Dog Parks: Advantages and Disadvantages

Dog parks can be a real assest or a detriment to a community. Communities may want to look over the advantages and disadvantages in deciding to develop a dog park.

Advantages:

• Dog Social Interaction- Dogs can interact socially with other dogs in an environment where they may not normally spend time with other dogs. Also, dogs can interact with people that they may not normally interact with giving them better socialiablity with other dogs and as well as people.
• People Social Interaction- People can meet and interact with other people. A common interest of dogs can bring people together and create friendships.
• Dog Mental and Physcial Activity- Off-leash exercise allows the dogs to get enough physical activity in especially for hyperactive dogs. Physical exercise can lessen prevalence of destructive behaviors in dogs and stimulating mental activity.
• People Education- Owners can observe other dog interactions as well as learn from more experienced owners in order to adopt and/or stop particular aspects of owning and training a dog.
• Positive Environment- A positive environment is created through a common interest of those in the park. Other interests are not allowed in the park thus, things like skateboards and bikes are not a distraction for the dogs or owners.

Disadvantages:

• People may be exposed to agressive dogs, hazards created by dogs, lawsuits from dog fights, and potential parasites.
• Dogs may be exposed to agressive dogs, parasites and diseases, injury, and dangerous small-large dog interactions.
• Abuse of park from individuals in the community that do not understand the concept of a dog park such as not cleaning up after their dog, leaving dog unattended, allowing their dog to engage in inappropriate behavior.
• Potential noise issues as well as potential liability issues.

Weighing these advantages and disadvantages are necessary to the decision process for a community possibly putting in a dog park.

Amphioxus

Amphioxus (sometimes called Lancelets): These little guys are found burrowed under the sand in shallow areas of the tropical and temperate seas. In Asia, they are harvested as food for humans as well as animals. These fish-like vertebrates are very important because they give us more information on the origin of vertebrates. They grow between 5-7 centimeters long with a semi-translucent body and have no paired fins or limbs. A poor tail fin is present but swimming is not one of their strengths.

Some common findings within Amphioxus and vertebrates are a hollow nerve cord and blocked muscles. Some differences in Amphioxus are the dorsal nerve cord is not protected by bone but rather a notochord which is a tightly packed cylindar of cells that makes a tough rod. They do not have a true brain, eyes, or contain any complex sense organs like true vertebrates.

Amphioxus have cirri, the thin tentacle-looking strands coming from their mouth, that act as sensory device and filter the water passing into their bodies. They also do not have any respiratory system, a circulatory system is present but does not contain a heart or even any blood cells.

The differences in structure of the body for these vertebrates give clues to how vertebrates came about at first. It also give us an understanding of what type of systems within the body were necessary for early vertebrates and how they changed over time to the vertebrates we have today.





Hitchiti Experimental Forest

Wild Ginger
We found some wild ginger while walking on our trail at Hitchiti Experimental Forest. Asarum, is also known as wild ginger. Asarum has kidney-shaped leaves and bear brownish or red flowers. It is called wild ginger because it smells and tastes similar to ginger root even though they really are not related. The plant can be used as a spice but it is a diuretic, causing an increase in urination. Wild ginger grows in moist, shaded areas and is sometimes grown in shaded gardens because its leaves are an attractive ground covering.

Hitchiti Experimental Forest is located in Jones County, Georgia and is used as a research facility for the USDA in studying the southern Piedmont region. They study anything from the effects of fire and deforestation all the way to insects and diseases located in the forest. The goal is to understand more effectively how to conserve and utilize the natural resource of the forest.

Megafloods

Megafloods



Megafloods have the power to create interestingly unique features within the landscape. The unique landscape of the Scablands that varies across the land in Washington was created from the effects of a megaflood. But what would cause a megaflood?

It was determined that glaciers leftover from the Ice Age may have traveled down from the Canadian region and created massive dams by being jammed in between two mountains. Over time these dams would be weathered and pressure would begin to build up. Supercooled water can cause the glacier to break apart and give way to the built up pressure. Glaciers have cracks within the ice. As water moves through the glacier cracks friction is cause against the ice from moving through tiny spaces and be sucked through causing the ice to heat up and even larger cracks to form. The ice begins to breakdown and the glacial dam gives way. All the built up water behind the glacial dam travels at fast speeds over long distances. These large or megafloods would travel out to the Pacific ocean very quickly thus creating the landscap of the Scablands in just a day, even a matter of hours.

Jackson Springs

4 Distinct Regions of Geology in Georgia

The first is the Ridge and Valley geologic region which is in the northwest corner of the state. Limestone, sandstone, shale and other sedimentary rocks are found there. These rocks have yielded limestone used for construction, barite, ochre, and some coal.

Limestone

The second is the Blue Ridge geologic region which is what makes up the North Georgia mountains. Metamorphic rocks are found here. They are sedimentary or igneous rocks that have been metamorphosed and also include metavolcanic rocks. Granite and diabase. Gold was mined in the 1800's and marble as well as talc are produced from the region.

Marble

Talc

The third is the Piedmont geologic region which has igneous and metamorphic rocks from older sediments being exposed to high temperatures and pressures. The rocks typically found her are schist, amphibolite, gneiss, migmatite, and granite. More hilly regions  found her than mountainous but Stone Mountain is found in this region.

Gneiss

The fourth is the Coastal Plain geologic region which has sedimentary rocks in this region. Some marine and terrestrial fossils and rare fragments of dinosaurs. Kaolin is the main mineral resource in this region.

Kaolin

Jackson Springs is located in Macon, GA which is on the Fall Line that discriminates between the Piedmont and Coastal Plain geologic regions.