Laws of Thermodynamics and it's relationship to population

http://mindbites.com/lesson/3969-biology-bioenergetics-the-laws-of-thermodynamics


Birth Rate, Death Rate, and Fertililty Rate

Calculation

1) Globally: Crude BR= 22, crude DR = 9. r = ?

2) More Developed countries (MDCs) crude BR = 11, crude DR = 10. r = ?

3) LDCs: crude BR = 25 crude DR = 9. r = ?

4) Determine the population change in a country which begins a year with 1 million people, has 1675 births, 450 deaths, 325 immigrants, 150 emigrants: N(1) =

5) Globally, over past 100 years, which has dropped more dramatically? BR or DR? Give three reasons why.

Case Study 1

http://sciencecases.lib.buffalo.edu/cs/files/2-lake_nyos_a.pdf

Read, and complete the questions at the end.  Drop in the Wiggio.com drop box for the class

The Case for Optimism in the Face of Climate Change

http://www.ted.com/talks/larry_brilliant_makes_the_case_for_optimism.html

Do you Believe in Global Warming

PROS:


CONS:

 PRODUCT:


CONNECTION TO OTHER GEOCHEMICAL CYCLES






EFFECT ON THE OCEAn

Controlling a Biosphere Cycle

Use the worksheet provided and the simulator to do the following activities provided here

Words to Understand for Tuesday

As we take a look at these ideas of biomes and food webs, other vocabulary comes together. We need to look at this vocabulary in terms of the areas that we are studying.

For each of these, look at the link, and try to come up with a definition of your own. This WILL be handed in.

Law of tolerance

Range of tolerance

Energy flow

Limiting factor

Ecosystem

Terrestrial ecosystem

Aquatic ecosystem

Carrying Capacity

Niche

Movie Madness

Ecosystems, Habitats, and Pieces


A Smaller Piece

BIOSPHERE CYCLES

Biomes in Depth

Watch the video found here

OR

look at the site found here

OR

check out the information found on biomes in the previous post.

Compare a biome found in the continental US to a biome NOT found in the continental US. Make a poster or t-chart that lists similarities and differences in terms of temperature extremes (how hot and how cold), precipitation amounts, types of precipitation, and winds.

For each biome, find a relevant ecosystem and draw a food web with at least 12 pieces. You must include all components of an energy pyramid .

Based on this idea, what biome is richer in biodiversity? Why do you believe so? Can you suggest a calculation that estimates your point-of-view?

Energy Pyramids

These two pyramids are similar, but different.  What happens to the energy conversion rate as we move from a lower trophic level to an upper trophic level?

What implications does this have for an ecosystem if a disease hits a) the secondary consumer or b) one of the primary producers?   Speak in terms of diversity, please.

Food Webs in Iowa

Unit 2 Text Book

http://www.learner.org/courses/envsci/unit/text.php?unit=4&secNum=0

and

http://www.learner.org/courses/envsci/unit/text.php?unit=9&secNum=0

Unit 2: Activity 1

When a habitat is very diverse with a variety of different species, it is much healthier and more stable. One of the reasons for this is that disease doesn't spread as easily in a diverse community. If one species gets a disease, others of its kind are far enough away (due to the variety of other organisms) that disease is often stopped at the one or two individuals.

Based on this table, excerpted from http://www.accessexcellence.org/AE/ATG/data/released/0534-KathyParis/index.php, What is diversity and how is it figured?

Cape Wind: The challenge

Cape Wind is an offshore wind project that is proposed off of Nantucket Sound

It is also a NIMBY issues

Link 1

Link 2

Link 3

http://www.capewindmovie.com/

http://www.saveoursound.org/

Pick a Person:

a) barista, making $20000/year

b) fisher, making $50000/year

c) homeowner, Wampanoag tribe member, and food stand operator, making $30,000/year

d) homeowner who uses the place as a second home

e) construction worker, making $70000/year

f) environmentalist, making $25000/year

g) energy executive, making $2,000,000/year

Pick a location

a) on the Sound

b) within 1/2 mile of the Sound

c) in an apartment

d) within 5 miles of the Sound

Pick a health issue

a) none

b) epilepsy

Pick an ethics viewpoint

a) sustainability for the world!

b) sustainability if it doesn't cost me money!

c) my way or the highway!

d) protect the animals!

Outline your profile on a sheet of paper. Each person in your group must have a different profile.

Do some research to come up with the rationale for why this might be a NIMBY project.

List 10 pros and 10 cons of the project.

Day 2

Have a discussion from the point of view of your profile. Use the pros and cons to discuss your ideas with another table.

Based on your profile, write a one page summary to explain your view for whether the project should go forward. These reasons for a pro or con choice must be supported by the evidence you gather (that is, does the evidence (not just the opinion) match your viewpoint. This is hard, because feelings don't sway a judicial decision--evidence does. Evidence usually takes the form of numerical data, financial impact, or the more nebulous 'cultural significance'

Each person will be individually graded. You may hand-write these or submit them in the drop box at wiggio.com

Cape Wind: The challenge

NIMBY and AFFLUENZA

How are NIMBY and AFFLUENZA related? How are they different?


Affluenza

The Response Crew (Caoimhin)

Affluenza

NIMBY and the local environment
Overcoming NIMBY
NIMBY and land development

Tragedy of the Commons vs. Sustainability in Population Growth

Statements:
1.   Because our population will soon be at seven billion people and continues to grow, we need to
expand land area available for living and growing food by cutting down the rain forest.
2.   Without reducing rapid population growth, it will be impossible to solve the world’s global
challenges.
3.   With seven billion people commuting from one place to another, drilling for more oil is necessary
to fuel more cars.
4.   In order to feed our population, we must use pesticides, chemical fertilizers, and genetically modified crops to increase farm yields.
5.   With new technologies used to gather fish, we must have international laws to ensure seafood is
harvested sustainably.
6.   The Earth can support seven billion people now and will be able to support any number of human
in the future.
7.   In an effort to feed a population of seven billion, people in developed countries should reduce the
amount of meat they consume.
8.   Science and technology will ensure that food production and energy supplies keep up with the
demands of a growing population.
9.   With human population at seven billion, we must protect endangered species habitats by not
developing on them for any reason.
10. There is nothing I can do to help alleviate population pressures.
11. Governments in countries with fast-growing populations should make laws to limit the number of
children that couples can have.
12. In a real crunch, jobs are more important than environmental quality.
13. With seven billion people on the planet, water pollution is inevitable and we should not waste
money trying to prevent it.
14. Even though I am only one person in seven billion, I still have a responsibility to keep the Earth
healthy; what I do makes a difference.
15. Automobile makers in this country should be required by law to make all their vehicles fuelefficient, even though the vehicles may become more expensive.
16. If China and India can each take care of over a billion people on relatively the same size land as the
U.S., then the U.S. should accept immigrants until it reaches a billion people as well.
17. All high schools should be prohibited from distributing contraceptives to students under the age
of 18.
18. Arable land should never be used for housing, businesses, or other non-agricultural uses because
we need all available farmable land to produce food.


Taken from Worldof7Billion.org

Tragedy of the Commons

The tragedy of the commons is a dilemma arising from the situation in which multiple individuals, acting independently and rationally consulting their own self-interest, will ultimately deplete a shared limited resource even when it is clear that it is not in anyone's long-term interest for this to happen. (from Wikipedia)


Tragedy of the Commons

Personal Solutions

Tragedy Revisited

Unit 1 in stereo

OK, not really, but this is a visual copy.  Click here

Other Population Links

NOVA Timeline of Population

Basic Fertility Dynamics


Multiple Fertility Dynamics

Population Dynamics Data

http://www.learner.org/courses/envsci/interactives/demographics/


Fill out the data table below by pasting it into an OPEN OFFICE document and using the link above. You must EMAIL the results to marciarpowellATgmailDOTcom Work in teams of 3 or less.

DEMOGRAPHICS DATA TABLE

LESSON 1

Lesson 1: Step 1
Country	Birthrate	Death Rate	Population Growth 2005	Population Growth 2050	Relative place in Transition	Social Factors 1	Social Factors 2	Social Factors 3
USA
China
Egypt
India
Italy
Mexico
Nigeria

Lesson 1: Step 2
Country	Shape of Pyramid: Prediction	Shape of Pyramid: Simulation
USA
China
Egypt
India
Italy
Mexico
Nigeria

Sustainability

http://www.youtube.com/v/B5NiTN0chj0

Sustainability and Natural Capital

Imagine the State of Iowa is locked into place, with no resources able to flow out or in. How will Iowa look in 6 months? 10 years? 100 years?

Define your answer in terms of sustainability, population, and natural capital.