Name: Period: Date: Change, Biodiversity, & Health · 222 Change, Biodiversity and Health, HASPI MS Medical Life Science Lab 06 The amount, way they are utilized, or form in which

Change, Biodiversity and Health, HASPI MS Medical Life Science Lab 06 221

Change, Biodiversity, & Health HASPI MS Medical Life Science Lab 06 MS-LS2-4, MS-LS2-5 Introduction

Ecosystems Provide the Necessities of Life Ecosystems include all the living and non-living things in an environment. Living things like plants, animals, and microorganisms are referred to as the biotic factors in an ecosystem. Non-living things, on the other hand, like the weather, sunlight, soil, climate, and atmosphere are referred to as the abiotic factors in an ecosystem. As ecosystems fluctuate over time, biotic members depend greatly on abiotic factors and vice versa.

Every living organism on earth needs a few basic things to survive: sunlight, water, air, and food. Sunlight is the most important abiotic need for all living organisms because it is the source of all energy, heat and light. All plants use sunlight directly to make food in the form of sugars in a process called photosynthesis and store them in their leaves. This energy then becomes available to other animals that eat the leaves. Small animals and microorganisms at the bottom of the ocean and beneath the soil even benefit from sunlight when they are not exposed. They feed on fallen organic matter like dead plants or animals that contain energy that was first produced by the sun.

Water is another abiotic need that all living organisms depend on. Water may be consumed by living things, or may provide a habitat for them. Plants need water to carry out the process of photosynthesis and animals need water to carry out cell activity. For humans, water is essential, not only because it makes up about two thirds of our bodies, but because it is important for dissolving many important nutrients and chemical compounds that we need.

The air that makes up the Earth’s atmosphere is a mixture of important gases such as oxygen, carbon dioxide and nitrogen. Plants use carbon dioxide, together with sunlight and water, in photosynthesis and give out oxygen as a by-product. Oxygen is what almost all animals need for respiration to occur. Animals like humans breathe in oxygen and breathe out carbon dioxide. The gases in the atmosphere can also dissolve in water and penetrate soil. Fish absorb oxygen from water with their gills and without soil aeration decomposers cannot break down organic matter. Moving air, or wind, is also important for many plants to pollinate and reproduce.

All living organisms on Earth need nutrients in order to maintain health and grow. Food comes in many different forms as plants and animals have special organs or parts that absorb the nutrients from what they eat. Plants are able to produce their own food using the energy from sunlight, but still need the nutrients in the soil. When living things die and decompose in the ground, the nutrients in them end up in the soil where they can be taken up by the roots of plants. Animals get their nutrients from eating plants and bigger animals often feed on smaller animals.

Name: ______________________________________ Period: ____________ Date: _____________

http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/asiapcf/10/17/biodiversity.un.summit.briefing/


The amount, way they are utilized, or form in which sunlight, water, air, and food are needed vary from organism to organism. For instance, the amount of water a lion needs to survive in an African savannah is not the same amount of water a tree in a tropical rainforest needs. Food sources are different from organism to organism and the amount of sunlight a fern needs to grow may be far less than the amount needed by a dandelion. Even ideal living temperatures vary between species. Some environments are too cold for some plants and animals that are adapted for cold temperatures would perish in warm temperatures. Such variety in needs allows for an abundant amount of life to thrive in many different environments around the globe. This is referred to as biodiversity.

Biodiversity Provides Many Services The health of any given ecosystem depends on its biodiversity. With a rich assortment of life, ecosystems have a stronger ability to thrive as biodiversity provides a number of natural services. Plants and trees provide habitats for animals, birds, marine life, fungi, other plants and microorganism, which in turn are important in recycling organic matter and keeping soils healthy and fertile.

Vegetation provides the world with air to breath by converting carbon dioxide to oxygen and is an important part of providing fresh drinking water. Some vegetation also provides resistance against flooding and tropical storms by acting as a buffer or stabilizer on land.

The complex food webs between species allows for natural population control and for the transfer of energy. Specific species like bees, insects, and birds actually help to enhance biodiversity by pollinating plants and spreading seeds.

Biodiversity also provides a number of benefits specific to the human population. The animals we raise and crops we grow for consumption, lumber we use to build our homes, and even the plants we use to create products like clothes and medicine are all provided for by the biodiversity of life on Earth. Many professionals even credit biodiversity with boosting economies as the production and trade of many products and services have origins that trace back to the abundance of life on earth.

Threats to Biodiversity Unfortunately the loss of biodiversity is on the rise. What is more alarming is that the main causes of the loss of biodiversity can be attributed to the influence of human beings on the world’s ecosystems. The following outline the main threats to biodiversity:

• Habitat Loss and Fragmentation – This is considered by many scientists to be the primary cause of biodiversity loss. The clearance of native vegetation for housing, timber, agriculture and industry, draining of wetlands, and flooding of valleys to form reservoirs by humans destroys these habitats and all the organisms in them. This can also cause remaining habitats to become fragmented and make it hard for organisms to thrive.

http://www.thecropsite.com/focus/5m/53/biodiversity-protecting-the-natural-world-importance


• Invasive Species – When a species is introduced to an environment that it does not normally exist in, whether or purpose or accidentally, it is considered an invasive species. These non-native species can cause severe problem in an ecosystem as they disrupt natural food webs. Biologists claim invasive species are the second greatest threat to biodiversity worldwide, and expect problems to get worse with an increase in global trade and tourism.

• Pollution – Any chemical in the wrong place or in the wrong concentration can be considered a pollutant. Human transport, construction, industry, construction, extraction, and power generation all contribute to air, land, and water pollution. Chemicals released into the environment can directly affect biodiversity or lead to chemical imbalances in the environment that ultimately kill individuals, species, and habitats.

• Climate Change – The release of greenhouse gases as a result of the burning of fossil fuels has created a trend of increasing average global temperature. This change in climate can lead to a change in abundance and distribution of living organisms around the globe. Evidence shows a rise in sea levels causing problems to many coastal ecosystems and more frequent, unpredictable and extreme natural hazard events.

• Over Exploitation – Examples of human

exploitation of biodiversity include overfishing and over hunting for food, clearing of forests for lumber, trading exotic animals and plants for pleasure, and hunting exotic animals for fur and jewelry. Removal of any species can disrupt the balance of an ecosystem and harm other species.

• Human Population Growth –The human population has put a tremendous amount of stress on Earth’s natural resources. As the population continues to grow at an exponential rate, so too will its needs.

Review Questions

1. What is the difference between biotic and abiotic factors? 2. What are the four main things all living organisms on Earth need to survive? 3. Explain how microorganisms at the bottom of the ocean and beneath the soil rely on sunlight,

even though they are not directly exposed to it. 4. The gases in the atmosphere can also _________________________ and

______________________. 5. How do plants “eat food”? 6. Define biodiversity. List the benefits that biodiversity provides. 7. What is the main cause of loss of biodiversity? 8. Habitat loss and fragmentation is considered by many scientists to be the primary cause of

biodiversity. For what reason are humans destroying natural habitats? 9. What is an invasive species and how does it affect biodiversity? 10. Provide examples for human exploitation.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-05-08/climate-change-will-impact-nutrition-levels/5440224


Change, Biodiversity, & Health, HASPI MS Medical Life Science Lab 06 225

Effects of Soil Contamination HASPI MS Medical Life Science Lab 06a Introduction

Soil is considered the “skin of the Earth” and provides a number of valuable functions for life on this planet. Soil supports the growth of a variety of plants, animals, and microorganisms by providing a diverse physical, chemical, and biological habitat. It plays an important role in the global cycles of carbon, water, nitrogen, phosphorous, and other nutrients and elements that have the ability to absorb, break down, filter and immobilize contaminants, both natural and man-made, from water supplies and the air. Soil is also absolutely essential to the survival of all plants and animals on Earth as it plays an important role in regulating Earth’s water supplies.

Soil degradation refers to the processes that hinder the capacity for land to carry out its function, resulting in a loss or change in

vegetation. Soil degradation can be caused by a number of factors, both natural and human caused processes including, but not limited to:

• Rising global temperatures

• Drought • Wind erosion • Flash floods

• Wild fires • Overgrazing • Deforestation • Fertilizer use • Pesticide use

• Roads and building construction

• Vehicle off-roading • Water use • Soil contamination

Any chemical in the wrong place or in the wrong concentration can be considered a pollutant. Contamination of soil can come in many different forms and can not only have drastic effects on the physical composition of soil, but can greatly impact the livelihood of the living organisms in it. Common pollutants include:

• Chemicals, heavy metals, and other pollutants from electronic waste or that leak from industrial factories can be toxic to living organisms in the soil.

• Acid rain caused by air pollution can have drastic effects on soil pH, greatly altering the livelihood of organisms in it and disruption chemical processes between minerals.

• Dumping of non-biodegradable material like rubber, Styrofoam, and plastic that cannot be broken down by the air, moisture, or microorganisms in the soil, drastically reducing the space available for microorganisms and plants to thrive.

• Accident spills and oil and fuel dumping can greatly alter the physical composition of soil, and create a physical barrier between nutrients and living organisms.

In this activity you and your partners will design an experiment that shows the effects of certain soil contaminants on plant growth. You will be planting grass seeds in different soil conditions and growing them over the course of a few weeks to collect quantitative data.

Name: ______________________________________ Period: ____________ Date: _____________

http://www.pollutionissues.com/Re-Sy/Soil-Pollution.html


Materials

Grass seeds Plant soil Water Plastic cups

pH paper Graduated cylinder Digital Scale Paper towels

Magnifying glass Vinegar Vegetable oil Laundry detergent

Salt Trash pieces

Directions

Task Response

1 Your task is to design an experiment to demonstrate the impact of different concentrations of a substance on the growth of grass seeds. You will have one class period to design and setup your experiment and grow your samples over the next few weeks.

2

The following test solutions represent a certain type of soil contaminant. Select one of the following test solutions that you and your group members would like to use in your experiment and record it in the space provided to the right. • Vinegar – test for the effects acidity/pH • Vegetable Oil – test for the effects of accidental oil spills • Salt – test for the effects of changes in soil salinity • Trash Scraps – test for the effects of trash pollution • Detergent – test for the effects of accidental chemical spills

*NO MORE THAN 10 ml total of any substance can be used

Test Solution:

3

In designing your experiment, you will need to follow these guidelines: • Check availability of supplies and create a supply list with specific amounts. • Create a DETAILED step-by-step set of instructions to follow • Identify all variables in your experiment (dependent, independent, and controls) • Test at least 3 different concentrations of your test solution • Determine how you will observe plant growth and collect data throughout your experiment (i.e.

mass, pH, number of sprouts, height, physical appearance, etc.) You will be given a brief amount of time every day for the next two weeks to make observations and collect data.

• Create a data table that summarizes your results.

Use the “Designing the Experiment” graphic organizer to design your experiment. You will need to have it checked by your teacher before being given supplies to start your experiment.

4 After your teacher checks your “Designing the Experiment” graphic organizer, collect you materials and start your experiment. Check with your teacher for the section of the classroom that is designated to allow your grass to grow. You will be given a short amount of time every class period for the next two weeks to collect data and make observations.


Designing the Experiment What is the purpose of this

experiment? Supplies Needed Identify Your Variables

Independent Variable:

Dependent Variable:

Controlled Variables: List ALL variables that need to be controlled during your experiment

Experimental Steps:

Be very detailed in explaining each

step and be sure to include specific measurements.


Draw a picture of your

experimental setup:

How will you make your

observations? What will you be

measuring? How will you quantify the

effectiveness of the test solutions?


Create a data table where

your results will be recordered.

Make a Hypothesis:

What do you expect to happen during your experiment?


Analysis Questions

1. What was the purpose of your experiment? Did the experiment you designed meet your purpose? Explain how.

2. What are the results of your experiment? • Were there any trends in your data? • What might explain these trends? • Does your data support your hypothesis or does your experiment need to be modified? • Did you collect enough data? • Do your results seem reasonable?

3. It is okay if your experiment does not work. What changes, if any, are needed in your experimental design?

4. Why is it important to have controls? 5. What variables could have affected your experimental results? 6. Conclusion: In 1-2 paragraphs, summarize the procedures and results of the lab you designed.


Biodiversity & Health HASPI MS Medical Life Science Lab 06b Introduction Human health ultimately depends on products and services provided by the ecosystems in which we live as our wellbeing is subject to the availability of fresh water, food, and fuel sources. Loss in biodiversity can have significant direct human health impacts if ecosystems can no longer provide for social needs.

Nutrition in particular is greatly affected by biodiversity as biodiversity ensures the productivity of soils and provides the genetic resources for all crops, domesticated livestock, and aquatic species harvested for food. The importance of biodiversity on human nutrition can be exemplified by the Irish Potato Famine that occurred between 1845 and 1852.

In order to support a growing population in the 1800s, Ireland depended greatly on growing and harvesting potatoes, which is a vegetable rich in carbohydrates, minerals, and vitamins such as riboflavin, niacin, and Vitamin C. Potatoes, specifically “lumper” potatoes in this case, can be propagated through vegetative reproduction, which is a form of asexual reproduction that requires no seeds or spores. This meant that the lumper potatoes that were planted in Ireland during the 1800s were almost genetically identical. This lack of genetic diversity is what set the stage for the Irish Potato famine.

Potatoes were all susceptible to a strain of fungus-like bacteria, Phytophthora infestans, that causes blight, a disease that causes infected potato plants to turn into an inedible, black slime. Because all lumper potatoes were almost genetically identical, the disease spread like wildfire, leaving the Irish people with a tremendous shortage of potatoes. Since Ireland was so dependent on the potato, nearly one in eight Irish people died of starvation over a six-year period. Although famine had many causes, the disaster would not have been so drastic had there been more genetic variety in the crops planted. Had there been other vegetables

planted, or even potatoes that did not have the same genetic makeup, some plants with the right genes would have made it through the epidemic and more crops resistant to P. infestans could have been planted to support the Irish population. In this activity you and your classmates will demonstrate the impact on biodiversity during the spread of disease.

Name: ______________________________________ Period: ____________ Date: _____________

https://bonesdontlie.files.wordpress.com/2012/04/080808-irish-potato-famine.jpg

http://evolution.berkeley.edu/evolibrary/article/agriculture_02


Materials

Crop Cards Scrap paper/index card

Directions

Round 1 Task Response

1

Each student will receive a card with a picture of a potato. During this simulation round all students will represent a field of potatoes. How many potatoes are represented in your class?

2 When instructed, stand up and walk around the room to meet 5 other students. Write down the names of each student you meet on a piece of scrap paper or index card.

3 Remain standing after writing down all 5 names.

4

Your teacher will represent the fungus-like bacteria, Phytophthora infestans and will infect one of the potatoes in the field by tapping on the shoulder of one of your classmates.

http://www.apsnet.org/publications/imageresources/PublishingImages/1999/IW00009a.jpg

5

Each potato infected by the P. infestans will suffer from blight, turn into black slime and die. If you are infected, you will be asked to sit down to represent that you have been killed by the disease.

6 Each student who sits down (dead) will also read the 5 names on their list. As the names are read, those students will be asked to sit too since the disease has been passed onto them.

7 Continue this process until all students who have been instructed to sit have had a chance to read all names on their list.

8

In this simulation, how many potatoes survived and how many died from the spread of blight?

!!

!!

Change, Biodiversity, & Health; HASPI MS Medical Life Science Lab 06 233

Round 2 Task Response

1

Each student will receive a card with a picture of a different crop. During this simulation round, all students will represent a field of various vegetables. List the different types of vegetables and how many of each is represented in your class.

2 When instructed stand up and walk around the room to meet 5 other students. Write down the names of each student you meet on a piece of scrap paper or index card.

3 Remain standing after writing down all 5 names.

4 Your teacher will represent the fungus-like bacteria, Phytophthora infestans and will infect one of the potatoes in the field by tapping on the shoulder of one of your classmates.

5 Each potato infected by the P. infestans will suffer from blight, turn into black slime and die. If you are infected, you will be asked to sit down to represent that you have been killed by the disease.

6

Each student who sits down (dead) will also read the 5 names on their list. As the names are read, only the students who represent potatoes are asked to sit down. Different varieties of vegetables do not sit down (do not die) even if they came in contact with the diseased plant.

7 Continue this process until all students who have been instructed to sit have had a chance to read all names on their list.

8

In this simulation round, how many individual vegetables survived and how many died from the spread of blight?

Analysis Questions

1. Define biodiversity. 2. What were the results of the first simulation? 3. What were the results of the second simulation? 4. Which simulation best represents the Irish Potato Famine of the mid 1800s? 5. Why do you think the disease spread so quickly in the first simulation? 6. Why do you think the results of the second simulation were so different from the first simulation? 7. Many scientists believe the Irish Potato Famine was a result of a lack of biodiversity. Explain the

reasoning behind this scientific claim.


!

Biodiversity & the Irish Potato Famine Crop Cards

Lumper Potato

Lumper Potato

Lumper Potato

Lumper Potato

Lumper Potato

Lumper Potato


Biodiversity & the Irish Potato Famine

Crop Cards

Sweet Potato

Sweet Potato

Sweet Potato

Yukon Gold Potato

Yukon Gold Potato

Yukon Gold Potato



Crop Cards

Royal Blue Potato

Royal Blue Potato

Royal Blue Potato

Red Norland Potato

Red Norland Potato

Red Norland Potato



Crop Cards

Radish

Radish

Radish

Carrot

Carrot

Carrot



Crop Cards

Turnip

Turnip

Turnip

Onion

Onion

Onion



Crop Cards

Beets

Beets

Beets

Taro

Taro

Taro


Resources

Images taken from the following links: http://www.thegrocer.co.uk/Pictures/620xAny/4/0/1/20401_lumper-potatoes.JPG http://www.mensfitness.com/sites/mensfitness.com/files/d6/images-mf-210066-18707.jpg http://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/s--hkw31ODy--/18s047iy7959mjpg.jpg http://www.yonderfarms.com/Yonder_Farms/Vegetables_files/Media/planting-instructions-red-pontiac-potatoes-200X200/thumb.jpg http://www.adailyapple.com/image/Yukon%20Gold%20Potatoes.jpg http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e6/Carrots.JPG http://freetiiupix.cwahi.net/Image_Pages/Food/Vegetables/Red%20Radish%20-2.JPG http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d3/Turnip_2622027.jpg http://vashila.gmedi.org/image/image_gallery?img_id=908651&t=1397033751596 https://encrypted-tbn2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcT_u43JOS2BbIc2yfswY2cEDqUh6pIjH7-VGtpKMNO_UVhcsEI1 http://www.qvm.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/Taro.jpg

Change, Biodiversity & Health, HASPI MS Medical Life Science Lab 06 265

Change, Biodiversity, & Health HASPI MS Medical Life Science Lab 06 MS-LS2-4, MS-LS2-5 Connections & Applications

Your instructor may assign or allow you to choose any of the following activities. As per NGSS/CCSS, these extensions allow students to explore outside activities recommended by the standards. 1. Read How our Health Depends on Biodiversity, a handbook created at the Center for Health

and the Global Environment at Harvard Medical School. http://www.chgeharvard.org/sites/default/files/resources/182945%20HMS%20Biodiversity%20booklet.pdf

Create an informative poster that you can share with your classmates for one of, or all topics discussed in the handbook. Your poster should include graphics or pictures along with very brief amounts of written information. • Human Activity and the Threat to Biodiversity • Climate Changes and Biodiversity Loss • Polar Bears • Medicines From Nature • Cone Snails • Biodiversity and Medical Research • Biodiversity and Human Infectious Diseases (Deforestation) • Biodiversity and Human Infectious Diseases (Bushmeat and HIV-AIDS) • Biodiversity and Human Infectious Diseases (Species Diversity and the “Dilution Effect”) • Biodiversity and Food Production

Name: ________________________________________ Period: __________ Date: ______________


2. Choose one of the following articles to read:

Predicting How Biodiversity Affects Disease, livescience http://www.livescience.com/46825-biodiversity-disease-connection-nsf-bts.html As Biodiversity Declines, Disease Flourishes, New York Times http://green.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/12/02/as-biodiversity-declines-disease-flourishes/?_r=0 Does alteration in biodiverstity really affect disease outcome? Science Direct http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1319562X14000436 Biodiversity loss can increase infectious diseases in humans, Science Daily http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/12/091203132157.htm Risks of Biodiversity Loss Pose a Global Threat, The Wall Street Journal http://online.wsj.com/ad/article/execdigest-biodiversity Write a one to two paragraph response to the article. Be sure to:

• Summarize the main points the author is trying to make in the article • Share your thoughts about the article.

o Do you agree/disagree with statements made in the article? o Have you experienced real life examples that relate to the ideas discussed in this

article? o How does this article relate to other things you have read or learned about? o What would you like to know more about after reading this article?

!

Name: Period: Date: Change, Biodiversity, & Health · 222 Change, Biodiversity and Health, HASPI MS Medical Life Science Lab 06 The amount, way they are utilized, or form in which

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