In this project, we looked at a plot of land and found all of the ecological components and researched it so we could make a policy change. We made predictions of what was going to happen to it in 50 years, 100 years, 300 years, and 1000 years. My group and I chose to study an open space in Hamilton. It is called Aberdeen field and surrounding it was the Aberdeen Road homes. We wanted to put solar panels on this open space. The are is pretty flat and hasn't been used in awhile for anything. The cost of inputting 15,000 solar panels and a 1200 ft^2 electrical building would be around 10.5 million dollars. Although that is a lot of money, we will make 1.5 million dollars a year, so in 8 years, we will have a complete return on investment. Any money made after that is profit.
Concepts
Biome- Group of ecosystems that have same climate and similar dominant communities.
Biosphere- Where all life exist in the world
Autotroph- Use energy from sun to create food
Heterotroph- Rely on other organisms for energy/food supply
Producer- Producers are at bottom of food chain. They use sunlight or chemicals to create energy.
Consumer- Eat the level below themselves to gain energy.
Trophic level- Each of several hierachical levels in an ecosystem.
Detritivores-Animal that feeds on dead organic material.
Decomposer- Decomposes organic material.
Food web- System of interlocking and independent food chains
Ecological pyramid- Graphical representation to show the bio mass or bio productivity at each trophic level.
Nutrient cycle- Movements and exchange of organic and inorganic matter back into the production of living matter
Carbon cycle- Series of processes by which carbon compounds are interconverted in the evirornment
Nitrogen cycle- Series of process by which nitrogen and its compounds are interconvertwd in the envirornment and in living organisms
Water cycle- Journey that water takes as it circulates from land to sky to land
Weather- Day to day condition of the earths atmosphere
Climate- The average year after year conditions of temp and precipitation in a particular region
Greenhouse effect- Heat is retained near the earth by a layer of gases in the atmosphere
Niche- The way of life of a species, or its role in an ecological community
Symboisis- "to live together". Happens when two species have a close relationship
Parasitism/ Predation/ Herbivory- Interaction harms one species and benefits the other
Competition- Interaction harms both species
Mutalism- Interaction benefits both species
Commensalism- Interaction benefits one species and doesn't affect the other
Ecological succession- Ecosystems are constantly changing in response to natural and human disturbances. Old organisms die and new organisms grow
Primary succession- Succession takes place on surface where no soil exists
Pioneer species- First species to appear in succession
Secondary succession- Disturbance changes existing community without removing soil ex: fire
Bio diversity- Diversity of life in a given area
Carrying capacity- How many organisms a certain area can support
Renewable resources- Resources we can reuse ex: trees
Non-renewable resources- Resources we can't reuse ex: oil
Resources- Things that we use to stay alive ex: water
Biosphere- Where all life exist in the world
Autotroph- Use energy from sun to create food
Heterotroph- Rely on other organisms for energy/food supply
Producer- Producers are at bottom of food chain. They use sunlight or chemicals to create energy.
Consumer- Eat the level below themselves to gain energy.
Trophic level- Each of several hierachical levels in an ecosystem.
Detritivores-Animal that feeds on dead organic material.
Decomposer- Decomposes organic material.
Food web- System of interlocking and independent food chains
Ecological pyramid- Graphical representation to show the bio mass or bio productivity at each trophic level.
Nutrient cycle- Movements and exchange of organic and inorganic matter back into the production of living matter
Carbon cycle- Series of processes by which carbon compounds are interconverted in the evirornment
Nitrogen cycle- Series of process by which nitrogen and its compounds are interconvertwd in the envirornment and in living organisms
Water cycle- Journey that water takes as it circulates from land to sky to land
Weather- Day to day condition of the earths atmosphere
Climate- The average year after year conditions of temp and precipitation in a particular region
Greenhouse effect- Heat is retained near the earth by a layer of gases in the atmosphere
Niche- The way of life of a species, or its role in an ecological community
Symboisis- "to live together". Happens when two species have a close relationship
Parasitism/ Predation/ Herbivory- Interaction harms one species and benefits the other
Competition- Interaction harms both species
Mutalism- Interaction benefits both species
Commensalism- Interaction benefits one species and doesn't affect the other
Ecological succession- Ecosystems are constantly changing in response to natural and human disturbances. Old organisms die and new organisms grow
Primary succession- Succession takes place on surface where no soil exists
Pioneer species- First species to appear in succession
Secondary succession- Disturbance changes existing community without removing soil ex: fire
Bio diversity- Diversity of life in a given area
Carrying capacity- How many organisms a certain area can support
Renewable resources- Resources we can reuse ex: trees
Non-renewable resources- Resources we can't reuse ex: oil
Resources- Things that we use to stay alive ex: water
Reflection
This Secretary of the Future project went very well. We were on task and focused mostly the entire time. We ended up finishing the project about three days early, and then all we had to do was perfect it. The only thing that went poorly was our predictions. They made us think hard and took us a long time. I learned a lot about solar panels and how they can help the environment. I also learned that when I am confident at the subject, I can get a lot of productive work. I could have done better by doing more on the slides than I did. Some peaks of this project were our finished project and our focus. They kind of go together because since our group was so focused on the task at hand, we got a lot of work done in a short amount of time and had fun doing it. A peak of this project was when we finished, we had nothing to do except perfect our project. I wish we had spaced out our time more efficiently so we could have done the best we could using all of our time. Being the secretary of our future was completely enjoyable and I felt if we actually input the solar panels, it could make a positive difference in our society.