The Thread of Biodiversity

Earth's biodiversity levels are unique. We are the only place that has life. Human's habits after the Industrial age have changed Earth into a non sustainable state. The CO2 levels in our atmosphere have raised far above our highest point in the past 600,000 years (Berger et al. 1996), changing the temperature of the planet along with it. The oceans are filling with CO2 and warming up, changing the cycle of life. Coral and algae are dying (Glynn 1993), forcing many fish to struggle to survive. The shortage of fish is creating a shortage of predators and food for humans to eat, forcing us to create conditions that allow them to grow such as fish farms and aquariums. The problem is industry is part of the problem, not the solution. Humans are trying to recreate nature artificially, but so far we are having no luck in doing so. The only way we can remedy the problem before catastrophe now is to drop our dependence on oil fueled ways and convert to alternate nature fueled energies such as nuclear, wind, hydroelectric, and solar. Each step will slow down our output of CO2, lowering our output gradually after each change we make.

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Pull Quote "The CO2 levels in our atmosphere have raised far above our highest point in the past 600,000 years"

Abstract revised

Earth's biodiversity levels are unique. We are the only place that has life. Human's habits after the Industrial age have changed Earth into a non sustainable state. The CO2 levels in our atmosphere have raised far above our highest point in the past 600,000 years1 (Berger et al. 1996), changing the temperature of the planet along with it. The oceans are filling with CO2 and warming up, changing the cycle of life. Coral and algae are dying2 (Glynn 1993), forcing many fish to struggle to survive. The shortage of fish is creating a shortage of predators and food for humans to eat, forcing us to create conditions that allow them to grow such as fish farms and aquariums. The problem is industry is part of the problem, not the solution. Humans are trying to recreate nature artificially, but so far we are having no luck in doing so. The only way we can remedy the problem before catastrophe now is to drop our dependence on oil fueled ways and convert to alternate nature fueled energies such as nuclear, wind, hydroelectric, and solar. Each step will slow down our output of CO2, lowering our output gradually after each change we make.

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Abstract

Earth's biodiversity levels are unique. We are the only place that has life. Human's habits after the Industrial age have changed Earth a non sustainable state. The CO2 levels in our atmosphere have raised far above our highest point in the past 600,000 years, changing the temperature of the planet along with it. The oceans are filling with CO2, and warming up, changing the cycle of life. Coral and algae are dying, forcing many fish to struggle to survive. The shortage of fish is creating a shortage of predators and food for humans to eat, forcing us to create conditions that allow them to grow. The problem is our industry is part of the problem, not the solution. Humans are trying to recreate nature artificially, but so far we are having no luck in doing so. The only way we can fix the problem now is to go cold turkey on our oil fueled ways and convert to alternate nature fueled energies such as nuclear, wind, hydroelectric, and solar. Without these, our future doesn't look positive.

Pull quote: "Humans are trying to recreate nature artificially"

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Recipe - Lettuce Wrap

Ingredients:

1 head iceberg lettuce or romaine lettuce leaves (We can use Chard)
Sauce:
2 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon dry sherry (optional)
1 teaspoon sugar
Remaining Ingredients:
1 tablespoon sesame oil (or peanut oil)
1 slice ginger, minced
1 garlic clove, minced
2 green onions, chopped
1 lb meat from chicken breasts or sliced white chicken meat (we can use tofu)
1 red pepper, seeded and diced
Anything else can be added (corn, veggies, etc.)

Preparation:

Wash the lettuce, dry, and separate the leaves. Set aside.

Mix together the sauce ingredients. Heat the sesame oil in a non-stick frying pan on high heat. Add the garlic, ginger, and green onions and fry until the garlic and ginger are aromatic. Add the tofu and cook until the tofu is browned. Remove the tofu from the pan and set aside.

Add the veggies to be cooked to the frying pan. Add the sauce ingredients and cook at medium heat. Add the tofu back into the wok. Cook for 2 - 3 more minutes, stirring, to heat through and finish cooking the tofu.

Lay out a lettuce leaf and spoon a heaping teaspoon of the tofu and vegetable/sauce mixture into the middle. The lettuce wraps are designed to be eaten "taco-style," with the lettuce/taco mixture folded into a package. Continue with the remainder of the tofu and lettuce leaves. Serve.

This can be messed with ingredient wise. We can be creative.