"Oregon Rancher Standoff" Reflection

     The self-styled militia is protesting against the government for their regulations and owning to much land. Members of the militia group broke into the headquarters of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, are armed and standing ground. They are trying to help the people of Harney County to claim back their lands and resources. Ranchers are having trouble getting and owning more land to raise cattle because of their financial problems. Instead, they are leasing federal lands to sustain their operation; the federal government controls a large amount of land in the west. The federal government's regulations on these lands are seen as "unfair"; it limits the ranchers' freedom of of full use of the lands. The militia is also protesting the arson convictions of the Oregon ranchers, the Hammonds, who are in jail for 5 years for burning BLM lands. The militia thinks there is "too much government" abusing their power and limiting the people's freedom. They believe enough is enough. Right now the best approach that is being done is waiting the group out in the hopes that the protesting will die off. 

      I think the standoff is going too far. I think they should try a different approach, like setting up a private meeting to talk about their differences instead of the protest or violence. Maybe this can help to come to an agreement or make things more civilized. I think the government can make this happen because they have higher authority to set up a private meeting. I think the Hammonds are going to be hurt by the standoff. People might get mad at the Hammonds for unintentionally starting the standoff. What I think this is doing to the Refuge is causing bigger problems on the land. For the ranchers, I think the standoff is harming their reputation because they can also be looked down upon if the militia does something bad. For the taxpayers, the standoff is costing them a lot of money. 

"Fast Food to All Food" Reflection

      Modern farms are now like factories; farming becoming so industrialized and mechanized that its production has changed greatly by corporations controlling all production processes. The poultry industry, for example, changed to factory farms. Mistreatments of chickens are now happening because chickens are only seen as "a unit of production rather than a living creature." Chickens are  raised in big metal buildings with lack of sunlight and air, confined together with thousand of birds, and engineered to grow quickly that causes the chickens to lose their ability to walk because they no longer can carry their weight. Because of society's movement to fast food, the food industry is trying to raise animals in an efficient and cost-effective way which does not improve the lives of the animals. 
      If animals do have certain rights, those rights do apply to animals we raise for food, like chicken or pigs. They are just like people: they are living creatures who have souls and feelings. The farm animals should have the right to be treated with fairness and kindness. They should have the right to not be gruesomely slaughtered, but instead be put down in a more humane way that does not make them suffer. They should also have the right to move around freely, and live in a cleaner environment or in their natural environment. The statement "In a way, we're not producing chickens, we're producing food" means they are not raising chickens, but instead raising food that will produce money for the corporations. I disagree with this statement because even though the chickens are raised as food, they are still living creatures that should be treated humanly. This perspective of the National Chicken Council does affect the way that chicken are raised because the council only sees the chickens as a source of food that does not need proper care. They see it that the chickens will eventually be killed and be used as food. 
      If we are all in an agreement that even food animals deserve to have a certain quality of life, the farm workers are responsible to oversee the treatment of chickens or other animals because the animals are under their care. The responsibility of individuals and consumers are to stop buying food products from big chain companies, but instead buy organic food that is free range that we know the animals were able to have some type of good life. The government responsibility is to look after companies to make sure that they are not allowing the mistreatment of the animals especially the farm animals. The companies responsibility is to create new methods of taking care of the animals, by providing better environments for them and not seeing them as just food. 
    The change in the way we treat animals will change the price of what we have for dinner because more money will be put into better systems to care for the animals, which will rise the price for the consumers. I think I would still be able to afford chicken because it is similar to buying organic chicken that is free range- the price is high, but you still buy a healthier product. This change might effect my life because I might have to cut down the amount of chicken that I eat because of high prices. 

"The Veil" Reflection

     Food are now being Genetically engineered. The Genetically modified organimis (GMO) are developed by transferring genes and their traits from one organisms to another. The benefits of GMO technology are that it increases yield, enhance nutrition, and increase drought resistance crops. It is also primarily used to create GMO crops that are Herbicide-tolerant; which the application of herbicide will not destroy the crops. The concerns of GMO technology are the unknown health consequences, unintended transfer of genes, loss of biodiversity, and private companies controlling the world food production. Food production is a massive industry which leads to corporations protecting their earnings by passing laws and regulations. The food libel law, patent law, and the cheeseburger law were all passed in protecting the food industry. The major law that was passed was the food labeling law, this allowed companies to print out certain information on labels. This keeps consumers in the dark with out knowing what is in their food and how it is produced; with this it  helps to keep everything running smoothly, keep prices low, and keep people from developing unnecessary fears. 
     The consequences -both positive and negative- of companies owning the genetic information in the seed is that it helps companies to take ownership of the seed and produce a lot of money for themselves; however, it puts them in the position of hiding things from the consumers that will jeopardize the company, and this leads them to creating laws and regulations. This situation  compared to downloading music from "free" sites is almost similar because downloading music for free is taking away the income that the artist or the company would have been receiving. This is the reason why regulations and laws are created. 
     If I could no longer have the tradition in my family because someone now legally claims it I would think it is unfair and try to fight for my right to continue my tradition without them owning it. Maybe health educators will be more effective then warning labels for food. They can talk to the people, especially the youth, about the food they eat and the bad things that is in it that can cause future health problems. The pros and cons of the people who have been in the industry who are now becoming regulators working for the government is they are knowledgeable about the regulations, and might be reasonable and impartial making it; however, the problem is the regulators have to remain objective towards the people they may know in the industry, and the other con is that they might make regulations in favor of a company. 

"Cornucopia" Reflection

     Corn can be found in many food ingredients and processed foods. For instance, corn ingredients can be found in: breakfast cereals, salad dressings, margarines, snacks, glue, soap, medicine, fossil fuels, oil, etc. Corn is also fed to livestock because it is cheap and fattens the animal quicker. The government is encouraging farmers to produce so much corn and sell it at any price because corn is cheap and abundant. The United states is the number one corn-growing country in the world to have acres of corn instead of other crops. Scientists have developed a chemical fertilizer to increase soil nitrogen levels; allowing corn to be grown all year without destroying the soil. Corn is becoming the "go to" source for many of our processed foods. 
      People can better inform themselves about the foods they eat by reading the ingredients on the labels. They can also do their own research on the type of foods that are not good for their health. They can also go see a Nutritionist to gather information about the foods they are eating. People do have the right to know what is in their food. Food is the main source of our survival and health, but without knowing what is in it we put ourselves in serious health problems due to the fact that we are not properly informed of the ingredients that are in our food. The problem with having 90% of our food with corn or soy is that it can be difficult to avoid. Also it can lead to serious health problems. The government is responsible to inform us of what is in our food because they are responsible of the production of corn that is used in everything causing great health problems. Also companies should also have that responsibility to inform us because they are manufacturing the food that we are consuming. 

"Dollar Menu" Reflection

     Subsidizing food is affecting our nation. The federal government is spending $35 billion each year  subsiding commodity crops. This is leading to lower prices on the overproduction of corn and soybeans for example. These cheap and abundant crops are being used in everything- mostly in our daily foods. This is what makes subsidized ingredients so cheap compared to fruits and vegetables. There is little encouragement in overproducing specialty crops- food that we should actually be eating. The farm subsidies is causing income, diet, obesity, and Type 2 diabetes problems. 
      I believe healthy eating is a right. Everyone should have the right to be able to eat healthy. The federal government should lower the prices of healthy food so that everyone can afford it;  restructuring the farm subsidy system can be the first step to providing better food for everyone. The federal government should also look more closely at the health problems people are facing due to the fast food industry or processed food in the markets. They should focus on bettering our health, and giving us the right to consume affordable healthy foods. My diet today compared to my grandparents' diet at my age is very different. My grandparents grew up on a farm in Italy so they practically produced everything that they ate; everything was organic and fresh from the farm. I try my best eating everything organic as well; however, that is not always possible due to many processed foods out there. I eat pretty healthy. I do not eat a lot of take out foods or fast foods. I eat a lot of organic food such as green lentils, quinoa, kale, carrots, etc. I also eat a lot of salad and fruits. I eat a lot of fish and chicken; once a while I eat beef, pork, etc. The thing that stands in the way of my family and I eating healthy right now is that we can not always afford to buy organic food due to high prices. 

"ScrAPES #18- A Vital New Initiative to Learn How Roads Are Imperiling Nature"

Article- A Vital New Initiative to Learn How Roads Are Imperiling Nature, Bill Laurance, 12/16/2015, http://alert-conservation.org/issues-research-highlights/2015/12/16/a-vital-new-effort-to-learn-how-roads-are-imperiling-nature

Topic: Road Expansion 

Summary:
     The construction of roads are causing environmental problems such as habitat fragmentation and forest deforestation. In 2050 there would be 25 million kilometers of new paved road. Nine-tenths of the new roads will be built in tropical and subtropical regions located in developing nations which has great biodiversity that is important to the environment. A lot of these roads were built illegally by loggers, miners, illicit-drug producers, and many others looking for forest resources. A Roadless Project was created to map out legal and illegal roads; studying how the roads impact forests and wildlife, productivity planning roads, identifying wilderness areas, and detecting illegal activities. The results gathered from the project will help to enforce environmental laws, better plan and manage roads, and carbon trading to encourage forest conservation. 
     I chose this article because I wanted to learn more about how the construction of roads is harming our environment. What I found interesting was the fact that in 2050 we will have more roads built that can circle the earth 600 times. I can connect this article to a reading in the AP Environmental book that talked about the human developments that caused habitat fragmentation which led to the decrease of biodiversity and resulted to inbreeding depression.  
     This article is important to environmental science because the development of roads is destroying natural habitats and decreasing wildlife. The next step is to continue the Roadless Project, and develop more environmental laws to protect the environment. We must now work our hardest to conserve habitats, and spread the word of the negative impacts human activities have on the environment. 

"ScrAPES #17- Greenland's Melting Ice Problem May Be Far Worse Than We Realized"

Article- Greenland's Melting Ice Problem May Be Far Worse Than We Realized, Lydia O'Connor, 1/05/2016, http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/greenland-ice-melting-study_568c0e60e4b0b958f65d20ea?

Topic: Climate Change 

Summary:
      Climate change is causing Greenland's ice sheet to melt which is causing the world's largest island to shrink. Researchers said that if the entire ice sheet melts the global sea level will rise to 23 feet. They found out that Greenland's "firn" does not limit the effects of climate change as they thought it would do. The firn is a sponge-like snow on top of the ice sheet that absorbs and stores melting water so it does not go into the ocean. Researchers pointed out that during the warmer summers, large amounts of melting water blocked the pours in the firn and harden, creating a layer of ice. By looking at the results of the firn, researchers figured out that they truly did not know all the different ways climate change is affecting the world. 
      I chose this article because we learned about the effects climate change had on species, and I thought it was interesting to learn more about its effects on the world. What I found interesting is how the researchers figured out that they have much bigger problems on their hands than what they thought they did before about climate change. This connects to the readings that I did that talked about how climate change were caused my humans, and resulting to negative effects on our environment.
     This article is important to environmental science because climate change is one of the many factors that is caused by humans that is harming our environment  The next steps is try to do more research on climate change, and try to understand its patterns and effects on our environment. We should now start working together and figuring out ways to help improve our environment and stop harming it. 

"Habitat Fragmentation" Reflection

     Habitat fragmentation is the process by which habitat loss result in the division of large, continuous habitats into smaller, more isolated remnants. The activity we did in class was that we represented bears in a habitat, and had four different colored cards representing our genes. It was mating season, so each of us had to go around and collect a total of four cards that where the same color. Only two students, "bears",  died because they fell into inbreeding depression. They did not have a total of four cards with the same color. In the second round, a road was built to represent a habitat fragmentation, splitting us up. The game was repeated again to get four different colors this time in our section. Many more of us were kicked out. The third round was another habitat fragmentation, splitting us up even more and then the game repeated. This activity represented habitat fragmentation because in each round our space become smaller and smaller, separating us from each other, and only working with the few people in our area; we were unable to cross the "human developments" which resulted to fewer of us in the game. This activity reflects the actual event that is happening in our environment, limited biodiversity and species extinction. 
     Habitat fragmentation is effecting our planet because humans are continuing to alter the natural habitats of species causing more extinction. Not every species can adapt to change so quickly which results to a decline in biodiversity that later results to extinct. The other causes of  habitat fragmentation other then human development is natural processes such as the Allopatric Speciation;   for instance rivers can cause a division among species. The loss of biodiversity is causing harm to our environment.