Lisneidy Castillo’s ePortfolio

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Annotated Bibliography

How did the wildfires affect climate change?

Introduction

Climate change has made many drastic changes our world within the last couple of years. From the wildfires in California to the rainforest in the Amazon and many other places in the world. The aftermath of the wildfires is spoken about briefly. To the vast majority not much information is given to make them understand how much the fires affect the people, animals, weather and temperatures people need to be made aware of these issues. While during this research, I found several sources to discuss on the effects of people, the effects on animals, effects on the weather and the effects on temperature.

Berwyn, Bob. “How Wildfires Can Affect Climate Change (and Vice Versa).” Inside Climate News, 7 Dec. 2020, insideclimatenews.org/news/23082018/extreme-wildfires-climate-change-global-warming-air-pollution-fire-management-black-carbon-co2.

According to Bob Berwyn in this article, wildfires account for 5 to 10% of yearly world CO2 emissions. While flames have become more severe in some areas, the overall burnt areas and emissions from wildfires have worsen universally over the last 20 years, according to Guido van der Werf, a Dutch researcher who studies trends for the Global Fire Emissions Database. Wildfires can have a significant impact on the climate as well as the CO2 emissions. According to Mark Parrington, a senior scientist at the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts, a rise in enormous flames, pushed at least in part by climate change, might disrupt the wildfire thermonuclear reaction.

When monitoring of the Copernicus Atmosphere Service more pieces of the wildfire-climate puzzle will fall into place once scientists examine data collected by a C-130 plane that makes daily travels near wildfires in the Western side of United States to collect precise information on wildfire emissions. An increasing body of evidence implies that wildfire smoke will add to the Arctic melting the ice in the foreseeable decades. Because the causes of fire are so near to the ice sheets, emissions from wildfires in Greenland or Sweden might greatly contribute to the burden of snow-darkening pollutants in the Arctic. Individuals can’t do much to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions caused by wildfires after the spark is set. With time running out to keep global warming below 1.5 degrees Celsius, every ton of CO2 counts, and understanding how catastrophic wildfire seasons are and how they impact greenhouse gas emissions informs individuals about how much it will have to decrease emissions in other places in the world.

According to Christine Wiedinmyer, associate science director of the Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences in Boulder, in Colorado, understanding how emissions arise throughout wildfires might aid in the making of mitigation techniques to lessen their effect. “Without very strong climate policy, industrial emissions are likely to triple in this century. Against that backdrop, the climate effects of increased wildfires are smaller than the error bars in the climate effects of all that coal, oil, and gas,” Wiedinmyer said. This was useful for writing this paper because of its relevant and resourceful information for my research.

Stone, Madeleine. “How Extreme Fire Weather Can Cool the Planet.” Environment, National Geographic, 6 Aug. 2021, www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/article/how-extreme-fire-weather-can-cool-the-planet.

Madeleine Stone in this article explains how dramatic heat generally leads to life-threatening wildfires, and this year is no exception, and with exceptional heat waves driving massive fire breakouts across the western sides of the United States and Canada, in addition to, throughout the Mediterranean and in Siberia. As well there may have been, further effects on the climate. Although these fires have caused dark harmful smoke in the atmosphere, Khaykin research explains that these dark clouds could cool down the climates warming. According to research headed by Khaykin and published in September, it described that the smoke dimmed the Earth’s surface for more than a few months, possibly the smoke generating an extra, yet minimal global cooling impact and an addition to the effect of cloud brightening. Furthermore, to creating a health hazard, a dense wildfire smoke near the ground sometimes blocks enough clear to lessen surface temperatures. Scientists have been measuring this impact since 1950 by associating temperatures on dense smoke days to temperatures predicted to come about in its absence. “The effect varies depending on how distant you are from the source, the size of the fire, and the amount of smoke pumped,” explains Robert Field, a research scientist at NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies. However, Field claims that when wildfire smoke is dense enough, “you may get a temporary 5 degree Celsius [9°F] cooling impact.” When compared to the public health effects of wildfire smoke, Field views these cooling effects as “episodic” and “almost an academic curiosity.” However, in stones article states, that a new study on the 2019-2020 Australian bushfire season suggests another, wildfire smoke might chill the Earth’s surface.

Nagesh, Ashitha. “What about the Animals Caught in the Amazon Rainforest Fires?” BBC News, 29 Aug. 2019,www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-49497857

Ashitha Nagesh wrote in this article about how the Amazon is said to be home to three million different plants and animal species, accounting for one-tenth of all species on the planet. Since 2010, it has been one of the worst cases for Amazon fires. At the time this article was written, Brazil’s space agency Inpe reported that almost 85,000 fires, had erupted in the Amazon jungle. Large creatures, such as jaguars, have the better chance of escaping since they can sprint fast enough to escape the fire in time. The first stage is to flee the fire, as Dr Alex Lees of Manchester Metropolitan University BBC News, informs that these creatures’ prospects of survival remain slim. When flames rage in a rainforest, such as the Amazon, they burn down a tremendous amount of trees that the forest’s canopy is pierced. Despite the fact that these creatures may at first flee the fires by taking safety beneath, According to Dr. Mark Bowler, an ecologist at the University of Suffolk, the rivers, and lakes in which they inhabit will turn out to be disrupted. Many others who rely on the forest for a living will also lose their jobs as a result of the flames. Many of the creatures hunted down by these groups, such as tortoises and capybaras, are low to the ground are expected to have died in the flames, according to Nasgesh. Attempting to hunt a small number of surviving animals is nearly difficult since the ground is too raucous for hunters to travel through the forest soundlessly.

Gonzaga, Diego. “Fires Are Raging in the Amazon-Again.” Greenpeace International, 22 July 2020, www.greenpeace.org/international/story/44159/fires-brazil-bolsonaro-amazon-deforestation-2020/.

Diego Gonzaga writes in this article about the wildfires in Brazil back in 2019. He stated that more than 1 million hectares of the forest were burned, but it was believed it was much more. The destruction of the wildfire was horrendous, losing the forest put the biodiversity at risk to extinction and harming the many lives of the people such as certain indigenous tribes who lived in the rainforest and who depend on their living from the rainforest. Diego Gonzaga process to talk about how the indigenous people who live in the rainforest, these groups of people health’s has been more at risk because of COVID-19 and as well as the smokes they inhaled at some point though out the fires. The smoke from the fires have aggravate their respiratory system at a time when they need it the most and when access to medical help has been restricted in isolated sections of the Amazon. Diego explains to fully maintain the forest and its peoples, the Brazilian leadership must adequately support environmental societies, strengthen environmental laws, in addition to defend Indigenous Peoples’ rights. He believes we should demand that governments and corporations stop doing business with forest killers and instead invest in and promote resilient economies that prioritize environment and people.

Conclusion

            There have been many critical effects because of the wildfires. The forests burns produce carbon dioxide and other global warming emissions, that make the climate change worst. If more of the land is charred by wildfires, greenhouse gas emissions will increase warm the air and generating rising seas, storm outpourings and ice sheets melting. I believe this research is important because not many people nowadays pay attention to all different types of new information such as one like I have researched, everyday new information slips through the cracks specifically about environmental issues because people are not interest but they should worry because we do not have a lot of time on this earth if our plane keeps getting warmer and cause more global catastrophes. This could inform a much other old audience such as people in their twenties and thirty’s who can do something to help our environment and encourage and educate others about this kind of information and tragedies that are going on in the world. We only have till couple of years to help the earth survive but if we begin now to try to improve and attempt to educate ourselves on how to save it or make it better, for the animals, nature such the forest, lakes, and oceans and ourselves. We can help to preserve the earth lifespan for a while longer. In all of the sources I have provided, explains what happens to our environment and how can many be affected by the wildfires and how it affects the animal in the forest, in their living spaces and the health of humans which is something we should pay attention to and be aware of.  

Bilingual Education

 To begin, a bilingual person is someone who can speak two languages or more. Most bilingual people grew up listening to their parents speaking in their native tongue, but when they went to school, they learned another language because it was the language spoken in the environment, they were in. For example, when I was growing up at home, I could recognize that my main language was Spanish and at school it was English. In many ways being bilingual has been a blessing and a curse. I learned about the ways that being bilingual could help me in different areas in my life like getting more job opportunities and more money. In elementary school, learning to read and write in English was not easy. Coming from another country and getting adjusted to a new language wasn’t the simplest thing because I had to slowly remove definitions of words that I had already known from Spanish to English. It was like removing my right arm and replacing it with a new one. It felt like it was completely unnecessary, and it was confusing.

                  Growing up, it was hard to communicate with others. As a result, to this I felt alone. As I entered the second grade, as an ESL student, there were times I would get pulled out of class to take tests to see if my English was getting any better. Teachers would get frustrated with me when I didn’t understand them, they repeated things to me over and over as if telling me one more time would make me comprehend. This put an insane amount of pressure on my shoulders. What was most difficult was reading, I was always at a level below my current grade level from elementary through middle school and seeing that my classmates were always ahead of me created a feeling of anxiety. If a teacher had asked me to read three paragraphs out loud in class I would say, “Can you skip to someone else?”it wasn’t that I lack knowledge and couldn’t read; it was more personal insecurities such as pronunciation, speed, and accent. I believe these thoughts occur to many students who are bilingual because in school no one makes us aware that it is perfectly fine if the way we speak isn’t flawless because overall the English language to many people can be a very confusing language.

In the seventh grade, my school made all the students take a test on reading and writing. This test determined if students would need to join an after-school reading program. I was chosen for the program; I was hesitant, and I wasn’t happy about it, but it was mandatory. As I went to the after-school program every day I slowly warmed up to the idea. Every day we practiced our reading skills and strategies. Not only did we read but we also wrote in journals to better out our writing skills. The after-school group became a safe space to read and write for me, no one was disrespectful or rude to each other. We all knew why we were there, and it was to get better. I think the program made me more confident in myself and in my capabilities. It also stopped me from questioning myself and what I was able to do.

As I kept going to school, entering high-school and then college I had realize that I was slowly forgetting how to speak in Spanish. To some people this would be surprising but for me, it is a disappointment. I think for some time I couldn’t communicate with my family fully in Spanish as much as I wanted to. I couldn’t replace the sentences I spoke in my mind in English, and I couldn’t seem to translate them. The only way I could speak to them was in broken Spanish or Spanglish. I felt completely ashamed of myself, I thought how was it possible that I could forget my native language that was spoken from a place I was so proud to come from. I asked myself was this my fault for not putting an interest to keep learning? Or was this my parent’s fault for relying on the school to teach me how to read and write in English and neglect a language that didn’t seem important to my education but is important to who I am. I believe students who come from a different country to immigrate to this country at a young age, they should be able to learn both English and the language which they came from. It would be such a great benefit to students if schools could teach us how to read and write in their primary language as well in English because many experts say that it improves problem-solving, critical thinking, and listening abilities, as well as memory, focus, and our capacity to multitask. Children who are fluent in another language increased creativity and mental flexibility.

 Being bilingual can be a struggle but having the ability can give me more opportunities and can be of immense help to my future. For example, many job employers may look for employees that speak more than one language to help communicate with people who don’t know English and I could earn more money. For instance, in my future career as a dental hygienist, depending in the area of New York that I choose to do my residency there is a possibility that there will be patients that speak in Spanish and only understand Spanish and will need to be communicated information about their oral hygiene in Spanish. As you can see the use of being bilingual is very important, because it helps us communicate with those who need it and creates comfortability in our communities to those who don’t understand.

To conclude, our education is such an important part of our lives and being able to read and write is completely essential to our development. As we are able to start the journey to become extraordinary people and learn so much about language as it can help communicate with one other and helps us to succeed in life. We should never forget our mother tongue. It is key that we keep teaching ourselves and our future children where do they come from and the language that they speak and also to enhance their knowledge of their culture heritage.

Hello me from the end-of-the-semester, 

I’ve hoped this semester you have pushed yourself to be your best self this semester. Yes, I know you have struggled and lost a lot of sleep but you know that was worth it. I hope that this semester you have stopped being afraid to ask for help and that you contacted the writing center for your essays. I’d hope you have done your work on time or even done some work ahead, to help you stay on track and become less stressed. I believe this semester a struggle you may have phased is staying focused and time management. There also might have been different things that you need to prioritize as not important or could have been done later but I know you learned your lesson and you will know how to prioritize your schoolwork. Another struggle you may have phased is your writing and when writing essays let’s just say you are not the greatest but I hope that you have built confidence in your writing because I believe that you are willing and able to write ” college worth level essays”. With all that being said, I hope you did your best.

My writing abilities were very dull at the start of the course, but they required some polishing. I was always adept at gathering facts and setting the groundwork. Along with that, I’ve always found writing to be uncomplicated after I’ve established a solid foundation. However, when the semester started, it became clear to me that I required more practice and knowledge on reading and writing, which I lacked on. My reading and writing needed to be improved, but it wasn’t difficult to do. To begin with this semester, it was a lot more difficult than last semester as for time management, I became more focus on external duties then on my school work. I do really regret not using the writing center during this semester, the writing center could have probably and would have made the assignments and work a little bit easier to understand or a little lighter. But I think that with Professor Cipriani feedback when it came to big assignments, it helped me and gave me more clarity on what I should when revising my assignments to make them better. Specially for my Educational Narrative, I couldn’t really understand the assignment in general as much is I read it over and over it really did not make any sense. This reminded me of when I wrote “they repeated things to me over and over as if telling me one more time would make me comprehend.” (Educational narrative) But as read the requires and search examples of educational narratives, I understood the concept of an educational narrative and I was ready to write and go down my memory lane.

I could say my first submission of my educational narrative was a “Shitty First Drift” as the author quoted “the first draft is the child’s draft” (Shitty First Drift by Anne Lamott) meaning that it not perfect or it won’t make any sense. And my work was exactly that, I knew that I had to go back and rearrange paragraphs and delete, a lot to make sure that my ideas were clear and to make sure show that the memories in my educational journey was in order from begin to end. As well as, when conducting research during the drafting process of Unit 2 Annotated Bibliography help understand that need to make some major changes on the order and logic when it came down to working my annotated bibliography. The changes helped me by identifying mistakes in my reasoning and focusing on my research and also to sources that would help clarify my thesis more. My rewriting process was heavily influenced by the professor. Revision is important in the process of developing and finding arguments because, when I revise based on feedback, some arguments must be reworked for the reader to comprehend the reason I wanted to write the paper. Revisions also allowed me to concentrate on the flow of my writing and whether or not all of my sources complied and my reasonings made sense and complement one another. In order to make my paper as sound professional and be as orderly as possible, I have learnt to look through my essays numerous times therefore I can identify any mistakes, even grammatical ones.

Toolwire was a great benefit this for me semester using this program to learn about grammar, how to structure our sentence. As well as learning about the writing process and knowing to recognize a great thesis statement or learning how to make one. I also learned how to create strong positions when writing a thesis statement. Toolwire helped me understand the different types of sentences such as simple sentences, compound sentences and complex sentences. I believe that one form of sentence that I was able to identify in one of my essays was a compound sentence. A compound sentence is when you have two or more independent clauses combined with a coordinating conjunction. For example, in my writing for my annotated bibliography was “We only have till a couple of years to help the earth survive but if we begin now to try to improve and attempt to educate ourselves on how to save it or make it better, for the animals, nature such the forest, lakes, and oceans and ourselves.”(Annotated Bibliography) I am able to identify that this sentence uses multiple commas and both a coordinating junction such as “and”. Furthermore, the Toolwire program is certainly essential to many college students like myself because as we continue to grow and our mind receive more and more information throughout the years we tend to forget certain crucial basic things when we write essays things such as remembering to capitalize in the begin of a sentence and this is something that we forget because we are so used to writing in a texting format where it does not matter how you write. But Toolwire also teaches us how to structure our sentences properly, to how to spell words properly, to structure our paragraphs when writing an essay to help us improve.

Overall, this course helped me become a more dedicated writer and reader. The begin of the semester in my time capsule I stated, “I hope that you have built confidence in your writing because I believe that you are willing and able to write “college worth level essays.””(Time Capsule) I think that have gotten better there is always more room the grow and learning now I understand and know what faults to look for and what topics to concentrate on when writing. I’ve recognized the importance of “less is more” so that I can filter out any extraneous and irrelevant material and concentrate more on what will directly get my idea through the reader. With my professor’s input, I was able to widen my thinking and look at other sides of my issue in order to acquire as much information as possible and create a more complete, correct, and structured in my essays. I am confident that the strategies I learned throughout this course, as well as the adjustments I have made, will help me. I believe I can use what I learned this semester in my writing in other situations such as in my future job as a dental hygienist when the job requires many types of written communication such as writing letters, correspondences and writing in clinical records this is how my writing experience will benefit me.

The topic I decide to do my research on is “wildfires” and it effects. I decided to work on this because within the last three to four years there have been many catastrophes in our country and other counties as well due to fires. At first, I didn’t know much information about this topic, to begin with, I only knew that the fires were occurring very frequently throughout the world which is something I could see on the news when they would show videos of the fires in California and how harmful these fires could be to humans and atmosphere.

In my research, I wanted to find more information on how do these fires affect our ecosystems and how they could affect our health’s as well as learning how can we prevent wildfires from happening because one of the many things you can notice when there is a wildfire, is the trees are all burned down and there are many animals that are burned with no homes or they are found dead also the skies are filled with smoke. I assumed that all of these issues harm our environment in different ways because as the smoke goes up in the air and pollutes the air, we breathe harming our lungs. If we could find ways to help or prevent these catastrophes from happening it would also help the issue of global warming.

The genre I chose to explain in detail was an infographic. In an infographic, you can show images or drawings to present short and clear information to communicate your ideas. I believed that this genre works for my intended audience because infographics are quick to read and people of the ages of twenties and thirty’s like to read things straight to the point this why an infographic works best for my research when writing the infographic minimizing the amount of information from my research a bit of a struggle but felt it worked best to explain the information I found.