Final Exam Question #6

There are three types of plate boundaries; divergent, convergent, and transform. A divergent boundary is a tectonic plate that is moving away from another plate. These two plates moving away from each other cause rift valleys to form on land and ocean rifts to form in the ocean. A convergent boundary is when two plates move toward each other and then collide. These boundaries form subduction zones and continental collisions. There are three types of convergent boundaries: oceanic/continental- where an oceanic plate slides underneath a continental plate causing a volcanoe arc and trenches, continental/continental- where one continental plate slides under another continental plate forming mountain ranges and plateaus, and oceanic/oceanic- where one oceanic plate slides under another oceanic plate forming island arcs, underwater volcanoes, and deep sea trenches. The third plate boundary, the transform boundary, is a boundary where two plates slide horizontally against each other. This causes some of the boundaries to become zigzagged.

There are alos three types of volcanoes; shield, strato, and cinder cone. A shield volcano is a large volcano with shallow sloping sides. A stratovolcano is a tall cone-shaped volcano made up of many layers of hardened magma. A cinder cone is a steep cone shaped volcano. All of these types may be found around the ring of fire which is a volcano hot spot located around plate boundaries in the Pacific Ocean.

Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Convergent_boundary
Wikimedia Foundation Inc.
Wikipedia
Convergent Boundary
May 13, 2008

http://vulcan.wr.usgs.gov/Glossary/ShieldVolcano/description_shield_volcano.html
USGS
Shield Volcano
December 28, 2005


Pictures:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Convergent_boundary
Wikimedia Foundation Inc.
Wikipedia
Convergent Boundary - Oceanic/Continental
May 13, 2008

http://vulcan.wr.usgs.gov/Glossary/ShieldVolcano/description_shield_volcano.html
USGS
Shield Volcano
December 28, 2005

Final Exam Question #3

A renewable resource is a resource replenished by its natural process at a rate equal to or faster than its rate of being used by humans or other things that use it. In other words a renewable resource is a resource that is not in danger of ever being used in excess of its long term availability. Examples of some renewable resources are solar power which comes from the sun have its energy stored in things such as water, wind power which comes from the winds caused by the heating and cooling of the earth's surface which causes the air to move and to turn turbines to make electricity, hydro power which comes from moving water to turn turbines to make electricity, and geothermal power which is the heat coming from the earth itself through the ground. All of these will be better for the environment and will have little to no pollution and are pretty much never going to be gone. Unless the earth loses its atmosphere then we will lose all wind and we will not be able to use that as a source of energy. The cost of these power sources are less than 5 cents per kilowatt hour. Another benefit is that they are friendly on the environment and do not cause pollution.

A non-renewable resource is a resource that can not regenerated, re-grown, or re-made at a rate equal to or faster than its rate of consumption. There is only a fixed amount of these resources and when they are gone they are gone. Examples of some non-renewable resources are called fossil fuels which include petroleum, coal, and natural gas. One that is not considered a fossil fuel is nuclear powered energy. All these can be burned to make energy and to heat water to make turbines turn to make electricity. Oil is becoming even more expensive as time goes on today on the stock market the price per barrel opened at $138. Soon it won't matter what the price is because there will not be any left.

Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Renewable_resource
Wikimedia Foundation Inc.
Wikipedia
Renewable Resources
June 10, 2008

http://www.eia.doe.gov/neic/brochure/renew05/renewable.html
Energy Information Administration
Renewable Energy Sources: A Consumer's Guide
2008

Pictures:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Renewable_resource
Wikimedia Foundation Inc.
Wikipedia
Renewable Resources - A Wind Farm in Spain
June 10, 2008

http://www.answers.com/topic/non-renewable-resources?cat=technology
Answers Corporation
Non-renewable Resources
Wyoming Coal Mine
2008

Final Exam Question #1

The atmosphere is gases that surround a material body, in a layer, of sufficient mass. In this case the body of sufficient mass is the Earth. The biosphere is the part of the Earth in which all occurs. This includes all air, land, and water where life exists. The geosphere is the densest part of the Earth which includes rock and soil. These areas include the core, the man, and the crust. The hydrosphere is the water on, over, and under the surface of the Earth. All of this includes the oceans (which is the majority of the hydrosphere), seas, underground water in aquifers, rivers, and lakes.

These four systems effect the other systems in changes they have. The biosphere affects the atmosphere in that the living organisms, especially humans, are making holes in the atmosphere with their pollution. The biosphere also affects the hydrosphere in that humans also pollute the water with dumping trash and oil spills. The winds in the atmosphere also affect the hydrosphere in that that is where all the water evaporates to. Then it rains and the winds can move the clouds to put the water in different places. Winds in the atmosphere can also create hurricanes which then in turn affect the biosphere because it destroys organism's homes and causes flooding.

Humans also burn fossil fuel. This affects the geosphere because it has to be removed from the geosphere by drilling oil wells. When it is burned it also effects the atmosphere because when fossil fuel is burned it is dispersed into the air as pollution. Also, if there is an oil spill, it can affect the biosphere and the organisms in it and can also be drained off into the waters near by (the hydrosphere). Ways that we could fix this would be to look for better alternative fuel sources such as solar or hydro powered energy plants. This would be more environmentally friendly.

Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biosphere
Wikimedia Foundation Inc.
Wikipedia
Hydrosphere
May 26, 2008

http://www.geology.ufl.edu/Biosphere.html
Department of Geological Sciences
University of Florida
The Biosphere
February 1, 2008

Pictures:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earth's_atmosphere
Wikimedia Foundation Inc.
Wikipedia
Atmosphere
May 26, 2008

http://ga.water.usgs.gov/edu/watercycle.html
United States Department of the Interior
United States Geological Survey
The Water Cycle
May 19, 2008