and government owned space companies and shows the strengths and weaknesses of both.