Why, hello.
Frank the Platypus will be focusing on the menace that is known as Asian Carp for its research project.
For those of you who have already forgotten our life-changing PowerPoint presentation, let me refresh your memory:
Asian Carp are bad. They are invading our bodies of water and killing everything. They must be stopped before they take over the Great Lakes. They can also jump out of the water and kill you. They want nothing less than to destroy all of us.
And, if you're stumped, the answer to our word search was, " 'Get involved and save your Great Lakes!' says Frank the Platypus." Congratulations to everyone who solved it, and congratulations to the members of Frank the Platypus, who created it.
Leave your thoughts on our project in the comments, please. Don't worry, we will accept negative feedback, although we prefer stuff like, "You guys are awesome!" and attractive girls' numbers.
Good night, happy Thanksgiving, and remember: save a turkey, eat a carp.
12 comments:
After being subjected to weeks of hype over the unveiling of Frank the Platypus’s project I was intrigued by a project that focused on the invasive species of Asian carp. Last semester I took a class called Forestry 100 in which we talked about just how troublesome invasive species can become if put in the wrong ecosystems. Ecosystems have such a fine balance that allows all species involved to coexist without any species dying off. When a certain invasive species is introduced to an ecosystem that lacks the right types of predators an invasive species can grow without any hindrance, which upsets the natural balance within an ecosystem. From your presentation during our last class it appears that this is taking place with the Asian carp.
First and foremost what I liked most about your presentation was your use of visuals. By using visuals it allowed all of us in the audience to instantly realize that these are pesky animals that can ravage an ecosystem in short time. Visuals such as the ones used in your presentation should find their way into your final project in order for your project to effectively accomplish its’ goal of informing your audience about the problems the Asian carp are causing.
Another aspect of your project that I liked was the fact that you chose an invasive species that is ravaging the mid-western ecosystems of the United States. By choosing to focus on this area of the country I feel that your prospective audience will care much more about listening to what you have to say. As someone who was born and raised in Southern Wisconsin I know the magnitude of the role that waterways play not only in the ecosystems of Wisconsin but in the state’s culture as well.
One aspect your group must take very seriously in order to create an effective project is relating the consequences that the Asian carp can create, if they remain unaddressed, to the average person. While fisherman and those familiar with underwater ecosystems may know all about how the Asian carp population affects their line of work the average person may be unaware of how easily an invasive species can lead to another species becoming extinct. In this regard I don’t think there is a limit as to how far you should “dumb down” the content because if there isn’t a complete understanding with your audience of the consequences of an unchecked invasive species such as the Asian carp the relevance of your project will ultimately suffer. More statistics in this regard would also prove beneficial.
Another area that I would like more statistics on is just how fast Asian carp populations can spread. I felt that you addressed this in your presentation adequately but I feel like more could be done in this area. To address this concern I would like to see comparative statistics in regards to reproduction rates and sizes that relate the Asian carp to the other species that it is eradicating as an invasive species.
I don't think I'll ever be able to forget the youtube video you guys played during your presentation - to be exact it was more like a movie. The asian carps were more like beasts than fishes - and the men on the boat seemed like these heroes in the movies who fight the ridiculous creatures. I thought to myself, well, maybe at the end of all this adventure these guys will find a treasure box or a true love and all this will end in a lame happy ending. Well anyways, what I'm saying is that I really liked your presentation - and I'm pretty sure almost everyone found it very interesting with all the visuals and word puzzle and all.
I remember studying about a similar phenomenon back in Korea - the bullfrogs that have been brought into Korea from the United States were disrupting the ecosystem because not only were they eating the small Korean frogs but they were also eating up the Korean snakes! Well anyways, the reason I'm mentioning this is that when we were studying this in school, it was just plain text and a small photo or two. Maybe if the school had played on the TV screen the scene of frog eating up the snake I might have been more interested. So thumbs up for the asian carp and thumbs up again for you guys!
I really think if you pull this off well the project would turn out amazing, especially since this whole situation will directly affect to the Wisconsin area as well. I was thinking maybe a website with some more information about the asian carps would be nice too, but well I guess people are more into youtube videos than texts (like me) and for those who are more interested they could simply google it up, right? Good luck with your project, guys!
I am impressed with how this group took a random topic and found an important underlying issue. I get the impression that many people may laugh when they hear about an Asian Carp invasion, but it is actually very serious. Asian Carp can have negative affects on many different people. People that like to fish, people that like water sports, and people that enjoy eating pan fish. Asian Carp can affect the sport of fishing, recreation, and even the economy. The economy will suffer when Asian Carp take over lakes and do not allow pan fish to thrive. People that make a living off of pan fish will most definitely suffer. It is amazing how a once “silly” topic can have so many negative affects.
I like that this issue directly affects people that live in Wisconsin. People will be more concerned with a problem when it has the potential to directly affect them. This topic affects me on a personal level since I come from a family that enjoys fishing. I grew up fishing with my Dad and two older brothers and hate to think that the tradition could come to end because of the Asian Carp invasion. My 3 year old nephew even enjoys catching fish. It would be a shame to be forced to leave my nephew at home because the Asian Carp make it too dangerous for him to be in a boat.
Overall I enjoyed your presentation. I think the video added a lot to your project. I do not think I would have completely grasped the jumping capabilities of these fish without that demonstration. I also like the idea of placing posters on campus. The posters will be useful to spread your message, especially with your clever slogans. I look forward to seeing them around! And since you asked for it I must say, “You guys are awesome!”
First, I find it very entertaining that your idea originally came from somewhat of a joke. I guess ideas come at random times. Also, if the pressure is gone, you are able to be creative and come up with really great ideas.
Unbelievably, I knew about carp before your presentation. Except, I am not positive that they are Asian carp or just some other species of carp. In fact, there are carp in the bay which attributes to the Milwaukee River in my hometown. Although they generally are not in the main river area that has a lot of current, they are abundant within the more stagnant bay. In spring, this is particularly noticeable because they are spawning, and when they are spawning, they are constantly jumping out of the water; however, I have never seen them jump quite as high as they did in the clip you showed us.
My dad is actually helping control the carp population. Along with many of the other members of our neighborhood, my dad shoots carp with a bow and arrow. I believe that all you need to do this as a sport is a fishing license. I guess this could be an additional means of controlling the carp population, but I am guessing that this may not be the most effective means.
I understand the dramatic effects that invasive species can have on ecosystems. Something you may want to look into are the actions that the DNR and other local organizations are taking to prevent the spread of invasive species. For example, near my cabin this summer, there was almost always a volunteer at the boat landings making sure that people putting and taking out their boats were not spreading any new invasive species into the waters. They also were available to answer questions.
Although preventing the spread of Asian carp is important, I wonder if it is actually possible. A source of transmission is by birds which eat fish and then, deposit their waste in different waters. Thus, Asian carp is transferred. In order to prevent this, there would have to be no Asian carp at all. Is there any effective way to cause a complete extinction of a species? I guess that is the point of your project.
Also, I think that shouting in library mall is an interesting way of informing the public. I think that some how publishing your pamphlet online would give people another, in some ways more convenient, resource about Asian carp and their effects. I think there are a lot of possibilities with your project, and I know it will be a success.
Before your presentation I have never heard about Asian Carp. It’s very impressive for you guys to choose a random topic and try to relate it to the rest of the student body. I’m sorry I came in at the end of the presentation and could not have learned more about the project. It’s very funny how you chose the topic because it took my group hours of debating to choose ours.
It will be very difficult to get the students who don’t live in Wisconsin past their four years at school to be proactive about Asian Carp. I think there is an overpopulation of animals all of the United Stats. So maybe you could stress that to people who normally would not care about the Asian Carp. I’m from out of state and need some convincing about the issue.
I think this project will be very eye opening because I really know nothing about the topic. The environment is a big issue today and people are becoming more environmentally conscious. Even though some of the student will be in Wisconsin for only four years; they will want to help. I loved the slogans at the end of the campaign; they are very catchy and will make people stop and want to learn more. If you guys want to stand in library mall, I will be happy to be in the audience. This topic will also give me an open mind about other endangered animals living in Wisconsin and my home town of Pittsburgh. Students including myself are always open to idea on how to help people or place that are important to them.
If you show students a very easy way to help they will be willing to save the Great Lakes. One little commitment can go a long way. Facebook is always a good way to spread the message and make people aware of an issue. You could broaden the topic to not only stress the problem in Wisconsin but that it could affect the Great Lakes. If people learn about the serious danger and that it affects more people because the Great Lakes span over many states; people will want to become more proactive.
Given that I am currently taking two limnology courses this semester, Zoo 315 and 316, I find this project very interesting and relevant to the topic of invasive species. I am intrigued by your group’s want to publicize the carp situation. The cynical side of me wants to ask if any of you really think the Madison public will take action on this topic. The optimistic side of me thinks that this project will interest people enough to research the topic more and make an effort to change things, or at least clean their boats before moving from lake to lake to prevent other invasive species from spreading. One way of gaining the interest of more people would be to put information in our project about the effects the carp have on the biota and how the invasion will affect the beauty we are used to and the beauty we want. The carp are not going to help and may make our aquatic landscape worse than it already is. Make people angry about the topic and then they will take action. Piss them off real good.
As I watched your group present your topic on Asian Carp, I was intrigued and excited to know what you would be discussing for the next 10 minutes. I thought, 'Who would come up with the topic about a huge fish that can knock people unconcious and what could they possibly talk about?' To my suprise, your presentation was quite entertaining, from the unique visuals that included pictures and interactive videos to creative theories as to how to rid our ecosystem of this invasive species. I wonder how such a large species such as this type of fish could cause such an inconveniance and how one could successfully remove them from the environment.
This topic was definately different then everyone elses and offered a creative spin to the project. The ideas, visuals and humor offered a successful blend of entertainment and curiousity, especially the word puzzle at the end in which i finished (not alone) in like 5 minutes thank you. You had my attention the entire time with how interactive each of you were. Overall, I am interested in where you may go with this topic and how you will bring it to the next level. I am definately curious for what comes next.
I found your presentation very amusing. Although I have never heard of Asian carp before and generally do not really care about fish unless they are in my sushi, you actually made me feel that something needed to be done about these fish! The infestation of Asian Carp reminds me of the Japanese beetles that attacked my hometown and if these fish are anywhere near the problem that those stupid bugs were then I'm definitely interested in getting rid of them. I thought your plan of action was also quite clever. Although I find the religious preachers in Library mall VERY annoying, they definitely get people's attention so I have no doubt that if the three of you scream about Asian carp in the same manner you are bound to get some help.
I also think you're project is a good idea since helping the environment has become such a big issue lately. Most people think that saving the environment includes helping endangered species, not cutting down the rain forests and other things along these lines, but it is clear that population control of non-native species is also very important since they are destroying natural ecosystems.
Like other posters, I had become very curious as to what topic it was that you gentlemen were going to be presenting. I found the invasion of the asian carp to be a really interesting and important topic to discuss. I am originally from Cleveland which is on another of the great lakes, great Erie. Living there you heard a lot about invasive species in lake Erie, such as the zebra and quagga mussels as well as the goby and grass carp. After seeing the video shown in class, I think the asian carp might be more serious than any of the above mentioned fish.
The Great Lakes are a fabulous resource to have in the midwest. They are responsible for bringing a lot of trade and commerce to the area, not to mention the fish that you can catch in them. I believe it is very important for all the states surrounding these lakes to attempt to protect the lakes and keep them as pure as possible. Granted this is an impossible task but I do appreciate your project, which seems to be intended to inform the public about this species which most are probably unaware of.
This situation reminds me of the Simpsons episode where they go to Australia and Bart accidentally introduces a bullfrog into their environment. Needless to say, chaos ensues and we are all taught a valuable lesson. But instead of causing laughter, these invaders could do a lot of damage to our precious ecosystem (and maybe cause some laughter). But in the long run, it will not be as funny. And like most of the others, I had not heard of the asian carp before your presentation. That is what makes your project so valuable. There is a problem, but few people know about it, and you guys are going to spread the word. And you aren't just going to use one medium, but several different approaches to help you inform. This seems like a good approach, because it allows you to reach more people and, also, see what way (whether shouting on library mall, or handing out fliers, or putting up posters) is the most effective to get a point across, no matter how random.
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