Abstract

__** Abstract **__

The purpose of our experiment was to find out how polluted, based on the four sciences, Westlake is. This question was answered using the perspectives of the four sciences.

The chemist did three tests; chloride ions, phosphate and lead. It was hypothesized that there was large volume of phosphate, lead and chloride ions in the water. Many locals depend on the water/use it daily. Despite small volumes of chloride ions, there was no other chemical tested in the water; more tests should be carried out to improve our reliability.

The aim of the biologist was to investigating five local fish externally and internally. It was hypothesized that the five fish were externally healthy. For the fish to be healthy, they had to follow a certain criterion. Only one out of five fish were considered healthy. Our small sample size limits our reliability.

In physics, Westlake water was compared to the refractive index of distilled, drinking, bathroom and UNIS pond water. The refractive index of pure water is 1.33. We hypothesized that Westlake had a higher refractive index. Shining a light beam through a box of water we calculated its RI. Our hypothesis was valid; Westlake water had a higher refractive index. However, this method cannot determine the entire pollution level.

The ESS student interviewed how pollution affected the locals. A survey was conducted in order to find out how people felt about it. We assumed that the "rotten" odor from the lake was because of the dead fish. After investigating, we found out that the smell not only caused health problems for the people, but it had also impacted the businesses of local stores, driving away customers. Pollution also causes the death of shellfish, causing the people to lose their jobs.

Word Count: 291