Class Response: Winds

Winds! Winds! Winds! Wind can get really annoying sometimes, but it also helps our world keep cool. You may think that there is only one type of wind, wind. Well, in class I learned that there are actually 2 major types of winds, local winds and global winds. Local winds are winds that blow in absolutely any direction, depending on the location. These winds don't travel very far, and only cover short distances. Global winds on the other hand, are winds that blow in one direction and cover larger distances and may appear all around the world. These winds depend on the Earth's rotation, the earths movement around the sun, and because of the round shape of the world. In addition, Jetstreams, known as wind phenomena, are long bands of very strong wind. They occur at places where the contrast between hot and cold is very large. Jetstreams occur generally at an altitude of 30,000 - 40,000 feet.

Class Response: The Earth's Atmosphere

In class, we began learning about the Earth's atomosphere, and its layers. The atmosphere is divided into five layers; troposphere, stratosphere, mesosphere, and the thermosphere, which has two parts, the ionosphere and exosphere. The atomosphere is thickest near the surface and thins out until it eventually merges with space. The troposphere is where all weather takes place, and is the layer we basically live in. All the rain, snow, wind, etc. occurs in this layer. Next, is the stratosphere is where the temperature increases with altitude. The thin ozone layer in the upper stratosphere has a high concentration of ozone, a reactive form of oxygen. Ozone is concentrated around an altitude of 25 kilometers. This layer is mostly responsible for absorbing the ultraviolet radiation from the sun. In the Earth's mesosphere, the air is relatively mixed together and the temperature decreases with altitude. The atmosphere reaches its coldest temperature of around -90°C in the mesosphere. This is also the layer in which a lot of meteors burn up while entering the Earth's atmosphere. Above the mesosphere is the ionosphere, the lower part of the thermosphere. where many atoms are ionized, which means they have gained or lost electrons so they have a net electrical charge. Scientists call the ionosphere an extension of the thermosphere, so technically the ionosphere is not another atmospheric layer. The ionosphere is very thin, but it is where auroras take place. Very high up, the Earth's atmosphere becomes very thin. The region where atoms and molecules escape into space is referred to as the exosphere, which is the upper part of the Earth's thermosphere. Thats what I've learned in class, and I hope all of that information enlightened you too! =]

Extra Credit: Weather Poetry

To the Thawing Wind

Come with rain. O loud Southwester!

Bring the singer, bring the nester;

Give the buried flower a dream;

make the settled snowbank steam;

Find the brown beneath the white;

But whate'er you do tonight,

bath my window, make it flow,

Melt it as the ice will go;

Melt the glass and leave the sticks

Like a hermit's crucifix;

Burst into my narrow stall;

Swing the picture on the wall;

Run the rattling pages o'er;

Scatter poems on the floor;

Turn the poet out of door.

-Robert Frost

This poem, To The Thawing Wind by Robert Frost definitely connects with weather in many ways. In this piece of poetry, weather is used to describe the setting and action. The poet uses his knowledge of weather to, as I said before, describe the place of the action, in a very creative way. Within this poem, the kind of weather discussed it rain, wind, snow, and sun(heat). Without the mention of weather, this poem would be completely different, because all of the imagery would be missing, making this poem truly boring. The literary techniques used in this poem in regards to weather are imagery, rhyming, and metaphors. This poem doesn't really further my knowledge about weather, because in this poem, weather is being used as description, not as information or scientifically.

Social Studies: Culture and Technology

There have been many advancements in technology over the past thirty years. Each and every one of them has impacted our society in one way or another. The greatest advancement in technology that I believe has extremely impacted our society would be computers. Over the years, they have changed eminently. Thirty years ago, computers were mostly used for just word processing. The computers back then were small and as I would describe them, 'chunky'. Nothing like what we have now, with our flat screen Mac computers and Dells. Now, we use the computer for many more things, such as internet, paint, communication, along with word processing as well. Internet has caused computers to become a huge part of our modern day lives, because it is just another way to communicate, using email and chatting. Computers have changed so much over the years, improving to such an extent, that computers back then look like nothing compared to computers now. Computers really do come in handy nowadays. For example, they are used at almost every workplace. Teachers, doctors, businessmen and women, architects, etc. use computers all the time to get their job done. Without computers, the world would definitely be a mess. Thirty years ago, it wouldn't have mattered much. But now, computers are a major factor of life. Overall, I believe that computers are the one advancement in technology that have made the greatest impact on our society.

Class Response: Cork Popping Lab

In class, we did a very fun experiment using baking soda, vinegar, a cork, and a test tube. You may think, what fun can you have with those items? Well, our goal was to mix a specific measure of both baking soda and vinegar in the test tube, and cause the cork to pop off, and fly far. The further, the better. And if it managed to hit the window, even better. So we used a guess and check method, trying different measurements of both of those ingredients. It was fascinating. I had alot of fun with this lab. In the end, our group managed to make the cork fly 600+ cm. I found this lab very interactive and I liked it alot.

Extra Credit: Science Website

The website I chose is http://www.extremescience.com/

This site does not have any corporate sponsors. It is completely run and paid for by Elizabeth Keller, the creator, author and webmaster of the Extreme Science website. This website is about the various branches of science, A-Z. Extreme Science is the best place to find world records in natural science, including earth science and the plant and animal kingdom. The site tell you who holds the records, and also key science concepts are used to explain the story behind the record. Also, a huge collection of science and technology information and resources are available. Students doing research projects of reports will find this website a big help. The positive aspects of this site are that it gives you information for any science related topic or subject. The negative aspects of the site are that you never know if the given information is true or false, although usually, the information is correct. This site could be used for research projects, research reports, or just plain finding out facts for fun! Yes, I would recommend this site for future use because it has helped me in the past for many projects, and has really interesting information.

How high? Tiger attacks spark wall worries

“I could never imagine that a tiger could so effortlessly leap from the ground on to an adult elephant’s head, which is at least 12 feet above the ground,” Vivek Menon, executive director of Wildlife Trust of India. Recently in India, a rare attack occured. An average tiger managed to jump, sail through the air, and take a shot at a man sitting on an elephant’s back. The man ended up losing three fingers. The tiger was a Siberian tiger, weighing 350 pounds, or 160 kilograms. Zoologists along with many animal experts are completely bewildered at the tiger's leaping ability. “What animals normally do, and what they can do, are often very different things,” says Dale Miquelle, director of Wildlife Conservation Society’s program in Russia. Well all I know, is that zoos and animal conservatories need to now make sure the animals are completely sustained in their cages or indicated areas, to keep people safe. But, I did find this article very informative and interesting.

I found this article at http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22575549/