Final Exam: Resources and human impact on earth system

-Describe renewable and non renewable energy sources for humans. Compare the effects on the environment and include overall costs and benefits.

"livestock such as: cows chickens, ect. are increasing the carbon footprint of humans"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carbon_footprint

    There are many types of energy humans can use on this earth. There are amongst those renewable and non renewable energy sources. Renewable sources can sustain themselves with little input and destruction on the environment while non-renewable resources only run out and require great use of money and resources to obtain. Non-Renewable resources cannot be replenished in a short amount of time whereas renewable resources can sustain themselves. Fuels like oil and gasoline can only be harvested and not created making them high in cost. They are also hazardous to the environment  by releasing greenhouse gases and other contaminants. Renewable resources like wind turbines and hydroelectric plants dont cause as much strain on the environment and cost less to produce.http://static.seekingalpha.com/uploads/2009/11/11/saupload_world_20in_20oil_lr_shutterstock_4174132.jpg

  
-Explain the impact of human activities on the environment.

     Humans do many things to the planet that are destructive and damaging to the ecosystem.
-One thing humans do is rapid deforestation. Trees provide the earth with oxygen necessary for life on earth to thrive. http://www.cosmosmagazine.com/files/imagecache/news/files/20070511_deforestation.jpg

-Another is the use of fossil fuels and the increased amount of carbon going into the atmosphere. Fossil fuels create a blanket of gas in the atmosphere when burned. Things like driving, boating, and other processes that need fuel cause massive amounts of pollution and destruction of the environment.

-Poaching and hunting animals for profit has caused a mass extinction in the modern era.
People kill incredible amounts of animals for their valuable parts: Dolphins for its skin and fins, rhinos for their horns, Buffalo for their hides, ect. There wont be any animals left if we don't change our attitude towards nature.

-Basically everything modern humans do involves energy and that is having huge negative effect on the worlds climate.

"Contries with a GDP of over 4,600 have ceased to increase deforestation numbers."http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deforestation

Describe the life cycle of a product

"Products have a limited life, like humans, products go through birth, growth, maturity, decline, and eventually death."http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Product_lifecycle_(marketing)#Product_life_cycle_.28PLC.29

-The lifecycle of a product starts with the extraction of raw matierials.

-The raw materials are then put to use in making and designing a product.

-After the product is complete it is then packaged and sold to distributors to make a profit.

-The product is purchased by a consumer and consumed.

-The product after consumption can either be recycled (reused) or disposed of (incinerated or disposed in a landfill).

-If recycled the product will then be broken down and reused in another product thus restarting the process.      http://www.admin.cam.ac.uk/offices/environment/images/lifecycle.gif

BIBOLIOGRAPHY 

 "Carbon Footprint." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. 8 Mar. 2011. Web. 09 Mar. 2011. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carbon_footprint>.
 
"Deforestation." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. 7 Mar. 2011. Web. 09 Mar. 2011. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deforestation>.
 
"Product Life Cycle Management (marketing)." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. 09 Mar. 2011. Web. 09 Mar. 2011. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Product_lifecycle

Sewer treatment blog

I learned many things at the sewer treatment plant when we visited it a week ago. I found the method of turning the water into bio sludge very interesting. The biological lifeforms that help clean the water i was completely unaware of and i found it very interesting. The machinery need is very expensive and there is much new technology that could better improve our sewer treatment but we cannot afford it. I learned how bad it smells there which is understandable. All in all i learned how it travels through the plant and the way solid waste is extracted from the water separating the 2 and then the water is treated and released back into the system. I loved going there and hope to learn more about it in the future.

ACT Q's

1. How did you do?

I did alright I only missed 7 questions.

2. What skills could improve your score?

Learning how to read graphs and analyze them better would help improve my score

3. Go back and look closely at the questions. Do you think knowing more content knowledge about the
questions would help you do better?

No i do not think background knowledge would help because all of the information is right in front of you.

4. Do you think practicing higher level thinking questions could help you?

Yes, practicing harder questions would better prepare you for the easier questions you would find on a standardized test.

5. How are you doing on your final project? Use the remainder of the hour to do some online research.

I have not started i need to speak to a city council member or do some online research if i can find anything on the sewer drainage plan.

Day after tommorow post

Answer the following questions.
1. How could climate change happen? 
   
    Climate change occurs when temperature on earth either increases or decreases. For temperture to change things need to affect it, it doesnt do it on its own. The burning of fossil fuels, deforestaion and other human forces affect the climate. Wind currents as well as ocean currents affect the climate along with the size of glaciers.

2. Could it happen like it did in the movie. 
   
    No it could not. The movie was a dramatization. The process of such dramatic change would take  hundreds even thousands of years.

3. How can climate change effect the issue you did your research on?
       
    Tornadoes wouldn't be able to be produced as easily in colder temperatures. If it were warmer tornadoes would be more abundant and destructive than they already are.

Tornado Research

Tornado hotspots in North America are in flat generally dry regions. From the east coast to the great plains is a nutorious earth hotspot for tornadoes... this hotspot is known as tornado Alley. Oklahoma, Missouri, Tennessee, and Kansas are the main states affected by tornadoes.

   What weather conditions are need for tornadoes to occur?
 
    Tornadoes occur when a low pressure front and high pressure front colide and infuse. The warm air from a high pressure system will infuse with the cold air from a low pressure system creating suitable conditions for a tornado to flourish. In tornado alley these conditions occur quite frequebtly do to weather patterns of the US.

Explain the impact of tornadoes on the enviornment.
 
   
        Tornadoes impact the enviornment of humans as well as the natural enviornment. Tornadoes  can harm wildlife by destroying trees which animals live in as well as pick whole animals up and toss them about the earth. For humans they can be quite disruptive to our way of life. Tprnadoes destroy homes and cause distress amongst the public. Tornadoes have the power to cause severe damage to ones home whether they be an animal or a human.
  
   Explain it impact on people and the economy.

    Tornadoes can affect people and the economy substancially. The economy can benefit and be harmmed by tornadoes impact. The economy can be damaged by the destructive power of tornadoes destroying homes and other public buildings. Tornadoes can bennefit the economy and drive the price of wood and other building materials up by raising the demand. People work after a destructive tornado but some lose their homes.



   How and when are warnings issued?
   
    Watches are issued when conditions are right and there is a possibility of a tornado for instance if a low and high pressure system meet. Watches are also issued during severe thunderstorms just to make people more vigilant of their surroundings. Warnings are issued when a funnel cloud is spotted in the area or when a touchdown ishttp://www.msmary.edu/inside/administration/public-safety/announcements-weather/tornado-policy.html reported.

   Describe how technologies are used to predict how tornadoes work.

    Doppler radar is used by bouncing waves off the atmosphere to determain pressure levels of the area to help predict when opposite pressure systems would meet and cause conditions  suitable for tornadoes to occur.
        
   Tornado watch and warnings. Noaa weather. 7/9/10

http://www.crh.noaa.gov/images/lmk/tornado_risk_map.jpg

Tornado info. Infoplease. 9/15/07