Assignment task:
In your responses:
Evaluate the proposed hypotheses presented by two other students, identifying possible strengths or weaknesses in the overall method
Suggest an alternative testable hypothesis for the phenomenon they've presented
Explain why your hypothesis adds to the overall scientific methods in this case. Need Assignment Help?
When responding to the work of others, vary your exposure to other taxa (i.e. other groups of algae) by choosing students who are focused on species from different taxonomic groups, so that one of your responses is to someone who's done a different group (i.e. if you did your assignment on a red alga, you should look for someone who did theirs on a green or brown algae, etc.), and the other is to a group more similar to yours. If you don't see any such options, or those students have already received feedback from two others, then find the next best option, even if it's similar to your work. You will not be penalized for your interaction choices - but it is important to get varied feedback and expose yourself to other groups.
My species: Sugar kelp
Peer's post:
In 2018, I visited Panama City Beach, Florida, just weeks after a major flood had severely impacted the coastline, damaged infrastructure and disrupting the local environment. While walking along the beach, I observed something I had never seen before, hundreds of dead fish washed up along the shoreline, stretching for miles. This has me wondering, could flooding contribute to environmental conditions that trigger mass fish deaths in coastal areas? Flooding often results in increased runoff from land into the ocean, carrying with it excess nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorus, along with sediments, pollutants, and low-oxygen freshwater. These changes can disrupt the balance of marine ecosystems, potentially cause harmful algal blooms or reduce oxygen levels, both of which are known to be deadly for marine life.
To test the hypothesis that floodwaters increase nutrient runoff, leading to lower oxygen levels and fish deaths, I would set up a comparative water quality monitoring study. This would involve collecting data at multiple coastal sites before and after flooding events. Comparing these indicators between flood-affected and non-flooded coastal areas will help determine if flooding contributes to the conditions that cause an increase in fish death.
If the results support the hypothesis, further research could explore what specific sources of runoff contribute most to nutrient loading. Future studies might also test mitigation strategies, such as planting shoreline vegetation that absorbs runoff or improving stormwater infrastructure. Additionally, researchers could investigate how resilient different fish or algae species are to these conditions, leading to broader studies on climate change's impacts on marine ecosystems.