Ella Stupart
Mr. Ippolito C Even
Current Event 17
February 28, 2019
Citation:
“'Mermaid Tears' Are Killing Our Oceans.” Popular Science, 25 Feb. 2019, www.popsci.com/ocean-plastic-pollution-youve-never-heard-of#page-6.
In her article, “Mermaid Tears’ Are Killing Our Oceans,” Claire Gwinnett talks about nurdles, also referred to as “mermaid tears” and their effect on our oceans. Nurdles are small bits of plastic, ranging from the size of about 1mm to 5mm, which are full of harmful chemicals. They are the building blocks of common plastic items such as reusable water bottles. Their size and the level of polymers which are found in nurdles make them extremely harmful to humans and to sea animals. They emit toxins called persistent organic pollutants which then cover the surface of the sea water. A study done in East Lothian found large amounts of E.coli, a virus that causes major intestinal issues and sometimes even death, on the surface of the nurdles on all five of the beaches that were tested. It is estimated that 53 billion nurdles have released in the UK by the plastic industry. In attempt to solve the issue, Fidra and The Marine Conservation Society, two organizations dedicated to helping the environment, started the Great Global Nurdle Hunt which is a 10 day search held yearly in February for nurdles on beaches across the world. Since 2012, there have been 1610 beaches searched. Their goal is to help find the source of the problem through determining the concentration of nurdles on beaches all over the world. One of the organizations who participated in the hunt, Staffordshire University’s Microplastic and Forensic Fibre Research Group, estimates 139.8 nurdles per square meter on beaches.
Nurdles are extremely toxic and are harmful to not only the marine life whose oceans they contaminate, but also to humans who spend time on the beaches. Nurdles are so toxic that scientists and citizens who are working with nurdles and searching the beaches are told to wear gloves to prevent the nurdles from making contact with their skin. The plastic industry will continue to produce absurd amounts of waste which will result in an even larger concentration of nurdles, multiplying the toxins in the ocean and growing the problem even further. If we do not work with organizations to solve this issue, it will only get worse and will start to affect humans.
This article provided great information about nurdles, a subject which I have never heard about before. Gwinnett did a good job of explaining where the nurdles came from and why they are harmful. While the article was overall welldone, I do have a few critiques. In order to improve her article, Gwinnett could have suggested ways that we can reduce the number of nurdles that are in the oceans. She also could have explained exactly what happens if we come in contact with a nurdle and how concerned we should be when going to the beach. Another aspect that was not discussed was how marine animals have been affected so far. I wish a statistic about this was included in the article.
Alisa Kanganis
ReplyDeleteAP Biology
2/28/19
Current Event 17
“'Mermaid Tears' Are Killing Our Oceans.” Popular Science, 25 Feb. 2019, www.popsci.com/ocean-plastic-pollution-youve-never-heard-of#page-6.
I really enjoyed reading Ella’s summary and review of “Mermaid Tears Are Killing Our Oceans”. She did a good job of keeping her summary concise, yet informational. I like how she defined scientific terms, such as nurdles, making her summary easy to understand. I also like how she included statistics to emphasize how urgent the issue of microplastic in oceans is. For instance, she mentioned that there are an estimated 139.8 nurdles per square meter on beaches. Lastly, her critic of the article was very sophisticated and well thought out.
There are two areas where I think Ella could improve her review. It would really bring it to the next level if she gave her own take on the issue. For instance, how does she feel about the plastic issue and does she take any precautions to reduce her amount of plastic waste? I also think she could have included more about how these nurdles make their way into the ocean.
I had never heard the term ‘nurdles’ before I read Ella’s review. It was very enlightening to learn about just how big of an issue this is. It makes me want to reduce my own ecological footprint.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteAnna Normand
ReplyDeleteAP Biology
Mr. Ippolito
3 March 2019
“'Mermaid Tears' Are Killing Our Oceans.” Popular Science, 25 Feb. 2019, www.popsci.com/ocean-plastic-pollution-youve-never-heard-of#page-6.
This week, I read Ella’s review of the article “Mermaid Tears’ Are Killing Our Oceans,” which discussed the effect of “nurdles”, or small bits of plastic (called mermaid tears) on the welfare of the ocean. I really liked the way that Ella explained nurdles, it was very simple and easy to understand but she also included pertinent information that helps us to understand how harmful they can be. For example, she talks about the e.Coli that is transmitted through these pieces of plastic. I also liked how she connected the effect on marine wildlife and human life, which helps us to feel like the issue is more personal and gives better context to the issue. Finally, I agreed with the suggestions she made regarding the effect on wildlife.
One thing I think Ella could have done better is explain why plastic nurdles are able to make it into the ocean. I think it would provide excellent context to learn about the situation in which plastic is put into our oceans and why the governments haven’t stopped this practice. I also think she could have included suggestions for decreasing plastic output.
Overall, Ella’s review taught me a lot. I did not know what nurdles were before reading it, and so it was very interesting to discover the many ways in which plastic can harm the environment. I also found it very interesting how nurdles can affect everyone on earth, more than just marine life. Overall this was a very interesting, informative, and well-written review.
“'Mermaid Tears' Are Killing Our Oceans.” Popular Science, 25 Feb. 2019, www.popsci.com/ocean-plastic-pollution-youve-never-heard-of#page-6.
ReplyDeleteFor this week’s current event I read my classmate, Ella’s review of the article“'Mermaid Tears' Are Killing Our Oceans.” by Claire Gwinnett. This article describes nurdles, or “mermaid tears” and their effect on oceans. One thing I think Ella did a great job with is that she explained the article in a lot of detail. I feel like this helped the reader understand what was going on without even having to read the article. Another thing I thought was good about Ella’s review is that she described the effects mermaid tears have on society. Finally, I liked how Ella was able to criticize the author, an example of this is when she said, “In order to improve her article, Gwinnett could have suggested ways that we can reduce the number of nurdles that are in the oceans. ”. This example shows her deep analysis of the article.
Although I feel that Ella did a great job on this review, she still has some room for improvement. One example of how Ella could have improved her review would have been to include statistics about mermaid tears effects on the oceans. Additionally, as a reader, I think that Ella should have included more quotes from the article, if she had done this it would have helped the reader understand the point of view of the author better, and added to the credibility of the review.
When I first saw this review I had never heard of nurdles or mermaid tears. I found it very interesting to learn about this problem and what impact it has on society. This also makes me want to look into this topic more to see how I can help our oceans.