Models Cont.

I found a video that in many ways is like a model on this website. I guess you'll have to watch it to know what I'm talking about. This gave me new ideas on what other purposes models serve. First off they help us comprehend size, get ideas of what things we cannot see look like, and we can use models to compare to observations in nature and it helps us to further develop our understanding. Another idea I came up with goes well with blue prints in architecture. We can find the location and size (if there is a scale) of things as well as find errors in our models. These are just a few more ideas.

Change / Models

I found a website titled Models Underestimate Global Warming Impacts on this site. When they say model they mean more of not a physical model but their modeled numbers and computer designs, but nonetheless I will be able to answer the question Why is it necessary to use models? The subtitle states, "research finds the effects of warming racking up faster than scientists had predicted." The article goes on to talk about past miscalculations/underestimates. "It used to be that climate scientists worried about how to make the public care about changes that might not happen for a century. Today they have a bigger problem: some of the changes aren’t waiting around that long....new research shows that models in the report underestimate some changes that are already under way. Sea ice is melting and sea level is rising faster than models had predicted, and one brake on warming, the uptake of CO2 by oceans, appears not to be working as well as scientists had thought."

Models are necessary to use for many reasons. In this case I find the main to be that through accurate models we are able to predict what will happen (in our physical world) today. In the example above the opposite happened. Since their models were underestimating reality today they did not do a very good job of predicting what was going to happen. They did not think that sea ice would be melting or sea level to be rising this much faster than their models predicted.

Why do we learn science? cont.

OK so first off everyone that said things like science and English aren't black and white I agree with you. I guess I forgot to say that I meant grammar and those things specifically in English. For example grammar and sentence diagramming have set rules and generally English is more literal, logical, and exact. and next I admit I was wrong when I said science isn't black and white. Here's what I say now. Science does have specific rules, laws, methods, process, procedures, etc. and like kyle said specific steps and rules. One of the reasons we learn these is to grasp the ideas behind all the lists, steps, rules, or what ever. With those facts, ideas and such we can use that knowledge to learn and do so much more. like what Tara said "it does give you much more freedom in how and what you learn." For example we all learned specifics in topics such as temperature, forces, time, and such which made us able to say why we may or may not think these things cause change and we use what we learned and now know to come up with theories, ideas, and posts on what we agree and can support to be true that we learned in science class. Another example of this is space and I got this idea from Tori's comment. From what we've learned and know about things like planets, stars, galaxies, elements, etc. we can research/investigate, learn and know more about our universe and what's in it which is a mind boggling, not black and white, perplexing concept. Lastly, I think that as we gain knowledge we gain wisdom and understanding and we learn how to learn for the future, "Wisdom is the principal thing; therfore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding."

Why do we Learn Science?

If we did not learn science we would have no understanding of our world. We could like Madalyn said, "...know why it works rather than just accept that it does work, we could apply the same principle to other substances." I remember hearing once that we learn science because it is a method, process, procedure, and system used to study the physical world. If you can see, feel, hear, taste, smell or measure something, science will investigate. Also science doesn't have feelings or opinions. If you can support something with facts than you are using science. The scientific method and problem solving is used a lot in our daily lives. We may not solve problems step by step the way the scientific method says to, but we use ideas behind it like the concept of problem solving which we all should have learned in science class. Science isn't just black and white like English and math. Those subjects have specific steps and rules, but you can usually learn a lot more in science since it is more abstract and you learn more of the how and why instead of just accepting things the way they are. You end up learning more in the long run this way.

Global Warming: fact or fictioin?

In my post for global warming i am mostly going to answer: does global warming exist? what causes it? and how does it affects us/what can we do about it?

Does global warming exist? Well, i honestly don't really have a personal opinion on this subject. I think it's just silly to argue about a science related matter since science is just the way it is. there are no feelings or beliefs so i am just going to support what i found to be most convincing and logical. After reading this website i thought man made global warming is not a scientific fact how ever global warming does occur. here's why i agree, "Most scientists agree that the Earth’s atmosphere warmed by about 1°F (0.6°C) between 1850 and 1940, then cooled enough to make many scientists worry about another ice age, and finally warmed slightly since 1980 in Siberia and a few other high latitude areas. However, the Earth was much warmer 1000 years ago, during the Medieval Warm Period. In fact, when Leif Ericson colonized Greenland in 980 AD, it really was green. But by 1300, the world had entered what historian James Burke calls the “frozen centuries,” which lasted until the middle of the 19th century. In other words, catastrophic man-made global warming is only a theory. It is not supported by evidence, and is backed up only by a few computer models and vast amounts of heated rhetoric." after reading this i did not have much to argue. it sounds to me like there seams to be a pattern going on here even before what people think man made global warming is existed. So i guess i think that natural warming and cooling takes place over time but it is not caused by humans. i do how ever though think that some of the things we are doing might increase the amount or rate of global warming considering all of the carbon dioxide from power plants, cars, airplanes, and buildings. i think global warming may have occurred at this time period anyways but possibly not quite as much as in the past. This paragraph for the most part also explains what i think causes global warming.

So how exactly does global warming effect us? So first off global warming apparently leads to 150,000 deaths every year. to learn more read this website. that is definitely something on the down side and pretty sad considering that apparently most of these people are the ones that contribute the least to all of the CO2 production. Other than that and it's obviously not good for the environment but trees aren't going to solve global warming. I'm not going to spend any more time on the effects since i didn't find very many on the web but here is some thing i thought of and it may not sound very logical so feel free to contradict but here it goes. So if it turns out that glaciers are melting due to global warming and polar bear(s species) are dieing out we may just think well that's too bad but i don't really care to be honest. what does it even have to do with anything important going on in our world today. if more polar bears are dieing than more seals will live and all the other animals that eat fish that are eaten by polar bears. if there are more seals then there are less fish because more seals means more things to eat the fish. if there are less fish than more companies/people lose jobs and not only that but there is less fish to eat. if there is less fish than (Asian) diets will change and they will get fatter. also less fish means they cost more so we have to pay more for a dumb fish thanks to global warming. if you think none of this makes sense and i am way off feel free to comment.

So what can we do to reduce global warming? i will name ten things i got from this website so if you want to learn more you can read about each individual topic. you can reduce, reuse and recycle, use less heat and air conditioning, change a light bulb, buy energy-efficient products, use less hot water, use the "off" switch, plant a tree, get a report card from your utility company, and encourage others to conserve. To answer mr. voights question on the student discussion board are you willing to do what it takes to solve this problem? I'm not exactly sure what it will take to solve this problem but i am willing to do some of those 10 things on that list.

Final Thoughts on Electromagnetic Force and Change

After looking at other peoples blogs i found these two very helpful Rob's and Katie's. I liked rob's comments and the two examples he gave: magnets and compasses. i also like how he even had a picture for very large magnets used in junkyards for lifting. I liked in Katie's post she also gave very good examples including the way electromagnetic door holders and traffic lights work.
I also thought of some better examples. I found one on this web site: "The forces which prevent you from falling through the floor or your chair, the forces that are exerted when you push an object, (friction, etc.) are all examples of the electromagnetic force in action." Another example (this one i actually thought of on my own) is when you rub two balloons on clothes and then right after try to stick them to each other. Since opposites attract the balloons will stick to clothes but then the two balloons end up having the same charge and repel each other.
Lastly, i wasn't sure whether or not we were supposed to comment on the different kinds of bonding b/c only a few people did, but they are ionic, covalent, and metallic. Through these ways of boning changes in atoms occur. For example through covalent bonding electrons are shared which changes the original structure of the atom. Also because of the way electrons and protons are arranged/bonded their forms can be changed. For example since chalk is an example of ionic bonding it shatters when thrown hard at the chalk board like we learned in class on Monday. This is because the electrons and protons can easily be shifted when hit (in very simple terms).

Electromagnetic Force

in simple terms the electromagnetic force is the force that causes opposite (charges) to attract and at the same time like (charges) to repel. It is one of the main reasons that protons and electrons are attracted to one another and protons and protons repel (same with electrons). An example of this in my opinion is personalities. People that have different personalities have a lot they can offer that the other person doesn't already have (as in values and characteristics). they also compliment and help each other more. Also many times an opposite kind of a person is the kind of person you want to be you just don't want to change so you look up to them. For the other way around this can be true too. Some people that have very similar personalities get bored with each other quickly and if someone was very similar it might bug them to death. A few other examples i thought of aren't really a 'life' examples but anyways many people enjoy going in hot tubs outside in the winter when it is freezing and people like to eat ice cream in the summer when it is really hot outside (same goes for the other way around). The electromagnetic force makes a huge difference in the world today since without it atoms couldn't bond or create new substances that make up everything in the world around us. Without it the world would be quite a different place where we probably would not exist. Also if atoms with the same charges combined they may have created compounds that weren't meant to.

Final Thoughts on change...

OK so this is my last post re guarding what causes change. I've realized that i cant just pick one thing its just too hard so here are some of my strongest opinions. I'm going to break it up into different topics so its easier not to read the whole thing. so here it goes. what causes change in...
advancement- I think that because of new ideas we are able to come up with change in things such as technology or for that matter anything that advances. (i got these ideas from Adam and me) opinion- belief, others actions, and new information/ideas usually are enough to change someones mind. (these ideas came from Adam and Adam) nature- I'm thinking both the domino effect and change in and of itself. one change occurs because of the change before it and it just keeps going back until the very first change (but don't ask me what that is b/c i don't have a simple answer). another reason might be just they way they react/adapt to their environment. (domino effect Joe and Amy reaction to environment Luke) many daily things- want/necessity/dissatisfaction cause change because people change what is going on in their life because they want something, need something, or aren't satisfied w/ what they already have. (mostly Madelyn) growth- growth comes through change and causes change. i know there are still many, many, many topics i did not cover and too many thoughts for one question but it's difficult to cover everything with just one answer especially since there is not right or wrong and it's not black and white. all in all i would probably say that my ultimate idea would be change causes change (the domino effect) because of the ideas brought up by Amy (more about people) and Joe (more about nature).

New Idea for Causes of Change

I came up with a very different idea but it works for a lot of changes. Unsatisfication (is that even a word?) causes change. Ever heard of changing for better or for worse? If something isn't changing for better or worse then nothing changed. Using what Tor said "eating causes a change in your mass, walking causes a change in your location, and brushing your teeth causes a change in your oral hygiene" makes sense. For example if you are not satisfied with your location you move. If you're not satisfied with your oral hygiene you brush your teeth. Also going back to what Luke said about the evolution of birds studied in the Galapagos Islands, the birds were not satisfied with how they fit in with their endowment so they changed (OK so it's not quite that simple but you get the point). This idea also works for what Megan said about the electromagnetic force and "happy atoms". Since the atoms are unsatisfied with their valence shells not being complete they gain or share another electron from a different atom. Since they are not "happy" they change. This also works for what Madelyn said, "Change is caused....when one way of being, acting, or living....is not fulfilling the required needs of a person or group". This is similar to what I said about Luke's post. I still think I'm really off with my idea especially since it doesn't explain most (natural) changes, but it's just something to ponder.

What Causes Change?

From the start (even before kyle copy cat) I thought it's just simply time that causes change. I thought this for a few reasons. First of all as time goes on change occurs everywhere in the universe. For example a tree in nature changes over time. It grows or dies or in some way it does change. If time were to stop nothing could change because everything would remain the same. If no time passes or time stops a tree cannot possibly change. For example it cannot grow or die or lose leaves (etc.). If time stopped nothing could or would happen therefore nothing can change. Before this made so much sense but then thought maybe that's not right. Maybe change occurs as a result of time or change just simply happens over time but it's not the what it's the why. I wasn't really answering the question. I may have realized why change happens but I did not address what causes change. Change may just be something inevitable that is caused by time.
I don't have any references or anything yet and I'll have to think about this some more but here are just some ideas (esp. for people who think time causes change).