My research will be on the Sumatran Tiger, an animal which is near extinction. This animal resides in Indonesia. It numbers are currently less than 600 and it is on the verge of going extinct. The Sumatran Tiger has lived in only Sumatra for the last million years, thus due to human expansion, its numbers have fallen as it is unable to escape to a new habitat. Most of the remaining Sumatran Tigers live in Reserves, and less than a hundred live outside of them. The Sumatran Tiger is the smallest breed of tiger in the world.
Sumatran Tigers live only in Sumatra. They reside in lowland forests, mountain forests and peat moss forests. They also venture to mountainous areas. The Sumatran Tigers prefer to hunt alone, and they only come together to mate. A male Sumatran Tiger’s territory can overlap many other female Sumatran Tiger’s territories, however it will never overlap another male’s. The Sumatran Tiger, like most other tigers, is carnivorous. Their diet ranges from small animals like fishes to birds, to big animals like wild boars and deer. The Sumatran Tiger shares its habitat with orangutans, wild boars, Sumatran Rhinos and Sumatran Elephants.
The way the Sumatran Tiger hunts is slow and patient. They usually stalk their prey from the dense jungle until they are close enough to spring. They try to attack their prey from the side or rear and rear. When the prey weighs more than the tiger, a throat bite is used and this causes the prey to die due to suffocation. They kill whatever they can catch, which includes the prey listed above.
Sumatra is an island in Western Indonesia. Sumatra supports a wide range of vegetation types which are home to a rich variety of species, including 17 endemic genera of plants. The island is home to 201 mammal species and 580 bird species. The species present include: Sumatran Tiger, Sumatran Orangutan, Sumatran Rhinoceros, Sumatran Elephant, Sumatran Striped Rabbit, Dhole, Dayak Fruit Bat, Malayan Tapir, Malayan Sun Bear and the Bornean Clouded Leopard. The island has lost 48% of its natural forest cover since 1985, and many of the remaining species are endangered. The Sumatran Tiger, Sumatran Rhino, and Sumatran Orangutan are all Critically Endangered, indicating that the highest level of threat to their survival. In October 2008, the Indonesian government announced a plan to protect Sumatra's remaining forests. However,
the construction of illegal roads through prime tiger habitat has continued since then by companies led by Asia Pulp & Paper, the pulp and paper company well known for illegal logging and breaching environmental law.
The whole point of a tiger's distinctive striped fur is so that it can hide itself in the forest. Such camouflage is vital for it to hunt its prey. Therefore, an important biotic factor is the forest itself. A tiger is likely to stand out like a sore thumb in, say, a Savannah. Its orange coating helps it blend in to the shadows provided by the forest it lives in. The trees, too, are biotic factors. Tigers tend to scratch trees in order to show dominance, and mark their territories, including spraying.
Tigers are nocturnal. They love to swim, and during hot summers, are known to take a dip in lakes and ponds. They live in both hot places and cold places. So they can adapt to a range of temperatures. These are their abiotic factors.
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
Saturday, August 20, 2011
Interesting Article : Vampires
Article found at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vampire
This is a blog post dedicated to vampires. Although the topic of vampires seems to have no connection with anything which has been taught in school ever, however I find this is not true. Vampires are mythological or folkloric beings who subsist by feeding on the life essence (generally in the form of blood) of living creatures, regardless of whether they are undead or a living person. Now look at it from this direction.
This table shows that technically, we can include vampires in a food chain. For example:
Sun -> Grass -> Cow -> Human -> Vampire
Therefore, this article about vampires shows me information about vampires which can be used to explain science.
This is a blog post dedicated to vampires. Although the topic of vampires seems to have no connection with anything which has been taught in school ever, however I find this is not true. Vampires are mythological or folkloric beings who subsist by feeding on the life essence (generally in the form of blood) of living creatures, regardless of whether they are undead or a living person. Now look at it from this direction.
Creature 1 | Creature 2 | Relationship | Scientific Name of Relationship |
Vampire | Human | + - | Predation |
Vampire | Subjugate (Vampire Slaves who get rewards such as immortality) | ++ | Mutualism |
Vampire Killer | Vampire | +- | ??? |
Mommy Vampire | Daddy Vampire | BABIES | BABIES |
This table shows that technically, we can include vampires in a food chain. For example:
Sun -> Grass -> Cow -> Human -> Vampire
Therefore, this article about vampires shows me information about vampires which can be used to explain science.
Thursday, July 21, 2011
Documentary Review: Our Ancesters
This is a reflection of a documentary I have watched about humans before we us, or our ancestors . The documentary is very interesting and it shows how we found what our ancestors were like in terms of physical appearance and biologically. It shows us how scientist came to know about how humans were like physically before this period.
The documentary begins with a person finding bones in 1856. They were found by a man in a cave in Germany. The man found bones, which included a skull which did not look like an animal's or and human's, and it had a big nose. It was called the Neanderthal(40000 years). Its height was 5ft 5 in, weight 175 lbs, brain size 1400cc, and it dwelled in caves. The Neanderthal was very buff and strong, and it lived on meat which it obtained through hunting. It had a keen sense of smell, which allowed it to tell animals apart by their droppings. At that moment it seemed like man had evolved from this creature, and it was thought man evolved from apes, but in actual fact they did not.
The scientist then expanded their search from Europe to South East Asia. The search was known as the 'missing league'. A man even sacrificed his job in Sumatra to search for the 'missing league', however it failed. Another search was conducted in 1891. More skulls which looked like that of apes but were not were found. These skulls were that of the Java man, or Homo Eructus. They were around 6ft tall, weighed 165lbs, brain size 900cc and they dwelled in rock shelters. They also fed on meat. They had lesser hair all over their bodies, and had more sweat glands.
The scientists then began to change their search focus to Europe again, this time Britain. They found more and more skulls and finally managed to come up with a perfect model of the human ape skull. After that, they changed back their focus to South Africa, Johannesburg. Their search was fruitful, and they yielded a brain filled with fossilized sand. It was known as Tuang. Its height was 3ft 6 in, weighed 75lbs, brain size 440cc, and it dwelled in the Savannah.
After that, they then went to the Valley in Ethopia in search for the earliest human ancestors. They found nothing, and wanted to stop but decided to go to another part of Ethopia to search. After awhile, they found a fossilized arm bone, and that was the end of the documentary.
I found the document very interesting and it teaches me about how humans came to be about. It shows how science is used to deduce that the bones were that of the Neanderthal and the Java Man. It is also a bit of history as I know about the pass. Humans are continuously finding out about new things about ourselves every day.
The documentary begins with a person finding bones in 1856. They were found by a man in a cave in Germany. The man found bones, which included a skull which did not look like an animal's or and human's, and it had a big nose. It was called the Neanderthal(40000 years). Its height was 5ft 5 in, weight 175 lbs, brain size 1400cc, and it dwelled in caves. The Neanderthal was very buff and strong, and it lived on meat which it obtained through hunting. It had a keen sense of smell, which allowed it to tell animals apart by their droppings. At that moment it seemed like man had evolved from this creature, and it was thought man evolved from apes, but in actual fact they did not.
The scientist then expanded their search from Europe to South East Asia. The search was known as the 'missing league'. A man even sacrificed his job in Sumatra to search for the 'missing league', however it failed. Another search was conducted in 1891. More skulls which looked like that of apes but were not were found. These skulls were that of the Java man, or Homo Eructus. They were around 6ft tall, weighed 165lbs, brain size 900cc and they dwelled in rock shelters. They also fed on meat. They had lesser hair all over their bodies, and had more sweat glands.
The scientists then began to change their search focus to Europe again, this time Britain. They found more and more skulls and finally managed to come up with a perfect model of the human ape skull. After that, they changed back their focus to South Africa, Johannesburg. Their search was fruitful, and they yielded a brain filled with fossilized sand. It was known as Tuang. Its height was 3ft 6 in, weighed 75lbs, brain size 440cc, and it dwelled in the Savannah.
After that, they then went to the Valley in Ethopia in search for the earliest human ancestors. They found nothing, and wanted to stop but decided to go to another part of Ethopia to search. After awhile, they found a fossilized arm bone, and that was the end of the documentary.
I found the document very interesting and it teaches me about how humans came to be about. It shows how science is used to deduce that the bones were that of the Neanderthal and the Java Man. It is also a bit of history as I know about the pass. Humans are continuously finding out about new things about ourselves every day.
Sunday, June 5, 2011
Term 2 Reflections
This term, I am quite pleased with my science results. From an F9 in term1, I have successfully managed to claw my way back into a decent result of B4 for science. I will continue to strive for excellence in the following terms. In term 2, the topics covered were writing chemical equations and a bit of physics in the aspect of light. Although my chemistry is not exactly my strongest subject (F9 in term1) however I managed to score quite decently in it and not flunk it like I did in term1. I could say I did well but not up to my previous expectations however that would be lying. I hope that in the coming terms I will be able to continue pulling myself up to score better for science and make my MSG drop as fast as a comet flying down from space. I am hoping to get an A1 for term3 and I will work towards my goal, 1 step at a time.
Wednesday, May 18, 2011
Intersting Article : H1N1
Article is at: http://www.virology.ws/2009/04/30/structure-of-influenza-virus/This is an article about the H1N1 virus. It talks about some facts about the virus, its shape and the way it should look like under a telescope. The infectious particle is roughly spherical. It is an enveloped virus – that is, the outer layer is a lipid membrane which is taken from the host cell in which the virus multiplies. Inside the lipid membrane are ‘spikes’, which are proteins which according to the website are known as glycoproteins. Beneath something known as the lipid membrane is a viral protein called M1, or matrix protein. The matrix protein forms a shell, which gives strength and rigidity to the something known as the lipid envelope.Inside something known as a viron, the thing that determines the genetic material of the virus, known as RNA, codes the virus. For the H1N1 virus, there are 8 RNAs, and each connect to several proteins, as shown from the diagram.
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