Yeast
Who hath woe? who hath sorrow? who hath contentions? who hath babbling? who hath wounds without cause? who hath redness of eyes? They that tarry long at the wine; they that go to seek mixed wine. Look not thou upon the wine when it is red, when it giveth his colour in the cup, when it moveth itself aright. Proverbs 23:29-31. The fermentation of wine is initiated by naturally occurring yeasts present in the vineyards. Alcohol is a colorless liquid, produced by the fermentation of sugar or starch, that is the intoxicating agent in fermented drinks and is used as a solvent. The alcohol that is produced from fermentation is called ethanol or ethyl alcohol. Wine is fermented, producing yeast and the top fermenting yeast is harvested to be used in bread making and the barm for beer making. Ever notice how a yeast roll spells like beer? Under optimal conditions the yeast can produce up to 18 percent, by volume, of ethanol with 15 to 16 percent being the norm.
Alcohol fermentation is the formation of alcohol from sugar. Yeast, when under anaerobic conditions, convert glucose to pyruvic acid via the glycolysis pathways, then go one step farther, converting pyruvic acid into ethanol (ethyl alcohol), a C-2 compound.
The adverse affects of the ethanol in beer and wine on the human nervous system are something with which many college students are familiar (sometimes too familiar?), and it is the CO2 produced by the process of fermentation that makes these beverages effervescent. Interestingly, since beer and bread contain pretty-much the same ingredients: yeast, sugar, and grains, in the past, beer has been referred to as “liquid bread.”
So what is yeast?
Yeast are simple, single cell fungi. The most common forms of yeast -- baker's and brewer's yeast -- are strains of the species Saccharomyces Cerevisiae. "Saccharomyces" derives from Latinized Greek and means "sugar mold" or "sugar fungus", saccharo- being the combining form "sugar-" and myces being "fungus". Cerevisiae comes from Latin and means "of beer".
Yeast microbes are probably one of the earliest domesticated organisms. People have used yeast for fermentation and baking throughout history. Archaeologists digging in Egyptian ruins found early grinding stones and baking chambers for yeasted bread, as well as drawings of 4,000-year-old bakeries and breweries. Yeast multiplies by a speedy process called budding. One gram of yeast contains 20,000,000,000 (twenty billion) single-celled living micro-organisms.
Yeast Facts: It's a single celled living fungus
The yeast consumes sugar and breaths out (defecates) carbon dioxide
As little as two pounds of yeast starter can raise 500 pounds of bread dough.
Yeasts, like most fungi, respire oxygen (aerobic respiration), but in the absence of air they derive energy by fermenting sugars and carbohydrates to produce ethanol and carbon dioxide.
Baking leavened bread became a skill in Egypt, along with their ability to brew beer.
Commercialized and domesticated yeast bread and beer products originated in Egypt. The earliest recorded leavening of bread was in Egypt.
Israel was never to leaven their bread at all.
Exodus 12:20 “Ye shall eat nothing leavened; in all your habitations shall ye eat unleavened bread.”
Exo 13:3 And Moses said unto the people, Remember this day, in which ye came out from Egypt, out of the house of bondage; for by strength of hand the LORD brought you out from this place: there shall no leavened bread be eaten. But contrary to the Lord’s word they took the practice with them from Egypt.
Was manna leavened?
This form of baking (unleavened bread) is healthier-not only for the large number of people who are allergic to yeast, but for all of us. One significant health advantage to yeast-free bread is its value to digestion. While yeasted breads create, over time, an imbalance in our intestinal flora, yeast-free breads help to preserve that balance. And, as it contains strains of lactobacillus-an organism important for the proper digestion of complex carbohydrates-yeast-free bread is easier for our stomachs to break down and utilize.” (French Meadow)
Bread should be light and sweet. Not the least taint of sourness should be tolerated. The loaves should be small and so thoroughly baked that, so far as possible, the yeast germs shall be destroyed. When hot or new, raised bread of any kind is difficult of digestion. It should never appear on the table. This rule does not, however, apply to unleavened bread. Fresh rolls made of wheaten meal without yeast or leaven, and baked in a well-heated oven, are both wholesome and palatable. “Ministry of Healing by E.G. White Pg. 301”Unless the food is prepared in a wholesome, palatable manner, it cannot be converted into good blood, to build up the wasting tissues.--T., V. II, p. 538. {HL 80.3}
The Dreamer: Genesis 37
The butler and the baker: Genesis 40
We will eat our own bread, and wear our own apparel: only let us be called by thy name, to take away our reproach. Isaiah 4:1
Spiritually yeasty: Paul understood the harmful depths of leaven. Consider what he says about being puffed up? Puffed up includes physical as well as mental and spiritual problems that people may have trouble overcoming. 1 Corinthians 4:6, 18, 19; 5:2; 13:4; Col 2:18
Among the more serious of the evils that had developed among the Corinthian believers, was that of a return to many of the debasing customs of heathenism. One former convert had so far backslidden that his licentious course was a violation of even the low standard of morality held by the Gentile world. The apostle pleaded with the church to put away from among them "that wicked person." "Know ye not," he admonished them, "that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump? Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened." {AA 303.2}
Stir up every family, every church, to do the very utmost of their power, every one consecrating himself to God, putting the leaven of evil out of his heart, out of the home, and out of the church. {RH, December 11, 1900 par. 4}
Physically yeasty: Candida, mental fogginess, poor digestion, eyesight and many more
Through the use of alcohol the tissues of the body lose their power of resistance to the noxious bacteria that are continually lying in wait to devour. "How is it that the tissues have lost their power of resistance?-For the simple reason that they have without ceasing, day in and day out, year in and year out, from generation to generation, been deluged with a particular poison, the poisonous excretion of a fungus, the yeast fungus." …Every year gigantic loads of our most valuable food products, various grains, fruits, berries, are sacrificed to provide nourishment for these yeast fungi.{July 17, 1906 EJW, MEDM 19.2}
EJ Waggoner-The Medical Missionary
The last word of science, after exact research in all the domains, is that alcohol is a poison. It has been found to be a hydrocarbon of the formula C 2 H 6 O, that is produced by the process of fermentation, and is the toxin, or liquid excretion or waste product, of the yeast or ferment germ. According to the universal law of biology, that the toxin of one form of life is a poison to all forms of life of a higher order, alcohol, the toxin of the low yeast germ, is a protoplasmic poison to all life, whether plant, animal, or man, and to all the living tissues and organs.
Alcohol Paralyzes the Powers of Resistance.—Nearly all the diseases of mankind and nearly all the deaths hang upon the vitality and vigor of the white blood corpuscles. Under the microscope it was found that even a moderate drink of alcoholic beverage passing quickly into the blood paralyzes the white blood corpuscles. They behave like drunken men. In pursuit they cannot catch the disease germs. In conflict they cannot hold the disease germs for devouring, and they cannot operate in great phalanxes, as they do when sober, against such powerful germs as those of consumption. Every time a man takes a drink of alcoholic beverage, he lays himself open for a time to contracting diseases. Every time a man takes a drink, he puts his life in peril. No wonder the mortality statistics show, as they do, that a total abstainer has nearly twice the security and hold on life that the average drinker has, and about three times the hold of heavy drinkers—Id., p. 3. {1919, R&H, SBBS 197.6}Source Book for Bible Students
Emotionally/mentally yeasty: all emotions that rise: anger, envy, jealousy, sexual, impatience, intolerance
Hypocrisy is like leaven or yeast. Leaven may be hidden in the flour, and its presence is not known until it produces its effect. By insinuating itself, it soon pervades the whole mass. Hypocrisy works secretly, and if indulged, it will fill the mind with pride and vanity. There are deceptions practiced now similar to those practiced by the Pharisees. When the Saviour gave this caution, it was to warn all who believe in Him to be on guard. Watch against imbibing this spirit, and becoming like those who tried to ensnare the Saviour (MS 43, 1896). {5BC 1121.10}
The Communion Service
Galations 5:9 A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump.
On communion day, if you have partaken of a yeast product in the morning or during the week before, your body is not unleavened and is not prepared to partake of the holy bread at the communion table. The leaven has leavened the whole lump. Let the ladies who prepare the symbols of the Lord’s body, make fresh squeezed juice of the grape and truly unleavened bread.
The Lord's supper was instituted at the Passover supper, and the wine used was unfermented, because nothing fermented was allowed in their houses. {1919 SNH, BHB 165.1}
Leaven represents sin and death. We should eat for life.
God never makes fermented wine; that is always a product of the curse. {December 24, 1901 EJW, ARSH 831.12}6
The communion is to be celebrated, as it should be, with the "fruit of the vine," the pure, unfermented grape juice. This, and this only, is fit to be used as an emblem of "the precious blood of Christ," {July 28, 1890 EJW, SITI 426.8}
The Unleavened, Unfermented Mind of Christ
"The bread that I will give is My flesh, which I will give for the life of the world."
"I am that bread of life. Your fathers did eat manna in the wilderness, and are dead. This is the bread which cometh down from heaven, that a man may eat thereof, and not die. I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live forever." John 6:22-71
“For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ.” I Corinthians 2: 16
Fermented Drug Facts
Biotechnology, one of the newest businesses, is based on fermentation. About 200 chemicals are made. Most of the chemicals are antibiotics. The most money is made from antibiotics and other drugs (including supplements).
Food Facts
Rhizopus stolonifer, bread mold, makes a dye called carotene. Cheddar cheese is dyed with carotene to make it orange. Cheese is made from an aging mold process. “Cheese should never be introduced to the stomach.” EG White
Quorn The manufacturer of Quorn is Marlow Foods, a division of the multinational pharmaceutical giant Astra Zeneca, one of the dominant corporations in genetically engineered food. They are telling the public that the food is made from mushrooms. The packaging says the “mycoprotein” in Quorn is “made from natural ingredients” that are “mushroom in origin,” and “made from a small, unassuming member of the mushroom family.” This evokes images of tiny mushrooms growing humbly and peacefully in the Earth.
Actually, though, this is far from the case. Quorn, in fact, is a highly processed food made in giant laboratory vats from a fungus (Fusarium venenatum) which is a mold, not a mushroom. An expert on Fusarium fungus, David M. Geiser of the Pennsylvania State University Fusarium Research Center, told the FDA that calling the Fusarium fungus that is the basis of Quorn foods a mushroom is like “calling a rat a chicken because both are animals.”
Cheese making processes are usually referred to as "mold-ripened." This demonstrate how
we can change the meaning of a process to sound more favorable when fungi are carrying out a process which benefits us. Normally, when we see fungi growing on our food, we say that it is "rotted." This latter process is actually what is occurring in mold-ripened cheeses!
Soy sauce is probably the most familiar Asian food product in this country, but probably few people know how it is made. All of you probably are aware that it is made from soybeans. The soybeans are cooked mixed with wheat flour, pressed into cakes, and placed in a special room where it is inoculated with Aspergillus oryzae (the same species used in making saki). The mixture is then incubated for three days. If all goes well the cakes will become covered with yellow mycelial growth. The molded cake is referred to as Koji, which is a fermentation product of grains. The koji is now mixed with salt and water and is now referred to as the Moromi. The moromi is then inoculated with a bacterium, Peiococcus soyae, which will ferment the mixture for approximately 6 months. The aged liquid which is pressed out is the soy sauce. Because it is a fermentation product, soy sauce does not spoil when left out.
Tempeh is one product that has gained some degree of popularity in the United States. It is a food product made from the fermented products of usually legume seeds with Rhizopus oligosporus. The principal steps in its preparation are the removal of the seed coat so that the fungus can reach the nutritional cotyledons underneath. The beans are then soaked in water, boiled or steamed until nearly cooked. The beans are then drained and cooled. The cooled beans are then ready for inoculation with R. oligosporus. The inoculation of the fungus into the boiled beans digests the complex carbohydrates and other organic compounds that may cause gas.
Miso is a Japanese word for fermented soybean paste. Miso is not usually consumed by itself, but is dissolved in water as a base for soup or used as a flavoring agent. Miso fermentation consists of washed, polished rice, which is steamed and inoculated with Aspergillus oryzae. The inoculated rice is incubated for 48 to 50 hours at 40 C or below, resulting in rice koji. The carbohydrates and proteins of the inoculated rice are digested by the fungus and converts it to sugars and amino acids. The rice koji is then inoculated by yeasts and bacteria and allowed to ferment for about a week at 28 C and then raised to 35 C for about seven months.
Yeast Flakes: Nutritional Yeast Flakes are produced from a selected strain of Saccharomyces and then vitamin B12 is added (attached) to the yeast to make a supposed healthy food flavoring. Vitamin B12 is harvested from bacteria grown in sewer sludge. To keep the B12 stabilized for consumption, it must be attached to another form of bacteria, Yeast!
Vinegar is double fermented. Vinegar is a liquid substance consisting mainly of acetic acid and water, the acetic acid being produced through the fermentation of ethanolby acetic acid bacteria.[1] Commercial vinegar is produced either by fast or slow fermentation processes. Slow methods generally are used with traditional vinegars, and fermentation proceeds slowly over the course of weeks or months. The longer fermentation period allows for the accumulation of a nontoxic slime composed of acetic acid bacteria.
He shall separate himself from wine and strong drink, and shall drink no vinegar of wine, or vinegar of strong drink, neither shall he drink any liquor of grapes, nor eat moist grapes, or dried. Numbers 6:3Apple cider vinegar, otherwise known simply as cider vinegar, is made from cider or apple must, and has a brownish-yellow color. It often is sold unfiltered and unpasteurized with the mother of vinegar present. Because of its acidity, apple cider vinegar may be very harsh, even burning, to the throat. Like vinegar, it is also double fermented.
Balsamic vinegar sold in supermarkets is typically made with concentrated grape juice mixed with a strong vinegar, which is laced with caramel and sugar. Regardless of how it is produced, balsamic vinegar must be made from a grape product. Balsamic vinegar has a high acidity level, but the tart flavor is usually hidden by the sweetness of the other ingredients, making it very mellow.
Kombucha is an effervescent tea-based beverage that is often drunk for its anecdotal health benefits or medicinal purposes. Kombucha is available commercially and can be made at home by fermenting tea using a visible, solid mass of yeast and bacteria which forms the kombucha culture, often referred to as 酵母 (lit. "yeast mother").
Mushrooms are a fungus that live on dead and decaying material. A mushroom rises much like a boil. The mushroom comes up and releases carbon dioxide back into the air. Mushrooms should never be eaten and some are deadly.
Sugar is not good for the stomach. It causes fermentation, and this clouds the brain and brings peevishness (an irritable petulant feeling) into the disposition. {CD 327.1}
Wise Counsel Many are made sick by the indulgence of their appetite. . . . So many varieties are introduced into the stomach that fermentation is the result. This condition brings on acute disease, and death frequently follows. {CD 110.3}
I consider that one reason why I have been able to do so much work both in speaking and in writing, is because I am strictly temperate in my eating. If several varieties of food are placed before me, I endeavor to choose only those that I know will agree. Thus I am enabled to preserve clear mental faculties. I refuse to place in my stomach knowingly anything that will set up fermentation. This is the duty of all health reformers. We must reason from cause to effect. It is our duty to be temperate in all things. {CD 493.3}
Hot biscuit raised with soda or baking-powder should never appear upon our tables. Such compounds are unfit to enter the stomach.--R. and H., 1883, No. 19. {HL 81.1}
Saleratus (sodium bicarbonate-baking soda) in any form should not be introduced into the stomach; for the effect is fearful. It eats the coatings of the stomach, causes inflammation, and frequently poisons the entire system. Some plead, "I cannot make good bread and gems unless I use soda or saleratus." You surely can if you will learn. Is not the health of your family of sufficient value to inspire you with ambition to learn how to cook and how to eat?--T., V. II, p. 537. Variety. {HL 81.2}
Hot raised bread of any kind is difficult of digestion.--R. and H., 1883, No. 19. {HL 80.6}
Some use milk and a large amount of sugar on mush, thinking that they are carrying out health reform. But the sugar and the milk combined are liable to cause fermentation in the stomach, and are thus harmful. {TSDF 17.15}
The wine created by Christ at the marriage feast in Galilee was the best wine that those present had ever tasted. But it was entirely free from all fermentation. Christ Himself had forbidden the use of fermented drink, saying, "Do not drink wine nor strong drink, thou, nor thy sons with thee, when ye go into the tabernacle of the congregation, lest ye die; it shall be a statute forever throughout your generations; and that ye may put difference between holy and unholy, and between clean and unclean, and that ye may teach the children of Israel all the statutes which the Lord hath spoken unto them by the hand of Moses."{BEcho,September 4, 1899 par 1}
Fermented liquor confuses the senses and perverts the powers of the being. God is dishonoured when men have not sufficient respect for themselves to practice strict temperance. Fermented wine is not a natural production. The Lord never made it, and with its production He has nothing to do. Paul advised Timothy to take a little wine for his stomach's sake and oft infirmities, but he meant the unfermented juice of the grape. He did not advise Timothy to take what the Lord had prohibited. {BEcho, September 4, 1899 par.2}
The use of fermented wine caused Nadab and Abihu to confuse the sacred and the common, and death was their penalty. After this, severe restrictions were placed on those connected with the sacred service. They were prohibited, when they came before the Lord, from touching wine or using grapes in any way, that they might avoid the result of becoming familiar with fermented liquor. When food or drink which bewilders the brain is placed in the mouth, the destroyer sees his opportunity to enter and dethrone the reason. {BEcho, September 4, 1899 par. 3}
Some foods do not agree with other foods. A disturbance is created by improper combinations of food, fermentation sets in, the blood is contaminated, and the brain is confused. {PUR, October 9, 1902 par. 2}
The salads are prepared with oil and vinegar, fermentation takes place in the stomach, and the food does not digest, but decays or putrefies. As a consequence the blood is not nourished, but becomes filled with impurities, and liver and kidney difficulty appear. Heart disturbances, inflammation, and many evils are the result of such kind of treatment, and not only are the bodies affected, but the morals, the religious life, are affected. {2MR 143.3}
Fermented Wine. Fermentation is a sign of death, and death is the result of sin. Alcohol is formed by a process of fermentation; hence, it is a direct child of death and sin.
Prov. 20:1. The wine here referred to is fermented; because it is a "mocker" and "deceiver" its character is evil.
Prov. 23:20, 21. This is also fermented wine; for it is evil and is classed with the "riotous" and the "drunkards."
Gen. 9:21. Fermented wine causes one to lose all sense of modesty.
Isa. 5:11. The evil nature of the wine here referred to is revealed in its inflaming the passions.
Isa. 28:7. Fermented wine causes the one who drinks it to err in vision and stumble in judgment.
Prov. 31:4, 5. It will cause one to forget the law and pervert judgment.
Prov. 23:21. The use of it brings poverty.
Prov. 23:29, 30. It brings sorrow and contention.
Eph. 5:18. The use of fermented wine forbidden.
Prov. 23:31. We are forbidden to even look upon this kind of wine.
1 Cor. 6:10. No one addicted to the use of intoxicating wine can enter heaven.
Some Yeasty Foods to avoid:
Breads, rolls, cookies, pastries, pretzels, doughnuts and other bready foods
Vinegar, and foods which contain it, like salsas, mayonnaise, salad dressing, barbecue sauce,
mustard, pickles and pickled foods.
Wine, beer and spirits
Fermented foods and beverages like sauerkraut or cider
Sugar
Milk
Moldy Foods:
All cheese
Dried, smoked or pickled meats
Cured bacon
Mushrooms, peanuts, and pistachios
Soy sauce, miso, tamari, and tempeh
Malt
Pre-packaged herbs and teas
Canned tomatoe
Yeast Removal
In the evening, drink the following mixture:
1 cup water blended with 2 cloves of garlic and 1 medium sized onion.
In the morning drink a glass of water mixed with 2 tbsps of charcoal. Determine that you will eat no more yeasty foods.
In the evening make a garlic water which is prepared with a cup of water and 1-2 cloves of minced garlic added. Let stand for about 10 minutes and then drink the water only.
Continue drinking the charcoal water in the morning and the garlic water in the evening for three days. You will only do the onion and garlic mixture one time
Facts about Food Chains
This section contains a brief description of the food chains and food webs in an ecosystem.
Introduction
In an ecosystem, plants capture the sun's energy and use it to convert inorganic compounds into energy-rich organic compounds1. This process of using the sun's energy to convert minerals (such as magnesium or nitrogen) in the soil into green leaves, or carrots, or strawberries, is called photosynthesis.
Photosynthesis is only the beginning of a chain of energy conversions. There are many types of animals that will eat the products of the photosynthesis process. Examples are deer eating shrub leaves, rabbits eating carrots, or worms eating grass. When these animals eat these plant products, food energy and organic compounds are transferred from the plants to the animals. These animals are in turn eaten by other animals, again transferring energy and organic compounds from one animal to another. Examples would be lions eating deer, foxes eating rabbits, or birds eating worms.
This chain of energy transferring from one species to another can continue several more times, but it eventually ends. It ends with the dead animals that are broken down and used as food or nutrition by bacteria and fungi. As these organisms, referred to as decomposers, feed from the dead animals, they break down the complex organic compounds into simple nutrients. Decomposers play a very important role in this world because they take care of breaking down (cleaning) many dead material. There are more than 100,000 different types of decomposer organisms! These simpler nutrients are returned to the soil and can be used again by the plants. The energy transformation chain starts all over again.
Here is a figure showing one such food and energy chain:
Names and word definitions
Producers. Organisms, such as plants, that produce their own food are called autotrophs. The autotrophs, as mentioned before, convert inorganic compounds into organic compounds. They are called producers because all of the species of the ecosystem depend on them.
Consumers. All the organisms that can not make their own food (and need producers) are called heterotrophs. In an ecosystem heterotrophs are called consumers because they depend on others. They obtain food by eating other organisms. There are different levels of consumers. Those that feed directly from producers, i.e. organisms that eat plant or plant products are called primary consumers. In the figure above the grasshopper is a primary consumer.
Organisms that feed on primary consumers are called secondary consumers. Those who feed on secondary consumers are tertiary consumers. In the figure above the snake acts as a secondary consumer and the hawk as a tertiary consumer. Some organisms, like the squirrel are at different levels. When the squirrel eats acorns or fruits (which are plant product), it is a primary consumer; however, when it eats insects or nestling birds, is it is a tertiary consumer.
Consumers are also classified depending on what they eat.
Herbivores are those that eat only plants or plant products. Example are grasshoppers, mice, rabbits, deer, beavers, moose, cows, sheep, goats and groundhogs.
Carnivores, on the other hand, are those that eat only other animals. Examples of carnivores are foxes, frogs, snakes, hawks, and spiders.
Omnivores are the last type and eat both plants (acting a primary consumers) and meat (acting as secondary or tertiary consumers). Examples of omnivores are:
1. Bears --They eat insects, fish, moose, elk, deer, sheep as well as honey, grass, and sedges. 2. Turtles -- They eat snails, crayfish, crickets, earthworms, but also lettuce, small plants, and algae.
3. Monkeys -- They eat frogs and lizards as well as fruits, flowers, and leaves.
4. Squirrels -- They eat insects, moths, bird eggs and nestling birds and also seeds, fruits, acorns, and nuts.
Trophic level. The last word that is worth mentioning in this section is trophic level, which corresponds to the different levels or steps in the food chain. In other words, the producers, the consumers, and the decomposers are the main trophic levels.
Food Webs
In looking at the previous picture, the concept of food chain looks very simple, but in reality it is more complex. Think about it. How many different animals eat grass? And from the Facts about Red-tailed Hawks page, how many different foods does the hawk eat? One doesn't find simple independent food chains in an ecosystem, but many interdependent and complex food chains that look more like a web and are therefore called food webs. A food web that shows the energy transformations in an ecosystem looks like this:
As you can see from this picture, food webs, with all their dependencies, can be very complex, but somehow nature balances things out so that food webs last a long time. Many species share the same habitat, their populations survive for many years, and they all live happily together.
The Ecological Pyramid
We described in the previous sections how energy and organic compounds are passed from one trophic level to the next. What was not mentioned is the efficiency of the transfer. In a highly efficient transfer almost all of the energy would be transferred -- 80% or more. In a low efficiency transfer very little energy would be transferred -- less than 20%. In a typical food chain, not all animals or plants are eaten by the next trophic level. In addition, there are portions or materials (such as beaks, shells, bones, etc.) that are also not eaten. That is why the transfer of matter and energy from one trophic level to the next is not an efficient one.
One way to calculate the energy transfer is by measuring or sizing the energy at one trophic level and then at the next. Calorie is a unit of measure used for energy. The energy transfer from one trophic level to the next is about 10%. For example, if there are 10,000 calories at one level, only 1,000 are transferred to the next. This 10% energy and material transfer rule can be depicted with an ecological pyramid that looks like this:
This pyramid helps one visualize the fact that in an ecological system there need to be many producing organisms at the bottom of the pyramid to be able to sustain just a couple of organisms at the top. In looking at the pyramid, can you guess how much larger the volume of each layer is as compared to the one just above it? Take a guess. It might not look like it but they are close to 10 times larger.
Final comments
Oaks rate a position at or very near the top of the wildlife food chain (or bottom of the ecological pyramid). They are the "staff of life" for many wild life species. The greatest food value comes from the acorn, especially during the winter season when other foods are scarce.
Squirrels, which are omnivores, are neither at the bottom or the top of the food chain. Since the feed from producers as well as primary consumers, one could say that they occupy two layers in the pyramid.
Hawks, which are mature birds of prey, are at the top of the their food chain and of the ecological pyramid.
Who hath woe? who hath sorrow? who hath contentions? who hath babbling? who hath wounds without cause? who hath redness of eyes? They that tarry long at the wine; they that go to seek mixed wine. Look not thou upon the wine when it is red, when it giveth his colour in the cup, when it moveth itself aright. Proverbs 23:29-31. The fermentation of wine is initiated by naturally occurring yeasts present in the vineyards. Alcohol is a colorless liquid, produced by the fermentation of sugar or starch, that is the intoxicating agent in fermented drinks and is used as a solvent. The alcohol that is produced from fermentation is called ethanol or ethyl alcohol. Wine is fermented, producing yeast and the top fermenting yeast is harvested to be used in bread making and the barm for beer making. Ever notice how a yeast roll spells like beer? Under optimal conditions the yeast can produce up to 18 percent, by volume, of ethanol with 15 to 16 percent being the norm.
Alcohol fermentation is the formation of alcohol from sugar. Yeast, when under anaerobic conditions, convert glucose to pyruvic acid via the glycolysis pathways, then go one step farther, converting pyruvic acid into ethanol (ethyl alcohol), a C-2 compound.
The adverse affects of the ethanol in beer and wine on the human nervous system are something with which many college students are familiar (sometimes too familiar?), and it is the CO2 produced by the process of fermentation that makes these beverages effervescent. Interestingly, since beer and bread contain pretty-much the same ingredients: yeast, sugar, and grains, in the past, beer has been referred to as “liquid bread.”
So what is yeast?
Yeast are simple, single cell fungi. The most common forms of yeast -- baker's and brewer's yeast -- are strains of the species Saccharomyces Cerevisiae. "Saccharomyces" derives from Latinized Greek and means "sugar mold" or "sugar fungus", saccharo- being the combining form "sugar-" and myces being "fungus". Cerevisiae comes from Latin and means "of beer".
Yeast microbes are probably one of the earliest domesticated organisms. People have used yeast for fermentation and baking throughout history. Archaeologists digging in Egyptian ruins found early grinding stones and baking chambers for yeasted bread, as well as drawings of 4,000-year-old bakeries and breweries. Yeast multiplies by a speedy process called budding. One gram of yeast contains 20,000,000,000 (twenty billion) single-celled living micro-organisms.
Yeast Facts: It's a single celled living fungus
The yeast consumes sugar and breaths out (defecates) carbon dioxide
As little as two pounds of yeast starter can raise 500 pounds of bread dough.
Yeasts, like most fungi, respire oxygen (aerobic respiration), but in the absence of air they derive energy by fermenting sugars and carbohydrates to produce ethanol and carbon dioxide.
Baking leavened bread became a skill in Egypt, along with their ability to brew beer.
Commercialized and domesticated yeast bread and beer products originated in Egypt. The earliest recorded leavening of bread was in Egypt.
Israel was never to leaven their bread at all.
Exodus 12:20 “Ye shall eat nothing leavened; in all your habitations shall ye eat unleavened bread.”
Exo 13:3 And Moses said unto the people, Remember this day, in which ye came out from Egypt, out of the house of bondage; for by strength of hand the LORD brought you out from this place: there shall no leavened bread be eaten. But contrary to the Lord’s word they took the practice with them from Egypt.
Was manna leavened?
This form of baking (unleavened bread) is healthier-not only for the large number of people who are allergic to yeast, but for all of us. One significant health advantage to yeast-free bread is its value to digestion. While yeasted breads create, over time, an imbalance in our intestinal flora, yeast-free breads help to preserve that balance. And, as it contains strains of lactobacillus-an organism important for the proper digestion of complex carbohydrates-yeast-free bread is easier for our stomachs to break down and utilize.” (French Meadow)
Bread should be light and sweet. Not the least taint of sourness should be tolerated. The loaves should be small and so thoroughly baked that, so far as possible, the yeast germs shall be destroyed. When hot or new, raised bread of any kind is difficult of digestion. It should never appear on the table. This rule does not, however, apply to unleavened bread. Fresh rolls made of wheaten meal without yeast or leaven, and baked in a well-heated oven, are both wholesome and palatable. “Ministry of Healing by E.G. White Pg. 301”Unless the food is prepared in a wholesome, palatable manner, it cannot be converted into good blood, to build up the wasting tissues.--T., V. II, p. 538. {HL 80.3}
The Dreamer: Genesis 37
The butler and the baker: Genesis 40
We will eat our own bread, and wear our own apparel: only let us be called by thy name, to take away our reproach. Isaiah 4:1
Spiritually yeasty: Paul understood the harmful depths of leaven. Consider what he says about being puffed up? Puffed up includes physical as well as mental and spiritual problems that people may have trouble overcoming. 1 Corinthians 4:6, 18, 19; 5:2; 13:4; Col 2:18
Among the more serious of the evils that had developed among the Corinthian believers, was that of a return to many of the debasing customs of heathenism. One former convert had so far backslidden that his licentious course was a violation of even the low standard of morality held by the Gentile world. The apostle pleaded with the church to put away from among them "that wicked person." "Know ye not," he admonished them, "that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump? Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened." {AA 303.2}
Stir up every family, every church, to do the very utmost of their power, every one consecrating himself to God, putting the leaven of evil out of his heart, out of the home, and out of the church. {RH, December 11, 1900 par. 4}
Physically yeasty: Candida, mental fogginess, poor digestion, eyesight and many more
Through the use of alcohol the tissues of the body lose their power of resistance to the noxious bacteria that are continually lying in wait to devour. "How is it that the tissues have lost their power of resistance?-For the simple reason that they have without ceasing, day in and day out, year in and year out, from generation to generation, been deluged with a particular poison, the poisonous excretion of a fungus, the yeast fungus." …Every year gigantic loads of our most valuable food products, various grains, fruits, berries, are sacrificed to provide nourishment for these yeast fungi.{July 17, 1906 EJW, MEDM 19.2}
EJ Waggoner-The Medical Missionary
The last word of science, after exact research in all the domains, is that alcohol is a poison. It has been found to be a hydrocarbon of the formula C 2 H 6 O, that is produced by the process of fermentation, and is the toxin, or liquid excretion or waste product, of the yeast or ferment germ. According to the universal law of biology, that the toxin of one form of life is a poison to all forms of life of a higher order, alcohol, the toxin of the low yeast germ, is a protoplasmic poison to all life, whether plant, animal, or man, and to all the living tissues and organs.
Alcohol Paralyzes the Powers of Resistance.—Nearly all the diseases of mankind and nearly all the deaths hang upon the vitality and vigor of the white blood corpuscles. Under the microscope it was found that even a moderate drink of alcoholic beverage passing quickly into the blood paralyzes the white blood corpuscles. They behave like drunken men. In pursuit they cannot catch the disease germs. In conflict they cannot hold the disease germs for devouring, and they cannot operate in great phalanxes, as they do when sober, against such powerful germs as those of consumption. Every time a man takes a drink of alcoholic beverage, he lays himself open for a time to contracting diseases. Every time a man takes a drink, he puts his life in peril. No wonder the mortality statistics show, as they do, that a total abstainer has nearly twice the security and hold on life that the average drinker has, and about three times the hold of heavy drinkers—Id., p. 3. {1919, R&H, SBBS 197.6}Source Book for Bible Students
Emotionally/mentally yeasty: all emotions that rise: anger, envy, jealousy, sexual, impatience, intolerance
Hypocrisy is like leaven or yeast. Leaven may be hidden in the flour, and its presence is not known until it produces its effect. By insinuating itself, it soon pervades the whole mass. Hypocrisy works secretly, and if indulged, it will fill the mind with pride and vanity. There are deceptions practiced now similar to those practiced by the Pharisees. When the Saviour gave this caution, it was to warn all who believe in Him to be on guard. Watch against imbibing this spirit, and becoming like those who tried to ensnare the Saviour (MS 43, 1896). {5BC 1121.10}
The Communion Service
Galations 5:9 A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump.
On communion day, if you have partaken of a yeast product in the morning or during the week before, your body is not unleavened and is not prepared to partake of the holy bread at the communion table. The leaven has leavened the whole lump. Let the ladies who prepare the symbols of the Lord’s body, make fresh squeezed juice of the grape and truly unleavened bread.
The Lord's supper was instituted at the Passover supper, and the wine used was unfermented, because nothing fermented was allowed in their houses. {1919 SNH, BHB 165.1}
Leaven represents sin and death. We should eat for life.
God never makes fermented wine; that is always a product of the curse. {December 24, 1901 EJW, ARSH 831.12}6
The communion is to be celebrated, as it should be, with the "fruit of the vine," the pure, unfermented grape juice. This, and this only, is fit to be used as an emblem of "the precious blood of Christ," {July 28, 1890 EJW, SITI 426.8}
The Unleavened, Unfermented Mind of Christ
"The bread that I will give is My flesh, which I will give for the life of the world."
"I am that bread of life. Your fathers did eat manna in the wilderness, and are dead. This is the bread which cometh down from heaven, that a man may eat thereof, and not die. I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live forever." John 6:22-71
“For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ.” I Corinthians 2: 16
Fermented Drug Facts
Biotechnology, one of the newest businesses, is based on fermentation. About 200 chemicals are made. Most of the chemicals are antibiotics. The most money is made from antibiotics and other drugs (including supplements).
Food Facts
Rhizopus stolonifer, bread mold, makes a dye called carotene. Cheddar cheese is dyed with carotene to make it orange. Cheese is made from an aging mold process. “Cheese should never be introduced to the stomach.” EG White
Quorn The manufacturer of Quorn is Marlow Foods, a division of the multinational pharmaceutical giant Astra Zeneca, one of the dominant corporations in genetically engineered food. They are telling the public that the food is made from mushrooms. The packaging says the “mycoprotein” in Quorn is “made from natural ingredients” that are “mushroom in origin,” and “made from a small, unassuming member of the mushroom family.” This evokes images of tiny mushrooms growing humbly and peacefully in the Earth.
Actually, though, this is far from the case. Quorn, in fact, is a highly processed food made in giant laboratory vats from a fungus (Fusarium venenatum) which is a mold, not a mushroom. An expert on Fusarium fungus, David M. Geiser of the Pennsylvania State University Fusarium Research Center, told the FDA that calling the Fusarium fungus that is the basis of Quorn foods a mushroom is like “calling a rat a chicken because both are animals.”
Cheese making processes are usually referred to as "mold-ripened." This demonstrate how
we can change the meaning of a process to sound more favorable when fungi are carrying out a process which benefits us. Normally, when we see fungi growing on our food, we say that it is "rotted." This latter process is actually what is occurring in mold-ripened cheeses!
Soy sauce is probably the most familiar Asian food product in this country, but probably few people know how it is made. All of you probably are aware that it is made from soybeans. The soybeans are cooked mixed with wheat flour, pressed into cakes, and placed in a special room where it is inoculated with Aspergillus oryzae (the same species used in making saki). The mixture is then incubated for three days. If all goes well the cakes will become covered with yellow mycelial growth. The molded cake is referred to as Koji, which is a fermentation product of grains. The koji is now mixed with salt and water and is now referred to as the Moromi. The moromi is then inoculated with a bacterium, Peiococcus soyae, which will ferment the mixture for approximately 6 months. The aged liquid which is pressed out is the soy sauce. Because it is a fermentation product, soy sauce does not spoil when left out.
Tempeh is one product that has gained some degree of popularity in the United States. It is a food product made from the fermented products of usually legume seeds with Rhizopus oligosporus. The principal steps in its preparation are the removal of the seed coat so that the fungus can reach the nutritional cotyledons underneath. The beans are then soaked in water, boiled or steamed until nearly cooked. The beans are then drained and cooled. The cooled beans are then ready for inoculation with R. oligosporus. The inoculation of the fungus into the boiled beans digests the complex carbohydrates and other organic compounds that may cause gas.
Miso is a Japanese word for fermented soybean paste. Miso is not usually consumed by itself, but is dissolved in water as a base for soup or used as a flavoring agent. Miso fermentation consists of washed, polished rice, which is steamed and inoculated with Aspergillus oryzae. The inoculated rice is incubated for 48 to 50 hours at 40 C or below, resulting in rice koji. The carbohydrates and proteins of the inoculated rice are digested by the fungus and converts it to sugars and amino acids. The rice koji is then inoculated by yeasts and bacteria and allowed to ferment for about a week at 28 C and then raised to 35 C for about seven months.
Yeast Flakes: Nutritional Yeast Flakes are produced from a selected strain of Saccharomyces and then vitamin B12 is added (attached) to the yeast to make a supposed healthy food flavoring. Vitamin B12 is harvested from bacteria grown in sewer sludge. To keep the B12 stabilized for consumption, it must be attached to another form of bacteria, Yeast!
Vinegar is double fermented. Vinegar is a liquid substance consisting mainly of acetic acid and water, the acetic acid being produced through the fermentation of ethanolby acetic acid bacteria.[1] Commercial vinegar is produced either by fast or slow fermentation processes. Slow methods generally are used with traditional vinegars, and fermentation proceeds slowly over the course of weeks or months. The longer fermentation period allows for the accumulation of a nontoxic slime composed of acetic acid bacteria.
He shall separate himself from wine and strong drink, and shall drink no vinegar of wine, or vinegar of strong drink, neither shall he drink any liquor of grapes, nor eat moist grapes, or dried. Numbers 6:3Apple cider vinegar, otherwise known simply as cider vinegar, is made from cider or apple must, and has a brownish-yellow color. It often is sold unfiltered and unpasteurized with the mother of vinegar present. Because of its acidity, apple cider vinegar may be very harsh, even burning, to the throat. Like vinegar, it is also double fermented.
Balsamic vinegar sold in supermarkets is typically made with concentrated grape juice mixed with a strong vinegar, which is laced with caramel and sugar. Regardless of how it is produced, balsamic vinegar must be made from a grape product. Balsamic vinegar has a high acidity level, but the tart flavor is usually hidden by the sweetness of the other ingredients, making it very mellow.
Kombucha is an effervescent tea-based beverage that is often drunk for its anecdotal health benefits or medicinal purposes. Kombucha is available commercially and can be made at home by fermenting tea using a visible, solid mass of yeast and bacteria which forms the kombucha culture, often referred to as 酵母 (lit. "yeast mother").
Mushrooms are a fungus that live on dead and decaying material. A mushroom rises much like a boil. The mushroom comes up and releases carbon dioxide back into the air. Mushrooms should never be eaten and some are deadly.
Sugar is not good for the stomach. It causes fermentation, and this clouds the brain and brings peevishness (an irritable petulant feeling) into the disposition. {CD 327.1}
Wise Counsel Many are made sick by the indulgence of their appetite. . . . So many varieties are introduced into the stomach that fermentation is the result. This condition brings on acute disease, and death frequently follows. {CD 110.3}
I consider that one reason why I have been able to do so much work both in speaking and in writing, is because I am strictly temperate in my eating. If several varieties of food are placed before me, I endeavor to choose only those that I know will agree. Thus I am enabled to preserve clear mental faculties. I refuse to place in my stomach knowingly anything that will set up fermentation. This is the duty of all health reformers. We must reason from cause to effect. It is our duty to be temperate in all things. {CD 493.3}
Hot biscuit raised with soda or baking-powder should never appear upon our tables. Such compounds are unfit to enter the stomach.--R. and H., 1883, No. 19. {HL 81.1}
Saleratus (sodium bicarbonate-baking soda) in any form should not be introduced into the stomach; for the effect is fearful. It eats the coatings of the stomach, causes inflammation, and frequently poisons the entire system. Some plead, "I cannot make good bread and gems unless I use soda or saleratus." You surely can if you will learn. Is not the health of your family of sufficient value to inspire you with ambition to learn how to cook and how to eat?--T., V. II, p. 537. Variety. {HL 81.2}
Hot raised bread of any kind is difficult of digestion.--R. and H., 1883, No. 19. {HL 80.6}
Some use milk and a large amount of sugar on mush, thinking that they are carrying out health reform. But the sugar and the milk combined are liable to cause fermentation in the stomach, and are thus harmful. {TSDF 17.15}
The wine created by Christ at the marriage feast in Galilee was the best wine that those present had ever tasted. But it was entirely free from all fermentation. Christ Himself had forbidden the use of fermented drink, saying, "Do not drink wine nor strong drink, thou, nor thy sons with thee, when ye go into the tabernacle of the congregation, lest ye die; it shall be a statute forever throughout your generations; and that ye may put difference between holy and unholy, and between clean and unclean, and that ye may teach the children of Israel all the statutes which the Lord hath spoken unto them by the hand of Moses."{BEcho,September 4, 1899 par 1}
Fermented liquor confuses the senses and perverts the powers of the being. God is dishonoured when men have not sufficient respect for themselves to practice strict temperance. Fermented wine is not a natural production. The Lord never made it, and with its production He has nothing to do. Paul advised Timothy to take a little wine for his stomach's sake and oft infirmities, but he meant the unfermented juice of the grape. He did not advise Timothy to take what the Lord had prohibited. {BEcho, September 4, 1899 par.2}
The use of fermented wine caused Nadab and Abihu to confuse the sacred and the common, and death was their penalty. After this, severe restrictions were placed on those connected with the sacred service. They were prohibited, when they came before the Lord, from touching wine or using grapes in any way, that they might avoid the result of becoming familiar with fermented liquor. When food or drink which bewilders the brain is placed in the mouth, the destroyer sees his opportunity to enter and dethrone the reason. {BEcho, September 4, 1899 par. 3}
Some foods do not agree with other foods. A disturbance is created by improper combinations of food, fermentation sets in, the blood is contaminated, and the brain is confused. {PUR, October 9, 1902 par. 2}
The salads are prepared with oil and vinegar, fermentation takes place in the stomach, and the food does not digest, but decays or putrefies. As a consequence the blood is not nourished, but becomes filled with impurities, and liver and kidney difficulty appear. Heart disturbances, inflammation, and many evils are the result of such kind of treatment, and not only are the bodies affected, but the morals, the religious life, are affected. {2MR 143.3}
Fermented Wine. Fermentation is a sign of death, and death is the result of sin. Alcohol is formed by a process of fermentation; hence, it is a direct child of death and sin.
Prov. 20:1. The wine here referred to is fermented; because it is a "mocker" and "deceiver" its character is evil.
Prov. 23:20, 21. This is also fermented wine; for it is evil and is classed with the "riotous" and the "drunkards."
Gen. 9:21. Fermented wine causes one to lose all sense of modesty.
Isa. 5:11. The evil nature of the wine here referred to is revealed in its inflaming the passions.
Isa. 28:7. Fermented wine causes the one who drinks it to err in vision and stumble in judgment.
Prov. 31:4, 5. It will cause one to forget the law and pervert judgment.
Prov. 23:21. The use of it brings poverty.
Prov. 23:29, 30. It brings sorrow and contention.
Eph. 5:18. The use of fermented wine forbidden.
Prov. 23:31. We are forbidden to even look upon this kind of wine.
1 Cor. 6:10. No one addicted to the use of intoxicating wine can enter heaven.
Some Yeasty Foods to avoid:
Breads, rolls, cookies, pastries, pretzels, doughnuts and other bready foods
Vinegar, and foods which contain it, like salsas, mayonnaise, salad dressing, barbecue sauce,
mustard, pickles and pickled foods.
Wine, beer and spirits
Fermented foods and beverages like sauerkraut or cider
Sugar
Milk
Moldy Foods:
All cheese
Dried, smoked or pickled meats
Cured bacon
Mushrooms, peanuts, and pistachios
Soy sauce, miso, tamari, and tempeh
Malt
Pre-packaged herbs and teas
Canned tomatoe
Yeast Removal
In the evening, drink the following mixture:
1 cup water blended with 2 cloves of garlic and 1 medium sized onion.
In the morning drink a glass of water mixed with 2 tbsps of charcoal. Determine that you will eat no more yeasty foods.
In the evening make a garlic water which is prepared with a cup of water and 1-2 cloves of minced garlic added. Let stand for about 10 minutes and then drink the water only.
Continue drinking the charcoal water in the morning and the garlic water in the evening for three days. You will only do the onion and garlic mixture one time
Facts about Food Chains
This section contains a brief description of the food chains and food webs in an ecosystem.
Introduction
In an ecosystem, plants capture the sun's energy and use it to convert inorganic compounds into energy-rich organic compounds1. This process of using the sun's energy to convert minerals (such as magnesium or nitrogen) in the soil into green leaves, or carrots, or strawberries, is called photosynthesis.
Photosynthesis is only the beginning of a chain of energy conversions. There are many types of animals that will eat the products of the photosynthesis process. Examples are deer eating shrub leaves, rabbits eating carrots, or worms eating grass. When these animals eat these plant products, food energy and organic compounds are transferred from the plants to the animals. These animals are in turn eaten by other animals, again transferring energy and organic compounds from one animal to another. Examples would be lions eating deer, foxes eating rabbits, or birds eating worms.
This chain of energy transferring from one species to another can continue several more times, but it eventually ends. It ends with the dead animals that are broken down and used as food or nutrition by bacteria and fungi. As these organisms, referred to as decomposers, feed from the dead animals, they break down the complex organic compounds into simple nutrients. Decomposers play a very important role in this world because they take care of breaking down (cleaning) many dead material. There are more than 100,000 different types of decomposer organisms! These simpler nutrients are returned to the soil and can be used again by the plants. The energy transformation chain starts all over again.
Here is a figure showing one such food and energy chain:
Names and word definitions
Producers. Organisms, such as plants, that produce their own food are called autotrophs. The autotrophs, as mentioned before, convert inorganic compounds into organic compounds. They are called producers because all of the species of the ecosystem depend on them.
Consumers. All the organisms that can not make their own food (and need producers) are called heterotrophs. In an ecosystem heterotrophs are called consumers because they depend on others. They obtain food by eating other organisms. There are different levels of consumers. Those that feed directly from producers, i.e. organisms that eat plant or plant products are called primary consumers. In the figure above the grasshopper is a primary consumer.
Organisms that feed on primary consumers are called secondary consumers. Those who feed on secondary consumers are tertiary consumers. In the figure above the snake acts as a secondary consumer and the hawk as a tertiary consumer. Some organisms, like the squirrel are at different levels. When the squirrel eats acorns or fruits (which are plant product), it is a primary consumer; however, when it eats insects or nestling birds, is it is a tertiary consumer.
Consumers are also classified depending on what they eat.
Herbivores are those that eat only plants or plant products. Example are grasshoppers, mice, rabbits, deer, beavers, moose, cows, sheep, goats and groundhogs.
Carnivores, on the other hand, are those that eat only other animals. Examples of carnivores are foxes, frogs, snakes, hawks, and spiders.
Omnivores are the last type and eat both plants (acting a primary consumers) and meat (acting as secondary or tertiary consumers). Examples of omnivores are:
1. Bears --They eat insects, fish, moose, elk, deer, sheep as well as honey, grass, and sedges. 2. Turtles -- They eat snails, crayfish, crickets, earthworms, but also lettuce, small plants, and algae.
3. Monkeys -- They eat frogs and lizards as well as fruits, flowers, and leaves.
4. Squirrels -- They eat insects, moths, bird eggs and nestling birds and also seeds, fruits, acorns, and nuts.
Trophic level. The last word that is worth mentioning in this section is trophic level, which corresponds to the different levels or steps in the food chain. In other words, the producers, the consumers, and the decomposers are the main trophic levels.
Food Webs
In looking at the previous picture, the concept of food chain looks very simple, but in reality it is more complex. Think about it. How many different animals eat grass? And from the Facts about Red-tailed Hawks page, how many different foods does the hawk eat? One doesn't find simple independent food chains in an ecosystem, but many interdependent and complex food chains that look more like a web and are therefore called food webs. A food web that shows the energy transformations in an ecosystem looks like this:
As you can see from this picture, food webs, with all their dependencies, can be very complex, but somehow nature balances things out so that food webs last a long time. Many species share the same habitat, their populations survive for many years, and they all live happily together.
The Ecological Pyramid
We described in the previous sections how energy and organic compounds are passed from one trophic level to the next. What was not mentioned is the efficiency of the transfer. In a highly efficient transfer almost all of the energy would be transferred -- 80% or more. In a low efficiency transfer very little energy would be transferred -- less than 20%. In a typical food chain, not all animals or plants are eaten by the next trophic level. In addition, there are portions or materials (such as beaks, shells, bones, etc.) that are also not eaten. That is why the transfer of matter and energy from one trophic level to the next is not an efficient one.
One way to calculate the energy transfer is by measuring or sizing the energy at one trophic level and then at the next. Calorie is a unit of measure used for energy. The energy transfer from one trophic level to the next is about 10%. For example, if there are 10,000 calories at one level, only 1,000 are transferred to the next. This 10% energy and material transfer rule can be depicted with an ecological pyramid that looks like this:
This pyramid helps one visualize the fact that in an ecological system there need to be many producing organisms at the bottom of the pyramid to be able to sustain just a couple of organisms at the top. In looking at the pyramid, can you guess how much larger the volume of each layer is as compared to the one just above it? Take a guess. It might not look like it but they are close to 10 times larger.
Final comments
Oaks rate a position at or very near the top of the wildlife food chain (or bottom of the ecological pyramid). They are the "staff of life" for many wild life species. The greatest food value comes from the acorn, especially during the winter season when other foods are scarce.
Squirrels, which are omnivores, are neither at the bottom or the top of the food chain. Since the feed from producers as well as primary consumers, one could say that they occupy two layers in the pyramid.
Hawks, which are mature birds of prey, are at the top of the their food chain and of the ecological pyramid.
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