Unit 1.A Flashcards
What is Tragedy of the Commons?
When people assume they wont have an effect or make a big impact so everyone does it depleting resources. People compete, overuse commons.
What are Commons?
The use of resources that are shared, or held in “common”
What is an ecological footprint?
The amount of biologically productive land and water needed to supply a population in an area with renewable resources and to absorb and recycle the wastes and pollution such resources produce.
What is the equation of ecological footprint?
Impact (I)= population (p) × affluence (a) × technology (t)
What is sustainability?
The capacity of the earths natural systems that support life and human social systems to survive and adapt to changing environmental conditions indefinetly.
What is sustainable yield?
The highest rate of which people can use a renewable resource indefinetly without reducing its original supply
What is a renewable resource?
A resource that can be replenished relatively quick in a human lifetime
What is a perpetual resource?
A resource that cant be used up
What is a nonrenewable resource?
A resource that takes longer than a human life time to replenish
What are powerplants?
They generate electricity by converting chemical energy of the fuel into kinetic energy (steam) then mechanical and electrical energy
Power plant steps:
- Coal combusted
- Heat energy goes to water, makes steam
- Steam spins turbine blades
- Spinning turbine rotates a shaft connected to a generator
- Electricity is carried to consumers
- Excess heat removed by cooling towers or bodies of water
What is the most common fuel to generate electricity in the US?
Natural gas
What is the most common fuel to generate electricity in the world?
Coal
How is coal formed?
The remains of dead plants that were buried and exposed to intense heat and pressure for long time
Which country has the largest coal reserve?
US
