Post # 7 6 degrees

6 degrees could change our world. When you talk about 6 simple degrees it doesn’t seem like a big change but as of right now our world is only experiencing 1 degree of global warming and it is effecting everyone. Australia being one of the driest continents already is experiencing the largest drought it has had in the last 1000 years. Ice sheets are melting taking the water supply for thousands away. All this is happening with only 1 degree of change, experts are expecting to see 6 degrees (11 degrees Fahrenheit) of change in the next 100 years. 6 degrees on a single day could just be the difference between shorts and pants, but globally 6 degrees on a regular basis could be the difference between fires, drought, death or the survival of all ecosystems. The temperature change although may help crops in winters or even allow other countries to grow different crops then they were once able to, it doesn’t not counter act the overall disruption that it goes on in the majority of all other countries.

All these damages that our world is seeing right now is with only 1 degree of change, our world is on the tipping point of having a 2 degree change. Although it doesn’t seem like much either but with this extra degree these tragedies become much worse and more severe. It becomes a wide spread “meltdown” of ice caps, fires spreading the across our planet, and further extinction of our wildlife. Steps are being taken to try and reduce the possibility of this 2 degree change by florescent lights, making our coal plants more efficient, and using solar energy but it may be too little too late. Without a change our world will soon have a new face to it due to the increasing temperatures.

Our world being just a few years from a point of no return, it is scary to see what 2 degrees can do to a planet but it will not stop there. Maybe not in 20, 30, or 40 years but our world will reach its 3^rd degree of temperature change and with this change it will bring some of our most saturated lands to a desert state. A 3^rd degree could cause a catastrophic chain of events that will change out world forever. There will be more energy in all aspects of super storms, hurricanes will be more often and be more sever due to the increase in power of our oceans. The tidal waves that have taken place are nothing compared to hwat we will begin to see without a change in our habits as a planet.

Post #6 Jared Diamond

Over thousands of years we have seen many societies come and go or suffer a serious collapse. There are eight main reasons why scientist believe that this happens beginning with; Deforestation and habitat destruction, soil problems, water management problems, overhunting, overfishing, effects of introduced species on native species, human population growth, and increased per-capita impact of people. These issues brought up a lot of interesting questions that were mentioned with in the article. Of these questions the one that stuck out the most was “Does it stand reason that today’s human population of nearly seven billion , with out potent modern technology, is causing our environment to crumble globally at a much more rapid pace then a mere few million with stone and wooden tools made it crumble locally in the past?”. I feel that a huge issue that our world has with the modern collapses of certain societies come from our new technology. Our technology being so advanced we have found ways to alter nearly everything to make it bigger, “better”, and more readily available. Smaller countries that do not have access to this technology or still live off the land entirely find it difficult to sustain life from a health perspective along with an economical one as well.         

Also with in the reading it talks about new findings those scientists have related to how forests have been destroyed or certain species have become extinct. Many people are turning it into racial attacks instead of seeing the underlying meaning behind it. People point the finger and attack one another or say the facts are now lies when it pertains to them. Instead of taking these new findings and using them to better own world today, people find the need to attack others. If we do not cope or find a way for us to learn from our past and keep modern civilizations from making the same mistakes our countries will begin to collapse all over the world.

            After considering some of the examples given I found my self in agreement with Jared Diamond (writer of this article) when he spoke about the reasons for collapse. Collapse of a society has historically been blamed on solely environmental damage. I feel that this is not true, although there may be environmental damage there is always contributing factors relating to that. Diamond developed a 5-point framework that a collapse of a society could be based off consisting of; environmental damage, claimant change, hostile neighbors, friendly trade partners, and the society’s response to environmental problems. With all society collapse you can find at least 2 or more of these factors contributing to the demise of the society.

POST #5 Cognitive Dissonance

Cognitive dissonance, a drive or feeling of discomfort, originally defined as being caused by holding two or more inconsistent cognitions and subsequently defined as being caused by performing an action that is discrepant from one’s customary, typically positive self-conception. In plain terms, Cognitive dissonance is anything that makes you feel absurd, stupid or immoral. In the article they used the example of telling joggers that stretching does not help prevent injury but in fact it may actually harm. This brought out the cognitive dissonance it the joggers who stretch regularly. The reaction that they received is a normal reaction due to human nature of wanting to believe that we live and act the proper way and that what we do is always right. This cognitive dissonance can be a good trait sometimes but for the most part being stubborn and not seeing other sides may in fact turn out to be problematic with in society. There are ways to limit or reduce the cognitive dissonance that one may have, this is done by; changing behavior to bring it more in line with the dissonant cognition, justify our behavior through changing one of the cognitions to make it less dissonant with our behavior, and by attempting to justify our behaviors by adding new cognitions that work with our current cognitions.

            Another example that this article used proving how people change cognitions to fit there behaviors to limit cognitive dissonance is with smokers. Many smokers that have been doing this for years will argue that many of the facts are falsified or that the filters help keep out harmful chemicals. They will also try and use other examples of others who have lived a long life even while smoke a pack or 2 a day. This is a prime example of a person changing cognitions to make their behavior more acceptable and making them feel like they are not doing anything wrong.

            A person that is involved in the cognitive dissonance believes that they are being completely rational with their thinking but to an outsider this person looks ridiculous. A study was performed to view how these people actually thought when put into a situation where they felt cognitive dissonance. The people who were tested argued plausible ideas against them and soon forgot what they were all together but they remembered the arguments about them that really had no backing and were somewhat silly. On the other hand they remembered almost all the plausible details from their side of the argument and blocked out many of the silly ones to make them seem like they had the better argument. This just shows that humans have the ability to think rationally but at the same time humans have a history of trying to rationalize their behaviors instead.

Post #4

Jane Goodall’s excerpt from hope for animals and their world is exceptional and shows how many different ways that our world can be changed for the better. Although our tropical and old-growth forest, woodlands and wet lands, prairies and grasslands, moorlands and deserts are all disappearing at an alarming rate, there is still hope. When Jane talks about her reasons for hope it truly opened my eyes and showed me that there really is a chance for our world after all. These four points consist of; the energy and commitment of informed young people who empowered to act, our extraordinary intellect, the resilience of nature, and the indominitable human sprit. When all these points come together and co-exist it gives our landscape, animals, and plants a second chance just like they deserve.

All of the examples of stories that Jane gives is incredible to show how when true dedication is shown that it is possible to bring a species that is on the brink of extinction back to the endangered list. Even when on the endangered list there is still a risk for them to go extinct and many people wonder why we should even put effort into saving them. As Jane wrote, “it can be very simple; these animals just belong on the land.” Meaning that when looking into the wild u see that we share this land and each and every animal not only deserves to be here but the wild doesn’t look right without them. Another reason why it is important is to protect the biodiversity within every ecosystem. Even the government, that has taken many verbal blows, continues to see the importance of protecting every aspect of every ecosystem. The government supports those who are trying make a difference within our world from big picture(human race) to little picture(micro bacteria). These people are the people of the future and with help and determination they can change our world for the better one animal at a time.

POST #3

When you talk about biodiversity you are talking about the diversity in life with in the many different species and life forms that make up our ecological planet and how they co-exist. When humans find the need to change how things are grown or what materials are used, it has a huge impact on our entire planet. New items are being produced as substitutes for renewable sources of energy, fossil fuels are slowly taking over the world and leaving its mark behind. These fossil fuels are changing our claimant, threatening species through agrichemicals, causing soil to be infertile, and effecting over all human health.

For hundreds of years mankind has lived off the planet and has not had an issue but mankind is now being greedy. In order to make our lives better or to create a profit we have completely over looked that every specie should have the right to evolve freely on their own terms. The human race is only one of millions of species and if we do not change our way we will continue to kill other species at an alarming rate.

Although biodiversity is a conservation issue it is also an economical issue for millions. Creating substitutes or new forms for items that can be grown or raised on our land may seem to help some people but it is harmful to many people as well. Agricultural biodiversity is a means of life for two thirds of the entire world’s population. This population that lives off the land is struggling to support themselves and are in need to find another means to support themselves. Also with the new growth in using substitutes or creating new breeds to strive in adverse claimants, it is killing off many of the current breeds or species and cause them to be extinct.

I believe that biodiversity is an extremely important part to our entire planet and without it our world will soon become a world controlled by the rich and powerful. The world controlled by the rich and powerful will be a very uniformed world with no diversity with in it because they feel that they are helping the world but in return they are doing a lot of killing. Are planet will soon be a land of laboratory grown food and plant life with out a sever change.

POST #2

Modern culture that we have all become accustomed to does not come with out a price. The price that we pay may not exactly be noticeable off hand but when you look deeper and deeper into the environment you can see the destruction that our 1^st world countries are implementing or 3^rd world countries and their jungles. I feel that with almost every action there is an equal reaction. An example of this would be that in certain areas rivers are harnessed for their power to supply electricity to thousands of people, in return thousands of animals are losing their homes due to flooding. It is not only the smaller defenseless animals but even the larger predators losing their homes. Although this may be part of the reason that predators are not populated as much as they use to be, another reason is that humans have been removing, killing, and shunning away the predators for safety reasons. This may seem like a good idea but at the same time it allows their pray to run wild, become over populated, and to cause damage and stress to property.

            People may feel that these predators do nothing for them and do no good for the environment but that is far from the truth. In 1970 the wolf was placed on the endangered list and the environment began to show the change and the good that the wolf once did. Yellow stone national park is a great example of the good that a wolf can do. The park was beginning to have a diminishing number of aspen and willow trees that supplied many nutrients to the environment. Once wolves were reintroduced into the park number of trees began to increase and this is thought to be because the wolves hunted the elk that were eating and diminishing the shrubs. With the growth of the new trees and shrubs beavers are now able to rebuild their huts which create more water in an area along with extra nutrients.

POST #1

As I set forth into the world of Colloquium I have high hopes in the content I will be introduced to and that I will be able to learn. I hope to encounter many obstacles that will challenge my mind and give me the opportunity to think and to further develop my knowledge of not only South West Florida, but the entire state, country, or world. The out doors have always inspired me and I have always found myself to be in a better state of mind when I am out in the fresh air. This class will put me in a great atmosphere to learn and to grow as an individual. As I have read so far the curriculum is set up to where each student is required to do service learning hours to help the environment. I think this is an amazing idea, not only for my self but for everyone to further get acquainted with the environment and to learn how the environment can give back if you put time into it. Some people may have negative opinions of this class being required but I think it is of great importance due to the fact that our world is slowly breaking down and will soon be at a stand still due to a lack of resources. If we as students are to be the future it is important that we are aware of what is going on in the environment and what changes we need to make to ensure the longevity of our normal daily living styles. I am looking forward to an action pack semester filled with a plethora of knowledge.