Extinction of Critical Species

Over the past five years, beekeepers in the United States have lost about 30 percent of their bees each year on account of colony collapse disorder, a global phenomenon in  hich entire colonies of bees abruptly and mysteriously disappear from their hives. Bees do more than provide us with honey. They pollinate key crops, including grapes, apples,  oybeans, and cotton. We depend on bees.

“Every year, between 18,000 and 55,000 species become extinct. The cause: human activities.”—United Nations Development Program.

We also depend on phytoplankton. Without it we would have no fish. Without worms to  erate the soil, we would have far fewer crops. The extinction of such key species would  esult in food shortage and starvation, leading to violence and riots. Pollution,  verpopulation, overharvesting, habitat destruction, and climate change contribute to the  xtinction of animal species perhaps as much as 1,000 times more than natural rates.

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The Hazards of Lobster Fishing

Lobster fishing might seem to be a safe profession. But it is not. For example, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) says that “from 1993 to 1997, the occupational fatality rate for lobstermen in Maine was 14 per 100,000 licensed lobstermen, more than 2.5 times the national average (4.8 per 100,000 workers) for all industries.”

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The Propulsion System of the Jellyfish

Jellyfish are at least 95 percent water and range in size from less than an inch to over six feet in diameter. Muscles propel many species along by rhythmically contracting and relaxing their bell-shaped body, somewhat like closing and opening an umbrella.

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The TITANIC - The Most Famous Ship in History

What kind of ship was the Titanic? What caused it to sink? A visit to the Ulster Folk and Transport Museum, near Belfast in Northern Ireland, helps to provide answers to those questions.

The Titanic - Why Special?

According to Michael McCaughan, former curator of the Folk and Transport Museum, the Titanic is "the most famous ship in history". But the Titanic was not unique. It was the second of three huge vessels constructed in the shipbuilding yards of Harland andWolff in Belfast. The Titanic was one of the largest ships of its day, measuring 882.8 feet in length and 92.5 feet in width.

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Natural Disasters of 2010

A leading insurance company recorded 950 natural catastrophes worldwide in 2010, exceeding the last decade’s average of 785 events per year. The five worst disasters were earthquakes in Chile, China, and Haiti; floods that inundated Pakistan; and a heat wave in Russia, where tens of thousands died from the effects of heat and air pollution.

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