St Martinique

St Martinique

Martinique is an island in the eastern Caribbean Sea. The first European to encounter the island was Christopher Columbus in 1502. Today, the island enjoys a higher standard of living and receives many international holiday visitors.

Quick Facts:
1. It was charted by Columbus in 1493, but Spain had little interest in the territory.
2. Its official language is French.
3. The island is a Caribbean island in the Caribbean Sea, north of St. Lucia and south of Dominica.
4. Marinique is famous for its biodiversity.
5. The highest of the island’s many mountains, at 1,397 metres, is the famous volcano Mount Pelée.
6. Many frequent her for her pristine beaches.
7. Martinique’s culture blends French and Caribbean influences.

Most of Martinique’s population is descended from enslaved Africans brought to work on sugar plantations during the colonial era. Today the island is a fascinating mixture of French and Caribbean influences. The official language is French, but many other languages are spoken here. There are an estimated 260,000 people of Martiniquan origin living in mainland France, most of them in the Paris region.

Global warming

Global Warming

Global warming is considered a major threat to global biodiversity. In 2004, an international collaborative study on four continents estimated that 10 percent of species would become extinct by 2050 because of global warming.

In the last 100 years, Earth’s average surface temperature increased by about 0.8 °C. Scientists are more than 90% certain most of it is caused by increasing concentrations of greenhouse gases produced by human activities such as deforestation and burning fossil fuels.

The Top 10 Global-Warming Facts
1. 90% that humans caused at least half the warming since 1950.
2. 2000-2009 was hottest decade.
3. Environmentalists use scare tactics and command & control.
4. When Earth was 9ºF cooler, ice over NY City was 2000 feet thick.
5. 2008 saw the second-lowest summer Arctic sea ice ever.
6. Ships for the first time can sail along the Northwest Passage above North America.
7. Arctic summers could be ice-free by 2040.
8. 82% of glaciers have disappeared in Glacier National Park, Montana.
9. 20 million tons of ice per day is lost by only one of the glaciers in Greenland.
10. Sea levels will rise by 20 feet if either the Greenland or West Antarctic Ice Sheets completely melt

Global warming is affecting many parts of the world. Global Warming is the increase of Earth’s average surface temperature due to effect of greenhouse gases, such as carbon dioxide emissions from burning fossil. We should deal with these statistics more seriously and try decreasing the part we play in Global Warming.

Explaining the diversity

Explaining the diversity

We are devoted to showing and explaining the diversity, biology and interactions of life all around the world. Our plan is to begin with familiar organisms and use them as a springboard to examining more unfamiliar topics. We draw on information from a wide variety of disciplines including: microbiology, ecology, zoology, entomology, marine biology, fisheries, botany, medicine, agriculture and horticulture.

Have you heard of?

1. The Permian–Triassic extinction event?
2. Did you know the Cretaceous–Tertiary extinction event resulted in the extinction of the dinosaur?
3. Did you know, since life began on Earth, five major mass extinctions?
4. Do you know how biodiversity impacts human health, both positively and negatively?
5. Who was the first person to use the term biodiversity?

We ask and answer these types of questions and more. Biodiversity is the result of 3.5 billion years of evolution, so chances are, we will never run out of things to say. Stay tuned for more on earth and her biodiversity.