Chemistry of food and cooking
Easy, Breezy, Beautiful Lemon Bars
Alternative Energy
Reflection
1. Explain your understanding of the relationship between combusting fossil fuels, the greenhouse effect and climate change in a manner that would be appropriate for teaching a middle school student.
The greenhouse effect is referring to how the earth has a layer of gasses in the atmosphere like methane and carbon dioxide. These gases act like the glass of a greenhouse, meaning that they trap the heat of the sun. This keeps the earth warm and livable. But when we burn fossil fuels, it makes more carbon dioxide than the atmosphere needs and it thickens the “glass” so more heat is trapped and not enough is leaving. Also, we are cutting down a lot of trees and rainforests which are a source of oxygen that could help make the carbon dioxide layer thinner.
2. What is the role of scientists and engineers in society? In what ways is life as we know it better (or worse) because of their work either in basic scientific research or the development of implementable technologies?
Scientists and engineers do good things for society but sometimes things go too far. Without science, we wouldn’t have been able to prove the existence of climate change. Someone out there invented a little robot that sucks up trash in the ocean. So science and inventions can be used for good. But also, humans have invented things that have changed the temperature of the entire earth's surface and that is not for the better. Science and engineering have made our lives better because we can treat simple illnesses that would have killed thousands of people in the past. Our lives are made easier by cars and we have entertainment like television. But it seems like the farther we advance, the worse we make situations like climate change and deforestation...
3. In your opinion, what is the role of innovation in the development of new cleaner energy production/consumption technologies in reducing the amount of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases released into the environment?
I think the innovation of these clean energy sources and technologies is very important to making climate change better. The topic of my infographic was about alternative energy cars because cars create a lot of air pollution. It is not only making the environment and animals unhealthy; it is making people sick. The oil and gas in our cars leak and the pollutants find their way to rivers and other water sources. I found that there are a lot of alternative energy technologies, but what confused me was why no one was using them. Most of them are cheaper and far more efficient than gasoline cars and they have almost no emissions. If everyone started using clean energy cars, we could make a significant difference in climate change.
1. Explain your understanding of the relationship between combusting fossil fuels, the greenhouse effect and climate change in a manner that would be appropriate for teaching a middle school student.
The greenhouse effect is referring to how the earth has a layer of gasses in the atmosphere like methane and carbon dioxide. These gases act like the glass of a greenhouse, meaning that they trap the heat of the sun. This keeps the earth warm and livable. But when we burn fossil fuels, it makes more carbon dioxide than the atmosphere needs and it thickens the “glass” so more heat is trapped and not enough is leaving. Also, we are cutting down a lot of trees and rainforests which are a source of oxygen that could help make the carbon dioxide layer thinner.
2. What is the role of scientists and engineers in society? In what ways is life as we know it better (or worse) because of their work either in basic scientific research or the development of implementable technologies?
Scientists and engineers do good things for society but sometimes things go too far. Without science, we wouldn’t have been able to prove the existence of climate change. Someone out there invented a little robot that sucks up trash in the ocean. So science and inventions can be used for good. But also, humans have invented things that have changed the temperature of the entire earth's surface and that is not for the better. Science and engineering have made our lives better because we can treat simple illnesses that would have killed thousands of people in the past. Our lives are made easier by cars and we have entertainment like television. But it seems like the farther we advance, the worse we make situations like climate change and deforestation...
3. In your opinion, what is the role of innovation in the development of new cleaner energy production/consumption technologies in reducing the amount of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases released into the environment?
I think the innovation of these clean energy sources and technologies is very important to making climate change better. The topic of my infographic was about alternative energy cars because cars create a lot of air pollution. It is not only making the environment and animals unhealthy; it is making people sick. The oil and gas in our cars leak and the pollutants find their way to rivers and other water sources. I found that there are a lot of alternative energy technologies, but what confused me was why no one was using them. Most of them are cheaper and far more efficient than gasoline cars and they have almost no emissions. If everyone started using clean energy cars, we could make a significant difference in climate change.