Urban Environmental Accords - (5/15 - 5/19)

Image Source: https://goo.gl/SnUMHb

Summary:

     The urban environmental accords are a set of twenty-one rules that aim to protect the environment, public space, and the health of an urban civilization. The first set of accords lists a set of rules that are intended to reduce energy consumption and introduce renewable energy as an energy source. By reducing the amount of energy being used and having a bit of renewable energy, this reduces air pollution. The next set of rules requires that there must be zero waste in landfills and no harmful substances/products, which reduces the amount of methane going into the atmosphere, decreasing the rate of global warming and making the air quality better. The third, fourth and sixth set of rules ensures that all residents of/and an urban space are healthy. The fifth set reduces the amount of individual vehicles being used, thus reducing the amount of emissions being sent into the air. The final set of rules guarantees accessible water for everyone in the urban space. All these rules ensure that the environment is preserved and the people are healthy and productive.

SP8 - Communicating Information:

     This week I communicated information through the form of a ThingLink, which is an interactive image. The subject that I publicly communicated is how my urban village complies with three environmental accords. I persuasively showed how my urban village complied with the three urban village accords by referencing the furnishings report often and then explaining how the furniture is environmentally friendly (furniture such as solar panels, drinking fountains, etc.). Along with the explanation, I added a brief description of what the accord was, to make sure that people knew what I was talking about. The final thing (unimportant yet relevant) I added was an image to support the rule and my claim.

XCC - Stability and Change:

     The subject that relates to stability and change this week is the environment. The environment has been changing constantly but has changed more frequently since the industrial revolution due to the fact that many sources of energy had emerged and polluted the air and the increase of demand of resources has caused forests to disappear. So the environment is constantly changing due to human activity. It is impossible to make it completely stable, because there will always be a need to resources and buildings to pollute the air. However, it is possible to make the constant changing of the environment close to stable by recycling resources. That would mean that there would be a less demand of resources, which means that sources of resources could remain. Renewable energy is also a way of helping the environment, as it reduces pollution in general.

The Environment - (5/8 - 5/12)

Image Source: https://goo.gl/05UH5V

Summary:

     The environment is home to billions upon billions of species on earth. There are many parts of the environment. The atmosphere is the layer of gases that protect earth from harmful things such as radiation. The biosphere is the region that is occupied by organisms (land, ocean, sky, etc.). Finally, the hydrosphere are the sources of water on earth. These parts of the environment are rendered useful to us since the hydrosphere is necessary for life, the biosphere provides home for all living organisms, and the atmosphere provides oxygen, protects earth from harmful rays from the sun, and traps heat which makes the earth a good place for life. 

Constructing Explanations: 

    This week, I constructed explanations through the 21 Environmental Accords  sheet. the 21 Environmental Accords is a list of agreements of actions that cities that follow these accords must take in order to maintain a healthy environment. In summary, the 21 accords say, "Reduce the use of energy, reduce waste, ensure cities are safe and environmentally friendly, protect the environment (especially in urban areas), ensure public transportation that is accessible within walking distance in the city that does not affect the environment, and ensure everyone is healthy and has access to safe drinking water. In this sheet, I worked with the person sitting next to me to construct explanations essentially translating the 21 Environmental Accords into our own words. After that, we asked, "what is the purpose of this environmental accord existing?" and wrote down the purpose(s) of why that environmental accord existed and its (positive) impact on the environment.

XCC - Cause and Effect:

     One cause and effect relationship I noticed this week was regarding the environment and the sources of pollution. Since there are more emissions being put into the air and there are more forests being deforested, the global climate is increasing at a rather fast rate. Another effect that comes from pollution is that the biosphere is being affected. Since there is also waste being put out in the ocean, it is harming, if not killing the sea creatures that inhabit the source of water which not only can affect the food chain, but is also harming the hydrosphere which is our only source of water, which can eventually kill us. These are the cause and effect relationships I noticed that come from pollution and effect the environment

Steady heartbeats may depend on white blood cells (5/1 - 5/5) Article Blog

Article Source: Eaton, Elizabeth. "Steady Heartbeats May Depend on White Blood Cells." Science News for Students. ScienceNewsforStudents, 05 May 2017. Web. 07 May 2017. <https://www.sciencenewsforstudents.org/article/steady-heartbeats-may-depend-white-blood-cells>.

Summary: 

     According to a recent study made by Matthias Nahrendorf and his cell biologist team in Harvard Medical School, macrophages (immune cells) may most likely be linked to the constant beat of the heart. The macrophages lie between heart muscle cells and helps the heart muscle cells receive electrical signals in order to pump the heart in a consistent pattern. Researchers have known about macrophages in the heart but didn't really know much else. Nahrendorf found that a mouse that had very little macrophages in its heart didn't have a consistent beat through the MRI scan, which lead him to discover macrophages are linked to the heart.

SP8 - Communicating Information:

     In the article, the author communicated information by sharing the study made by Nahrendorf. What the author did was include what the discovery was, who did it, and how the study was made. By making this article, the author has shared new information that no one has known before. This is taking a step forward in the understandings of nature since it gives us more information about how the heart works. Researchers/Scientists can use this information to their advantage and perhaps treat heart diseases related to the rhythm of the beat of the heart.