Ecological Economics: Valuing Life, Risks, and Environmental Impact
Ecological Economics: Assessing Environmental Value
The field of ecological economics grapples with a fundamental question: Can we truly assess a reasonable quality of life, environmental risks, or ecological consequences purely in economic terms? This complex challenge drives the search for comprehensive responses to pressing environmental problems.
Responses to Environmental Problems
The Nature of Intervention
Responses to environmental problems involve various forms of intervention:
- Legal: Establishing
Understanding Crude Oil and Managing Spills
Understanding Crude Oil: Formation and Characteristics
Oil is a natural liquid fuel, comprising a complex mixture of hydrocarbons. Its composition is highly variable from one reservoir to another. It is an oily, blackish-brown liquid, less dense than water and insoluble in it.
Oil is a fossil fuel, formed from the processing by the action of certain bacteria on large masses of plankton. This process took place in the absence of air and under layers of sediment in marine basins near the coast. Because
Read MoreGeological Time and Earth’s History: Dating Methods Explained
Earth’s Archives: Unlocking Geological History
Rocks: Records of Earth’s Past
Rocks contain vital information about Earth’s past, revealing different aspects of its history:
- Fossils: Remains of an organism or its activity, providing insights into past life.
- Rock Nature and Composition: Reveal the processes and conditions of their formation.
- Rock Morphology: Informs about the agents that shaped them.
- Rock Structures: Indicate the forces to which they have been subjected.
Fundamental Principles of Geology
The
Read MoreGlobal Spatial Inequality and Development Dynamics
Spatial Inequality in the Globalized World
Understanding Global Disparities
The process of globalization occurs in a world with significant inequalities between territories. These are often grouped into developed (p.des.) and underdeveloped (p.subd.) regions.
Causes of Inequality
Traditional explanations often cite the influence of the physical environment. Current explanations focus on:
- Internal Factors:
- Economic: Exploitation of natural resources.
- Extra-economic: Political functioning, culture.
- External
Spain’s Geographic Landscape
Spain’s External Mountain Systems
The External Ridges include the Basque Mountains, formed by steep hills but with little high elevation. The Pyrenees are an important mountain system that links the Iberian Peninsula with the rest of Europe; they consist of a central, higher section (up to 3404m). The Catalan Coastal Ranges are formed by two sets of mountains parallel to the Mediterranean coast, with a maximum altitude exceeding 1500m. The Betic Systems consist of two parallel alignments: the Penibética
Read MoreEarth’s Dynamic Surface: Continental Drift and Plate Tectonics
Continental Drift Theory: Earth’s Moving Continents
Proposed by Alfred Wegener in 1915, the Continental Drift Theory revolutionized our understanding of Earth’s dynamic surface. Wegener suggested that continents have moved across the Earth’s surface over geological time, introducing the groundbreaking concept of Pangaea, a supercontinent that existed millions of years ago.
Key Evidence Supporting Continental Drift
Wegener supported his theory with several compelling lines of evidence:
Geographical Fit