[Callace]

Wow! thats interesting. The mother's trauma before conception can affct the offspring? Kind of scary.

[sunnykerr]

Ocean Trash Problem 'Far From Being Solved,' U.N. Says (...) Plastics and cigarette butts are the most common types of ocean litter, with plastic making up about 80 percent of the ocean trash collected in some areas of the world, a U.N. news release says. The ocean litter is a problem for coastal communities, which rely on clean beaches for tourism dollars and to boost quality of life for their residents, the report says. Ocean trash also affects marine life and degrades human health. Sea turtles, for example, think plastic grocery bags are jellyfish when the bags are floating in the ocean. An untold number of the turtles and other creatures, such as Hawaii's endangered monk seal, swallow the bags and suffocate, drown or starve, said Holly Bamford, director of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's marine debris program. Birds face similar issues when they eat pieces of plastic out of the water. In the North Sea, a survey found 94 percent of fulmars, a type of seabird, had plastics in their stomachs, the U.N. report says. The birds, on average, had about 34 pieces of plastic in their stomachs. (...) The report does suggest several solutions, among them: Countries and regions should adopt long-term plans to prevent litter from ending up in the oceans. Countries should monitor marine litter using international standards and methodologies. Ports should encourage fishing boats not to discard nets at sea. Efforts to reduce marine litter should get more funding. Volunteer efforts try to address the issue now, and the Ocean Conservancy says it organizes the largest of these. Last year, 400,000 volunteers from more than 100 countries picked up 6.8 million pounds of trash from beaches, preventing it from harming the ocean, said Tom McCann, a spokesman for the group. "It's entirely preventable," he said of the problem. "It's something we can solve ourselves." McCann said people can prevent trash from ending up in the ocean by making smarter choices about the products they buy. Some of the Ocean Conservancy's recommendations include: Buy products with smart packaging that doesn't create excess waste. Use alternatives to plastic such as cloth grocery bags and reusable bottles. Don't litter. Trash can make its way from the interior of a continent into the oceans via rivers and the wind. Volunteer with the International Coastal Cleanup, held on September 19 this year.

Ocean trash problem 'far from being solved,' U.N. says - CNN.com

The article isn't that long, but I know not everyone wants to read that much, so I posted the parts that appeared salient to me.

The title isn't that much of a shock to people. At least, I sure hope not.

But I particularly appreciated the details of what pollution does and what specific steps we can take to minimize our impact on that process.

[strawberrypie]

Originally Posted by sunnykerr (View Post) Ocean trash problem 'far from being solved,' U.N. says - CNN.com

Thanks for posting that . People usually underestimate the effects that trash has on marine wildlife, the number of animals that get trapped in it or eat it is indeed saddening, especially because this could all be prevented.

The article reminded me of something I got in my e-mail a while back, it's a poster of the most dangerous "species". I uploaded it here if you want to check it out (sorry I couldn't find an English version... I couldn't even find a version in my native language , but it's pretty self-explanatory I hope )

[sunnykerr]

I just think it's so easy to take that extra step to prevent things like that, inasmuch as any of us can anyway. Of course, we can't answer for warehouses and manufacturing plants, but we can do our part.

In a completely separate note, I am fascinated by the quote in your sig. My Spanish is super rusty, so the meaning is just outside my reach... Could you help me out?

[strawberrypie]

Originally Posted by sunnykerr (View Post) In a completely separate note, I am fascinated by the quote in your sig. My Spanish is super rusty, so the meaning is just outside my reach... Could you help me out?

It's sort of a play on words. Translated literally, it would be "The only "should" you should know, is that you should nothing". A better translation would be "The only "should" you should know, is that there's nothing you should do or be", nothing you're obligated to do or be. It's from a poem/stories book by a therapist, and he talks about all the things we think we should be like or people tell us we should be, for example "I should be prettier/smarter/skinnier/etc."

[Uh Blah]

Boy Hit by Meteorite - Yahoo! News

This stuff fascinates me.

[sunnykerr]

Originally Posted by strawberrypie (View Post) It's sort of a play on words. Translated literally, it would be "The only "should" you should know, is that you should nothing". A better translation would be "The only "should" you should know, is that there's nothing you should do or be", nothing you're obligated to do or be. It's from a poem/stories book by a therapist, and he talks about all the things we think we should be like or people tell us we should be, for example "I should be prettier/smarter/skinnier/etc."

Bleh. I should have known. This is what I get for becoming all-consumed with English when I come on here. I couldn't get around "deberes" when it's SO close to the French word for it.

Lou I can't seem to load up the link (probably because Yahoo Canada is getting in the way), can you sum up what happened?

[Callace]

I love that quote That is so good to know. That there is no necessary obligations as to what we should be. They are all just other's wishes, and it is up to us whether we want to fullfill them or not, and to which degree.

[vc318]

Originally Posted by Uh Blah (View Post) Boy Hit by Meteorite - Yahoo! News This stuff fascinates me.

I heard about this! Man, he's so lucky to have survived this.

Sunny, thanks for that article on pollution. A little info. really goes a long way.

[Uh Blah]

Originally Posted by sunnykerr (View Post) Lou I can't seem to load up the link (probably because Yahoo Canada is getting in the way), can you sum up what happened?

A 14-year old German boy was hit in the hand by a pea-sized meteorite that scared the bejeezus out of him and left a scar.


"When it hit me it knocked me flying and then was still going fast enough to bury itself into the road," Gerrit Blank said in a newspaper account. Astronomers have analyzed the object and conclude it was indeed a natural object from space, The Telegraph reports.

[sunnykerr]

Thanks, Lou.

Holy poo!!! Sheesh, I would have been terrified, too!

He's lucky that thing hit his hand and not a more crucial part of his body!

[strawberrypie]

Wildlife crisis worse than economic crisis – IUCN 02 July 2009 | News - Press Release Life on Earth is under serious threat, despite the commitment by world leaders to reverse the trend, according to a detailed analysis of the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™. The IUCN analysis, which is published every four years, comes just before the deadline governments set themselves to evaluate how successful they were in achieving the 2010 target to reduce biodiversity loss. The IUCN report, Wildlife in a Changing World, shows the 2010 target will not be met. “When governments take action to reduce biodiversity loss there are some conservation successes, but we are still a long way from reversing the trend,” says Jean-Christophe Vié, Deputy Head of IUCN’s Species Programme and senior editor of the publication. “It’s time to recognize that nature is the largest company on Earth working for the benefit of 100 percent of humankind – and it’s doing it for free. Governments should put as much effort, if not more, into saving nature as they do into saving economic and financial sectors.” The report analyses 44,838 species on the IUCN Red List and presents results by groups of species, geographical regions, and different habitats, such as marine, freshwater and terrestrial. It shows 869 species are Extinct or Extinct the Wild and this figure rises to 1,159 if the 290 Critically Endangered species tagged as Possibly Extinct are included. Overall, a minimum of 16,928 species are threatened with extinction. Considering that only 2.7 percent of the 1.8 million described species have been analyzed, this number is a gross underestimate, but it does provide a useful snapshot of what is happening to all forms of life on Earth. An increased number of freshwater species have now been assessed, giving a better picture of the dire situation they face. In Europe, for example, 38 percent of all fishes are threatened and 28 percent in Eastern Africa. The high degree of connectivity in freshwater systems, allowing pollution or invasive species to spread rapidly, and the development of water resources with scant regard for the species that live in them, are behind the high level of threat. In the oceans, the picture is similarly bleak. The report shows that a broad range of marine species are experiencing potentially irreversible loss due to over-fishing, climate change, invasive species, coastal development and pollution. At least 17 percent of the 1,045 shark and ray species, 12.4 percent of groupers and six of the seven marine turtle species are threatened with extinction. Most noticeably, 27 percent of the 845 species of reef building corals are threatened, 20 percent are Near Threatened and there is not enough data for 17 percent to be assessed. Marine birds are much more threatened that terrestrial ones with 27.5 percent in danger of extinction, compared with 11.8 percent of terrestrial birds. “Think of fisheries without fishes, logging without trees, tourism without coral reefs or other wildlife, crops without pollinators,” says Vié. “Imagine the damage to our economies and societies if they were lost. All the plants and animals that make up Earth’s amazing wildlife have a specific role and contribute to essentials like food, medicine, oxygen, pure water, crop pollination, carbon storage and soil fertilization. Economies are utterly dependent on species diversity. We need them all, in large numbers. We quite literally cannot afford to lose them.” The report shows nearly one third of amphibians, more than one in eight birds and nearly a quarter of mammals are threatened with extinction. For some plant groups, such as conifers and cycads, the situation is even more serious, with 28 percent and 52 percent threatened respectively. For all these groups, habitat destruction, through agriculture, logging and development, is the main threat and occurs worldwide. In the case of amphibians, the fungal disease chytridiomycosis is seriously affecting an increasing number of species, complicating conservation efforts. For birds, the highest number of threatened species is found in Brazil and Indonesia, but the highest proportion of threatened or extinct birds is found on oceanic islands. Invasive species and hunting are the main threats. For mammals, unsustainable hunting is the greatest threat after habitat loss. This is having a major impact in Asia, where deforestation is also occurring at a very rapid rate. "The report makes for depressing reading,” says Craig Hilton Taylor, Manager of the IUCN Red List Unit and co-editor. “It tells us that the extinction crisis is as bad, or even worse, than we believed. But it also shows the trends these species are following and is therefore an essential part of decision-making processes. In the run-up to 2010, the global community should use this report wisely to address the situation.” Climate change is not currently the main threat to wildlife, but this may soon change, according to the report. After examining the biological characteristics of 17,000 species of birds, amphibians and reef building corals, the report found that a significant proportion of species that are currently not threatened with extinction are susceptible to climate change. This includes 30 percent of non-threatened birds, 51 percent of non-threatened corals and 41 percent of non-threatened amphibians, which all have traits that make them susceptible to climate change. Red List Indices make it possible to track trends of extinction risk in groups of species. New indices have been calculated and provide some interesting results. Birds, mammals, amphibians and corals all show a continuing deterioration, with a particularly rapid decline for corals. Red List Indices have also been calculated for amphibian, mammal and bird species used for food and medicine. The results show that bird and mammal species used for food and medicine are much more threatened. The diminishing availability of these resources has an impact on the health and well-being of the people who depend on them directly. “The IUCN Red List provides a window on many of the major global issues of our day, including climate change, loss of freshwater ecosystems and over-fishing,” says Simon Stuart, Chair of the IUCN Species Survival Commission and co-editor. “Unless we address the fundamental causes of unsustainability on our planet, the lofty of goals of governments to reduce extinction rates will count for nothing.” To read the full report, Wildlife in a Changing World – an analysis of the 2008 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™, please click here: http://data.iucn.org/dbtw-wpd/edocs/RL-2009-001.pdf

Source


I think it's a shame that people and world leaders have yet to understand that what sustains life on this planet is, precisely, life and more specifically, the diversity of life. There's so much that we're not aware of, all the ecosystem and biodiversity services, like water and air purification, nutrient cycles, garbage decomposition, pests control, water basins natural regulation and so much more. We tend to forget that we too are part of ecosystems and depend on them a lot more than we think (food, clothes, water, energy, just to name a few).

[sunnykerr]

I couldn't agree more.

Mind you, it's like we don't care that we're endangering our own existence, so it's not that surprising that we don't seem to care that we're slowly irradicating all other animal life on this planet.

[strawberrypie]

Originally Posted by sunnykerr (View Post) it's like we don't care that we're endangering our own existence

Funny you should say that, since we're the only species that has ever lived on this Earth that continuously jeopardizes its own survival.

so it's not that surprising that we don't seem to care that we're slowly irradicating all other animal life on this planet.

I think deep down it's about our values -money and power matter more, unfortunately- and the fact that most people aren't really aware of what's going on. A lot of people dismiss these subjects saying it doesn't matter, or that it's being exaggerated and who cares because it's not happening in our lifetime. Well, I've studied this for a number of years and unfortunately no, it's not being exaggerated -not by the scientific community at least- and yes, it is happening in our lifetime. The most ironic part about all of this is that the solutions exist, what's missing is the will to do something about it.

Our dissociation with nature is one of our biggest problems because of the serious consequences it brings. Until we change our values and our view of the world, the problems will continue.

[sunnykerr]

I think there is a huge disconnect. We're all used to not thinking about the long-term consequences of any of our actions. You see it all across the political scene, how people don't want taxes, how it's all about the economy.

It creates dichotomies that do not exist in the real world. Like, helping out the environment is not being against economic progress.

It's a huge societal problem. I think, anyway.