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Recent studies have revealed relationship between the common bark beetle and the changing water quality and flow in the Rocky Mountain area of Colorado. As healthy pine trees begin to dry and falter at alarming rates, many look to the local infestation of these powerful beetles as the cause of acres of drying plant life. Affects that have become so damaging that natural groundwater flow is now being diverted, as the areas no longer need water to feed the lush and green pines that were once much more common.
Photo By: Forest Service Northern Region
So how does the removal of a few trees alter the flow of the surrounding groundwater streams, which have seen little change in recent years? Through the process of transpiration, healthy trees are actually able to take up water from the soil where they grow to transport throughout their plant structure. The excess gathering of water in the soil during this process eventually contributes to local water movement or streams, defining the direction and strength of the flow. Because of the number of trees drying out in the mountainous region, there is now an excess of water flowing through the ground, and feeding into local streams.
Scientists are now finding changes in the make of the quality of water. All of which has been a result of the bark beetles affect of local plant life. For such a small creature, the local population has caused quite the commotion.
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Congratulations to the Gold Starz! You have come out on top of our first-ever Crew Tournament. After each round of competition, this elite level group of Blasters has managed to rack up the most number of Trophies by completing all kinds of math challenges in the Academy, which is no easy feat. Great job, Blasters!
Next time you speed through the tunnels at HyperBlast, you will have access to the tournament prize, your custom cool Pirate theme HyperCycle. Check into the space station now to check it out!
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Snakes—scaly, slithering, hissing reptiles that fly? If you disagree, don’t let their lack of wings fool you into believing they can’t! There are some snakes that can glide through the air as far as 100 feet! How do they do it with out wings? Scientists are interested in their ability to glide as it may answer mechanical and aerospace questions.
There are five recognized species of flying snakes that are found in western India and Indonesia. These snakes are thought to be strictly tree dwellers and are rarely seen coming down from their comfy canopy homes. Scientists aren’t quite sure why or how often flying snakes fly, but it’s likely they do to move from tree to tree with out having to slither down just to climb back up another one or to escape predators and even hunt for food.
These flying snakes have the ability to rotate their ribs which allow them to flatten their bodies. The term “flying” isn’t necessarily what they do since they don’t gain altitude, but instead they are able to glide and they are very good at it. From high up on tree branches, flying snakes can fling themselves out of the tree then flattening their bodies into a concave C shape to trap air beneath them to seemingly slither through the air!
New research is investigating how the snake’s technique of gliding works and if their findings can be applied to mechanical problems with identifying the best air flow for smaller wind turbines.
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