Human Impact Test Study Guide
Key
#1 The three types of fossil fuels are coal, oil, and natural gas. Fossil fuels are the most
commonly used nonrenewable resources. The energy in this fuel source originally came
from the sun.
#2 The sun provides energy to plants and the plants use photosynthesis to help them grow.
What do humans do to the plants to release the stored energy? Burn them.
#3 List three problems with burning fossil fuels? Air pollution, water pollution, and soil
pollution.
#4 What type of gas is released by burning fossil fuels? Carbon dioxide.
#5 Coal is an organic rock that originally came from dead swamp grass that compacted over
millions of years.
#6 What form of fossil fuel produces the least amount of pollution? Natural Gas.
#7 What form of energy production comes from splitting atoms? Fission.
#8 What form of energy production comes from burning plants (organic material) that were
recently harvested? Biomass.
#9 Heating water from magma intrusions to make electricity is called Geothermal.
#10 What source of energy is used more than any other in the U.S.A.? Hint: Gasoline is
made from this form of fossil fuel. Oil.
#11 What is ethanol? A combustible liquid made from plants that can be burned to make
energy / Biomass.
#12 What are two problems with biomass? Production of air pollution and to make enough
biomass fuel would take too much land away from crop production.
#13 What type of electrical generation does not require the use of turbines and produces less
pollution than any other method of energy production? Solar.
#14 A photovoltaic cell makes energy by changing solar radiation into electricity.
#15 What is the biggest problem with solar energy? Too expensive.
#16 What is the biggest problem with creating energy from wind mills? Lack of locations
where there is sufficient wind.
#17 Why is the development of new hydroelectric power plants in the United States
unlikely to occur? Lack of locations where the construction of dams is feasible.
#18 What type of renewable energy is used more than any other? Hydroelectric.
#19 What damage do dams cause for the environment? Ruins ecosystems for plants and
animals by flooding.
#20 Uranium is the unstable element that nuclear reactors use to generate electricity. These
reactors use water to cool down the immense heat that is generated in this nuclear fission
reaction.
#21 Most electricity in the U.S.A. is generated by coal burning power plants because it is
the cheapest to use and produces large amounts of energy.
#22 Hydrogen fuel cells are an experimental energy source that combine hydrogen and
oxygen in a chemical reaction to make energy.
#23 Three examples of renewable (alternative) resources are solar, biomass, and wind.
Three examples of nonrenewable resources are nuclear (uranium), coal, and natural gas.
#24 Chernobyl is the location of one of the worst nuclear accident in history.
#25 Three Mile Island in Pennsylvania is the location of the worst nuclear accident in the
U.S.
#26 Europeans lived on Greenland for hundreds of years until they slowly starved to death.
Why did the people on Greenland die? Cut down all their trees.
#27 What did the people on Easter Island do that ruined their island? Cut down all their
trees.
#28 Because we are using some of our resources faster than they are being replaced, we are
now recycling more of these resources instead of digging them out of the ground.
#29 Statues are being damaged because of air pollution from burning coal.
#30 What is the problem with strip mining? It destroys entire ecosystems. Companies have
to dig giant holes in the Earth, destroying forests, rivers, lakes, etc.
#31 What are three ways to prevent soil erosion? Ground covers, wind breaks, and no till
plowing.
#32 Chloroflourocarbons (CFC) released by aerosol cans have damaged the ozone layer
and this made a large hole in the ozone layer.
Vocabulary
Biomass – organic matter that contains stored energy from sunlight and that can be burned as
fuel. any organic matter (anything that was once alive) that can be used as an energy source.
Biomass is considered a renewable energy source.
Carbon Dioxide – (CO2) causes greenhouse gases and in turn causes global warming
Chlorofluorocarbons – (CFC) released by aerosol cans have damaged the ozone layer and this
made a large hole in the ozone layer.
Coal – an organic rock that originally came from dead swamp grass that compacted over
millions of years ago. is a fossil fuel formed from the remains of plants that lived and died
around 100 to 400 million years ago, when parts of the earth were covered with huge swampy
forests. Coal is considered a nonrenewable energy source because it takes millions of years to
form.
electricity - the movement of electrons. Electricity is considered a secondary source of energy
because it takes other sources of energy, such as coal or solar to create electricity. Currently,
most electricity is generated through nonrenewable energy sources.
Ethanol – A combustible liquid made from plants that can be burned to make energy / Biomass.
Fission – The nucleus of a uranium atom is split into two smaller nuclei, releasing energy
Fossil Fuel – fuels formed from the remains of prehistoric organisms that are burned for energy.
a nonrenewable energy source created from the remains of plants that lived millions of years
ago, such as coal or petroleum.
Fusion – a process in which particles of an element collide and combine to form a heavier
element, such as the fusion of hydrogen into helium that occurs in the Sun’ core.
Geothermal – heat energy that originates from within Earth and drives the movement of Earth’s
tectonics’ plates. - energy that comes from the heat within the earth.
Hydroelectric – power plants use water to turn turbine that generates electricity
hydrogen - the simplest and most abundant element known to humankind. An atom of hydrogen
has one proton and one electron. Hydrogen energy is considered a renewable energy source and
is currently used mainly in the NASA space program.
hydropower - (from hydro meaning water) energy that comes from the force of moving water.
Natural Gas - is a naturally occurring hydrocarbon gas mixture consisting primarily of methane,
with other hydrocarbons, carbon dioxide, nitrogen and hydrogen sulfide. This is an energy
source often used for heating, cooking, and electricity generation.
Nonrenewable – a resource that exists in a fixed amount or is used up more quickly than it can
be replaced in nature.
nuclear (uranium) - energy that comes from the nucleus of an atom. Nuclear energy is released
through either fusion or fission. In nuclear fusion, energy is released when the nuclei of atoms
combine. In nuclear fission, (the only process currently in use) energy is released when the
nuclei of atoms are split apart. Uranium (nonrenewable) is the fuel used by nuclear power
plants.
Oil – made from sea plants and animals. This source of energy is
Ozone Layer – a protective layer in the atmospheres. Ozone is a gas molecule that consist of
three oxygen atoms.
petroleum - a nonrenewable fossil fuel usually found underground in reservoirs located in
sandstone or limestone.
Photovoltaic – A cell that makes energy by changing solar radiation into electricity
propane - a nonrenewable fossil fuel that is a derivative of natural gas and petroleum.
Recycling – converting waste into reusable material.
Renewable – a natural resource that can be replaced in nature at about the same rate as it is
used.
Solar Energy – energy from the Sun
wind - renewable energy that comes from the movement of air.