Body size in animals is a function of how it finds its food - Science English lesson

The question of how animals find their food is very important for our understanding of the future of food on our planet.  In the past, scientists looked at food gathering by animals from a eco-system viewpoint.  But now a group of UCLA (my alma mater) researchers have found a new dimension in food gathering.

Read this article and discuss it with your English teacher.
http://newsroom.ucla.edu/releases/ucla-life-scientists-view-biodiversity-234522

Key terms
 krill, shrimp-like creatures
feeding rate — the overall amount of food they consume per unit of time
 three-dimensional space
two-dimensional space
savannah
sea bed
spatial dimension
extra resources
consumer size
denizens
ostensibly inferior existence
biodiversity 
crucial differences
boom-and-bust cycles


Questions
What do you already know about this subject?
What do the previous theories have to say about feeding rates and body size? 
How did the Blue Whale evolve to be so big? 
What was interesting about the way that this study was conducted? 
What do you think about the interaction between body size and feeding rate? 
How many dimensions would you want to search in for food if you were an animal?
How can the mathematical model of "Flatland" help us to understand the 3D world we live in? 
How does three dimensions help us to understand the "boom and bust" availability of food, and how can we relate it to our modern world? 


Lesson Plan by Rachael Alice Orbach - Professional English Teacher