Let’s Talk Trash! MAY / JUNE 2019
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The Butterfly Effect
What’s the Butterfly Effect got to do with the environment? Given the changes we humans have introduced into the complex ecosystem known as Planet Earth, it’s fair to say that we’ve done the work of billions of butterflies. What we’re trying to figure out now is what’s going to happen, but it’s most likely going to be pretty significant. What if Butterflies Disappeared? Humans have made drastic changes to just about every natural habitat on the planet. Our oceans and natural water sources are polluted, the composition of our soil has been chemically altered, the atmosphere has been heavily influenced by emissions, our forests have been dramatically reduced, and on and on. If butterflies disappeared, the world would most certainly be worse off for kids of all ages. But it’s much worse than that. Many flowering plants are so closely linked to butterflies (and vice versa) that one cannot survive without the other. When you think about the natural interdependence network that could collapse due to the extinction of one important species, it starts to get a little scary. In the last 439 million years, there have been five cataclysmic extinction events, each Think about it! The flapping of a butterfly’s wings could create tiny changes in the atmosphere that lead to violent weather conditions elsewhere on the planet. Although the concept has been around since 1890, the Butterfly Effect gained popular acceptance in 1961 due to weather prediction modeling performed by meteorologist Edward Lorenz. He found that changes that should have been statistically insignificant led to completely different weather scenarios.
http://dreamcatcherreality.com/butterfly-effect/
Cut out bottled water: Producing plastic water bottles consumes massive amounts of fossil fuels only to crowd landfills. American demand alone requires 1.5 million barrels of oil annually, enough to fuel approximately 100,000 U.S. cars for a year. And if you think gas prices are bad, you’re paying $10 a gallon for water when you buy individual bottles. Get a simple home filtration solution, and a reusable stainless steel bottle. Switch to compact fluorescent [or LED] light bulbs: CFL bulbs are more expensive, but they last 5 times longer than conventional bulbs. Save $30 in energy costs per bulb and help save the planet. Buy a new LED monitor: They use 1/3 the energy and look cool. Just hold on to your computer as long as you can stand it, or learn to recycle it when you trade up. Work from Home: Telecommuting twice a week from a regular job site can save 40 percent of your gas costs or $624 per year. To further maximize your happiness and the future health of the Earth, start a home-based business.
one wiping out between 50 to 95 percent of existing life, including the dominant lifeforms of the time. Many scientists believe that we are: - in the midst of the sixth extinction event - the cause, - in danger of being wiped out ourselves It is predicted that if things don’t change, half of all plant and animal species will be extinct by the year 2100. Let’s look at how we can put the Butterfly Effect to work for us in a good way. The Positive Side of the Butterfly Effect The more positive change we introduce into the system starting right now, the more bad things are avoided. Plus, we buy time for technology to help protect us from adverse conditions, and even reverse some of the damage. The proven fact of the Butterfly Effect is that the tiny changes you make do make a difference. And when those tiny changes are shared among millions of people, you can truly make a real difference in how much nature is saved for our children, grandchildren, and beyond. Check out the following planet-saving actions.
The Butterfly Effect is the phenomenon whereby a tiny change within a complex system can have large effects elsewhere.
Become a butterfly by changing your own behavior toward littering the environment, and by your example others will follow, and follow, and follow.
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