Editorial

Group Collaboration Questions 9/16/15

Questions we asked the group:
Tell me about your Subject.
-Recycling sewage water.
Why did you choose it?
-Interesting since it is wastewater.
How is it related to water?
-California drought
-Potential water source
-Method that helps makes the best use of wastewater.
What are your original feelings about it?
-Gross but interesting.
What is the filtration process look like?
-Not sure, we need to research it.
Questions they asked us:

What are they doing to the Orcas?
(Based on the information we acquired from the movie Blackfish)
-Limit their food intake if they misbehave.
-Deprive them of food because they are too big.
-Keep them confined in tanks without light.
-Multiple whales share a restricting space.
-Take the young away from their mothers.
- Use Operant Conditioning to train the whales.

-Take them away from their natural habitat affecting their lifespan and overall
health.

What are the tanks size dimensions?

-There were no specific dimensions found regarding the tanks.

-SeaWorld however released plans to double the size of the tanks

from 5.6mil to 10mil gal of H2O. The New tanks will cover 1.5 hectares, and will be

50-by-350-foot deep.
* Considering the new dimension the orca tanks are probably about 25-by-175ft deep
REF: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2725899/SeaWorld-plans-new-killer-whaleenvironments.html#ixzz3mEQL8BBJ
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook

Satellite Images:

10


Ref: http://www.buzzfeed.com/fxb3/satellite-images-of-orca-enclosures-

aey3#.gdp4awX0Q


3. How much swimming do they do in the tanks vs. in the wild?

-Wild: travel up to 100 miles a day
REF: http://www.takepart.com/photos/wild-killer-whales/orcas-open-ocean
-Captivity: An orca would have to swim 1400X around the main pool to match the
equivalent daily distance traveled in the wild.
-In captivity motility is restricted due to the swimming space and mood of the orca.
Ex: depressed.
REF: http://us.whales.org/wdc-in-action/captivity


What are some of the incorrect facts SeaWorld tells their visitors and what are
the correct answers?
-Lifespan of an orca is 20-25yrs.

11

 Reality: The lifespan of an orca in captivity is shorter compared to wild orcas.

Females lifespan in the wild rages from 80-100yrs, while males range from 6080yrs.
-Collapsed dorsal fin is common in orcas.
Reality: Collapsed dorsal fins are not common, it is rarely seen in wild orcas.
-Orcas swim 100miles a day.
-Reality: An orca would have to swim the diameter of the largest containment tank
1400 times to equivocate 100miles.
REF: http://www.whaleresearch.com/#!about-orcas/c1qa8


Why are they keeping the male orca even thought he has a history of violence?
-They kept the male orca for breeding purposes.
-54% of the current orcas Seaworld uses have Tilikums genes.

How did SeaWorld obtain the aggressive whale?

-He was captured in 1983 in Iceland, by orca traders who were hired by the Sealand
operators.

12

-He was 2yrs old and 11.5ft when he was captured.

-Sealand sold the whale to SeaWorld when they closed down.
REF: Blackfish Movie (John Crowe interview).


Idea Generation: Weve practiced a few pre-writing techniques in class (e.g.,
freewriting, brainstorming, listing, fact/idea chart). Choose one and use it to
generate ideas for the content of your profile.

Training techniques
Starved the whales
Separation of calf and mother as an act of punishment.
Isolations
Conditioning (reward or punishment)
Park Lara
OSHA vs. Sea World
Biological, physiological, psychological effects of orcas living in captivity.
Collapsed dorsal fin
Braking teeth on concrete due to stress, depression, and boredom.
Orcas raking each other
Emotional and psychological stress of mother and calf separation
Stress of being placed in a tank with whales from different areas of the
world.
Their singing is different similar to different languages
How isolation, stress, and food deprivation can lead to psychosis.
Whales are more emotional than humans due to a part of their brain have a
larger area compared to humans.-neurologist
The impact of living in confinement (tittle possibility)
The Negative impact of living in captivity (tittle possibility)

13