SnitchSeeker.com - View Single Post

Hera · 01-09-2013, 03:42 AM

SPOILER!!: Responses!

Quote:

Originally Posted by FireboltAvis88

Alyssa listened as the other students gave their definitions of what an ecosystem was and she quickly noted them down in her notebook. Then Professor Hadley asked a more complex question. Why understanding would be important to the study of Herbology and what would we gain from it.

Alyssa sat and thought and wrote down what she considered why understanding ecosystems were important to the subject they were studying and what they would gain from knowing this before she raised her hand to answer.

"Professor each part of the ecosystem is important and has an important role in the circle of life, and each relies on the other. If one part of the ecosystem is damaged it can cause damage to the rest of the system. Like for example plants, even its decomposition or how it converts oxygen to carbon dioxide and vice versa gives it an important role in the survival of the planet.

Studying ecosystems can help us gauge what is being changed, or the rapidity and extent of these changes. Studying it helps us gauge the possible ramifications if plants are destroyed.

What we can gain from it is an understanding on how we can clean and store fresh water and keep our air quality clean, regulate climate, prevent soil erosion caused by floods, improve soil productivity, store and recycle nutrients like making composts, help pollinate crops, provide habitats for other living things and of course provide medicines, food, fiber and energy."

Had she covered everything? Alyssa wasn't sure but she hoped at least, that what she had said actually made sense. She thought that she did.

And welcome back Alyssa.
Seren was amazed at how much the girl could talk... at least her answer was articulate. "Yes very good... there are numerous things it can tell us, but you didn't quite relate it to what we do here at school."

Quote:

Originally Posted by WillowSeawinds

Rowan thought for a moment and came up with, what she thought, was a reasonable answer. She raised her hand and said, "Understanding ecosystems, when studying Herbology, is important because it allows you to better care for and successfully grow your plants. If you know what ecosystem the plant thrives in you can recreate that environment. Knowing the type of soil, how much sun, even the insects the plant needs for pollination is crucial. Many plants do better in the presence of certain other varieties of plants." Geez, she hoped she wasn't rambling.

"Correct! well done."

Quote:

Originally Posted by FearlessLeader19

Jory quickly scribbled down the additional stuff Professor Bentley told them before raising his hand again. "Studying ecosystems would be important because understanding the components and how the ecosystems interact would allow us to grow better plants,'' he said. "For example, studying the changes in a component or components would allow us to make changes in the way we grow certain plants and fungi.''

"What we would gain from this is better plants for food and other uses for both humans and animals.'' The Puff hoped he made sense.

"Wonderful answer Jory."

Quote:

Originally Posted by PotterHeadforLife

The next question, however, was just using common sense. Kat took a few notes on her parchment before thinking of an answer. No wrong answers this time or throughout the lesson. Better yet, throughout the term. She was going to survive OWLs, yes. As early as now, studying could really make a difference and also participating and listening and all.

Kat repeated the question in her head a few times. Why is the ecosystem so important? ~~Wanted: Ravenclaw mind~~. Kat raised her hand. "I believe that it is important to know the ecosystem so that we can observe the behavior of the plant. Some plants would prefer damp places and hate sunlight, like Devil's Snare. Some plants would prefer being more exposed to the heat. There are plants that need a big amount of space, but there are also plants that would rather stay in a small space. Every plant varies and so their behavior to different ecosystems may differ too. It is also the ensure that our plants grow well," Kat said. Maybe that was good information already. For her, at least.

"Absolutely, well said."

Quote:

Originally Posted by Poolicious

As Messer finished writing down the explanation about what ecosystem is, he heard Bentley give them another question.

Why would understanding ecosystems be important to the study of herbology? What can we gain from this?

The fourth year raised his hand "It's important for us to study ecosystem so that we could see what we should do to create a decent place for us humans and animals to live in." Yeah that's about it.

Seren nodded... considering the Puffs answer.
"That would depend on your definition of decent. Remember we're all individuals and while each ecosystem is essentially a set of circumstances which allow particular forms of life to thrive... it doesn't mean it's ideal."

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bazinga

Minerva listened to all the answers about ecosystems. It seemed there was more into an ecosystem them Minerva realized. Then listening to Professor Bentley she tried to write down notes on her parchment. There seemed to be more discussion then usual for herbology today, which Minerva really didn't mind.

Putting up her hand she decided to try to take a guess at the question, "Professor, ecosystems are important to herbology, because if a plant would go to the wrong one it would not survive. For example if we would try to place a water plant out of water it is not in the right home to survive."

"Mmmhhhmm... yes."

Quote:

Originally Posted by Emzily

More detail next time... oh okay.

"Because.." Wait for it, there was in fact more to this... "...umm... all plants are different and like different things, so I guess we'd need to know about which kind of plants belongs in which kind of ecosystems, otherwise they wouldn't be happy.." But so far, the only ecosystem he could think of was a rainforest.

Was that enough detail? Theo hated referring to plants having feelings and stuff. It felt dumb.

"Yes, very good."

Quote:

Originally Posted by fanficfanatict

Okay, Selina was sort of glad that she had kept her hand down for that question. She really would have looked like a flopping fish trying to answer that question. After all... she was not a textbook. Selina really enjoyed Herbology but the extent of what she knew she could was what she could derive from logic and what she had previously learned in the class. SO the redhead USUALLY just sat back and let other people do, you know, the definition part of the class. She was totally NOT going to pretend she knew the answer.

OH OH OH! But she could answer this question. It was more of a subjective answer. So she raised her hand and replied, "Well, Professor... I think in everything, but especially herbology, everything is interconnected. So like if we learn about that ecosystem thing, yeah, then we would have a better grasp on the plant life IN the ecosystem." That made sense, yes?

"Nicely said Selina," she nodded.

Quote:

Originally Posted by hpfan18

Then Belle heard the third question the professor asked. Belle then heard why are we studying ecosystems this term. Belle had to think about that. We can they gain from studying ecosystems....
Belle then raised her hand, "Professor we need to study ecosystems to understand how plants develop in certain places in the ecosystem. Ecosystems will help us understand which plants interact with what creatures or what environment. There are many different plants and different species to consider. For myself i will study ecosystems because to learn the natural wonder of the world."

She was on the right track... though seemed to be ever so slightly of course.
"Yes... goood... though I meant for you to consider not just for yourself, but for all of us as to what we could gain from it to aid us and out study."

Quote:

Originally Posted by pinkphoenix

Orr put up her hand and said, "Well, we study plants in Herbology and I think that it is also essential that we learn about the ecosystems and understand what goes on in them, so that we understand how the different plants grow and how they interact with their environment which is the ecosystem. That is just the way that it is..." She trailed off.

Orr wasn't sure what she could add to that explanation. But others in the class would add to it for sure or they had already.

"Very well said."

Quote:

Originally Posted by Syd

Scooting to the side slightly so he didn't have to stand on his toes any longer, Jake raised his hand. "Well, plants are usually a really important part of an ecosystem, aren't they? With photosynthesis and stuff - everything living thing in the ecosystem uses the plants to survive. So, we have to understand how the plants grow and survive in order to keep them healthy in order to keep virtually everything healthy." That... made sense, right? And it answered the question? Sort of?

Seren wasn't quite sure where her prefect was going with his answer... but as he finalised his statement the pieces came together. "Yes, good good."

Quote:

Originally Posted by Harry174

Laura looked at the Professor and raised her hand. "I would say that it is important to understand the Ecosystem because, it is planet friendly, it is there to support life on this planet and it helps the plants grow and things like that." Laura wasn't sure if she was right or not but that was what ecosystems did right.

Planet friendly? .....
"Mmm... yes... though perhaps consider how that knowledge helps us in our study."

Quote:

Originally Posted by Luna004

Susan was thinking about why an eco..ecosystem? Ya ecosystem. Why it was important to the study of herbology. Well if she didn't get it right she was sure someone else would. Susan raised her hand about half way into the air and responded.."Professor, we need to understand what an ecosystem is when studying plants because it effects the plants, in order to know know how it effects the plants, we need to know first what it is." Susan stopped rambling because she wasn't sure if she was right.

"Yes, very good."

Quote:

Originally Posted by TakemetotheBurrow

Okay...so Ella hadn't been far off with her answer which was good. She smiled a little, scribbling down other important points as she waited for the next question to be asked.

Scribble. Scribble. Scribble.

Why is the study of ecosystems important to the study of herbology? Well...plants were really important to all living things, yeah? People and animals used them as food sources not to mention the whole creating oxygen thing as far as trees went. Oh! And flowers for the bees! There were...a lot of important things to mention. "By studying ecosystems we can see what kinds of environments certain plants thrive in and know how to help them continue to grow and erm...stay healthy."

A sound response. "Yes, well done."

Quote:

Originally Posted by hermygirl

Spike tilted his head thoughtfully, and scribbled down some notes. "To understand the balance required across the system," Spike said, raising his hand. "Whether it be the fluctuations in predators and their prey, or seasonal weather patterns." He paused momentarily, to push his glasses back up his nose. "It's not that a plant from a hot climate can't live in a cooler one, you just need to maintain the balance - so watering it less often, for example, to account for the lack of rain and high rate of evaporation experienced in hot, arid climes." Of course, the obvious example here was the humble cactus; plenty of people kept them in the UK, where it decidedly wasn't hot most of the year round.

"You can also use this balance to understand adaptations of the same plant or animal to more than one environment."

"Ahh yes very good."
Spike was impressing her today, but then again, he'd always achieved well in the subject. "Though it is possible to fascilitate a plants needs under a set of circumstances which vary to their own typical ecosystem, it can be tricky and sometimes impossible."

Adaptions! She was thrilled to hear that word, but they could get to that later.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fira

Okay....enough just standing an doing nothing. He did not know how on earth he had managed to pass his 5th year and became a 6th year but if he would not start to actually do something in classes other than just staring and watching Aurora, he knew he was going to be a 6th year forever. So rubbing his eyes, he actually tried to wake up at first. Okay...

*blink*

He supposed he was fine now. So now it was time to focus on this class and pay attention and maybe...even answer this question.

But Merlin! The question was not an easy one. He had just figured what this ecosystem was and now he was supposed to use this knowledge somehow. All right...he took a deep breath and actually thought over the question.

What could it be? What could one gain from studying those ecosystems? Well...he supposed he had an idea.

''Professor...'' so he began even though he was not sure how he was going to explain what he had in mind. ''In Herbology, don't we find out those plants that can be os use to us? Like in Potions and healing stuff and...other stuff. We collect those plants to use them, right? So if we study their ecosystem, maybe we can find out how to collect them without messing with that ecosystem. Like knowing how much of the plant contributes to the ecosystem so we would not pick more than that?''

What...what was he doing?

''Sorry...that was stupid. I am sorry.''

He let out another breath and rubbed his forehead. Fail.

Seren was pleased with the Slytherin's response, even if he wasn't which was a shame.
"Not stupid at all, and in fact you raise an important point... human intervention. We do need to be mindful of how we behave and interact with ecosystems to ensure we don't disrupt the balance."

Quote:

Originally Posted by MagicGlitter

Ecosystems. Well, she was close enough. And why were they so important to Herbology? Seemed like an easy enough question to her. She jotted down some notes about ecosystems on her paper before raising her hand. "Well, all plants have habitats that they need to live in. Some plants need certain conditions in order to survive. For example, plants like algae and coral simply cannot survive outside of water, and flowers would not be able to survive in water because of their need for sunlight and air." She paused. "By understanding ecosystems, we can learn where plants thrive. Also, we can learn what we need to do in order to properly take care of them." That seemed to be a good enough explanation for now.

"Yes, very good," she nodded in approval.

Quote:

Originally Posted by DecemberMoon

Eliza doodled some pictures of flowers and fish while she listened to the descriptions of ecosystems. She had been pretty on track with her description, but it could have used some polishing. Why would it be important to understand? Well...because it's how everything has to be in order for it to work - so it's really important. Right? She wondered if this was another semi trick question and tried to think clearly.

When she felt she was ready to answer, she raised her hand. "The reason why understanding ecosystems is so important to Herbology is because plants play a major role in ecosystems. We need to be able to understand what the plants need to help them thrive and also what the plants provide for other living things in their environment. By understanding their ecosystem, we can know if a plant needs more shade, or if it provides shade for an animal and mustn't be removed...things like that." She paused and thought about the second question. "Understanding ecosystems and how they affect Herbology lets us gain the knowledge of how to keep our surroundings and environments healthy and fully functional. It lets us be able to help areas or species that need assistance to ensure their survival. So we stand to gain a lot really." A lot as in...the whole planet benefits from us understanding these things.

She sat back and thought about the large scale of what they were talking about. I hope we get to do something that helps in the real world this term!

Seren listened, patiently to the girls response.
"Good, well said."

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lissy Longbottom

"Because it's the circleeeee of lifeeeee," Alex said, not realizing he'd just sung that bit from the Lion King out loud until it was too late. WHOOPS. But it was true! If it weren't for the ecosystems and the plants and animals then humans would STARVE and wouldn't turn in to worm food for the ground...

He raised his hand, forgetting his manners for a moment. "I mean, it's true. Without ecosystems, the plants wouldn't give back to us, and we wouldn't be able to give back to the bugs and the plants and it just keeps going."

Seren couldn't help but beam at Alex's enthusiasm.
"Yes, you're absolutely right... though, you didn't specify how it might aid our study of herbology."

Quote:

Originally Posted by ForeverYours

OH. Oh right. Of course Bliss knew this! It must have just...slipped her mind. Yes. That was it. ANYWAY, must get on. Ecosystem. What was an ecosystem? This would question would be answered with a decent length reply. She had to prove that she actually KNEW something. So far, she wasn't doing a very good job of it. Bliss wasn't normally all...proud of being smart, but right now she felt the need to prove it.

WOW. She felt big-headed. MELLOW.

Bliss raised her hand cautiously and said, "In ecosystems, pants have a key role, which is one of the reasons that we will study them in Herbology." So far, so good, Bliss thought hopefully. ~~Note the hopefully.~~ Er..."Also, if we understand more about ecosystems, we will also learn more about where and how plants thrive and what we need to do to keep a healthy, balanced and well maintained ecosystem?" Bliss finished. Also note the question mark at the end there. She was SO unsure of what she'd just said. It all sounded like a ramble. Well, she had to start somewhere and she'd given it a shot.

"Good good." A sound response.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bubbles

She had a good answer. Niiiice. Peyton got her notebook and quill ready to jot down notes. She glanced back between her classmates as they each contributed to the class. Then her eyes landed on...ooooh! Richaaard!

Peyton, little by little, went to stand next to him and listened to what he had to say. He --from everyone she's met so far-- has won MAJOR points in her book. He called her princess and that was worth, like, a thousand points. Yep. ^__^

Stupid? Whaaat? She had not thought what he said was stupid. It was deep, man. She nudged him with her elbow a bit and whispered so only he could hear. "I thought it smart." SMIIILE.

Now is time for her to share her answer. Hmm. She wasn't good with wording her thoughts, but here goes nothing. But first she raised her hand. "Understanding ecosystems is important because it aids us to understand the organisms around us," she said. "For example, part of understanding an ecosystem is to learn how and where organisms thrive and where they don't. Like, a water plant, it can't survive in a desert whereas a cactus would do spectacular..." soooo, yeah.

On the right track..

"Yes, very good."

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tegz

West scratched his head but not out of puzzlement, only on account of he had an itch, so he itched it then put his hand up to answer.

"If we know what ecosystem a plant is most at home in, we can do our best to make it feel as comfy as possible, and we'll know what kind of nutrients it needs, and what kind of pH balance its soil should have, and what plants it grows best alongside, and sometimes even what its uses might be. Also certain kinds of plants have certain physical characteristics what are influenced by the kind of ecosystem they originated from, so we could look at the leaves or stems or look at how it gets its nutrients, and we could get clues about the plant and figure out what it is even if we don't already know." Fun stuff, basically!

Could he get in the tank now?

Adaptions. Yes, understanding them was very important... without that knowledge proper care could not be administered. Seren smiled, nodding at West. "Well said."

Quote:

Originally Posted by Macavity

Herbology seemed to be going real fast and Ellura was trying her best to keep up with what was going on. It wasn't like she was lost in the subject since she remembered a bit about ecosystems from a muggle science class, but she was still trying to get the hang of things. And her classmates seemed to have a better grip of the situation and knowledge than she had.

At the latest question however, she thought she might have had a chance to answer. It was up for opinion and interpretation so many people could offer up suggestions which was already happening as students up. Herbology was about plants...and plants were pivotal to ecosystems...so yeah. Finally Ellura raised her hand once she thought she had the right words. "Because its important to understand anything and everything that could effect the plants you're handling. That way you can make sure the ecosystem is suitable as it is or needs to be supplimented in some way such as fertilizer or extra watering"

You wouldn't want a plant to die because you weren't mindful of what could harm them.

Seren nodded. She was pleased that one of her new Lions was a smart cookie.
"Yes, very good."

Quote:

Originally Posted by Unalii

Taylor raised her hand, "Professor, you can gain knowledge that would help you provide better for taking care of plants since they require different things based on their ecosystems. For example, you wouldnt want to put a plant that requires heat and sun in a place that is cold and get little sunlight." She smiled sweetly and grew silent.

Seren nodded, agreeing with the girls statement.

Quote:

Originally Posted by McFeisty

Why were Ecosystems important to herbology. Because ecosystems were just important right. Er.....weren't they?

Raising her hand she tried to answer.

"Um...ecosystems are important because they are what makes the animal kingdom have the food it needs to survive?" She added not very definitively. "Er...its important to herbology because without an ecosystem then we won't have what we need for everyone to survive...no water, soil, air...whatnot and we'd all just not exist."

What? She had the right to be doom and gloom.

Mmmm.. Seren wasn't quite sure how to approach the girls response. It wasn't wrong.. but it was missing something.
"Yes... but it's important to not that without AN ecosystem, there would be others... one thing organisms are good at doing, some more so than others, is adapting..." she paused here to identify where else the girl went wrong. "In terms of herbology, it helps us understand care requirements for particular categories of plants as well as individual."

Quote:

Originally Posted by DaniDiNardo

More or less...that meant she was right, right? 'Course it did!

She thought about the next question for a minute. This one wasn't as easy as the first one because she couldn't see the bigger picture. The thought crossed her mind to simply not try answering this one but then she wanted to give it a go. ~~Talking was fun, okay??~~

"It's important 'cause it has to do with living and not-living things staying together and well you'd have to know how's the best way they can live together so they don't end up causing each other much damage. Since Herbology has a something to do with growing and taking care of plants," It totally did, no matter what anyone said, "we'd have to know what works best with plants and what doesn't." Seemed logical enough so she'd keep talking, not that she would've stopped if it didn't. "It's like having a cannibal plant in a greenhouse with another defenseless plant," Because those existed, yup, "if we knew better about how they lived together then the poor thing could've been spared from being the next one's dinner!"

YUP.

Seren nodded as Alexa responded, seeming to think out loud. "Yes, very good... though few plants are cannibals." So that was the least of their worries.

Quote:

Originally Posted by EW_FAN

Harvey listened as Professor Bentley elaborated on the points that they had all said, yup it was all pretty much just the way he remembered it. He noted down the points that she said they had take into consideration when thinking about Ecosystems cause he knew that somehow somewhere that would come in handy. Another question? mmm he thought about why knowing ecosystems would come in handy? He put up his hand once he had thought about it "I think it would be important to understand ecosystems for herbology so that you would know how plants interact with each other and what they need in order to live a long and healthy life" though he was not sure about his answer but it sounded like it from the points that she had just given him. "We can gain knowledge about how plants live with each other, what plants do well together and which ones do not do well together" he said as he fully answered her question. He wondered what they were going to be doing knowing about ecosystems.

"Yes very good Harvey."

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rosa Chispa Princessa

After answering the previous question Oichi felt that answering the current one is easy. She raised her hand, "Ecosystems are important yo herbology because they show us how plants work together with the other organisms in their environment to help each other thrive.".

Simplistic, but correct. "Yes, good good."

Quote:

Originally Posted by lemon

OH. Was she doing alright, then? And not failing completely? That boosted her self-esteem.. a little.

Still. Herbology was too difficult and complex for Alice's mind. So she just jotted down notes from other people's answers, because that would. After listening to a couple answers, she seemed to be finally getting the gist of it, so she tried her hand at an answer, as well. "Knowing the plant's habitat well helps us nurture it and.. and learn more about it?" OR SOMETHING. But wasn't the whole point of Herbology to understand plant stuff? Their circle of life and all?

Scribble. Scribble. Scribble. Whatever. Notes would help.

This is progress. "Yes! absolutely, not only would we know more about it, but we'd be in a better position to fulfill its care requirements."

Quote:

Originally Posted by Anna Banana

Sierra remained wide-eyed for at least the next minute or two. Notes. There were just so many notes to take. She hastily copied down the list of six things to consider when studying ecosystems. She dotted all her i's, crossed all her t's, then looked back up at the professor.

Sierra raised her hand. "Well, I think it's the same rule of thumb we as humans use when choosing what to wear in the morning. If it's cold, we dress in warmer clothes, and if it's hot, we dress in cooler clothes," she said. Yes, she was relating all this to choosing the right clothes to wear.

"We have to know and understand the environment a plant is living in in order to know what's best for it," she continued. "...and we also have to know what dangers are out there, so we can keep the plant safe."

A fashion analogy? Well.. whatever works.
"Very good Sierra."

Quote:

Originally Posted by PhoenixStar

So everybody had already answered the ecosystem answer so there was no need to say the same thing again. Plus professor Bently was already moving on. She was waiting her turn to add her two cents when a hufflepuff had to be reading the definition out of a text book. Hannah had zoned out and couldn't be sure how long she had been zoned out. She had no idea what anybody else had said. Was it really necessary to add that much info? At this rate they would never get to the practical part of the lesson.

She blinked a few times and raised her hand. "Professor, ecosystems are essential because they will help us take care of plants by knowing their habitats and their persoanl needs." See you could get the point across without reciting a novel.

Seren nodded, "yes, very good."

Quote:

Originally Posted by SilverTiger

So they weren't specifically studying water plants or corals or bioluminescent organisms or anything else that would be obvious from what was inside Greenhouse Six. That didn't particularly bother Kendall, aside from the idea that they could have just been outside in the grounds if they wanted to study ecosystems. Inside made it easier to take notes, though, and she had been doing at least a bit of that while the answers had been tossed out to Professor Bentley's questions. Notes and possibly a few quick sketches of the things in the tanks nearest to her, just because they were there and interesting, even if they weren't being talked about specifically. They still were related to herbology either way.

She had looked up at the next question, however. How are ecosystems important to studying herbology?, she thought, finishing another tiny doodle in her notebook while she contemplated answering. Finally, she raised her hand. "In a way, isn't the study of herbology actually studying ecosystems entirely?," she asked. Of course, a question wasn't really an answer, so then she decided to explain. "Herbology is the study of plants, what they need to grow, how they grow, and how we can use them once they have grown. Sort of. We need to understand ecosystems in order to actually know any of that. Plants are part of any ecosystem, and knowing how they can interact with everything else in their environment can tell us how they might interact with us too." That made sense to her, at least, so hopefully the professor understood what she meant too.

Well that was a different answer to what she had expected.
"Yes." She wasn't wrong, but again it felt as though a key understanding was missing. "I wouldn't say we study ecosystems entirely, there is much that we do not focus on purely because our studies are concerned purely with flora. While it IS important for us to understand ecosystems as it influences care requirements, habitats and the progression of flora life, we do not need to isolate each minute aspect of the system in much depth."

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cassirin

Mo returned his attention to the tank, once again making faces at the coral. Who knew? Maybe they noticed him and thought he was hilarious and would grow more impressively than the other coral because laughter was the best medicine. It was an interesting idea for an experiment... maybe the professor would let him try?

Ecosystems. "If you're trying to take care of a plant, and you give it love and water and sun and good soil, but it just isn't thriving, then it would be good to understand where it came from to better know what it needs," Mo mused. "Like maybe there are certain types of nutrients in the soil, or maybe it had a symbiotic relationship with another plant or animal and is all lonely now."

The face pulling hadn't gone unnoticed.. but as the boy wasn't distracted from participating in the class discussion, she let it slide.
"Yes, very well said."

Quote:

Originally Posted by THE Govoni

Well, Dylan thought this rather obvious...

"...Because Ecosystems, in general, depend on a balance of several different things...Much like in this Greenhouse. I imagine it could be called a controlled ecosystem itself. Maintaining balance ensures healthy, beautiful plants."

Or...maybe not so obvious. The Slytherin still thought his answer was a good one. He'd even called them beautiful...Brownie points?

Seren nodded as Dylan offered his thoughts on the matter.
"Yes, very good... maintaining the balance is very important to us in terms of ensuring we administer the proper care requirements for all plants to thrive."

Quote:

Originally Posted by DJ ExpelliarMOOSE

Oakey though on this some, his mind kept taking him back to the last thing Bentley included in what a Ecosystem included, Disturbances.

Maybe he was paranoid while in Greenhouses after all..

Oakey spoke up after he gave some more though on how he'd word this without sounding any more terrified of being in this safe greenhouse. "If we understand that Ecosystems can have disturbances, would it be important in Herbology to know when a certain Ma.." He stopped himself before he said Man-Eating Plant."A certain plant is somewhere it shouldn't be, so that a herbologist such as yourself could find what is disturbing that ecosystem and ki..." he stopped himself again before he said kill it."and remove it without harming the rest of the ecosystem in the process"

Seren was mildly confused with Oakey's answer.. she wondered if he understood what she had meant by disturbances. Instead of disapproving his answer, she opted to engage him on the subject of disturbances.
"Consider... that disturbances cover a number of activities and occurrences which interfere with the balance nature had established... this includes floods, drought, fire, cyclones, human intervention and any other activity which is not common to the ecosystem."

Quote:

Originally Posted by iBeJenn

Why would understanding ecosystems be important?

Melanie thought about that question for a while, jotting down the answers of the people around her. Ah... they were all so smart. She focused on keeping her notes neat, seeing as she'd probably need to study them later and nodded her head as she did so. So many words. So many answers. So many Nerdclaw smarts in the room.

But back to the question. Why would it be important?

She had absolutely no idea... whatsoever.

Seren appreciated Melanie's silence. Sometimes listening and absorbing was the best way to learn.

Quote:

Originally Posted by JustAlice

Aurora was scribbling notes down frantically as other people were answering, Merlin she'd forgotten how to learn over the summer it seemed. Or at least how to write, because her hand writing was atrocious.

Right, why was it important to understand ecosystems..? Hmm... "To understand how a plant is to be looked after, you have to understand its natural habitat and surroundings, because if you get that wrong you could poison or mistreat a plant. Or... less drastically, you probably won't get the full worth out of a plant if you don't know how it prefers to live and grow."

...

Right..? Gosh Aurora's head was starting to ache...

"Yes, very good."

Quote:

Originally Posted by lazykitty

Think, Think, Thinking.........

"So we can better understand the soil content of where the plant's been planted and know what nutrients may need to be added?" Sky replied. It made since to her, anyway. If one area didn't have the right nutrients, nothing could grow there. Simple logic.

"That's a part of it... though I think all of its care requirements are important, not just soil alone."

Quote:

Originally Posted by demented_death_eater

Awesome! Who got points? Rawdon got points! Yessss!

The young Vindictus felt as if he had been rewarded with a cookie and he knew that he could get more if he participated. He listened carefully to the next question and pondered his answer for a few minutes.

He raised his hand. "It's all about having the right balance, Professor. The right amount of water, soil, plants, air, temperature, and light are important for plants to grow. If the balance isn't right then, the plants will struggle to survive. So these things are like the ecosystem of herbology and we need to know what the correct balance is to grow plants."

Seren couldn't help but ~~stare~~observe Rawdon, he looked so much like a Vindictus, the likeness was uncanny, and somewhat unsettling.
Nodding with an approving smile she replied, "Absolutely, balance is key is successful maintenance and care."

Seren was rather pleased with their progress... and it helped that they had a sound understanding on the topic, even if it wasn't perfect. After all, they were here to learn.

"Alright, good... now gather you're things, we're going to head off and head up to the castle for our next activity." She paused for a moment, hoping to see some shocked faces... "Level one! Follow me!" she called out, now moving off ahead of them, "Keep up."

OOC: Lesson will continue in approximately 12 hours. Feel free to ask questions etc.

01-09-2013, 03:42 AM	#166 (permalink)
Hera Abraxan Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Perth, AU (GMT +8) Posts: 25,070 Hogwarts RPG Name: Jasper Hart Graduated x10 x10	½ EagleBrain ♥ Creeperdoodle ♥ Raven Dor ♥ Berry ♥ ½ Team House Elf SPOILER!!: Responses! Quote: Originally Posted by FireboltAvis88 Alyssa listened as the other students gave their definitions of what an ecosystem was and she quickly noted them down in her notebook. Then Professor Hadley asked a more complex question. Why understanding would be important to the study of Herbology and what would we gain from it. Alyssa sat and thought and wrote down what she considered why understanding ecosystems were important to the subject they were studying and what they would gain from knowing this before she raised her hand to answer. "Professor each part of the ecosystem is important and has an important role in the circle of life, and each relies on the other. If one part of the ecosystem is damaged it can cause damage to the rest of the system. Like for example plants, even its decomposition or how it converts oxygen to carbon dioxide and vice versa gives it an important role in the survival of the planet. Studying ecosystems can help us gauge what is being changed, or the rapidity and extent of these changes. Studying it helps us gauge the possible ramifications if plants are destroyed. What we can gain from it is an understanding on how we can clean and store fresh water and keep our air quality clean, regulate climate, prevent soil erosion caused by floods, improve soil productivity, store and recycle nutrients like making composts, help pollinate crops, provide habitats for other living things and of course provide medicines, food, fiber and energy." Had she covered everything? Alyssa wasn't sure but she hoped at least, that what she had said actually made sense. She thought that she did. And welcome back Alyssa. Seren was amazed at how much the girl could talk... at least her answer was articulate. "Yes very good... there are numerous things it can tell us, but you didn't quite relate it to what we do here at school." Quote: Originally Posted by WillowSeawinds Rowan thought for a moment and came up with, what she thought, was a reasonable answer. She raised her hand and said, "Understanding ecosystems, when studying Herbology, is important because it allows you to better care for and successfully grow your plants. If you know what ecosystem the plant thrives in you can recreate that environment. Knowing the type of soil, how much sun, even the insects the plant needs for pollination is crucial. Many plants do better in the presence of certain other varieties of plants." Geez, she hoped she wasn't rambling. "Correct! well done." Quote: Originally Posted by FearlessLeader19 Jory quickly scribbled down the additional stuff Professor Bentley told them before raising his hand again. "Studying ecosystems would be important because understanding the components and how the ecosystems interact would allow us to grow better plants,'' he said. "For example, studying the changes in a component or components would allow us to make changes in the way we grow certain plants and fungi.'' "What we would gain from this is better plants for food and other uses for both humans and animals.'' The Puff hoped he made sense. "Wonderful answer Jory." Quote: Originally Posted by PotterHeadforLife The next question, however, was just using common sense. Kat took a few notes on her parchment before thinking of an answer. No wrong answers this time or throughout the lesson. Better yet, throughout the term. She was going to survive OWLs, yes. As early as now, studying could really make a difference and also participating and listening and all. Kat repeated the question in her head a few times. Why is the ecosystem so important? ~~Wanted: Ravenclaw mind~~. Kat raised her hand. "I believe that it is important to know the ecosystem so that we can observe the behavior of the plant. Some plants would prefer damp places and hate sunlight, like Devil's Snare. Some plants would prefer being more exposed to the heat. There are plants that need a big amount of space, but there are also plants that would rather stay in a small space. Every plant varies and so their behavior to different ecosystems may differ too. It is also the ensure that our plants grow well," Kat said. Maybe that was good information already. For her, at least. "Absolutely, well said." Quote: Originally Posted by Poolicious As Messer finished writing down the explanation about what ecosystem is, he heard Bentley give them another question. Why would understanding ecosystems be important to the study of herbology? What can we gain from this? The fourth year raised his hand "It's important for us to study ecosystem so that we could see what we should do to create a decent place for us humans and animals to live in." Yeah that's about it. Seren nodded... considering the Puffs answer. "That would depend on your definition of decent. Remember we're all individuals and while each ecosystem is essentially a set of circumstances which allow particular forms of life to thrive... it doesn't mean it's ideal." Quote: Originally Posted by Bazinga Minerva listened to all the answers about ecosystems. It seemed there was more into an ecosystem them Minerva realized. Then listening to Professor Bentley she tried to write down notes on her parchment. There seemed to be more discussion then usual for herbology today, which Minerva really didn't mind. Putting up her hand she decided to try to take a guess at the question, "Professor, ecosystems are important to herbology, because if a plant would go to the wrong one it would not survive. For example if we would try to place a water plant out of water it is not in the right home to survive." "Mmmhhhmm... yes." Quote: Originally Posted by Emzily More detail next time... oh okay. "Because.." Wait for it, there was in fact more to this... "...umm... all plants are different and like different things, so I guess we'd need to know about which kind of plants belongs in which kind of ecosystems, otherwise they wouldn't be happy.." But so far, the only ecosystem he could think of was a rainforest. Was that enough detail? Theo hated referring to plants having feelings and stuff. It felt dumb. "Yes, very good." Quote: Originally Posted by fanficfanatict Okay, Selina was sort of glad that she had kept her hand down for that question. She really would have looked like a flopping fish trying to answer that question. After all... she was not a textbook. Selina really enjoyed Herbology but the extent of what she knew she could was what she could derive from logic and what she had previously learned in the class. SO the redhead USUALLY just sat back and let other people do, you know, the definition part of the class. She was totally NOT going to pretend she knew the answer. OH OH OH! But she could answer this question. It was more of a subjective answer. So she raised her hand and replied, "Well, Professor... I think in everything, but especially herbology, everything is interconnected. So like if we learn about that ecosystem thing, yeah, then we would have a better grasp on the plant life IN the ecosystem." That made sense, yes? "Nicely said Selina," she nodded. Quote: Originally Posted by hpfan18 Then Belle heard the third question the professor asked. Belle then heard why are we studying ecosystems this term. Belle had to think about that. We can they gain from studying ecosystems.... Belle then raised her hand, "Professor we need to study ecosystems to understand how plants develop in certain places in the ecosystem. Ecosystems will help us understand which plants interact with what creatures or what environment. There are many different plants and different species to consider. For myself i will study ecosystems because to learn the natural wonder of the world." She was on the right track... though seemed to be ever so slightly of course. "Yes... goood... though I meant for you to consider not just for yourself, but for all of us as to what we could gain from it to aid us and out study." Quote: Originally Posted by pinkphoenix Orr put up her hand and said, "Well, we study plants in Herbology and I think that it is also essential that we learn about the ecosystems and understand what goes on in them, so that we understand how the different plants grow and how they interact with their environment which is the ecosystem. That is just the way that it is..." She trailed off. Orr wasn't sure what she could add to that explanation. But others in the class would add to it for sure or they had already. "Very well said." Quote: Originally Posted by Syd Scooting to the side slightly so he didn't have to stand on his toes any longer, Jake raised his hand. "Well, plants are usually a really important part of an ecosystem, aren't they? With photosynthesis and stuff - everything living thing in the ecosystem uses the plants to survive. So, we have to understand how the plants grow and survive in order to keep them healthy in order to keep virtually everything healthy." That... made sense, right? And it answered the question? Sort of? Seren wasn't quite sure where her prefect was going with his answer... but as he finalised his statement the pieces came together. "Yes, good good." Quote: Originally Posted by Harry174 Laura looked at the Professor and raised her hand. "I would say that it is important to understand the Ecosystem because, it is planet friendly, it is there to support life on this planet and it helps the plants grow and things like that." Laura wasn't sure if she was right or not but that was what ecosystems did right. Planet friendly? ..... "Mmm... yes... though perhaps consider how that knowledge helps us in our study." Quote: Originally Posted by Luna004 Susan was thinking about why an eco..ecosystem? Ya ecosystem. Why it was important to the study of herbology. Well if she didn't get it right she was sure someone else would. Susan raised her hand about half way into the air and responded.."Professor, we need to understand what an ecosystem is when studying plants because it effects the plants, in order to know know how it effects the plants, we need to know first what it is." Susan stopped rambling because she wasn't sure if she was right. "Yes, very good." Quote: Originally Posted by TakemetotheBurrow Okay...so Ella hadn't been far off with her answer which was good. She smiled a little, scribbling down other important points as she waited for the next question to be asked. Scribble. Scribble. Scribble. Why is the study of ecosystems important to the study of herbology? Well...plants were really important to all living things, yeah? People and animals used them as food sources not to mention the whole creating oxygen thing as far as trees went. Oh! And flowers for the bees! There were...a lot of important things to mention. "By studying ecosystems we can see what kinds of environments certain plants thrive in and know how to help them continue to grow and erm...stay healthy." A sound response. "Yes, well done." Quote: Originally Posted by hermygirl Spike tilted his head thoughtfully, and scribbled down some notes. "To understand the balance required across the system," Spike said, raising his hand. "Whether it be the fluctuations in predators and their prey, or seasonal weather patterns." He paused momentarily, to push his glasses back up his nose. "It's not that a plant from a hot climate can't live in a cooler one, you just need to maintain the balance - so watering it less often, for example, to account for the lack of rain and high rate of evaporation experienced in hot, arid climes." Of course, the obvious example here was the humble cactus; plenty of people kept them in the UK, where it decidedly wasn't hot most of the year round. "You can also use this balance to understand adaptations of the same plant or animal to more than one environment." "Ahh yes very good." Spike was impressing her today, but then again, he'd always achieved well in the subject. "Though it is possible to fascilitate a plants needs under a set of circumstances which vary to their own typical ecosystem, it can be tricky and sometimes impossible." Adaptions! She was thrilled to hear that word, but they could get to that later. Quote: Originally Posted by Fira Okay....enough just standing an doing nothing. He did not know how on earth he had managed to pass his 5th year and became a 6th year but if he would not start to actually do something in classes other than just staring and watching Aurora, he knew he was going to be a 6th year forever. So rubbing his eyes, he actually tried to wake up at first. Okay... blink He supposed he was fine now. So now it was time to focus on this class and pay attention and maybe...even answer this question. But Merlin! The question was not an easy one. He had just figured what this ecosystem was and now he was supposed to use this knowledge somehow. All right...he took a deep breath and actually thought over the question. What could it be? What could one gain from studying those ecosystems? Well...he supposed he had an idea. ''Professor...'' so he began even though he was not sure how he was going to explain what he had in mind. ''In Herbology, don't we find out those plants that can be os use to us? Like in Potions and healing stuff and...other stuff. We collect those plants to use them, right? So if we study their ecosystem, maybe we can find out how to collect them without messing with that ecosystem. Like knowing how much of the plant contributes to the ecosystem so we would not pick more than that?'' What...what was he doing? ''Sorry...that was stupid. I am sorry.'' He let out another breath and rubbed his forehead. Fail. Seren was pleased with the Slytherin's response, even if he wasn't which was a shame. "Not stupid at all, and in fact you raise an important point... human intervention. We do need to be mindful of how we behave and interact with ecosystems to ensure we don't disrupt the balance." Quote: Originally Posted by MagicGlitter Ecosystems. Well, she was close enough. And why were they so important to Herbology? Seemed like an easy enough question to her. She jotted down some notes about ecosystems on her paper before raising her hand. "Well, all plants have habitats that they need to live in. Some plants need certain conditions in order to survive. For example, plants like algae and coral simply cannot survive outside of water, and flowers would not be able to survive in water because of their need for sunlight and air." She paused. "By understanding ecosystems, we can learn where plants thrive. Also, we can learn what we need to do in order to properly take care of them." That seemed to be a good enough explanation for now. "Yes, very good," she nodded in approval. Quote: Originally Posted by DecemberMoon Eliza doodled some pictures of flowers and fish while she listened to the descriptions of ecosystems. She had been pretty on track with her description, but it could have used some polishing. Why would it be important to understand? Well...because it's how everything has to be in order for it to work - so it's really important. Right? She wondered if this was another semi trick question and tried to think clearly. When she felt she was ready to answer, she raised her hand. "The reason why understanding ecosystems is so important to Herbology is because plants play a major role in ecosystems. We need to be able to understand what the plants need to help them thrive and also what the plants provide for other living things in their environment. By understanding their ecosystem, we can know if a plant needs more shade, or if it provides shade for an animal and mustn't be removed...things like that." She paused and thought about the second question. "Understanding ecosystems and how they affect Herbology lets us gain the knowledge of how to keep our surroundings and environments healthy and fully functional. It lets us be able to help areas or species that need assistance to ensure their survival. So we stand to gain a lot really." A lot as in...the whole planet benefits from us understanding these things. She sat back and thought about the large scale of what they were talking about. I hope we get to do something that helps in the real world this term! Seren listened, patiently to the girls response. "Good, well said." Quote: Originally Posted by Lissy Longbottom "Because it's the circleeeee of lifeeeee," Alex said, not realizing he'd just sung that bit from the Lion King out loud until it was too late. WHOOPS. But it was true! If it weren't for the ecosystems and the plants and animals then humans would STARVE and wouldn't turn in to worm food for the ground... He raised his hand, forgetting his manners for a moment. "I mean, it's true. Without ecosystems, the plants wouldn't give back to us, and we wouldn't be able to give back to the bugs and the plants and it just keeps going." Seren couldn't help but beam at Alex's enthusiasm. "Yes, you're absolutely right... though, you didn't specify how it might aid our study of herbology." Quote: Originally Posted by ForeverYours OH. Oh right. Of course Bliss knew this! It must have just...slipped her mind. Yes. That was it. ANYWAY, must get on. Ecosystem. What was an ecosystem? This would question would be answered with a decent length reply. She had to prove that she actually KNEW something. So far, she wasn't doing a very good job of it. Bliss wasn't normally all...proud of being smart, but right now she felt the need to prove it. WOW. She felt big-headed. MELLOW. Bliss raised her hand cautiously and said, "In ecosystems, pants have a key role, which is one of the reasons that we will study them in Herbology." So far, so good, Bliss thought hopefully. ~~Note the hopefully.~~ Er..."Also, if we understand more about ecosystems, we will also learn more about where and how plants thrive and what we need to do to keep a healthy, balanced and well maintained ecosystem?" Bliss finished. Also note the question mark at the end there. She was SO unsure of what she'd just said. It all sounded like a ramble. Well, she had to start somewhere and she'd given it a shot. "Good good." A sound response. Quote: Originally Posted by Bubbles She had a good answer. Niiiice. Peyton got her notebook and quill ready to jot down notes. She glanced back between her classmates as they each contributed to the class. Then her eyes landed on...ooooh! Richaaard! Peyton, little by little, went to stand next to him and listened to what he had to say. He --from everyone she's met so far-- has won MAJOR points in her book. He called her princess and that was worth, like, a thousand points. Yep. ^__^ Stupid? Whaaat? She had not thought what he said was stupid. It was deep, man. She nudged him with her elbow a bit and whispered so only he could hear. "I thought it smart." SMIIILE. Now is time for her to share her answer. Hmm. She wasn't good with wording her thoughts, but here goes nothing. But first she raised her hand. "Understanding ecosystems is important because it aids us to understand the organisms around us," she said. "For example, part of understanding an ecosystem is to learn how and where organisms thrive and where they don't. Like, a water plant, it can't survive in a desert whereas a cactus would do spectacular..." soooo, yeah. On the right track.. "Yes, very good." Quote: Originally Posted by Tegz West scratched his head but not out of puzzlement, only on account of he had an itch, so he itched it then put his hand up to answer. "If we know what ecosystem a plant is most at home in, we can do our best to make it feel as comfy as possible, and we'll know what kind of nutrients it needs, and what kind of pH balance its soil should have, and what plants it grows best alongside, and sometimes even what its uses might be. Also certain kinds of plants have certain physical characteristics what are influenced by the kind of ecosystem they originated from, so we could look at the leaves or stems or look at how it gets its nutrients, and we could get clues about the plant and figure out what it is even if we don't already know." Fun stuff, basically! Could he get in the tank now? Adaptions. Yes, understanding them was very important... without that knowledge proper care could not be administered. Seren smiled, nodding at West. "Well said." Quote: Originally Posted by Macavity Herbology seemed to be going real fast and Ellura was trying her best to keep up with what was going on. It wasn't like she was lost in the subject since she remembered a bit about ecosystems from a muggle science class, but she was still trying to get the hang of things. And her classmates seemed to have a better grip of the situation and knowledge than she had. At the latest question however, she thought she might have had a chance to answer. It was up for opinion and interpretation so many people could offer up suggestions which was already happening as students up. Herbology was about plants...and plants were pivotal to ecosystems...so yeah. Finally Ellura raised her hand once she thought she had the right words. "Because its important to understand anything and everything that could effect the plants you're handling. That way you can make sure the ecosystem is suitable as it is or needs to be supplimented in some way such as fertilizer or extra watering" You wouldn't want a plant to die because you weren't mindful of what could harm them. Seren nodded. She was pleased that one of her new Lions was a smart cookie. "Yes, very good." Quote: Originally Posted by Unalii Taylor raised her hand, "Professor, you can gain knowledge that would help you provide better for taking care of plants since they require different things based on their ecosystems. For example, you wouldnt want to put a plant that requires heat and sun in a place that is cold and get little sunlight." She smiled sweetly and grew silent. Seren nodded, agreeing with the girls statement. Quote: Originally Posted by McFeisty Why were Ecosystems important to herbology. Because ecosystems were just important right. Er.....weren't they? Raising her hand she tried to answer. "Um...ecosystems are important because they are what makes the animal kingdom have the food it needs to survive?" She added not very definitively. "Er...its important to herbology because without an ecosystem then we won't have what we need for everyone to survive...no water, soil, air...whatnot and we'd all just not exist." What? She had the right to be doom and gloom. Mmmm.. Seren wasn't quite sure how to approach the girls response. It wasn't wrong.. but it was missing something. "Yes... but it's important to not that without AN ecosystem, there would be others... one thing organisms are good at doing, some more so than others, is adapting..." she paused here to identify where else the girl went wrong. "In terms of herbology, it helps us understand care requirements for particular categories of plants as well as individual." Quote: Originally Posted by DaniDiNardo More or less...that meant she was right, right? 'Course it did! She thought about the next question for a minute. This one wasn't as easy as the first one because she couldn't see the bigger picture. The thought crossed her mind to simply not try answering this one but then she wanted to give it a go. ~~Talking was fun, okay??~~ "It's important 'cause it has to do with living and not-living things staying together and well you'd have to know how's the best way they can live together so they don't end up causing each other much damage. Since Herbology has a something to do with growing and taking care of plants," It totally did, no matter what anyone said, "we'd have to know what works best with plants and what doesn't." Seemed logical enough so she'd keep talking, not that she would've stopped if it didn't. "It's like having a cannibal plant in a greenhouse with another defenseless plant," Because those existed, yup, "if we knew better about how they lived together then the poor thing could've been spared from being the next one's dinner!" YUP. Seren nodded as Alexa responded, seeming to think out loud. "Yes, very good... though few plants are cannibals." So that was the least of their worries. Quote: Originally Posted by EW_FAN Harvey listened as Professor Bentley elaborated on the points that they had all said, yup it was all pretty much just the way he remembered it. He noted down the points that she said they had take into consideration when thinking about Ecosystems cause he knew that somehow somewhere that would come in handy. Another question? mmm he thought about why knowing ecosystems would come in handy? He put up his hand once he had thought about it "I think it would be important to understand ecosystems for herbology so that you would know how plants interact with each other and what they need in order to live a long and healthy life" though he was not sure about his answer but it sounded like it from the points that she had just given him. "We can gain knowledge about how plants live with each other, what plants do well together and which ones do not do well together" he said as he fully answered her question. He wondered what they were going to be doing knowing about ecosystems. "Yes very good Harvey." Quote: Originally Posted by Rosa Chispa Princessa After answering the previous question Oichi felt that answering the current one is easy. She raised her hand, "Ecosystems are important yo herbology because they show us how plants work together with the other organisms in their environment to help each other thrive.". Simplistic, but correct. "Yes, good good." Quote: Originally Posted by lemon OH. Was she doing alright, then? And not failing completely? That boosted her self-esteem.. a little. Still. Herbology was too difficult and complex for Alice's mind. So she just jotted down notes from other people's answers, because that would. After listening to a couple answers, she seemed to be finally getting the gist of it, so she tried her hand at an answer, as well. "Knowing the plant's habitat well helps us nurture it and.. and learn more about it?" OR SOMETHING. But wasn't the whole point of Herbology to understand plant stuff? Their circle of life and all? Scribble. Scribble. Scribble. Whatever. Notes would help. This is progress. "Yes! absolutely, not only would we know more about it, but we'd be in a better position to fulfill its care requirements." Quote: Originally Posted by Anna Banana Sierra remained wide-eyed for at least the next minute or two. Notes. There were just so many notes to take. She hastily copied down the list of six things to consider when studying ecosystems. She dotted all her i's, crossed all her t's, then looked back up at the professor. Sierra raised her hand. "Well, I think it's the same rule of thumb we as humans use when choosing what to wear in the morning. If it's cold, we dress in warmer clothes, and if it's hot, we dress in cooler clothes," she said. Yes, she was relating all this to choosing the right clothes to wear. "We have to know and understand the environment a plant is living in in order to know what's best for it," she continued. "...and we also have to know what dangers are out there, so we can keep the plant safe." A fashion analogy? Well.. whatever works. "Very good Sierra." Quote: Originally Posted by PhoenixStar So everybody had already answered the ecosystem answer so there was no need to say the same thing again. Plus professor Bently was already moving on. She was waiting her turn to add her two cents when a hufflepuff had to be reading the definition out of a text book. Hannah had zoned out and couldn't be sure how long she had been zoned out. She had no idea what anybody else had said. Was it really necessary to add that much info? At this rate they would never get to the practical part of the lesson. She blinked a few times and raised her hand. "Professor, ecosystems are essential because they will help us take care of plants by knowing their habitats and their persoanl needs." See you could get the point across without reciting a novel. Seren nodded, "yes, very good." Quote: Originally Posted by SilverTiger So they weren't specifically studying water plants or corals or bioluminescent organisms or anything else that would be obvious from what was inside Greenhouse Six. That didn't particularly bother Kendall, aside from the idea that they could have just been outside in the grounds if they wanted to study ecosystems. Inside made it easier to take notes, though, and she had been doing at least a bit of that while the answers had been tossed out to Professor Bentley's questions. Notes and possibly a few quick sketches of the things in the tanks nearest to her, just because they were there and interesting, even if they weren't being talked about specifically. They still were related to herbology either way. She had looked up at the next question, however. How are ecosystems important to studying herbology?, she thought, finishing another tiny doodle in her notebook while she contemplated answering. Finally, she raised her hand. "In a way, isn't the study of herbology actually studying ecosystems entirely?," she asked. Of course, a question wasn't really an answer, so then she decided to explain. "Herbology is the study of plants, what they need to grow, how they grow, and how we can use them once they have grown. Sort of. We need to understand ecosystems in order to actually know any of that. Plants are part of any ecosystem, and knowing how they can interact with everything else in their environment can tell us how they might interact with us too." That made sense to her, at least, so hopefully the professor understood what she meant too. Well that was a different answer to what she had expected. "Yes." She wasn't wrong, but again it felt as though a key understanding was missing. "I wouldn't say we study ecosystems entirely, there is much that we do not focus on purely because our studies are concerned purely with flora. While it IS important for us to understand ecosystems as it influences care requirements, habitats and the progression of flora life, we do not need to isolate each minute aspect of the system in much depth." Quote: Originally Posted by Cassirin Mo returned his attention to the tank, once again making faces at the coral. Who knew? Maybe they noticed him and thought he was hilarious and would grow more impressively than the other coral because laughter was the best medicine. It was an interesting idea for an experiment... maybe the professor would let him try? Ecosystems. "If you're trying to take care of a plant, and you give it love and water and sun and good soil, but it just isn't thriving, then it would be good to understand where it came from to better know what it needs," Mo mused. "Like maybe there are certain types of nutrients in the soil, or maybe it had a symbiotic relationship with another plant or animal and is all lonely now." The face pulling hadn't gone unnoticed.. but as the boy wasn't distracted from participating in the class discussion, she let it slide. "Yes, very well said." Quote: Originally Posted by THE Govoni Well, Dylan thought this rather obvious... "...Because Ecosystems, in general, depend on a balance of several different things...Much like in this Greenhouse. I imagine it could be called a controlled ecosystem itself. Maintaining balance ensures healthy, beautiful plants." Or...maybe not so obvious. The Slytherin still thought his answer was a good one. He'd even called them beautiful...Brownie points? Seren nodded as Dylan offered his thoughts on the matter. "Yes, very good... maintaining the balance is very important to us in terms of ensuring we administer the proper care requirements for all plants to thrive." Quote: Originally Posted by DJ ExpelliarMOOSE Oakey though on this some, his mind kept taking him back to the last thing Bentley included in what a Ecosystem included, Disturbances. Maybe he was paranoid while in Greenhouses after all.. Oakey spoke up after he gave some more though on how he'd word this without sounding any more terrified of being in this safe greenhouse. "If we understand that Ecosystems can have disturbances, would it be important in Herbology to know when a certain Ma.." He stopped himself before he said Man-Eating Plant."A certain plant is somewhere it shouldn't be, so that a herbologist such as yourself could find what is disturbing that ecosystem and ki..." he stopped himself again before he said kill it."and remove it without harming the rest of the ecosystem in the process" Seren was mildly confused with Oakey's answer.. she wondered if he understood what she had meant by disturbances. Instead of disapproving his answer, she opted to engage him on the subject of disturbances. "Consider... that disturbances cover a number of activities and occurrences which interfere with the balance nature had established... this includes floods, drought, fire, cyclones, human intervention and any other activity which is not common to the ecosystem." Quote: Originally Posted by iBeJenn Why would understanding ecosystems be important? Melanie thought about that question for a while, jotting down the answers of the people around her. Ah... they were all so smart. She focused on keeping her notes neat, seeing as she'd probably need to study them later and nodded her head as she did so. So many words. So many answers. So many Nerdclaw smarts in the room. But back to the question. Why would it be important? She had absolutely no idea... whatsoever. Seren appreciated Melanie's silence. Sometimes listening and absorbing was the best way to learn. Quote: Originally Posted by JustAlice Aurora was scribbling notes down frantically as other people were answering, Merlin she'd forgotten how to learn over the summer it seemed. Or at least how to write, because her hand writing was atrocious. Right, why was it important to understand ecosystems..? Hmm... "To understand how a plant is to be looked after, you have to understand its natural habitat and surroundings, because if you get that wrong you could poison or mistreat a plant. Or... less drastically, you probably won't get the full worth out of a plant if you don't know how it prefers to live and grow." ... Right..? Gosh Aurora's head was starting to ache... "Yes, very good." Quote: Originally Posted by lazykitty Think, Think, Thinking......... "So we can better understand the soil content of where the plant's been planted and know what nutrients may need to be added?" Sky replied. It made since to her, anyway. If one area didn't have the right nutrients, nothing could grow there. Simple logic. "That's a part of it... though I think all of its care requirements are important, not just soil alone." Quote: Originally Posted by demented_death_eater Awesome! Who got points? Rawdon got points! Yessss! The young Vindictus felt as if he had been rewarded with a cookie and he knew that he could get more if he participated. He listened carefully to the next question and pondered his answer for a few minutes. He raised his hand. "It's all about having the right balance, Professor. The right amount of water, soil, plants, air, temperature, and light are important for plants to grow. If the balance isn't right then, the plants will struggle to survive. So these things are like the ecosystem of herbology and we need to know what the correct balance is to grow plants." Seren couldn't help but ~~stare~~observe Rawdon, he looked so much like a Vindictus, the likeness was uncanny, and somewhat unsettling. Nodding with an approving smile she replied, "Absolutely, balance is key is successful maintenance and care." Seren was rather pleased with their progress... and it helped that they had a sound understanding on the topic, even if it wasn't perfect. After all, they were here to learn. "Alright, good... now gather you're things, we're going to head off and head up to the castle for our next activity." She paused for a moment, hoping to see some shocked faces... "Level one! Follow me!" she called out, now moving off ahead of them, "Keep up." OOC: Lesson will continue in approximately 12 hours. Feel free to ask questions etc. __________________ Last edited by Hera; 01-09-2013 at 05:15 AM.