Rivers for Life

evaluation (science)

2011-08-04T07:25:00.000-07:00

We evaluated that we should stop throwing litter into lakes and rivers as it will affect the environment. Not only that, it will also affect us as we cannot enjoy water activities safely. If he rivers lead to reservoirs, it will also affect the quality of the water that we drink.

conclusion (science)

2011-08-04T07:23:00.000-07:00

Based on our research, our conclusion is as follows:

We conclude that the Jurong Lake is dirtier than the Kallang river. But the Kallang River is also not safe for comsumption.

group disscusion (science)

2011-08-04T07:02:00.000-07:00

Based on our results, the Jurong Lake is dirtier than the Kallang River. However, the Kallang River is also not safe for consumption as the the pH level is higher than 7. The dissolved oxygen level is there is higher than the Jurong Lake and the turbidity is also lower.

We believed that the Kallang River has more frequent cleaning while the Jurong Lake is near muddy shores and so has a higher turbidity. According the agar plates Jurong Lake also has more bacteria colonies than Kallang River.

reflection (geography)

2011-08-04T06:30:00.000-07:00

I think that we should help to keep the rivers clean by not throwing litter into them. we should avoid: throwing tissue paper, sweet wrappers and other drink containers etc into the rivers. When there is no littering, we can enjoy the the nice scenery and can have fun doing water activities on these rivers safely. When we litter, the river's turbidity will increase and the plant will not be able to photosynthesise. As a result, fishes in the river will die. Dead fishes will decompose & contaminate the rivers, giving out smelly odours. This would cause people to avoid the rivers. As most rivers also leads to reservoirs, water will also be contaminated and be unfit for human consumption.

3 possible measures to conserve the river (geography)

2011-08-04T05:12:00.000-07:00

1) We feel that the government should make it clear to the public that it is illegal to dump rubbish into the river. At the same time, people who litter at these rivers should be heavily fined.

2) And the best thing we can help as responsible citizens is not to litter. Rubbish that is found in the rivers can contaminate and kill marine creatures - they can accidentally eat these objects/ rubbish and be suffocated by things like plastic bags etc...

3) We could also organize a campaign to promote the use of environmentally-friendly materials like cloth bags, so we will use less non bio-degradable things and preserve the earth's natural environment.

2 sources and 2 consequences of water pollution (geography)

2011-08-04T04:59:00.000-07:00

2 sources and 2 consequences of water pollution

1) One of the reasons of water pollution that is so severe is that it is not actually to dump pollutants into water bodies. Sewage, sludge garbage and even toxic pollutants all dumped into the water and government ignores the matter simply. This pollutes the rivers and seas, not allowing many animals to survive or live in.

2) Secondly, another reason when farmers use chemical to get in the way to bug infestation and other diseases from damaging or ruining the crops. And for the fertilizers and pesticides, when the rain comes, it just washes all the chemical with them to the nearest water bodies... a river or a sea killing the living things in the water.

Our 2nd Agar Plate for Jurong Lake (science)

2011-08-02T05:55:00.001-07:00

I think we swabbed the river water on the wrong side of the agar plate. It seems that the control (distilled water) has much more bacteria. :/

Our Agar Plate for Kallang River :) (science)

2011-08-02T05:51:00.000-07:00

Methodology (science)

2011-08-02T01:19:00.000-07:00

1) Divide the petri dish into 2, one for control and the other for the Jurong River
2) Collect water from river
3) Wet the cotton bud with river water from both rivers
4) Swab the cotton bud on the petri dish
5)Swab the other side with distilled water as the control
6) Cover the petri dish and use a parafilm strip to secure the petri dish
7) Do the same for Kallang Lake
8) Wait about 5 days
9) Record the amount of bacteria colonies
10) Find out the air temperature, water temperature, pH, dissolved oxygen, turbidity and salinity

There are many things tat affect the air temp, water temp, pH, dissovled oxygen, turbidity and salinity.

air temp: amount of sunlight

water temp: amount of sunlight

pH: type of litter

dissovled oxygen: amount of turbidity

salinity: the distance away from sea

*Microsoft Excel has some problem that caused some lines to be missing*

Results

	Kallang River	Jurong Lake
Air Temperature (°C)	1st Reading: 31.9	1st Reading: 30.8
	2nd Reading: 31.8	2nd Reading: 31.3
	3rd Reading: 31.8	3rd Reading: 31.2
	Average Reading:	Average Reading:
	31.83	31.1
Water Temperature (°C)	1st Reading: 31.6	1st Reading: 31.1
	2nd Reading: 31.7	2nd Reading: 30.7
	3rd Reading: 31.7	3rd Reading: 30.6
	Average Reading:	Average Reading:
	31.6	30.8
pH ( 1 - 14)	1st Reading: 9.4	1st Reading: 7.2
	2nd Reading: 9.6	2nd Reading: 7.3
	3rd Reading: 9.7	3rd Reading: 7.2
	Average Reading:	Average Reading:
	9.6	7.23
Dissolved Oxygen (mg/L)	1st Reading: 7.8	1st Reading: 4.4
	2nd Reading: 6.8	2nd Reading: 7.7
	3rd Reading: 7.8	3rd Reading: 3.3
	Average Reading:	Average Reading:
	7.5	5.13
Turbidity (NTU)	1st Reading: 19.6	1st Reading: 34.2
	2nd Reading: 17.2	2nd Reading: 32.9
	3rd Reading: 18.0	3rd Reading: NA
	Average Reading:	Average Reading:
	18.3	33.55
Salinity (µS/cm)	1st Reading: 0.1	1st Reading: 0.00
	2nd Reading: 0.1	2nd Reading: 0.00
	3rd Reading: 0.1	3rd Reading: 0.00
	Average Reading:	Average Reading:
	0.1	0

Determining Variables (science)

2011-08-02T00:57:00.000-07:00

To make our experiment a fair test, we had to design vairables. There are several variables that will affect the the result of an experiment. In this experiment we want to investigate the air temperature, water temperature, pH, dissolved oxygen, turbidity and salinity of water from two different rivers, the Kallang River and Jurong Lake. We used cotton swabs to spread the river water on the agar plates to see the amount of bacteria colonies in the river. Therefore the type items used on the bacteria is the independent variable. It is the variable that we are changing.

We then need to measure the amount of colonies found in each region of the agar plates found overnight. The number of colonies is the dependant variable as we need to measure it to see what happens.

Hypothesis (Science)

2011-08-02T00:36:00.000-07:00

Based on our knowledge of rivers, our hypothesis is this:

The higher the turbidity, the more dirty the water of the river will be.

Background Infomation (science)

2011-08-02T00:33:00.000-07:00

A river is a body of water flowing in a channel. The place at which a river begins is called the river source. Streams and river that join a main river are known as it tributaries. The main river and its tributaries form a river system.