White Humpback Whale Spotted

A pure white humpback whale spotted near Norway.

               In 1851, the story of Moby-Dick was written by Herman Melville. Since then, the white whale has become a legend among nearly everyone who has heard of the adventures. But this mythical creature may be more than just legend. In August of 2012, Dan Fisher sighted a rare white humpback whale in the waters of Norway. Experts say this whale is either albino or it could have a condition known as leucism, where pigmentation cells fail to properly develop. Though these ghostly creatures have eluded us in the past, reports of other pure white whales have been surfacing. A white humpback has been seen frequently off the coast of Queensland, Australia; there have been sightings of white orca whales near Alaska and Russia; white right whales have been seen around South Australia; and even an albino dolphin in Louisiana. Fisher, who has worked on ship crews for over 10 years, referred to the experience as being a “once-in-a-lifetime spot” and added: “I saw lots of humpbacks this year, but nothing as spectacular as this one.” 

Bats in the Midwest!

Bats in the Midwest!

Big Brown Bat 

Wildfires

Wildfires

 

 

                In just minutes, fire being fueled by weather and dry vegetation can burn across the land, consuming everything in its path. Each year there are more than 100,000 wildfires that burn almost 5 million acres of land. Wildfires have been clocked moving at nearly 14mph; these fires will stop for nothing, not even human life.

                Wildfires need several key inputs to be successful. First, they need fuel, this could consist of trees, grass, brush, homes, and anything that is flammable in the surrounding area. Secondly, fires need oxygen that is pulled from the air and used in the combustion process. This pulling of air can generate its own gusts of winds. The last input for fire is a heat source; this is used to bring fuel temperatures high enough to ignite. Some examples of heat sources would be: lightning, campfires, cigarettes, hot winds, or even the sun.

                Fires are started all the time, nearly 4 out of 5 are started by humans, some are for good and others are bad. Nature usually contributes by supplying dry weather, high winds to allow fire to spread quickly, and hot temperatures. In these conditions it just takes one spark and a fire can burn for weeks. Fires can ignite anywhere but are more predominate in the western United States where drought and thunderstorms are abundant. In California the Santa Ana winds have been known to carry sparks for miles, igniting fires elsewhere. Firefighters deprive the fire from its 3 key inputs with several techniques. They can spray water or retardants, remove vegetation, or set up fire breaks.  In order to lower the danger of a fire, control burns can be done where vegetation is burned off of an area to thin out fuel density.

                When hearing about wildfires, a negative association is brought along with it. Although they can be destructive to human lives, they also serve a valuable purpose to the environment. Fires can return nutrients to the soil by burning dead organic material and then allowing new growth to prosper. When handled in a proper manner, fire can be a useful tool in generating new life.

Michael Lewis                                                                                                                                       NRES 260                                                                                                                                     2012/11/09

Power by Sewer Water

 

            The water energy nexus describes the inter-related demands for water and energy. In the United States to day 19 percent of all electricity is used to treat water according to Discover Magazine. Water, in turn, is used to create power. Water is used for steam to turn turbines and as a battery to store power created by renewable power sources. So we are faced with the problem of if we want to meet all of our water demands we need more power. If we want more power we need more water. This down ward spiral could lead to future where we will have to choose meet are water demands or our power demands. Scientists are looking to a surprising resource to solve this problem. That resource is sewer water.

            A fuel cell out lined in a New York Times blog by Sophia Li is being developed where water can be cleaned without external energy. The fuel cell cleans the sewage water pumped into by converting the biological material in water via bacteria into water and CO₂. The fuel cell will be powered by energy created from the bacteria breaking down the biological material. Creating a closed system that will not put any extra demand on cities energy grids and free up the energy that would have been used for treating water for other purpose.

            While this fuel cell is not a silver bullet it does offer a more economical solution to the challenge for the meeting the power and water needs of growing cities here in the United States and across the globe.      

 

Where Have All The Manta Rays Gone?

            With an 18-22 foot wingspan, soaring motion, and gentle disposition, manta rays are one of the truly amazing creatures to watch underwater.  They are harmless to humans, and considered curious and friendly to divers.  There are two different species of manta rays, Manta birostris (the giant oceanic manta) and Manta alfredi (the resident reef manta).  The migratory giant oceanic manta is known to be found in tropical, sub tropical and temperate waters, and have a much larger geographic range than the reef manta, who is commonly sighted inshore around coral reefs, tropical island groups, atolls and bays.  If the manta ray is harmless to humans and is such a fascinating creature, why are their population numbers dwindling? Just like most wild animals, manta rays have number of natural predators. 

Their survival is most severely threatened by growing pressure from fisheries. They are in high demand for their gill rakers, which are cartilaginous structures that branch off the gill arch and are used to filter plankton. Since manta rays move in predictable patterns, they are known to be easy targets, causing this kind creature to be netted, trawled, and harpooned for this specific body part.  In recent years, fishermen have begun targeting manta rays with modern fishing gear making fishing an even simpler process.  It has been declared that each year, fishermen catch about 97,400 manta rays.  Unreported catches will mean the true numbers to make the catch rate even higher.  With the manta ray classified as vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, this means they are facing a high rate of extinction. Manta rays are also subjected to unsustainable fishing pressures sparked largely by demand for use in Chinese medicine.  Their gill rakers are promoted as a cure for a wide array of sickness’s ranging from smallpox to cancer.  Manta rays also provide a cheap substitute for shark cartilage used in nutritional supplements. 

Bycatch is another major threat to the manta ray, meaning that they are “incidentally” caught in industrial fishing nets throughout the waters in which they roam.  Longlines and gill nets used primarily to capture tuna are most frequently responsible for manta rays becoming entangled, usually resulting in death.  Unfortunately, mantas cannot swim backwards, and so attempts to disentangle themselves often results in becoming more tangled. Mantas, which become entangled in nets quickly, die because they are unable to actively pump oxygen rich water over their gills in order to respire. Fishing line can also cause severe entanglement resulting in deep, and often life threatening lacerations if mantas become entangled in it.

Both species of manta ray frequently visit coral reefs to feed and be cleaned, but because coral reef degradation is occurring rapidly, another threat to the manta ray is habitat destruction.  If reefs aren’t striving, the organisms on which manta rays feed and rely on to thrive, will not be abundant putting the manta ray at risk.  Marine debris is another major threat caused by pollution in the water.  Although manta rays are protected in some countries, they migrate through unprotected waters of others making them very vulnerable to be hunted.  Female manta rays are not able to give birth until 15 years of age, giving birth to one pup every two to three years over a lifespan estimated to be about 40 years, only producing a handful of pups in her lifetime.  Because this rate is so low, only a small percent of manta rays can afford to be fished before there is a dramatic decline in their population.

Everyone likes a good treasure hunt

When I was little, I ached for a real treasure hunt.

I wanted to follow a map, find some buried treasure, and go on swash-buckling adventures. Now that I’m older, I realize that’s not quite how the world works. Geocaching offers the next best thing: a high-tech treasure hunt.

Essentially, geocaching is a worldwide game where players locate hidden containers – called geocaches or caches for short – using GPS-enabled devices. Players hide the geocaches, and then record its coordinates online. Other players can then find the geocache using the coordinates and any other clues the geocache-hider has to offer.

The containers range in size anywhere from army ammunition cans to a plastic matchboxes. Each geocache usually contains a logbook of who’s found it. They also contain small treasures that geocachers can trade. Examples of common treasures include foreign currency, marbles, seashells, stones, and other interesting trinkets.

Most people use a handheld GPS device or GPS-enabled cellphones to find geocaches. Geocaching.com sells a $10 geocaching app for iPhones, Android, and Windows 7 phones. However, other people just print off a map from the geocaching website.

Basically, no matter what equipment you have to work with, you can figure out a way to go geocaching. There are even several caches on or near City and East campus in Lincoln.

Since I love making lists so much, here’s my top five reasons why you should go geocaching A.S.A.P.

1)   Learn about a new place

Geocaching is a great activity while you’re on vacation in an unfamiliar area. Caches might be hidden in areas you wouldn’t have normally explored. Even the caches in Omaha were exciting, since I hadn’t explored Standing Bear Lake so thoroughly before.

2)   Get exercise without going to the gym

Sometimes the caches require quite the hike to reach your desired treasure. The fresh air and hike rejuvenates both the mind and body. There’s nothing quite like going on a cache hunt in Hawaii.

3)   Be part of a world-wide community

Millions of people around the globe share the love of geocaching. If you’re a geocacher, you’ll always have a huge community of friends to go to for advice and more caches. 

4)   Improve your observation skills

Sometimes we can’t see the small details that really make life interesting. Geocaching forces you to look at every object with scrutiny. Let me tell you, it’s hard to find a matchbox – sized cache if you don’t take the time to look closely! 

5)   Strengthen your family or friendship

Nothing brings people together like getting lost in the middle of the woods looking for a box of trinkets. Yes, this is a cheesy reason. However, I do think it’s one of the most important. Geocaching builds a sense of teamwork; everyone can help find the cache. Most families or groups come up with a team name to write down in the geocache logbooks. My family’s name is Mysterious Loggers. I’ll leave the name up to interpretation.

Check out this video for more info about geocaching: http://www.geocaching.com/videos/default.aspx#cat=cat:newbies&vid=-4VFeYZTTYs

The main website, Geocaching.com, also lists geocache locations.

Are you thirsty for water?

                Odds are you’re viewing this blog on a computer.  Have you ever stopped to consider what was required to make your computer?  It takes a lot of water to produce a computer, so much that you could do 70 loads of laundry with the amount used on your computer.  Ten gallons alone is required to make the small processor that does all the work on your computer.  Your processor works as the “brain” of your computer that uses instructions from a program to perform a certain task.   The processor, therefore, requires lots of water to make relative to the size.   As everyone wants the latest gadget, our water usage has increased over time.

                We use water daily, from brushing our teeth and cooking to using computers and driving cars.  Our demand for products such as food, clothing, and electronics uses vast amounts of water to produce these for consumption.  With the recent drought in Nebraska and global water shortages, Americans need to understand how to reduce their water usage both personally and economically such as factory water usage.

                Five unexpected high water use products:

• The average car uses enough water in production of the steel and plastic used to make the car to fill 800 bathtubs or about 40,000 gallons.
• A plastic water bottle uses 1.85 gallons of water to make, more water than the bottle actually contains.
• A pound of beef needs 4,000-18,000 gallons of water. Most of the water goes to growing food and water for the cow.
• A 100% cotton shirt and jeans uses a combined total of 2,500 gallons of water to grow the cotton and dye the fabric.
• Each latte consumed uses 53 gallons of water to grow the coffee beans, make the plastic lid, and produce the cup and sleeve.

Americans need to be more aware of their water usage if we are to reduce national and global water usage.  In 2012, the global population passes seven billion people and continues to grow. Competition for fresh water will also increase, especially in drier areas of the world.  America, one of the most wasteful countries in the world, must take the initiative to reduce water usage for a greener future.

Four innovative possibilities to lower water usage:

• Purchase a water efficient washer rated by Energy Star
•  Use reusable water bottles to prevent water from being wasted on plastic bottles
•  Behavioral changes to our daily routines, such as shorter showers and turning off the water when brushing.  Simple behavior changes by people can have a huge impact on reducing water usage.
•  Mulching a garden retains moisture better and keeps soil cooler during the summer.

Resources

Treehugger http://www.treehugger.com/clean-technology/how-many-gallons-of-water-does-it-take-to-make.html

U.S Geological Survey Water School http://ga.water.usgs.gov/edu/

Photo Credits

engineerguy.com