The Living World
Ecosystems, energy flow, ecosystem diversity, natural ecosystem change, and chemical cycles
Article 1: Don't Know Much Biology: Our Trouble Classifying the Living World
Summary: Our vast and diverse world of living things is incredibly intricate and many people have trouble wrapping their mind around scientific concepts related to this topic. Scientists explore questions of why people classify objects such as plants, for example, as living when it seems logical to many people on the surface that plants are non-living things. They also discuss that it is not merely the fact that things move that constitutes them as life but why and how they move. What is different between the movement of, say, a horse and a bicycle? Conversely, other forms of life, such as trees, don’t move at all. Because most plants don’t move at all, they are at times mistaken as nonliving. In a recent study, University of Pennsylvania psychologists Robert F. Goldberg and Sharon L. Thompson-Schill showed a group of college students a long list of words, one at a time and very rapidly, including names of plants, animals, and nonliving things. The idea was to see how quickly and accurately the volunteers used movement and “naturalness” to classify something as living or nonliving. As it turned out, college students were more hesitant in classifying plants; they made more errors when classifying plants than animals; and they were slower to identify moving things as well as nonliving natural things, all of which suggested that they were stymied by movement and naturalness.
Reflection: When I first thought about it, the concept of classifying the living world seems to be an easy task. However, reading the article made me realize that the task is actually quite a bit more complicated than I had previously realized. I could relate to the college students who participated in the study. I probably would have made some of the same mistakes that they made in classifying living versus nonliving things. Reading the article made me want to know more about the details of what are the exact characteristics of living organisms. I think it's great that scientists have developed a precise set of criteria for classifying living and nonliving things in order to prevent major confusion.
Source: Scientific American
Reflection: When I first thought about it, the concept of classifying the living world seems to be an easy task. However, reading the article made me realize that the task is actually quite a bit more complicated than I had previously realized. I could relate to the college students who participated in the study. I probably would have made some of the same mistakes that they made in classifying living versus nonliving things. Reading the article made me want to know more about the details of what are the exact characteristics of living organisms. I think it's great that scientists have developed a precise set of criteria for classifying living and nonliving things in order to prevent major confusion.
Source: Scientific American
Article 2: Protecting Many Species to Help Our Own
Summary: A shocking amount of species are at a risk of becoming extinct. A study in the journal Nature last year states that if all species listed on the Red List as threatened are lost over the coming century, and that rate of extinction continues, we would likely lose three-quarters or more of all species within a few centuries. The majority of living things have not been discovered or have been very poorly studied so information about whether the populations are healthy or approaching their demise is unclear. A proposed effort was made by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) to compile a Red List of endangered ecosystems. Another important step was the recent creation of a new Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services, created under the auspices of the United Nations, to provide the scientific background for international policy negotiations affecting biodiversity.
Reflection: This article was fascinating; I did not know that the vast majority of living things that share our planet remain undiscovered. I am aware that many species are endangered but I did not realize that as many as nearly twenty thousand animals and plants are considered high risk for extinction in the wild. Prior to reading the article, my knowledge of the subject of species on the verge of extinction was fairly limited. My knowledge was expanded considerable by reading about the Red List of endangered ecosystems and the Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services. Even though scientists are still unaware of the existence of some species, I think it's great that they have compiled a list of endangered ecosystems so that they can be better able to prevent certain species from becoming extinct.
Source: New York Times
Reflection: This article was fascinating; I did not know that the vast majority of living things that share our planet remain undiscovered. I am aware that many species are endangered but I did not realize that as many as nearly twenty thousand animals and plants are considered high risk for extinction in the wild. Prior to reading the article, my knowledge of the subject of species on the verge of extinction was fairly limited. My knowledge was expanded considerable by reading about the Red List of endangered ecosystems and the Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services. Even though scientists are still unaware of the existence of some species, I think it's great that they have compiled a list of endangered ecosystems so that they can be better able to prevent certain species from becoming extinct.
Source: New York Times
Vocabulary
Taxonomy: the branch of science concerned with classification, especially of organisms
The Red List: a list of threatened species that is widely recognized as the most comprehensive, objective global approach for evaluating the conservation status of plant and animal species
United Nations: an international organization of countries set up in 1945, in succession to the League of Nations, to promote international peace
Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB): an economics case for the conservation of ecosystems and biodiversity, evaluating the costs of the loss of biodiversity and the associated decline in ecosystem services worldwide, and comparing them with the costs of effective conservation and sustainable use. Intent: to sharpen awareness of the value of biodiversity and ecosystem services and facilitate the development of effective policy, as well as engaged business and citizen responses.
Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES): a new international platform for scientists and policy makers; a leading global body providing scientifically sound and relevant information to support more informed decisions on how biodiversity and ecosystem services are conserved and used around the world
Source: Dictionary.com
Article 3: Biodiversity Richness
Summary: Biodiversity plays an important role in sustainable and healthy ecosystems. Without biodiversity, ecosystems are unstable and are more likely to die out. Tropical regions typically have a rich biodiversity, while polar regions usually have a low biodiversity. Plant diversity in South East Australia used to be as rich as some of the most diverse areas in the world; however, most of these species went extinct during the ice ages. Extinction decreases the reproductive power of biodiversity. The extinction of species results in less predators and their prey and affects the ecosystem balance. Dr. Sniderman, from the University of Melbourne's School of Earth Science, said that recent findings have shown that extinction is just as important to biodiversity of organisms as evolution.
Reflection: When one thinks about environmental issues, they may not think that biodiversity loss is very important. However, biodiversity is extremely important regarding the health of ecosystems. If it weren't for biodiversity, all species would die out quickly. Biodiversity increases ecosystem productivity, and diverse ecosystems can prevent and recover disasters. I think it is important to be aware that even though biodiversity loss may not seem like a pressing environmental issue, it is important because biodiversity keeps ecosystems healthy and helps humans in many major ways.
Source: Environmental News Network (ENN)
Reflection: When one thinks about environmental issues, they may not think that biodiversity loss is very important. However, biodiversity is extremely important regarding the health of ecosystems. If it weren't for biodiversity, all species would die out quickly. Biodiversity increases ecosystem productivity, and diverse ecosystems can prevent and recover disasters. I think it is important to be aware that even though biodiversity loss may not seem like a pressing environmental issue, it is important because biodiversity keeps ecosystems healthy and helps humans in many major ways.
Source: Environmental News Network (ENN)