I spent a while on red-27 which is a decently world to hang out on most of the time. They've got a mostly unified socialist world and aren't worried about immigration so you can totally just show up and hang out without needing fake ID or anything and you can get by without local currency for a long time, since most stuff is free (they've got one of those monetary systems where money is used for luxuries, not necessities: so you can grab a sandwich at the deli for nothing, but if you want to get a big meal at a fancy diner, you pay for that.)
But the annoying thing is that, because of their MLMY roots, they don't really believe in a lot of mental illnesses? And it's worse because they're also very much against stimulants.
So sure, it's nice to take a break from living in capitalism, but eventually I gotta come back to a world that can sell me Adderall, you know? My brain doesn't work.
(they've got historical reasons for this: some Incidents between ww2 and the former US going socialist means they think of stimulants as being a drug you give to your forced labor workforce to make them work harder. Free citizens of a socialist society don't need to be pushed harder, it's a whole "from each according to their ability, to each according to their need" thing: it's bad to try to make people more productive by dosing them with stimulants. Which, I mean, is valid if you're talking about a theocracy dosing their slaves with near-meth, but I think my ADHD situation is a little different, you know?)
I need to find somewhere else I can hang out on, without this issue. And no, Yellow-14 is not an option. They're maybe a much nicer socialist world to hang out in terms of being able to get the medicines you need, but they're not a terribly safe place to hang out on if you're gay or trans. Which is kinda darkly hilarious considering you can get hormones at your local pharmacy for free, no questions asked?
The story continues. At least one more part in the zombie world before moving on to the next one.
Part 1 / Part 2 Linked here. (If I get to 5 pts or so I’ll make a master post)
Enjoy!
_____________________________
“Why’d they let YOU in?”
An angry shout stopped us in our tracks as we reached the center of the camp.
I paused, smiling. Ah, the nostalgic smell of unnecessary internal strife. NOW it feels like a proper post apocalyptic story. I raised a hand in greeting. “Hey there, kind and pleasant person, I’m Blaire!”
“Don’t pretend like we’re friends! You shouldn’t be here!” The angry young man stepped closer, allowing me to get a better look at his face. His copper colored hair framed sharp, angular features, his brown eyes practically burning with rage as he tried his best to stare a hole through me.
He seems familiar.
Searching my character’s memories, I was finally able to place him. Jason, the hero’s best friend, who had gone to high school with my character. Before I could celebrate placing his identity, however, I felt a surge of deep terror flood through me. My heart beat wildly in my chest, a cold sweat breaking out on my forehead. I frowned, pushing back the feeling that weren’t my own, but those from my character.
It’s rare for emotions from the character to be this strong, even in the last world I was able to easily put away any feelings of the character I’ve taken over. Why is she so scared? I don’t see anything in her memories that would warrant her being frightened of Jason. And why is he so antagonistic towards me?
As I stood there, trying to comb through what information my character knew about him, he had continued to rant. “Eric, what were you thinking accepting people like her?!”
Eric sent Hannah away with a smile, before turning towards his friend with a tired expression. “They have extra supplies and skills, both of which we’re in desperate need of.”
“We don’t need HER!”
As they argued, Liam walked up to me, pulling an apple from his bag. “Want a snack?”
“Sure, these idiots might take a while, I’d hate to get hypoglycemic while they argue.” Before I could say anything further, he pulled out a knife and silently started cutting the peel off.
“What are you doing?”
“Peeling the apple for you.”
“Why?”
“…” He paused, looking honestly confused. “I’m not sure, but I feel like this would make you happy.”
I couldn’t help but shake my head in amazement. “I love apples, but I can’t stand the peel. How did you know?”
“Really?” He grinned, continuing to peel. “My support husband instincts must be kicking in.”
“You’re very… optimistic.”
“Thanks!”
I sighed. “Don’t get attached, Liam. It won’t end well.” I thought of the heart wrenching pain I had felt when pressing “No” in the last world. That was just after 4 weeks. If I have to stay here years…
“It’s okay. I already count myself fortunate being your lackey.” His smile was bright, but his attention to the apple never wavered. “As long as you live well. I think I could die happy.”
I shuddered. The habit was just too strong. A character casually mentioning dying in a story…such a red flag. “Try not to die. Happy or otherwise.”
“Yes ma’am.” He saluted, his silly expression making me feel less tense.
“Blaire! I’m talking to you!” Jason had finished arguing with Eric while Liam and I chatted and was obviously still furious.
I felt the same edge of fear from the character at the sight of him again, and pushed it back down with irritation.
“That must be so exhausting to be so angry all the time.” I muttered quietly as I watched him approach.
Liam nodded. “No kidding. I think I’ll need a nap just from watching him perform.”
Jason stopped just a few feet away, sneering. “I don’t know what lies you sold Eric earlier, but don’t’ forget, I know the real you! You’re a rich brat without any skills! You’re deadweight to any group, just a worthless bit….ARGH!” He flew backwards as a mostly-peeled apple struck him in the mouth, splitting his lip.
“Oops. Sorry did that hit you?” Liam watched him coldly, not sounding sorry at all. “My hands get slippery when I hear pure stupid.”
“Is that why people around you tend to get hit with flying projectiles often?
“It’s a curse…” He paused, then looked mortified. “THAT WAS MY LAST APPLE!”
“It’s okay.”
“WHY DIDN’T I USE A STONE?” He groaned into his hands. “That idiot wasn’t worth losing your snack! Now you’re going to go hungry!”
“I’m fine…” I tried to comfort him, but he had already pulled out a walkie-talkie and was growling instructions in some sort of code.
Jason, on the other hand, was now pointing in shock at Liam. “You! You’re William the destroyer!”
“…” I glanced over at the man who was still panicking over his lack of snack options to offer me.
“What’s the leader of the Blood Wolves doing here?” Jason was now looking nervous, clambering to his feet and keeping a good distance from us both
Liam ignored him, continuing to talk on his walkie talkie. Shaking my head, I stepped in between him. “He’s with me. Do you really want to argue now about whether or not we should be here?”
“But… but…”
“Jason!” Eric had returned, a grim look on his face. “I told you to leave them alone. We’ll go out hunting for supplies tomorrow, they can prove their worth then.”
Jason’s expression showed his clear unwillingness, but he slowly nodded. “Sure.” Glancing towards me, he sneered. “Then I guess tomorrow we’ll see just how useless you are.”
“Did I step on your dog or something? Seriously, try to reign in the hostility there, buddy.” With that, I turned and walked towards the empty tent Eric had pointed out earlier.
Despite my casual tone and outer appearance, my hands were clenched at my sides, the fingernails digging into my palms to keep my hands from shaking. My back was soaked with sweat, an uncontrollable reaction from the character I had become.
What is going on? It had been a long timesince I had been unable to fully control my character’s emotions like this. I swallowed uncomfortably. The sensation was unpleasant, a sense of incongruity between body and soul that I couldn’t quite overcome. It reminded me too much of the first mission I had undergone, the worst time of my life that I could still remember.
Waking up without memories, with no idea of who I was or why I was there, thrust into a romantic drama where my mission was to fulfill the role of a foolish, calculating villainous side character. Overwhelmed by intense love for the male lead and mind-numbing hatred for his heroine, I lost myself in despair. Later, I would learn to maintain my sense of identity. Even if I didn’t know who I was, I at least knew who I wasn’t.
And I wasn’t this character. A spoiled, angry young woman who thought the world revolved around her.
So why can’t I remember clearly? Not just Jason, even the events surrounding my character’s kidnapping and death were vague.
Something’s wrong with this world.
Sitting down with a sigh, I pulled out my phone.
“Let’s see how helpful this new ‘character description’ function is.” I typed in Jason’s name. After a moment to process, the phone’s screen filled with text.
Jason, the hero’s best friend and this world’s hopeless secondary male lead. In the story, he is shown to be in love with Hannah, but hides his feelings for fear of hurting his friends. He often supports her from behind, helping the hero rescue her during her frequent misadventures and kidnappings. Despite his devoted acts, Hannah remains blissfully unaware of his feelings, and treats him as a friend.
Nothing to explain why my character is scared of him. I grinned maliciously as I re-read the part about his unrequited love. “No wonder he’s so high strung. If he were nicer I might even feel sorry for him.”
Unable to control my curiosity, I typed in a second name.
“William.”
Character unknown.
“Hmm. Let’s try ‘Liam.’”
Character unknown.
“Blood Wolves.”
The most notorious and highly skilled gang in this story’s world, they often sell their services as mercenaries, and are considered a major power in the post-apocalyptic society.
I stared at the screen, even more confused. Such an important group, but the leader isn’t mentioned? Who is Liam?
But no matter how much I searched, there were no answers.
_____________________________
Shortly later, Liam called me out. The smell of freshly cooked food hastened my steps, and I sat at a table across from Hannah, ignoring her wide-eyed look of fear at my approach.
“The others are checking the perimeter. Here, I made you dinner!” Liam placed a bowl in front of both of us with a proud grin. It was filled with a stew, with vegetables and chicken. Hannah stared at the food suspiciously, although I didn’t see anything wrong with the food. Carefully, I lifted a spoonful up to my mouth, my eyes widening with shock.
“It’s delicious!” I took another few bites before pausing. “Where did you get the ingredients?”
Liam sat down next to me, peeling an apple with an affectionate grin. “My friends happened to have gathered some extra supplies and brought them over.”
“… You sent the Blood Wolves on a snack run?”
“What were they supposed to do? Let you go hungry?” He raised an eyebrow. “They wouldn’t dream of it.”
“I don’t know how you manage to sound so supportive and yet so… ominous at the same time.”
“It’s one of my many talents, I’m so glad you noticed!”
Hannah watched our exchange back and forth, before looking down at the food once more. She seemed very hungry, but she still hadn’t made any moves towards eating.
“You should try it, it tastes really good!” As I coaxed the girl sitting across from me, I saw Liam beaming with pride.
“…” She stared silently at us both for a long few moments before nodding and taking a bite, her hands shaking and almost spilling the stew from her spoon. As she swallowed the food however, her eyes filled with tears.
Why do all the heroine’s I meet cry so easily? Maybe the problem is with me? Do I just not cry enough?
“It tastes so good!” She ate quickly, blinking to keep back the tears that were threatening to spill over.
Oh… so… happy tears? That’s refreshing. I patted her on the shoulder gently. “Not had a lot of hot meals lately, huh?”
Hannah nodded at my sympathetic words. “Yeah, Eric and James are too busy with security and supply runs. And I…” Her words trailed off.
Why hello there, mission opportunity!I rejoiced inwardly but kept a gentle look on my face. “You what?”
“I’m weak… I can’t fight. I can’t even cook.” She looked up at me her eyes still wet with unshed tears. “I wish I could be scary like you…”
… Scary?
Liam laughed at my dumbfounded expression, quickly silencing himself as I turned to glare at him. Looking back over at Hannah, I tried to smile comfortingly, the expression stiffening as a look of terror flashed across her face.
“You want to be a well-rounded useful person? I can help you.” Not like I have a choice.
“Really?” Hannah clasped her hands together in front of her. She still looked frightened, but excitement was clearly pushing back her fear. “I really want to be helpful!”
“Really. Just come watch me tomorrow during the outing. I’ll show you what I can do. From there, we’ll come up with a plan.”
She now was smiling brightly, giving off the impression of a small, adorable animal that should be protected. “I promise I’ll work hard, Boss!”
She trusts me so quickly… no wonder she kept getting kidnapped.
“Wait... Did you just call me Boss…?”
“One day, I pray I can be just as terrifying as you!” Hannah cheered excitedly.
“…”
I feel like her motivation has gone in a weird direction.
As I struggled on how to answer her, Liam nodded solemnly. “It’s good to have goals, but you shouldn’t aim too high.” He handed me the freshly peeled apple, and continued. “No one’s as terrifying as your Boss. But with hard work and effort, one day, you can reach ‘lackey status’ like me!”
“Really?”
“Yeah!” The two high-fived as I watched on silently, feeling tired.
“… I’m going to bed.”
_____________________________
The next morning, we all headed out, running into a group of zombies, almost immediately. We halted a good distance away to discuss a plan.
“Will it be okay?” Hannah’s face looked extremely nervous as she looked at the zombies in the distance.
“Don’t worry, I’ll protect you!” Jason smiled at Hannah, his eyes full of tender emotion. “I promise, as long as I have breath in my body, no zombie will get near you.”
I still felt a small thread of fear running through me as I looked at him, but fortunately, it was much easier to control now. I rolled my eyes at his words. Didn’t the character summary say hehides his feelings? How is this subtle at all?
Eric stared at his friend silently for a moment, and then patted Hannah’s head with a sigh. “Make sure to stay away from the fight.” Loading up a handgun, he glanced over at me. “Are you coming?”
“Ha, bet you’re gonna run and hide, huh?” Jason glared at me, his face looking extremely punchable, forcing me to hold back.
I sighed, admiring my self –restraint. “I’ll take the ten on the right.”
“There’s only fifteen!”
“Yeah, so we’ll split it by skill.” I turned back and grinned. “Ten for me, four for Eric and one for you.”
Pulling out my sword, I headed over, ignoring his stuttered complaints.
GRRRR.
The closest of the zombies was reaching out towards my head, several fingers missing from its hands, its half rotten jaw open, ready to bite.
I lopped it head off, knocking the body away from me.
IT SMELLS SO BAD!!! I had only been able to wash in cold water from a basin. I still desperately missed hot showers.
“Go Boss!”
“Yeah! Kill the zombies! You’re the best!”
Shouts from behind me caught my attention. After killing several more zombies I glanced over, giving out a loud sigh at the sight.
Liam and Hannah cheered off to the side, jumping up and down with excitement.
“Zombies don’t stand a chance against her!”
“Yeah! They’re toast!”
… I’m just going to ignore them for now.
In the corner of my eye I saw Jason struggling to defeat his first zombie, waving a metal bat but missing several passes. He backed up, putting some distance between him and his foe, and turned to stare longingly at Hannah for a few moments, before looking over to glare at me as he realized who she was cheering for. I smiled and winked, watching with interest as his face turned even redder with rage.
Feeling an undeniable urge to taunt, I called out to him as I continued to decapitate zombies.
“Don’t lose focus, little Jason! Or do you need me to help you with your one zombie too?”
“SHUT UP!”
“Try not to bully him, please.” Eric called out as he calmly dodged attacks, occasional shots ringing out. Each was a perfect headshot, as expected of the hero of an action novel. “Jason is sensitive to criticism.”
I nodded, kicking a zombie head into the air and batting it away with my sword, watching it sail away with interest. “Sorry, I’ll try harder to support his emotional well being.”
“Thanks!”
Having finished off our respective zombies, Eric and I high fived before heading back towards the rest of the group.
“Guys… I’m still fighting here!” Jason’s helpless cries caused me to pause.
I glanced at Eric “Will he be okay?”
“Yeah, he’s just milking it so Hannah will pay more attention to him.”
“And you’re okay with that?”
Eric shrugged. “Not really, but he doesn’t step over the line and extra hands are necessary, so I just ignore it.”
Is this a… reasonable male lead? Could it be possible?
“Okay, then.” I raised a hand, not turning around. “Good luck Jason, we believe in you!”
Eric grinned and called out behind him. “See you back in camp, buddy!”
“Boss!” Hannah ran up with a grin. “That was amazing!”
Liam stepped closer, handing me a thermos with hot tea. “I told you she was awesome! She saved my life, you know.”
I ignored him, turning my attention to Hannah. Time to make some progress on this mission. “Did what you see today inspire you?”
“Yeah!”
“Do you want to be helpful?”
“Yeah!”
Getting excited, I pumped a fist into the air. “You want to be strong and fight along side me?!”
“…” Hannah stared at me in shock. “What? No. Fight zombies? It’s scary… and kind of gross.”
I looked at her silently. “I… thought you were inspired?”
“Yeah! But not like that.” She nodded firmly. “I realized I was too eager when I wanted to be as terrifying as you…”
“HEY!”
“So I’ve decided.” She grinned. “I’m going to be a professional lackey, just like Liam!”
“…”
“…”
Eric and I sighed in unison.
Liam smiled, patting Hannah on the shoulder. “Now don’t look down on us weak and vulnerable support spouses!”
“You’re not even weak…and we’re not married...”
“We may depend on our stronger counterparts to protect our lives, but we can keep everything running smoothly so you don’t have to worry about anything else.” He looked at me expectantly. “How is your tea?”
Giving up on arguing, I sipped it, and paused, shocked. “It’s… amazing. How did you even make hot tea out here?”
“It’s a trade secret.” Hannah and Liam gave each other a thumbs up, as Hannah handed Liam a thermos, which he drank from silently.
We headed back to camp.
“I feel like we’re forgetting something.” I muttered as I sipped my tea.
“GUYS? WHERE ARE YOU GOING?!! I’m STILL FIGHTING!” Jason’s angry shriek pierced the air, but no one turned around.
“I know what it is!” Liam grinned, cleaning one of my hands with a warm towel before handing me a freshly peeled apple. “Here, snack!”
“HANNAH? ERIC? ANYONE?”
I nodded, taking a bite. “That must have been it.”
_____________________________
A few days passed.
I tried again to convince Hannah to train to fight, thinking that combat skills would be the fastest way to change her status as kidnappable dead weight. After much convincing, she agreed to start training with me.
Unfortunately, the results were not what I had hoped for.
“OWW!” Hannah laid on the ground, staring up at me sadly. “I’m dying.”
“All I did was have you hold my sword. We haven’t even started fighting yet.”
“It hurts.”
“How did you even hurt yourself?” I stared at the small cut on her leg in consternation. “You only had the sword for fifteen seconds?”
Needless to say, the sword was confiscated. Strengthening exercises were meant with similar outcomes.
“How’s it going?” Liam brought me a bowl of hot soup, as I stared in disbelief at the figure attempting to do a pushup in front of me.
I pulled out my phone, glancing at the mission screen. The first completion bar for Hannah’s mission had been stuck at 10% since we started. “Not good. This is still her first push up.”
“Well, everyone takes a different amount of time…”
“We’ve been out here four hours.”
“Oh… how’s the soup?”
I sighed, taking time to try it. “It’s amazing. I’m still convinced you might be magic to be able to cook like this in the apocalypse.”
“This is just the beginning of my skills!”
I drank the soup quietly, staring at Liam while thinking.
“What is it?” He grinned. “You think I’m handsome and finally want to upgrade me from lackey to support spouse?”
“Who are you?”
My question was whispered, but he still heard it, a look of helplessness spreading across his face. This wasn’t the first time I had asked him this.
“I’ve told you everything, Blaire. I swear I’m not hiding anything from you.”
“You’ve told me everything you’ve remembered.” I corrected him quietly, turning away. Focusing my attention back on Hannah, I couldn’t help but feel discouraged. “This isn’t going to work.”
“You said you’re trying to make her a well-rounded, useful person, right?” Liam finally spoke up, his expression thoughtful. “You might be pushing her in the wrong direction. There are many different ways to help out, fighting is just one of them.”
“Yeah… but that’s what I’m good at.” I rubbed my head. “If I have to teach her other skills, I might not be able to.”
I had memories from multiple story worlds, but most of them required me to act as a brain dead villain, not staying long. Only a few provided practical skills such as the assassin guild story. A sense of frustration filled me.
“I can teach her cooking, supply management, and basic book-keeping.” Liam watched me, seemingly worried. “And you can teach her your special skill.”
“Oh? What’s that?”
“Negotiation.” He grinned. “It’s amazing to watch you reduce that idiot Jason to an apoplectic fit every time you argue.”
I thought it over, a small return smile forming on my face. “I guess I have developed some good interpersonal skills. I once helped my brother overcome an obsession with behavior modification training.”
“You have a brother?” He asked, his eyes widening.
“In a different life.” I felt a pang of loneliness for the time I had spent in the previous world. I wondered if Adam was doing well. Looking back at Liam, I reached over and patted him on the head.
“I’m glad you’re here.” That I got to see you again. Even if you look different. Even if you don’t remember me.
Liam froze with shock at my touch for a few moments, before his face lit up with delight. “I’m glad I’m here too!”
I looked back down at Hannah, who still hadn’t completed her first push up. “Let’s go with your plan.”
Scratching the plan to make the heroine a one woman army, it was time to make her into an overpowered support character.
The Fairy Tale Universe has untapped potential in its magical properties, and Rapunzel is top of that list. So today I explore the possibilities of her powers and what Rapunzel could really do, if she understood her gift, a little bit more.
Seventeen-year-old Skylin has always lived a fairly normal life. Well, except for the fact that whenever her emotions run high, strange things occur, like fires starting out of nowhere or the ground freezing over.
Still, her life hasn't been too terrible until the day her parents vanish into thin air, and she’s shipped off to live with her father's friend and his six sons.
Skylin isn’t sure if she can survive the chaos that is the Everettson family. But she doesn’t have a choice unless her parents are found, so she tries to make the best of the situation and befriend the Everettsons, even though not all of them are fans of her, especially Foster, a guy she once had a crush on until he opened his mouth.
But turns out, the Everettsons aren’t your typical family, and Skylin soon realizes she's not the only person in the world that has strange abilities. And in order to survive the dangerous magical world she’s thrown into, she’ll have to put her trust in the not only the Everettsons, but Foster as well.
Goodreads
Have you ever automatically purchased several books by an author's based on the book synopsis without ever reading a single one of their books? Well, I have a few of these authors and Jessica Sorensen is one of them. I will admit to anyone that I have a serious book buying problem and that includes all kinds of books but especially ebooks. Jessica's book descriptions have me hooked, I mean I believed that I would love them if I read them and therefore purchased the book. As of right now, I have a total of thirty (thirty!) ebooks by Jessica and today is the first time I have ever read any of them.
Well, I have finally read a Jessica Sorensen book and I was not disappointed. Enchanted Chaos is an angsty ya paranormal romance that is filled with elemental powers, mystery, and has multiple worlds. It's a quick read the book is around one-hundred-fifty pages and the action is super fast-paced, I didn't even realize that all the events took place within two days. While the story is short it's very interesting and obviously just getting started. I liked the characters and the MFC, Sky, reminded me so much of myself, she is a little bit of a loner and a little shy. Sky is a total mix of a nice bad girl who is shy and independent, she is such a bundle of contradictions that I love it, I think it makes her relatable because she is more than one thing.
Pros:
A quick and fun read with relatable dialogue
Elemental powers with multiple worlds
Characters that I liked and connected to
Cons:
Wished the story was a little longer with more world-building
I am so glad that I picked up Enchanted Chaos, I really enjoyed the story and I have so many questions that I want the answers to. I can't wait to find out what happens between Sky and a certain angsty guy, I am so ready for more, I have the next two books in the series and I am looking forward to seeing more of the magical world Jessica has created.
For this assignment i was given the role of Theoretical, a role that primarily consisted of exploring the hypothetical in relation to our chosen area of exploration, Ecosystems. By observing the flow of information generated through Josh in his Quantitive role and Laura in her Practical role i developed a theory about how ecosystems relate to one another.
I feel I had a rather poor grasp what what this assignment was trying to achieve. What took away from learning about Foucault seemed to be about disproving the notion legitimacy of knowledge and power where knowledge was something that had become tacit and subjective. Where you can decide to believe something is true and that you ‘know’ it but the Legitimacy of such reasoning could always be thrown into question and dis-proven. I don’t doubt that i might have misunderstood something, i do feel like a lot of the philosophy flew over my head, but to me it seemed odd that we would be given a task that had us seeking to Legitimize a point of knowledge just after being introduced to the idea that through the circumstances surrounding the observer, the basis can always be seen as illegitimate and disprovable. it feels like an exercise in futility, i understand that the focus of the assignment was on the process not the outcome but giving people a task that they’ve been lead to believe is futile tends to be something of a motivation-killer, particularly when we are also in the middle of two other projects both of which are also worth the majority of our grade. i also found the brief to be somewhat vague and remarkably open-ended and while such a thing has been par and course for this degree so far, when coupled with the previously mentioned distraction of other assignments also due, and the air of futility about the goal of this assignment i found it difficult to remain engaged with it. All in all, i don’t feel satisfied with this assignment and could strive to better my engagement, that this was worth 60% of our grade for the paper leaves a slightly bitter taste in my mouth, maybe that’s just Uni.
using the Quantitive facts provided by my group and examples within a simulated city I developed a theory as to how and why the Urban Ecosystem relates to other Ecosystems in the world.
i propose that expansion of the urban ecosystems has as a result of an incredibly high cost of resources: consumed more and created more waste than other ecosystems have evolved to handle, as a result the overall worldwide ecosystem is becoming incapable of supporting further advancement and the urban way of life has over-shot it's own capacity for survival.
Following this rate of consumption without drastic change the urban ecosystem will collapse. i further theorize that this is a byproduct of the eco-system being developed by and for the human animal, a subversion of the usual process in which an animal develops according to it's ecosystem. disrupting the balance of nature.
Ecological Destruction and Relationships, Wild Guess post
forest ecosystems
a positive aspect of the forest ecosystem is that has a high level of bio-diversity, a forest eco-system can be split into smaller ecosystems based on the tree level, with canopies being higher up the tree level whereas the underbrush is at the base. the difference in the conditions of these areas is what allows for a wide range of creatures to survive and succeed. these smaller ecosystems within the forest feed off of each other and support each others growth
a negative aspect of the forest ecosystem is that it is slow to grow, since it’s structure is dependent on the slow growth of trees, while there are few forces on earth that can cause the destruction of an entire forest, recovery is also incredibly slow in comparison to other ecosystems. because of this, deforestation is a major cause of near-permanent if not permanent harm to such an ecosystem.
the relationship a forest ecosystem has with an urban ecosystem is largely one-sided. a forest provides the resources necessary for the development of urban structures, food, water, lumber, space, and as previously mentioned air. urban ecosystems tend to feed on the forest most of the time taking resources at a higher rate than the forest can provide to fuel development.
marine ecosystem
this eco-system is vast and can differ greatly depending on the location being observed (it should be noted that for this blog post i refer to all of the ocean as marine, inclusive of the sea-floor, the coast and everything in between.
positive aspects are it’s shear size and diversity ranging from coasts to the seafloor, the ocean is the biggest ecosystem there is and is the source of all terrestrial life, the ocean as a whole is far too big to allow for rapid changes and it’s size allows waste to be diffused and prevents wide-spread toxic build up, it also filters itself through the water cycle. in addition the inaccessibility and harsh environment of the sea floor allow deep sea creatures to thrive untouched by circumstance and evolution.
negative aspects mostly relate to smaller parts of the ecosystem. coastal ecosystems are incredible delicate and easily disrupted by both natural and un-natural events, storms and other events like tsunamis caused by earthquakes can churn the sand and water together polluting the coast and killing large amounts of coastal life, coasts are also primary points of development for ports due to their economic value and as a result develop urban ecosystems that can potentially produce more waste than it is possible for the oceans to diffuse, leaving parts of the coastline and ocean polluted and incapable of sustaining life
through the water cycle, the ocean provides the rest of the world with water necessary for life to prosper and as a result is the ultimate source of all life within the other ecosystems, forests have little effect on the oceans but coastal urban development causes pollution at a rate faster than the ecosystem can adapt to, leaving trash to collect in the ocean, poisoning sea life toxifying the water that is spread to the rest of the world through the water cycle causing phenomena like acid rain in turn poison the forests and jungles.
urban ecosystem
an urban ecosystem is developed by it’s primary inhabitants, i.e humans, because of this it moves at a much faster rate than forests or oceans. the creatures with consuming more resources and creating more waste than any other ecosystem on the earth. however this allows for rapid progress, with the ecosystem developing and evolving much faster than either a forest or ocean, improving survival rates and spreading much faster.
the urban ecosystem relies on the resources of other ecosystems to develop, it is not self-sustaining and puts incredible stress on the ecosystems around it. it’s rapid consumption and creation of waste result in excessive destruction and poisoning of the surrounding environments.
an urban ecosystem is fueled by the resources afforded to it by it’s surrounding environments as such richer more fertile lands tend to develop bigger urban environments. different instances of the urban environment also communicate and develop economies evolving small settlements into larger civilizations which in turn have developed into a network that spans the entire world. the existence of the urban environment is both a testament to the success and hubris of humankind.
In addition to the national projections, Statistics New Zealand produces population projections for various subnational areas. The latest projections of the population living in subnational areas was released in February 2015 and covers the 16 regional council areas, 67 territorial authority areas, and 21 Auckland local board areas of New Zealand (boundaries at 1 January 2014). Three alternative projections (designated low, medium and high) have been produced for each area using different fertility, mortality, and migration assumptions reflecting each area's unique socio-demographic characteristics. The following results are based on the medium projection.
Of New Zealand's 67 territorial authority areas, 51 are projected to have more people in 2028 than in 2013, and 41 are projected to have more people in 2043 than in 2013 (medium projection). The highest projected population growth rates over the 30-year period (2013–43) are for Selwyn district (an average annual increase of 2.2 percent) and Queenstown-Lakes district (1.8 percent). Auckland and Waimakariri district (both 1.3 percent), Tauranga and Hamilton cities (both 1.2 percent), and Waikato district (1.1 percent) are the next highest. Under the medium projection, the largest percentage decreases in population between 2013 and 2043 are projected for the districts of Kawerau (down an average of 1.7 percent a year), Ruapehu (1.4 percent), Opotiki (1.1 percent), Wairoa (0.9 percent), and Waitomo (0.8 percent). The decreases in these five areas reflect shrinking natural increase and continuing net migration outflows, although these outflows are assumed to be smaller than experienced historically.
The projected slower population growth across New Zealand is driven by the narrowing gap between births and deaths. Nationally, natural increase is projected to decrease from 164,000 during 2009–13 to 80,000 during 2039–43 (medium projection). At the regional level, Auckland and Canterbury are the only regions that will have more births in 2039–43 than in 2009–13. All 16 regions will experience more deaths. In 55 of the 67 territorial authority areas, the number of births is expected to drop between the period 2009–13 and the period 2039–43 due to the assumed slightly lower fertility rates (average number of births per woman), combined in many areas with a decline in the number of women in the childbearing ages. In contrast, the number of deaths is expected to increase in all areas, despite continued increases in life expectancy. This is because of the increasing number of people reaching older ages. About 4 deaths in 5 currently occur at ages 65 years and over. The proportion of New Zealand's population aged 65 years and over is projected to increase from 14 percent in 2013 to 24 percent in 2043.
The Auckland region is projected to account for three-fifths of New Zealand's population growth between 2013 and 2043, with an increase of 740,000 from just under 1.5 million to 2.2 million (medium projection). Auckland's population is estimated to have surpassed 1.5 million in the year ended June 2014, and is projected to reach 2 million around 2033. In 2028, Auckland would be home to 37 percent of New Zealand's population, compared with 34 percent in 2013. By 2043, the population of Auckland could make up 40 percent of New Zealand's population.
The population of all territorial authority areas is expected to age in future, both in number and percentage of people at older ages. However, there will be considerable variation between areas, largely because of each area's current population age structure, and different fertility and migration patterns. At the national level, the median age (half the population is younger, and half older, than this age) is projected to increase from 37 years in 2013 to 43 years in 2043. At the subnational level in 2013, the median age ranged from 32 years in Hamilton city to 51 years in Thames-Coromandel district. By 2043, the median age is projected to range from 37 years in Palmerston North city to 60 years in Thames-Coromandel district. A median age of 50 years or older is projected for 15 territorial authority areas in 2043: Kaipara, Thames-Coromandel, Hauraki, Opotiki, Central Hawke's Bay, Horowhenua, Kapiti Coast, Carterton, South Wairarapa, Tasman, Marlborough, Kaikoura, Waimate, and Central Otago districts, and Nelson city. The oldest median ages are generally in areas experiencing low fertility and/or a net outflow of young adults (aged 15–29 years) and a net inflow of people aged 35–74 years. The youngest median ages are generally in areas experiencing high fertility and/or a net inflow of young adults (such as cities with major tertiary education facilities).
Projection overview Page updated 19 February 2015 , Subnational population projections Retrieved 16/10/2015 http://www.stats.govt.nz/browse_for_stats/population/estimates_and_projections/projections-overview/subnat-pop-proj.aspx
