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Post by Ms. English on May 30, 2023 7:52:43 GMT -5
Post your answers to the discussion question here. Make sure to read the responses of those posted before you and respond directly to them when appropriate before posting your own.
Looking further: Doing some research, think about light pollution and other ways in which humans have changed the planet we live on. Follow your thinking and see where it takes you: how does the way we have changed other things compare to this? Have we changed any things for the better? Is it our place to worry about the effect of the way we live? What will the planet look like in a hundred years? In a thousand?
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Post by Marley Mickel on Jun 29, 2023 22:28:36 GMT -5
The way we have changed things compared to what is in the essay “Our Vanishing Night” by Verlyn Klinkenborg is similar, from air pollution to deforestation; they all affect the animals' habitats and how animals live. We have improved things, but we are why issues like pollution happen. We try to lessen the amount of pollution, but we have not changed the Earth for the better; we have only done things that would benefit us instead of what would benefit the Earth. It is our place to worry about the effect on the way we live because we are the reason for the issues happening, and we should be the ones that try to fix it. In order to live on Earth, we must try to keep it healthy for us and other animals so ecosystems do not go extinct and make living harder for all species on Earth. In 100 years, with how much pollution we cause and deforestation, we could be looking at even more climate change, more extinct animals, and severe droughts. In 1000 years, we could be looking at not being able to live on Earth any longer because of how terrible the quality of life would be at that moment, with even worse effects from the pollution and lack of space if we are still overpopulating.
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Post by Arianna McCord on Jul 7, 2023 18:23:58 GMT -5
From the essay, I am able to see and feel that this situation is the same as many. Take global warming for example, yes it creates more extreme weather event, but it also creates a bigger likeliness to natural disasters like, hurricanes, tornadoes, etc. This not only affects us but also affects the wildlife around us. Another situation where we do something to benefit us while hurting others in the process. I do feel that us humans have done everything but change things for the better. We make the Earth worse and worse the more we roam the earth. I also feel that is out place to worry about the way we live since we are the reason we have to worry. If we were all more aware about what our actions are doing to the earth, we would have already tried to make a change to stop it. I feel that in at least a hundred years, the Earth will be filled with gases and environmental changes that won't be good for humans anymore. In a thousand years, I honestly think Earth will be on the definition of its last breath. At least for the livability of humans.
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Post by jordanpritchett on Jul 10, 2023 15:31:48 GMT -5
Like Arianna said before me, global warming is one of the more major ways humans have harmed (and are continuing to harm) the planet inconsiderably; however, I think that if people were more informed about what exactly companies, as well as the government, are doing, many of the harmful things could be put to a stop. For example, I think that if more Americans were informed about the massive consequences that the Willow project will have on the environment. These consequences could include a rapid increase in habitat loss, an increase in the already horrible light pollution, and will also expose plenty of wildlife to toxins that are typically life-threatening. However, I could not entirely say that being informed about the damage of an oil company would change everyone’s mind considering that it will create many jobs and also boost the economy. Why did people choose to stop caring about the vitality of the Earth over a system that could be thrown away or reformed?
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Post by elizabethb on Jul 18, 2023 10:16:43 GMT -5
Humans have changed the planet in so many ways many of which are irreversible, or very hard to fix. As I learned more about light pollution in this essay I realized how much of an issue it is. But, I also realized how simple it could be, just to start using less lights at night time. Granted, just me turning off a couple lights at night isn't going to do much, but what if even just 50% of the city did? How would that change the amount of light pollution and how would it help both humans rhythms and other creatures? As I thought about it more, I realized most people wont want to turn off lights because they are worried about what will happen in the dark. So, this is a lot bigger of a question than I think I can answer. What do you think?
To circle back to the actual question it is our place to worry about the effects of the way we live. We are responsible for the things we do and the impact we leave on the earth. Even though we won't be around in 100 years, others will be. If we keep brushing climate change under the rug it will get even harder to reverse. So, we need to be responsible and act on it now. I am scared for what the earth will look like in 100's or even 1,000's of years. Even if we can move to another planet like Mars, how will humans treat it? We can't just keep moving and ignoring the problem of climate change forever.
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Post by jirehm on Jul 18, 2023 15:58:09 GMT -5
In the essay “Our Vanishing Night” by Verlyn Klinkenborg he talks about how humans eyes adapted to living in the sun’s light and how we engineered the night by filling it with light. Adaption and evolution in humans are one of the main reasons why the planet has changed. The way we get energy by burning fossil fuels has changed the planet in one of the biggest ways. Burning fossil fuels has contributed to issues like global warming. That is leading to more server issues like the loss of species, food shortages, severe storms, and the loss of some ecosystems. Each one of the issues I listed leads to more issues which is a chain effect that humans are at the top of. Over the last couple of years, the effects of global warming have gotten worse we have come up with numerous solutions to reduce it. A solution is renewable energy. Renewable energy is one of the things they are trying to change for the better. Most people think it is too late to try to change the effects cause in order for the issues global warming has caused and global warming itself to stop we would have to stop using fossil fuels now, and with how much money companies make off of fossil fuels and how many things depend on it, it's not looking like we are going to completely stop using them anytime soon. What the planet will look like in a hundred or a thousand years is probably dead. By the time all the effects of global warming completely catches up to Earth, it will be very hard for anything on Earth to live.
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Post by Josi Sterenberg on Jul 19, 2023 13:43:58 GMT -5
Our vanishing night draws attention to the damaging effects that our modernized society can have on our natural life. From the beginning of time we have relied on light as a source of guidance, it often dictated the outcome of the day's activities. Now due to modern technology we can instead manipulate our source of light which can give us more freedom but can also obstruct the balance natural light gives us. Not only does artificial lighting affect our habits but also animals, in their migration,mating, and feeding. Artificial lighting, like any other form of climate manipulation, has dramatic effects on the natural climate, emissions from energy plants, home A/C and heating units, along with the effects of fertilizers and gmos in our foods. It is 100 percent our responsibility to ensure that we are minimizing our effect on the natural environment. Many people sacrifice the stability of our planet's ecosystems for their needs. And I will admit I do, its nearly impossible to not contribute to the damage in some way, simply because of the way our life is structured. There are small changes the average person can make but that only gets us so far. More importantly we need to encourage change on a higher level, as Klinkenborg discussed some of these changes are as simple as cutting down on the hours we have lights on, perfectly feasible changes like this are often proposed but shut down because of a loss of profit for already extremely wealthy people. If we continue down the path we are on, our planet will be unrecognizable in 100 years, mainly in our weather and ecosystems, temperatures will rise and natural disasters will be at an all time high. THis will lead to the need for more climate manipulation that will only make the negative effects worse, and the cycle continues.
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Post by Josi Sterenberg on Jul 19, 2023 14:13:13 GMT -5
Humans have changed the planet in so many ways many of which are irreversible, or very hard to fix. As I learned more about light pollution in this essay I realized how much of an issue it is. But, I also realized how simple it could be, just to start using less lights at night time. Granted, just me turning off a couple lights at night isn't going to do much, but what if even just 50% of the city did? How would that change the amount of light pollution and how would it help both humans rhythms and other creatures? As I thought about it more, I realized most people wont want to turn off lights because they are worried about what will happen in the dark. So, this is a lot bigger of a question than I think I can answer. What do you think? To circle back to the actual question it is our place to worry about the effects of the way we live. We are responsible for the things we do and the impact we leave on the earth. Even though we won't be around in 100 years, others will be. If we keep brushing climate change under the rug it will get even harder to reverse. So, we need to be responsible and act on it now. I am scared for what the earth will look like in 100's or even 1,000's of years. Even if we can move to another planet like Mars, how will humans treat it? We can't just keep moving and ignoring the problem of climate change forever. In response to your question about the fear of the dark, it is a multitude of these smaller issues that people are concerned with when we propose solutions to the climate crisis. There are definitely benefits to having more light, like you said there is often a sense of fear associated with the dark, and for good reason, light offers protection but at what cost? I think the biggest question when it comes to climate change action and just change in general is,¨is it worth it?¨That is what people disagree on the most. Big companies don´t want to change production methods because its not worth losing the profit. Average people don´t want to or simply cant get sustainable options because it may be greater in cost and sometimes less efficient in the moment. A lot of people believe it is impossible to make change and sometimes there are things that are difficult to give up or change but it all comes down to if you are willing to pick up the slack and that often times requires making a sacrifice which many people refuse to do. So who knows if we were to move to mars maybe it would be exactly the same, and in the mean time we seem to be able to create some change but like you said it still gets brushed under the rug and ignored, which will eventually be to our demise.
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Post by audratate on Jul 19, 2023 18:55:58 GMT -5
Humans have caused much devastation to Earth, we know the damage we have caused but we have not stopped what is causing the damage. Deforestation is a very big threat to our planet, we are cutting down vegetation and trees, that same trees that take in carbon dioxide, to build new homes and farms. This has led to habitat loss and increase in carbon dioxide levels. Deforestation, pollution, and loss of biodiversity has all increased the green house gas emissions, causing carbon dioxide levels to increase. Although humans have made positive changes, like wildlife protection areas and renewable energy, it is not enough to make up for the damage already caused. In a hundred and a thousand years, our planet will have more technological advancements but our planet will be even more damaged then now.
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Post by Andrew on Jul 26, 2023 11:11:21 GMT -5
The issue of light pollution that Klinkenborg writes about in "Our Vanishing night" can be compared to many other things in which humans have changed. Humans have drastically changed the world around us, and not for the better. We have cut down and destroyed entire ecosystems in the natural world, leaving many animals homeless. Although there are systems in place that try to enable balance back to nature, the damage we have done already is almost too much. I do feel as if it is our responsibility to acknowledge the way we live, because the effect of how we live is impacting everything we have. If we continue to live like we have for so long, our planet will eventually become uninhabitable, because of the things that we have done to the environment. We need to address these problems for not just ourselves, but the millions of other species that also inhabit the earth that suffer the consequences of our actions.
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Post by Leah Sparks on Jul 31, 2023 12:47:18 GMT -5
Over thousands of years, humans have changed many aspects of the Earth. As Klinkenborg wrote in "Our Vanishing Night," we have changed the amount of light pollution on the planet. This can be directly related to the increases in global warming. Light pollution adds excessive heat to the air, as well as increasing the carbon dioxide emissions to the atmosphere. Human life is the leading cause of all types of pollution and global warming but is also the only way to slow it. We have changed many things on our planet, but most are for the worse. We have caused the Earth to die slowly, so that we could continue to be selfish and take care of ourselves only, instead of taking care of our planet. If we had not been so concerned about ourselves, there would have been more time for us to help the planet. Because of us, Earth now faces an inevitable doom. In a hundred years from now, the planet will be in even worse shape, with more extinct species, overpopulation, deforestation, pollution, etc. Scientists will be scrambling to find a new planet for humans to live on. In a thousand years, humans could be extinct, or continue to destroy another planet in our solar system.
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sofia
New Member
Posts: 10
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Post by sofia on Aug 5, 2023 16:56:20 GMT -5
Humans have changed aspects of the natural Earth in many different ways that are similar to light pollution like habitat destruction, pollution from fossil fuels, wildlife extinction, and the overuse of natural resources. All of these issues are usually indirectly created from daily human activities, but directly impact wildlife and ecosystems around the world. It is extremely important for humans to worry about and understand the consequences that come with the actions that have been taken, as they are detrimental to the environment in the long run and will ultimately affect humans, too. In a hundred years, if no action is taken, there will be unprecedented loss of different species and habitats around the world. Sea levels will rise, the atmosphere will be dirtier, and the climate will be more extreme because of climate change. Life will most likely be different and harder because of these ecological changes compared to life in the present day. Even though humans have caused very negative effects to the Earth, there are still actions that can and will be taken to reverse the damage and allow for human life to peacefully coexist with life on the rest of the world.
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Post by margaretscavarda on Aug 7, 2023 12:49:43 GMT -5
Humans have changed our planet in many different ways. Humans are the cause of air and water pollution, deforestation, littering, and many others. All of these issues compare to the light pollution discussed in "Our Vanishing Night" by Verlyn Klinkenborg. Every problem I listed above not only affects the humans, who are the cause, but also the bio-, geo-, hydro-, and atmo-spheres. Everything having to do with Earth is affected by humans' actions. Although humans may have done things to help reverse some things we've caused, we certainly haven't ever made Earth better than it was before us. I believe it is 100% our place to worry about the effect of the way we live. Not only is it our fault we got into this mess, but if not us, who would worry about it?? The animals aren't going to help the situation and neither are the plants, water, or air going to do anything. Humans are responsible for the world's decline and therefore it is humans' responsibility to help fix it. In a hundred years there will be more endangered species, temperatures will warm, and water levels will rise in some areas and shrink in others. In a thousand years, there will be many extinct species, very hot temperatures, and many places that were previously land would now be covered in water.
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Post by Isabella Johnson on Aug 14, 2023 15:01:58 GMT -5
Humans have impacted our planet in many different ways. We cut down whole forests, cause other species to go extinct,and damage natural habitats by building city's and dams. All of these things have a major impact on the other animals living on this planet by taking away their homes and forcing them to adapt to out unnatural world like how Klinkenborg explain how some species of birds sing at unnatural hours because of the artificial light confusing their brains. Just because humans need the space for farming and housing doesn't mean we need to take away other animals'homes, forcing them to go extinct or live among the people in concrete cities. The forests are a very important part of our world, they purify our air and water and forests are home to more than three-quarters of the world's life on land. Deforestation is mainly caused by agriculture and illegal logging. Humans are selfishly destroying these beautiful habitat for our own use but what humans continue to ignore is how this will eventually effect us in the future. Without these huge forests our air quality will decline and with other human induced issues such as air pollution it will destroy the air that every living thing needs to survive. Humans are not only killing other living things but we are slowly killing ourselves. Everyone can have an impact on how we help or hurt out earth and it is our place to worry about how we affect the way we live. Little things people could do to not hurt the environment would be like using reusable containers instead of plastic ones, conserve water,pick up trash around your community, and eat sustainable foods and choose less meats. It might not stop global warming but it can help create a better environment and hopefully other people will notice and get a little more educated on how our world is affected by us.
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Question 5
Aug 15, 2023 12:03:49 GMT -5
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Post by cristianvargas on Aug 15, 2023 12:03:49 GMT -5
Humans have undeniably had a significant impact on the planet we live on, and this impact extends beyond light pollution. Through industrialization, urbanization, deforestation, overconsumption, and the release of greenhouse gases, we have altered ecosystems, accelerated climate change, and caused widespread species extinctions. Comparing the changes we have made, it is clear that some have had positive outcomes. For instance, advancements in medicine and technology have improved healthcare, increased life expectancy, and enhanced our ability to communicate and share knowledge. Efforts such as conservation initiatives, renewable energy development, and environmental awareness movements have also aimed at mitigating the negative effects of human activity. However, the extent to which we have changed the planet raises concerns about the sustainability of our actions. Human activities have led to biodiversity loss, habitat destruction, pollution, and resource depletion, threatening the delicate balance of ecosystems and the well-being of future generations.
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