This post is about the indigenous people of Australia, which are commonly known as Australian aborigines. They currently make up about 2.7% of the Australian population, with majority living in the south east, centered along the Murray River.

Aboriginal Australians were social beings who lived in a number of social groups sometimes called bands, clans, sub-tribes and tribes, but essentially in a family or kinship group who were either of the same blood-line or were related to other people through totems.Their lifestyle has little of none interference of the modern society we live in. Such examples are:

1)Clothing-
The early aborigines were observed to be naked. Men and Women of some tribes are known to have worn a belt around their middle made of animal fur, hair skin or fiber which is used to carry tools and weapons. This shows the difference as people n modern times are fully clothed.

2)Food and Diet
The aborigines hunt for their food, also gathering berries, plants, eggs and insects. They live near resources which included waterways such as rivers or were on the seacoast, making canoes from bark or tree trunks to aid them in fishing. This suggests that they identify the practice of catching food for their food supply instead of cultivating plants of rearing animals like what we do in our society.

3)Culture
The culture of the aborigines differs greatly from ours. They lead rather simply lives and find entertainment through dancing and singing, compared to the technology we have for entertain. The Australian Aborigines used a limited variety of implements to make musical sounds. The didgeridoo (see separate listing) is probably the best known, but others included rattles, clapping sticks and two boomerangs clapped together. The melodies, tunes, harmonies and rhythms of Aboriginal music included traditional ceremonial songs that were handed down from generation to generation, which is very meaningful to them. Another form of culture was in dancing. Aborigines held a corroboree in which there were elements of music, song and movement that imitated or replicated animal movements, hunting prowess, battles or ceremonies of initiation that had been conducted for thousands of years. Corroborees are part of Aboriginal culture. They were not simply dances, but were highly significant events and belong to the Australian Aborigines.

The aborigines were very traditional people, they believed in sprits and reincarnation. They respect their own culture a lot by performing many spritual rites, singing and dancing in respect to their religion. This i most probably why they do not want to develop or change their living habits to the modern ones we have. They are willing to lead simple lives and sacrifice the luxury of the technology we have today. Furthermore, they treasure family kinship, which i feel is fading fromt he modern society we live in today. Maybe the simple lives they lead allows that to bond together well (: This shows how devoted they are to their religion and how much they enjoy it. I really admire the simplicity of their lifestyles (:

today had a lesson on the functions and uses of the forest. Pretty interesting (: I didn't know that a forest could have so many uses, such as, maintaining nutrients in the soil, replenishing oxygen and removing carbon dioxide, maintaining the quality and quantity of the water supply, protecting coasts and reducing impact of natural disasters, is a habitat for flora and fauna, a source of useful material, and a places for recreation, research and education.

SO MANY FUNCTIONS!  This proves how useful forests can be for humans, which suggests that we should should not destroy or encourage deforestation.. Once Mrs lee said that she believed that the world would end when there are no trees left. Im starting to believe it now (:

I learnt that the forests plays an important role in the water cycle. Leaves and branches reduces the impact of falling water, such as rain, which decrease surface runoff, increasing water available to rivers and reservoirs. The quality of water is also maintained by the forest. Compared to water in an urban area, the water in a forested area  is of better quality, as the soil of the forested area help to filter impurities found in rainwater by trapping them between the pore spaces. I totally agree to this as when i was in KOREF, i actually drank water that was from a small river in the forest, super refreshing and clean (:

In an urban area, surfaces such as concrete surfaces, does not allow water to seep through, thus impurities are not removed.
One more fact that amazes me is that the forest can reduce the impact of disasters. For example, the mangrove forest break momentum of storms and strong waves, absorbing 90% of wave impact. SO cool that the mangrove forest can actually reduce damage, saving the lives of those people in countries  experiencing disasters, such as the Indian Ocean Tsunami (:

Cant wait for next geog lesson to learn more about the advantages of forest (:

Sorry late post..
Last lesson was on coniferous forest (: well i think i like this forest the best as it is very beautiful (: all the trees covered in snow (: Just finished geography common test.  i think the paper was ok (:
Also, im really amazed by the way the trees can grow in despite the cold conditions..they have short summers which really results them to have minimal growth..

i also learnt that the latitudes affect the temperature received in one region. For example, regions further from the equator, near the north pole, they receive oblique rays where a larger area receives a lesser concentration of sunlight, resulting in cold conditions.
It is no wonder that the diversity of plants there is sparse. Only few species can adapt to the climate. Vegetation is very sparse there.

The adaptations of the trees there also differ from the forest that receive tropical climate. for example, the leaves have small surface area, such as needle-like leaves, so that they reduce transpiration as they already receive so little amount of water that is ocassionla available to them when the snow melts. The trees also retain their leave so that they can photosynthesis whenever temperature rises above 6 degrees, conserving the resources of the trees.

I think that the trees is coniferous forest are really strong as it is really tough to live in such harsh conditions.. I don't even think that humans can adapt to such conditions..Which is why i really admire and appreciate the beauty of the coniferous forest (:

Lesson on the 8 of febuary 2011.

Today i am supposed to reflect on a article given during class which is about the mangrove swamps of Singapore.
I read it and it was super duper interesting! It told me about the standard mindset of Singapore citizens on mangrove swamps, fussing that its dirty and smelly. Well, i totally agree with it! When i was younger, i used to think that way too.. but after i grew older, i saw that the mangrove forest is actually really beautiful (:

The writer was right about the fact that mangrove swamps are poorly understood. Many people would stick with the mindset that mangrove forests are dangerous and ugly, thus, never tried visiting one in real life to find out the truth about them.

The writer described his experience of visiting a mangrove swamp which mad me want to visit one too!
Also, Singapore is only left with 10% of its natural mangrove swamps, i hope they do not destroy the remaining mangrove swamps as they are not only are beautiful, they also benefit the ecosystem.

For example, the mangrove can reduce the effects of the hit of a tsunami. Seafood such as mud crabs, stingrays, clams, tiger prawns are come mainly from the mangrove forest. Therefore, without mangrove forest, there might me a drastic drop in the variety of seafood... If that happens, i would probably be depressed  as im a seafood lover. haha

anyway, the mangrove forest also provide various useful things such as timber, rope, charcoal, tools and traditional medicine.

After so much, i really believe that the mangrove forest is a gift send from god as it not only benefits the environment, it is also a venue for leisure activities and relaxation.
I really like the mindset of the writer and how he can use analogies, such as the "ugly duckling" to explain the advantages of a mangrove forest.

All In all, i really enjoyed this article as it made me appreciate the mangrove forest more! (:

25 January 2011

Finished section on tropical rain forests (:
Today was a wrap up on tropical rain forest, learned about the adaptation of fruits& flowers, adaptation of bark and adaptation of roots. I learned that flowers and fruits in the tropical rain forest are sweet smelling to attract insects for pollination and animals for seed dispersal. This is needed because these is little wind blowing in the forest due to its density of plants.

 

Next, learned more about tropical monsoon forest. Unlike the tropical rain forest, the monsoon forest has only 3 layers.. the canopy in also not interlocked as much as the tropical rain forest. I realized that although these two forests are different, they do have similarities between them, such as the waxy drip tips on plants. The differences between the two forest are caused by the weather and i learned how the trees and plants in the monsoon rain forests adapt to their surroundings, such as thick and coarse barks and branches to protect them during the dry season. Leaves in the monsoon rain forests,such as bomboo, are narrow to prevent water loss..I think that these adaptations the plants have are really clever!!

Also, i learnt about an interesting fact. I learned that the wet and dry seasons of the tropical monsoon climae are caused by the monsoon winds. Winds that blow in from different directions give rise to the monsoon climate in the rain forest. Before i knew, i thought that the monsoon rain forest had its climate just for the sake of having its climate.. hahaha

Anyways, really enjoyed geography lesson, looking forward to the next. (:

Reflection (2)

Second lesson 20/1/11.
I learnt more about the characteristics a tropical rainforest. The lesson was easy to understand overall.
Also, i learnt about a new graph called the climotograph.

It shows the average temperature and average rainfall/year

Also, i learnt about the locations where different vegetation are grown at. They are actually influenced by the amount of rainfall and temperature in that area.
 

This geography lesson has been a fun as i learn many facts such as that half of the world`s population of plant and animal life forms are found in tropical rain forests, even though they only cover 6% of the earth`s surface.

 

It was astonish after Ms Lee told us about it. I hope i get to learn more interesting and 'bizarre' facts in geography lessons. Difinitely looking forward to the next lesson! (:

Class Reflection (1)

I had my first geography lesson on Tuesday, 11/1/11. I just started briefly on a topic about natural vegetation and and found it very interesting ! I now have a more in depth view on tropical rain forests after the explanation teacher gave. It was also a recap on lower secondary geography.

I discovered about many different types of trees after that lesson. To add on, i recently went for the secondary 3 camp in Malaysia. It was in a organic rice farm and had many types of vegetation there. I trekked up a hill in Malaysia which was located in a tropical rain forest. I saw the different types of plant and trees there which allowed me to relate to the recent geography lesson i had.

I saw the waxy drip tips the leaves had there to direct water down and away from it.  I also noticed that the trees there had a thin and tall bark, as mentioned during geography class. After witnessing all these similarities i found between geography class and the real rainforest, I am now more movtivated to study geography as i feel that its very meaningful if i can relate my real life with nature.

I definitely enjoyed my first geography lesson.