In other parts of the world, biosolids (human waste) from sewage treatment plants are treated and used as sustainable agricultural fertilizer. Research the pros and cons of this method and take a stand as to whether this can be a realistic alternative to our current agricultural practices. Who are the potential stakeholders in this issue? Are we influenced by the western view of human waste as an unsanitary and disgusting nuisance?
Crap, dung, poo, poop, manure…
It has so many nicknames,
But no one likes talking about feces!
Well, I’m here to break that barrier.
“Biosolids” is the term used by the government to describe processing sewage solids, in order to produce nutrient-rich organic material. With around 195 000 tonnes of biosolids being generated every year just in Toronto, our scientists and government workers have developed a way of depositing our human wastes in a helpful approach. After the waste from our washrooms is treated and processed, it is then used as a fertilizer to improve and maintain the plant growth and the agricultural soils of our environment. Since biosolids efficiently contain large quantities of plant nutrients and organic matter, they are used as a fertilizer for our soils.Also referred to as “treated sludge”, biosolids are professionally treated to stabilize and utilized to ensure the benefits of its use.
The beauty of biosolids may be frequently overlooked in society due to its origins and appearance…but it is in fact, quite valuable to the development of crops. By utilizing biosolids as fertilizers, we are able to conserve land by not disposing it in landfills which obviously, are harmful to the environment and occupies much-needed space. Applying biosolids to the land composition around us reduces soil erosion and improves the water quality by improving the connection between soil properties (i.e. Texture of the soil aids in increasing the water-capacity). Biosolids also enhances root growth within the plants, therefore, protecting the vegetation of drought in unfavourable weather conditions. Successful and sustainable biosolid solutions save money for the water industry in causing less harm and mistakes-- leading to no unnecessary money wasted on recovery and damages. Biosolids are most importantly used as a replacement for harmful chemical sprays and other unnecessary chemical products which farmers routinely use to fertilize their crops— polluting the environment. Unlike chemicals, biosolids are water-soluble organic nutrients which make them less likely to leach into the water system underground. Seemingly, these reasons are all why biosolids are beneficiary to our society and the environment.
With any debateable cause, where there are benefits, there are also drawbacks. The same goes for the topic of biosolids. When biosolids are distributed into the ground below, compounds of plant nutrients, namely, sulphur and ammonia create disturbing odours within a reasonable distance. Some organic fertilizers, such as biosolids which contain fetus as the basic element, will get contaminated with pathogens and causes bad smell.The smell is not pleasing to many— especially people with a sensitive sense of smell...biosolids may cause headaches or in some rare cases, health problems for those who live near wastewater treatment plants.
With living in such a high-maintenance society, non-renewable resources are continually and quickly being used up, and humans must efficiently find a way to find a suitable solution to maintain our lifestyle. The western view of society would cringe away from the thought of feces being anywhere but flushed down our toilets and would most likely perceive biosolids as unsanitary and disgusting if they knew it would be lying around our yards like fertilizer. Our future depends on us developing innovative methods in saving our earth while sustaining future generations and ourselves.
Personally, I wasn’t too sure about which side I would take regarding biosolids at the beginning of this assignment. But evidently, after some preliminary research and weighing the pros against its cons, it became clear that biosolids have proven itself to be a reasonable source of fertilizer. Other than the rare occasion that potential health hazards and odours may emerge, the state of our earth should be focus on the irreversible effects of harmful and accumulating industrial waste. Biosolids can reduce these effects by replacing these problems using organic matter. Perhaps if the general public did just a little bit of research, they would re-evaluate their biased opinions on biosolids and see how helpful biosolids can actually be for our environment.
Whether biosolids are sprayed by manure spreaders, dumped from trailers, emptied out of bags, or even injected into the soil by specialized vehicles…it is ultimately a realistic alternative in being environmentally friendly and is inevitably contributing to the good of the future of our environment.
Go poo!
SOURCES:
http://www.thegardencentral.com/gardening-care/know-the-pros-and-cons-of-organic-and-inorganic-fertilizers/
http://www.toronto.ca/water/biosolids/index.htm#a
http://ehpnet1.niehs.nih.gov/qa/105-1focus/focusbeauty.html
COMMENTED ON:
http://priscillasbioblog.blogspot.com/2010/05/im-all-for-recycling-but-human-waste.html?showComment=1275900676117_AIe9_BFwv9sBSCSRtfoePP3bvrTWlX9XwKM_A0qD0PErbc4o6UaG55kzs4bTtR-_AhZpxlXgtvLn4pyOQGDmTNvIZUjO3A--ovhuMC_vXMLplwxxx_H_vozRltcP4vshf7snpFi82jhw-A5GZA5pM81nPiGRD_nsz3cKm961BNFJ2uChErnet4tLV30G0kTGd5HoI39xFa4ysVu8JoIk_ablOoKkifCwl6X99lYecZGPwwTlLp1iBPRRt0klPu3EFRsL4QWconSN#c2773430725877151742
http://layathomas.blogspot.com/2010/05/poop-goes-gooood.html?showComment=1275901701539_AIe9_BGH9MX1pp4G01XcjmX2pBP-gaA3sc2izvsYS4knUvMjO2xUDecSwITahnIJtcXBCU-CADPh94C0SF4235Z8gBNWSHyG7HF18U-wFKKQHHCJnBQmsy_wITy0E2qi7AJ8qdsz2jQkJC0VZdRI2rjheuNLlrUN2zrVZ2sLrFL21YRTMarBBfUg-_G-kyIot7Z11xkPs2wBlC-EYskKWsaRJnH7Ybpit3dnzA9nWMibRZDZW5WGx0Y#c3290883358673512890
Monday, June 7, 2010
Poo, It’s Pretty Taboo.
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Thanks For Your Help, Technology!
Evaluate the importance of various technologies, including Canadian contributions, to our understanding of internal body systems (digestive, circulatory or respiratory).
It has become clear that our bodies rely on various forms of technologies to maintain healthy. With its rapid growth, technology has been widely embraced by scientific purposes in order to gain advantage over certain health ailments, and to offer different ways of preventing diseases. Because of our modern technology, many important scientific hypotheses have been discovered to further understand the complex system of the human internal body. All in all, technology has undeniably affected our daily lives— by providing efficient and effective ways of completing tasks, changing the way we live and most importantly, saving lives.
Looking at the digestive system, which is a complex series of organs and glands which process food, many medical conditions may also arise from it. Diabetes, a disorder in which the person affected has a higher blood sugar or glucose level than the norm has been present in at least 171 million people worldwide, or 2.8% of the whole population. More than one form of diabetes exists; such as Type 1 (body fails to produce insulin, person affected must inject insulin), Type 2 (the most common form, body cells reject insulin and fails to use it) and other common types of diabetes which include gestational diabetes, congenital diabetes, cystic fibrosis-related diabetes and steroid diabetes. Diabetes is a condition that cannot be fully cured, but its symptoms can be controlled with the introduction of insulin. 
Banting and Best is the name of the elementary school I live beside and these two Canadian men are also the creators of biosynthetic insulin. As a treatment for diabetes, the insulin hormone is formed in the pancreas, which controls the amount of sugar in the blood by stimulating cells, which take in and metabolize sugar levels. Being a foremost cure to diabetes, this commonly found Canadian invention was first genetically-engineered in a laboratory in 1977 and has now become the leading biosynthetic recombinant human-generated insulin used worldwide.
Moving on to the circulatory system, heart disease is commonly referred to as a group of conditions affecting the structure and functions of the heart and may have many root causes. When a person’s heart is beating irregularly or has completely stopped beating, an Automatic External Defibrillator (AED) makes it possible for even non-medical personnel to restore rhythm and life back to the heart. An AED is a machine that makes monitoring heart rhythms possible and it can tell if the heart has stopped beating effectively. When needed, the machine can then deliver an electric shock to the heart to restart the heart. A known fact is that about 40,000 Canadians experience cardiac arrest every year. The Defibrillation device successfully improves survival rates by up to 30% if delivered in the first few minutes, making it possible to save lives without even being a licensed doctor.
Many people who we come in contact with in our daily lives may complain about their asthma attacks and how inconvenient it is for them to keep coughing spontaneously. Every year, about 500 Canadians die from asthma, which illustrates how immense this problem has become. Luckily, the invention of asthma inhalers, both controllers and relievers were invented which minimize the uncomfortable symptoms associated with asthma patients. Asthma controllers (which are also called “preventers”) reduce the inflammation of the airways and over time, release controller medication which will take asthma symptoms away little by little each day. It is the long-term medication used with asthma patients. Asthma relievers are very good at helping ease symptoms immediately. Relievers are only a short-term solution to breathing problems and would indicate that there is underlying inflammation present if the patient is using relievers too frequently. Joggers with asthma are often seen carrying these inhalers with them to relieve their irregular breathing while exercising. These remedies have alleviated people with respiratory deficiencies and have proved that once again, technology has contributed to the understanding of the human body.
The technology around us has certainly proved itself to be reliable and beneficial to our modern society. It has helped us understand the internal human body as well as providing various methods of maintaining our health. Humans constantly depend on technology such as insulin, the AED and asthma inhalers to move on with their daily lives even when they are faced with diseases and illnesses. Without these treatments, we wouldn’t have anything to depend on when we are diagnosed with sicknesses such as diabetes, cardiac arrest and asthma. Forms of technology aid humankind when surrounding medical purposes, such as understanding cancer with MRI scans and locating broken bones with X-Rays. When we take a look around, technology is actually all around serving us and it would be impossible to imagine living in our modern-day society without it!
Technology has not able to cure every possible disease yet, but I feel that the technicians and scientists in our society have done well so far, leading to…
The evaluation of various technologies contributing to our understanding of internal body systems: A
SOURCES:
http://www.asthma.ca/adults/treatment/howToUse.php
http://www.heartandstroke.com/site/c.ikIQLcMWJtE/b.3484045/
http://www.medicinenet.com/insulin/article.htm
http://www.diabetes.ca/about-diabetes/living/insulin/should-know/
COMMENTED ON:
http://bio4phen.blogspot.com/2010/03/technology-for-body.html
http://layathomas.blogspot.com/2010/05/road-to-technology.html
Sunday, March 21, 2010
ARE WE INTERRUPTING MOTHER NATURE?
Topic: Artificial selection has resulted in plants that are more disease-resistant, cows that produce more milk, and racehorses that run faster. One must wonder what will come next. In the blog entry answer the following question— under what circumstances should humans be artificially selecting plants or animals, if any?
The terms artificial selection, selective breeding and unnatural selection all have the same meaning— to alter the breed of plants or animals to achieve desired traits to benefit humans. With the objective of only producing the most desired qualities in plants and animals, artificial selection takes two members of the same species which possess dominant alleles for certain favourable genes and is crossed with each other. Since both of these members have dominant genes for the desirable characteristic, when they are cross-bred, the offspring will also show the desired characteristics. Now, this easily accomplished task known as artificial selection has been commonly used with animal breeding and in the fields of agricultural diversity for many years— making several advancements and even the creation of entirely different organisms.
Seedless grapes and watermelons are some frequently seen fruits modified by humans to make life more efficient. Obviously, Mother Nature would’ve wanted these fruits to carry on their seeds for subsequent generations but humans wanted seedless fruits so we artificially selected their genes. With humans interrupting the natural growth of plants, various plants are able to thrive even when it is not their peak season, since they are being modified to grow in specific conditions to fit the needs of humans. As well, completely different plants or vegetables commonly seen today could have originated from one wild plant found many years ago. For example, plant breeding began about 10 000 years ago with the domestication of wild plants into uniform and predictable plant species. Increased amounts of food were being produced to 
support the growing human population in southwest
If traits are not desired with certain plants, their species would not be given proper care (being provided with necessary fertilizers, protected with pesticides…etc.) and in return, the species wouldn’t be able to survive as well as they potentially could. Perhaps this could throw off the balance of nature with some species slowly fading away due to their unneeded traits. The use of artificial selection can cause an imbalance to the ecosystems— changing the ecosystems and making others adapt to the change…making life confusing and possibly destructive. N
ot to mention, some desirable traits we now want are lost due to artificial selection form previous generations. For example, Persian cats tend to be deaf and Gold Retrievers often suffer from hip problems; both these traits were produced accidentally from artificial selection. Also, it is possible that people have allowed bad traits to slip into crop plants: various species of plants are less insect and disease resistant than their wild ancestors. It is possible that people selecting for traits throughout history have already altered the genetic makeup of these plants as they have no knowledge of 
chemistry or biology. Lastly, another drawback of artificial selection would be how it relies on random mutations to produce new visible traits while producing new invisible traits such as new allergens. Even today, new allergens and poisons occasionally appear in food as a result of artificial selection.
Despite the restrictions of artificial selection, it is until recently, all we had. All crops and domestic animals are a result of mass breeding over thousands of years! Garden plants are also a result of artificial selection as they have been selected for prettier flowers which are more attractive to humans as well. Even “organic” crops have originated from the same thousand years of artificial selection— simply put, wild plants cannot sustain our large human populations. Today (early 20th century to present) are much more sophisticated than the drawbacks we have experienced decades ago. Usually, biologists will attempt to improve large populations of plants and animals at once, rather than working on small numbers of organisms. This has allowed modern breeders to rapidly improve traits while preventing useful traits from being lost forever.
So, the debatable topic of artificial selection or “choosing the fittest” has clearly brought many opinions to the table. When people breed plants or animals, they choose the best survivors for future generations. I find nothing wrong in this as long as the breeder’s intentions are ethical and would not potentially cause harm to any of the species. As this technology has already been around for the thousands of years and hasn’t bothered me in any way, I don’t see any harm in artificial selection. Perhaps there could be an easier way to prevent the loss of precious genes during artificial selection in the future, but honestly, we’ve been living with artificial selection for so many years and it would be extremely hard to draw back from using this practice in our daily lives. If we were to intentionally stay away from artificial selection, we might be left with very little to work with in our world. With reasonable grounds, artificial selection can greatly benefit humans since it rarely harms humanity and can create a more efficient world for us to live in.
SOURCES:
http://images.google.ca/images?um=1&hl=en&client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&tbs=isch:1&q=artificial+selection&sa=N&start=40&ndsp=20
http://home.comcast.net/~lifebook/mass-breed.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Artificial_selection
COMMENTED ON:
Saturday, January 9, 2010
Oh, Just Remaking Human Biology.
Topic: “‘Designer babies’ is the term being used by the media to describe the future of modifying or selecting out children’s genes for desirable characteristics (medical and cosmetic). Are things getting out of hand with our research into genetic processes? In this blog investigate social and ethical implications of this research and technologies that have been developed from it.”
WHY WASN’T THIS TECHNOLOGY INVENTED AROUND THE TIME I WAS BORN?
Then my Chinese parents could have a blue-eyed baby…ME!
OH MY, I could’ve been so beautiful.
Humans are just so intelligent.
Maybe a little too smart for their own good…
The process of reproducing and giving birth use to be so sacred and natural, but I can actually choose the way my baby will look now?
This is absolutely extraordinary. Unheard of. Until this past decade.
A designer baby is this incredible new discovery scientists have formed to ensure the presence or absence of particular genes or characteristics in a newborn baby. The baby’s genetic makeup has been artificially altered by genetic engineering to give parents the chance to choose desirable and cosmetic characteristics in their child. Yes, scientists are able to provide a list of possibilities for parents from assembling their babies to resist common diseases and infections (cancer, AIDs, heart attacks and Alzheimer’s disease), to creating a child’s personality in advance to even planning out how the baby will look like! Sounds like there’s more to construct than just a crib now…
Parents have the choice of giving their child the gift of having a fabulous memory or a winning personality or a talent for playing the guitar.
Proven advanced reproductive techniques fertilise a mother’s eggs with the father’s sperm outside the womb in a laboratory. Originally, this incredible feat gives the doctors and parents a chance to reduce their child being born with a genetic disorder. Legally, the doctors are allowed to screen embryos for genetic diseases which are then implanted back into the mother’s womb for the pregnancy to happen. With more innovative ideas, doctors can now choose the type of sperm to fertilise the egg, therefore choosing the sex of the baby. This also gives the doctors a chance to choose the desired genes of the baby, making it a “designer baby.”
“It’s not a question of ‘if’ but ‘when’ and ‘how’ this will occur. The reason- Gregory Stock, head of the Program on Medicine, Technology and Society at UCLA’s School of Medicine
people are fascinated by this whole area is that it will challenge our
fundamental thinking about who we are and what it means to be human. We are
talking about remaking human biology.”
This got me thinking, if the baby will grow up to be perfect, will the parents be as important to the baby? Will the parents still get the chance to teach the baby how to play the piano if the baby has the talent of playing the piano implanted in them already? Will the child rely as much on their parents as any other child? What if the child exceeds his/her parents in every way? Have our scientific discoveries created even more problems for society?
Personally, I don’t support the idea of designer babies. I don’t like the idea of fiddling around with the genetics of an embryo peacefully living in the uterus, if you catch my drift. Parents should appreciate their baby resembling them and that the baby is a wonderful gift they have brought into the world together! In the future, I would honestly, find it very hard to think of the baby as mine if he/she had blond hair and blue eyes while my husband and I are both Chinese (for example). It’s like mixing red and blue paint and getting green. It’s weird. I understand that this technology can be helpful in preventing diseases and such, but perhaps they’re there for a reason. With diseases and flaws in us, we are able to strive for the better and to push us to find cures. What will push us when everything’s fine and dandy? The idea of designer babies will drive people into madness. Gender was the first major genetic trait beyond genetic disease to be widely manipulated through Pre-implantation Genetic Diagnosis (PGD). PGD’s original purpose was to aid couples with trouble conceiving babies, but Fertilization Institutes have claimed a staggering 70% of their clients wanting a baby with a predetermined gender have been able to healthily conceive on their own. Couples enter Fertilization Institutes everyday, to confront the risk, the expense ($18 400!) and the discomfort of conceiving their baby in a test tube, all for the ability to choose the sex of their baby. Madness.
Here’s a short story. Both my parents have nice soft skin, but my brother and I both have eczema. Our skin is dry and itchy in particular areas and my parents must buy expensive creams to stop our itching. I asked my parents if they would alter the way my brother and I could’ve turned out when we were embryos, but they said no. Their reason? They didn’t want to take the chance of having other weird complications that might come from altering a child’s genetic makeup. And they also mentioned they liked the way we are. Aw, how cute. Hopefully, the rest of society views designer babies the same way as my parents do.
Designer babies add much unneeded complications to everyday life, bringing more decisions, more stress, more to worry about… All for what? We should be celebrating diversity within our human race, realizing that everyone is different with our own flaws, which make us all beautiful. This brings me to another negative issue dealing with “designer babies.” I hate the idea of taking out the unpredictability and excitement in children. Why would parents document the various stages their child goes through with photos in photo albums if they already know what their child will turn out to look like in the future? Again, this takes away from the child living a normal life from being a designer baby. Why must we create and promote unnatural beauty into our society? As if photo-shopped billboard and magazine advertisements aren’t bad enough for our egos already, bringing designer babies into society would just encourage outer appearances with us.
In the end, who are we to play God?
Although it is the parent’s choice…
I believe in order to have the perfect baby…
Let's keep it simple and do it the old fashioned way!
How beautiful.
My Sources:
- http://www.bionetonline.org/English/content/db_cont1.htm
- http://singularityhub.com/2009/02/25/designer-babies-like-it-or-not-here-they-come/
Blogs I Commented On:
- http://priscillasbioblog.blogspot.com/2009/11/designer-babies-is-term-being-used-by.html?showComment=1263348304617_AIe9_BE8w70UdTW-BTxcPnM818K7sToxyUVIJ592cHRqqXYj5JcvR9aXOsM0jI-EPBWAEbGS90Y_qqPuTmuzzameVlTsq_qtVF1mNqOUkd874uTmKTZ4BdnIgb6BFhwO-xR-yn1Jp1BwyuorEb_zJ_CxG2TlkXQo_zS29L2xjuOHxDATb1nhVg7ouJ44p83nWnMN6z0oLrBFSj5H3J3-CMDM1lsIg7H79jShN6_7HtgFNXmrswxqwuxTOTxxM4b12-ER35L0-9PZ#c5284333623345995956
- https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=3588083651638600939&postID=4497238599772901043&page=1&token=1263347916432_AIe9_BF3CTH0xf5zL5AMWn7nyLvx-tJ-pZE3RvDhvkHj2s0MeaguTimalUtrZnA8p0r6MTATVlnqKqtTK2Skt1fGYmFB4BLsLVMaIb6635evA_jBI3uFftRAj2nN0coCT_KYkAK-wrm3RfLR3pPRuYfjLbHydF28ziIFS27V0_Skph80LVahm3MH8d-vY0iVqLSSpK2NyHnkcz_7LXBHUDPb_EJW0GI2H1nJVi923jvjl2lnBnErC01PmI5OLXGodGtwqunwDz-4
