Outdoor fun!

AN OUTDOOR ADVENTURE 

This past week in class, we went on a scavenger hunt at the Tanglewood Nature Center &Museum. I have been to nature centers before but none like this. Before my acknoweldgement that all the answers on the scavenger hunt list were inside the nature center, we ventured off into the woods where I got to come across new looks of life. At the beginning of this trip I was not so sure how I was going to like it. The mud was not bad however, the first real animal I had contact with was a family of geese (mom, dad, and a couple babies). One of the items on the list was baby and I was the photographer of the group so I had gone up and approached the family in hopes of getting a picture, then... all of the sudden I found myself being hissed at. This brought me back to a childhood memory of getting attacked by a family of geese. So at this point you can probably guess that my next thought was to run but the competitive streak in me did not run until I got a picture. 

Another interesting experience I got to endure was being able to experience all the beautiful qualities of nature. I know that sounds very cliche but while I was taking pictures of items that were on the scavenger hunt list I did not see real beauty until I looked under a rock and saw a worm (yes, a worm). Who would have thought that one of the ugliest, grossest, slimmest creatures in nature would be seen in a photograph as beautiful? Not me. This picture is so simple, yet we are able to see so many of nature’s beautiful qualities just by the simplicity of this photograph. Not only do we get to see all these assorted colored rocks but we are able to see what living creatures hide under these rocks as well. This photograph captures just how beautiful nature really is. I would not look at this picture and say “Ew, gross, a worm.” When I look at this photo I am actually impressed with myself because I don’t see a gross worm, I see a beautiful creature of nature. This photo brought me back to my youth when I was able to appreciate nature more because I was not distracted by technology. I have never been one to think worms were gross in general, when I was little I used to have a pet worm named “Sherbet” after my favorite type of ice cream. When I was younger, I was always outside playing in the mud, not being afraid to get my hands dirty, and enjoying exploring new qualities of nature. I miss that. 

Going on the outdoor adventure this week was fun and surprisingly stress free considering that we were in a competition. As these past couple weeks of gone by I am already so surprised about what I did not know about nature, or what I had forgotten about nature which in my opinion is very sad. I decided to try to make a goal for the summer to do at least one nature activity so I can continue to expand my knowledge of everything that mother nature has planted for us. 

Sincerely, 

(newly cautious about the environment) Tiffany

Hello, Mother Nature

                          *ring, ring*"Hello, Mother Nature.”

Welcome to the land where you can get frostbitten and sunburnt in the same week I’m Tiffany, Tiff for short. I’m from Marshfield, Massachusetts and I’m 20 years old. I’m about to end my sophomore year at Elmira College here in New York and I am creating this blog to become more familiar with nature instead of the mall. As you can probably tell from my picture I’m a bit of a diva and enjoy the finer things however my bank account is suffering and I have decided to try to pick up a new hobby that is less expensive (literally, nature doesn’t cost a thing). For being someone who may or may not have a shopping addiction, my favorite things to do in nature is explore. I remember  when I was little I went to this little island on a lake and discovered “Indian Soap”. Indian Soap is from a bush, the buds rubbed together with water creates soap. I remember experiencing it for the first time when I was little and remaining forever fascinated. Every time I go back I always find myself stopping by to get some Indian Soap. Although finding Indian Soap was one of the coolest things I have ever come across in nature, I have come across particular things I would have rather not see. One time when I was little (roughly around the same age as the picture) I had come across a rabid fox and was forever completely mortified, (forever afraid of foxes). In this class I hope to become more knowledgeable about the environment and what I can do to help improve the environment because after watching a particular movie (*hint, hint* view my next post) I am completely moved and want to become more aware. Another skill I would like to achieve in this class is learning how to survive in the wilderness, I honestly think I would be fully capable of doing it. However, others have disagreed with me when this topic has previously been brought up... I’d like to prove them wrong. 

Sincerely, 
(newly cautious about the environment) Tiffany. 

An Inconvenient Truth

An Inconvenient Truth

An Inconvenient Truth(2006) is a movie based on the effects of global warming and how earth will eventually disappear if we as a whole continue to harm the planet we live on.  Former presidential candidate, Al Gore reveals just how harmful certain resources can be to our environment and people need to continue being informed of this.

For one thing, I do not keep tabs on the environment and after seeing this film I believe people especially younger people need to be more involved on improving our environment as well as being more informed on the situation at hand. This film should be shown in schools, it is highly concerning to me that I am really just learning about this as a 20 year old student when in reality if i was shown this video 5-10 years ago I would have been able to comprehend it, however being older I find this information scarier. We are creating a world that eventually will disappear if we do not do anything to stop this. I don’t know about you, but I would feel extremely guilty knowing that I was one of the many causes of global warming that lead up to the failed future of children, grandchildren, etc. We need to continue trying to improve our environment before it vanishes right before our eyes.

This film was released in 2006- thus we are approaching the 10 year anniversary so here are some things to consider:
Here, you can find a flat map that was shown in the film that informs us on who the real contributors to global warming were in 2006. To elaborate we (as in the U.S.) are the leading contributors to global warming at 30.3%, behind us we have Europe(27.7%), Asia(13.7%), Australia(12.2%), South America(3.8%), Africa(2.5%), and Antartica (1.1%).

Has anything changed? Was Al Gore Right?
According to recent check ups of the 10 year anniversary, research has shown that Al Gore’s predictions have fallen flat. However on the contrary, Al Gore felt that using new technology instead of fossil fuels creates jobs and wealth and according to this article, two of the biggest coal companies in America have filed for bankruptcy leaving economics and technology to save us (as Al Gore predicted).

Back in 2006, Al Gore also predicted that in 10 years (so now) sea levels would rise 20 feet. By the 10 year anniversary, waters levels did rise however just not as high as Gore predicted. Here, is a map of the East Coast showing a fast rate of rising water. Over the last 50 years (1963-2012), sea levels have rose over a foot. Although it is a foot and may not seem like a lot, it is still something to be cautious of because despite Al Gore’s prediction the water levels still have grown just not as fast as he thought.

If society continues to ignore these problems and do harmful things to earth then I feel we are soon going to begin seeing Gore’s predictions come true.

Sincerely,

(newly cautious about the environment) Tiffany.