07-09-2005, 11:32 PM
EcopoeiaJul 9 2005, 11:15 AM It's certainly an interesting idea, but I think you need to be careful with the use of certain terminology. I don't think I'm lacking in vocabulary but I've never before come across terms like 'anadromous, 'riparian' and 'parr' before. My fear is that many people will be put off by such unfamiliar language. [/quote]
First, many thanks for looking it over!
Well, those are the actual names that are *frequently* used in the environmental profession. But you are right, if you were wondering others will too!
How about if we cut down the middle clause though to use less specific language for just the reason you stated.
How does the following sound:
Option 2:
"OBSERVING the international nature of the economic benefit to ocean and freshwater commercial fisheries of abundant and healthy anadromous fish populations, such as salmon, which are born in small inland freshwater streams, later travel hundreds of kilometers to reach the sea where they live most of their adult lives, and eventually return to those exact same streams where they were hatched in order to breed;"
-or-
Option 3:
"OBSERVING the international nature of the economic benefit to ocean and freshwater commercial fisheries of abundant and healthy anadromous fish populations, such as salmon;"
The original was:
"OBSERVING the international nature of the economic benefit of abundant and healthy anadromous fish populations, such as salmon, which are born in small mountainous freshwater streams where they remain as fry and parr before transforming into smolts, then travel hundreds of kilometers down major river systems to reach the sea where they live most of their adult lives, and later return to the same streams where they were hatched in order to breed, to ocean and freshwater commercial fisheries;"
I'll be honest. My goal isn't to have a resolution pass by a significant majority, but rather introduce real-life environmental problems and terms. I wrote this resolution after talking with Fris about the number of students and teachers playing NationStates, and so I decided I'd bring a problem I deal with at work (though indirectly) into the game.
So I don't mind pissing off people or confusing them. I just want to hand something meaningful to a high school teacher, so he / she can then turn the resolution into a classroom exercise. (I'm assuming that there is year round school going on, since many of the classrooms will be empty now that it is summer.)
If you say "anadromous" to a biologist, I promise you that they'll grin and be extremely impressed that you speak their tech-talk. The term basically translates to meaning "living part of your life in freshwater and part of your life in seawater". Salmon are not the only anadromous fish, but they happen to be the most unique in that they can literally taste their original stream even when it is mixed by volume with many other unique and different source waters. They also happen to haven been destroyed in many parts of the world, and as I pointed out, their Omega-3 fatty acid is something that nutriention experts think is extremely important in human diets.
I guess the point is, I probably know more about this than most people, and I wanted the resolution to not have to deal with kids telling me I don't know this stuff, when I do. So I wanted a few technical terms in there. Instead I want them to really *question* if hydroelectric power is as "green" as it is often billed.
The NationStates issue that deals with hydroelectric power is actually a bit misleading. So by getting a resolution to the floor, I'll have a way to bypass that issue and expose people to the subject again.
Riparian should be in the dictionary, and is a legal and biological that means "next to river". Mentioning riparian to a farmer or lawyer goes a long way. I'd like to keep it in the resolution, because of word economy ... one word in the place of three. Perhaps I can scan the resolution and only mention it once though (assuming it pops up more than once).
First, many thanks for looking it over!
Well, those are the actual names that are *frequently* used in the environmental profession.
But you are right, if you were wondering others will too!How about if we cut down the middle clause though to use less specific language for just the reason you stated.
How does the following sound:
Option 2:
"OBSERVING the international nature of the economic benefit to ocean and freshwater commercial fisheries of abundant and healthy anadromous fish populations, such as salmon, which are born in small inland freshwater streams, later travel hundreds of kilometers to reach the sea where they live most of their adult lives, and eventually return to those exact same streams where they were hatched in order to breed;"
-or-
Option 3:
"OBSERVING the international nature of the economic benefit to ocean and freshwater commercial fisheries of abundant and healthy anadromous fish populations, such as salmon;"
The original was:
"OBSERVING the international nature of the economic benefit of abundant and healthy anadromous fish populations, such as salmon, which are born in small mountainous freshwater streams where they remain as fry and parr before transforming into smolts, then travel hundreds of kilometers down major river systems to reach the sea where they live most of their adult lives, and later return to the same streams where they were hatched in order to breed, to ocean and freshwater commercial fisheries;"
I'll be honest. My goal isn't to have a resolution pass by a significant majority, but rather introduce real-life environmental problems and terms. I wrote this resolution after talking with Fris about the number of students and teachers playing NationStates, and so I decided I'd bring a problem I deal with at work (though indirectly) into the game.
So I don't mind pissing off people or confusing them. I just want to hand something meaningful to a high school teacher, so he / she can then turn the resolution into a classroom exercise. (I'm assuming that there is year round school going on, since many of the classrooms will be empty now that it is summer.)
If you say "anadromous" to a biologist, I promise you that they'll grin and be extremely impressed that you speak their tech-talk. The term basically translates to meaning "living part of your life in freshwater and part of your life in seawater". Salmon are not the only anadromous fish, but they happen to be the most unique in that they can literally taste their original stream even when it is mixed by volume with many other unique and different source waters. They also happen to haven been destroyed in many parts of the world, and as I pointed out, their Omega-3 fatty acid is something that nutriention experts think is extremely important in human diets.
I guess the point is, I probably know more about this than most people, and I wanted the resolution to not have to deal with kids telling me I don't know this stuff, when I do. So I wanted a few technical terms in there. Instead I want them to really *question* if hydroelectric power is as "green" as it is often billed.
The NationStates issue that deals with hydroelectric power is actually a bit misleading. So by getting a resolution to the floor, I'll have a way to bypass that issue and expose people to the subject again.
Riparian should be in the dictionary, and is a legal and biological that means "next to river". Mentioning riparian to a farmer or lawyer goes a long way.
I'd like to keep it in the resolution, because of word economy ... one word in the place of three. Perhaps I can scan the resolution and only mention it once though (assuming it pops up more than once).