APES Current Events

 This article is talking about how the Mikey way galaxy merged together about 10 billion years ago. It talks about how the stars formed and how they created new gasses and heat for the different planets. It talks about why stars form and what goes on inside of them. No star has ever been observed up close due to the fact that they are so far away and their heat will melt anything that gets too close.  -Colin Schaller  Link: sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/05/210517124938.htm 

 In Pennsylvania, the target for renewable energy is set to max out unless something is changed. They are supposed to buy 8% of power from renewable sources. Joanna McClinton, who is a democratic leader, said her party wants to raise the percentage. During an interview, she states, “We would like to be able to  see the preservation of good-paying jobs, while also being able to get our workforce up to speed to be able to pursue more clean energy,”  I think by the percentages going up, It will be beneficial, because it will cut carbon admissions by alot and help our environment.  https://stateimpact.npr.org/pennsylvania/2021/03/15/legislative-action-on-increasing-pennsylvanias-alternative-energy-goals-appears-unlikely/

 Before, scientists thought that orangutans were good at surviving from food shortages. But after doing further research, that's not the case. Scientists have been studying the muscle mass of the orangutans when there is a fruit shortage. On the island of Borneo, in Southeast Asia, studies show when there is less fruit available, the muscle mass of orangutans is lower. Deforestation is on the rise, and there needs to be a conservation plan in place to help save the orangutan species.  I think this article is very eye opening. We need to take action to help save animals in our environment, before they become endangered or extinct. Deforestation needs to stop because it is harming the animals that live in that habitat. A conservation plan needs to be put in place so we can save these orangutans. Article

       For the past 17 years, cicadas have been tunneling and feeding beneath the soil. During the summertime, they come back to the surface to mate. Cicadas begin to emerge when the soil reaches 64 degrees Fahrenheit. This year, this group is called Brood X. They call it that because it is going to be the largest group of cicadas.  They were supposed to come in late April, but, Scientists don't know the precise reasons behind the cicada schedules, and do not know why they have not arrived yet. Cicadas do not harm animals or humans, they only like to buzz around you. But they do benefit gardens. When the insects emerge from the soil, they create holes that increase aeration and water penetration. Over the cicada life cycle, exoskeletons and dying adults will fall to the ground, breaking down into organic matter and nutrients that feed the soil. This affects our society as a whole because we’re all going to have to deal with the cicadas. The article informs us mo...

 There is an experiment called the Beal Seed Viability Experiment.  This experiment is attempting to figure out how long seeds can lie in the soil dormant without losing their ability to germinate.  This experiment has lasted for about 142 years.  This experiment is important to help with storing crop seeds or restoring damaged ecosystems.  In 1879, William James Beal filled 20 bottles with thousands of seeds each (50 each of 21 species).  He planned for his future successors to dig one up every 5 years and plant the preserved seeds.  For the first 20 years of the experiment, most of the seeds flourished.  They slowly started to drop off 1 by 1 leaving the Verbascum blatteria, which is still blooming despite being underground for over a century.  At this point in the experiment, one bottle is dug up every 20 years.  The most recent one was dug up in 2021 and was found based on a map of where all the bottles were buried.  In 2040, th...

Wind energy is surging in popularity across the US and world as a whole. As of last year, 8% of the country's energy was generated using wind turbines. However, turbines kill an average of 140,00 - 500,000 birds a year due to collisions- a number that is expected to increase to 1.4 million a year if the US achieves its goal of having 20% of the country's energy come from wind by 2030. To avoid this avian massacre, scientist are calling for the use of citizen science and bird migration data to help decide what area are the best to build more wind turbines in, and which should be avoid on part of birds and environment. Citizen science is advantageous because it allows normal citizens to participate in scientific studied/ research, by providing informational data to scientists across the entire US, the entire year- a feat often impossible for more traditional, limitedly staffed research projects. It has already proven successful for conservation scientist Viviana Ruiz-Gutierrez an...

 May Current Event Francine Parks 5 - 4 - 21 Why California is Planning to Ban Fracking     In an effort to protect the environment & prevent future damage to the land, California is moving to put a ban on fracking by 2024. Since fracking causes harm to waterways, ecosystems, & individual organisms, California Governor Gavin Newsom hopes to eliminate it. In order to do this, they would need to find a new way to produce oil needed in California households, along with relying more heavily on alternative ways already in existence. This would be a big step towards a healthier environment, so a lot of thought would have to be put into the process & how to make it become reality.     I definitely think this is a great step to take, & I hope it works. Although fracking isn't the only thing currently destroying the Earth & its climate, it is a major factor. After this has been achieved, we could focus on other issues & forms of pollution that we ...