Natural Resources
What is a natural resource?
Something found in nature that is useful to humans
Is solar energy renewable or nonrenewable?
Renewable
Define Climate Change
long-term shifts in temperatures and weather patterns
When heat is involved, where do minerals form on Earth?
At convergent plate boundaries, mostly near subduction zones.
A resource that cannot be replenished as fast as it is used. Nonrenewable resources eventually run out.
Is nuclear energy renewable or nonrenewable? Explain your answer.
Nonrenewable because there is a limited amount of uranium, which is used for nuclear energy.
How do humans contribute to climate change?
We burn fossil fuels, which leads to more greenhouse gases (example: carbon dioxide) in the atmosphere and warms the planet.
What is the process called when minerals are mixed with water and the water evaporates, leaving the solid mineral behind?
Crystallization
What is a renewable resource?
A resource that is replenished as fast as it is used. Renewable resources will not run out.
Where does most of our hydropower come from?
Dams
Name three energy sources that release greenhouse gases.
Possible answers: Coal, Oil, Natural Gas, and Biomass
What are the five factors that affect soil formation?
Parent Material, Climate, Topography, Living Things, and Time
What natural resources are used to make the chair you are sitting on?
What are two advantages of using coal as an energy source?
It is affordable and releases a lot of energy (has high energy density).
What is one way you could reduce your carbon footprint?
Answers will vary, please check each other's answers.
Describe the steps of soil formation.
1. Weathered Rocks
2. Sediment forms
3. Decomposition and Organic Matter enter the soil
4. Soil Horizons form
5. Soil Microorganisms enter the soil
Why have countries started switching to renewable resources for energy instead of nonrenewable resources?
Renewable resources are typically much better for the environment and are cheaper in the long run.
What is one disadvantage of using hydropower?
What is one thing you already do that is good for the environment?
Answers will vary, please check each other's answers.
Describe how a fossil fuel is formed.
Over millions of years, the remains of plants and animals get buried under layers of rock. As they go further beneath the Earth's surface, the extreme heat and pressure cause them to change into coal, oil, and natural gas.