- 3/30/15 Blog Redesign

        So... Have you noticed it? I gave my website a new look! More green (awesomeness) and fancier script. How do you like it? My eyes take a few seconds to adjust to the newness (is that even a word?). I'm not posting tomorrow, or the day after that (both are odd days) but April 2nd, like I mentioned in the last post, will be my 1st even day of April celebration in which I will prepare my garden.
        Can't wait till then! Till the next post.

* 3/28/15 Atoms

          Now, like two posts ago, this post is going to be about imformation from my online homeschooling website, Time4Learing (time4learning.com) and this time, it's about Atoms.


          Have you ever wondered; what makes up people? You might think; guts, or recycled food, or molecules. These are all true, but you are made of atoms. No one has ever seen an atom, but scientists realized that matter behaves like it is made of these really small particles.
          The middle of an atom is called the nucleus. Unlike the nucleus of a cell, the nucleus of an atom is densely packed and made of these two; protons and neutrons. Protons have a charge of (+1) while neutrons, hence their name, have a neutral charge (n).
          Surrounding the nucleus of an atom is a sort of cloud, that are made of electrons, with a charge of (-1).
          Most atoms follow the octet rule (big word alert). A stable atom have 8 electrons in the outer electron shell.
         Say there are two atoms. Sodium (Na) is the first, and in it's outside ring has 1 electron. The second is Chlorine (Cl), and it has 7 electrons, grouped in two's except for the last one, which is by itself. Since atoms try to become stable, the Chlorine wants to have 8 electrons. So, it takes an electron from the Sodium atom. Now the Sodium atom-which is now a Sodium ion, become positive, because it has more positive protons in it's nucleus, but no negative electrons. But the Chlorine atom gained a neutron, so it has more negative neutrons then before. The Chlorine therefore becomes negative. As you might already know, positives and negatives attract. The two atoms form something called an ionic bond.
           Sometimes, there are certain situations where an atom wants electrons, but doesn't have enough strength to steal it. Lets say we have a Carbon (C) atom, that has 4 electrons. Unlike Chlorine, which has 7, it is not very strong. The second one is Hydrogen (H), that has one electron. Both atoms would like the other's electron. So the two share one, forming a covalent bond.

Covalent Bond

         Have I boggled your brain enough for today? I should hope so. And I have news! The next, next post will be April 2nd... And a few posts ago, I mentioned that my celebration for the "first even day of April" would be to clean out my garden! And so I will. Till the next post!

+ 3/26/15 Strange Growth 3

     Some books have a sequel. And often, they are part of a trilogy! This is third but likely not last update on Tropic, my Sarracenia purpurea subs. purpurea, a.k.a. purple pitcher plant. As you might know (if you don't, read Strange Growth 1 & 2), Tropic has grown a stalk (since when did pitcher plants grow stalks?) and it is huuuge with a bud at the end. Now for it's height.... The first post, it was 1 inch. At the end of the week, it was eight inches. Now, it's--(drumroll please)--12 1/2 inches!!!!! That's a foot and half an inch! MAJOR GROWTH, HERE. I'll provide some pics for you.

This is the full height of Tropic's bizzare and awesome stalk.

 And this is a really blurry close up of Tropic's stem's bud's inside. Phew, enough apostrophes!


 And, as of today, I saw your average interesting weed, and I did your not-so-average actions. I made a pot (yes, made it) out of a paper plate and a bag blowing across the street. Then I stuck the two together with neon green duct tape and popped in the plant. And... You get Glory! She's your not-so-average plant in a not-so-average pot.

Till the next post (who knows, maybe Tropic will be 1 1/2 feet by then!).

 

* 3/24/15 Asland Nature Center Trip

        So.... I said I was going to go to Ashland Nature Center... And I did! So this post will be dedicated to my trip there. So... At 10:30 p.m.  (I wrote a whole diary entry about this trip, I know exactly what time things happened) We did a Stream Ecology Workshop. We (my group, Peach Blossoms) went down the stream called Wildflower Run, and did these really cool tests on the water to see if it was clean. We tested the water's PH, and collected insect larvae and nymphs. We saw Stoneflies (which can only survive in really clean water) craneflies, mayflies, and all these other kinds of insects that I forget. Here are my notes:

         NOTES:
         *Water always flows downstream to the lowest point (the ocean)
         *A headwater stream (like Wildflower Run) is the original stream that often originates from a spring or other source.
         *Dissolved oxygen is what organisms with gills use to breathe. The colder the water, the more dissolved oxygen. Water with 18 parts per million of oxygen is considered saturated.
         *PH is potential hydrogen ions, ranging from 1 to 14. 1 is acidic and 14 is more basic. 7 is the optimal PH, neutral.
         *Turbidity is the amount of objects floating on the surface.

         After that we did a team building exercise which I will not go into detail because of it's lack of nature-related content. So at 6:30 we had a nocturnal animals workshop, and I learned some more facts.

          NOTES:
         *Great horned owls are active in the fall
         *Prehensile means furless
         *Owls can hear better because of their dish-shaped face
         *Female American toads are larger
         *American alligators can grow up to 6 feet

          Now I am aware of how random those notes were but... Hey, they're notes. Now is for the interesting, interesting awesome part!
          After the nocturnal animals workshop, we went for a night hike (7:30). During this hike we heard--(drum roll please)--a woodcock! I sense your confusion... So I'll straighten things out. The woodcock performs a courtship dance for a female. It first struts around and makes this peeping call, then shoots up into the air and flutters back down in spirals, with it's wings making twittering noises. And the awesome part--the woodcock only does it once a year for a short period of time! And we all heard it! AWESOME DAY.

* 3/22/15 Life Characteristics

         This is pretty much more information from my online homeschooling website Time4Learning. And... it's about life. This may seem very simple and basic, "You are alive, I am alive, if you are able to do stuff you are alive." Yeah, that might be going through your head, and it is right in a way, but there is more. More simple stuff. But still, fascinating all the same, so I'll share it with you.

         So pretty much, there are a few characteristic that makes something alive. In easy-to-understand speak, there are requirements to join the Living club. Some of these are...

          *Cells
           Now, there is more to cells then you may think. Yes, they are the building blocks of life, and yes, they make up every living thing, but no, that's not all they do. Think of each cell as creature in itself--even though there are indeed single-celled organisms. Each cell has functions and abilities. Some cells can get around with cilia or a flagellum (single-celled organisms), or take in 'food' and expel waste, and preform cellular respiration.
         
          *Metabolism
          Generally speaking, a metabolism kind of means the ability to use energy. But much, much more then that. The metabolism of a plant is pretty much their photosynthesizing and their respiration--both of which use energy, or in the case of photosynthesis--make it. The metabolism of a person is quite simple. You eat food, and your body breaks down what you just ingested with enzymes. Then your blood--yes, your blood--absorbs the good stuff and carts it away to your cells.
         
          *Responding to Stimuli
          What is stimuli? Lets walk you through. Stimuli is anything that evokes a response in your body. Like, say, if I stick you with a pin, you'll probably scream bloody murder. So the stimulus is my bizarrely aggressive behavior (external stimulus), and the response is the "AAAAAH!!!!!!" In the same way, if a frog feels the need to chow down on something, it finds a worm or an insect to snap up. The stimulus in that case is hunger (internal stimulus) and it's response is to find something to eat.

          *Reproduce
          If living things did not reproduce, there would one generation of that species, and when they die, you'd never see another one in your life. Thankfully, reproduction keeps things moving. One generation succeeds the generation that succeeds the generation that succeeds the generation that... Need I continue? Anyway, reproduction is simply when the two organisms from the same species mate and the female has offspring that will in turn have their own offspring when they mature.

         *Adaptation to Change
          Hmm.... What is adaptation? You probably know this; it's when an organisms changes to adjust itself to a change. But there is a limit to the change something can do. If I put you outside on a 70 degree day, the melanin in your skin will become darker. If I stick you on planet Venus when it's 864 degrees Fahrenheit... You're a dead person. Not a soul alive can adapt quite that much. If a plant is by a windowsill, it will crane it's length to bend towards the sun. If you alter the sun so that it somehow rises beneath the plant, you can't expect it to double in half and grow straight down.

          *The end.
          This is when things end. One of the things that will be ending right now is this post, but the lives of living things end too. I memorized this not that long ago, Death is the state of being dead, when the homeostasis that keeps the organisms alive ends. Another generation typically succeeds it. And luckily for you, another post will succeed this one. Till the next post!

- 3/20/15 Ironic Spring

       This post is, in fact, the FIRST DAY OF SPRING! But wait. I can't quite say I'm jumping for joy... Mother Nature, please cut out the irony, because the week before spring was genuine spring weather and the first day of spring it snows. SNOWS! On the day where people are expecting warm sunshine and clear skies there is frigid temperatures and heavy clouds. Thanks a lot, Mother Nature, thanks a lot... Perfect for my brother's birthday, which just so happens to be tomorrow.
        Now, I haven't really told people about what I want to be when I grow up, except that I am hoping to be an ecologist or something of the sort. But right now, I really want to volunteer at the Tristate Bird Rescue which is near my house. Not work and get paid, but get to work with Aves and increase my knowledge of ornithology--wait, making the assumption that you don't understand those two words, Aves is the class for birds, and  ornithology is the study of birds. I don't have specific sights set to become an ornithologist, but I'm not going to lie and say that I have no interest in the field. I do! I study crows and starlings to determine the meaning of their calls and I try to identify the flight patterns, appearance, and scientific/common names of the birds that I see. But I'm not sure that I want to take my bird-watching to the next level of studying it, so I'll stick with 'aspiring ornithologist'.

- 3/18/15 Ashland Nature Center

      *singsong voice* It is almost spri-ing, it is almost spri-ing! 2 more days until the time when I can plant my garden and watch it grow... Well, I won't quite be doing that in two days. Rather, I'll be leaving for a show on the 26th and be back on the 30th... So, as a "First Even Day of April" celebration, my post on the 2nd of April will be of me cleaning out my garden! No, I'm not going to be planting anything, but I will hoe it up, shovel and loosen the soil, and add in soil amendments or fertilizer.
         Okay, I'm going to conclude my rant about planting and begin something a tad bit more interesting. I am going to the Ashland Nature Center soon for a sleepover! I'll be taking midnight hikes, doing a reptiles and amphibians exhibit! I can't wait to share my notes that I took and post them here! I am unaware of the precise date, so I can't quite give you that... But anyway, it should be a really fun and interactive and knowledgeable experience!