It seems that the West Indies are in for another severe bleaching event in the next few weeks.

Read this article about it.   http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/21/science/earth/21coral.html?_r=1&ref=science

Have you ever come across bleached coral in your adventures in the waters of the BVI?  After reading this article and understanding what little we know about this phenomenon, is there anything that can be done to stop or address coral bleaching?

Grizzly Bears used to be abundant throughout the northern US and Canada.  They are no longer found in most of their historic ranges and the search is on to find places where the bears still live.

There is a movement to reintroduce Grizzlies to places where they used to be abundant.  Read this article and examine the consequences of replacing a top predator.  Do you think they should be reintroduced?  Why or why not?

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/17/science/earth/17grizzly.html?_r=1&ref=science

If you are interested in this topic, you can research the plight of the wolf in Yellowstone National park.  They were locally extinct, then 66 wolves were reintroduced in the early 1990s.  Since then, they have reclaimed their spot as the top preadors in the park, spreading out into almost 14 different breeding packs with a population of more than 300 wolves.  Not all of the repercusions were positive for the people living near Yellowstone, however.  Cattle are now threatened by these wolves, among other things. 

Briefly research the story of the coelacanth.  How does the story of how this fish was 'rediscovered' help to illustrate the nature of science?  By this I mean how does the discovery of new peer-reviewed and confirmed evidence lead to the adjustment of scientific theories\laws?


http://www.google.vg/search?hl=en&&sa=X&ei=6RqOTPruB5Wyngepg-mvCg&ved=0CBYQBSgA&q=coelacanth&spell=1