China's Energy QQC

After reading about China's energy sources, I was struck by the section on biomass. I had no idea that the idea of biomass had been around for thousands of years, and that China had been utilizing it. I would like to learn more about how the crop residue can be turned into energy, aside from the traditional rural ways of just burning it.

How have they been using biomass, and how has it changed over the years? Can they bring the idea of rural cooking energy to the modern world?

An Interesting Inconvient Conversation

An inconvenient conversation, the global warming talk. Today I sat down with my parents and we talked about global warming, questions about the ideas behind global warming, energy, and the solar panels we recently installed on our house.

We talked about what forms of energy are available, and the answers were: mainly fuel, solar, electric, nuclear, coal, wind, hydro, oil, gasses (natural, propane, etc.), hydro thermal, bio-diesel, and ocean waves.

Speaking about solar panels, my dad spoke about how much he loved them, and how he enjoys watching their intake online. When the solar panels were installed, we were told it would it would take 9 years to pay them off through savings, but at the rate theyre producing, it will take half the time. My dad thinks that more people should get solar panels, especially in southern California.

Next I asked what they thought about our solar panels effect on global warming. Here is what was said: We are just one little fish in the ocean, if everyone in the US did it would it have an effect of global warming. We are on the front end, you gotta start somewhere. Drop in the bucket, but there are benefits. I really like watching meter go backwards. Today, even with the dryer on- still goes backwards, meaning we are actually selling our electricity while using some of it. We get good readings even when its cloudy.

Later in the discussion, we talked about the positives and negatives of various energy sources. This got my dad fired up about nuclear power. Solar is not very efficient, but they’re working on it. Production of solar panels-all kinds of resources, and how great is the impact of production? Does it outweigh the act of using solar energy?

Nuclear is problematic, look at Japan- all of the environmental groups think they need to shut down all nuclear power plants. What do you do with the spent fuel rods? You can make it as safe as you want, and the plants have a decent history, but what happens to those things? They’re dirty for 10,000 years. More than man kind has been on the earth, effects all future generations. Yes, there is damage doing all kinds of things, fossil fuels, CO2, etc., but will it be 10000 years worth?? Is it cheap to do all of this? Where does this make sense?

All of the environmental groups are conflicting-nuclear vs oil, which is better?


How can we provide the energy we need while maintaining ecological balance?
My parents answered, Do whatever you can do, but it needs to be on a national level, you can just do it house or state, it needs to be in US. To do this, we first need to acknowledge that global warming exists and that IS a problem.

Is it bad the glaciers are receding? Polar bears need them,
who’s to say that the glaciers are needed? These are the questions that we have to evaluate.


6. Why is there a disconnect between what science is telling us and what the public and politicians are doing about climate change?
Because we are only told what they want us to know, its about scale, everyone is living in the idea what is good for me right now. You focus on right here, right now. The scientists look at the broad scale and try to explain these anomalies. The public cant comprehend this scale, 1 degree means nothing.

We wiped out the American west, it was thought as progress, but what does it mean now? Chopping down trees is bad, but it is what we did years ago to expand our nation. There have been benefits from progress, but there are also consequences. Maybe there wont be polar bears the oceans will rise, this is just a little sliver of time in the earths history. Look at the evolution.

Back to 1983

For my “Back to 1983 For A Day”, I chose to do it while I was on my one world week trip to Italy. I was limited on my technology use to begin with, and of course there were so many other great things to do in Italy instead of using technology. I didnt find the challenge too hard to complete, because every summer, I spend weeks at a time on a mountain at summer camp. Last summer, I spent five weeks as a counselor, with no electronics besides a radio, and occasional phone call. During my challenge day, the conditions were similar. We had no phones, computers, TV’s, gaming or anything modern.

Throughout the entire trip, my friends and I would get up early, and go explore various cities in Italy, instead of sleeping in and using technology, like we might on a weekend at home. The experience was somewhat liberating, and made me stop and look around at the world we live in, without technology. On my chosen day, we were in Rome. Holly, Libby, Dani, and I woke up and explored the area near our hotel, and we also did some gift shopping. Christian and I later went on a walk to find kebab, a delicious Turkish sandwich. We came across a famers market, and explored all of the Italian fruits and meats.

Later in the afternoon, we met up with our entire group. Everyone had been doing their own thing, but we all communicated by setting up meeting times and places, and always ensuring we were on time, there was never any technology involved. From there, we trekked to the Vatican City. Instead of listening to Ipods, everyone talked and admired all of sights. I took pictures with my film camera, as my digital had broken the day before. (I also happen to know that my brand of film camera was established in the 1980's!) So I still managed to capture memories, while not using any modern camera technology! Once we made it to the Vatican, we all began to walk through the grounds. Everyone began to get separated, and at one point, we lost Libby! There wasnt a way for us to call and meet up with her, but as we walked towards the Sistine Chapel, we found a group of our friends taking a break, and Libby was there. Even though we couldnt instantly meet up with her using technology, we all still found each other.

After we walked back from the Vatican, Holly, Libby, Dani and I spent our time before dinner by going on an adventure. We traveled across the city with only a paper map, some x’s to mark the spot, and word of mouth about a piercing shop. After searching around, we managed to find the small shop without the help of google maps, or a GPS; a must when I am unsure of where I am at home. I was proud that we could still find our way around a foreign country without technology.

It wasnt hard for me to give up technology, especially in such a beautiful setting. The hardest thing for me to give up was my Ipod, because that was really the only thing I used on the trip to help me fall asleep. By the end of that packed day, I didn’t even need it. It was also hard for me to give up my digital camera, but I was left with no choice, and I was excited to experiment more with the film camera I brought along. The least difficult piece of technology was TV, there just wasnt a need for it. If it came down to seeing the season finale of Jersey Shore, or spending my day in Rome, the choice would be easy.

During my day back to 1983, I adventured through Rome, saw a famous chapel, found a piercing shop, and managed to stay connected with the group without phones. Entertaining ourselves was never a problem, because Italy has so much to offer, on and off the beaten path. I spent my time outside, walking, and enjoying the city, and before I knew it, my day without technology was done. My only surprise was although we were in a big city, similar to San Diego, we didn’t need gadgets to keep us occupied. I was also surprised/proud that without a GPS, or the internet, my friends and I managed to come across a piercing shop. It was a great trip, and an enlightening day without any technology.

Intro

Thesis: Food prices from the farmers market to the grocery store are on the rise; both globally and in San Diego. (will insert reasons to be covered in the paper, to the thesis after further research)

There are more than six billion people in the world, and we all need food. Around the world, food shortages have been increasing, and more people are struggling to pay for food. The main reasons for global price increases have been bad weather, political unrest, and the raise in the price of oil. In the United States, increases have been the highest in corn and meat products. Food prices from the farmers market to the grocery store are on the rise; both globally and in San Diego.

Blue Gold Review

Watching a documentary about the nearly unknown water crisis is eye opening, and causes the viewer to think about something that most of us taken for granted. Blue Gold was an informative documentary that caused the viewers to reflect upon water and the global situation. We live in a world where day by day we careless use the resources around us, without thinking about the impacts.

Although the movie was a standard environmental documentary, it was very enlightening into the corruption and problems with a resource that should be accessible to all. The documentary was less about how we waste water in our daily lives, but more about where the water actually comes from and issues globally. I was most shocked to learn about publicly and privately owned water sources. Getting water from the tap costs a fraction of a penny, but the same water run through a filter costs more than a dollar. It isnt practical, and yet corporations are making money from selling something that we already had.

After watching Blue Gold, I wasn't able to go back to my ignorant ways of not thinking about water and where it comes from. When I thought of water accessibility on a global scale, it never occurred to me that the only clean water may be owned by a private company and sold to the public, like in Africa. Or that the water that supplies large cities, can come from hundreds of miles away. Los Angles, for example, successfully bought and drained an entire water supply, and now depends on water pumped in from around the country. Blue Gold didnt try to turn the viewer against any one source, but instead kept the audience captivated with the cold hard facts.

Hungry Planet QQC

"Everyone who has visited a foreign country has experienced it. Walking down a street, you are unexpectedly assaulted by the sights and smells of cooking food-food unlike anything youve seen or tasted before in roadside stalls."

Although the article wasn't about foreign cuisine, that first intro made me remember the first time I ate new foods abroad. Not only street food, but other kinds of food or places to sell food that are unique to a region. When I went to Brazil, they had juice bars on every block that had all kinds of exotic fruits and drinks for sale. Reading this article also made me question why street food has phased out from many major cities. I still saw plenty of street food in NYC, but there isnt much here aside from fair food.

For topic ideas; foreign food, different food cultures around the world, how people eat (i.e. street food, make it themselves), or a similar article about street food and the consistent culture around the world.

WSDE ESSAY ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY

Wessel, David. "The Art and Science of Inflation Expectations - WSJ.com." Business News & Financial News - The Wall Street Journal - Wsj.com. 24 Feb. 2011. Web. 24 Feb. 2011. .

This source was an expert article on the prices of everything going up. The article mentioned food prices going up and why that may or may not effect the American market. Although this article focused mainly on the economics, it did give me ideas of further food related topics to look into. The article mainly focused on inflation and the economics behind how and when inflation, wages, and cost of living rises.

"Food Prices: Food Costs Will Increase 4% in 2011, USDA Says in Raising Its Projection - Latimes.com." Los Angeles Times - California, National and World News - Latimes.com. 24 Feb. 2011. Web. 24 Feb. 2011. .

This article was about the major jump in food prices announced today. The projections for prices has risen to 4%, in almost all food areas. The article covered food inflation and how it is going to pass the last raise in prices. It also briefly mentioned corn and the supply and demand and the effect on all food prices. The article gave some great statistics which may be useful later on in the project.

"Media Examine Effects, Outlook Of Food Price Increases Worldwide - Kaiser Global Health." Kaiser Global Health. 24 Feb. 2011. Web. 24 Feb. 2011.

This article was about global food prices, and how things may not be totally grim for the world. This source went into different reasons why food prices may or may not go up. The article covered weather factors and conflict in the middle east. The article also cited recent happenings that have effected food prices like Russia's ban on wheat exportation.

6 Degrees of Separation-Paper

The first kind of paper was created in China, in about 100 CE. Since then, the paper industry has grown, and now paper is made in many sizes, colors, and textures. Paper is a material that is dominant in our every day lives, every year the United States alone uses over ninety million tons of paper a year. In 1993, the paper industry was worth $129 billion, and the value has only risen since. In the past forty years, worldwide consumption of paper has risen four hundred percent. Paper has many uses, but it mostly used as computer paper. There are several main components that go into the papermaking process.

The paper making process begins with trees, one of the most important ingredients. The trees used to make paper are chopped down and then debarked by a large machine that makes logs rub against each other in a rotating drum. While the logs rub against each other, the bark is removed. After that, the logs are cut into small chips to help the pulping process. Plant fibers from trees called cellulose are the main component of paper. Before cellulose can be used to make paper, it must be converted to pulp. The pulp is made by taking shredded plant fibers and adding water. The pulp is washed and cleaned and is then put in a beater to create a kind of slush. After this step, color dyes, coatings, clay, and other things are mixed in. Then the slush is pumped onto a moving screen, and the water is drained out and recycled. The pulp goes through several rollers to make sure all of the excess water is out, and to create the smooth paper texture. The paper is then packaged and sent out various places throughout the country. Trees are constantly being cut down in rainforests all over the world to meet the demand for paper worldwide. In The Atlantic Rainforest in Brazil, a million quare kilometer forest was reduced to less than fiver percent of its size due to logging. Cutting down trees is bad for the air and soil. Trees inhale carbon dioxide and exhale oxygen, which is valuable to our environment. Although deforestation is a controversial environmental issue, it actually accounts for less than ten percent of the wood pulp used to make paper. Most of the trees actually come from plantation forests, which is known as a monoculture, which degrades the soil and creates an ecological concern.

During the pulping process, the wood chips are soaked in several chemicals like sodium hydroxide and sodium sulfate. These chemicals help remove unwanted components from the wood chips. Although these chemicals may be harmful to the environment, more than ninety five percent of the chemicals are re-used. The main problem that arises during the pulping process is most of these chemicals produce by-products very harmful to the environment.

There are two different ways to pulp paper, one is known as mechanical pulping and the other is called Kraft pulping. There are environmental pros and cons to both methods. In mechanical pulping, the paper quality is lower, but much more of the wood is turned into usable pulp that will become paper. In Kraft pulping, only about half of the wood can be used but it is a more efficient process. Both types of processing are used depending on the type of paper being made.

During the manufacturing of paper, several major chemicals are put into the air. They are; nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and sulfur dioxide (SO2). These chemicals are two of the major contributors to acid rain. Another by-product is CO2, which is famously known as a greenhouse gas that relates to climate change.

Paper mills are almost always located near large bodies of water because the process requires a lot of water to create the pulp. At the end of the paper making process, there is a large amount of waste water that is discharged and it is considered a pollutant. Dissolved organic materials can change the ecological make up of a body of water, and can sometimes lead to death of some organisms. Other compounds like phosphoreus can also alter the status of a natural water way.

Another main process relating to paper is paper recycling. There are three types of paper that are used in recycling; mill broke (scraps from the paper mill), pre-consumer waste (things disposed before consumers used them) and post-consumer waste (everything after consumer use, like old magazines). The EPA found that recycling causes thirty-five percent less water pollution and seventy-four percent less air pollution than creating new paper. The only problem with recycling is that the fibers used to make the paper pulp become degraded with each recycle, and can only be used four or five times.

My view on my impact has changed a lot from doing this research. I never realized that something as simple as the piece of paper this essay is written on has such a large environmental impact. The main problem is the high demand for paper and other mass produced objects. Although we may not see it, we impact the earth and drain it of so many different resources. Everything I do has some impact on the environment, no matter how eco-friendly I try to be. We can do our part by recycling, but even that isn’t a sustainable solution in the long run. As the woman in Dirt: The Movie said, “we can only do the best we can”. We can help minimize impacts by reducing our intake, and moving things to be digital.

The Cove

In The Cove, I think that the camera did take sides. Last year in Randy's class, I learned that all writing, even an objective news story, takes a side. I think that this is also true for this documentary. The movie was all about the outsiders perspective coming into the whaling industry, and made it all very negative. There is plenty of evidence to support the anti whaling movement, and maybe if you tried you could find something for the pro whaling. As a viewer, I would like to think that the audience was able to think for themselves, but emotions were manipulated by the imagery shown. When I saw the footage from inside the secret cove, I was shocked and it was powerful footage. I was swayed without question. There might be some hidden reasoning for the Japanese fisherman to do this. They might actually believe that they are helping with a "pest problem", but from this film we dont know that. The movie educates, enlightens and also "preaches to the converted". I really enjoyed watching this film, and I learned a lot about a new issue that was serious and shocking, but it was very easy to get lost their mission and outlook on whaling. Im not saying I support whaling, but after the discussion we had about why people eat whale, and where this need came from, I was enlightened to a whole other side of the story.

Mango Tree

**In deep soil, the mango trees tap root can go down up to 20 feet. There are also feeder roots which go down several feet.

There are two or more fruits to a stem, and they range in size (from 8-24 oz.)

It reqires full sun and good air drainage. Does best at top or mid level slopes, and should have minimal wind exposure. In a garden, should be planted against a south wall or in an area near paving to provide maximum heat.

Mango trees need well drained soil, sandy, loam or clay. Make sure to avoid heavy wet soil. They also need deep soil for their complex root systems.

Irrigation should start when the weather gets warm, and continue 1-2 weeks. Soil should be kept moist until fruits appear.

They need nitrogen fertilizer, chelated micronutirents like iorn. They should not be fertilized after midsummer.

TRANSPLANTING A MANGO TREE

Transplanting a mango tree during warm weather is best. 24 hours before the transplant, it is advised that you dig a hole where the tree will go, and fill it with water. To help deal with shock, a seaweed liquid fertilizer should be put in the hole and on top of the tree after the transplant. You are also supposed to prune the tree, but since ours is small, I dont think that will be too difficult. Next, you "dig a trench around the trunk of the tree to cut off the surface spreading roots." After that, you use a tool to work the soil under the tree. The article I read also said to "make sure to break the downward roots and free the soil ball."


Once you make the transplant, make sure to give the plant extra water and love!

Research & Such

food riots
food shortages and how they are handled
Tunisia and food
supply and demand of global food market
weather effecting crops
reasons for price increases
biofuel consumption
processed foods
history of developing countries and foods
mass farming in the US
mass farming in foreign countries to provide for the US & effects on the people


http://blogs.forbes.com/investor/2011/01/31/global-riots-opportunity-or-danger/

This author is interested in the progression of economic conflict and riots in various foreign countries. The main focus was on overall impact and what it means for the markets. He mentioned food in Egypt and various countries and their "soaring prices". I think his bias is that he is an American business writer with a negative perspective on all of these countries economy's plummeting. He has included facts from both sides because he did address the fact that these people are fighting for various things, including the high food prices. After reading this article I still have questions about why prices have been rising globally for these people and why the revolt has arisen so suddenly. I have questions about what this means for the American market, and did we have anything to do with the regime these people have lived under. I also would like to know more about the history of politics and democracy in these various places.

http://detnews.com/article/20110131/BIZ01/101310311/1001/rss21

The author was mostly informative about United States food prices rising. There wasnt too much of an arguement, and the interest was in food costs and their increases in different industries. The authors point is; food prices are rising all around, and even major brand labels will be raising the price of food. The author had an almost consumer bias, because he is reporting for the consumers. He has included the informative facts. The only other facts or perspectives he could provide would be more detailed reasons for the increase and how it effects big coporations like McDonalds. I would have liked to read more about the effect on farmers and the aspect of importing food into the U.S. Most of my questions revolve around why? The article provided some backround and facts, but I want to know more details and why this is happening, even ideas for how to combat it.

German Chamomile

seedsofchange.com/garden_center/product_details.aspx?item_no=PS15512

Plant Research

Strawberries!-I am interested in growing strawberries because I know that they are an excellent spring crop, and they are tasty! When I was younger, my favorite thing was going strawberry picking and I think it would be fun to grow some for the garden.

Tea (possibly chamomile)-I think growing tea in the garden would be unique, and hopefully turn out well. Brewing our own tea at the end of the semester would be very rewarding after spending the semester growing it. Adding a tea portion to the garden would add something new and interesting.

Catnip- Catnip is a drought tolerant herb, which are two sections of the garden. I am interested in growing it because it is a different herb to pursue, and I think it will add to the garden.





**German Chamomile-Herb. It has a two month growing time, and it can be a late or early crop. It will also grow back every year. It can be grown from seed or from the plant. It takes 4 to 8 days to germinate. The only special thing is that when the seed is planted, it shouldnt be completely covered in soil. It actually needs adequate light for the germination process. From seed to harvest, it takes between 70-80 days. I believe this will work with the semester. The plants need to be about 4 to 6 inches apart. It did not seem like it needed any specific soil requirements, but I did read about it doing alright in clay based soil and fertilizer was a good idea. Moderate watering (moist but not wet). I think overhead water would be best, depending on how much is put onto the plant. Chamomile does will with other herbs, onions and cucumbers. It also can be planted near stepping stones or pavement. One other note is that sometimes the chamomile seeds will blow in the wind and end up in random places.

Chamomile is medicinal, and is used to make a soothing tea. It is used to calm upset stomach, nerves and is good for digestion. It is also used as analgesic for burns, cuts and scrapes.


Strawberry- Fruit. The growing season is in the spring, and it is advised to plant them when the soil is not wet and on a cloudy day. From my research, not many people grow the strawberries from seed, but it is possible. If we do grow them from seed they must be frozen for 2 weeks and take 2-3 weeks to germinate. Most articles and stores sell the actual plant. The time to harvest is anywhere from 6-10 months, but it is also dependant on how the mature the strawberry plant is when you plant it. In 4 to 5 weeks, the plant will produce daughter plants and runners. I think it makes sense to plant, even if they aren’t ready in time for exhibition they might be ready during early fall for the next group of students. Since we don’t have to worry about frost, there is potential for the strawberries to continue growing, some plants can come back for up to 6 years. Strawberries need to be planted 12-18" apart in rows 3-4 feet apart. No specific soil requirements, but it is advised to have as much organic matter as possible and to use fertilizer. The soil's pH should be slightly acid, from 5.5 to 6.5.The soil is supposed to be worked very well, almost one foot into the dirt. Watering is 1-2 inches per week, or a moderate amount, especially when the flowers are blooming.

An interesting fact/tip is most website’s advised to pluck the flowers off of the plant before they become fruit in the first year. If the plant focuses on roots for the first year, it will yield a larger crop the next year.

6 Degrees of Separation

The three objects I want to research are:

-Contacts
I chose contacts because I wear them all day, every day. Once I thought about how they were made of plastic, I began to think about impacts in my eyes and what it even takes to make a contact. As for the environment, I am curious to learn if any of the components come from nature and how manufacturing contacts effects the environment. Is there any waste from the process?

-Coffee (particularly fair trade vs. non fair trade)
I think coffee will be interesting to research since it is a huge industry, particularly with Starbucks. I love drinking coffee and it is essential to many peoples lives. I am interested to learn about where coffee comes from and the environmental impact on choosing fair trade or not. How does it effect people and the ecosystem? This is an object that I am interested in digging deeper into its' origins.

-Paper
Paper is something that almost everyone uses daily. I know that paper comes from trees, but I want to take it a step further and learn about what happens to the trees and how quickly forests are being destroyed. Aside from trees, I want to know more about what is in paper. Im guessing there is bleach in it because of how white most paper is. I think that researching paper will be very interesting and enlightening because paper is everywhere. People always talk about the effects of plastic in the enviornment, what are the effects of paper and paper production?

Wednesday Journal

Tonight I went to Soup Plantation. Although it is one of my favorite places to go, in the back of my mind I always wonder where all of that food comes from. It was really packed so new batches of food were flying out. What does it take to get all of the various ingredients? How do they make the veggies seem so fresh? I also wonder if they buy anything from local growers.

Defrosting my english muffin reminded me how much food is in my house. We over buy and sometimes food ends up in our freezer. Now we actually have an external freezer to hold everything. I think that food and its packaging is one of the main sources of waste. Even if something is made/grown locally, the packaging could be from elsewhere in the world. Just to get one english muffin, there is a plastic bag, paper box, with ink printed on it, and the tiny plastic bag clip. Is all of that really needed?