GOOD BYE BLOGGING WORLD!!!

HELLO FOR THE LAST TIME WORLD!!!

We, P.E.E.L., would like to reflect on this blog for our last post. We will share our experiences for the past five posts.

What's our blog for?
This blog served as our fourth quarter project/creative expansive output (CEO). And we were tasked to creatively express our opinions on recent scenarios about our recent field trip to the Pawikan Conservation Center and the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant. Our Science teacher "urbanguru" made guide questions, the answers of which were to be included in each post.
BTW here's our guide questions for this blog from the blogging project 3.0:

• What is your fourth quarter final CEO (The Blogging Project)?  Give a brief introduction.
• How did you prepare for it?
• Did you encounter any problem/s as you prepare for the said project?  If yes, how did you resolve those problems?  If none, what made it easy for you to prepare for it?
• Given the chance to do this CEO all over again, would you still do it?  Why or why not?
• How do you think this CEO can be further improved?
• Will you change anything regarding how this CEO was handled?  If yes, what would that be?  If none, why not?
• What is the most important lesson that you learned from this CEO?

Our Individual Answers:

Death Scourge

We prepared this with all our effort put into it. How? We basically gathered together to discuss our next move in our blog, or team collaboration. And if we ever needed help, we would ask the urbanguru. If he suggests something then we discuss if this would fit the theme. Though, we had teamwork we still encountered problems. Like failing of posting our blog because of some technical difficulties and sometimes we couldn’t contact each other. We, of course, had to deal with these disgracing problems. We successfully were able to solve these problems by helping and teaching each other how to post properly and put more load to our phones. If I, Death Scourge, was given a chance to do this CEO all over again “Count me in”. I said in the start that I wouldn’t want to do this, but looking at the adventure we just did I can’t deny. The most important lesson that I learned from this CEO is that there is always destruction in every second of our world. We are slowly stepping into a world of disasters. And, especially, the Sea Turtle there millions of them and now there is like 1% or less of them. Why? Because of what we are doing right now, and when we don’t have Earth anymore, where will we go? We have to start now, “Don’t do tomorrow what you could do today”.

(sixth-graders meeting from:Google Images)

Ace of Spades

Here's my point of view... as Death Scourge said, we prepared by meeting up, calling each other then discussing what we would put in the next post. Some problems we encountered on the way were: communication, and lack of creativity. That is why for our last blog we really want to voice out our ideas. I would definitely do this project again because this project makes us aware of the need for clean energy as our country develops and rises in the world. If we could do this project over, we would add more widgets, pictures and personal opinions. I really think that there is no need to further change the mechanics of this CEO because it is challenging without being extremely difficult. It taught us the value of preparation, communication and team work. We need to improve our work habits, manage time wisely and make use of every hour we have. So much can be done within this time.

The Unknown

Our preparations were pretty simple; all we had to do were to answer the questions and give them to our Orion Constellation and Ace of Spades which they then put in our answers into the blog itself. We had some problems along the way. Day 1 was in a hotel relaxing when I completely forgot about our project, so I wasn’t able to make any contributions. We got rid of that problem by just sending our contributions through Facebook. I would do this again; It is fun to express your own opinions (now I see why people enjoy blogs). This Ceo can be further improved by not only adding what we’ve learned during the fieldtrips but in everyday school as well. I wouldn't change anything about the CEO, because it was okay as it is. Although I learned that working alone must be nerve wrecking. 

Orion Constellation

We prepared for it by, asking ourselves, "What would we put in our blog?", and then we all  agreed what answers we should put. If all is wrong, we ask help from Teacher Rye. During the blogging, one of our fellow groupmate left the city. We had difficulty contacting him and he was not able to contribute until now. We resolved it by asking him the question when he got back from his trip. If I were given the chance to do this CEO all over again, I would still do it. This is because our group could have done better if we contacted each other more often then we could have gotten a better result. I think our CEO could be improved by adding more pictures and multimedia. We lacked in pictures and multimedia because we did not have the knowledge of adding these type of media. If I were to change anything regarding how this CEO, we would have met each other more often to talk about our CEO, discuss about it. The lesson I learned from this CEO is that you should help each other in doing important things like projects and CEO's.

Additional Fun Facts:

1.  Nuclear power provides 9% of the electicity in United states of America. Worldwide, it provides approximately 15-19% of the worlds energy.

2.  1 uranium pellet is equivalent to about 1,000 kilograms of coal. Or 2,000 coal pellets.

3.  Since 1973, Power plants have saved at least $44 billion dollars for energy.

4.  Nuclear power leaves no pollution into the air. The smoke you see is actually steam.

5.  In some countries, nuclear power plants produce over 80% of the energy.

6.  Nuclear Power Plants are a attractive target for terrorists.

7.  The U.S. saves $12 billion dollars each year for energy costs because of Nuclear power.

8.  Nuclear/radioactive waste must be stored for thousands of years.

9.  For every uranium atom split by a neutron, two more neutrons pop out.

10.  Surprisingly no people have died working for Nuclear Power Plants.... Except for Chernobyl... Although only 50 people died in that huge accident.... Not very much.... Compared to Car accidents.

From:

http://nuclearpowernpp.weebly.com/fun-facts.html

That was all for this project, P.E.E.L here-signing out.

To Open or Not to Open

Hi world here's P.E.E.L.s fifth post... As you know from our previous blog, the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant (BNPP) has been mothballed for thirty years. This post will include advantages and disadvantages of opening the BNPP, and our personal opinions on this. Before we start though we would like to tell you that we would love it if you could contribute your opinions and views on our blog and the situation cited.

First of all, we were faced with the question, if you were the president of the Philippines and there was a sudden power crisis and the price of oil went sky high, would we open the BNPP knowing that we are risking the lives of endangered sea turtles only 8 minutes away?

Here are the pros and cons of the situation to help you pick your side, to open or not to open?
Advantages:

• The added electricity supply will definitely help to solve the power crisis
• As aged as it is, the power plant is well designed and constructed, with similar power plants safely operating around the world.
• When properly used and maintained, and with safety measures properly implemented, there is only a small chance that deadly levels of radiation would leak out.
• The Philippines also needs to cope with the changes of the industrial world, and opening the BNPP is a major step, signifying our readiness to operate such technology.
• The billions of pesos already spent on this power plant would go to waste if we don't open it, especially as it was closed not due to any malfunctions or bad designs but rather due to political reasons.
• Nuclear power plants that are well-run may produce less pollutants and harmful substances, thus leaving the surrounding area cleaner and safer for plant and animal inhabitants than the coal fired power plants commonly used in the Philippines.

Disadvantages:

• Natural Disasters may occur, causing a radiation leak that will kill many people, animals (especially the sea turtle), and plant life. It would also cause the surrounding areas to be uninhabitable for several decades.
• In its 30 years existence, the BNPP has never been in operations and its true condition is unknown. This means many tests should be conducted and expensive parts need to be replaced. This will increase the costs necessary to have the power plant reconditioned before use.

Here's the BNPP:

(picture source)

What is P.E.E.L.'s stand? Political issues and scenarios aside, we support the reconditioning and opening of the BNPP, mainly because during a power crisis you really have no choice but to find ways to produce cheaper electricity. We have one of the most expensive electricity rates in the ASEAN, and many potential investors as well as current businesses and households are negatively impacted by this price. Operating the BNPP will add more supply for Luzon, and hopefully push electric rates in a downward direction. Overall, we believe the pros really outweigh the cons and opening the BNPP would really be a major contributor to the current power crisis.

That's all for this post, and remember, comment your stand we'd love to hear from you. Til' the next post!

Nuclear Energy, Yes or No?

HELLO ONCE AGAIN WORLD!!! This is P.E.E.L.s fourth post concerning Nuclear energy and the Bataan Nuclear Power Plant(BNPP). Here's a general background of what you'll read: what the advantages and disadvantages of nuclear energy are, our opinion on nuclear energy, and our experiences at the BNPP.

What is nuclear energy? Nuclear energy is part of the energy of an atomic nucleus, which can be released by fusion or fission, or by radioactive decay (thanks wikipedia). The advantages of nuclear energy include:

• It is considered "cheap energy" because it uses less fuel to produce a lot more energy
• It produces less emissions compared to burning fossil fuels, this also lessens global-warming
• Contrary to what most of us may think, records show that it is a very safe and reliable way of producing energy.

Along with every advantage comes a disadvantage so here are a few:

• It takes years and years for it's nuclear waste to lose its radioactivity.
• It is expensive to build and maintain, due to some safety precautions needed.
• Uranium, its fuel, is very limited.
• In the wrong hands, it may be used to develop nuclear weapons.

Overall, although it takes time and money to make nuclear power plants, nuclear energy itself is a very efficient and cheap energy provider. It produces tons of energy while managing to produce minimal emissions.

P.E.E.L. is a big thumbs-up for nuclear energy although as Ben Parker says: "With great power comes great responsibility". The people who run these power plants should run it with great precaution because one mistake will cost you a lot on terms of environmental damage, financial resources and human lives.

We will now talk about the second part of our recent field trip, which was going to the BNPP.

At the BNPP, we expected to learn about: the parts of the nuclear power plant, its fuel, and why it was shut down. Fortunately all our questions were answered. We learned that some parts of the power plant were: the Nuclear Reactor, the Steam Turbine,and the Generator.

Here's a pic of a nuclear power plant:

(image source)

Also we learned that its fuel was Uranium. Fun fact: one pellet of Uranium can power your house for ten whole months!!! 

However, we also learned that the BNPP was shut down because Pres. Corazon Aquino was worried that the unfortunate series of events of the Chernobyl Disaster might also happen to the BNPP. While it has been mothballed, the BNPP is maintained in such a way that it may still be used in the future.

For us the most interesting part of the power plant was the Nuclear Reactor. This was because, it was simply cool. It wasn't easy getting to the reactor because there were a lot of winding stairs, tight spaces and chambers. But when we finally got to the reactor, the guides explained all the complicated parts and how they functioned. It felt a little like being in one of those Soviet Space Stations I've seen in the movies. Seeing that reactor and getting to understand it a little bit better made the entire trip worth it!

Here we are at the BNPP:

(image source)

Lastly a big thanks to our sources:
yahoo answers and advantages and disadvantages of nuclear energy

More about the Pawikan less about the PCC

WELCOME BACK AGAIN WORLD!!! This is now P.E.E.L.'s third post wherein we will be talking more about the Pawikan (marine turtle)...

Have you ever wondered why the Pawikan was important? Why do we try so hard to conserve these species? Well, like any other animal, the Pawikan is important because it plays a major role in the ecosystem. One of its primary roles is maintaining a certain length for sea grass that provide breeding and developmental grounds for fish, shellfish, and crustaceans.

However, the Pawikan is being put in danger by global warming. Global warming, as we know, is the rise in the Earth's temperature. How does this affect them? Together with the rise of temperature is the rise of sea level, thus more beaches disappear. Also, we learned at the PCC that the temperature of their nest will affect whether the Pawikans will become male or female. Higher temperatures indicate that they will become female, while lower temperatures indicate that they will become male. Therefore, more females compared to males are produced; imposing a threat to genetic diversity.

Global warming is not the only danger Pawikans face; hunting, pollution, and many other human activities can also harm these creatures.

Now that you learned all of that, do you want to know some ways you can preserve these beautiful species? Here is a list of how you and I can help:

1. Because Pawikans are affected by global warming. Lessen the use of your cars, and don't burn your trash. This will decrease smoke in the atmosphere, and will effectively stop the increase in the sea level.

2. Reduce, reuse, and recycle your plastic or non-biodegradable items. The trash that ends up in the sea may harm them, they may eat this or get tangled in it, causing injury or even death. Moreover, when you go to the beach and you see trash, we encourage you to clean this up. This is actually what we did during our field trip to the CCP.

3. DO NOT eat Pawikan eggs or buy products made from their parts. This will encourage more people to kill them to earn a living.

4. Reduce the amount of artificial light on the beach. Hatchlings use the moon to find their way to the water at night, and if they see other lights like a flashlight or a campfire, this will confuse them and cause them to get attracted to these lights. Also this will discourage female turtles who are going to nest to leave.

Now stop sitting around and take action to conserve the Pawikans!!!

That is all for this blog and as always... 'Til the next blog!!!

Sources:

            http://www.defenders.org/sites/default/files/publications/five-things-             you-can-do-to-save-sea-turtles.pdf

            http://www.conserveturtles.org/seaturtleinformation.php?                             page=whycareaboutseaturtles

The Pawikan Conservation Center

Hello again, world!!! Welcome back to P.E.E.L. This is now our second blog and we are going to share our experiences at a recent field trip to the Pawikan (sea turtle) Conservation Center (PCC).

First and foremost, an introduction: Why did we have this field trip and why did we join? We had this field trip because it has become a tradition for the TLT sixth graders. Our Science teacher, who conducts the field trip, also comes with us. We joined this field trip because this is a once in a lifetime experience, and we wanted to spend time with each other. Moreover, we joined this field trip because it is the last one before we graduate.

Before the field trip, we expected to discover new things and have loads of fun while doing so. A day before the actual field trip, we felt so excited that some of us kept awake all night wondering what would happen during the field trip.

At the PCC, we expected to learn about the different types of sea turtles, why they are decreasing so fast, how PCC helps in their conservation, and how we, personally, could help as well.

The Pawikan Conservation Center is a small place in Bataan, Philippines, composed of a few staff members who aim to increase the number of sea turtles in the seas and oceans. One of the ways they seek to do this is by taking care of the eggs until they are ready for hatching and releasing into the sea.

At the end of the day, our expectations were not only met but even exceeded. We learned about the local species of sea turtles, and some fun facts about each of the species.

Let me now introduce you to the species of sea turtle that we met at PCC:

Common Name: Olive Ridley Sea Turtle

Scientific Name: Lepidochelys olivacea

Taxonomic Classification: 
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Testudines
Family: Cheloniidae
Genus: Lepidochelys
Species: L. olivacea

Here's a picture of the Olive Ridley:

                                               
                                                                  (Olive Ridley)

The Olive Ridley has an interesting diet. It is an omnivore, but during the earlier stages of its life it's primarily carnivorous. As it grows older, the Olive Ridley begins to consume more plants, and so becomes more herbivorous. Some of the things it eats are jellyfish, tunicates, sea urchins, bryozoans, bivalves, snails, shrimp, crabs, rock lobsters, and sipunculid worms. On the other hand, its predators include raccoons, coyotes, ghost crabs, and opossums.

The reason we chose to tell you about this animal is that it is the smallest of all the sea turtles, and it is the species we met at the PCC. In fact, we didn't just meet the Olive Ridley, we even had the opportunity to help release forty hatchlings into the sea!

Our experience at PCC was nothing short of a blast. We had a lot of fun, but also became much more aware of these beautiful creatures in need of our help. We hope that through this post you, too, have been encouraged to do what you can to help protect the Pawikan.

That's all for now! 'Til the next post!




Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olive_ridley_sea_turtle

All about P.E.E.L.

Hello world we are P.E.E.L. which stands for the First letters of our names, but for protection purposes won't say it. For our first blog we will give an introduction of who we are...

Here's our introductions... So far this is only an introduction of Death Scourge, the Ace of Spades, and Orion Constellation but part two will include one other member...

1. I, Death Scourge, am a member and designer of this blog, P.E.E.L . People may think of me as a harmless “kitten” but “Don’t judge a book by it’s cover”, they say. Don’t get me annoyed, you’ll end up in a bunch of scratches and bites; you may not want to touch me ever again but everything has a positive side. I am a book cat; I love reading books especially “Warriors”, I play outside a lot, think of others when they are down, (gif source)never told a secret and I am approachable. When I first heard about the blog I didn't want to (gif source)do it, sounded really boring to me, but I thought of what speechless things we could put in it, especially, the designs.
2. I the Ace of Spades also a member and designer of P.E.E.L. am a very sporty guy who LOVES to play: Basketball, Soccer, Archery, Biking, and Table Tennis above all. I also like Math, Science, and creating things out of scrap such as a pen crossbow, and a smoke bomb. But one thing I really enjoy doing is... CARDS!!! obviously stated by my name "the Ace of Spades". I love playing card games (gif source)learning new card tricks and learning more about cards.
3. I am Orion Constellation, another member and designer of this blog, P.E.E.L. People call me "short, but terrible". I am short, but I can do things no one else can do. I can(gif source)run faster than other people in basketball, I can dodge a ball in dodgeball, and I can hide inside a box during Hide n' Seek. I love playing Basketball, playing Minecraft, and Hide n' Seek ;). 
4. One of our group member's was not able to contact us vice versa. We apologize for any inconvenience.

The Purpose we made this blog was to creatively express what is happening in our lives and to tell a story of a group of 4 students currently going through the last quarter of the sixth grade. We hope that you would enjoy our future blogs... till the next blog!!!