36 whales die after stranding in New Zealand

January 24, 2012

http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/story/2012-01-23/New-Zealand-whale-stranding/52762286/1

John Mason, manager of the Department of Conservation said that 99 pilot whales were stranded on Monday on Farewell Spit on the South Island. By Tuesday, 36 of the whales had died and another 40 remained stranded and were in danger. The conservatory staff and the volunteers successfully refloated 17 of the whales, which swum to the deeper water. Six whales remained unaccounted for. The 40-beached whales were swimming in the shallow water on early Tuesday afternoon but became stranded again at night when the tide went out. The volunteers will try to keep the whales cool and wet until dark, and that all they could hope for was that the whales would swim away on the next hide tide during the night. Pilot whales are about 6 meter and regularly large numbers are stranded during the summer months in New Zealand. The beach is described by experts as a whale trap due to the way its shallow waters seem to confuse the whales making them unable to navigate.

This article interested me, because it is amazing that big animals such as whales can become so defenseless when they are taken out of the water. It is also impressive the fact that there are so many whales every year that are stranded in the beach, which means that every year a large amount of the whale population die. Volunteers and staff are trying to do everything that they can but it is not enough because of the size of the whales and that they come back to the shallow waters after they are put back in the sea, this is also impressive, because it is as if the whales come back to help the others. I think that I chose the article because it was a big shock to me, hearing that out of 99 whales, 36 had already died, which means that the population of the whales decreased again.

I don’t think that the article relates to my life in any aspect, I just think that the facts of realty, the fact that people in New Zealand have to deal with this every year is really amazing, because in Venezuela we never hear about so many animals stranded in the beach, you might hear about one or two sea dolphins stranded and they are small enough to be moved, but the whales are just so big that moving them is probably a big problem. The area of interaction that this article is related to is Environment, because it is something that is happening in our world, it is something that is happening in the environment of these animals. Environment is the one that fits the best with the article.

Western Black Rhino declared Extinct

http://www.npr.org/2011/11/11/142245106/western-black-rhino-declared-extinct

November 11, 2011

This article talks about the Western Black Rhino becoming extinct. Apparently since 2000 there were only 10 of these animals in Cameroon and they were the last ones of the specie living outside of zoos. They were hunted for their horns, which are used as trophies and in traditional medicine. This loss is grave, because the Western Black Rhino is genetically distinct from other rhinos and introducing an animal that was born captive to the natural world is almost impossible. There are experts trying to save other Black rhino subspecies in Eastern and Southern Africa, which have been slightly more successful, but the rhinos are still hunted for their horns. There is research stating that other rhino populations such as the Northern White Rhino are also at risk of extinction. Experts are trying to work along zoos in order to preserve these animals in natural reserves so they reproduce and can carry on the genes.

This article interested me, because I thought that it was really shocking to just see a specie disappear all of the sudden. I was looking for my science article and this one popped up, and I thought that it was really amazing how an animal can just disappear because man kind is selfish and all they want is the money and the glory no matter what. Hunters should know what they are doing, and I think that this was the thing that shocked me the most, the specie didn’t disappear because the animals were old and started dying without reproducing, but it died just because it was killed by somebody to have the horn to display in his/her living room or to give it to somebody as a present.

I think that this relates to my life, because I am against animal cruelty, and most people don’t know that rhinos are half blind, meaning that their only was of surviving is their horn because they go around and hit anything that comes in their way, because they are not sure what is coming for them. it has been thought that maybe hunters could just shoot tranquilizers to the rhinos and cut to horn off and the animal could live happily ever after, but after hearing that they are half blind and their only way of surviving is their horn I think that this would just be cruel because they wouldn’t have any way of surviving either way.

I can relate this article to the MYP Area of Interaction of Environment, because this is something that is happening in the world out there and its affecting the environments in Africa, because the food webs will be disrupted when you take out one of the consumers and some of the food of other consumers, meaning that if many other species disappear there will be a big disruption in the environments.

Cause confirmed in bat scourge

Cause Confirmed in Bat Scourge

http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/335566/title/Cause_confirmed_in_bat_scourge

Wednesday, October 26th, 2011

This article talks about a disease in bats, that was mainly happening in Europe, but has now spread to the United States and some Provinces in Canada. Little brown bats that are healthy, may suffer of white-nose syndrome. This is a lethal disease that has devastated hibernating bats in 16 U.S states and four Canadian provinces. Some test results have shown that the fungus is spread in the shared hibernation spots, this fungus is widespread in Europe, but hasn’t caused a big impact like in the United States, most probably, because the bats have had time to develop ways to cope. Scientists are trying to pinpoint the exact cause of the syndrome, and are focusing on how to help with the scourge.

This article interested me, because I really didn’t know that the fungus that bats got on their nose was a lethal disease, so I thought that was interesting. I also wanted to make an article about animals, because I normally focus more on space and earth things instead of something more specific. I also find bats really interesting animals, I think that they are really amazing, that they are mammals and they can also fly, so they are very rare in my opinion. Mainly it also interested me, because we are studying biology in class, and even though ecology wasn’t one of my favorite topics I really like animals, I always have, so I think that is one way of how I can relate it to my life. In relationship with my life, the only moment when I have had a close encounter with a bat, was when I was in the farm, and my aunt woke up with a bat on her shoulder and I had to help her get it off her. In general I think that bats are really interesting and that’s like the main reason why I chose the article.

The area of interaction that this article focuses on is Environments, because its something that is going on in the environment of these bats. I think that it can be related to it, because of the fact that the hibernating environments in which the bats live is being damaged because of this disease, so I think that it is the area of interaction that the article really relates to.

Gastric Bypass

Bypass’s Big Boon http://www.sciencenews.org/view/feature/id/333705/title/Bypass%E2%80%99s_Big_Boon

September 10th, 2011

Just in time to combat the obesity in the United States, comes a new operation called a Gastric Bypass, which is now preferred by over-weight people. This is due to the fact that the gastric bypass takes the pounds off. It reduces the stomach, therefore you get full quicker and you eat less, so you lose weight in a constant manner. Also it is revealed that this surgery reverses type 2 diabetes on most people. New research reveals other positive effects of the surgery; it may reduce heart problems, breathing problems, and low blood pressure. Of course this surgery may not always succeed, the patient might regain all the weight they’ve lost, and about 10% of surgeries have a high risk of complicating, meaning that it can end in infections, blood clots, and even the need to go into another surgery. Gastric bypass redirects food around most of the stomach and the upper small intestine. Gastric banding, the next most popular weight-loss surgery, places a band around the stomach to limit its size. Bypass’ strengths come from hormonal switches flipped by diverted food.

This article talks about the specifications of the gastric bypass surgery and its cons and pros.

This article interested me, because I had already heard about this surgery, and I was interested in hearing about it. At first I didn’t pay much attention to it in the web page, but then, I realized that it may be something more interesting than what it portrayed in the picture. When I started reading it, I realized that it was a very interesting article, that people should really read, even though it has nothing to do with their lives, they should read it, because it’s important to know what is going on in the medical field. I believe that obesity is something that can’t be cured unless it’s done by surgery, and it’s good to know that doctors have developed this surgery in order to reduce the obesity in the United States. Obesity is a big problem that occurs everywhere in the world, and each day we are more exposed to it, so I think that it’s very important that everyone knows the consequences about being obese, and what might occur to you.

I can relate this article to my life, because one of my cousins got this surgery. She didn’t exactly suffer of overweight, but was chubby, and the doctor suggested that because her dad had diabetes and it ran in the family, to get this surgery, that would reduce her stomach, therefore she would be fuller even though she didn’t eat as much, and maybe she would be able to reverse the diabetic trait that she had. So when I read this article, I found out exactly what had happened to my cousin, and I comprehended now why she ate less food than before.

The area of interaction I can relate this to, is Health and Social Education. I believe this because, it is talking about something that is mostly happening in the social community of the US, and is something that should be taught to everybody, because it’s important that people stay healthy and know what may happen to them if they do not take care of their bodies, and do not eat the right things, and do not make enough exercise. It’s important for everyone to know this and that is why, I chose health education to be the area of interaction of this post.