Lab 4/26/11

This week's lab we went to the Riverside Cemetery in Macon, Ga in order to collect field data of people who died from 1918-1920 who were buried there. This was done in order to produce a life table and get an idea of the impact the Spanish Flu Endemic had on the local population.

The Spanish Flu was a national pandemic of Influenza that devastated the worlds population at the end of the First World War. The pandemic lasted from March 1918 to June 1920. The origin of the flu is unknown but it spread across the world even to the arctic and remote islands of the pacific. The reason it is called the Spanish Flu is because Spain was the only country that didn't suppress news coverage of the outbreak. This outbreak was so devastating because unlike other Influenza outbreaks that targeted young and old victims, this virus primarily attacked young, healthy adults. 1/3 of the worlds population was infected by the flu, and an estimated 50 million, 3% of the worlds population at the time; died. Tissue studies conducted on preserved infected tissues replicated the the virus for study. Researchers discovered that the virus killed by a Cytokine Storm: the overreaction of the bodies immune system. This explains the death of younger victims because their strong immune systems ravaged the body.

Today we went to the Hitichi Experimental Forrest & I loved a tree for Earth Day

Oculmogee National Monument

Today for lab we visited the Ocmulgee National Monument outside of Macon, Georgia. The site traces the over ten milenia of Southeastern Native American culture. The site includes massive earthworks that were constructed by The Mississippian Tribe over 1,000 years ago. This site is located on the Macon Plateau which is a geographic fall line where the hills of the Georgia Piedmont meet with the Atlantic Coastal Plain. The site is located on the banks of the Ocmulmogee river and consists of low lying wetlands and hills. These land's soil were rich for farming, which the local tribes used to drive their economy and trade with Europeans. The site contains a lot of wildlife including tortoises, snakes, and lots of birds who all thrive in the lush wetlands.

 

Lab 3/31/11

The assignment was to go around Campus and locate 5 species of:

Trees:

 

 

Plants:

 

 

Rocks:

 

 

Animals:

 

 

Soil Erosion:

 

 



Burgess Shale

 

The Burgess Shale is located in the Canadian Rockies.  Location where researches discovered a number of perfectly preserved Cambrian Fossils. Scientists believe these organisms were buried in an avalanche that produced an airtight pocket that prevented decay of their soft tissues. The area was once a massive reef within the Pacific Ocean. Over the ages the fossils were pushed to the surface by Tectonic Movement.The reason the site is so important is because the Cambrian fossils found here challenge Darwin's theory of evolution. Located within the rocks were fossil evidence of all the basic body plans of animals exist today. No evidence of ancestors evolving into these species exists within the pre-Cambrian fossil record. This suggests that these organisms appeared instantly. Scientists are calling this event the "Cambrian Explosion" or the Cambrian Big Bang. 

Tsunami



The term Tsunami comes from the combination of the Japanese words tsu-"harbor" and nami-"wave."
A Tsunami is a series of large violent waves caused by the displacement of a large volume of water following a large tetonic event such as an earthquake, like the one that Japan; or a volcanic eruption. They usually occur in the worlds oceans, but they have been known to also occur in large lakes. Tsunami's were first documented by the Greek historian Thucydides when he referred to it as "submarine earthquakes."


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ENB Lab #3 Assignment 2/22/11

http://soils.cals.uidaho.edu/soilorders/orders.htm
- 12 soil orders

• Cecil Soil: Predominant soil type in Georgia Piedmont

Soil type can be determined by examing the Munsell Soil Chart. The Chart reveals the soil's value, chromo, and Hue.


GA Soil Map


Soil Texture Diagram

ENB Lab Assignment #2 2/22/11

This is Sulfolobus. It is an Acidaphile: Organism's that live in highly acidic enviornments & a Thermophile: Organisims which live in extreme heat

They grow in Volcanic springs where the Ph is 2-3 and the tempeture is from 75-80 degrees celcius. Named because they were found in the Solfarta Volcano.

ENB Assignment 2/22/11

Geology:

• Igneous: Rocks that are formed from the cooling and solidification of Lava.

                                  

                             Granite                                                                  Basalt

• Metamorphic: Rock that changes from a prexisting rock called a Protolith. The Protolith is subjected to heat & pressure resulting in chemical or physical change.

           


          
                     Marble                                                                      Slate

• Sedimentary Rock: Rocks made up of loose sediment compacted & cemented together.

                       
        Limestone                                                  Sandstone

ENB Lab Assignment 2/1/11

•  Geocaching is an outdoor activity involving a GPS. People use a GPS to play a game of "hide and seek" around the world. This involves geocachers pinpointing points using latitudinal and longitudinal coordinates which contain a hidden cache site. A cache is usually a metal or plastic tube with a clue inside. 

• Global Positioning Satilite's can help enviornmental research in a variety of ways.  GPS's can help researchers track a variety of things. Researchers can use GPS's to identify trails/feeding routes of animals. They can help locate unknown areas in which researchers can use as a research site. 

GEOCACHING.COM

Lab Assignment 1/25/11

• The Institute of Artic Biology Toolik Field Station is located in the foothills of the Alaskan Brooks mountain range. It is a world renowed research station which specalizes in studying Artic Climate change. Its location allows scientists access to three major physiographic provinces of Alaska: the Brooks Range, the arctic foothills, and the arctic coastal plain

• Yellowstone National Park

• I've always wanted an Attack Liger for my house

• I want to climb Mt. Everest one day when I'm Rich

Maps

• This map is a historical Topographic map of the areas surrounding the city of Stalingrad(present day Volagrad, Russia. Stalingrad was the location of one the of the bloodiest battles in the Second World War and is my favorite to study about. 

•  This map is a Bathymetric map of the ocean depth of the Atlantic Ocean between the America's and Europe and Africa. I found it kind of cool, so I chose it for this assignment.

•  This map is one I created on Google Earth. It shows the local area surrounding Mercer University. It shows a couple of known landmarks I frequent a lot, and a running route I often use.