Breathingearth - CO2, birth & death rates by country, simulated real-time Wind Power Interactive, Wind Power Simulation, Wind Power Simulator Skip to this page's content Advertisement National Geographic Society P.O. Washington , DC 20090-8199 USA Inspiring people to care about the planet since 1888 Learn More » Sign In Search National Geographic Connect With Us Main Navigation Home Daily News The Magazine Maps Science Education Games Events Blogs Movies Explorers Apps Trips Video Video Home Nat Geo TV Nat Geo Wild Animals Kids News More Photography Photography Home Photo of the Day Galleries Wallpapers Photo Tips Photographers Buy Prints Newsletters Animals Home Facts Photos Animal Conservation Environment Environment Home Energy Freshwater Global Warming Habitats Natural Disasters The Ocean The Green Guide Travel Travel Home Top 10 Destinations A-Z Trip Ideas Travel Blogs Traveler Magazine Our Trips Adventure Adventure Home Gear Ultimate Adventurers Parks Blog Nat Geo Trips AllTrails Television National Geographic Channel TV Schedule Shows Kids Home Videos Animals & Pets Countries Fun Stuff Community Animal Jam Little Kids Shop Store Home Gift Finder Channel Shop Kids Shop Shop by Catalog Shop by Theme More »
PlanetInAction.com - The planet is your playground Being vegetarian does more harm to the environment than eating meat By Fiona Macrae for the Daily Mail Updated: 00:26 GMT, 13 February 2010 Switching from British-bred beef and lamb to imported meat substitutes such as tofu increases the need for cultivated land It is a claim that could put a dent in the green credentials of vegetarians: Meat-free diets can be bad for the planet. Environmental activists and vegetarians have long taken pleasure in telling those who enjoy a steak that livestock farming is a major source of harmful greenhouse gases. But research has shown that giving up meat may not be as green as it seems. The Cranfield University study found that switching from British-bred beef and lamb to meat substitutes imported from abroad such as tofu and Quorn would increase the amount of land cultivated, raising the risk of forests being destroyed. Production methods for meat substitutes can be energy intensive and the final products tend to be highly processed, the report, which was commissioned by the environmental group WWF, found.
Catching the Wrong Species This article in NSTA’s December 2014 issue of “The Science Teacher” describes a classroom activity that uses engineering design to help students model modern fishing gear to minimize bycatch in the tuna fishery. (Bycatch is non-targeted marine species typically caught in fishing gear). The lesson uses the 5E instructional model (Engage, Explore, Explain, Elaborate, Evaluate) and outlines a number of techniques to deepen student understanding of the concepts the model represents. The classroom model employs common household items (e.g., different types of beans, marbles, tennis balls, and buckets) to create a model of the ocean. Working in teams, students modify their “fishing gear” prototype at least three times to target more of the species they want to catch and to minimize catching non-target species.
Garbology Featured Activity: Waste-Less Lunch Lead your students in learning about natural resources used in common packaging materials. Challenge your students to conserve natural resources through their lunch choices. Check out this and other Garbology lessons for the classroom » Featured Activity: Conduct a Waste Assessment Do you know how much waste your school puts in landfills each week? Learn how and check out other Garbology activities » Featured Activity: Composting With the FBI The FBI turn waste into healthy soil. Bring Garbology home » Water In Episode 7 of Ever Wondered? Series 2, Dr John Watt finds out more about water in New Zealand and how computer modelling is used to understand water distribution. He then learns about some new developments in irrigation systems. Understanding water in New Zealand Water is the very life force that powers the planet. Next up, John heads to a Canterbury dairy farm to meet local farmer Craige Mackenzie to find out about the importance of irrigation. To demonstrate the importance of understanding water on a farm, John makes a simple model. Watch Episode 7, Part 1 Computer modelling aids decision-making Computer modelling plays a major role in better understanding just how we are placed when it comes to droughts and floods. So how will climate change affect New Zealand’s water supply? Watch Episode 7, Part 2 Irrigation system innovation Two innovative engineers on top of the water issue are Stu Bradbury and George Ricketts. Watch Episode 7, Part 3 Useful links Activity idea Context links
Predicting Insect Development Using Degree Days | Entomology ENTFACT-123: Predicting Insect Development Using Degree Days | Download PDF by Lee Townsend, Ric Bessin, and Doug Johnson, Extension EntomologistsUniversity of Kentucky College of Agriculture Since insects are cold-blooded animals, temperature plays a major role in their growth and development. There is a threshold temperature for each insect; for example, 48 degrees F for the alfalfa weevil. No development occurs when temperatures are below that level. Insects have an optimum temperature range in which they will grow rapidly. The threshold and maximum temperatures for development of an insect are used to calculate the number of degree days for a specific day. Accumulation of degree day totals usually begins in one of two ways. With integrated pest management (IPM), degree day accumulations are used to predict important events in the life of an insect. The easiest way to calculate degree days for a specific date is to add the daily high and low temperature and divide by two. References
Calculating Degree Days This page explains how Degree Days.net calculates degree days. If you just want heating or cooling degree-day data, there's probably no need to understand the calculation processes in detail - just use our Degree Days.net tool to calculate the degree days for you. But you might find our answers to these calculation-related questions useful if you're curious, or deciding whether to get your degree days from here or another source, or if you're comparing data from our site with data from elsewhere. How do you calculate the degree days? We start with temperature data from Weather Underground. For weather stations that are shown with a bar and stars (see right) - all the "airport" stations and the higher-quality personal weather stations - we use detailed temperature readings taken throughout each day, turning them into degree days using the Integration Method that is explained in this Google Knol about degree days. Why two different calculation methods? It depends on the weather station.
Do cows pollute as much as cars? Agriculture is responsible for an estimated 14 percent of the world's greenhouse gases. A significant portion of these emissions come from methane, which, in terms of its contribution to global warming, is 23 times more powerful than carbon dioxide. The U.S. Food and Agriculture Organization says that agricultural methane output could increase by 60 percent by 2030 [Source: Times Online]. The world's 1.5 billion cows and billions of other grazing animals emit dozens of polluting gases, including lots of methane. Cows emit a massive amount of methane through belching, with a lesser amount through flatulence. To understand why cows produce methane, it's important to know a bit more about how they work. With millions of ruminants in Britain, including 10 million cows, a strong push is underway to curb methane emissions there. Many other efforts are underway to reduce ruminant methane production, such as attempting to breed cows that live longer and have better digestive systems.