Why Is Evolution Important Now? Disease Prevention

On February 27, students read an article, MRSA and The Science Classroom, and answered the questions that go with the article.  The article can be accessed online at:
http://www.nsta.org/publications/news/story.aspx?id=54441
Students also started a hands-on genetics activity where they are creating a karyotype of male and female chromosomes.

MRSA and the Science Classroom Article
Reading Questions

1. Where can “staph” bacteria be found (be detailed and specific)?


2. How are “staph” infections spread?


3. The initials MRSA are shorthand for the name ___________________.


4. Explain how MRSA became resistant to methicillin.


5. How many people died in 2005 because of MRSA infections?


6. Why is MRSA now recognized to be a widespread community health problem?


7. How many student deaths from MRSA occurred in 2007?


8. If MRSA is not identified and treated early, what can happen during the course of the infection?



9. Jim Henson (creator of the Muppets) died of MRSA pneumonia. Name an actor who died from a MRSA infection.


10. Draw the shape of Staphylococcus aureus and tell what classification group of bacteria to which it belongs.

More information about antibiotic resistance can be found on my previous post. 
Update in the news: Delaware woman treated for rare antibiotic-resistance infection:
http://www.delawareonline.com/article/20100415/HEALTH/4150342/1113/Delaware-woman-treated-for-rare-antibiotic-resistant-infection
Posters about MRSA can be found here:
http://www.cdc.gov/mrsa/library/posters.html

For more reasons to understand evolution, the following posts also address the question: Why is Evolution Important Now?

 Why Is Evolution Important Now? Understanding Extinction and Our Environment
http://cavalierscience.blogspot.com/2009/03/why-is-evolution-important-now.html

Why Is Evolution Important Now? Disease Prevention
http://cavalierscience.blogspot.com/2009/02/why-is-evolution-important-now-disease.html

Why Is Evolution Important Now? Antibiotic Resistance
http://cavalierscience.blogspot.com/2009/02/why-is-evolutions-important-now.html

Why Is Evolution Important Now? Understanding Diseases and Food Production
http://cavalierscience.blogspot.com/2009/02/why-is-evolution-important-now.html

Why Is Evolution Important Now? Understanding Predation
http://cavalierscience.blogspot.com/2010/07/why-is-evolution-important-now.html

Why Is Evolution Important Now?  Battling the Bedbug Epidemic and Cockroach avoidance of bait - Pesticide Resistance
http://cavalierscience.blogspot.com/2011/03/why-is-evolution-important-now-battling.html


If you find a link on my blog that does not work, please let my know by leaving a comment.  I would like to keep my blog up-to-date and relevant.

Why Is Evolution Important Now? Antibiotic Resistance

Students participated in an adapted activity found at:
http://www.newtonsapple.tv/TeacherGuide.php?id=1279
then did the following assignment:

If a bacterium can divide and produce 2 bacteria every 20 minutes, how soon will the two initially surviving resistant germs reach a total of one million organisms? 10 million? 100 million? One billion bacteria? Populations of this size, if pathogenic, are more than adequate to cause great harm.

Students then completed a note-taking study guide that is a companion to the following website: http://www.microbeworld.org/what-is-a-microbe
and other websites listed on the study guide.

Delaware woman treated for rare antibiotic-resistant infection
http://www.delawareonline.com/article/20100415/HEALTH/4150342/1113/Delaware-woman-treated-for-rare-antibiotic-resistant-infection

Students watched Debi's Story about antibiotic resistant tuberculosis, as part of a lesson about why understanding evolution is important now. They also watched a video about diseases.


http://science.education.nih.gov/supplements/nih1/diseases/activities/activity3_debi-story.htm

http://science.education.nih.gov/supplements/nih1/diseases/activities/activity1.htm

Students watched a video titled: Why Is Evolution Important Now? This video is available to watch online at: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/evolution/educators/teachstuds/svideos.html

Information and visual diagrams that explain how antibiotic resistance develops:
http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/observations/2013/09/16/drug-resistant-superbugs-kill/

Knowledge of evolution assists in choosing the appropriate drugs for treating bacterial infections:
http://news.sciencemag.org/biology/2013/09/if-chosen-wisely-existing-drugs-fight-resistant-bugs

New York Times 2013 - What is we can't control infections?:
http://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2013/12/29/avoiding-a-time-when-bacteria-can-no-longer-be-stopped

Exposure to antibiotics can not only cause resistance to the antibiotics, it can also cause the mutant bacteria to reproduce faster!
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/01/170130110927.htm

For more reasons to understand evolution, the following posts also address the question: Why is Evolution Important Now?

 Why Is Evolution Important Now? Understanding Extinction and Our Environment
http://cavalierscience.blogspot.com/2009/03/why-is-evolution-important-now.html

Why Is Evolution Important Now? Disease Prevention
http://cavalierscience.blogspot.com/2009/02/why-is-evolution-important-now-disease.html

Why Is Evolution Important Now? Understanding Diseases and Food Production
http://cavalierscience.blogspot.com/2009/02/why-is-evolution-important-now.html

Why Is Evolution Important Now? Understanding Predation
http://cavalierscience.blogspot.com/2010/07/why-is-evolution-important-now.html

Why Is Evolution Important Now?  Battling the Bedbug Epidemic and Cockroach avoidance of bait - Pesticide Resistance
http://cavalierscience.blogspot.com/2011/03/why-is-evolution-important-now-battling.html

If you find a link on my blog that does not work, please let me know by leaving a comment.  I would like to keep my blog relevant and up-to-date.

Why Is Evolution Important Now? Understanding Diseases and Food Production

Students watched a video titled: Why Is Evolution Important Now? This video is available to watch online at: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/evolution/educators/teachstuds/svideos.html
Students also watched video clips about Debie's story, which is on a CD-ROM on infectious diseases, which can be obtained from NIH teaching materials.  You can also access the videos online and watch them if you have Quick Time player. 
http://science.education.nih.gov/supplements/nih1/diseases/activities/activity3_debi-story.htm

Students read an article about Bananas to learn about a reason: Why Evolution is Important Now. The article was published in the News Journal, Wilmington, Delaware on December 9, 2005, and is titled: In 10 years, banana you love might be no more.
As an alternative article, students can read the following articles (links below), or any article of a similar nature. Students were to write 30 facts, in complete sentences, on loose leaf and hand in. One of the sentences students were to find, in the News Journal article, was the sentence that contained the word "Darwinian." Students can probably find similar references to evolution in the online articles.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/18/opinion/18koeppel.html?pagewanted=all
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4158/is_20080522/ai_n25445685?tag=content;col1
http://www.fruitguys.com/news/000213.shtml
http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg17723784.800-going-bananas.html
http://www.popsci.com/scitech/article/2008-06/can-fruit-be-saved?single-page-view=true
https://www.wired.com/2017/03/humans-made-banana-perfect-soon-itll-gone/

A breakthrough-the approval of the first genetically modified bananas that are resistant to the fungus that has put the Cavendish variety banana on the road to extinction.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-02-16/australia-approves-first-genetically-modified-banana-panama-tr4/103476986?utm_campaign=abc_news_web&utm_content=link&utm_medium=content_shared&utm_source=abc_news_web


Did you know that the pecan is the only major nut tree that is native to North America?  Understanding evolution is important in the production of our food crops.
http://www.ilovepecans.org/history.html

Here is a book and a blog that explain how understanding evolution can improve agriculture:
Denison, R. Ford. 2012. Darwinian Agriculture, How Understanding Evolution Can Improve Agriculture. 272 pages. Princeton University Press, New Jersey.  http://press.princeton.edu/titles/9777.html    The book is also available as an e-book.
Here is the Darwinian Agriculture blog: http://blog.lib.umn.edu/denis036/darwinianagriculture/

News about the Global Seed Vault
http://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2015/10/19/syrian-seeds-withdrawn-from-arctic-doomsday-vault

Interesting Book for Discussions

Pollan, Michael. 2006. The Omnivore’s Dilemma: A National History of Four Meals. 450 pages. Penguin.  Also available as an ebook.

For more reasons to understand evolution, the following posts also address the question: Why is Evolution Important Now?

 Why Is Evolution Important Now? Understanding Extinction and Our Environment
http://cavalierscience.blogspot.com/2009/03/why-is-evolution-important-now.html

Why Is Evolution Important Now? Disease Prevention
http://cavalierscience.blogspot.com/2009/02/why-is-evolution-important-now-disease.html

Why Is Evolution Important Now? Antibiotic Resistance
http://cavalierscience.blogspot.com/2009/02/why-is-evolutions-important-now.html

Why Is Evolution Important Now? Understanding Predation
http://cavalierscience.blogspot.com/2010/07/why-is-evolution-important-now.html

Why Is Evolution Important Now?  Battling the Bedbug Epidemic and Cockroach avoidance of bait - Pesticide Resistance
http://cavalierscience.blogspot.com/2011/03/why-is-evolution-important-now-battling.html 

Dichotomous Keys

Students completed creating dichotomous keys, according to the instructions on the hand-out.
Here is a web site that has an alternative lesson plan.  Print out lesson 5es: Creating and Using A Dichotomous Key. Print out Butterflies to Key. Print out Butterfly Key Worksheet. Print out Butterfly Key Flow Chart. http://oceanica.cofc.edu/LoggerheadLessons/IdentificationHome.htm

An example of a dichotomous key can be found on the following web page:
http://www.dnr.state.wi.us/org/caer/ce/eek/critter/watercritter/key.htm
For another lesson on dichotomous keys, please see my previous post dated 01/20/07:
http://cavalierscience.blogspot.com/2007/01/what-is-dichotomous-key.html
There is another lesson on dichotomous keys on this web site:
http://www.nsta.org/publications/interactive/galapagos/activities/classification.html
Here is another lesson on dichotomous keys:
http://www.lamer.lsu.edu/classroom/halfshell/pdf/dicot2all.pdf
This is a great link for identifying indian arrowheads - it uses a dichotomous key classification system:
http://www.oplin.org/point/index.html
Here is an interesting dichotomous key activity that also incorporates community service.  Free download:
http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Free-Dichotomous-Classification-Key-to-Holiday-Giving-and-Community-Service-402204
This link has a very good picture example, created by students, of a dichotomous key of candy.
http://mrsmaineswiki.wikispaces.com/file/view/Candy_Dichotomous_Key.jpg/32318145/Candy_Dichotomous_Key.jpg

In updating my lessons, I have added to my curriculum and am teaching about dichotomous keys because modern classification includes phylogenetics and cladograms. There is an activity in this textbook:  SEPUP. (2011).Science and Global Issues: Biology. Lawrence Hall of Science, University of California at Berkeley.  Published by Lab-Aids, Inc., Ronkonkoma NY.  The activity is titled The Phylogeny of Vertebrates - Activity 7 pp. 454-458.  It takes students step-by-step through creating phylogenetic tree hypotheses.  If I find any other student activities, I will post them on this blog.
The previous activity in the textbook is an excellent background and introduction to classification.
Note 1
For those who are interested in the Tiktaalik, there is an activity in this textbook:  SEPUP. (2011).Science and Global Issues: Biology. Lawrence Hall of Science, University of California at Berkeley.  Published by Lab-Aids, Inc., Ronkonkoma NY.  The activity is Evidence from the Fossil Record - Activity 6 pp. 446-453.  Students explore transitional fossils in an portion of the activity titledStudying Fossils to Determine the Origin of Tetrapods.  The Tiklaalik is one of the transitional fossils presented in the activity.  The videos listed above enhance interest in this activity.
There is also a 2011 episode of Mysteries at the Museum travel channel show where near the end of the episode, information is presented about the importance of the Tiktaalik fossil and it is explained that the fossil is housed at the Academy of Natural Sciences in Philadelphia, PA.http://www.travelchannel.com/shows/mysteries-at-the-museum/travel-guides/outlaw-shoes-and-astrochimp-travel-guide   It looks like the video would be on Disc 2 of Season 2 of the show that can be purchased from Amazon.com.  The episode is titled Outlaw Shoes, Astrochimp, and Message in a Bottle.  I have not purchased the video and am not 100% certain that it is on the CD.  If anyone reading this blog knows how to obtain the Mysteries at the Museum, Tiktaalik video or a video clip, please leave a comment.  

Whale Evolution Multimedia

To understand the Whale's Tale project https://web.archive.org/web/20180308144110/http://www.indiana.edu/~ensiweb/evol.fs.html , students watched the video clip titled How Do We Know Evolution Happens? that can be found at this link:
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/evolution/educators/teachstuds/svideos.html
and part of the video Part 1 of Walking with Prehistoric Beasts to see how the Ambulocetus lived.

To understand the characteristics of a modern whale, students watched 3 video clips: Alaskan Whales, the pictures can be found on the following web page: www.toandos.com/whales.html,
Whale Song, which can be found at this web site
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vPPjS4uMwtw
Blue Whale Song
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UStjSuhBBnY
and Dolphins Blowing Bubble Rings, which can be found here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TMCf7SNUb-Q).

Here is a video that summarizes whale evolution over time:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8cn0kf8mhS4

Here is a whale video that summarizes the evidence for evolution and has some details about whale evolution:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lIEoO5KdPvg#t=12

Star-Trek IV: The Voyage Home
The Crew of the Enterprise goes back in time to save humpback whales
http://www.amazon.com/Star-Trek-IV-Voyage-Home/dp/B002I9Z8BM/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1453823695&sr=8-2&keywords=Star+Trek+the+voyage+home

http://www.reelz.com/trailer-clips/49179/star-trek-iv-the-voyage-home-clip/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kkbHi2eT5_U

North Atlantic right whales decline confirmed: 458 remaining: Study confirms need for urgent action
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/09/170919140419.htm

40 Ton Humpback Whale Leaps Entirely Out of the Water! A Video by Craig Capehart
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fhfIpUgxgm8


Here are some useful links about Whale Evolution:
http://www.indiana.edu/~ensiweb/lessons/whale.ev.html
http://www.indiana.edu/~ensiweb/lessons/wh.ank.act.pdf
http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/whales/allabout/Evol.shtml
http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/data/2001/11/01/html/ft_20011101.4.html?fs=www3.nationalgeographic.com&fs=plasma.nationalgeographic.com
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2005/04/0414_050414_egyptwhale.html
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2007/12/071219-whales-evolved.html
http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2010/08/whale-evolution/mueller-text
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2001/09/0919_walkingwhale_2.html
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2009/02/090203-pregnant-whale-fossil_2.html
http://evolution.berkeley.edu/evolibrary/article/evograms_03
http://berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2005/01/24_hippos.shtml
http://evolution.berkeley.edu/evolibrary/article/phylogenetics_10
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/09/090924185533.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evolution_of_cetaceans
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Even-toed_ungulate
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hippopotamus
http://www.nyit.edu/medicine/research/evolution_of_dolphins_and_whales_homepage/
http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1997-12-07/news/9712070170_1_beluga-paleontologists-hippos
http://www.actionbioscience.org/evolution/gingerich.html
http://www-personal.umich.edu/~gingeric/PDFfiles/PDG413_Whaleevol.pdf
http://www-personal.umich.edu/~gingeric/PDGwhales/Whales.htm
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/evolution/library/03/4/l_034_05.html
http://biologos.org/blog/evidences-for-evolution-part-2b-the-whales-tale
http://suite101.com/a/the-evolution-of-the-hippopotamus-a371242
http://ncse.com/rncse/21/5-6/tale-two-entities-whales-hippos
http://www.locolobo.org/CetaceanEvolution.html
http://www.pandasthumb.org/archives/2008/03/whale-evolution.html
http://www.life.umd.edu/biology/dudashlab/Docs%20for%20Honors%20Class/Final%20presentations/whaleevolutionppt.ppt
http://phys.org/news2806.html
https://danniteboul.wordpress.com/2013/12/03/they-did-it-on-porpoise/
http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0007062

Mesonychid ancestor/relative of the whale:
http://www.newanimal.org/meso.htm
http://www.donaldprothero.com/files/47440598.pdf

Mesonychid Pachyaena:
http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/whales/glossary/indexi-m.shtml

http://www.lsa.umich.edu/paleontology/research/researchfeatures

Ambulocetus:
http://sawhalecentre.com/evolution_of_whales.html

http://chip.choate.edu/bbcswebdav/institution/Science/rgritzer/webpages/BI465/Student%20project/Fran%20final%20project/paleontological_evidence.htm
http://www.amnh.org/explore/news-blogs/news-posts/a-walking-whale-ambulocetus

Early Whales Gave Birth On Land, Fossil Find Reveals

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/02/090204085133.htm
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2009/02/090203-pregnant-whale-fossil_2.html

"Whale Lice" Genes Offer Clues to Whale Evolution

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2005/09/0928_050928_whale_lice.html

Jurassic Shrew is Earliest Known Mammal That Used a Placenta (our common ancestor!)

http://www.sciencenewsblog.com/blog/825113

Smithsonian Magazine's article on Evo-tourism
http://www.smithsonianmag.com/travel/evotourism/Evotourism.html

The Origin of Whales and the Power of Independent Evidence by Raymond Sulera
http://ncse.com/rncse/20/5/origin-whales-power-independent-evidence
http://www.talkorigins.org/features/whales/

Whales evolved from a small, deer-like mammal
http://www.theguardian.com/science/2007/dec/20/sciencenews.evolution
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2007/12/071219-whales-evolved_2.html

Another "Walking Whale" Fossil has been discovered:
http://www.isciencetimes.com/articles/6094/20130920/walking-whale-fossil-ocucaje-peru-40-million-years.htm

Is the Hippopotamus the Closest Living Relative to the Whale?
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/03/090318153803.htm

Deep-diving whales could hold answer for synthetic blood

Study shows how marine mammals pack muscle cells with oxygen-holding protein 

http://news.rice.edu/2015/09/25/deep-diving-whales-could-hold-answer-for-synthetic-blood-2/

There are many other facts about whales that you can discover on your own. Try these web pages:

What is a Modern Whale?

http://www.infoplease.com/encyclopedia/science/whale-types-whales.html

http://www.ecokids.ca/pub/eco_info/topics/whales/mammals.cfm

Information on proto-whales
http://www.oceansofkansas.com

Pliosaur (not a whale):

http://www.abc.net.au/science/ozfossil/ageofreptiles/eromanga/kronosaurus.htm

http://www.oceansofkansas.com/pliosaur.html

Beaked whale:

http://www.nsrl.ttu.edu/tmot1/mesodens.htm

http://www.aquatic.uoguelph.ca/mammals/whales/accounts/blainville.htm

General Whale Information:

http://www.environment.gov.au/coasts/species/cetaceans/index.html

Oceania Project

http://www.oceania.org.au/

Blue Whales
http://www.earthwindow.com/blue.html
http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-40582046

Cabrillo Museum
http://www.cabrillomarineaquarium.org/

Channel Islands Marine Sanctuary
http://channelislands.noaa.gov/focus/alert.html

World Wide Whales (Link Exchange)

http://www.worldwidewhale.com/

Center for Whale Research
http://www.whaleresearch.com

Cetacean Society International (Link Exchange)

http://csiwhalesalive.org/
Whales as marine ecosystem engineers
http://ecowatch.com/2014/07/09/whales-marine-ecosystem-engineers/
Video footage of whales and dolphins feeding
Helicopter ride reveals enormous mass of anchovies, herded by dolphins and whales | GrindTV.com
Humpback Whale
http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/pdfs/recovery/whale_humpback.pdf
https://swfsc.noaa.gov/uploadedFiles/Divisions/PRD/Projects/Research_Cruises/Hawaii_and_Alaska/SPLASH/SPLASH-contract-Report-May08.pdf
http://www.amazon.com/Humpbacks-Unveiling-Mysteries-Jim-Darling/dp/1894694724
http://www.alaskahumpbacks.org/Classification.html
https://seagrant.uaf.edu/map/gap/marine-mammals/publications/witteveenposter.pdf
Video of what it feels like to swim with the majestic whales:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cij3cleb8SU
Whales and Dolphins
http://www.amazon.com/Whales-Dolphins-Question-Smithsonian-Smithsonians/dp/B0064XH63Q
Marine Mammals
http://www.amazon.com/Marine-Mammals-Second-Edition-Evolutionary/dp/0120885522
See the Ancient Whale Skull Recovered from a Virginia Swanp
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zw-Anc-NXP8

The importance of Fossils

http://classroom.synonym.com/importance-fossils-2470.html

The Trends in Whale Evolution and Evidence Whales have Changed Over Time
http://www.talkorigins.org/features/whales/

Video - How Whales Change Climate
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M18HxXve3CM

Whale Gifs
https://www.tenor.co/search/whale-gifs

Whale Video - Whales An Unforgettable Journey - IMAX
     narrated by Patrick Stewart
https://dvd.netflix.com/Movie/Whales-An-Unforgettable-Journey-IMAX/17104335

Just for fun, there are walking whales in the movie, The Croods
http://the-croods.wikia.com/wiki/Ground_Whale

Why Do Whales Sing?  Whale communication
https://www.facebook.com/TEDEducation/videos/1947713915241805/

Blue whale has heartbeat measured for the first time, and results surprise scientists

https://www.foxnews.com/science/blue-whale-heartbeat-measured-first-time-surprises-scientists

Ancestor of all animals identified in Australian fossils
https://phys.org/news/2020-03-ancestor-animals-australian-fossils.html

Seismic crustal imaging using fin whale songs

article by Vaclav M. Kuna and John L. Nabelek

https://science.sciencemag.org/content/371/6530/731

Artificial intelligence assists in protecting whales by tracking their communication through sounds

https://www.blog.google/technology/ai/tale-whale-song/

How do whales sing? Lab experiments suggest their voice boxes have a unique feature

https://apnews.com/article/whales-song-ocean-voice-box-humpback-baleen-afc3b4c42606c09782bc8e77e46d1923?utm_source=Live+Audience&utm_campaign=a007e9ae21-briefing-dy-20240222&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_b27a691814-a007e9ae21-52490840

Links to videos about whales and dolphins

     National Geographic and Disney +    Secrets of the Whales

     https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/article/photographer-calls-the-science-behind-this-

     film-a-game-changer

          There is a teaching guide and materials that go with this 

          movie:  https://teachwithmovies.org/secrets-of-the-whales/?

 utm_medium=email&utm_source=getresponse&utm_content=New+Learning+Guide+and+Two+New+Tools+for+Educators+on+TWM%21&utm_campaign=

     

     Whale Wisdom

     https://www.amazon.com/Whale-Wisdom-Rick-Rosenthal/dp/B0823LTSHQ

     Conversations with Dolphins

     https://www.amazon.com/Conversations-With-Dolphins/dp/B06Y44N3LN

Non-Fiction Books

     Gardner, Earl Stanley. 1964. Hunting the Desert Whale. The Companion Book Club, London.

     Thewissen, J.G. M. "Hans." 2019. The Walking Whales: From Land to Water in Eight Million 

     Years.  University of California Press.  

          https://www.ucpress.edu/book/9780520305601/the-walking-whales  

Roland Unger [GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html) or CC-BY-SA-3.0-2.5-2.0-1.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3AWadiHitanDorudon.jpg
The Valley of Whales, Egypt

If you find links on my blog that do not work, please let me know by leaving a comment.  I would like to keep my blog up-to-date and relevant.