RANKS OF EXTINCTION

 Since we have now defined what extinction is, in this chapter we shall look briefly into the ranks of extinction. 

Rates of extinction vary widely. 

During the last 100,000 years of the Pleistocene Epoch (about 2.6 million to 11,700 years ago), some 40 percent of the existing genera of large mammals in Africa and more than 70 percent in North America, South America, and Australia went extinct. 

Ecologists estimate that the present-day extinction rate is 1,000 to 10,000 times the background extinction rate (between one and five species per year) because of deforestation, habitat loss, overhunting, pollution, climate change, and other human activities—the sum total of which will likely result in the loss of between 30 and 50 percent of extant species by the middle of the 21st century.

Although extinction is an ongoing feature of Earth’s flora and fauna (the vast majority of species ever to have lived are extinct), the fossil record reveals five unusually large extinctions, each involving the demise of vast numbers of species. These conspicuous declines in diversity are referred to as mass extinctions; they are distinguished from the majority of extinctions, which occur continually and are referred to as background extinction. 

Ranked in descending order of severity, they are: 

1. Permian extinction (about 265.1 million to about 251.9 million years ago), the most dramatic die-off, eliminating about half of all families, some 95 percent of marine species (nearly wiping out brachiopods and corals), and about 70 percent of land species (including plants, insects, and vertebrates).
2. Ordovician-Silurian extinction (about 443.8 million years ago), which included about 25 percent of marine families and 85 percent of marine species, with brachiopods, conodonts, bryozoans, and trilobites suffering greatly.
3. Cretaceous-Tertiary (K-T), or Cretaceous-Paleogene (K-Pg), extinction (about 66.0 million years ago), involving about 80 percent of all animal species, including the dinosaurs and many species of plants. Although many scientists contend that this event was caused by one or more large comets or asteroids striking Earth, others maintain that it was caused by climatic changes associated with the substantial volcanic activity of the time.
4. End-Triassic extinction (about 201.3 million years ago), possibly caused by rapid climate change or by an asteroid striking Earth. This mass extinction event caused about 20 percent of marine families and some 76 percent of all extant species to die out, possibly within a span of about 10,000 years, thus opening up numerous ecological niches into which the dinosaurs evolved.
5. Devonian extinctions (407.6 million to about 358.9 million years ago), which included 15–20 percent of marine families and 70–80 percent of all animal species. Roughly 86 percent of marine brachiopod species perished, along with many corals, conodonts, and trilobites.

https://www.the-sol-foundation.org/

REFERENCES:

John L. Gittleman

Dean of the graduate faculty at the University of Georgia's Odum School of Ecology. Editor of Carnivore Behavior, Ecology, and Evolution; co-editor of Carnivore Conservation.

ZERO WASTE MANAGEMENT

 What is Zero Waste?

There is an urgent need of setting a new goal for how we live in the world; one that aims to reduce what we trash in landfills and incinerators to zero and to rebuild our local economies in support of community health, sustainability, and justice. This is where zero-waste management comes in. 

So what really is zero waste?

At its most basic level, zero waste is about significantly reducing (and eventually completely eliminating) the amount of resources that we send to disposal. Most of what we now waste can be safely and economically recycled, reused, composted, or turned into biogas through anaerobic digestion. We also need to simply use fewer disposable products and redesign our products so that they are toxic-free and built to last. 

But zero waste is about much more.

It’s really about redefining the system. We currently live in an economy where we take resources from the earth and then dump them in a giant hole in the ground (back to the earth). 

The goal of zero waste is to move to an economy where we write trash out of existence. So that there is no trash in nature. Instead of discarding resources, we create a system where all resources can be resumed fully back into the system.

We can hence conclude that, Zero Waste is a philosophy, a strategy, and a set of practical tools seeking to eliminate waste, not manage it. 

A huge thanks to all those who commented from on our Facebook page. Here is their your takes on Zero Waste: 

Resom Tesfamariam -

I think the concept of zero waste is clear, the challenge is how to start practicing it? What institution is needed? What system has to be install? Expertise required? Capital and what is the source of capital? etc. Are the most challenging issues in developing countries.

Rashidah Aasim Asad - 

Using environmentally friendly products and we recycle

part 11 : CONCLUSION

Through our 9 chapters we have taken a close look at deforestation and how it does more damage to our lives and the environment ,than good. We would like to conclude by talking about the major link between deforestation and climate change, and why there is an urgency to fight deforestation.

Deforestation adds carbon dioxide to the atmosphere and removes the ability to absorb existing carbon dioxide.

Forests store large amounts of carbon. Trees and other plants absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere as they grow. This is converted into carbon and stored in the plant's branches, leaves, trunks, roots and in the soil. When forests are cleared or burnt, stored carbon is released into the atmosphere, mainly as carbon dioxide. The build-up of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is driving global warming, as it traps heat in the lower atmosphere.

Carbon dioxide levels are now at their highest levels in human history. Droughts, tropical storms, heatwaves and wild fires are increasing in severity and frequency because of climate change. This will continue to result in increases in forest losses, contributing to more and more carbon dioxide being released into the atmosphere. Risks are significantly reduced but not avoided by keeping the rise in global temperatures well below 2 degrees Celsius.

Protecting natural ecosystems and sustainably managing and reestablishing forests are important ways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and slow down temperature rise in the short term by drawing down carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. At the same times, we must deeply and rapidly reduce global greenhouse gas emissions levels from fossils fuels - coal, oil and gas. If we do only the former and not the latter, we risk transforming more and more of our carbon sink into carbon sources as climate change progresses.

Throughout the articles we have explained what deforestation is and the pros and cons. So does deforestation still needs to be addressed urgently? Make a decision today and help our coming generations received a better greener and healthier world.

"What you do makes a difference, but you have to decide what difference you want to make." - Jane Goodall.

Deforestation PART 1: Definition

Deforestation the permanent removal, by either cutting down or uprooting, trees to make room for something besides forest.

You can see the word forest in deforestation. The prefix de- means "remove" and the suffix -ation signals the act or state of. So deforestation is the act of removing a forest.

On the other hand Reforestation is the regrowing of forest that have previously been cut down. Here you can see the prefix re- meaning "again" signaling the act of repeating what was or is there.

In the coming articles we shall be focusing on when deforestation started, the reasons for it, the pros and cons of deforestation and the ways we can use to reduce the negative effects or how we can accomplish reforestation.

"Humans are the only creatures in this world who cut down the trees, made paper from them and then wrote on these papers 'save trees' "

411 Oak Trees

• Oak trees are native to the Northern hemisphere. The usual lifespan of an oak is about 200 years, but some live over 1,000 years. Oak trees grow to an average height of about 15 to 21 meters (50 to 70 feet) and have a spread of as much as 15 meters (50 feet) from branch to branch when fully grown. Many species of oaks are under threat of extinction in the wild, because of the habitat destruction, over exploitation, diseases and introduction of invasive species.
• The fruit is a nut called an acorn. One oak produces more than 2000 acorns every year. Wildlife that consume acorns as part of their diets includes jays, pigeons, duck, pigs, bears, deer, squirrels and mice.

• The leaves and acorns of the oak tree are poisonous to cattle, horses, sheep, and goats in large amounts due to the toxin tannic acid, and cause kidney damage and gastroenteritis.
• Oak wood has great strength and hardness. The wood is very resistant to insect and fungal attack because of its high tannin content. It is used in the manufacture of ships, furniture, floorings and barrels.

Q&A Ecosia Scam or Legit

We had received an email regarding Ecosia asking if this organization is scam or legit?

Team of The Seed of Life® did some digging and here is what we were able to find out. If you believe otherwise, please kindly comment below and we would love to learn more.

Ecosia is a search engine similar to Google. There is also an extension of Ecosia to chrome, which one can add.

Ecosia  doesn't have their own search engine, rather they piggy back on Bing Search Engine. Per their business model, they track all the information regarding the surfer. They claim they give back to the society around 80% of profit, which they make from advertisements.

That 80% of profit can go to various areas and one of them is planting trees. Yes, they have planted trees, but as an individual, surfer does it make any difference in planting? Is there a way to track how you personally made any difference in the environment by using Ecosia?

The simple answer is No, there is no way to track that, nor is there any guarantee.

If you choose to use Ecosia or not, that is definitely up to you as a consumer and surfer. Please stay safe and vigilant.

411 Apple Trees

• The apple tree originated in Central Asia. They have been grown for thousands of years in Asia and Europe, and were brought to North America by European colonists. China is by far the largest apple producer.
• Apple are one of the most widely grown tree fruit. There are more than 8,000 varieties of apples – the largest variety of fruit to exist.
• Apple trees take 4 to 5 years to produce their first fruit.The apple tree generally standing 1.8 to 4.6 meters (6 to 15 feet) tall in cultivation and up to 12 meters (39 ft) in the wild. Life expectancy for apple tree is about 100 years.
• Apples can help you improve your memory. Most of the anti-oxidants in apples, are found in the skin. Apples can also help lower cholesterol levels.

Who loves Apples? My 2 year old does. Do your kids too?

Do you know anything more about Apples and Apple trees? We would love to hear from you!

411 Chestnut Trees

• There are 9 different species of chestnut native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere.
• The four main species are commonly known as European, Chinese, Japanese, and American chestnuts, some species called chinkapin or chinquapin.
• It has a lifespan of 200 to 800 years, depending on the species.
• The Hundred-Horse Chestnut is the largest and oldest known chestnut tree in the world. Located on Linguaglossa road in Sant’Alfio, on the eastern slope of Mount Etna in Sicily it is generally believed to be 2,000 to 4,000 years old.
• The nuts are an important food for jays, pigeons, wild boar, deer, and squirrels.
• Chestnut can be consumed raw, baked, boiled or roasted. It also can be dried and milled into flour, which can then be used to prepare breads, cakes, pies, pancakes, pastas, polenta or used as thickener for stews, soups, and sauces.

Use or Abuse of Farming?

"Green Movement" A Scam, 2020 Trend or Global Crisis," P.1

Bleak History or Future? P.2

In order to understand this article thoroughly, please review part 1 and 2. As we discussed in, Bleak History or Future, how America's waters, land, and air got damaged. I would like to outline a bit more detailed on machine usage in farming in this article.

While on the flip side, many countries such as Mexico, India, Pakistan, and majority African countries, were still using old methods of farming, (some areas still continue to use old method of farming), while majority of European countries and North America quickly adapted to machine use in the fields. 

The trend moved to machine use for several reasons: 

• Less men on the field =  Spend less $$$
• Faster work done
• Large acres got done faster
• Faster growth of crops

Putting all this on the table was helpful to farmers and agriculture. Many profit organizations wanted agriculture business as well. 

Abuse

• Various kinds of machines and instruments started appearing, which hurt the air with their fumes, noise pollution started, and hurt the crops as some machines worked while others failed. 
• Many options of pesticides were introduced, which again took the turn of hurting crops, animals, air, and water. 
• More land was provided for better "farming" more business, which took many forests out and took away homes of many animals ie bears, foxes, wolf, and majority of sea animals, just to name a few.
• Animal farming turned into business in itself, by feeding animals medication for strong, lean and muscular body organs, skinning started for clothes and accessories, teeth for jewelry and international trade, nails became status of the society, meat intake became wealthy symbol, hunting became a sport, and fighting animal to animal a game. 
• In the name of freedom, garbage was disposed by individuals, businesses, factories, farmers, and manufacturing plants into waters and land.

One so-called better opportunity for society became ten-fold steps backwards for the environment

Night Cycle of Trees

411:

• Trees not only release oxygen but also consume carbon dioxide.
• Trees perform photosynthesis during daylight hours. At night, they use oxygen and release carbon dioxide.

Sources

• McAliney, Mike. Arguments for Land Conservation: Documentation and Information Sources for Land Resources Protection, Trust for Public Land, Sacramento, CA, December 1993.
• Nowak, David J.; Hoehn, Robert; Crane, Daniel E. Oxygen Production by Urban Trees in the United States. Arboriculture & Urban Forestry 2007. 33(3):220–226.
• Stancil, Joanna Mounce. The Power of One Tree - The Very Air We Breathe. U.S. Department of Agriculture. March 17, 2015.
• Villazon, Luis. How many trees does it take to produce oxygen for one person? BBC Science Focus Magazine.
• ThoughtCo, Ph.D. Helmenstine, Anne Marie How Much Oxygen Does One Tree Produce?  November 19, 2019

Tree Location Fact: MN, USA

Location Fact:

Mean net annual oxygen production (after accounting for decomposition) per hectare of trees (100% tree canopy) offsets oxygen consumption of 19 people per year (8 people per acre of tree cover), but ranges from nine people per hectare of canopy cover (4 people/ac cover) in Minneapolis, Minnesota, to 28 people/ha cover (12 people/ac cover) in Calgary, Alberta."

Sources

• McAliney, Mike. Arguments for Land Conservation: Documentation and Information Sources for Land Resources Protection, Trust for Public Land, Sacramento, CA, December 1993.
• Nowak, David J.; Hoehn, Robert; Crane, Daniel E. Oxygen Production by Urban Trees in the United States. Arboriculture & Urban Forestry 2007. 33(3):220–226.
• Stancil, Joanna Mounce. The Power of One Tree - The Very Air We Breathe. U.S. Department of Agriculture. March 17, 2015.
• Villazon, Luis. How many trees does it take to produce oxygen for one person? BBC Science Focus Magazine.
• ThoughtCo, Ph.D. Helmenstine, Anne Marie How Much Oxygen Does One Tree Produce?  November 19, 2019

Global Census of Tree Species

In April 2017, the results of a "huge scientific effort" were published in the Journal of Sustainable Forestry, along with a searchable online archive called GlobalTreeSearch.

The scientists all over the world worked hard for this effort to compile the data as accurately as possible. These scientists are frok all backgrounds such as but not limited to: museums, botanical gardens, agricultural centers and other sources, and concluded there are 60,065 tree species currently known to science. 

These numbers and species globally range from from Abarema abbottii, a vulnerable limestone-bound tree found only in the Dominican Republic, to Zygophyllum kaschgaricum, a rare and poorly understood tree native to China and Kyrgyzstan.

The Power of a Single Tree

When we see trees, we as human beings, don't even think twice about the effects of these green leafy bulky living creatures. 

Just take a moment and think about it? Have you ever wondered why the air is thinker, denser, fresh, mold, or polluted, is different at various places? 

The amount of oxygen produced by a single tree depends on several factors such as but not limited to: location, type of species, number of the family, soil, age, health, weather/season, and environmental surroundings in overall (buildings, manufacturing plants, beach, mountains, etc).

Here are some interesting facts to acknowledge:

• A full mature tree produces as much oxygen in a season as 10 people inhale in a year. 
• A single mature tree can absorb carbon dioxide at a rate of 48 pounds per year.
• A full grown mature tree can release enough oxygen back into the atmosphere to support two human beings.
• One acre of trees annually consumes the amount of carbon dioxide equivalent to that produced by driving an average car for 26,000 miles.
• An acre of trees produces enough oxygen for 18 people to breathe for a year.
• A tree that average measure of 100-foot tree, 18 inches diameter at its base, produces average of 6,000 pounds of oxygen.
• On average, one tree can produce nearly upto 260 pounds of oxygen each year. 

Sources

• McAliney, Mike. Arguments for Land Conservation: Documentation and Information Sources for Land Resources Protection, Trust for Public Land, Sacramento, CA, December 1993.
• Nowak, David J.; Hoehn, Robert; Crane, Daniel E. Oxygen Production by Urban Trees in the United States. Arboriculture & Urban Forestry 2007. 33(3):220–226.
• Stancil, Joanna Mounce. The Power of One Tree - The Very Air We Breathe. U.S. Department of Agriculture. March 17, 2015.
• Villazon, Luis. How many trees does it take to produce oxygen for one person? BBC Science Focus Magazine.
• ThoughtCo, Ph.D. Helmenstine, Anne Marie How Much Oxygen Does One Tree Produce?  November 19, 2019

Bleak History or Future?

In the last post, "Green Movement" A Scam, 2020 Trend or Global Crisis, we stated in order to understand the actual definition, we need to look at the history. So without further delay let's go back in time!

Around 1492 and 1502, Columbus discovered America, per Wikipedia, Voice of America, and many other sources. Yet due to the size of the continent, people, and land, The New World, was itself strange to explorers of that time, especially to the European explorers. 

When European people started migrating to America's, they found Native Americans to be different in many aspects such as their language, dress, skin color, body types, beliefs, food, and etc.  Native Americans have been living on this land for 1,000's of years if not 10,000's of years, historically speaking, but the way they lived was completely different from Europeans. They relied heavily on taking care of the land, air and water. To many Native Americans tribes, their belief was (is) if you hurt/damage the nature, you are hurting the dead/spirits, because when one dies, their body becomes part of nature. 

In British, the belief and the norm was different; human beings are on the top of the chain. Human beings have the power to do whatever they want, which is true, but with every action there is a reaction. They migrated to Americas and took over without learning how to handle the new land. Slavery was brought over to do menial and labor jobs, Manufacturing took over, factories started popping all over without proper regulations, and before long cars took over the country. 

As there is a saying, we all learn from our mistakes, after all we are just human beings, not gods. Before the laws got enforced, our waters were already damaged with garbage, oil spills, manufacturing wastes,  and to make matters worse, huge organizations started lobbying protection against the nature in the name of creating jobs, cheap products, and "throw away after one use."

We let that slide and now so much of our environment has become extremely damaged, which is negatively effecting the air we breath, the foods we eat (especially sea food), moreover, we have taken everything for granted without realizing what we have today may not be there tomorrow. 

"Green Movement" A Scam, 2020 Trend or Global Crisis

Year 2020 has just started and barely we are done with the first month, January, yet many organizations, researchers, scientists, politicians and so-called "tree huggers" are throwing the words and phrases to us on daily basis such as Economical Friendly, Eco-Friendly, Climate Change Crisis, Global Warming, Carbon Footprint, and etc, but what does all these mean? Are these just business gimmicks, scams or do they actually mean something? Who started this and why? Is this year 2020 trend?

Before we can answer these questions and more regarding this topic, we first need to take a step back and peek in the history. We will cover this topic in several posts, in order to understand the necessary aspect without being boggled down with loads of information, confusing terms, and/or being bored.

The Seed of Life® Goals

Many of us become the victims of depression, anxiety, outcast within our family members, and most of all alone, confused and hurt. When we started The Seed of Life®, we realized, each of us are broken, but that doesn't necessarily mean we bleed on Earth by destroying bit by bit.

Instead of bleeding, we united with each other and started creating a small path of difference in our lives to make path of better future. We don't like to "die" or be forgotten, while still being alive.

We want to live, make a difference, and whoever is forgotten or "dead" we would like to pay respect and attributes to them by respectfully planting a tree in their memory. Keep their legacy alive for next generation(s) to come!!!

The Seed of Life® is committed to Restore Nature | Plant Trees | Honor a Life | Give Hope | Leave a Living Legacy

Copyrights

The Seed of Life® is a non profit organization. We are trying to make our Earth a better place to live in and better for coming future. In this journey, we need your help.

We will be sharing and posting many articles, that are written and will be written by the team of The Seed of Life®, volunteers, interns, staff, partners, sponsors, campaigners, ambassadors, and etc that are part of The Seed of Life® Family. So please be kind enough not to copy any of the materials, social medias, posts, logos, pictures, locations, dates, or any/all materials that reflect this organization online/offline.

If you like something on any of our online/offline work(s) regardless of the platforms we utilize, please contact us. You are welcome to "share" the work(s) as is without copying or making any/all changes on your social media platforms, as the credit will have to be given to The Seed of Life®.

Thank you

Sudden Beginnings

When few of us friends came together one weekend in summer of 2019, we were discussing our jobs, politics, beliefs, and economy. Suddenly the hot topic became environment, of course, as we all are passionate regarding mother nature.

We realized that we need to come together and do something for our planet Earth. We cannot be ignorant and chase our dreams of becoming successful or wealthy, if we don't have a safe place to stay. So we decided to create a group called, "The Seed of Life®".

We realized through trees, everything is born and begins and ends. What better name then that. So that is how The Seed of Life® started in summer 2019 in USA

Welcome

Peace Be Upon You,

First and foremost thank you for taking your time to visit The Seed of Life® Blog. We recently started this organization to create awareness regarding our current global environment crisis and with your help, we would like to plant trees globally to fight serious issues such as but not limited to shortage of trees, wildfires, animals extinction, climate change, global warming, & much more.

We cannot do alone, we want you to join us in this journey.