It all began when she saw him. Little did she know that he would later steal her heart and become an dangerous part of her life. The caw! caw! cawing!(O) of one exasperating crow kept me up all night. It has been twenty-four hours since I graduated, and summer has just began. Anyways, I got zero sleep last night. It is 6:30 in the morning, I go to my balcony and see the sun is like a scared child’s night light (S). For a radiant summer morning, it was quiet cool and peaceful. I realized I would not have a fun summer because I have to leave early for college. This means leaving my friends behind and not being able to have one last summer ride with them. As my parents drive me to the airport, I am wearing my favorite shirt- sleeveless, white crossed laced; I am wearing it as a farewell gesture(I). The plane lands, I call an uber to go to my apartment. As the vehicle stop, I nervously head toward my new home. The landlord is outside waiting for me. With a bright smile, she says, “Are you Isa?”
“Yes ma’am”, I say politely. As we are walking to my apartment room she explains and clarifies our contract agreement, she makes sure I understand everything so they are no problems later. While talking to the landlord in bump my head on someone. I look up and see a guy. I can’t help notice that he has tousled dark brown hair, which is thick and lustrous. His eyes are a mesmerising deep blue ocean, flecks of silvery light performed ballets throughout. His face is strong and defined, his features molded from granite. Right when I am about to say sorry, he cuts me off! “Watch where you’re going!”, I thought that he was beautiful but rude. “Who is he?”, I asked the landlord, while I turn around to look at him. She was teasing me, and asked if I thought he was cute. “Yess, I mean no…um I mean he is but like…” I say with embarrassment.
The landlord takes me to my apartment room 206. She laughingly explained to me that the guy was my neighbor and left. Everything was already arranged in my room which made me happy. I jumped on my bed, and it was is as soft and fluffy as a cloud (S). I soon start thinking about my mysterious neighbor. Thinking, what kind of person he is?, I giggle and fall asleep with the mysterious guy on my mind. Summer had gone quick and school had officially started. As I am walking out the elevator to my apartment, and the cute guy walks out his door and straight into me. This guy doesn’t even help me up and just stares at me and walks to the elevator. “Jerk”, I whisper. As I am opening my door I suddenly felt a shiver down my spine.I have actually made a friend in one of my class his name was Alex. We start talking about random stuff but, I got distracted when I saw my strange neighbor walk into the lecture hall.
“Who’s that guy over there?”, I asked it totally curiosity. Alex explained that his name was Damon, when I told him the story about our inounter he freaked out. “The hottest guy on CAMPUS LIVES NEXT DOOR”, he said like a horn on a truck(S). Damon looked up and smirked at me and starts walking towards. “Can I sit next to you?”, asked Damon. His dulcet tone embraces the air like the evening perfume of night flowers(M). “Sure…”, blushingly I said. He smiled at me and could feel my body getting hot, I was nervous. He said mannerily, “Hello, my name is Damon. I’m the guy that lives next door.”. “Ah yes, my name is Isa”, I replied. Couple of weeks have pass and me and Alex are at a cafe in town. We were doing homework, but got off track and start talking about Damon. I tell alex that I hadn’t really every talk to him after our first lecture and didn’t see why. Alex was relieved but I didn’t understand why because it was unexpected.
“Well because he’s complicated. He isn’t a good person, and it’s wise not to get attached to him, he’s kinda dangerous”, Alex worrily said. But was curious to now what Alex meant. “What do you mean by dangerous?” He explained that he was in a gang and so are couple of his friends All of a sudden he stops talking? “What’s wrong, Alex”, worryingly I looked behind me was found a guy with black jacket leaning on the wall staring at me and Alex. I was asking who he is, but Alex gave no response. I was just getting concern. Alex began to tell me that the guy was in the same gang as Damon and that he was dangerous. I quickly looked at the guy and turned away. Within a second he slammed his hand on the table, with a smirk saying, “What up cutie, I’m Chris”, I was terrified, He was trying to ask me out on a date and with a attitude like his I would never go with him “No, I’m really sorry”, I said bluntly. He was mad.
“Why! I’m handsome”, he said with great pride. Did he just asked why, he must be stupid because I was losing brain cells from his comment. He was definitely took that offense like I hurt his pride or something. “NO ONE DISRESPECTS ME”, he said with superiority. He was about to punch me, “WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING TO HER!?”, argued Damon I was surprised he was protecting me. DAMON was protecting me! Somehow this whole thing turned into a brawl and Damon was injured with cuts and bruises. I don’t know how but, I was in his apartment mostly to treat his wounds. I’m sittin on his couch while he went to go get the first-aid kit. Damon seemed anxious and I was nervous. “That must have been a shock”, He said laughingly trying to lighten the mood. “Huh?”, I said disoriently. There was an awkward silence. As I began to help with his wound I could tell he was in pain. I felt terrible that he got hurt because of me and said thank you, but he is confused to why I said “Thank you”, to him. “Umm for helping me before, for defending me”. I was trying to control my face from getting red.
“I just didn’t want to see the girl I like get hurt”, he smiled. I began to blush excessively and didn’t know what to say after. “But I’m not the guy for you”, he was serious I was in utter confusion, he admit that he likes me and now he says he not the one for me. He smirked, “I’m dangerous, I’m a book you never wanna open”. “But still I’m not the one for you, you would get hurt”, he was dull. I had gotten angry, “Well I’m supposed to decide whether I associate myself with you.” “I warned you”, he snickered. He had dark eyebrows, which sloped downwards in a serious expression. His perfect lips ripe for a kiss. His strong hands held mine as he stared deep into my eyes. I couldn’t help but blush. His voice was deep, with an serious tone. His lips brushed my ear as he spoke, ‘Thank you, beautiful.’ It then came upon her. A feeling she would remember for the rest of her life, she was falling hard for him. He had warned her about the “book”. Now it was to late. She had fallen for a dangerous person.
The Passive Solar Design
A passive solar house uses nature to power itself, and by its ability to take maximum advantage of the suns’ energy and power, it minimizes the use of mechanical and electrical energy, and produces free energy. Getting free energy is important because “The variety of fuels used to generate electricity all have some impact on the environment. Fossil fuel power plants release air pollution, require large amounts of cooling water, and can mar large tracts of land during the mining process. Nuclear power plants are generating and accumulating copious quantities of radioactive waste that currently lack any repository. Even renewable energy facilities can affect wildlife (fish and birds), involve hazardous wastes, or require cooling water”. And that is why our team, red ocean, has a marvelous yet safe investment for you. We are here to create a modest and simple passive solar house, which requires an average of 30% less energy for heating than a conventional house,, in the future, our house, will grow to be a passive solar design neighborhood.
Each house that we create is going to use clean energy, so we can combat global warming, acid rain, and ozone depletion. This house is not only going to be good and safe for the environment but it is also going to be a beautiful and comfortable house with large windows a lot of sunlight inside. This house will be located in Larchmont New York. Larchmont is a perfect place for our house to be build because it has the perfect orientation for solar glazing which is 5 degrees of true south. The only thing is that, “In New York, magnetic north as indicated in the compass is 10 degrees west of true north,”which should be corrected when planning for orientation of south glazing. Another reason of why Larchmont New York is a perfect place to make a passive solar design is that it has a bunch of trees that shed during the winter, allowing more sunlight to hit the house in order to make it cooler, and in the summer all the leaves in the tree start to grow again which keeps the sunlight from directly hitting the house and keeps it cool and comfortable during the summer days.
There are a lot of elements that take part in the making of a good and stable passive solar design house, our team has chosen 10 main external greening elements to make sure that our house turns out marvelous. We have chosen a lot with enough south exposure, so we can put a big window facing south. A south facing window is necessary for the house to absorb heat, so it can be nice and warm during a winter night. We have also chosen a lot which is orientated east west, which allows solar entry taking advantage of more of the suns potential energy. Even though the heating of the house is very important, the cooling of it is too. And that is why our team included external shutters to minimize the suns heat during the summer. In addition to that, we also included an overhang to block the mid-day sun. And on top of that there will be seasonal trees that allows the winter sun to come through and it blocks the summer sun. The house will also include a low northern wall, creating the illusion of a more spacious and bigger house. And a storage room to facilitate space consumption. Another important element is an isolated entry way, which allows sun to hit the northern walls.
Last but not least the house will have elevated ground allowing the water tanks to be under it and work more efficiently. Not only that but our team has also chosen other 10 elements for internal greening that will make sure that the house is reaching its highest level of efficiency. Stating by a recycled door which saves mat, is eco friendly, and is economical. Followed by, recycled floors which are also eco friendly, economical, and saves mat. In addition, the house will be painted with milk paint which is good for the environment, in contrary to regular paint. The house will be running in solar panels which are energy efficient and economical. The tiles of the house will be made out of clay, making them not acidic. The house will include garden-compost making it eco friendly. It will also include water filtration, in order to save water, and an electric cooktop, which uses no gasoline. And a ceiling opening, bringing in natural light for the inside of the house. And of course last but not least, a bio-ethanol fire place- “The biofuel used in this appliance, also called ethyl alcohol, is derived from agricultural products, primarily corn, Crouch says. Ethanol fireplaces (at right) tend to have sleek contemporary designs and be used in urban settings instead of natural gas, he says. But they are not for serious heat.”
How to choose an eco-friendly fireplace which produces natural heating for the house. A passive solar design will help you lower your energy bills all year round because you will be using free energy. “The National Renewable Energy Lab and the American Solar Energy Society have actually conducted a survey of passive solar homes across the US, from different states experiencing different needs and climates. Their study found that the annual savings in heating these homes ranged from $200 to $2,255 in 2002. Over a 30-year lifespan, that meant savings of between $6,000 and over $67,000. And that was with fuel prices much lower than they are now, more than ten years after the survey! If you take an average fuel cost rise of only 5% a year (which is very low) and recalculate, you’re looking at savings of between $13,000 and $150,000 over that same 30-year period. If energy prices rise by an average of 10% per year, you could save the cost of building the entire house.” Not only that but in the future, the fuel cost will rise, and you will keep one saving money from your initial investment. The house is also strong a durable, and will not need to have many operations and repairs.
Shifts In Montane/Subalpine Ecotone Forest Composition And Climatic Impacts
Paleoecological reconstruction has been of pinnacle interest in recent years. Archived records stretching as far back as pre-industrial times allows for the observation of natural climate variability and anthropogenic influence. Montane regions are of considerable interest when it comes to research efforts, as these are vulnerable systems under much human and natural influence. How the magnitude and severity of disturbances affects the homogeneity and stabilization of forested landscape composition is still ambiguous. To determine how shifts in vegetation within a montane/subalpine ecotone influence fire activity, high-resolution data will be collected from the Gunnison region of Colorado at Lily Pond. Nearby site locations with archived paleoclimate data will determine climatic characteristics throughout a ~4000 year period. Archeological pollen and charcoal collection will provide insight to vegetational shifts and if corresponding fire activity occurs as a response. Ultimately, climatic anomalies are observed throughout the timeframe of interest proving to affect vegetation directly. Following forest composition alteration, positive and negative feedbacks in fire activity are detected. Variability in fire activity suggests fuel type is a strong influencer for such occurrences.
Introduction
Climatic factors are the primary forces that drive tree species distribution within the Rocky Mountain forests of Colorado. Transition from a summer to a winter wet stage has significant influence on moisture availability during annual time frames affecting vegetation growth. Climate abnormalities such as the Medieval Climate Anomaly and Little Ice Age show consistency among western United States records to influence vegetation growth. The forces behind driving these climatic shifts can be attributed to expansive climate dynamics; El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO). These oscillating patterns typically occur on interannual and decadal timescales. The attributing precipitation patterns mirror latitudinal trade-offs of fluctuating temperatures between summer and winter months. Atmospheric waves produced by ENSO and PDO shift westerly storm trajectories latitudinally, creating a North-South dipole in North America . Even small directional changes that bias one direction of change, or the other, have the ability to produce considerably long-term differences among sites.
Climate holds the ability to indirectly influence fire occurrences in forested areas. The shaping of fuel composition and forest structure are both directly affected on annual through millennial time scales. The indirect pathway corresponding to the amount of fuel in an ecosystem mediates direct linkage to fire occurrences in response to climate. Unique vegetation adaptations have developed over time scales to aid in regeneration after high disturbance events. Following a stand destroying crown fire, Pinus contorta has the ability to establish itself from seed showing little evidence of successional change, ultimately leading to a dominate community over extended periods of time. Interestingly enough, Pinus contorta understory fires do not burn as severely as a brush fire within a Picea-Abies forest, due to lower fuel amounts. However, after such an event, Pinus contorta is the successional taxa. Picea engelmannii are known to have thin bark, which make them vulnerable to fire activity. Due to this physical characteristic, the ability to withstand large fire events is rare. It is also important to note that while Picea engelmannii have a lesser recruitment rate, they house greater longevity.
Therefore, presence of this taxa infers a mature forest with perhaps a longer fire-return interval. Conversely, Artemisia struggle, if are not incapable, to resprout following fire events and must rely on wind-blown seeds from neighboring areas to recolonize.MLily Pond is a unique ecosystem, as it is a closed water basin located at high elevations suitable for climate reconstruction efforts. Fire events are of considerable interest to researchers, park managers, and emergency responders. Tracking long-term trends within vegetation structure and composition in relation to shifting climatic events will aid in corresponding trends in fire severity and fire return intervals. Pollen and charcoal data collected from Lily Pond and climate reconstruction studies from nearby locations will allow for observation to answer pressing questions such as how does vegetation composition shift throughout the last ~4000 years? If there are distinct vegetation shifts are there also corresponding changes in fire activity (Fire return interval, fire severity, frequency, and magnitude) relative to these changes? And does a shift in forest composition ultimately increase biomass and consequently an increase in fire severity?
Location
Lily Pond is located in central Colorado within the Gunnison National Forest, situated in the Taylor Park area, ~3200 meters in elevation (Figure 1). Formed near the end of the last ice age, Lily Pond is deemed a kettle lake. This body of water is situated uniquely within the transition zone of a subalpine/montane ecotone. Today, the surrounding vegetation is mostly dominated by Artemisia, (sagebrush), Picea engelmannii (Englemann Spruce), and Pinus contorta (Lodgepole pine).
Methods
Using a D-section corer, two sediment cores were collected from the southeast side of Lily Pond. Approximately two meters of each core were recovered upon extraction. Hand written data was recorded including observation of organic matter content, stratigraphy, and distinct transition in color and texture. Each core was wrapped in plastic wrap, placed in PVC piping, labeled accordingly, and transported back to the University of Colorado Denver Paleoecology and Palynology Lab upon investigation of further paleoecologic analyses. To quantify vegetation, charcoal, and ecosystem change over time scales, a reliable chronology was established (using how many samples? And sent where?). High-resolution radiocarbon dates on plant remains were taken, along with 210Pb dates on the upper 50 cm of the cores. From this, an age-depth model was constructed in R using Bacon reaching back to ~5127 cal. year B.P (Figure 2). Loss-on-ignition weights (1cm3) were measured along each centimeter and burned in an oven at 550°C for 2 hours to develop a general understanding of the ecosystem’s organic autochothonous production (Figure 3i).
Samples (1cm3) along intervals that are expected to show significant changes were taken (n=33). For pollen extraction, procedures were carried out using protocol from Faegri & Iversen (1989). Per each sample, pollen species (≥ 300 grains) were counted under 400x magnification. Past vegetation pollen percentages were compared to modern pollen data. A known amount of exotic tracers (Lycopodium spores) were added to each sample to aid in concentration calculations. Measure of forest canopy cover was calculated with arboreal pollen to non-arboreal pollen (AP/NAP) ratio (Figure 3h and Figure 4). In order to deduce accumulation rate for each individual pollen taxon, pollen concentrations were then divided by deposition time of sediment sample. Each core was subsampled at half-centimeter intervals. During the procedure, 1cm3 was removed for further processing and analysis. The subsamples were then soaked in 25 ml of 6% hydrogen peroxide and heated in a drying oven at 50°C for 24 hours, following methodology from Calder (2015).
Each of the samples were washed through a 125-µm sieve and deposited into a petri dish. Grid patterned petri dishes were used to ensure charcoal pieces were not counted more than once. The pieces collected are deemed “macroscopic charcoal” particles. All charcoal pieces were then counted under a microscope at 10-40x magnifications. Local fires in a given area will produce and deposit macroscopic pieces >60-µm and charcoal particles found to be >125-µm most likely is representative of a crown fire event. The CharAnalysis program was used to calculate additional statistical parameters (charcoal accumulation rate, peak magnitude, fire frequency, signal-to-noise index, and fire return interval. Charcoal concentration and sedimentation rate were multiplied together to determine accumulation rates into the system. Ultimately, measurement of accumulation peaks in charcoal aided in determining fire severity (amount of biomass burned). A smoothing window of 800 years was used to background levels of charcoal. To assess fire frequency, a weighted threshold of 95% is used; any event showing positive deviations is deemed a fire episode.
Results and discussion
Lily Pond and its local ecosystem response to climatic shifts and fire occurrence are observed in the following sections: Summer Wet (>5130—2400 B.P), Early Winter Wet (2400—1200 B.P), Medieval Climate Anomaly (1200—850 B.P), Little Ice Age (550—250 B.P), and Modern Age (250 B.P—Present). Forest structure and composition at Lily Pond offer a glimpse into the past ~4000 years and how forest characteristics relate to fire activity. Various fuel types within the ecosystem influence fire regimes and behavior. Therefore, the existing pollen record will allow for interpretation as to how fire activity persisted through time. Oxygen isotopic records retrieved from study sites across the southern Rocky Mountain region support similar climatic trends observed at Lily Pond. Starting at around ~3000 cal. year B.P, winter precipitation began to increase at Bison Lake located near Glenwood Springs, CO (Figure 3e) (Anderson, 2012).
Similarly, in southern New Mexico, 18O extracted from speleothems (Figure 3f) in Pink Panther Cave indicate the same precipitation shift (summer to winter) around ~2700 cal. year B.P. Both direct and indirect millennial time scale shifts from climatic variability in aridity and precipitation balance shift crown and stand-fire severity and fire return intervals. As suggested by Higuera (2014), the combination of a warmer, heavier precipitated summer and reduced snowfall may explain fire activity and subalpine forest expansion, which mirrors modern day. Climate is a direct driver for vegetation shift and indirect driver in fire activity. During the middle Holocene, these changes may have favored these events. The presence of warmer summers coupled with earlier snowmelt contributed to lesser fuel moisture. Due to this, changes in fuel would have been provoked, consequently increasing fire intensity (van Wagner, 1977).