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Katie Day

Environment: Solar plants in deserts could yield water and crops | Environment | The Gu... - 0 views

www.guardian.co.uk/...ernativeenergy.renewableenergy

water environment plants deserts solar Africa sustainability architecture G5_help

shared by Katie Day on 03 May 10 - Cached
  • Vast greenhouses that use sea water for crop cultivation could be combined with solar power plants to provide food, fresh water and clean energy in deserts, under an ambitious proposal from a team of architects and engineers. The Sahara Forest Project, which is already running demonstration plants in Tenerife, Oman and the United Arab Emirates, envisages huge greenhouses with concentrated solar power (CSP), a technology that uses mirrors to focus the sun's rays, creating steam to drive turbines to generate electricity.
  • Katie Day on 03 May 10
     
    "Vast greenhouses that use sea water for crop cultivation could be combined with solar power plants to provide food, fresh water and clean energy in deserts, under an ambitious proposal from a team of architects and engineers. The Sahara Forest Project, which is already running demonstration plants in Tenerife, Oman and the United Arab Emirates, envisages huge greenhouses with concentrated solar power (CSP), a technology that uses mirrors to focus the sun's rays, creating steam to drive turbines to generate electricity. "
Hugues M

Land mine - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia - 1 views

en.wikipedia.org/Land_mine

landmine history use wikipedia 5msa

shared by Hugues M on 03 Nov 09 - Cached
  • Hugues M on 03 Nov 09
     
    "A land mine is a target (person or vehicle) triggered explosive weapon . Their non-explosive predecessors (caltrops, stakes and spikes) have been used on the battlefield since ancient times. Landmines were designed to be used to deter, channel, delay and kill an enemy. They have been used in various formats, for centuries and have featured in all major conflicts. Land mines are force multipliers , meaning that they may increase the efficiency of a force without requiring more personnel. The name originates from the practice of mining , where tunnels were dug under enemy fortifications or forces. These tunnels ("mines") were first collapsed to destroy fortifications above, and later filled with explosives and detonated. Land mines generally refer to devices specifically manufactured for this purpose, as distinguished from improvised explosive devices ("IEDs"). The use of land mines is controversial because they are indiscriminate weapons, harming soldier and civilian alike. They remain dangerous after the conflict in which they were deployed has ended, killing and injuring civilians and rendering land impassable and unusable for decades. To make matters worse, many factions have not kept accurate records (or any at all) of the exact locations of their minefields, making removal efforts painstakingly slow. These facts pose serious difficulties in many developing nations where the presence of mines hampers resettlement, agriculture, and tourism. The International Campaign to Ban Landmines campaigned successfully to prohibit their use, culminating in the 1997 Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on their Destruction, known informally as the Ottawa Treaty . As of 2007, a total of 158 nations have agreed to the treaty. Thirty-seven countries have not agreed to the ban, including China , India , Israel , Pakistan
Jean Luc L

The freshwater biome - 0 views

www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/...freshwater.php

5RTo biomes fresh water

shared by Jean Luc L on 02 Sep 09 - Cached
  • Freshwater is defined as having a low salt concentration — usually less than 1%. Plants and animals in freshwater regions are adjusted to the low salt content and would not be able to survive in areas of high salt concentration (i.e., ocean). There are different types of freshwater regions:
Ajay V

Rainforest Facts - 2 views

www.rain-tree.com/facts.htm

5RTo

shared by Ajay V on 09 Sep 09 - Cached
  • It is estimated that nearly half of the world's estimated 10 million species of plants, animals, and microorganisms will be destroyed or severely threatened over the next quarter-century due to rainforest deforestation.
    • Marius S
      Marius S on 09 Sep 09
       
      Wow!
  • Commercial logging is the single largest cause of rainforest destruction, both directly and indirectly. Other activities destroying the rainforest, including clearing land for grazing animals and subsistence farming. The simple fact is that people are destroying the Amazon rainforest and the rest of the rainforests of the world because "they can't see the forest for the trees."
    • Gurupranav G
      Gurupranav G on 25 Sep 09
       
      Useful if you are looking at the destruction of rainforests.
  • When a medicine man dies without passing his arts on to the next generation, the tribe and the world loses thousands of years of irreplaceable knowledge about medicinal plants.
    • Marius S
      Marius S on 09 Sep 09
       
      Linked to a paragraph below...
  • ...19 more annotations...
  • Rainforests once covered 14% of the earth's land surface
    • Gurupranav G
      Gurupranav G on 25 Sep 09
       
      gurusQ4. Useful- Destruction of rainforests.
  • Most rainforests are cleared by chainsaws, bulldozers and fires for its timber value and then are followed by farming and ranching operations, even by world giants like Mitsubishi Corporation, Georgia Pacific, Texaco and Unocal.
    • Gurupranav G
      Gurupranav G on 25 Sep 09
       
      gurusQ4. Useful. Destruction of rainforests.
  • There were an estimated ten million Indians living in the Amazonian Rainforest five centuries ago. Today there are less than 200,000.
    • Audrey C
      Audrey C on 05 Oct 09
       
      Why though?
  • At least 3000 fruits are found in the rainforests; of these only 200 are now in use in the Western World.
    • Antonio D
      Antonio D on 23 Sep 09
       
      We should stop this!
  • The beauty, majesty, and timelessness of a primary rainforest are indescribable. It is impossible to capture on film, to describe in words, or to explain to those who have never had the awe-inspiring experience of standing in the heart of a primary rainforest.
  • Each time a rainforest medicine man dies, it is as if a library has burned down.
    • Chloe W
      Chloe W on 22 Sep 09
       
      I can't believe they have that much knowledge!
  • At least 80% of the developed world's diet originated in the tropical rainforest. Its bountiful gifts to the world include fruits like avocados, coconuts, figs, oranges, lemons, grapefruit, bananas, guavas, pineapples, mangos and tomatoes; vegetables including corn, potatoes, rice, winter squash and yams; spices like black pepper, cayenne, chocolate, cinnamon, cloves, ginger, sugar cane, tumeric, coffee and vanilla and nuts including Brazil nuts and cashews.
    • Chloe W
      Chloe W on 22 Sep 09
       
      WOW! It may not be the most unique foods and plants, but it is interesting that most of our things come from rainforests!
    • Chloe W
      Chloe W on 22 Sep 09
       
      Hopefully, this will come in handy for my central idea.
  • Two drugs obtained from a rainforest plant known as the Madagascar periwinkle, now extinct in the wild due to deforestation of the Madagascar rainforest, have increased the chances of survival for children with leukemia from 20 percent to 80 percent. Think about it: eight out of ten children are now saved, rather than eight of ten children dying from leukemia. How many children have been spared and how many more will continue to be spared because of this single rainforest plant? What if we had failed to discover this one important plant among millions before human activities had led to its extinction? When our remaining rainforests are gone, the rare plants and animals will be lost forever-and so will the possible cures for diseases like cancer they can provide.
    • Marius S
      Marius S on 05 Oct 09
       
      Because of deforestation, all this has happened!
  • Rainforests have evolved over millions of years to turn into the incredibly complex environments they are today. Rainforests represent a store of living and breathing renewable natural resources that for eons, by virtue of their richness in both animal and plant species, have contributed a wealth of resources for the survival and well-being of humankind. These resources have included basic food supplies, clothing, shelter, fuel, spices, industrial raw materials, and medicine for all those who have lived in the majesty of the forest. However, the inner dynamics of a tropical rainforest is an intricate and fragile system. Everything is so interdependent that upsetting one part can lead to unknown damage or even destruction of the whole. Sadly, it has taken only a century of human intervention to destroy what nature designed to last forever. The scale of human pressures on ecosystems everywhere has increased enormously in the last few decades. Since 1980 the global economy has tripled in size and the world population has increased by 30 percent. Consumption of everything on the planet has risen- at a cost to our ecosystems. In 2001, The World Resources Institute estimated that the demand for rice, wheat, and corn is expected to grow by 40% by 2020, increasing irrigation water demands by 50% or more. They further reported that the demand for wood could double by the year 2050; unfortunately, it is still the tropical forests of the world that supply the bulk of the world's demand for wood.
    • Yen Yu C
      Yen Yu C on 23 Sep 09
       
      rainforest could be gone if the wood suplies keeps going up like this!
  • In 1950, about 15 percent of the Earth's land surface was covered by rainforest. Today, more than half has already gone up in smoke. In fewer than fifty years, more than half of the world's tropical rainforests have fallen victim to fire and the chain saw, and the rate of destruction is still accelerating. Unbelievably, more than 200,000 acres of rainforest are burned every day. That is more than 150 acres lost every minute of every day, and 78 million acres lost every year! More than 20 percent of the Amazon rainforest is already gone, and much more is severely threatened as the destruction continues. It is estimated that the Amazon alone is vanishing at a rate of 20,000 square miles a year. If nothing is done to curb this trend, the entire Amazon could well be gone within fifty years. Massive deforestation brings with it many ugly consequences-air and water pollution, soil erosion, malaria epidemics, the release of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, the eviction and decimation of indigenous Indian tribes, and the loss of biodiversity through extinction of plants and animals. Fewer rainforests mean less rain, less oxygen for us to breathe, and an increased threat from global warming.
    • Yen Yu C
      Yen Yu C on 23 Sep 09
       
      that is just scary but it is something we must know inorder for someone to solve the problem someday...i guess
  • But who is really to blame? Consider what we industrialized Americans have done to our own homeland. We converted 90 percent of North America's virgin forests into firewood, shingles, furniture, railroad ties, and paper. Other industrialized countries have done no better. Malaysia, Indonesia, Brazil, and other tropical countries with rainforests are often branded as "environmental villains" of the world, mainly because of their reported levels of destruction of their rainforests. But despite the levels of deforestation, up to 60 percent of their territory is still covered by natural tropical forests. In fact, today, much of the pressures on their remaining rainforests comes from servicing the needs and markets for wood products in industrialized countries that have already depleted their own natural resources. Industrial countries would not be buying rainforest hardwoods and timber had we not cut down our own trees long ago, nor would poachers in the Amazon jungle be slaughtering jaguar, ocelot, caiman, and otter if we did not provide lucrative markets for their skins in Berlin, Paris, and Tokyo.
    • Yen Yu C
      Yen Yu C on 23 Sep 09
       
      why really is to blame??i think it's every human that lives in a house and have wonerful furnitures . I think even me.....us....
    • Yen Yu C
      Yen Yu C on 23 Sep 09
       
      good for some of my questions.....
  • More than half of the world's estimated 10 million species of plants, animals and insects live in the tropical rainforests. One-fifth of the world's fresh water is in the Amazon Basin.
    • Gurupranav G
      Gurupranav G on 25 Sep 09
       
      Useful for my Q1, Q3
  • It is estimated that a single hectare (2.47 acres) of Amazon rainforest contains about 900 tons of living plants, including more than 750 types of trees and 1500 other plants.
    • Gurupranav G
      Gurupranav G on 25 Sep 09
       
      Useful if you are loking at the biodiversity of a rainforest.
  • Destruction of our rainforests is not only causing the extinction of plant and animal species, it is also wiping out indigenous peoples who live in the rainforest.
    • Gurupranav G
      Gurupranav G on 25 Sep 09
       
      Useful for my Q4
  • he problem and the solution of the destruction of the rainforest are both economic. Governments need money to service their debts, squatters and settlers need money to feed their families, and companies need to make profits. The simple fact is that the rainforest is being destroyed for the income and profits it yields, however fleeting. Money still makes the world go around . . . even in South America and even in the rainforest. But this also means that if landowners, governments, and those living in the rainforest today were given a viable economic reason not to destroy the rainforest, it could and would be saved. And this viable economic alternative does exist, and it is working today. Many organizations have demonstrated that if the medicinal plants, fruits, nuts, oils, and other resources like rubber, chocolate, and chicle (used to make chewing gums) are harvested sustainably, rainforest land has much more economic value today and more long-term income and profits for the future than if just timber is harvested or burned down for cattle or farming operations. In fact, the latest statistics prove that rainforest land converted to cattle operations yields the landowner $60 per acre; if timber is harvested, the land is worth $400 per acre. However, if medicinal plants, fruits, nuts, rubber, chocolate, and other renewable and sustainable resources are harvested, the land will yield the landowner $2,400 per acre. This value provides an income not only today, but year after year - for generations. These sustainable resources - not the trees - are the true wealth of the rainforest.
    • Gurupranav G
      Gurupranav G on 25 Sep 09
       
      Useful for my Q4. Tells you the basic reason why rainforests are being destroyed.
    • Marius S
      Marius S on 05 Oct 09
       
      That's interesting...
  • More than 20 percent of the world oxygen is produced in the Amazon Rainforest.
  • And while 25% of Western pharmaceuticals are derived from rainforest ingredients, less than 1% of these tropical trees and plants have been tested by scientists.
  • Rajkumar R on 10 Sep 09
     
    Its good
  • ...4 more comments...
  • Rajkumar R on 10 Sep 09
     
    At least 3000 fruits are found in the rainforests; of these only 200 are now in use in the Western World
  • Rajkumar R on 10 Sep 09
     
    Its intersting, and I never knew that!
  • Aditi P on 10 Sep 09
     
    Loads of inforamation... really good!
  • Katie Day on 14 Sep 09
     
    a commercial website that has a page of rainforest facts aimed at students doing reports
  • Antonio D on 23 Sep 09
     
    At least 3000 fruits are found in the rainforests; of these only 200 are now in use in the Western World
  • Audrey C on 05 Oct 09
     
    At least 3000 fruits are found in the rainforests; of these only 200 are now in use in the Western World
Elizabeth B

Conservation - 0 views

www.globio.org/...article.aspx

5lwh conservation animals

shared by Elizabeth B on 07 Sep 09 - Cached
  • Why Do We Need To Conserve?One answer is very simple. We need to conserve to make certain we have resources for ourselves and for people in the future. Conservation will allow future generations to enjoy natural resources such as clean rivers and lakes, wilderness areas, a diverse wildlife population, healthy soil, and clean air. Resources Are Necessary for Life! Many natural resources are necessary for our survival. It may be difficult to imagine that we could ever run out of fresh water, clean air, and good soil for growing food. But in some places this is already happening.
  • Using less paper, reusing paper, and recycling paper saves trees and water. Recycling aluminum cans will save money, resources, and prevent pollution. For example, it takes much less energy to recycle an aluminum soft drink can than it does to make a new one. Making energy uses up resources like oil and coal. So just by recycling the aluminum cans you use, you become an instant conservationist!
  • Using less paper, reusing paper, and recycling paper saves trees and water. Recycling aluminum cans will save money, resources, and prevent pollution. For example, it takes much less energy to recycle an aluminum soft drink can than it does to make a new one. Making energy uses up resources like oil and coal. So just by recycling the aluminum cans you use, you become an instant conservationist!
  • ...2 more annotations...
    • Elizabeth B
      Elizabeth B on 09 Sep 09
       
      is it that easy? wow I wonder why so many people dont do that .
  • Katie Day on 07 Sep 09
     
    nice job Marius
  • Marius S on 14 Sep 09
     
    thanks
Ritsuki Y

9 Strange Animal Self-Defense Mechanisms | WebEcoist | Green Living - 0 views

webecoist.com/...arre-animal-defense-mechanisms

shared by Ritsuki Y on 09 Sep 09 - Cached
  • The bombardier beetle may look innocent enough, but it is famous for being able to spray boiling hot and chemically toxic bodily fluids in the direction of any would-be predator. The bombardier beetle doesn’t exactly melt in your mouth (but it will melt you).
    • Ritsuki Y
      Ritsuki Y on 09 Sep 09
       
      this insect is weird
  • The horned lizard is a seemingly normal looking lizard found in the southwest region of the United States. It doesn’t use its horns to defend itself, as you might expect. Rather, when attacked, it pressures its own sinus cavities until the blood vessels in its eyes burst, and it sprays its attacker with blood from its eyes.
  • The skunk, or polecat, is actually an attractive little mammal and some people keep them as pets (sans glands, of course). Skunks are omnivores but will turn to trash and carrion when no fresh insects or honeybees, their favorite food, are available. Though their amazing musk can be smelled miles away, their vision is exceptionally weak, and most skunks can only see about 10 feet in front of them. As a result, many are run over – half of all skunk deaths, in fact, are due to humans. All Mustelidae family members (like weasels and ferrets) can spray musk, but skunks are famously the most potent. The skunk’s anal musk is so powerful that if sprayed directly, the victim will experience temporary blindness.
  • ...1 more annotation...
  • The cute little opossum has a number of tricks up its defensive sleeve. It can play dead. It can foam at the mouth in an attempt to convince its predators that it is toxic, sick or perhaps just bat sh*t insane. It can also emit a green anal fluid that smells nearly as bad as a skunk’s offensive spray (though mercifully it can easily be washed off). Opossums playing dead actually slip into a semi-comatose state, thus removing any excitement of the kill for a predator
  • Ritsuki Y on 09 Sep 09
     
    weird ways of defending its self
Anthony F

Afghan cuisine - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia - 2 views

en.wikipedia.org/...Afghan_cuisine

shared by Anthony F on 04 Nov 09 - Cached
  • Afghanistan has a wide varying terrain allowing for many different crops. Afghan cuisine is largely based upon the nation's chief crops: cereals like wheat, maize, barley and rice. Accompanying these staples are dairy products (yogurt, whey), various nuts, and native vegetables, and fresh and dried fruits; Afghanistan is well known for its grapes. Afghanistan's culinary specialties reflect its ethnic and geographic diversity and has similarities with neighboring Iran,Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, and Turkmenistan.[1] It is similar to cuisines of the Middle-East and Central Asia.
    • Aidan C
      Aidan C on 05 Nov 09
       
      really cool!!!!!!!!!! Iterresting
    • Antara V
      Antara V on 06 Nov 09
       
      fruits? I wonder how Afghanistan grows fruits with such scarceness of water? Interesting
  • Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan, is a multi-ethnic city and has always been so. As the seat of government for the Afghan kings, food was an important part of royal life. Chefs were commissioned from all over the empire and places afar. They are credited for creating a myriad of dishes, blending different styles and in the process creating the best examples of true Afghan cooking. Their creations include exotic kormas, palaos, sumptuous rice dishes, desserts, and other creative items. These royal chefs passed down their art to the aristocratic denizens of Kabul and they in turn to others. Several attempts were made to record the arts of the royal chefs. Two have been published. The first one, published in Afghanistan in the early 1900s recorded the ingredients and cooking styles of Afghanistan's monarchy. The second, called Aushpazi, by Wali Zikria, published in the United States in English, during the early 1990s, was essentially the cookbook of one of Afghanistan's royal houses.
  • ...8 more annotations...
  • Naan - Literally "bread".
  • Obi Non
  • thicker than naan
  • Usually used as plating for meats and stews.
  • Torshi - Various pickled fruits
  • Lavash
    • Anthony F
      Anthony F on 06 Nov 09
       
      tantalyzes ones taste buds
  • "king" of all foods in Afghanistan.
  • Katherine G on 04 Nov 09
     
    What Afghanistanies eat. 
  • Aidan C on 05 Nov 09
     
    What Afghanistanies eat. 
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