Impacts of Humans on Ecosystems
For Option G: Ecology and Conservation. Because we’re learning this concurrently with the Ecology and Evolution core topic, the Essential Biology document has been rolled into one: Essential Biology 5.2 & G3 – Greenhouse Effect and Impacts of Humans on Ecosystems.
The presentation on The Greenhouse Effect will follow soon.
Creation: Darwin Movie
Due for release this week, Paul Bettany stars as Charles Darwin in the biopic Creation. Based on Randal Keynes’ (Darwin’s great-great grandson) biography Annie’s Box, it promises to be a good movie and has received great reviews from the Toronto International Film Festival and the Guardian.
Here, the makers discuss the challenge of creating an exciting movie based on the life of a scientist, when the ins-and-outs of everyday science work can be pretty mundane. It looks as though they are focusing on the personal aspects of Darwin’s life and relationship with his wife as he works on the manuscript.
Bettany as Darwin
For more listening, the movie is discussed in this week’s Science Weekly Podcast, with discussion from Caspar Melville (with some questionable ideas*). Richard Dawkins also guests, to talk about his new book The Greatest Show on Earth.
Sadly, the movie has not yet only just been picked up for US distribution. I wonder if the title has something to do with that – perhaps Annie’s Box would have been easier to swallow? I also wonder if we’ll get to see it here in Indonesia.
* EDIT: It appears he was ‘conned’ by the AIDS-denialist ‘House of Numbers’ and explains here.
The Cove
Winner of the Sundance 2009 audience award:
Find out more about the cove here:
If you get the chance to see it, think about how it links with the Ecology and Conservation unit:
What is happening in terms of bioaccumulation and biomagnification of toxins?
Is this approach to the dolphin populations sustainable?
ToK Link:
The actions portrayed in the movie are considered by many to be unethical but by those committing them to be a necessary part of life. Think about what determines one’s set of personal ethics – what parts of our own lives might be considered unethical by others? Are there actions we carry out which are unethical but which we choose not to think about because it is uncomfortable or inconvenient to do so?
International Mindedness:
How does this method of farming compare to intensive cattle and poultry farming in other industrialised countries?
Here’s a short clip of an intensively-farmed chicken’s life:
And you and find out more about it on Channel 4’s Hugh’s Chicken Run page.
The Memory of Water: Science or Pseudoscience?
“Can you tell the difference between science and pseudoscience”
“What separates effective medicine from alternative medicine?”
This is an activity from the ToK and Biology section.
As you grow through Biology and ToK, you should develop your critical thinking skills and become more of a skeptic. Being able to answer these two questions is a skill that you can carry through life, helping you to make sensible decisions when faced with a range of seemingly convincing alternatives.
Medicine is a system of rigourous testing, evidence collection, statistical analysis and controls to ensure that a treatment is effective when recommended to patients. If it works and it is strongly corroborated, we call it medicine – it is available to professionally-trained medical doctors to use or prescribe for their patients.
Alternative medicine is simply that – alternative to medicine. It is not rigorously tested, double-blind controlled or statistically analysed. It is built on belief without true empirical evidence. One might believe it’s efficacy based only on anecdotal or circumstantial evidence, but this is not enough.
This activity links with unit 3.1 – Chemical Elements and Water.
Richard Dawkins’ recent series Enemies of Reason tackles these issues brilliantly, as does Dr Ben Goldacre’s Bad Science blog. Start with this short clip of Dawkins explaining the idea behind homeopathy, a bastion of alternative medicine:
- Homeopathic First Aid.
- So why is it that people buy into homeopathy and alt med?
- Have you heard of the placebo effect or the powers of suggestion and how they affect feeling?
- Watch the whole episode (below) and think of reasons why a patient might feel better after visiting a homeopath than after a consultation with the doctor.
- What is the difference between complementary and alternative medicine? Which might a doctor recommend as part of a treatment? Why?
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To find out more about homeopathy and it central ideas:
Homeopathy from the Skeptics Dictionary
The End of Homeopathy? From BadScience
And lots of great information from Evidence Based Medicine First
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Video Links
Watch the full series of Enemies of Reason on GoogleVideo:
Part 1: Slaves to Superstition
Part 2: The Irrational Health Service (includes the homeopaths)
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- Ogo-dear… Burrrp!
And it’s not only homeopathy that abuses our sacred water. The oxygen-water companies are it too.
More than Water? From BadScience (download reading activity here)
Unless you have gills, it’s an expensive burp! from Chem1.com
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So, when you read the magazines, watch TV or wonder about a miracle cure, anti-ageing cream, magical treatment or anything else related to unusual claims and you health, think: “Where’s the evidence?”
Now here’s a funny sketch from Webb and Mitchell:
The 11th Hour re-up: Human Impacts on Ecosystems
In 2007, Leonardo DiCaprio released his environmental call-to-arms, The 11th Hour. And it’s very good. It really knocks home the old proverb that we are not inheriting the Earth from our ancestors, but borrowing it from our children.
Update 2009: the whole film is available on GoogleVideo (as all good documentaries should be):
The movie contains contributions from the likes of Stephen Hawking, Nobel-winner Wangari Maathai and David Suzuki. Particularly useful is Gloria Flora‘s sentiment that we all vote, every day – even those who are too young to cast a ballot – by making informed choices about what we consume, spend our money on and throw away.
Watch It!
The first half of the movie is a talking-heads and imagery look at our impacts on the Earth, with plenty of soundbites and starting-points for further discussion. The political middle section describes how economic growth and interests are driving destruction. The final act is a great collection of ideas and hope – a call to arms and a realisation that the environmental movement is growing quickly and strongly. But is it going to be in time to save our species and the thousands that we drive to extinction each year?
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Now here’s Leo’s video message (including the ‘vote’ quote from Gloria Flora):
For some further reading, go to the 11th hour Action website.
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IB Biology students:
Here is a quick question sheet for the movie, linking some of the topics to the Ecology and Conservation option.
Higher Level students: pay attention to the parts about the role of trees in the environment, in particular through water-uptake. Also, do you understand how mycofiltration (using fungal mycelia) could be used to clean polluted soils?
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For good measure, here’s Linkin Park’s accompanying music video, What I’ve Done :
PulseProject.org – Lectures and Podcasts in Science
PulseProject is an interesting collection of video lectures and podcasts in science. It is aimed at university and IBDP-level (or A-level) students and educators as well as the general (well informed) public. Looking through their list of lectures and videos, there is some leaning towards eugenics and psychology, though there are many that might be of specific interest to IB Biology students:
Genetics & Evolution:
GM Crops and global food security Chris Leaver
Where did you leave your genetic fingerprint? Katharine Wright
Genes and Human History Gil McVean
Descent of the Dinosaurs Chris Jarvis
Music of Life: a new view on nature and nurture Denis Noble
What makes us human? Robin Dunbar
The practice of Eugenics in Estonia Ken Kalling
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Ecology:
Saving the Asian Apes (Indonesia link!) Susan Cheyne
Exploring the Ecology of Insects Mike Bonsall
Seven Years to Save the Planet (Climate Change) Bill McGuire
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And some bits from our heroes:
Ben Goldacre at Skeptics in the Pub
Marcus du Sautoy on A mathematician’s journey through symmetry
Ruchard Wiseman (the Quirkology guy) on the luck factor
Statistical Analysis 2009
Here is the updated presentation for 2009, with more information on Excel and a worked set of examples with hummingbirds, to tie in with the natural selection topics.
And Geoff Browne kindly gave permission to upload his t-test powerpoint to slideshare:
Resources:
Updated Essential Biology 01 – Statistical Analysis (word)
Click4Biology statistical analysis page, with great help for calculators and excel
Excellent Handbook of Biological Statistics from John MacDonald
Sumanas statistics animations
Field Studies Council stats page, including the t-test
Open Door Website stats page and help with graphs and tables
Gapminder awesome human population stats tool
And this enlightening talk from Han Rosling: No More Boring Data!
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Using your calculator:
– Using the TI GDC (from Click4Biology)
– Using the Casio pdf download (from keymath.com)
Evolution (Core)
Ecuador Hummingbirds
Start with this reading on Evolution and Darwin: https://www.box.net/shared/6dx95t6ma6 and then watch this video of evolutionary researchers in action in Ecuador.
In the clip below, is Ross using the correct language when he describes the theory and evidence for evolution?
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Here is the class presentation
And the Essential Biology notes can be found here: https://www.box.net/shared/550sxdbx82
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There are many sources of interactives and animations on Evolution on the internet. Here are a few:
PBS Evolution has lots of high-quality activities and videos
BiologyInMotion has a very clear population evolution interactive
The Exploring Evolution weblab has examples of homologous structures and fossil evidence
MMHE has a pesticide resistance tutorial
And there are some good peppered moth simulations here and here
As always, sumanas has a great resource – this time on antibiotic resistance
And John Kyrk has a truly awesome timeline of the evolution of life
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Darwin resources:
Attenborough on Darwin: The Tree Of Life
Dawkins Darwin Lectures from OU/BBC
And of course, all of Darwin’s works are available online from darwin-online.org
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And here’s Dawkins on the evolution of the eye:
Classification
Grade 11 are starting out the course with a short “Nature of Biology” unit, made up of Statistical Analysis (and some practice with data), Classification, Evolution and a little introduction to ToK in Biology. Grade 12 are also looking at Classification at the moment, as part of the Ecology, Evolution and Conservation unit.
Here is the class presentation:
Download as pdf here: 5.5 Classification
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Work through this Essential Biology 5.5 Classification as you go through the presentation.
There are some activities you can download here:
- Shark ID Guide at Queensland
Invertebrate phyla cards and dichotomous key
Paired groups key-making activity: Spiders vs Beetles
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And here are the Click4Biology notes
There is also a great Environmental Science course online here: The Habitable Planet
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Have fun!
i-Biology 