Boom! Hok! A Monkey Language Is Deciphered

Krak krak! (Watch out, a leopard!)

Hok hok hok! (Hey, crowned eagle!)

Very good — you have already mastered half the basic vocabulary of the Campbell’s monkey, a fellow primate that lives in the forests of the Tai National Park in Ivory Coast. The adult males have six types of call, each with a specific meaning, but they can string two or more calls together into a message with a different meaning.

Having spent months recording the monkeys’ calls in response to both natural and artificial stimuli, a group led by Klaus Zuberbühler of the University of St. Andrews in Scotland argues that the Campbell’s monkeys have a primitive form of syntax.

This is likely to be a controversial claim because despite extensive efforts to teach chimpanzees language, the subjects showed little or no ability to combine the sounds they learned into a sentence with a larger meaning. Syntax, basic to the structure of language, seemed be a uniquely human faculty.

Still, species like gibbons and whales make complex vocalizations in which the order of the sounds seems to have some effect on their meaning, though it is hard to say what.

“Krak” is a call that warns of leopards in the vicinity. The monkeys gave it in response to real leopards and to model leopards or leopard growls broadcast by the researchers. The monkeys can vary the call by adding the suffix “-oo”: “krak-oo” seems to be a general word for predator, but one given in a special context — when monkeys hear but do not see a predator, or when they hear the alarm calls of another species known as the Diana monkey.

The “boom-boom” call invites other monkeys to come toward the male making the sound. Two booms can be combined with a series of “krak-oos,” with a meaning entirely different to that of either of its components. “Boom boom krak-oo krak-oo krak-oo” is the monkey’s version of “Timber!” — it warns of falling trees.

There is yet another variation on this theme, Dr. Zuberbühler’s team reports. Into the “Timber!” call, the Campbell’s monkeys insert a series of up to seven “hok-oo” calls. The combined call indicates the presence of other monkey groups and is heard most often when the monkeys are on the edge of their home range.

The meaning of monkey calls was first worked out with vervet monkeys, which have distinct alarm calls for each of their three main predators: the martial eagle, leopards and snakes. But the vervets did not combine their alarm calls to generate new meanings, unlike human words that can be combined in an infinite number of different sentences.

If the Zuberbühler team’s observations are correct, the Campbell’s monkeys can both vary the meaning of specific calls by adding suffixes and combine calls to generate a different meaning. Their call system, the researchers write, “may be the most complex example of ‘proto-syntax’ in animal communication known to date.”

Please Laugh

I recently read an article that is posted somewhere on this page.Well this was about people laughing and staying healthy.Younger children could laugh up to 400 times a day however,as people age they will only laugh about 20 times a day. As you have probably heard too much in your life,"laughter is the best medican",this is oh so true. Hospitals across the united states have began to use this a therapy for there patients. Laughing exercises the organs and keeps them very healthy. People who very rarely laugh aren't necessarily at risk,however they will just seem very depressed. So...everyone to put all this into perspective for you, laugh as much as possible. Well unless your Charly.

cholera epidemic in Kenya

A cholera epidemic is sweeping across Kenya, with 4700 cases reported in the past month and 119 deaths. the most stricken areas are the arids swarts of northern Kenya, which were hit this year.
colera is spreadig fast one of the things that is helping the virus to srpead is the rain because it makes the ground wet and then is all dirty so when peolpe walke the dirt goes with them and it might have the ionfection with it.
cholera is a diarrheal illness caused by a bacterial infection in the intestine.
people exposed to cholera germ scan get sick with hours and die within a day if the infection is not treated.
the best treatment is rehydration salts to restore fluids to the body. the best prevention is for people to wash their hands a lot.

what would you do if you lived in Kenya?

what would you do if you were a doctor in Kenya?

they found live in mars

But now there is a lot more new NASA study of a Martian meteorite that made headlines 13 years ago strengthens the original claim that the rock contains evidence of life on ancient Mars.
Researchers at the Johnson Space Center used advanced electron microscopes that weren't available in 1996 to re examine the magnetite crystals on the meteorite.
The meteorite, called ALH84001, was blasted from the surface of Mars 16 million years ago, scientists say, and is thought to have landed on Earth 13,000 years ago. An American scientist found it in Antarctica in 1984.
The original study published in the journal Science in 1996grabbed headlines and sparked a debate among scientists as to the origin of the crystals of magnetite, an iron-bearing, magnetic mineral found in the meteorite.
The study suggested that some of the crystals were likely the result of biological processes because they looked so similar to those created by bacteria on Earth.
Other scientists argued that the magnetite crystals could be produced by chemical and physical processes, and even created similar crystals in the lab by heating carbonates.
In a new study the Johnson Space Center researchers examined the magnetite crystals from the meteorite known microfossil samples from Earth and other crystals created artificially in the lab using high-resolution scanning electron microscopes.
Proof is stronger
They found that the Martian crystals didn't resemble the ones created in the lab, and concluded that biology is still the best explanation for the Martian crystals.
We believe that the biogenic hypothesis is stronger now than when we first proposed it 13 years ago said everett gibson NASA senior scientist.
The evidence supporting the possibility of past life on Mars has been slowly building up during the past decade said David mcKay NASA chief scientist for exploration and astrobiology.
This evidence includes signs of past surface water. Signs of current water near or at the surface water derived deposits of clay minerals and carbonates in old terrain, and the recent release of methane into the Martian atmosphere a finding that may have several explanations including the presence of microbial life the main source of methane on Earth mckay said.
The NASA team published their research in the journal Geochimica ET Cosmochimica Act of The Geochemical Society and The Meteoritic Society.

China and the U.S join the cause

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao will attend a major U।N। climate-change summit next in Denmark, Also on Thursday, China’s State Council announced plans "to reduce the intensity of carbon dioxide emissions per unit" of gross domestic product in 2020 by 40 percent to 45percent, compared with its 2005 level, state-run media reported. The reductions will be "based on our own national conditions" and "is a major contribution to the global effort in tackling climate change," the State Council said, according to the Xinhua news agency. Next month's climate talks aim to strike a deal on a successor agreement to the Kyoto Protocol, the 1997 pact that has legally binding targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The United States never ratified it, though more than 200 nations did.

An Astronauts completed three scheduled spacewalks Saturday And they spend over six hours installing equipment on the International Space Station.
Mission specialists Randolph Bresnik and Michael Foreman put up new antennas, a monitor, set up a spectrometer and installed a wireless video system for spacewalkers with cameras.

The high-pitched beeps — emanating from a new Russian research chamber — triggered a series of smoke alarms, waking up the astronauts and disrupting spacewalk preparations.
As the astronauts carried out their work, Bresnik's wife, Rebecca, was due to give birth to their second child at any moment in Houston. They also have a three-year-old son, adopted from Ukraine.
However, the baby had yet to arrive by the time the spacewalk ended. It had been agreed that Mission Control would hold off on any news if the birth occurred during the spacewalk so that Bresnik would remain focused on his tasks.
Throughout the spacewalk, Foreman, a veteran spacewalker, had trouble hearing inside his helmet. Bresnik's voice was especially faint.
"I can't understand you," Foreman called out. Bresnik spoke louder. "Still can't," Foreman said. An astronaut inside the space station had to intercede.
Foreman also missed hearing some of the praise coming his way after accomplishing all the major chores.
One more spacewalk is planned on Monday. The shuttle will remain at the station until next Wednesday, with a return to Earth scheduled for Friday.

Big Cats

From lions in Kenya to snow leopards in the Himalaya, the big cats of the world need help. Lions, cheetahs, leopards, jaguars, and other top felines are quickly disappearing, all victims of habitat loss and degradation as well as conflicts with humans.
To address this critical situation, the National Geographic Society has launched the Big Cats Initiative, a comprehensive program that supports on-the-ground conservation projects, education, and economic incentive efforts and a global public-awareness campaign. “We no longer have the luxury of time when it comes to big cats,” says National Geographic Explorer-in-Residence Dereck Joubert. “They are in such a downward spiral that if we hesitate now, we will be responsible for extinctions across the globe. They need help to survive because they can't do something but we can change what's happening not only for them but for all the animals that are killed for nothing.

1) What would you do to help the animals ?

2) Why do you think it's important to help them ?

10 ways to be green.

This article taught you ten creative ways to be green, One way to help was to start a walking-to-school club in your neighborhood instead of the bus picking your kids up. This would help the school by not spending so much money for gas and it would help the environment by not using much gas. Another way was making sure that your caps for fuel tanks in your car are screwed on tight, make sure it clicks three times before leaving because about one hundred seven million gallons of gas go into the earth's atmosphere by the United States each and every year. This would save gas for much more other things. The average american family orders about eighty-eight catalogues each year, imagine how many trees are cut down for all of those families. It is easier to just order stuff online. Some foods do not need to be cooked to a boil, you could just leave it on the stove then when the water is really hot then just turn off the stove and the heat that is still on the stove could finish cooking your food, this would save lots of energy. For hunters, buy lead-free bullets for your gun because it keeps all the toxins out of the animals habitat. You could also get a toilet that does not use much water, they use about a gallon of water for every flush when the old toilet uses about five, or you could get a toilet that does both, it has two buttons, one for liquid waste and solid waste. It would save so much water for drinking. Another way to be green is making your own toys out of recycled materials, this would reduce the use of plastic and factories wouldn't have to make as much so energy is saved and trucks wouldn't have to deliver them which is saving gas. Also, you should stop getting all the latest electronics because they probably consume more energy than older electronics or probably need more time to charge. Televisions and computers are two things that fit into new electronics. Finally, get the PowerMeter software which informs families how much energy they use. This will make them feel guilty and want them to start changing their habits.



QUESTIONS:


What are some other ways that could help save the environment and help you being more green?

What are some things that Stanstead College should do to be more environmentally friendly?

Climate change begins at Home.

In the US just the homes of the people produce a 40% of the total carbon emissions in the country every year.

A total of 626 million metric tons of carbon were produced by the homes in the U.S. in 2005 alone.

Based on this analysis of potential emissions weatherazing homes as well as properly maintaining heating and cooling systems could save more than 37 million metric tons of carbon.

People are busy, and when you gasp at your energy bill or at the gas pump you don't know what part of that bill is paying for something you want, like heating, cooling and transportation and what part of it is just waste.

People should be more concerned about this situation I think; the Climate Change should be a very big deal for everyone.

QUESTIONS:

1. What other things could we do to save the planet from a early Global Warming?

2. What do you think the school should do to help prevent Global Warming?

Polar Bear Habitat Proposed for Alaska

POLAR BEARS AND HOW TO STOP THE EXTINTION

The article is about polar bears and the possible extinction of them because of several reasons like melting ice (because of global warming), hunting, commercial activities and tourism. In America there are roughly 3,500 bears.
In the article they also talk about political problems and how that problems affect bears. They want to create a protected area for them in Alaska so they could be away from any danger and stop extinction.
They are planning to do this by June 30, 2010.
I think that making a protected area will be good for bears because then the place were they live will not be contaminated, but still if they are in the protected area they will not be protected from the global warming. I also think they should not take that much time to discus about political things when we don’t have that much time to safe the bears from extinction.

Questions!!

1. Give another idea to take care of the habitat of polar bears.


2. Can you think how can we protect bears from global warming?

Galaxy group most distant ever seen

A cluster of galxies farther then the last record was found 10.2 billion years away. Which is 1 billion years farther then the last one that scientists have found in 2006. It is designated as JKCS041. This discovery was very exciting becuase you are finding someone has already found but an older one and tells more about the galaxies history.

This cluster maybe the farthest one we can see right now because our understaning of the universe is limited unless we have better technology. This cluster right now excisted when the galaxy was 3.5 billion years old. Individual galaxy was found and gamma-ray have been found farther away and is found by the Hubble Space Telescope (estimated about 13.1 billion years)

1)What do you think we can see when we have better technology?

2)If we have better technology and we have found another life form on one of the galaxy would we be friends with them or mortal enemy?

3) How can the Hubble Space Telescope still work even though it was launched in 1990?

Andrew Jean

Chytrid

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Chytrid

Chyteid is a deadly fungus that is killing frogs. Once the fungus arrives at a site (pond, lake, etc) it stays in the soil.

They did a survey at eight different sites in Costa Rica and Panama.

Karen Lips, an associate professorof biology, and keven Smith and Jonathan Chase at Washington University found that the averge number of frog species at the eight different sites dropped from 45 to 23 since the apperence of Chytrid.

All species of frogs can get infected but terrestrial species fare better the frogs living in wet habitats where the fungus thrives.

"Differences in some of the frogs skin can make them more susceptible to Chyrid" says Karen Lips.

1) Do you think all the frogs will soon die off because of Chytrid?

2)Do you think it can be stopped?

Paul Miller

The Dollars and Sense of Closing Schools for H1N1:

Swine flu H1N1 should be a big concern for everyone in the world. I have a big concern about this H1N1 because they did say that it would hit aboriginals hard because they live in poor living conditions and medical conditions. Although, my community does not have poor living conditions, there are some families who are overcrowded and the virus can spread rapidly in these families.
I do feel afraid for the other aboriginals of Canada because some communities do not having running water for them to wash their hands properly.

There had been schools that have been closed in different parts of the world. If it takes to close schools down to avoid further spreading of this virus then they should close schools. In this article, they write that there are alot of germs in schools and if that is it ..then what is wrong with closing a school if it will protect us?Health Canada or the Government should put money to have sanitizers put in all schools if they think shutting down schools would cost too much money. It would be cheaper, I bet.
This article talks about money, on how much it would cost to closes schools down. I think that they should put money into prevention..on how to protect ourselves and to help protect others. Everyone has a role to play avoid this H1N1 from spreading.
Never mind the money that they would lose by closing schools and worry about putting money to help protect the people in this world.

Questions:
1)What harm will it be for the students if they do close down for schools for a few days?
2)Why is there a big concern for money when life is more important?

Humpback whales make a comeback

Humback whales have been endangerd for along time, people have harshly killed them for many reasons one being their blubber. As threatend species they have made a surprisingly made a remakable comback in the West cost of Canada. In the north pacific they have doubled in the last two years the amount of whale s is 20,000.

Jackie Hildering is a whale studier in Boughton Archipelago off trhe northcost of Vancouver Island. She has been watching the whales and noticed that over the past years she has never seen so many whales, she has seen over 50 whales. She also said that she is very happy to see the whales come back so fast and in a big amount.

Jay Barlow, a scientist with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration he has also been watching the whales and has seen the same thing as Jackie but he is questioning if the whales are going to last. He said they have manage to stay away from being hunted but know they have to deal with natural changes. Like the climate change that will change the temperature of the water that the whales may or may not be able to adapte to. Also with water changE that also affects the other animals so that could limite their food supplies.

For a long time people have been trying to protect the humpback whales and even though they have made a big comeback we just have to wait to see how long it last.


1) Do you think that the whales will stay for a long time or not?

2) Do you think the climate will have an affecte on the whales were it gets to the point whan they can no longer survive?





Emily Norris

NATURAL DISASTERS!!!!!!

A natural disaster is the effect of a natural hazard, that effects the enviroment and leads to financial, enciromelntal, and human losses. There are alot of different types of disasters, like earthquakes, volcanoes, hurricanes, etc. The largest canadian disaster was in 1998

Natural disasters are stuff that fear is made of.We can prepare for them, but we cant prevent them, we can anticpate them, but we cant accurately predict them. Natural disasters let us know that the planet is in charge.

I think that natural disasters cant be stopped, but if they could they should be.... natural disasters do no good to anyone, they harm people, their homes, land and so much more. I think its great how people are taking the time in raising money fot the disasters!!

I have a couple questions that i have that would be interesting to know....

1. If you were a natural disaster what kind of disaster would you be and why?

2.What would you do if you were in a situation that you had to prepare, what would be the first thing you bring, and where would you go?

Champagne Bubbles Liberate Flavor Compounds

A team of Europeans finds that the bubbles in
sparkling wine drag compounds that active smell
receptors to the surface of the sparkling wine and
then shoot them upward where a taster can easly
encounter them.
The thing is, when the bubble burst the consentrate surface
active compounds are thrown several cm into the headspace,
where they can meet a taster notril's.

1-What do you think about this article?
I think this is not very important compared with others articles but
in this article you have to think about it because is not that easy, how
to know about this, you have to think.

2-how did the smell cames out the drink?

A brain-boosting video game

WHAT IS IT ABOUT?
Three Canadian researches scanned the brains of fifteen teenagers girls (12-15 years) who play Tetris (a video game where you need to organize blocks).
After three months, their grey-matter (wrinkly misture of brain cells and blood vessels reponsible for processing information in the brain) was thicker and some of it was on the top of the brain.
After discovering that, the researches scanned brains of 11 year olds who didn't play and compared them. Turns out the grey-matter of the 11 year old wasn't thicker, because they weren't playing.
The researches didn't know if it was a good thing and if it is a positive thing for the brain.

WHAT DO I THINK ABOUT IT?
I really thought this article was pretty cool and very unusual. What caught my attention the most was the fact that girls played and where "studied", not boys.

QUESTIONS
1)So, I would like to know what you think about the article.
2)Do you think that, in a way, it desenvolves your brain?
3)Do you think it is a good thing or a bad thing?

By Fernanda P.

oil spills in the ocean

SUMMERY

I read an article today about oil spills and its effects. lots of oil spills are accruing around the world. lots of them are illegal dumpers. illegal dumpers are people who dump crude oil into the ocean because they do not want to spend money on decomposing their waste oil. But dumping oil in the ocean is illegal thats why they call them illegal dumpers.

THE EFFECTS OF OIL SPILLS

Oil spills have a big effect on the animals that live in the ocean. Like sea birds. when a sea bird gets oil on its body there is a very high chance of it dying. when it gets it on its feathers it trys to clean it off by eating it. once it gets into its body it becomes poisoned and will die. Another way is that it will get it in itss eyes and the bird will become blind. when its blind it is most likely going to be eaten because its not aware of its preditors.

THE LOCATIONS OF SOME OF THE WORLDS LARGEST OIL SPILLS

1983 the Persian gulf - 600,000 tons of oil spilled

1983 south Africa - 250,000 tons of oil spilled

1988 the Monongahela river - 3,800,000 tons of oil spilled

1993 off the Shetland island -26,000,000 tons of oil spilled

1996 off SW wales - 18,000,000 tons of oil spilled

2001 Galapagos island - 240,000 ton of oil spilled

WHAT I THOUGHT ABOUT THE ARTICLE

I personally thought that this article was very interesting. I never really thought about how much oil spills effect our oceans. I mean i saw commercials on TV where it shows birds covered in oil and people cleaning them off and where it shows a dead killer whale washed up on a beach covered in oil. I new that oil spills where bad but i never really payed any attention to it. This article made me realize how important it is to not dump oil in our oceans.

Navy Green: US.Navy Investigates Biofuels to Power Its Ships and Planes

Ships powered by algea and planes flying on weeds.?
This is a project the U.S navy hopes to bring to fruition in the near futur.

Summary
This week, the seagoing branch of the military purchased 40,000 gallons of jet fuel derived from camelina—a weedy relative of canola(this biofuel reduces carbon emissions by 80 percent compared with conventional kerosene)—and 20,055 gallons of algae-derived diesellike fuel for ships.

The three goals of this project are fuel security, something that is renewable, and
that they can produce and provide for themselves to reduce their reliance on foreign sources of oil. It also has to be cost-effective. Then, obviously, the environmental benefits that could potentially derive from that."

The Navy hopes to put the biofuels in active planes and ships in 2010 and 2011.As it stands, the Navy uses at least seven different types of petroleum-based fuel and burns nearly 35 million barrels per year.

The main problem this project has encountered so far is finding alternative fuels that will work in many different types of aircraft, ships, engines, boilers and turbines employed by the fighting force.They other thing is finding an alternative biofuel that does not compete in the food market such as ethanol which is derrived from corn.

I think this project is really cool because it consists on finding alternative fuels which are much better for our environment than our conventionnal fuels. The other thing is that theyre ussing fuels that wont have to compete in the food market like ethanol which is really good.

Questions

• In what other aspects of our every day life do you think these biofuels could be used in.?
• When thinking about these fuels how do you think they will be used in 100 years from now and for what purpose.?
• If this project were to succed and be fully deployed around the earth do you think ordinary fossil fuels will still be needed and why.?

WOW i never would have thought that you can make a pullet proof vest from silk!

Scientists are studying the strong and stretchy material in spiders, insects and even goats.

Summary

We have all seen spider webs – on the trails we walk on or in the corner of our bedrooms catching flies and other insects. Author Rachel Ehrenberg writes about the other known and possible uses of animal silk. The material insects use to spin webs or create cocoons is called silk.
Silk from insects like spider or silkworms is extremely strong and natural. Researchers are looking into ways to use natural silk for additional uses. Bulletproof vests and parachute cords are two possible ways. But the silk could also be used inside our body – to protect cells, like bone or nerve cells while they regrow and repair themselves.

Spider silk is so valuable that scientists are trying to find additional ways to produce it – like altering the DNA of a goad so that it produces silk proteins in it’s milk. I suppose that this would make it a lot easier to harvest than getting it from the spiders.

I think this is a really interesting topic – but I think I would be nervous to let them plant silk producing spider genes into my body no matter what the possible positives are!

Read the article and see what you think for yourself.

Discussion Questions:

1. Can you think of additional ways that strong and stretchy fibers could be used to help us on the outside of our body?
   
   
2. If the science was mastered – do you think you would use silk fibres to help your body from the inside? Say it could help repair a broken bone?

Writing an article summary.....

Here are some questions that might help you to when writing your article summary:

What are new words you have learned?
What is it about?
What do you think about it?

Who is it about?
Who is it for?
How is the story happening?
Who is it happening to?
Who is involved?
Who made the discovery?
Why is it important?
Who will it affect?

Blogging Assignment - 2009

The purpose of this assignment is two-fold: to have students research current scientific topics occurring in the media and, to create an environment wherein students can engage in a healthy discussion related to science.

Please Note – Participation in this assignment occurs on two levels.

Level One: Each week, TWO designated students will be responsible for choosing a scientific issue currently covered in the media (a list will be provided indicating each students designated date). After reading the article, the student will create a summary of the information presented and create TWO thought-provoking questions for the rest of the class.

On the blog, you will find links to numerous media sources for scientific information. You can use these sources, or identify your own, for your respective article.

Due Date: Your summary and questions are due on the Sunday, at 8:00pm of your specified week (please consult the schedule for details).

Level Two: Once the designated student has read the article, summarized the information, and posted the two questions, each remaining student in the class will be responsible for responding to or commenting on the questions.

You MUST comment at minimum ONCE each week. However, bonus marks may be given if you discuss and respond more frequently.