Summer+Assignment

For your summer assignment you need to summarize** __four__ articles that pertain to Environmental **Science (see list of topics below). You can summarize a video, an article, a website, anything that pertains. You will place your summary and a link to your article, video etc as a discussion post (Summer Article 1, Summer Article 2, etc.) You also must ** comment on at LEAST __four__ different topics ** of your classmates' posts.
 * 1) **Earth Systems and Resources (10%–15%) **
 * 2) Earth Science Concepts (Geologic time scale; plate tectonics, earthquakes, volcanism; seasons; solar intensity and latitude)
 * 3) The Atmosphere (Composition; structure; weather and climate; atmospheric circulation and the Coriolis effect; atmosphere-ocean interactions; ENSO)
 * 4) Global Water Resources and Use (Freshwater/saltwater; ocean circulation; agricultural, industrial, and domestic use; surface and groundwater issues; global problems; conservation)
 * 5) Soil and Soil Dynamics (Rock cycle; formation; composition; physical and chemical properties; main soil types; erosion and other soil problems; soil conservation)
 * 6) **The Living World (10%–15%) **
 * 7) Ecosystem Structure (Biological populations and communities; ecological niches; interactions among species; keystone species; species diversity and edge effects; major terrestrial and aquatic biomes)
 * 8) Energy Flow (Photosynthesis and cellular respiration; food webs and trophic levels; ecological pyramids)
 * 9) Ecosystem Diversity (Biodiversity; natural selection; evolution; ecosystem services)
 * 10) Natural Ecosystem Change (Climate shifts; species movement; ecological succession)
 * 11) Natural Biogeochemical Cycles (Carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus, sulfur, water, conservation of matter)
 * 12) **Population (10%–15%) **
 * 13) Population Biology Concepts (Population ecology; carrying capacity; reproductive strategies; survivorship)
 * 14) Human Population
 * 15) **Land and Water Use (10%–15%) **
 * 16) Agriculture
 * 17) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Forestry (Tree plantations; old growth forests; forest fires; forest management; national forests)
 * 18) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Rangelands(Overgrazing; deforestation; desertification; rangeland management; federal rangelands)
 * 19) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Other Land Use
 * 20) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Mining (Mineral formation; extraction; global reserves; relevant laws and treaties)
 * 21) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Fishing (Fishing techniques; overfishing; aquaculture; relevant laws and treaties)
 * 22) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Global Economics (Globalization; World Bank; Tragedy of the Commons; relevant laws and treaties)
 * 23) **<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Energy Resources and Consumption (10%–15%) **
 * 24) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Energy Concepts (Energy forms; power; units; conversions; Laws of Thermodynamics)
 * 25) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Energy Consumption
 * 26) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Fossil Fuel Resources and Use (Formation of coal, oil, and natural gas; extraction/purification methods; world reserves and global demand; synfuels; environmental advantages/disadvantages of sources)
 * 27) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Nuclear Energy (Nuclear fission process; nuclear fuel; electricity production; nuclear reactor types; environmental advantages/disadvantages; safety issues; radiation and human health; radioactive wastes; nuclear fusion)
 * 28) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Hydroelectric Power (Dams; flood control; salmon; silting; other impacts)
 * 29) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Energy Conservation (Energy efficiency; CAFE standards; hybrid electric vehicles; mass transit)
 * 30) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Renewable Energy (Solar energy; solar electricity; hydrogen fuel cells; biomass; wind energy; small-scale hydroelectric; ocean waves and tidal energy; geothermal; environmental advantages/disadvantages)
 * 31) **<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Pollution (25%–30%) **
 * 32) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Pollution Types
 * 33) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Impacts on the Environment and Human Health
 * 34) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Economic Impacts (Cost-benefit analysis; externalities; marginal costs; sustainability)
 * 35) **<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Global Change (10%–15%) **
 * 36) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Stratospheric Ozone (Formation of stratospheric ozone; ultraviolet radiation; causes of ozone depletion; effects of ozone depletion; strategies for reducing ozone depletion; relevant laws and treaties)
 * 37) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Global Warming (Greenhouse gases and the greenhouse effect; impacts and consequences of global warming; reducing climate change; relevant laws and treaties)
 * 38) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Loss of Biodiversity