1. How does the story of Borneo the idea of ecosystems and the interaction of organisms (specifically the importance of all organisms in that ecosystem)? The environment in Borneo is where the solutions to one problem had unexpected consequences. As well as the species in a ecosystem interact with one another.
2. How does the story exemplify how humans (in our attempt to fix one thing), cause unforeseeable problems in ecosystems? By adding DDT, they assumed it would kill the mosquitoes and it did but it also give them more problems.
3: Explain how a toxin in a food web will harm some while killing others- why did the mosquito and cats die while other things lived? (hint: research bio-accumulation & biomagnification)
Having a toxic in a food web not only harms one species but it will also kill others, destroying the whole entire system.
4: Explain why you think DDT has been banned in the U.S. but is still in production and used in countries all over the world. DDT was banned in the United States because we got an understanding about the toxic chemical, while the other countries still used it because of its effectiveness in killing insects.
5: If DDT is still being used around the world, but not in the U.S.- are we still exposed to it? (Discuss).
Yes we are still exposed to DDT, since most of the products we buy come from other countries, and since other countries use DDT we are exposed to it in that way.
6: Do you think scientists should have sprayed the island with DDT? If not, what should they have done about the Malaria issue? I believe they should have just drained the mosquitoes breeding ground instead of adding the DDT since it destroyed the food web in the island of Borneo.
2. How does the story exemplify how humans (in our attempt to fix one thing), cause unforeseeable problems in ecosystems? By adding DDT, they assumed it would kill the mosquitoes and it did but it also give them more problems.
3: Explain how a toxin in a food web will harm some while killing others- why did the mosquito and cats die while other things lived? (hint: research bio-accumulation & biomagnification)
Having a toxic in a food web not only harms one species but it will also kill others, destroying the whole entire system.
4: Explain why you think DDT has been banned in the U.S. but is still in production and used in countries all over the world. DDT was banned in the United States because we got an understanding about the toxic chemical, while the other countries still used it because of its effectiveness in killing insects.
5: If DDT is still being used around the world, but not in the U.S.- are we still exposed to it? (Discuss).
Yes we are still exposed to DDT, since most of the products we buy come from other countries, and since other countries use DDT we are exposed to it in that way.
6: Do you think scientists should have sprayed the island with DDT? If not, what should they have done about the Malaria issue? I believe they should have just drained the mosquitoes breeding ground instead of adding the DDT since it destroyed the food web in the island of Borneo.