Watch the video (1) describing Corina Tarnita’s research on the spacing of termite mounds in savanna ecosystems

Assignment: SCI115 Week9 Discussion-STR

For your primary post, please respond to one of the following three topics with a post of at least 125 words that addresses each point given in the instructions. Also, please reply to at least one fellow student on any topic.

Topic 1

: Population Distribution of Termites in a Savanna. Watch the video (1) describing Corina Tarnita’s research on the spacing of termite mounds in savanna ecosystems, and then address the following:

What were Tarnita’s findings about the spacing of termite mounds?
(b) What does Tarnita think is the main factor that governs the spatial distribution of the termite mounds?
(c) How do the termite mounds benefit other organisms on the savanna?
Topic 2

: Pacific Lampreys. Watch the video about Pacific Lampreys (2)*, then address the following:

(a) Where do Pacific lampreys fall in the taxonomy of vertebrates?
(b) What challenges do Pacific lamprey populations face?
(c) Why are Native American tribes of the Northwest concerned about them? (Please note: take care not to confuse the Pacific lamprey (described in the video) with the Sea Lamprey, which is a completely different species that is considered an invasive species in the Great Lakes).
Topic 3 [article]: Supporting the Energy Needs of a Large Brain. As discussed in the article by Zimmer (3)*, brain tissue is energetically expensive. For a species to evolve a large brain, it may need to make certain adjustments to ensure that enough energy is available to support brain function. Zimmer discusses various hypotheses about such adjustments in the human line of descent. Explain one of these adjustments.

*References (in Strayer Writing Standards format).

HHMI Biointeractive (2015, November 11) Analyzing patterns in the savanna landscape. [Video]. Retrieved from https://youtu.be/nJGpABrEatc
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. (2012). Taking the initiative to conserve Pacific Lamprey. [Video]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dkwfDVAoSXk
Carl Zimmer, July/August 2011, The brain Discover, 32 (6), 18-19. https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=61992134&site=ehost-live&scope=site

You must proofread your paper. But do not strictly rely on your computer’s spell-checker and grammar-checker; failure to do so indicates a lack of effort on your part and you can expect your grade to suffer accordingly. Papers with numerous misspelled words and grammatical mistakes will be penalized. Read over your paper – in silence and then aloud – before handing it in and make corrections as necessary. Often it is advantageous to have a friend proofread your paper for obvious errors. Handwritten corrections are preferable to uncorrected mistakes.

Use a standard 10 to 12 point (10 to 12 characters per inch) typeface. Smaller or compressed type and papers with small margins or single-spacing are hard to read. It is better to let your essay run over the recommended number of pages than to try to compress it into fewer pages.

Likewise, large type, large margins, large indentations, triple-spacing, increased leading (space between lines), increased kerning (space between letters), and any other such attempts at “padding” to increase the length of a paper are unacceptable, wasteful of trees, and will not fool your professor.

The paper must be neatly formatted, double-spaced with a one-inch margin on the top, bottom, and sides of each page. When submitting hard copy, be sure to use white paper and print out using dark ink. If it is hard to read your essay, it will also be hard to follow your argument.