Lecture 1 Flashcards
Birthplace of the industrial revolution
UK
What was the industrial revolution powered by
fossil fuels
What fossil fuel powered the industrial revolution
Coal
Where was coal first discovered in the US
West Virginia
How much of the US’s electricity does coal generate
Most (more than 40%)
During what period did pangea exist
Carboniferous period
Condition of the earth during the carboniferous period
Swampy
Oxygen level during the carboniferous period
Relatively high (over 30%)
Dominant creatures during the carboniferous period
Amphibians and insects
Why were amphibians and insects dominant during the carboniferous period
High oxygen levels
Fuel from the carboniferous period comes from ____
Fossilized remains of plants
Why was the carboniferous period the primary source of fossil fuels
Lignin-degrading fungi did not evolve until the end of the carboniferous period (no organism to break down lignin and other plant matter - therefore, it is more prone to be fossilized)
___ is a major pool of organic carbon that is highly resistant to decay
Wood
Why is wood highly resistant to decay
Presence of lignin
The only organisms capable of substantial lignin decay are ___
White rot fungi in the Agaricomyectes
What does white rot fungi in the Agarixomyectes contain
non-lignin-degrading brown rot and ectomycorrhizal species
The origin in lignin degradation might have coincided with the sharp decrease in ____ around the end of the carboniferous period
Organic carbon burial
What era was the carboniferous period during
Late Paleozoic era
How did the carboniferous period get its name
Large underground coal deposits that date to it
Where are the majority of coal deposits found
Europe, North America, and Asia that were lush, tropically located regions during the carboniferous period
Two parts of the carboniferous period
Mississipian and Pennsylvanian
Other names for the Mississippian period
Euramerica or Laurussia
What types of plants was carboniferous coal produced by
Bark-bearing trees that grew in vast lowland swamp forests
Why was there a surplus of oxygen during the carboniferous period?
Forests removed large amounts of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere
Atmospheric oxygen level in the carboniferous period
35%
Atmospheric oxygen level today
21%
The size of insects and similar creatures is thought to be limited by ____
The amount of air they are able to breathe
Theories as to why insects fly
Regulate temperature, to attract mates, to glide between trees
Why did some amphibians develop a thicker skin
They will not dry out if they are away from water for too long
When did Africa collide with eastern North America
Late Pennsylvanian
What did the collision of Africa with eastern North America cause
Formation of the Appalacian Mountains
By the end of the Carboniferous, the Earth’s landmasses were moving towards _____
A single, global supercontinent called Pangea
When was the industrial revolution
18th century
When was the second period of industrialization
late 19th to early 20th century
Thomas Newcomen
Designed the steam engine
James Watt and Matthew Boulton
Invented a steam engine with a rotary motion
How did the steam engine help miners
Allowed them to go deeper and extract more coal
Why did the need for coal skyrocket during the industrial revolution
Needed to run the factories that produce goods, as well as the railroads and steamboats that transport them
Father of the American Industrial Revolution
Samuel Slater
