Four Men Trapped After Ecuador Mine Collapses

Four Men Trapped After Ecuador Mine Collapses

By: Associated Press

Published October 15, 2010

http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Latest-News-Wires/2010/1015/Four-men-trapped-after-Ecuador-mine-collapses

Summary: A tunnel collapsed in a gold mine in Portovelo, Ecuador. The collapsed has trapped 4 miners 490 feet underground. Rescue efforts are beginning to save these miners. A minor who survived the collapse told authorities that four of his fellow miners were still trapped down in the mine. The collapse of the mine happened at approximately 3:30 in the morning. It then blocked a tunnel and trapped workers at the 5th level of the mine. The condition of these men is unknown. It is said that 50 workers are digging out the main tunnel and other workers were preparing to dig a hole from the side to reach the gallery where the miners are believed to be trapped. This collapse comes only two days after the Chile miners were rescued from nearly half-mile down in a collapsed mine in Chile. They were trapped for 69 days. There is also a rescue mission going on for miners trapped in Colombia.

Opinion: This is really a sad story for these people. To watch the miners in Chile get rescued and then to have another collapsing just days after these people were rescued is really heartbreaking and ironic. But seriously, this is now the third incident of collapsing mines over the past two months in South America. Either the Earth's structure in South America is horrendous or the mining companies in South America don't have too many precautions. People are dying all over this continent because of these mining incidents. The mining companies really need to buckle down and get better safety for these people. My hopes and prayers go out to the families of these victims.

Questions:

1. Do you think the governments are doing a good job of helping these miners? Why or why not?

2. Do you think there will be more mine collapses in South America in the near future? Why or why not?

3. Do the mining companies in South America need to do a better job of protecting their miners? Why or why not?

The BP-Spill Baby-Turtle Brigade

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/103/magazine/03turtles-t.html?pagewanted=1&partner=rss&emc=rss
By: Jon Mooallem

Summary:The article I read was about how the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico effected a whole generation of sea turtles. Every year, hoards of female sea turtles come to the beaches of Florida and Alabama to lay their eggs in the sand. This year all the baby sea turtles would not even make it a month in the oil so people are now transporting thousands of turtle eggs from the oily beaches of the gulf, to the oil free beaches of eastern Florida. The problem with doing this is now all those turtles that hatch on the other side of Florida will not come back to where they were originally born. People are now scared that in a few years there will be no more sea turtles that lay their eggs in Alabama and Florida.

Opinion: I believe that this will not be a problem in future years. Sea turtles can live to be up to 100 years old. The turtles that Lay their eggs on the beaches on the west side of Florida will be there next year and the year after that. Although sea turtles are very vulnerable to things like oils spills they will be hardly effected by this one. I hope that in later years the sea turtles in Alabama will be at full strength again.


Questions:

1. How do you think moving the turtles will effect the ecosystems on both sides?
2. Do you think the oil will stop turtles from coming back to their hatching beaches?
3. How do you think the moved turtles will do in their new environment?
   

Staying up all night to save sea turtles

http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/amercias/08/26/cnnheros.aranda.turtles/index.html?eref=rss_topstories&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rss%2Fcnn_topstories+2%28RSS%3A+Top+Stories%29&utm_content=Google+Reader

Summary: Oscar Aranda, a bioloy major, wanted to do something related with sea animals. He found his dream when he'd discovered a bucket full with chopped up turtle body parts, with the heart still beating strong. With that image running vividly through his mind, Aranda got together a group of volunteers to supervise the turtles when they lay eggs and nurture the eggs until the day they hatched. Their plan was that once the turtles had lain the eggs, they would dig up the eggs and move them to a nearby location where they could be watched, safe from poachers. A nearby hotel offered a private room for incubation, in exchange for an offer of turtle conservation lessons and participation in a sunset turtle release ceremony availiable to the hotel guests. Aranda and his group have successfully helped over half a million turtle eggs hatch and return to the wild. However, even with these precautions, turtle poaching is still practiced all over the world. Aranda and his group strive to make a better tomorrow for turtles and every species which depend on their existence.

Response: In midst of all the animal endangerment and habitats being destroyed, it's good to hear of the few that work to make a brighter future for the animals. When I heard of people staying up all night to watch over a couple turtles laying their eggs, I knew that wasn't an easy job from experience. I've pulled all nighters in order to study, have fun or simply because I couldn't sleep. It might be bad for the couple hours you're awake when you're supposed to be asleep but it really hits you the next day. It'd be fine for teenagers that don't have anything important to do but these guys are full grown adults with a family to raise and job to attend to. Furthermore, tending to the turtles is strictly volutary so they can't use that as an excuse to avoid work. What saddens me the most is that all their hard work is gone to waste with poachers still looking to earn money by killing turtles. I know that everyone has to earn a living one way or another but can't these guys find something more productive to do?

Question 1: If you were in Aranda's shoes, would you rather keep guard over the turtles or get on with life and tend more time to your family and for what reason?

Question 2: Do you believe that Aranda's effort to save the turtles is in vain or a successful step in making a better environment for the turtles? Why so?

Question 3: If you could, what other precaution would you take in order to stop poachers from hunting sea turtles and their eggs?

Blog 2; Melissa McNel :)

Toiling to Save a Threatened Frog
By: Erica Rex
Published: October 4, 2010
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/05/science/05frog.html?pagewanted=2&_r=1&partner=rss&emc=rss


Summary:
This article explains that over the last decade chytridiomycosis, or chytrid, (a deadly fungal disease) has killed at least 200 of the world's 6,700 amphibian species to extinction. Vance Vredenburg is conducting an experiment that he hopes will preserve the Sierra Nevada yellow-legged frog, Rana sierrae. Even before chytrid arrived, the yellow-legged frog population was decreasing because of "California Department of Fish and Game’s practice of seeding high-elevation lakes with hatchery-raised fingerling trout for the sport fishing industry." Chytrid just happened to make this reduction go by faster. In July Vredenburg and his students captured and tagged 100 frogs at the Dusy Basin. The experimental group contained 80 frogs, 20 of them were designated controls. They placed the frogs in containers for an hourlong bath in cultured J. liv. They then released the frogs into the ponds and streams where they were previously captured. What he found out later was that the frogs with the J. liv on them were surviving or had the lowest levels of infection. Hopefully the frogs survive the winter so that the future of amphibians will be safe.

Reflection:
Reading this article really opened my eyes to the amphibian species. I cannot believe this this one disease could completely wipe out an entire species. I predict that when Vredenburg checks on the frogs again after winter that the J. liv will work correctly and the species will be saved. Without this experiment working who knows what will happen in even a year from now. All we can do now is wait to see how the experiment turns out.

Questions:
1. How do you think the experiment will turn out?
2. Can you think of another way to save this frog?
3. What food chains do you think the extinction of the Sierra Nevada yellow-legged frog will effect?

The Mystery of the Vanishing California Sea Otters

http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,2020608,00.html?xid=rss-topstories&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+time%2Ftopstories+%28TIME%3A+Top+Stories%29&utm_content=Google+Reader

The Mystery of the Vanishing California Sea Otters
By Matt Kettmann - Time Magazine: September 25, 2010

Summary:

The California sea otter is slowly disappearing, for reasons unknown. In the early 19th century, the species was severely endangered because of fur trade. In spite of this, the sea otter made a comeback in 1939. Now the species is endangered once again, but scientists cannot determine one specific reason why. There are many different reasons including food shortages, low genetic diversity, increased shark attacks and human causes such as fishermen accidentally catching them and dirty runoff. Scientists are worried that since California sea otters are the most researched marine mammals in the world and they can't figure out how to help them, most endangered animals are doomed.

Opinion:
This issue is very interesting to me because it seems to describe many if not all endangered species. Scientists can't seem to find the direct source of the problem and even if they can, they cannot determine how to help the species. California sea otters seem to have a lot to battle against. There are many factors in their endangerment. Regulations on fishermen should be put into place so that sea otters are not captured and killed by accident any longer. Also, efforts should be made to spread out the otter population because at this point, it is very easy to eliminate all the otters with one disaster. This issue reminds me of the oil spill because they are very informed about the issue, but they cannot fix the problem. Both the otter endangerment and oil spill issues are currently being battled. I believe this is a very important issue and it needs to be taken care of swiftly, just like all other endangered animal issues need to be a priority.

Questions:
1. Why do you think it is so hard for scientists to take care of the issue if they are so informed on California sea otters?
2. Do you think the sea otters will survive if they continue down the same path?
3. What can be done to save the California sea otters?