Class Response- Oil

Today we learned about oil: sources, reserviors, and traps. We made maps of places where all three would overlay. Oil is a non-renewable resource, meaning we don't have much of it left in the world anymore. Sources are places where oil may be. Reserviors are sort of like containers, they are a place where the oil can be kept. Traps are kind of like lids on the reserviors. They keep the oil from rising.

Interesting Facts:
1.) In 1996 there were 1,047,200 million barrels of proven crude oil reserves.
2.) The top oil user is the USA (17 million barrels per day)
3.) The amount of petroleum products ending up in the ocean is estimated at 0.25% of world oil production: about 6 million tons per year.

More facts:
1.) Claiming a quarter of the world's proven oil reserves and some of its lowest production costs, Saudi Arabia was producing around 9.2 The most important factors contributing to the current rise in worldwide oil prices have been an increasing demand from expanding economies barrels per day of oil at the beginning of 2008.
2.) The most important factors contributing to the current rise in worldwide oil prices have been an increasing demand from expanding economies.

My opinion on oil is that is a a very significant resource, but nonrenewable at the same time. It will take millions of years for it to form again. This is why the gas prices are rising.
And the oil spills aren't helping either. When there is an oil spill, it harms wildlife around it. Oil is dangerous, but without it, we wouldn't be able to drive our cars. We would have to use solar powered cars, which would only work in the daytime. To summerize, I think oil is a useful resource, but I think we should do something to stop the oil spills.

http://www.offshore-environment.com/facts.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oil_price_increases_since_2003

Class Response- Winds

In class we have been learning about wind. We learned about local and global winds. There are two types of winds- local and global. Local winds move in every direction. There are two kinds of local winds: sea breezes and land breezes. A sea breeze occurs when the land heats up faster than the water. As the warm air over the land rises, the cooler air over the sea moves in to take its spot. On the other hand, during the night, the land gets cooler than the water and the air over the sea gets warmer than the air over the land. Then this air over the land moves in to replace the rising warm air over the sea, and this is called a land breeze. We also learned about monsoons, which are seasonal winds that occur in the mideast and provide supplies needed for farming. The other type of wind is global winds. There are doldrums, trade winds, prevailing westerlies, and polar easterlies. Doldrums are calm winds at the equator that recieve much of the sun's radiant energy. Any winds that form here are weak and can be a problem for sailing, and ships can be stuck in doldrums for days. Trade winds are about 30 degrees north and south of the equator and the sky is usually clear here. There are few rainclouds and little rainfall, and winds are calm. Ships traveling to the New World had trouble because sometimes there was almost no wind and they might have had to throw their horses overboard if their food supply ran out. At the horse latitudes some sinking air travels back to the eqautor and the rest moves toward the poles. The air that is moving toward the equator are called trade winds. Prevailing westerlies are the cool, sinking air that moves toward the poles. It is influenced by the Coriolis Effect and in the Northern Hemisphere, the air is deflected to the right, and in the Southern it is deflected to the left. They are strong winds. In both hemispheres the westerlies start rising and cooling between 50 and 60 degrees latitude as they approach the poles, where they meet extremely cold air. The winds appear to travel from east to west and called polar easterlies. The polar easterlies are a type of wind that are cold but weak winds, and in the United States many changes in the weather are due to the polar easterlies.

Intesting Facts:

1. On May 3, 1999 as tornadoes ravaged Oklahoma scientist measured the highest recorded wind speed at about 7:00 p.m. near Moore, Oklahoma. A wind speed of 318 mph was recorded where a tornado killed four people and destroyed 250 homes.

2. Solar winds have slowly eroded the Martian atmosphere for billions of years -- transforming the planet into a barren desert.

3. There is evidence that wind energy was used to propel boats along the Nile as early as 5000BC.

My opinion on wind is that it can be helpful in several ways yet deadly at the same. Tremendously large winds can destroy homes and even cities in a matter of minutes. Tsunamis, hurricanes, and tornados are devastating events that unfortunately take place occasionally. But wind is helpful also. Without wind, ships would not be able to travel from one place to another. Wind mills helped pump water and grind grain in China in 200BC. Wind is also the fastest growing source of electricity on Earth. Many times it is one of the least expensive forms of renewable power available and some people say it can sometimes be the cheapest form of any kind of power. Generating power from the wind doesn't leave dangerous waste products behind and fortunately, our supply of wind is unlimited.

Sources:

http://www.weatherwizkids.com/wind1.htm

http://www.weatherquestions.com/What_causes_wind.htm

http://www.uk-energy-saving.com/wind_energy_facts.html

Extra Credit- It's Raining, It's Pouring

It's raining, it's pouring,

The oceans are storing

Water from the falling rain

While thunderclouds are roaring.

The rain now is stopping,

The rain's no longer dropping.

Sun comes out and soaks up water

Like a mop that's mopping.

The water's still there now,

But hidden in the air now.

In the clouds it makes a home

Until there's rain to share now.
It's raining, it's pouring…

by Meish Goldish

Weather is definetely used in the poem because it is a poem about rain! The poet's knowledge of weather enhances the poem because without it, the last verse of the poem would be not be there since you would have to know something about metereology to have written it. The type of weather that is discussed in the poem is rain. The poem would be not the same without the mention of weather because the whole poem has to do with rain.

The literary techniques that are used in the poem in regards to weather is are personification ("while thunderclouds are roaring..."), and a similie ("Like a mop that's mopping..."). This poem does not really further my knowledge of weather because in the last paragraph the author talks about how the rain collects in clouds until it is really to fall again, and I already learned that in science class.

biggest advancement in technology

I think the biggest advancement in technology is the cell phone. It has made the largest impact on our society. I can't imagine life without cell phones anymore. They're everywhere, and almost everyone has them. You can now call anyone, anywhere, at anytime. Our society has advanced the number of features with the cell phone. Features such as MP3 players, cameras, and even the internet come with a lot of phones. Cell phones are also a big part of our economy. Many people make money working in cell phone companies or selling cell phones at a litle booth in the mall. Cell phones have definetely made our life easier.

Hair Detectives

Who: James R. Ehleringer, an environmental chemist at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City and his colleagues.

Where: All across the United States.

When: March 5th, 2008.

What: Scientists have found a way to figure out where a person is from and where he or she has been, just by looking at samples of the person's hair.

I like this discovery because it seems useful. Since more than half our body weight is water, our bodies start breaking the water down into its parts: hydrogen and oxygen. The atoms of the hydrogen and oxygen end up in our tissues, fingernails, and hair. But naturally, not all water is similar. The atoms differ in how they weigh. Different forms of a single element are called isotopes. But based on where you reside, the tap water holds different amounts of the isotopes of hydrogen and oxygen. James R. Ehleringer and his colleagues found out by collected hair from barbers and hair stylists in 65 cities in 18 states across the United States, assuming that the hair collected came from people who lived in the area. Although people drink a lot of bottled water now, the scientists discovered that the hair reflected the concentrations of hydrogen and oxygen isotopes in local tap water. Maybe because many people cook food using the local tap water. The scientists combined that information with their results to predict the composition of hair in people from different regions. This new technique can't point to exactly where a person is from, but now authorites can use it to analyze hair samples from criminals or crime victims and narrow their search for clues.

Sources:

http://www.sciencenewsforkids.org/articles/20080305/Note2.asp

Dry Ice, Nitrogen Gas, & other Experiments

Today in class, a student from Rutgers came in and performed experiments with dry ice and nitrogen gas. Dry ice is very different from regular ice because dry ice is frozen carbon dioxide.
When it breaks down, it turns into carbon dioxide, not water. Dry ice does not leave a pool of water behind as regular ice does. The nitrogen gas was also very interesting. When it was poured on the ground, it turned into gas. This was really cool to watch. It just evaporated in the air.

Some Interesting Facts:

1. Nitrogen is a colorless, odorless and tasteless gas that makes up 78.09% (by volume) of the air we breathe. It is nonflammable and it will not support combustion.

2. Dry ice is extremely cold, -109°F and does not melt. Instead, it sublimates (changes directly from solid to gas), releasing CO2.

3. Nitrogen is used to freeze blood, as well as viruses for vaccination.

4. Dry ice has approximately 15 times more cooling capacity than the same amount of wet ice, and can last approximately 5 times longer.

5. Nitrogen was discovered by chemist and physician Daniel Rutherford in 1772.


My opinion on dry ice is that its use should be continued because it is helpful. Dry ice is used for medical reasons such as removing warts. Dry ice is also used to ship something frozen around the world. Nitrogen gas is even more important. It is used for manufacturing and construction, environmental reasons, food and beverages, chemicals and petroleum, rubber and plastics, and many more other reasons not listed here. Learning about dry ice and nitrogen gas was really fun, and I hope I get to experiment with it again in high school.




Sources:

http://www.painenterprises.com/berrycold/storage.html

http://www.uigi.com/carbondioxide.html

http://www.west.net/~science/co2.htm

http://periodic.lanl.gov/elements/7.html

Traffic Jams.

Who: a team of mathematicians from the Universities of Exeter, Bristol and Budapest.

What: they have solved the mystery of traffic jams.

Where: USA.

When: December 19th, 2007.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/12/071219103102.htm

I think that traffic jams mostly happen in big cities where the population is larger. Also, around certain times of the year such as holidays and new year's. Trucks and buses may take longer to move, which can contribute to traffic jams too. One car may lead to a traffic jam for many miles behind it.

Dr Orosz explains, "When you tap your brake, the traffic may come to a full stand-still several miles behind you. It really matters how hard you brake - a slight braking from a driver who has identified a problem early will allow the traffic flow to remain smooth. Heavier braking, usually caused by a driver reacting late to a problem, can affect traffic flow for many miles."