ECOLOGY: Debate in the Animal Kingdom

The leaders of the Animal Kingdom are having their annual meeting.  On their agenda is a vote to determine whether three groups should be allowed to join the Animal Kingdom as living things.  Before the vote, a debate must be held to provide evidence for and against the addition of these groups to the Kingdom.

The groups wishing to be recognized as living things, and therefore approved as members of the Animal Kingdom are: the vampires, zombies, and aliens.

Your job is to argue for or against any or all of the above groups.  You must present evidence based on the 6 characteristics of living things to support your argument. 

An invasive species is a non-native species that is introduced to an ecosystem by humans, either accidentally or purposefully. 

We hear a lot of debate about whether life could survive on the moon or Mars, but what about extreme environments on Earth?

The animals listed below are all adapted to the environment of Central Texas.  But what if they lived in one of Earth’s extreme environments instead?  How would the species be different?                               

deer, catfish, turtle, gecko, squirrel, hawk

Click the links below to learn about these extreme environments on Earth:

Deep Sea Vents, Alpine Tundra , Geothermal Vents (Geysers), Hypersaline (Salt) Lakes

Pretend that one of the common animals above lives in one of these extreme environments instead of in Central Texas.  Design an adaptation (real or inmaginary) that would help your animal survive in its extreme environment.  How will the adaptation help the animal with the specific challenges of that environment?

A carbon footprint is a measure of the amount of carbon dioxide (CO₂) and other greenhouse gases emitted by a person’s activities.  The name comes from the idea that your own activities leave a “footprint” on the earth.  Scientific research suggests that build up of these greenhouse gases in our atmosphere contributes to global warming. 

Think of one of your favorite outdoor places.  It could be in your backyard, in your neighborhood, someplace you’ve been camping, the lake, the Grand Canyon, etc.

Read the excerpt from “Life As We Knew It” by Susan Pfeffer: Chapter 2: Life As We Knew It.  (You may print the pages if you need to.)

Watch the baseball video clip: http://videos.howstuffworks.com/science-channel/4945-the-physics-of-baseball-hitting-video.htm.  The clip shows an example of how physics is involved in sports.

Choose a sport other than baseball and research how physics is involved in that sport.  Explain how an athlete can use physics to their advantage (to play better).

Your response should include at least 3 of the 6 topics below :

• potential & kinetic energy
• speed, velocity and acceleration
• balanced & unbalanced forces
• types of forces
• Newton’s 3 laws
• simple machines

You have the great honor of exploring the surface of a foreign planet for NASA.  While there, you collect many samples, including an unfamiliar rock.  Sadly, aliens did not leave a sign explaining what the rock is made of, so you’re going to have to figure it out (sigh…). 

How would you identify if the rock is made of one of the elements on the Periodic Table?  If it turns out to be a completely new element, how would you identify where it should go on the Periodic Table?  What information would help you determine whether the rock is an old or new element?  How would you figure out this information?