Drugs In The Water: Even When Careful, Pharmaceuticals Can End Up In Water

Even though most of us dispose of prescription drugs by throwing them in the trash, they can still end up in our drinking water. Water drains through a landfill, and some of the prescription drugs get into the water. The water from the landfill, called leachate, eventually goes into rivers. When drinking water is drawn from these rivers, there is a chance that the water could be contaminated with prescription drugs. To prevent this, Maine is debating a law that would force drug manufacturers to develop a program to properly dispose of the medications.

Personally, I'm glad that this is finally happening, and I'm actually surprised that such a program didn't already exist. There are programs for fluorescent light bulbs, which are not as widespread as prescription drugs. I don't know about everybody else, but I don't want my water to be contaminated with something that could be harmful. Plus, if we are taking in prescription drugs and antibiotics with our water, couldn't that make more diseases resistant to the drugs? It seems to me that having a disposal program like this would be beneficial to most people, and would solve more problems than it would cause.

1. Do you support the pending law in Maine? Why or why not?

2. Do you feel comfortable knowing that there could be prescription drugs in your drinking water?

3. Who do you feel is responsible for prescription drugs in drinking water, the government or the drug manufacturers? Explain.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/02/08/drugs-in-the-water-even-w_n_453502.html

Summary:

A new monkey species was discovered in Myanmar recently. This monkey is not an ordinary monkey though, it is very unique and diverse. It is a type of snub-nosed monkey and is called Rhinopithecus strykeri. What makes this monkey different is the way its nose is upturned and points upwards. As a result, this monkey sneezes every time it rains! How weird is that? Since their noses are upturned, they can easily inhale the rain without trying to, so to avoid doing so, they must sit and put their heads in between their legs and look downwards whenever it rains. This monkey was discovered by the Myanmar Biodiversity and Nature Conservation Association, primatologists from Fauna and Flora International, and the People Resources and Biodiversity Foundation. This research team was originally studying gibbons, when residents reported sightings of the monkeys. By the descriptions the residents gave them, the researchers figured they had been seeing the snub-nosed monkey, however that monkey is only found in China and Vietnam. They soon discovered that it was a new monkey, who was only a type of the snub-nosed monkey. These monkeys are about 21 inches in length, with 30 inch tails. They have black fur with white ear tufts, and their faces are naked and pink, except for the thin white mustache. Although they are newly discovered, there are only about 330 of them in the whole world, making them endangered. They are threatened by planned dam deconstruction and logging roads.

Reflection:

I think that this next discovery is great and very interesting, and I love the fact that there are still new animals out there that we don't know about yet. When I think about how many different species live on the earth, a large number comes to mind, and it is mind boggling to know that there are even more species that still remain unknown. This monkey in particular is very interesting and I have never heard of nor seen anything like it. I think it is very different and somewhat amusing that the monkey sneezes whenever it rains, that must be cool to see! I also think its different how the monkey has to stick his head between his knees when it rains. That must be horrible, because when it rains they have to sit like that for possibly hours at a time! It is also interesting how their tails are even longer than their bodies, because not many animals are like that. I personally hope that these animals can breed and become more common because they sound very interesting and I would like to see more of them.

Questions:

1. What are your thoughts about a monkey of this type and diversity?

2. What connections can you make of this animal and another animal? (Similarities between this monkey and another animal)

3. What can we do to discover new species?

Link:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/39859947/ns/technology_and_science-science/

High Winds Destruct A Wide Area

Tuesday morning, a huge storm went into the Midwest with winds exceeding 70 miles per hour. This rainstorm was so strong that scientists said it was capable of embedding tornadoes. In Missouri, there have been reportings of damage from falling trees and severe winds. This storm covered a huge area, in Illinois someone reported a huge tornado ripping off their roof and almost collapsed their whole house. In Chicago, Illinois, the airport had to close due to high winds and rain passsing through the area resulting in over 125 flights being cancelled. Fortunately, there were no serious injuries that are known of so far.
My opinion on this is that there needs to be things done to clean up the area. The government has a responsibility to take care of cities and people after a natural disaster. Although it may cost some money, it is neccessary to be done. They can't just deny people of support in getting their lives back together. I know that if my house and town had been affected by this terrible event, I would be furious if the government decided not to help me.
1) Do you think the government should spend money on helping these people whose homes have been ruined, or should they come up with the money himself?
2) How do we prevent things like this happening by surprise? Should scientists work on finding out how to predict these more accurately and to the actual extent they are going to happen?
3) Does the airport have an obligation to give a refund to those whose flights were cancelled? How do you think they should get this money? Should they have to resort to getting it from taxpayers?
The picture included shows the tornado and how destructive high winds can be.
Link: http://www.cnn.com/2010/US/10/26/midwest.weather/index.html?eref=rss_topstories&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rss%2Fcnn_topstories+%28RSS%3A+Top+Stories%29
Author: CNN Wire Staff
October 26, 2010 10:41 a.m. EDT

Plane Exhaust Kills People

Plane Exhaust Kills More People then Plane Crashes
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2010/10/101005-planes-pollution-deaths-science-environment/

Summary

  "There's a new fear of flying: You're more likely to die from exposure to toxic pollutants in plane exhaust than in a plane crash, a new study suggests."  Researchers have learned that about  a thousand people die in a plane crash and about ten thousand people die form the plane's exhaust fuels.  The airplanes exhaust fuels include sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides.  About 8 thousand deaths accour at cursing alltitude which is about 35,000.  About 2 thousand accour at take off and landing.  The air is affected to because the fuels pullute the air.  When people breath in the exhaust fuels they may get lung canncer.  In the US there is only about 450 deaths form this and in India there is about 1,640 deaths per year.  A way to reduce this is to take sulfer out of the jet fuel, sulfer is a major killer.  To remove sulfer it would cost another 5 cents per gallon.

Reflection

I am suprised to learn that more people die form the exhaust feuls then the airplane crashes. I would have thought that it was the opposite way.  I'm not afraid of dieing form the exhaust fuel because there is a very small chance that it could happen to me considering that about 450 accour in the US.  The government should spend that extra 5 cents so that we can not only reduce the deaths but also the air pollution.

Questions

1. What is your reaction to this article? Explain.

2.  Do you think you could be affected by the exhaust feuls because you live near a naval air base?

3.  Do you think that the government should spend that extra 5 cents to save about 450 live or not? Why or why not?

Sun Chips' new bag to lose its crunch

Frito-Lay has decided to stop using biodegradable Sun Chips bags after public complaints about the noise. The bags, which went into use in January, are 100% compostable, but make a very loud noise when they are crinkled. As sales of Sun Chips have fallen since the bags were introduced, Frito-Lay has decided to revert back to the original bag. However, they will keep the biodegradable bag for the original flavor of Sun Chips, but look for a quieter material to make it out of. I don't really like Sun Chips, so I was unaware that the bag was loud in the first place. However, if you're trying to sell something, you have to please your customers. If they're complaining about the noise level of the bags, you really have no choice but to change them. Think about it: when we eat chips, the bag crinkles constantly. I can't imagine what it would be like if it was really loud.

1. Do you think they should keep the biodegradable bags? Why or why not?

2. What are your feelings on the noise level?

3. Do you feel that a biodegradable bag could be made from a quieter material? Explain your reasoning.

Link: http://www.nypost.com/p/news/business/sun_chips_new_bag_to_lose_its_crunch_FG5Iw57dI2h5KaLJllJQmK

Fifth of world's plants at risk of extinction, experts warn

Summary: It has been discovered that approximately 1/5 of all the plant species in the world are at risk for extinction. The main cause of the threat is because of humans. Use of plants for agriculture is the top reason as to why the plant population is decreasing so much. Other reasons include development of houses and buildings, logging, and the use of land for livestock. All of these reasons are somehow involved with humans. We are the foundation for everything that is occurring and scientists believe that if the government takes the correct approaches, we might be able to prevent some of the plants for becoming extinct. Plants are the producers, and basically control everything in an ecosystem. It is their duty to produce oxygen, provide water and food for animals and humans, and to give off vitamins such as phosphorus to animals. If the plants became extinct, so would animals and then so would humans. The area that is at the highest risk for extinction is by far the rain forests. Scientists have been taking samples and performing tests to see how bad this threat is, and how much at risk the plants are for extinction. Their results indicated that about 1/5 of the 380,000 plant species are at risk for extinction.

Personal Reflection: I personally think that this is a very serious as well as shocking problem. I, along with many others I'm sure, had no idea that plants were endangered, let alone at such a hight risk for extinction. I think that this is a very serious problem because plants are the basis for all life on earth. They provide us with oxygen and food, and they also provide animals food and water. They also give us vitamins and minerals, such as phosphorus. If a large number of plants become extinct, a lot more species of animals will become endangered, which will put us at risk because we rely on plants and animals for food, energy, and minerals. I really hope that there is some way we can prevent such a large percentage of our plants from becoming extinct. This threat really shows how unhealthy our environment and earth is.

Questions:

1. Did you have any idea that 1/5 of our plant species are seriously endangered? How did you react to when you read this?

2. How do you think life would be different without as many plants?

3. What steps do you think we can take to prevent the extinction?

4. How would the lack of plants affect our everyday lives?

link: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/39419038/ns/world_news-world_environment/

Cockroaches Could Save People

Recently, scientists have been doing research and found that the ground-up brains of cockroaches could actually help save peoples lives. Inside their head, there are chemical compounds that could help kill many infectious diseases, like E. Coli and MRSA. Both of these are really hard to treat, and cause a lot of problems for the people who get them. Using the cockroach brains could really help them. Scientists say that right now, cockroaches are still nasty insects but in the future it may be possible to go to the pharmacy and pick up some cockroach brains to help with that infection.

I think that this new discovery is kinda gross, but if we need to do this in order to save peoples lives then we should. The idea of putting cockroach brains into my body just creeps me out, though, and I'd rather have alternative options to this. I think that scientists should work on different ways to save people from these diseases, because a lot of people probably wouldn't be willing to take this medicine. I would also be kind of scared that the cockroach had some sort of disease, and by taking it I could get something.

1) If you were faced with the option of taking cockroach brains to help fight off a dangerous infection that other medicines couldn't help with, would you? Why or why not?

2) Do you think that in the future, you will actually be able to go to CVS, Walgreens, or some other sort of pharmacy and pick up some of this? Or does that not seem realistic? Why or why not?

3) Do you think there could be any dangers associated with doing this? What are they?

http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/63806/title/FOR_KIDS_Cockroaches_could_be_good_medicine