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Tomhawke's Recent Blog Entries
Thank you
Posted By tomhawke, Dr. Hawke on Fri Jan 27 10:00:21 2006
I just wanted to thank everyone who visited this website and followed my adventures in the South.
In particular, I would like to thank all the students, teachers and educators who participated in the experiments and challenge questions. Your participation (and emails to me!) really made this trip an exceptional experience.
Thanks again and best wishes!
Dr. Tom Hawke
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Tell me what you think
Posted By tomhawke, Dr. Hawke on Sun Dec 4 18:16:17 2005
As I said in my final update, I want to thank all the schools who participated and all the students who wrote to me with questions and comments. I could not have asked for more. I hope you enjoyed the experience and had fun doing it.
Please take a couple of minutes between now and the middle of January to post a new entry in your blog. Tell us about your experience with the project:
1. Which activities did you do?
2. Did you learn anything that surprised you?
3. How did taking part.....
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Week 9 Update - Last week in Antarctica
Posted By tomhawke, Dr. Hawke on Sun Dec 4 18:08:26 2005
Last week here = packing, packing, packing! We had to pack up all the samples we collected, all our equipment, all our personal items and also return all the equipment and supplies we obtained here. Very time consuming! We did manage to sneak in a helicopter trip out to the ice edge and Dr. Kanatous and I also did a little boondoggle out to the Erebus glacial tongue.
Go to the Expedition News Focus Area to read my complete report and see my photos in the Photo Gallery.
Dr. Hawke
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response to "Coming to an end
Posted By tomhawke, Dr. Hawke on Wed Nov 30 20:21:19 2005
Thank you for the kind words about the project. I think this has been an amazing experience for me personally and I am so thankful that Yes I Can Science.ca gave me the opportunity to be able to pass this experience on to so many more people. I hope that all participating schools learned many novel, exciting things, and more importantly, had fun doing it.
You are welcome to reach me at any time via email at York University (thawke@yorku.ca). I would be happy to chat with you about the.....
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What was the best thing about studying the Weddell Seals?
Posted By tomhawke, Dr. Hawke on Wed Nov 30 06:58:32 2005
Megan from the USA Big Bad Wolves asked the following questions:
What was the best thing about studying the Weddell Seals? What was the best thing about spending all this time in Antartica? What do you plan on doing when you come back?
The best thing about studying Weddell seals? That is an interesting question. I would have to say their unique physiological adaptations. These seals have adapted to
their environment so amazingly that it is awe-inspiring. The adaptations that we see.....
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question from a Big Bad Wolf
Posted By tomhawke, Dr. Hawke on Mon Nov 28 09:39:30 2005
I was recently asked a question by one of the USA Big Bad Wolves team members.
>I was wondering if you ever wanted to pack up and get out >of Antarctica for a weekend or do you enjoy it? And have >you seen any animals other than seals and can you post >pictures?
Well, regarding the pictures, I hope you have seen my pics and videos of penguins (Adelie and Emperor). I have also posted a picture of the Crabeater seal. There are a few Crabeater seals that have made their way into the McMurdo.....
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Week 8 Update
Posted By tomhawke, Dr. Hawke on Sun Nov 27 21:39:41 2005
Another successful week has come and gone. What an experience this has been. The weather has been wonderful and the scenery has been amazing. Sure we have had some pretty bad storms while we have been here, but that has made me appreciate the great weather all the more. It is hard to believe that we only have one week left here! This coming week we have a lot of packing to do (all our samples and supplies) as well as one more helicopter reconnaissance trip to make.
Go to the Expedition News.....
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Challenge Questions 5-7 Answers
Posted By tomhawke, Dr. Hawke on Thu Nov 24 08:20:33 2005
I've had lots of good answers to the Challenge Questions from students. Keep up the good work!
Dr. Hawke
Challenge Question 5: What kinds of clues tell you if seals were in the area?
Nice work on this question Shelby! If seals are still in the area they look like large rocks (from farther away). If there are no animals in the area we look for a few clues to
see if they were in the area. The most common is seal waste (urine and feces). These are pretty visible on the white snow. We.....
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Is climate change having any effect on Weddell Seals?
Posted By tomhawke, Dr. Hawke on Wed Nov 23 14:18:46 2005
KBosiak of the USA Big Bad Wolves asked the following question:
You are studying the seals in Antarctica and there are others that are studying things like climate. Have you noticed anything unusual about the seals' behavior or the places you are finding the seals that might connect to global warming issues?
Wonderful question!
There is a research team here that is actually looking at that exact issue! How climate change is affecting seal breeding, lifespan, location of rookeries etc......
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Westview questions & answers
Posted By tomhawke, Dr. Hawke on Mon Nov 21 11:35:49 2005
Hello Everyone,
Team Westview has asked a number of questions and I have picked a few at random to answer. Thanks to all the teams for their questions and I will do my best to get to them!
Nathan-How long will it take to find significant discoveries?
Good Question Nathan. We could find something significant today or 10 years from now. Sometimes something really important is sitting right there but we just don’t see it yet. Sometimes we will report something interesting but the.....
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Week 7 Update
Posted By tomhawke, Dr. Hawke on Sun Nov 20 21:03:57 2005
Has seven weeks passed already? Wow, it seems like time has been flying by in the blink of an eye! As I write this update I can see a storm brewing outside; luckily I am warm and sheltered inside the lab!
I am happy to report that we completed the sampling of the pups this week (yes, in one week!) and we also sampled another juvenile during a helicopter trip to Beaufort Island region. This expedition has been a huge success with respect to data collection and the team morale is very.....
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What is the biggest challenge our team has faced?
Posted By tomhawke, Dr. Hawke on Sat Nov 19 06:37:55 2005
Taylor and Kim from Cupcakes Six had a couple of questions about our research.
What was the biggest challenge you and your team have faced?
What was your most significant finding in Antarctica?
Firstly, we have been very lucky. We have had great weather (for Antarctica anyways) and we have sampled a lot more seals than we expected to get. I think the biggest challenge has been getting some of our supplies here. There were a few critical items that were delayed in being shipped here.....
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More questions about life in Antarctica
Posted By tomhawke, Dr. Hawke on Sat Nov 19 06:29:59 2005
Victoria from Cupcakes Six and Lucreatia and Jessica from St. Mark had more questions about life in Antarctica.
We want to know what it is like to go through the training in the cold weather?
What is it like to be in the cold weather?
Do you enjoy hanging out with the seals?
Are there any trees where you are or do trees even grow in Antarctica?
Was the Antartica what you expected it to be, or was it better?
The training in the cold weather was very tough. It was very cold.....
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McMurdo Station
Posted By tomhawke, Dr. Hawke on Sat Nov 19 06:14:08 2005
Sophie and Lyndsay from St. Mark had questions about McMurdo Station.
The National Science Foundation (NSF), through the United States Antarctic Program (USAP), coordinates U.S. scientific research in the Antarctic. Raytheon Polar Services has been contracted by the US government to supply and manage support staff for McMurdo Station.
During the austral summer the population of scientists and support personnel at McMurdo often exceeds 1,100 people. In the austral winter, the population.....
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What scientific reasons are there for studying the feeding habits of penguins?
Posted By tomhawke, Dr. Hawke on Sat Nov 19 06:08:25 2005
Kyle from Westview asked what scientific reasons there are for learning about penguins’ feeding habits.
There is more science than what is directly linked to humans. Although you may not see the direct relevance, this does not mean it is not worthwhile or necessary research.
Ultimately we know very little about these penguins. By understanding their basic physiology we can gain insight into what allows them to survive and adapt to these extreme environmental conditions. Much like our.....
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What were my career goals as a child?
Posted By tomhawke, Dr. Hawke on Sat Nov 19 06:00:46 2005
Marika from the USA Big Bad Wolves asked about my career goals as a child.
Actually, I was very athletic and remember wanting to be a professional hockey player or lacrosse player. I had always been fascinated with Antarctica and had read books about it but never thought I would get to come here. It really is a dream come true!
I guess I was always science-minded but really became interested in science in high school, particularly biology. I studied science at university and was lucky.....
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What inspired me to be a scientist?
Posted By tomhawke, Dr. Hawke on Sat Nov 19 05:53:04 2005
Natalie from the USA Big Bad Wolves asked what inspired me to be a scientist and wondered about the neatest thing I’ve done so far in my career.
What inspired me to be a scientist?
Wow, I am not sure how to answer that. I was always good in school, not great but good. I always found I learned best when I discovered the answer, not when I read it or had someone tell me. When I went to university, I took a research course that let me work in the lab. From that moment I knew I wanted to.....
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Week 6 Update
Posted By tomhawke, Dr. Hawke on Sun Nov 13 21:55:15 2005
Success in the field in the last few weeks has given us the opportunity to begin some of our analysis in the lab. With the exception of one day that was amazingly nice out, the rest of the week has been typified by snow storms and cold winds. Our team did get to do a few exciting things this week though...
Go to the Expedition News focus area to read my complete report and view the new photos we've added to the Photo Gallery.
How are your own experiments coming? Who has completed the.....
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Do the Weddell seal have special tissue to help them dive deep?
Posted By tomhawke, Dr. Hawke on Sat Nov 12 05:49:37 2005
Shaleena from Arctic Express asked the following question:
Do the Weddell seal have special tissue to help them dive deep ex: When divers dive and come up too fast they get the bends because nitrogen comes out of their tissue. Do weddell seals have special tissue to store oxygen? When they dive do they go down and come up and bit and go down again or do they stay at lower level for the majority of their dive.
Good question!
Weddell Seals do not have special tissues but their muscle.....
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Are seals in the Antarctic becoming endangered?
Posted By tomhawke, Dr. Hawke on Fri Nov 11 09:26:36 2005
Leanna from SPBS posted a great question in her blog.
I was reading some of the useful links you posted under "Polar Science Reasearch And Investigations" and I read that there are 800 000 Weddell seals living in the Antarctic, but unfortunately the population was decreasing, I also read that there are 4 other types of seals living there too. So I was wondering, Which of the 5 types of seals are most endangered in the Antarctic? Why are they most endangered? Should we be concerned?
That.....
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