Evolution: The Greatest Show on Earth

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   Summary: This world is always changing. From the advancements in technology, to new culture and traditions. Yet none of those things could even exist if it wasn't for something way way before that. That's where the theory of Evolution comes in. Evolution is the theory that we all came from one single organism and that we continued to adapt to become who we are now. For example how they say wolves are the ancestors of dogs. The wolves got breed over and over again to make mixes of colors shapes and sizes. Then those mixes mixed. So on and so forth. This eventually changed the gene pool enough to make the wide variety of dogs we know and love today. In reproduction  when a  mom and a dad mate they give half of their genes to the child. This makes the child slightly different then both of their parents. This change is evolution. A change in the physical appearance is a change in the gene pool. This change can lead to advancements over time such as resistance to heat or smarter brains.

S&EP: Using Models: In class we did an experiment. This experiments were used to simulate how Mutations in the Evolution. For Mutations we have a certain pool of people that have a set of genes. In the simulation we used M&M's as the people. The different colors representing the different genes. Suddenly a mutation appeared. Mutations occur when there is an error in duplication when the genes are passed from parent to child. This mutations were represented by red hots. Now that Red hots were added to the gene pool there were more options to pick from. This changed our end result. Just like how in real life when a mutation occurs it can pass on further and further and more and more people can have it.

XCC: Patterns: If we look at the theory of evolution it is like a deck. The gene pool is just like the cards in a deck. You do always get 50 / 50 from each parent. Just like how red and black both take up half of the deck it is the same in evolution.  In each of the 50% each parent passes it will give you certain alleles. These alleles are you hand of cards you start off with.  Since it is mostly 50% 50% you can usually have an estimate what our gene deck will look like. Yet evolution is how our deck gets shuffled. This is when traits change. Either through Natural Selection, Mutations, ETC. This changes the balance of  the cards passed down to your children. If you didn't think Evolution matter, it's actually the future of this world!

WAC Is it more important to Reduce, Reuse, or Recycle

         

            Have you ever heard of the 3R's? If not then you are missing out on the three ways we preserve our very planet. These superheros for our planet are no other than Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle. Without them our planet will not be able to be here for our children and our children's children. This trio is immensely powerful when it comes to preserving this planet from greenhouse gases, landfill waste, and overall destruction of the Earth's well being. Now let's look a little bit deeper into what the 3R's can really do.

1. Reduce:

     Reducing is the process of eliminating ever consuming product. This may include "Taking shorter showers is one way to reduce consumption of water" as suggested in the SENCER Article Is it more important to Reduce, Reuse,or Recycle? by California Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery in Paragraph 2. Reducing eliminates our waste problem from its source.

2. Reuse:

Reusing the the process of buying a reusable item and using it again and again. This may include buying a cloth bag to carry your groceries instead of buying a paper bag every time or “Drinking water from reusable water bottles reduces use of plastic bottles.” as suggested in the SENCER Article Is it more important to Reduce, Reuse,or Recycle? by California Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery in Paragraph 2.

3. Recycle:

Recycling is the process of taking an item that can be re purposed and recycling so it can be melted or formed into something new that can be used again. As said in the Article What is Reduce, Reuse and Recycle by Bethany Wieman for SF Gate in Paragraph 4, “The recyclables are then sorted, cleaned and turned into marketable raw materials --- for example, paper is turned into pulp and plastics are melted down."

     Now that you know a little about each of the 3R's you may be having your mixed opinions on which is best. Let me clear that up for you. Reducing is the most important of the 3R's. Still not convinced and need some proof? You got it! 

   First let's do a process of elimination. Our first victim Recycling. It may seem like a great idea. Use the old and create the new yet most of what we recycle never even makes it to the recycling plant. " The US exports most of its plastics for recycling to China, but they still end up in landfills" states the video Math of Trash by KQED The LOWDOWN at 1:36. That means even if we do recycle when it gets sent over to be converted into something new most of it ends up in a landfill anyways. Next have you ever tried recycling a plastic bag, I know I have. Hear what the Article Reduce, Reuse, Remove the Cellophane: Recycling Demystified from NRP has to say about plastic bags. “ Don't recycle plastic bags, even if they're full of newspaper. They gum up the whole processing system." Now if we can't even recycle a plastic bag without jacking up the system who says what else is non recyclable that we never even knew about!

Next victim is Reuse. Reusing sounds fine and dandy, I mean don't fix what's not broke. Yet there is so much more than that to it. To start the SENCER Article Is it more important to Reduce, Reuse,or Recycle? by California Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery in Paragraph 4 it states “  "For example, some may think that continuing to drive an older car or buying a used car is a good illustration of reduce and reuse.  However, newer models of cars are more fuel efficient than their predecessors, thus buying new cars helps to reduce fuel usage.” So keeping that car isn't really helping the environment as much as you think. On top of that in that same article and in Paragraph 4 it also states “Continuous use of some plastic bottles can lead to health risks if they are made with cheap plastic or if harsh chemicals leach out of those containers with increased use.” So on top of having to carry around the exact same water bottle for years you are hurting yourself and possibly poisoning yourself!

Now there is only one standing. Reuse. Reducing again is the process of not using as much resource to begin with. In the video Math of Trash by KQED The LOWDOWN at 1:02 it says “ Americans create the most trash in the World” Even on top of China who has the most people we still manage to waste more. To be exactly in that same video at :16 it says “ Yearly, America makes 160 Million tons. That’s the weight of about 91.5 million cars” That is absolutely insane. Plus, “ 69% of Trash goes straight to Landfills” as said at :38. It is inevitable to see we are wasteful and are doing a lot of hurt to this planet. So why do we use all these tactics that still allow us to waste. Like recycling doesn't mean we stop creating more and more waste we just decide to throw it into a different colored bin. Then having older cars or other less efficient products is taking up resource that we are not very abundant in, and if you get poisoned by reusing a bottle then that takes resource to make sure you don't stay ill. Reducing insures that we get this problem from its root. We tactile the real issue that we are just getting thing we don't need to.

In conclusion Reducing is most important. It tackles the real problems and stops the issue from the source. Once we get the idea in our head that we don't to waste as Americans 160 million tons and destroy our planet then we can get somewhere. We want our planet to be here for our children and our children's children. Even though each of the 3R's does help our planet it is clear that they have there faults. With Reducing its simple and easy. No strings attached. Just being conscious of what we buy can make a world of difference. Thank you Reducing for saving our planet one decision at a time.

    

Geologic Time Project Blog

Summary: Geologic time.  The history of well everything. From the creation of the Earth to this very moment in time. Now lets do a run down of the time line. It starts with the Precambrian Era. This is the creation a time when single cell organisms were all over. Only creatures of the sea really existed. Next the Paleozoic Period. The time of change. During this Period the fish vertebrates evolved and the first organisms walked on land. Even the supercontinent Pangea was formed. Next we move to the Mesozoic Period. This was the time of the Dinosaurs. Now that organisms were striving reptile like animals called the Dinosaurs ruled the planet. Plants thrived and the super continent had its big break up. Then the mass extinction struck of course causing the death of all the dinosaurs as we know them. Then finally the Cenozoic Period. This is when the world started to look more like it does currently.  Humans appeared along with many mammals. Those Humans and Animals evolved and the rest lead up to where we are right now.

Backwards Looking:  In what way have you gotten better at this kind of work?
During this process i've learned a lot about Persistence. Persistence is what group projects require. You need to be able to do the work you need to do no matter the struggles. You have people that depend on you and because of that you need to pull through. I've learned that even when it may be difficult. In that regard I am so much better at Teamwork because of it.

Inward Looking: What did I find frustrating?
I found it quite frustrating when I ended up having to do more work then what my fair share was. It ended up taking a lot of my time. It was just very frustrating to take on work that was not meant to be my own. Yet of course going back to Persistence that hard work and time I put in wasn't worth nothing. Now that the time has passed even if I was frustrated before the project is better for the sacrifice I made of my time and a little bit of my sanity.

Outward Looking: What do student particularly notice when they look at your work?
 When the students ended up looking at my groups work they noticed especially one thing. How much time and effort my team put into it. They could see it in our design choice. They could see it in the booklets of info that we had. They could see in in our clay models and pop ups. Every aspect had love and care put into it. It is very clear to everyone that we had effort beyond what was required of us.

Looking Forward:  What's the one thing that you have seen in your classmates' work or process that you would like to try in your next piece? 
Next time I do a piece of work I may want to add some things I saw in my classmates work. For example I especially admired my classmates artistic work on this project. I would want to make it more detailed and more colorful. I would want to add more interactive pieces to my work. Maybe popups on the side or true or false questions. I feel that adds life to a project. Next time I work on a project like this I want to add those things. 

Geologic Times

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Summary: Geology. To break it down Geo means Earth. Then logy means study. So together it is the study of the Earth.  The real questions is what is their to study? Well so many things. We actually have 4 major periods of the earth's existence to look into. We will mostly be looking into the Paleozoic Period. To start the Paleozoic Period was a period of rapid change. It consisted of 6 major times. The Cambrian, Ordovician, Silurian,Devonian, Carboniferous, and Permian. Each period having an advancement such as some form of evolution or new creatures appearing. They do always say there is a lot to learn from history. Maybe we can learn from the history from millions of years ago.

S&EP: Communicating Information: This week we used Communication through our data sheets. We first had to collect information from multiple sources. Draw conclusions. Then write down the final answer on the data sheets. We even ended up getting these sheets graded for how much informations we collected and successfully communicated through writing. We answered questions all about the time periods such as what the climate like, or what landmarks existed. We used our evidence to communicate this clearly. I couldn't see a clearer example.

XCC: Stability and Change: If you know anything about the Paleozoic period you know it was all about change. This period was filled with sudden and quick changes such as evolving and new creatures. From sea creatures and the first land animals . Especially with the example of evolution this is a slow change over time to turn one thing into another. well slow in our minds but in the grand view of our history it was very quick and almost in a blink. Even the continents had their own changes. Pangea was formed during this time. Pretty incredible if I do say so?


What was I this week?
I was an Initiator. I found myself going home and telling my family about the awesome things the Paleozoic Period had. I brought it up in conversations. I became this week more and more interested with this Period.

Rock Cycle

Summary: The Rock cycle.  Metamorphic, Igneous, Sedimentary. We know them all. Do you know how they get there? That's what our lovely rock cycle is for. From weathering, erosion, pressure and heat these rocks can change the way they look. Let walk through how lets say a sedimentary igneous rock could be turned into a sedimentary. First of all the igneous rock has to start out as magma. That magma will go to the surface through eruption. Once it cools it turns into a solid rock on the outside of the volcano. After a while it begins to weather by rain and wind. It turns into soil. The soil gets broken apart by erosion and those smaller pieces of the old igneous rocks turn into sediments. Finally they get compacted by some pressure and tada you got some sedimentary rock. This is just one example and any type of rock can turn into another type but that the basics of how the rock cycle works.

S&EP: Using Models: In science class we used the model of starburst. If you look at the images you can see. Those were our models of a metamorphic rock, a igneous rock, and a sedimentary rock. As you can see a metamorphic rock is quite flat and compressed. Then the igneous is glossy and was very hard. Then last but not least the sedimentary was pieces together and held together by little pressure. Each Starburst formation has the semi characteristics of the rock it represents. We used these models to understand how they transform and what you must do to make them different.

XCC: This week we used Cause and effect. In the rock cycle cause and effect is a big deal. For each small step in the process adds to what the rock will end up becoming. For example if you put a sedimentary rock under a lot of pressure that pressure will transform it into a metamorphic rock. The cause of the change from the pressure and the effect is a different rock. A consistent change in type means many steps of cause and effect. That's why this week we say and understood cause and effect in a different way.

Science and Engineering Practices Rethink

Question 1: The 8th grade class writes explanations about why a light source is needed for a person to see an object. In their explanations students provide evidence from an investigation as well as scientific ideas to explain why this occurs.

I answered that this practice was Planning and carrying out investigations. The right answer was actually Constructing Explanations. It is definitely Constructing Explanations because the 8th graders wrote explanations on why a light source is needed for someone to see an object.  They even used the proper ways of Constructing an explanation. They used the data and research they got from their investigation and came to that conclusion. 

Question 2:  After wondering about how the size of a magnet affects the number of paperclips it can pick up, a group of students develops a procedure that answers their question. They gather data and report back to the class.

When I originally answered this question  I said it was using Mathematics and computational thinking. It now after readying it has clear signs of being the correct answer Planning and Carrying out investigations.  First of all lets start they had their investigation with testing to see if the size of the magnet effected the amount of paper clips. They even planned it out by having a prompt question going into the investigation. They carried out the investigation by gathering up this data and reporting back therefore completing and answering the question the investigation prompted. Also on top of that they created a procedure to accurately be able to test this kind of investigation.

Question 3: Students in Mrs. Garcia's class use a class chart of what different animals eat and group the animals in different ways based on their food sources. Students then discuss which animals would be affected if changes occurred to different food sources.

When originally answering this question I thought it was Developing and using models. Now clearly I can see it was most definitely  Analyzing and Interpreting data.  First of all the students created a list of the different animals and groups and what they eat. This is not quite a model since a model is organizing a set of data and this is not as much of that. The students did however use the things they wrote to understand the effect of the changes in different food sources. They looked at the list Interpreted that these different facts, foods, and animals had to do with each other. They looked at relationships through analyzation. This makes it pretty obvious that Analyzing and Interpreting Data is the best answer.

Question 7: 
In science class, a group of students builds prototype for a magnetic levitation train and then use it to explain how forces interact to keep the train elevated.

Even though I answered that it was  Constructing explanations it now clearly is Developing and using models. The group of students created a magnetic levitation train as a somewhat simulation for why  forces interact with the trains continuous levitation. All the boxes seemed checked. First they had a discovery such as the relation between force and the train. Then they picked a model to best represent this such as a model magnetic levitation train. Then It explained their thinking. 

Question 8
A group of 7th graders creates and analyzes graphs of the data from an investigation about the relationship between a ball's mass and its speed down a ramp.

Originally I answered Analyzing and Interpreting Data but now after seeing the answer I can tell it was actually Using mathematics  and computational thinking.  First of all the students used math by comparing the balls mass to speed down a ramp. This requires very specific mathematical equations. They also used and created a graph to organize the math and conclusions they came to. That's why this is Using Mathematics and computational thinking.

Why I returned to AdVENTURE?

 Why I Returned to AdVENTURE

     I returned to AdVENTURE because this school has lots of opportunity for me.  It has creative outlets others school couldn't provide. Project based learning where I can use my problem solving skills and collaboration to get the job done. I have many close friends and relationships here that I value highly. I have built a community with the students in my grade after so many years we are like a family.

    This program has produced some of my best work. From videos to stories this school has been a place for me to discover my skills. I may have never know my passion for writing. I have also meet so many people that in the future I would team up with again to create professional work. I have built connection that aren't just friendships but valuable assets for me to use later in  life.

This program has a lot of great teachers. Each one providing a good view on the world. I have learned how to do algebra, making videos, creating video games, writing stories and more. At my old school I didn't learn this much and when my class got stuck on something we didn't move on. This school lets the kids who need more help get it and the kids who are striving having great challenges.

 These are just a few reasons I returned to AdVENTURE. I'm sure this year will make me love it even more. I've learned about collaboration, creativity, and so much more. AdVENTURE will always be a special place to me. My middle school home. That is why I returned to AdVENTURE.