The Mysterious Giant Squid :: Exploratory Essays Research Papers

The Mysterious Giant Squid About 80 percent of the Earth is covered in water. With the majority of life on this planet residing in the liquid we like to call the essence of life, we as humans represent a minority on this planet. Much of the underwater world remains a mystery to us, with the giant squid being one of the greatest mysteries of them all. How close are we to actually solving the mystery of this deep water giant? For the first known citing of one of these creatures, you would have to go back to November of 1861, when crew members of the French dispatch steamer Alecton spotted what appeared to be a large sea monster off the coast of the Canary Islands. The crew threw harpoons at the creature, but those would not stay in the flesh for long. When the crew got close enough to put a noose around the creature, the rope tightened and cut through the animal, causing most of it to sink to the bottom of the sea. The crew, however, managed to pull the tail of the creature on board, and bring it back to the French Consul. From there the tail and a report about the creature made its way to the French Academy of Sciences. Giant squid, of which there are many different species, have been spotted less than fifty times in the last century, but none have been seen in their natural habitat, the depths of the sea, or caught on tape. It was initially thought that squids only lived very deep in the ocean from 200-1000 meters beneath the surface, an area very difficult for scientists to study. Why then have these squids been seen at the ocean’s surface? According to Dr. Malcolm Clarke of the Marine Biological Association, temperature affects the squid’s buoyancy mechanism. The warmer, shallower water will cause a giant squid to rise to the surface and not be able to get back down. With water temperature at it’s highest at the surface the squid would without a doubt not be able to get back down, thus resulting in people seeing giant squids at the surface of the ocean. Occasionally, a giant squid will wash up on shore or will come up in a fishing net, which has allowed scientists to get a close observation of these squid and their anatomy.

Child Responsibilities Essay

Many parents may be very strict on their kids when it comes to doing things like playing with fire, using power tools, having a job, or even owning a pocket knife, but I on the other hand, disagree. Although I understand that it’s very dangerous for kids to be handling such things, it also builds their character. You wouldn’t just allow any kid to be in charge of such thing, they must have maturity and responsibility up to a certain point to be able to be trusted in these situations. A speech titled â€Å"5 Dangerous Things you should let your kid do† by Gever Tulley on TED.com talks about kids who are allowed and even encouraged to do things most parents would never dare to let their kids be involved in. Tulley discusses how kids who participate in these activities build strong character. It’s good for kids to be in these kinds of environments as long as they already have responsibility up to a certain level. An issue similar to this that is thrown around in politic and economic discussions now days is child labor. Should we allow kids to have jobs? Should families who are economically struggling allow their kids to work in order to bring in enough food and necessities to the family? I don’t see a problem in child labor. Like Tulley, I agree with these ideas and think they build better personalities and make a child more understanding. Although, I do not think that a family should be able to force a kid to work, it’s also important to a kid’s childhood that they get a chance to be a kid, and not have to worry about work. The earlier a person starts working, the bigger chance they have to be successful in life. I can understand why some parent’s wouldn’t be willing to let their kids be in such environments, these environments can be very unsafe sometimes. A kid could have the possibility of cutting a finger off, or doing something that they would have to live with for the rest of their lives, but with adult supervision this is less likely to happen. Although UNICEF has stated that children are more likely to get hurt then adults because they have yet to learn what not to do, we have to understand that getting hurt can happen in any activity that a person participates in, that’s just part of life.

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