Reflection: Weeks 5 & 6

Class Happenings

Well, we definitely learned a lot about food in relation to our environment throughout the past two weeks. We discussed a reading about “feeding the world,” took a quiz on our diet, and watched two movies related to the American diet and food production.

Environmental Exposure

When I think about conserving the environment, I usually never think about my diet. These past two weeks definitely exposed me to the concept of environmentally-friendly diets and food production. I am definitely going to take some of the ideas I learned in class and implement them into my efforts to protect the environment.

Brilliant Blogging

This week I became frustrated with how time-consuming blogging is and the glitches I encountered with the application. I have learned to treat the blog assignments like regular classroom assignments and mark the due date in my planner…it usually works pretty well! I am also struggling to keep up with the “Share & Voice” posts by all of my group members…they are really cranking them out!

Personal Paradigm

After discussing the food pyramids in class, my paradigm has changed in relation to environmentally-friendly diets. I am now a fan of greener diets and have a deeper understanding of why eating meat and other animal products is harmful to the environment. I believe that it is in the best interest of the environment and my personal health if I make some changes to my current diet.

Share & Voice: Hungry Planet: What the World Eats

After watching two documentaries related to diet and food consumption in America, I had one lingering question: What does the rest of the world eat?

I found a a series of photo essays entitled, "Hungry Planet: What the World Eats," on Time magazine's website. The photo essays show what type of food families in different countries include in their diet. In addition, each photo includes information about weekly food expenditures, favorite foods/recipes and food preparation. It is interesting to note how other countries seem to be more conscious of the environment than the United States when it comes to their diet.

Below are some interesting pictures and facts from the photo essays:

United States: The Revis family of North Carolina

Food expenditure for one week: $341.98

Favorite foods: spaghetti, potatoes, sesame chicken

India: The Patkars of Ujjain

Food expenditure for one week: 1,636.25 rupees or $39.27
Family Recipe: Sangeeta Patkar's Poha (Rice Flakes)



Cape Hope, Greenland: The Big Haul Cousins Abraham and Julian Madsen drag a freshly killed seal toward their house. Seal meat, cooked with rice and onion, is a family favorite.


To check out the complete photo essays from Time magazine, click on the following links:
1. What the World Eats, Part I
2. Hungry Planet: What the World Eats, Part II
3. Hungry Planet: What the World Eats, Part III

Eye Opener: Summary of Reading 9: The Winds of Change

What is wind energy?
According to the author, Margot Roosevelt, wind energy is the world’s fastest growing power source. Wind power is the conversion of wind energy into a useful form, such as electricity, by using wind turbines. It is an intermittent form of energy that can be renewed by nature and can’t be exhausted.

Who is using wind energy?
Currently, only 2.2% of the world’s energy comes from renewable energy sources such as wind power. However, wind energy output is growing 30% annually, faster than fuel! Even oil companies are becoming interested in renewable energy. The governments of Denmark, Germany, Spain, Japan, India, and Iceland have all adopted alternative power sources to create their energy. The United States is very dependent on imported oil. Fossil fuels are currently used for 80% of the US energy. The only time the US government has favored wind energy is when oil prices skyrocketed in the 1970s.

Why should we use wind energy?
The author provides two main reasons for utilizing wind energy: global warming and terrorism. Global warming is caused by heat trapping from carbon dioxide, a by-product of burning fossil fuels. Global warming has serious consequences for our planet and threatens to create a disastrous climate. In relation to terrorism, the author conceives a scary scenario: how much easier would it be to crack open the Trans-Alaska pipeline and how much easier would it be to bomb a nuclear plant than to attack a wind farm?

What does the future hold for wind energy?
Experts say that wind could provide about 12% of the word’s electricity in 20 years. That being said, renewable energy has a long way to go. A conversion to renewable energy will not happen without refined technology, lower costs, or political will. The world as a whole needs to consider the price of pollution. The author stresses that the future is more a matter of choice than destiny.

Different viewpoints on wind energy
1. I felt that the author wrote a very biased article about wind energy. She only mentioned the positive aspects and failed to mention any negative aspects of wind energy. I did some online research and found an article entitled, Wind Energy Development Environmental Concerns, from the Wind Energy Development Programmatic EIS website. While wind energy has relatively little impact on our environment, it still raises some environmental concerns. These concerns include noise impact, visual impact, avian/bat mortality, and health/safety considerations.

2. There have been several research studies conducted that are related to wind turbines and their affect on health. Nina Pierpont is a pediatrician who researches a condition called “wind turbine syndrome.” The condition arises when people are exposed to the whooshing sound of industrial wind turbines for long periods of time. Symptoms include migraine headaches, nausea, and insomnia. Pierpont maintains that it is essential for wind farms to be built no less than 1.25 miles away from homes, public meeting places, and highways. We need to find the appropriate locations for these wind farms, which may require the use of valuable, untouched land.

A question for discussion:

Do you think wind power is a reliable and/or practical form of energy? Why or why not?