Charlotte Cagliostro
Ippolito
C Even AP Biology / Current Event #5
10/18/18
Zimmer, Carl. “'Lifeboats' Amid the World's Wildfires.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 12 Oct. 2018, https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/12/science/wildfire-biodiversity.html?rref=collection%2Fsectioncollection%2Fclimate&action=click&contentCollection=climate®ion=stream&module=stream_unit&version=latest&contentPlacement=5&pgtype=sectionfront.
In Carl Zimmer’s New York Times article, “Lifeboats’ Amid the World’s Wildfires”, he focuses on forest fires and their effects on biodiversity. Recently, wildfires have been occurring quite rapidly across the globe in areas such as California, Greece, Portugal, and Colorado. Fires in these locations have burned and destroyed many forests; however, “islands” of trees, shrubs, and grass were able to survive. The species living in these regions are known as fire refugia and are incredibly important in the survival of forest ecosystems. Fire refugia can provide shelter and food for animals. Additionally, their seeds can travel through the wind to the surrounding charred areas of forest and begin a period of growth and renewal. Today, scientists hike through forests and observe the ecosystems through satellites in order to construct detailed and accurate studies of fire refugia. To conclude his article, Zimmer discusses how climate change will affect wildfires, stating that as temperature increases and fires become more intense, fire refugia may become rarer.
The topics in which Zimmer focuses on, wildfires and fire refugia, are important factors in the overall health and continued prosperity of forests. Without any fire refugia, it will become quite difficult to maintain biodiversity in forests since animals will not have available shelter or food following a fire. While climate change and wildfires are pressing issues that influence many individuals’ lives, Zimmer’s article focuses entirely on the effects on forest organisms.
Zimmer did a great job constructing his article. He takes quite challenging scientific topics and explains them in a simple, straightforward manner. Zimmer also presents the information in a thoughtful way; he first explains what fire refugia are, then transitions into how ecologists research the topic, and then finishes with the future effects of climate change on wildfires. Additionally, Zimmer includes many pictures, which serve to further reinforce the ideas discussed in his article. The dramatic images show forests during and after fires. The pictures showing the “islands” of surviving plant life help the reader visualize what fire refugia are. Overall, Zimmer was able to craft a thought-provoking article that truly makes the reader think about the future of Earth.
Szilvia Szabó
ReplyDeleteMr. Ippolito
AP Biology
October 17th, 2018
Zimmer, Carl. “'Lifeboats' Amid the World's Wildfires.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 12 Oct. 2018, https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/12/science/wildfire-biodiversity.html?rref=collection%2Fsectioncollection%2Fclimate&action=click&contentCollection=climate®ion=stream&module=stream_unit&version=latest&contentPlacement=5&pgtype=sectionfront.
I think that Charlotte chose a really interesting topic for her current event. I don’t typically read about environmental topics, but I’m not very well informed on wildfires so I thought it would be interesting to read about them. I think that Charlotte did a really good job at talking about this subject. I felt that her introduction covered a lot of really important information and introduced the topic really nicely. She gives a really nice brief description of fire refugia. Also, I think that she gave a really well written response on why we should care about the fire refugia, “Without any fire refugia, it will become quite difficult to maintain biodiversity in forests since animals will not have available shelter or food following a fire.” Lastly, I felt that she had some good facts about fire refugia throughout her writing. For example, “their [fire refugia] seeds can travel through the wind to the surrounding charred areas of forest and begin a period of growth and renewal.” A lot of the information she brought up, such as represented in the aforementioned quote, worked to articulate why fire refugia is important.
I think that Charlotte did a really good job on her current event and there is not much I would recommend she change or add to her writing. However, I think that maybe in her introduction she could give a bit more facts about fire refugia. For example, is fire refugia really common? Is there usually a lot of it? Is it getting to be dangerously rare? Is there anything special about these plants that allows them to survive wildfires while other plants perish? Also, she mentioned that there are studies being done about fire refugia. What kind of studies are being done? What are scientists finding out about fire refugia? Is there anyway to prevent fire refugia from disappearing?
Overall, I think that Charlotte did a really good job at writing about her article. She presented all relevant facts and her writing was detailed enough to get the basic ideas across to the audience. I never knew that fire refugia was a thing, let alone something really important. I think it was really interesting to read about fire refugia and how it affects the ecosystems of forests. It’s really captivating to read about how nature works and the mysteries behind it. Not to mention that this is yet another thing thrown off balance from climate change, so I believe it is important for more people to pay attention to these kinds of things. After reading about fire refugia, I am more curious about what other aspects of nature global warming is affecting and what we should be doing to try and stop that.
Raphael Munchenbach
ReplyDelete18/10/2018
Zimmer, Carl. “'Lifeboats' Amid the World's Wildfires.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 12 Oct. 2018, https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/12/science/wildfire-biodiversity.html?rref=collection%2Fsectioncollection%2Fclimate&action=click&contentCollection=climate®ion=stream&module=stream_unit&version=latest&contentPlacement=5&pgtype=sectionfront.
In her review of Carl Zimmer’s New York Times article “ Lifeboats Amid the World’s Wildfires”, Charlotte Cagliostro is able to concisely summarize the article and its various topics. She is able to simultaneously separate the article’s parts into ‘chunks’, which allow the reviewer to control the pace of the review, and contains certain topics in their own sections, keeping each part discussed concise and informative. The first of these ‘chunks’ brings gives context to the article, stating numerous cases across North America and Europe where fires have destroyed large areas of wilderness, but all had ‘islands’ that survived the blaze. She then effectively transitions into defining fire refugia, and the impacts it can have on ecosystems. Then, she concludes her summary by stating the author’s purpose in the article, after the contextual information has been stated, so the reader is knowledgeable enough on the issue to follow the rest of the review. Another strength of Cagliostro’s review is her acknowledgement of the limitations of the article, by saying that although the article discusses forest fires, it chooses to limit its scope to only forest organisms, and chooses not to discuss the effects on human society. Being able to acknowledge the article’s limitations allows the reader of the review to form their expectations for what to draw from the piece, and clearly states what the reader will not learn from reading the article. Cagliostro is also quick to acknowledge the article’s many strengths, detailing the impact of the article’s many images on its quality, as well as stating how the author’s direction and organization of the article is crucial to strengthening its message. By shedding light on the strengths of the article, Cagliostro is able to provide insight into not only the quality of the content, but also the quality of the piece’s organization, giving a level-headed approach to the article’s efficiency from both a scientific and rhetorical point of view.
Despite the many strengths of the review, it falls short in extracting some useful details from the article. The reader is left puzzled with the brief and insufficient descriptions of crucial elements of the article, such as fire refugia, which could be discussed in greater depth. This can easily be improved on by including a more complete definition of fire refugia, and perhaps introducing examples of species which have been dubbed fire refugia, and their impact on surrounding wildlife. Furthermore, although she does state the article’s limitations, she fails go into very much depth about it, and does not discuss the effect of the article’s shortcomings on the reader. This can be worked on by simply going into more detail with the effects of narrowing scope, and how it weakens the article as a whole.
Prior to reading the review, I had very limited knowledge on the impacts of forest fires, besides the fact that they ravage forests where they emerge. Seeing not only what the direct impact on biodiversity, but also what global warming does to aggravate this has broadened my perspective on global warming, and alerted me to a new harmful impact of climate change. To me, this is the most important part of the review, as it has sparked genuine curiosity to delve further into the harrowing impacts of global warming.
Anna Normand
ReplyDeleteAP Biology
Mr. Ippolito
18 October 2018
Charlotte’s review of the article “Lifeboats Amid the World’s Wildfires” was very well constructed. I thought that one aspect of her review that was excellent was her writing. She is clear and concise without sacrificing her style, and the way in which she presents information is easy to understand and helpful for the reader. I also thought that her connection between forest fires and the overall biodiversity of forests globally was an interesting and insightful connection, which helps the reader understand the broader effects of a specific issue. Finally, her analysis of the author’s writing is well done- she identifies positive aspects and provides specific examples and how they help the article.
One thing I thought Charlotte could have improved upon is her analysis- although she provided positive examples, I would have liked to know what she thought the article could have done to improve or whether it could have expanded the discussion of certain topics. I also would have liked to know a little more about how increased wildfires and decreased fire refugia are a part of global warming, and what these changes will mean for our societies and us as individuals.
One thing I read in this article that shocked me is that there are species of plants which are adapted to surviving wildfires. I had not before know how it is that plant life is restored after a wildfire, so learning about fire refugia was eye-opening for my understanding of natural disasters and their effects on the ecosystem.
Clara DeMagalhaes Current Event #6
ReplyDeleteZimmer, Carl. “'Lifeboats' Amid the World's Wildfires.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 12 Oct. 2018, https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/12/science/wildfire-biodiversity.html?rref=collection%2Fsectioncollection%2Fclimate&action=click&contentCollection=climate®ion=stream&module=stream_unit&version=latest&contentPlacement=5&pgtype=sectionfront.
I think that Charlotte’s review of Zimmer’s article was well articulated and extremely clear. This is largely due to the fact that the piece flowed very smoothly from one topic to another, especially in the summary. Nothing felt out of place since the transitioning between ideas was very well done. Another positive about this review is that there was hardly any filler. Charlotte picked the essentials from the article and incorporated that into her summary, and her other two paragraphs were also to the point. This adds to the overall clarity of the review because there is no unnecessary information that may confuse the reader. Lastly, I liked how she critiqued the article and highlighted its strengths in a smooth, detailed manner. The entire paragraph had a very well constructed structure and the main points were laid out coherently from start to end.
The review was overall very well done, and while there is not much that I think needs improving, I would have liked to hear Charlotte’s personal thoughts on the matter. For example, it’d be interesting to see how she thought this discovery was impactful. It’s mentioned in the review that the article focuses only on how the forest fires affect forest organisms, so perhaps she could add in how she thinks people would be affected. I also think that maybe there could be more information on how exactly future threats mentioned in the article, such as climate change, invasive species, and pests, affect fire refugias. The article mentions that the number of refugia may decrease in the future due to climate change causing heat waves and droughts, so maybe the review could include some of that information too.
Reading about this phenomenon was really cool and it was fascinating to learn in depth about how forest fires, an event that is usually associated with destruction, can actually preserve growth. The existence of the fire refugia definitely made me a lot more curious about what other kinds of species have adapted to surviving harsh conditions and what the results of their survival entail. It also expanded my knowledge on the disastrous consequences of global warming, which makes the looming threat seem more dire than it already was. This is just another example of how the changes brought on by global warming will cripple our ecosystem, and it is important to be aware of this so that we can work harder to avoid it.
Alisa Kanganis
ReplyDeleteAP Biology
October 22, 2018
Current Event 6
Zimmer, Carl. “'Lifeboats' Amid the World's Wildfires.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 12
Oct. 2018, https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/12/science/wildfire-biodiversity.html?rref=collection%2Fsectioncollection%2Fclimate&action=click&contentCollection=climate®ion=stream&module=stream_unit&version=latest&contentPlacement=5&pgtype=sectionfront.
I think the topic Charlotte chose to write about is very interesting. I’ve seen wildfires and the charred forests they leave behind so it was enlightening to learn about the science behind them. My first impression of Charlotte’s summary was that it is very concise, but still gives the reader enough information to understand the topic at hand. I appreciate how she defined the scientific term “fire refugia” as an area that “can provide shelter and food for animals” and explained that “their seeds can travel through the wind to the surrounding charred areas of forest and begin a period of growth and renewal.” This way I was able to gain a thorough understanding of the phenomenon. Lastly, I liked how Charlotte pointed out some aspects of Zimmer’s writing that she enjoyed. For instance, his use of photos to reinforce ideas in the article.
There are a couple of ways Charlotte could improve her summary of the article. One suggestion I have is to include more details about fire refugia to give the reader an even better understanding. For instance, how do they form? What size are they typically? Or how well do they maintain biodiversity? Another suggestion would be to include her personal connection to the topic and explain why she chose to write about forest fires.
I never knew how important the unaffected pockets in forest fires are to ecological succession, so it was interesting to learn about them. In Colorado, I have seen a good amount of wildfires and charred forests in the Rocky Mountain National Park area. With increasing global temperatures, I would expect to see an increase in these. I hope that with growing research we will be able to combat such natural disasters and decrease their effects on ecosystems.
I decided to read Carl Zimmerman’s article “‘Lifeboats’ Amid the World’s Wildfires” and the corresponding review by Charlotte Cagliostro. This particular article discussed the significance of fire refugia, areas of greenery such as trees, bushes, and shrubs that remain intact even after a wildfire. These “lifeboats” are essential to the regeneration of the burnt forest in that they provide life for the barren earth by dispersing their numerous offspring (seeds) around the general vicinity. Charlotte’s summary was very fluid and provided adequate detail as to the specifics of the article, something that I found greatly enhanced the reading process by making the article easier to read and comprehend. For instance, when she explains the significance of the fire refugia, she offers many different reasons; she states,“Fire refugia can provide shelter and food for animals. Additionally, their seeds can travel through the wind to the surrounding charred areas of forest and begin a period of growth and renewal.” Charlotte’s evaluation of the importance of this discovery is also written very well- not only is it on point, but she is also able to make her point concisely. This one sentence seemingly captures the essence of her opinion: “Without any fire refugia, it will become quite difficult to maintain biodiversity in forests since animals will not have available shelter or food following a fire.” She is both thoughtful and succinct in her wording. Additionally, Charlotte’s analysis of the high points of the article are accurate and intriguing, as she comments not only on the written portion of the article, but the photos as well- something that most would overlook.
ReplyDeleteDespite its strengths, Charlotte’s review has some areas in need of improvement. The most glaring problem was that there was no evaluation of the article’s weaknesses in her review. While her assessment of the article’s successes was detailed and supported with evidence, there is little to no mention of its failures- in fact, the only statement that could be considered a criticism would be her claim that, “While climate change and wildfires are pressing issues that influence many individuals’ lives, Zimmer’s article focuses entirely on the effects on forest organisms.” Even this statement is not clearly a criticism. Another smaller issue with her review was that there were some parts of it that were highly similar to the original article; for instance, her mention of “beginning a period of growth and renewal” and “charred landscape” were phrases that were roughly used in the article. Charlotte could have put more effort into rewording her ideas and offering information with a differently-structured approach in order to resolve this particular issue.
After reading this article, I learned about the central importance of fire refugia to not only foliage, but to entire ecosystems- they offer a chance at renewal and regeneration after devastating destruction. I chose to read this article and review because many members of my extended family live in California, where wildfires are beginning to become a major problem for many residents living there. I was struck by how essential such a small plot of greenery could be to an entire forest- and with global warming and other human factors affecting the size and number of these refugia, I realized that global warming will do more than raise the temperature on Earth by a couple of degrees: on the way, it will lead to the destruction of millions of ecosystems and the organisms that thrive within them. We must learn that the Earth belongs to more than just us- it belongs to the animals, plants, and microorganisms that call this planet home.
Caitlin Mooney
ReplyDeleteMr. Ippolito
Current Event 6
10/25/18
Zimmer, Carl. “'Lifeboats' Amid the World's Wildfires.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 12
Oct. 2018, https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/12/science/wildfire-biodiversity.html?rref=collection%2Fsectioncollection%2Fclimate&action=click&contentCollection=climate®ion=stream&module=stream_unit&version=latest&contentPlacement=5&pgtype=sectionfront.
For this week’s current event comment, I read Charlotte’s review on the article, “'Lifeboats' Amid the World's Wildfires.” by Carl Zimmer. This article described forest fires and their effect on biodiversity. I think that Charlotte did a great job with her review, one thing that she did especially well on was her summary of the article. In her summary, Charlotte was not only able to get the reader to understand the main point in the article but she helped the reader understand scientific terms and the severity of the problem. Another thing I thought Charlotte did well was that she pointed out the parts of the articles she liked and how she was able to constructively criticize the article. I think that Charlotte also did a good job structuring her article because she always kept the reader's attention and was able to keep her points relevant.
Although I think Charlotte did job overall, I feel like there is room for improvement in her review. One thing I think Charlotte could have done better is that she could have included quotes from the article to increase the credibility of her article. Another thing I think she could have done better is that she could have included specific examples of biodiversity that was threatened by the forest fires.
Overall, I think that Charlotte did a really good job with her review, and I learned a lot after reading it. I was shocked to find out what a big impact forest fires had on ecological succession. Now that I am more aware of this problem, I fear for the future where the increase in temperatures as a result of climate change will only cause more forest fires and be able to devastate biodiversity to a greater scale. In the future, I hope more people can be educated about this topic to raise awareness and potentially decrease the affect forest fires has on biodiversity.
Christopher Hutchins
ReplyDeleteMr. Ippolito
AP Biology
10/20/18
Zimmer, Carl. “'Lifeboats' Amid the World's Wildfires.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 12 Oct. 2018, https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/12/science/wildfire-biodiversity.html?rref=collection%2Fsectioncollection%2Fclimate&action=click&contentCollection=climate®ion=stream&module=stream_unit&version=latest&contentPlacement=5&pgtype=sectionfront.
In this review, Charlotte analyzes, “Lifeboats’ Amid the World’s Wildfires”, an article written to address the issue of forest fires, and the safe islands that prevent extinction of certain areas. Charlotte did a really good job explaining this topic. I knew very little about forest fires or the environmental crises in California and Greece before her review. Charlotte introduced all the subjects discussed in the article, as well as covering a large stretch of research. She gave a brief and concise description of fire refugia, and how it may be decreasing in size due to climate change. This was the clear topic in Zimmer’s article, and made a strong base for her claims. She did a good job connecting the forest fires with the overall biodiversity of forest fires. As she stated, “Without any fire refugia, it will become quite difficult to maintain biodiversity in forests since animals will not have available shelter or food following a fire.”
Charlotte’s article review was very well written and encompassed many important aspects of forest fires. Charlotte could’ve improved on a couple things in her current event. The first thing is her analysis. She could have expanded on the topics she mentioned. I would have liked to understand how common fire refugia is. Other details and specific examples might have been helpful to her review.
It was very interesting to learn about forest fires. I became curious about their other scientific effects of forest fires which are stereotypically destructive and bad most commonly known as bad for burning trees. Previously, I had not know that plant life is restored after wildfires, so learning about the fire refugia was very fascinating towards my understanding of natural disasters. The article also proved that changes brought on by global warming will destroy our ecosystem, and it is important to take action.
Zimmer, Carl. “'Lifeboats' Amid the World's Wildfires.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 12 Oct. 2018, https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/12/science/wildfire-biodiversity.html?rref=collection%2Fsectioncollection%2Fclimate&action=click&contentCollection=climate®ion=stream&module=stream_unit&version=latest&contentPlacement=5&pgtype=sectionfront.
ReplyDeleteIn Charlotte's review of "'Lifeboats' Amid the World's Wildfires.”, by Carl Zimmer, she provided a very thorough summary of the article. She explained the main points of the article in a sequential order, which was very helpful in for those trying to understand the article. Secondly, she did a very good job conveying the importance of fire refugia on their surrounding ecosystems. Understanding this critical relationship allowed me to realize the true and present dangers that the reduction of fire refugia could cause. Finally, Charlotte did a very good job of explaining why she feels the article was well written. I found her comment on the effectiveness of the included photographs interesting, as I agree photos can be a very effective means of sharing information.
Nowhere in her review did Charlotte describe how she felt about the topic. I would have been interested to read an explanation of her reaction to the posed threat of increased wildfires. Furthermore, she claims that the article was "thought provoking", but mainly described the factual details rather than the author's opinions and insights. It may have been helpful if she had included what about the article made it interesting to her.
I was most struck by the potential threat global warming is causing on the 'fire refugia-front'. The threatened increase in forest fires could very significantly reduce the presence of this vital part of ecosystems, from which we can only imagine the horrific consequences that would ensue. This review made me ever more aware of the countless ways that the ways we are harming our environment is destroying our planet and served as a reminder that an action as small as leaving a light on could contribute to the crisis of our planet.