GM crops

Genetically modified (GM) foods are foods derived from genetically modified organisms.

GM foods were first put on the market in the early 1990s. Typically, genetically modified foods are transgenic plant products: soybean, corn, canola, and cotton seed oil. Animal products have also been developed, although as of July 2010 none are currently on the market. In 2006 a pig was controversially engineered to produce omega-3 fatty acids through the expression of a roundworm gene. Researchers have also developed a genetically-modified breed of pigs that are able to absorb plant phosphorus more efficiently, and as a consequence the phosphorus content of their manure is reduced by as much as 60%.
Critics have objected to GM foods on several grounds, including possible safety issues, ecological concerns, and economic concerns raised by the fact that these organisms are subject to intellectual property law.

Miguel Sousa nº 25 11ºB

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genetically_modified_food

Noise pollution

Noise pollution is a type of energy pollution in which distracting, irritating, or damaging sounds are freely audible. As with other forms of energy pollution (such as heat and light pollution), noise pollution contaminants are not physical particles, but rather waves that interfere with naturally-occurring waves of a similar type in the same environment.
In the narrowest sense, sounds are considered noise pollution if they adversely affect wildlife, human activity, or are capable of damaging physical structures on a regular, repeating basis. In the broadest sense of the term, a sound may be considered noise pollution if it disturbs any natural process or causes human harm, even if the sound does not occur on a regular basis.
The causes of noise pollution in general are obvious - construction sites, highway vehicle traffic, industrial companies, air traffic, rail traffic, fire workers and others. While many of these sources are unavoidable in daily life, the exposure to them can be kept to a minimum with a little personal effort.

The unwanted sound is called noise. This unwanted sound can damage physiological and psychological health. Noise pollution can cause annoyance and aggression, hypertension, high stress levels, tinnitus, hearing loss, sleep disturbances, and other harmful effects. Furthermore, stress and hypertension are the leading causes to health problems, whereas tinnitus can lead to forgetfulness, severe depression and at times panic attacks.
This type of pollution has become more significant due to technological and industrial developments. We have a duty to stop as fast as possible with this problem because, in the future, would have consequences even more disastrous.

• Miguel Sousa nº25 11ºB

Opinion

We think that although genetically-modified foods have the potential to solve many of the world's hunger and malnutrition problems and being an important think at the economis point of view they have to many incovenients and dangers.
We can't be sure that they will not be harmful to our health and to the health of the future generations, as also to the species in which are done these genetic modifications and the problem is that, we will only know that at the generation of our grandsons and by that time, probably will be too late...bet we hope he wrong about his!

• Ana Costa, Joana Gomes and Miguel Sousa
• 11ºB

Earth and Humanity

You are going to try to imagine that:
Earth (E): I`m the Earth.
Humanity (H): I`m the Humanity.
E: Cough!!!
H: What is the matter?
E: I`m feeling ill.
H: How did that happen?
E: I`m sick and tired because of you.
H: It`s my fault? What did I do? It`s nothing to do with me.
E: You are wrong, because everday you use up all my resources and pollute my air, water, soil. Everything that you do is like poison to me.
H: But I don`t do anything that special. I only use the resources that you give me, like water, coal, food, a place to live and other things.
E: It`s clear, I`m your house. But, everthing that I give you, you use to the excess. For example: the oil that produces energy and releases big quantities of CO2 into the atmosphere, the time you spend in your bath which uses too much water...
H: ...and the paper that Iuse, the plastic, the fertilazers that I use in modern agriculture that pollute hidden resources and soil, blá, blá, blá and much more. But, I need all of this to live.
E: Ok, you to live you need all of this, but it`s this that is harmful and will finish with the only place where you can live. However, there are other hypotheses that give the same result and they are less harmful, like wind energy and there are methods that help to reduce pollution, the waste produced and, help to conserve the resources we have.
H: But then, what are these methods?
E: They are very simple methods and can be summarized in three words: recycle, reduce and reuse.
H: And, if we don`t put these methods into practice, what will can to happen?
E: It isn`t, what will happen , but what happens today in many parts of the Earth. There are: the death of the coral reefs, endangered species, hurricanes, drought...
H: So, we are responsible for all the disasters that happen, are happening, and that will happen?
E: So, why do you think they happen then?
H: Ok,... I`m sorry. I agree with you. I promise from now on to try to be better and protect the Earth`s planet.
E: I believe. We together are going to struggle for the world.

Humanity`s footprint on the Earth has affect the planet`s life systems. Each one of us is a cause of climatic change, but each of us can make choices to change that. With things we buy, the cars we drive, the energy we use, we can make choices to bring our individual carbon emission to zero The solutions are in our hands.

We should have to respect our planet.

Fátima 11ºD

Vera 11ºD

The Situation Of The Earth

For a long time we have made the Earth sort of our slave, exploring it, taking whatever we can from it without caring about the consequences, spoiling it and not taking care of it, and right now we are simply starting to let it die in a way.

This fact is very concerning because all of us are only guests in this world we live in and at any time we can get “thrown out”, risking all of our lives and all of our investments in this planet. But despite what many people think, this moment is very near. This is all because human beings have caused a massive ecological instability due to their massive consumption habits and pollution. We have to think and consider our actions and reverse them before it’s too late for our planet and for us. We are quickly running out of resources like water, fossil fuels and other raw materials, like wood, and we pollute far too much and produce vast amounts of garbage that could easily be recycled. We should recycle to avoid a far greater degradation of the situation that we are in now.

Recycling is a key component of modern waste reduction and is the third component of the "Reduce, Reuse,Recycle" waste hierarchy.

Recycling is the process of taking a product at the end of its useful life and using all or part of it to make another product.

Recyclable materials include many kinds of glass, paper, metal, plastic, textiles, and electronics. Materials to be recycled are either brought to a collection center or picked up from the curbside, then sorted, cleaned, and reprocessed into new materials bound for manufacturing.

To reduce is the process and the policy of reducing the amount of waste produced by a person or a society. You can reduce your waste production by:

• Buying only the essential things, so there is no waste.

• Printing or copying only in the needed amounts.

• Looking for products that have a recyclable packaging.

• Preferring glass bottles over plastic ones (glass is more easily recycled).

So the consumer must have the care to buy products that he/she really needs and that are preferably packaged in a rational and ecological way and the industry, in its turn, should change its perspective and way of production, by making them compatible with the goals of the environmental protection.

To reuse is to use an item more than once. You can reuse items by, for example:

• Using the back of printed paper sheets for drafts.

• Printing on both sides of a paper sheet.

• Using the leftovers of fruits and vegetables to make compost.

• Using certain packages, like cans, for other purposes instead of throwing them away.

These measures are a simple way that you, as a consumer, can help the environment and help preserve natural resources from being depleted.

How much time does nature take to absorb certain residues?

• Newspapers take two to six weeks.

• Paper packages take one to four weeks.

• Paper napkins take three months.

• Cigarette buds and matches take two years.

• Bubblegum takes five years.

• Nylon takes thirty to forty years.

• Plastic bags and cups take two hundred to four hundred and fifty years.

• Aluminum cans, batteries and bottle caps take one hundred to five hundred years.

All of us are free and so we must be aware that if we don’t contribute for a healthier planet we can hardly guarantee a place on Earth for future generations. Much like our ancestors achieved to guarantee our presence on Earth today, we have the obligation to heal the disease we have caused on our planet and ensure that future generations have a good quality of life.

Besides the 3 R policy we should obtain a more civilized and honest behavior, like for example, saving indispensable natural resources, such as water which is diminishing, lessening the excessive waste of energy, since it constitutes a great source of pollution, essentially lessening the amounts of waste and pollutant gases produced .

So summing up, our planet needs our help to continue living for many years to come. Let’s take care of the Earth, let’s live!

By Inês Macedo, nº15 and Isabela Bica,16 - 11ºB

Demon`s party

It`s Hallowen`s night!!!

Daisy and her friends decided to celebrated the Halloween`s night with a feast of fun, alcohol and a lot of music. So, there isn`t better place than the placeof the darkest night: the Oksland`cemetery.

According to the prophecies, in Halloween`s night the demons rise from the dephs of hell and they feed of the men of Earth.

But, Daisy and her friends knew nothing about this prophecies.

The party was in the peak, everyone were happy, they drank a lot, being carefrees with what was happening around them. The friends misteriously dissappear one by one.

When there were only five friends, the terror settled, they heard a amazing noise in everywhere. Suddenly, Daisy began to see her friends be pulled by shadowns. Daisy runs and she heads up for a grave where she sees all her friends beheaded in a bloodbath with a expression of terror etched on their faces. Daisy runs, scared and screaming desperately.

Behind her, Daisy hears steps and when she was about to succumb to the immense terror, the demons say: Surprise!!! And her friends appeared. - (It`s a joke)

Fátima 11ºD

Vera 11ºD

Climate Changes and Us

In these past few years, the climate of our Planet has begun to worsen due to the effects of the “Human Footprint”.

This “Human Footprint” consists in the way we affect our planet. Since the 18^th century, when the industrialization begun, there has been an increase in population growth due to the breakthroughs in health and the increase of available food. As the population grew more with each passing year, the need for more food and other resources also increased. Every year, more and more trees are cut down to make room for agriculture and pasture for cattle. Mankind is singlehandedly reducing the “Earth’s Lungs” and the planet’s ability to turn the carbon dioxide, which comes from the burning of fossil fuels, into oxygen.

Currently, there are too many greenhouse gases in our atmosphere and they are worsening the greenhouse effect, which causes global warming and, consequently, is causing all the climate changes that we are observing.

If we don’t change our attitude towards the planet, these won’t be a planet for future generations. We need to act now! We need to recycle more, to waste fewer resources and recover the “health” of our planet because it’s the only Planet we have.

11ºE

Adriana Bica nº1

Helder Lima nº12