Essay 3 Rough Draft

Stephanie Stebbing
EN 101-5
Professor Kerr
10/25/10

Water Pollution in the Chesapeake Bay

The effects of water pollution directly affect the balance of nature, which ultimately has an impact on all humans and the way we live. The Chesapeake Bay and its rivers, wetlands, and forests provide a home, shelter, and food for many animals. Its nutrients are essential to the life and growth of these animals, but too much of them can be detrimental to the animals that live there. Excessive amounts of nitrogen and phosphorus will degrade the water quality, and lead to algae blooms which can be harmful and even deadly to fish. Nitrogen can also be an airborne pollutant, and is the main cause of the bay’s poor health. Three types of pollution that affect the bay are pesticides, nitrogen, and sediments.


Pesticides and herbicides that wash off of fields, and the household chemical products that are washed down sewers pose a severe threat to the bay and the animal and human life in its region. Pesticides contaminate the water, which in turn makes it unusable to humans for drinking. It also gets into the fish because they drink the water, and when humans harvest the fish for food, we get the contaminated water in our system. A 2007 report done by the U.S. Geological Survey found a large amount of synthetic organic pesticides throughout the bay watershed (“Chesapeake Bay Program”). One type

of pesticide discovered in the bay was atrazine, which is widely used throughout the United States. Atrazine has been linked to the sexual abnormalities occurring in frogs. This pesticide contains a chemical which can cause reproductive anomalies. (“Chesapeake Bay Program”)

Sediments float throughout the water rather than falling to the bottom. When there is too much sediment, the water becomes cloudy, and it blocks the sunlight from reaching the bottom where many animals and underwater grasses grow. These underwater organisms need sunlight to live, so when it is blocked from coming through, they die. This also puts blue crabs and fish in danger because they depend on these grasses for shelter. Sediments can also be combined with nutrients and other chemical contaminants which get spread throughout the bay, contaminating organisms residing in these areas of the bay. Excess sediments also have a negative affect on commercial shipping and recreational boating because the ports can become clogged by accumulated sediment.

　

　
 Sediments are another contributing factor to the bay’s pollution. Sediment is made up of clay particles, silt, and sand. Nitrogen, among other nutrients, is one of the biggest pollutants to affect the Chesapeake Bay. A study was performed in the 1970’s which linked agricultural development, population growth, and sewage treatment plant discharges to the increase in nutrients in the waters. Nitrogen and Phosphorus are two necessary nutrients for the organisms in the bay to survive. However, when the bay becomes too enriched with these nutrients, it causes algae blooms and excessive growth of phytoplankton. This is a negative effect on the life in the waters for two reasons: it causes the excessive algae amounts to block out the sunlight in shallow areas, in which some aquatic grasses need that sunlight in order to grow, and the dead algae use up a lot of oxygen, which decreases the amount left for bottom-dwelling organisms such as oysters, clams, and worms ("Chesapeake Bay Foundation"). With the increased death of these organisms comes the increased starvation and death of other organisms who rely on these critters for food.

Works Cited

Works Cited:

Great Waters Program: Chesapeake Bay. , 2009. Web. 27 Oct 2010. <http://epa.gov/oar/oaqps/gr8water/xbrochure/chesapea.html

• This source is credible because it is from the Chesapeake Bay "Great Waters Program" under the Environmental Protection Agency
• The E.P.A. is a large, widely known organization which serves to "coordinate programs aimed at reducing pollution and protecting the environment". This section of the EPA (the Great Waters Program) was created to keep the Chesapeake Bay clean and help take the pollution out of it.
• I'm keeping this source because it informed me about point source and non point source pollution, which I did not discuss directly in my paper but it helped me understand where the pollution comes from and how it gets transferred into the bay.

"Chesapeake Bay Program." Chesapeake Bay Program. Chesapeake Bay Program, 08/19/2010. Web. 25 Oct 2010. http://www.chesapeakebay.net/comments.aspx.

• This source is credible, but not as credible as the first source because the author is not evident.
• It is credible because I found it on the Chesapeake Bay Program's website. The Chesapeake Bay Program is a foundation dedicated to conserving the bay and its waters, and keeping all the inhabitants of the bay healthy.
• I am keeping this source because it gave me a lot of information I did not previously know, and I referred to it several times in my essay.

"Chesapeake Bay Foundation." Chesapeake Bay Foundation. Chesapeake Bay Foundation, 2010. Web. 27 Oct 2010. http://www.cbf.org/Page.aspx?pid=913.

• This source is credible because it came from another Chesapeake Bay Program.
• The source was from the Chesapeake Bay Foundation's website. It is not an essay or article, but the facts are listed out clearly and were written out by the creators of that program. It lists what kinds of pollutions are affecting the bay and what needs to be done in order to preserve the bay.
• I am keeping this source because I learned a lot about why nitrogen is a pollutant to the bay, which I didn't know before reading about it on the website, and I have one whole paragraph in my essay discussing nitrogen and other nutrients and how they contribute to the pollution in the bay.

Essay 3: Water Pollution in the Chesapeake Bay

Stephanie Stebbing
EN 101-5
Professor Kerr
10/25/10

Water Pollution in the Chesapeake Bay

The effects of water pollution directly affect the balance of nature, which ultimately has an impact on all humans and the way we live. The Chesapeake Bay and its rivers, wetlands, and forests provide a home, shelter, and food for many animals. Its nutrients are essential to the life and growth of these animals, but too much of them can be detrimental to the animals that live there. This is one type of water pollution in the bay. Excessive amounts of nitrogen and phosphorus will degrade the water quality, and lead to algae blooms which can be harmful and even deadly to fish. Nitrogen can also be an airborne pollutant, and is the main cause of the bay’s poor health ("Chesapeake Bay Program") . Three types of pollution that affect the bay are pesticides, nitrogen, and sediments.
Pesticides and herbicides that wash off of fields, and the household chemical products that are washed down sewers pose a severe threat to the bay and the animal and human life in its region. Pesticides contaminate the water, which in turn makes it unusable to humans for drinking. It also gets into the fish because they drink the water, and when humans harvest the fish for food, we get the contaminated water in our system. A 2007 report done by the U.S. Geological Survey found a large amount of synthetic organic pesticides throughout the bay watershed (“Chesapeake Bay Program”). One type

of pesticide discovered in the bay was atrazine, which is widely used throughout the United States. Atrazine has been linked to the sexual abnormalities occurring in frogs. This pesticide contains a chemical which can cause reproductive anomalies. (“Chesapeake Bay Program”)

Sediments float throughout the water rather than falling to the bottom. When there is too much sediment, the water becomes cloudy, and it blocks the sunlight from reaching the bottom where many animals and underwater grasses grow. These underwater organisms need sunlight to live, so when it is blocked from coming through, they die. This also puts blue crabs and fish in danger because they depend on these grasses for shelter. Sediments can also be combined with nutrients and other chemical contaminants which get spread throughout the bay, contaminating organisms residing in these areas of the bay. Excess sediments also have a negative affect on commercial shipping and recreational boating because the ports can become clogged by accumulated sediment.
Pollution takes many different forms, all of which are harmful and can be deadly to the life in the Chesapeake Bay. Nutrients are necessary to the growth and survival of most organisms in the bay, however, when nutrients such as nitrogen become too abundant in the water, it causes excessive algae growth which blocks the sunlight from other animals, often resulting in their death. Pesticides come from agricultural and commercial run-off, which contaminates the water and harms any organism-animal or human-who drinks it. Sediments cause the water to become cloudy, and allows less sunlight to reach the underwater grasses in the bay. All of these contaminants are polluting the bay’s waters, and though there are several different organizations providing care for the animals and waters and trying to keep the bay clean, there will always be some pollution in the Chesapeake.
　Sediments are another contributing factor to the bay’s pollution. Sediment is made up of clay particles, silt, and sand. It is a natural part of the bay’s watershed, but in excess can cloud the waters, causing harm to fish, oysters, and underwater grasses. Nitrogen, among other nutrients, is one of the biggest pollutants to affect the Chesapeake Bay. A study was performed in the 1970’s which linked agricultural development, population growth, and sewage treatment plant discharges to the increase in nutrients in the waters. These nutrients also come from point sources such as industrial waste water, non-point sources such as cropland and suburban run-off, and and airborne contaminants ("Great Waters Program: Chesapeake Bay"). Nitrogen and Phosphorus are two necessary nutrients for the organisms in the bay to survive. However, when the bay becomes too enriched with these nutrients, it causes algae blooms and excessive growth of phytoplankton. This is a negative effect on the life in the waters for two reasons: it causes the excessive algae amounts to block out the sunlight in shallow areas, in which some aquatic grasses need that sunlight in order to grow, and the dead algae use up a lot of oxygen, which decreases the amount left for bottom-dwelling organisms such as oysters, clams, and worms ("Chesapeake Bay Foundation"). With the increased death of these organisms comes the increased starvation and death of other organisms who rely on these critters for food.

Essay 3 Cause/Effect

I'm writing my paper on the causes of water pollution.
Three main causes: pesticides, oil and gasoline, and mining.
Some effects: poses problems for local wildlife, fishermen, and coastal businesses.

http://www.water-pollution.org.uk/

http://library.thinkquest.org/26026/Environmental_Problems/water_pollution_-_effects.html

http://greenliving.lovetoknow.com/Effects_of_Water_Pollution

Chesapeake Bay information:

http://www.chesapeakebay.net/airpollution.aspx?menuitem=14693

http://www.cbf.org/Page.aspx?pid=913

Essay 2: Long and Short-Term Memory

Stebbing

Stephanie Stebbing
Professor Kerr
En 101-5
10/4/10

Long and Short-Term Memory

A person’s capacity for long-term and short-term memory depends heavily on their age. Seniors often have a shorter capacity for memory storage than children and adults do because of memory loss and cognitive and memory diseases such as Alzheimer’s. Long-term and short-term memory differ in that long-term is used to store memories about the world and life, and these memories can be retrieved at any given time, while short-term memory is the working memory that is used to store all the current information for use right now. Both types are essential for survival to humans and even some animals because we rely on it to help us understand how to do things, it helps us to obtain higher-level thinking skills and speech, and it defines our person by giving us individuality and identity. Long-term memory includes memory for skills, habits, procedures, and instinctive reflex responses. Short-term memory includes memory for selective attention and gaining new current information. Memory is stored the easiest in adults and children, because children have not yet developed a sense of the world or put meaning to much information, and adults have a healthy working memory based on all their previous knowledge of the world.
Scientists and researchers used to believe that a child possessed absolutely no memory skills until they were about eight or nine months old. Recent studies have proved that babies and young children do, in fact, possess some memory skills. A study called Total Recall, published an article in American Baby Magazine in 2000, which shows that at six weeks old, babies can hold information in their long-term memory for up to 24 hours (Hollowell). Memory capacity increases in children as they get older. Jerome Kagan, a Starch research professor of Psychology at Harvard University, conducted experiments with the help of one of his senior students, Conor Liston, to find out when humans start to develop their long-term memory. Their findings showed that children have a hard time recalling the past before age one. "We interpret this to mean that, at 9 months, the human brain is too immature to firmly register experiences, while at 17-21 months it has developed enough to record and retrieve memories of single distinctive experiences," Kagan says (Cromie). Kagan and Liston’s studies, as well as hundreds of other research experimenter’s studies on memory development in children prove that children begin developing their long-term memory after age one.
The average person can hold seven bits of information in their short-term memory at once (Saundra K. Ciccarelli and J. Noland White). However, adults often have short-term memory problems due to an inability to filter out surrounding distractions. An fMRI (functional magnetic resonance imaging) study done by researchers at the University of California, Berkley, show that adults’ short-term memory failure is an effect of interference from irrelevant information. Study leader, Dr. Adam Gazzaley, is the adjunct assistant professor of neuroscience at UC Berkley and newley appointed assistant professor of neurology physiology at UC San Francisco. Commenting on the subject, Gazzaley states, “These results reveal that efficiently focusing on relevant information is not enough to ensure successful memory. It is also necessary to filter distractions. Otherwise, our capacity-limited short-term memory system will be overloaded.” (Sanders)
Memory is classified by time (short-term and long-term) and type (what specific information you have to recall). Different types of information is stored in different parts of the brain, all of which are part of the nervous system. The hippocampus, a structure inside the brain, helps store your long-term memory. It is highly vulnerable to age-related deterioration and can have an effect on your ability to retain information. Neurons in the brain are lost, increasingly over time, which causes the activity of the neurotransmitters and their receptors to slow down. An older person usually processes nutrients that enhance brain activity less efficiently than a younger person. All of these are contributing factors to memory loss in senior citizens (Jaffe-Gill, and Kemp).
Long-term and short-term memory are both necessary to human survival. It defines us as individuals because we each have our own past and our own memories. It allows us to accomplish simple as well as complicated tasks, and allows us to remember processes in which we may need to remember for a job, writing a school paper, or even simple processes such as how to cook a meal. Memory capacity decreases with age, yet is close to nonexistent before the age of one. Children start developing long-term memories at twelve months of age. Adults can have a large capacity for long-term memories, but a small capacity for short-term memories due to distractions and stress. Seniors process information slower, so it takes longer to be stored in their long-term memory, and also fades quickly.

Essay 2 Draft

Long and Short-Term Memory

A person’s capacity for long-term and short-term memory depends heavily on their age. Seniors often have a shorter capacity for memory storage than children and adults do because of memory loss and cognitive and memory diseases such as Alzheimer’s. Long-term and short-term memory differ in that long-term is used to store memories about the world and life, and these memories can be retrieved at any given time, while short-term memory is the working memory that is used to store all the current information for use right now. Both types are essential for survival to humans and even some animals because we rely on it to help us understand how to do things, it helps us to obtain higher-level thinking skills and speech, and it defines our person by giving us individuality and identity. Long-term memory includes memory for skills, habits, procedures, and instinctive reflex responses. Short-term memory includes memory for selective attention and gaining new current information. Memory is stored the easiest in adults and children, because children have not yet developed a sense of the world or put meaning to much information, and adults have a healthy working memory based on all their previous knowledge of the world.

Scientists and researchers used to believe that a child possessed absolutely no memory skills until they were about eight or nine months old. Recent studies have proved that babies and young children do, in fact, possess some memory skills. A study called Total Recall, published an article in American Baby Magazine in 2000, which shows that at six weeks old, babies can hold information in their long-term memory for up to 24 hours. Memory capacity increases in children as they get older. Jerome Kagan, a Starch research professor of Psychology at Harvard University, conducted experiments with the help of one of his senior students, Conor Liston, to find out when humans start to develop their long-term memory. Their findings showed that children have a hard time recalling the past before age one. "We interpret this to mean that, at 9 months, the human brain is too immature to firmly register experiences, while at 17-21 months it has developed enough to record and retrieve memories of single distinctive experiences," Kagan says. Kagan and Liston’s studies, as well as hundreds of other research experimenter’s studies on memory development in children prove that children begin developing their long-term memory after age one.
The average person can hold seven bits of information in their short-term memory at once.

 However, adults often have short-term memory problems due to an inability to filter out surrounding distractions. An fMRI (functional magnetic resonance imaging) study done by researchers at the University of California, Berkley, show that adults’ short-term memory failure is an effect of interference from irrelevant information. Study leader, Dr. Adam Gazzaley, is the adjunct assistant professor of neuroscience at UC Berkley and newley appointed assistant professor of neurology physiology at UC San Francisco. Commenting on the subject, Gazzaley states, “These results reveal that efficiently focusing on relevant information is not enough to ensure successful memory. It is also necessary to filter distractions. Otherwise, our capacity-limited short-term memory system will be overloaded."
Memory is classified by time (short-term and long-term) and type (what specific information you have to recall). Different types of information is stored in different parts of the brain, all of which are part of the nervous system. The hippocampus, a structure inside the brain, helps store your long-term memory. It is highly vulnerable to age-related deterioration and can have an effect on your ability to retain information. Neurons in the brain are lost, increasingly over time, which causes the activity of the neurotransmitters and their receptors to slow down. An older person usually processes nutrients that enhance brain activity less efficiently than a younger person. All of these are contributing factors to memory loss in senior citizens.

Long-term and short-term memory are both necessary to human survival. It defines us as individuals because we each have our own past and our own memories. It allows us to accomplish simple as well as complicated tasks, and allows us to remember processes in which we may need to remember for a job, writing a school paper, or even simple processes such as how to cook a meal. Memory capacity decreases with age, yet is close to nonexistent before the age of one. Children start developing long-term memories at twelve months of age. Adults can have a large capacity for long-term memories, but a small capacity for short-term memories due to distractions and stress. Seniors process information slower, so it takes longer to be stored in their long-term memory, and also fades quickly.

Compare/Contrast (Essay 2) What I learned

Long Term Memory: memories about the world and life, that are stored and represented in networks in the brain. Long term memories can be retrieved at any given time.

Short term memory: Working memory that holds all the current information for use right now. Only holds an average of 7 memories in one time, and only holds them for a short amount of time.

Source: "Psychology: Second Edition" by Saundra K. Ciccarelli and J. Noland White. (book source)

People tend to more easily store material on subjects that they already know something about, since the information has more meaning to them and can be mentally connected to related information that is already stored in their long-term memory. That's why someone who has an average memory may be able to remember a greater depth of information about one particular subject.

Source: "How Human Memory Works" by Richard C Mohs, PhD
http://health.howstuffworks.com/human-body/systems/nervous-system/human-memory2.htm

It may take children longer to store some things in their long term memory because they have little or no previous knowledge about many subjects, so the information is new to them.