Lab # 11: Population Life Tables

Lab #10 Making Bio diesel and Bio ethanol

Biodiesel is America's first advanced biofuel – a renewable, clean-burning diesel replacement that is reducing U.S. dependence on foreign petroleum, creating green jobs and improving our environment. Made from an increasingly diverse mix of resources such as agricultural oils, recycled cooking oil and animal fats, biodiesel meets the strict specifications of ASTM D6751. The National Biodiesel Board (NBB) is the national trade association representing the biodiesel industry in the United States.

Ethanol fuel is ethanol (ethyl alcohol), the same type of alcohol found in alcoholic beverages. It is most often used as a motor fuel, mainly as a biofueladditive for gasoline. World ethanol production for transport fuel tripled between 2000 and 2007 from 17 billion to more than 52 billion litres. From 2007 to 2008, the share of ethanol in global gasoline type fuel use increased from 3.7% to 5.4%. In 2010 worldwide ethanol fuel production reached 22.95 billionU.S. liquid gallons(bg) (86.9 billion liters), with the United States as the top producer with 13.2 bg (50 billion liters), accounting for 57.5 percent of global production. Ethanol fuel has a "gasoline gallon equivalency" (GGE) value of 1.5 US gallons (5.7 L).

And here is a video on the alternative fuel sources, however it seems a little biased and I'm not sure if it is all completely accurate. 

Mitochondrial Eve

In the field of human genetics, Mitochondrial Eve refers to the matrilineal "MRCA" (most recent common ancestor). In other words, she was the woman from whom all living humans today descend, on their mother's side, and through the mothers of those mothers and so on, back until all lines converge on one person. Because all mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) is generally passed from mother to offspring without recombination, all mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) in every living person is directly descended from hers by definition. Mitochondrial Eve is the female counterpart of Y-chromosomal Adam, the patrilineal most recent common ancestor, although they lived thousands of years apart.

Amphioxus

Amphioxus also called lancelet,  any of certain members of the invertebrate subphylum Cephalochordata of the phylum Chordata. Amphioxi are small marine animals found widely in the coastal waters of the warmer parts of the world and less commonly in temperate waters. Both morphological and molecular evidence show them to be close relatives of the vertebrates. The theory is that the Amphioxus split from vertebrates about 520 million years ago, their genomes hold clues to their evolution and have been heavily researched. 

Lab #9 Macon Dog Park

When we went to the dog park it started storming pretty badly so we ended up turning around.  However are original intention for going was to see how beneficial dogs parks are for the community and to test the creek water in the park for any contamination specifically bacteria or parasites in the water.  The reason for checking this creek specifically is because dogs drink out of it frequently and it is a man made creek that dogs are around constantly.  The dog park has a large amount of pros and cons the pros would be that the community benefits for    a space that dog owners can come together and have fun and gives a large space for dogs to run around in.  The cons are more potential for dog fights, owners not picking up the dog poop, and the potential for large concentrations of bacteria and germs for dogs.

Lab #8 Darwin's Dilemma

The video explores Darwin's dilemma which was that his theory of gradual evolution is not supported by the fact that the fossils he found seemed to have been formed almost at once.  The evolution was not gradual but rather sudden and is called the Cambrian Explosion. The duration is not known and it raises huge questions, it could have lasted from one day to many years.  These findings have stirred up massive debate which challenges Darwin's theory.  Southern China seems to have a lot of fossils in mint condition that can be examined, and there are some fossils from before the Cambrian explosion that can help explain how this came about.  Darwin's theory while viable  is not the only one out there and many people adhere to it so that any other theory seems to be pushed to the wayside.  I don't know what to believe anymore. Evolution is still a lot of theory.  "Nature takes no sudden leaps" is a famous quote from Darwin which is being challenged by this
Cambrian Explosion.  It seems some sort of biological catalyst was introduced that jump started all of these species.

Lab #7 Hitchiti Experimental Forrest

Unfortunately I was unable to make it to the Hitchiti Experimental Forrest because of my Spanish test. However me and Jarett were able to drive out there in time to see everyone's car and leave a note on your car Dr. Rood.  And you told us too look up the wild ginger and here are some of the interesting facts that I learned.

Wild ginger is a workhorse of a groundcover, spreading readily with beautifully glossy, slightly heart-shape leaves. It must have shade and moist but well-drained soil to thrive, but with the right conditions this native plant is indispensable, doing well where many other plants wouldn't. In spring it bears purplish maroon bell-shape blooms mostly hidden in the foliage. 

The plant is called wild ginger because the rhizome tastes and smells similar to ginger root, but the two are not particularly related.

Lab # 6 Jackson Spring

Jackson Spring Park is located at 998 Nottingham Drive in the Shirley Hills neighborhood, Macon, Georgia. The land was left to the "white children and women" of Macon from the wealthy landowner who lived in that area.  The land was eventually sold by the city and bought by commercial industries such as an apartment complex and the Kroger that are in the area.  While we were at the park we looked at very many different types of rocks and used a rock to break them open and look inside.  Rocks from the park itself and near the river is what we examined.  Also the sieve was used to examine the creek beds contents.  This helped us examine the different sizes and contents that are present in the creek.  Also it was a little chilly that day.

Lab # 5

High Falls

The fall line is a geological boundary about twenty miles wide that runs across Georgia northeastward from Columbus to Augusta. As the Mesozoic shoreline of the Atlantic Ocean, it separates Upper Coastal Plain sedimentary rocks to the south from Piedmont crystalline rocks to the north. The fall line is notable not only for the geological relationship but also for the impact that the geology had on early transportation and consequently on commerce and society.

The falls that give rise to the term fall line are the shoals or waterfalls caused by the first exposure of crystalline rocks encountered when traveling upstream in rivers of the Coastal Plain. These falls represent a barrier to navigation.

Rivers of the Coastal Plain were a major means of commercial transportation during the 1700s and early 1800s. The cities of Columbus, Macon, Milledgeville, and Augusta were located at the fall lines of the Chattahoochee, Ocmulgee, Oconee, and Savannah rivers, respectively. They became early centers of commerce because of their positions at the upstream limit of navigation.

The differences in geology to the north and south of the fall line give rise to differences in soil types, hydrology, and stream morphology. Sandy soils predominate to the south of the fall line, whereas clay soils are the rule to the north. Wide floodplains have developed along many of the streams south of the fall line. Narrower stream valleys are present north of the fall line. A consequence of these differences is that the fall line separates significantly different plant and animal communities.

information was acquired from the new Georgia Encylopedia  

Negative Feedback Loops

Negative feedback occurs when the output of a system acts to oppose changes to the input of the system, with the result that the changes are attenuated. If the overall feedback of the system is negative, then the system will tend to be stable.  That being said negative feedback loops occur all around us in the environment and in mechanisms such as thermostats. When the temperature in a heated room reaches a certain upper limit the room heating is switched off so that the temperature begins to fall. When the temperature drops to a lower limit, the heating is switched on again. Provided the limits are close to each other, a steady room temperature is maintained. 

 Another great example of a negative feedback loop is in our bodies and this would be the physiological mechanism that causes blood sugar to return a baseline concentration after eating large amounts of sugar.  

The graph above is what Dr. Rood compiled after recording his blood sugar and then eating a snickers bar and drinking a sprite and continuing to take his blood sugar.  The graph displays to how his blood sugar increased and then started to return to a baseline after it peaked 190 mg/dL.  These are both great examples as to how negative feedback loops function.  

Lab #4

For lab 4 we went to the community gardens which are across the street and checked out all of the different plants that the local community was growing here in Macon.  This push for local gardens is from the foundation of Macon Roots which promotes community gardens as a way for people to grow their own gardens and tend to them in urban areas. It is pretty cool. 

The soil type that I chose was the Oxisol soils which are very highly weathered soils that are found primarily in the intertropical regions of the world. These soils contain few weatherable minerals and are often rich in Fe and Al oxide minerals. Most of these soils are characterized by extremely low native fertility, resulting from very low nutrient reserves, high phosphorus retention by oxide minerals, and low cation exchange capacity (CEC). Most nutrients in Oxisol ecosystems are contained in the standing vegetation and decomposing plant material. Despite low fertility, Oxisols can be quite productive with inputs of lime and fertilizers.

I find it interesting that even though it is not very fertile many plants can still grow in it. 

Lab #3

This lab we walked around campus and identified various trees, plants, and shrubs. Also one hallucinogenic plant that people die from.


Trees:
Sycamore(Platanus Occidentalis)- An American sycamore tree can often be easily distinguished from other trees by its mottled exfoliating bark, which flakes off in great irregular masses, leaving the surface mottled, and greenish-white, gray and brown.

Crape Myrtle(Lagerstroemia)-Most species of Lagerstroemia have sinewy, fluted stems and branches with a mottled appearance that arises from having bark that sheds throughout the year. 

Ginkgo Tree(Ginkgo Biloba)-The tree is widely cultivated and introduced, since an early period in human history, and has various uses as a food and traditional medicine.

 Shrubs:


Angel's Trumpet(Brugmansia)-Brugmansia are long-lived, woody trees or bushes, with pendulous, not erect, flowers, that have no spines on their fruit

Rhododendron ( Rhododendron maximum)-R. maximum is an evergreen shrub growing to 4 m (13 ft), rarely 10 m (33 ft), tall. The leaves are 9-19 cm (3-8 in) long and 2-4 cm (0.75-1.5 in) broad. The flowers are 2.5-3 cm (1 in) diameter, white, pink or pale purple, often with small greenish-yellow spots.

Hydrangea(Hydrangea Macriohylla)- In climates where hydrangea flowers, place in a mixed shrub border or at the back of a flower bed. Its rich foliage and large size make it a wonderful background for white or light colored flowers, even tall growing perennials and annuals.

Plants:

Mexican Petunia(Ruellia Brittonianiana)- The Mexican petunia is a tender evergreen perennial that forms colonies of stemmy stalks standing 3 ft (0.9 m) in height and of indeterminate width. The strong semi-woody stalks are distinctly vertical in aspect and hold attractive dark green, leaves oppositely at the nodes.

Aloe(aloe vera)-The species is frequently cited as being used in herbal medicine. Many scientific studies on the use of extracts of Aloe vera have been undertaken, some of them conflicting.

Poison Ivey(Toxicodendron radicans)- better known as poison ivy (older synonyms are Rhus toxicodendron and Rhus radicans), is a poisonous North American plant that is well known for its production of urushiol, a clear liquid compound found within the sap of the plant that causes an itching rash in most people who touch it. The plant is not a true ivy (Hedera).

Lab # 2

The map above is of the Ocmulgee River and this is where lab # 2 occurred.  We took measurements of how many clams were in one area by sifting through the sand, took measurements of the elevation of the water as well and used a ball to discover how fast the current was. I was the one who tool the measurements and it took 48 seconds in the middle of the river and 1:05 .....I probably should have shared that sorry Dr. Rood.

 Above is the river transect data chart.

GA Isarithmic map

Lab #1

Three Maps

Isarithmic Map: Isarithmic maps, also known as contour maps, depict smooth continuous phenomena such as precipitation. The map shown is an isarithmic map of the hydrogen ion concentration as pH from measurements during 1998. 

Chloropleth Map: A choropleth map is a thematic map in which areas are shaded or patterned inwhich shows to the measurement of the statistical variable being displayed on the map, such as population density or per-capita income.The choropleth map provides an easy way to visualize how a measurement varies across a geographic area or it shows the level of variability within a region. The map below is a chloropleth map of Kazakhstan's average temperature in july. 

Dot Density Map: A dot density map is as a map type that uses a dot symbol to show the presence of a feature or phenomenon. Dot maps rely on a visual scatter to show spatial pattern. The dot density map below is of the U.S. population in 2000. 

My Happy Place

I know it doesn't look like much, but right before my senior year in highschool me and my friends found a waterfall. Now it doesn't sound exciting but it was about 15 feet tall and you could jump off of it and we were the only people that knew about it and we always had a good time. Never really thought about it as a happy place but I never had a bad time there. Shit was dope.

The Crazy Honey Badger

The Honey Badger also known as the Ratel, is a species of mustelid native to Africa, the Middle East and the Indian Subcontinent. Despite its name, the honey badger does not closely resemble other badger species, instead bearing more anatomical similarities to weasels. It’s is primarily carnivorous and has few natural enemies because of its thick skin and general badassness. The honey badger has a fairly long body, but is distinctly thick set and broad across the back. Its skin is remarkably loose, and allows it to turn and twist freely within it.  The head is small and flat, with a short muzzle. The eyes are small, and the ears are little more than ridges on the skin, another possible adaptation to avoiding damage while fighting. The honey badger has short and sturdy legs, with five toes on each foot. The feet are armed with very strong claws, which are short on the hind legs and remarkably long on the forelimbs. Honey badgers live alone in self-dug holes. They are skilled diggers, being able to dig tunnels into hard ground in 10 minutes. The species ranges through most of Sub-Saharan Africa from the Western Cape, South Africa, to southern Morocco and southwestern Algeria and outside Africa through Arabia, Iran and western Asia to Turkmenistan and the Indian Peninsula. This animal is straight legit.