Farming Types and Soil Resource Impacts
Types of Farms and Their Impacts
Surface Mining (Pedrera)
Surface mining, or Pedrera, is used when resources are shallow. It involves low-cost extraction of industrial rocks and minerals. This type of exploitation removes material from a mountain using a horizontal front operation. The consequences include:
- Loss of soil
- Landscape impact
- Noise pollution (machinery, trucks)
- Vibration
- Dust pollution
- Risk of landslides after abandonment
Gravel Extraction
Gravel deposits are extracted from sediment, such as river
Read MoreRecycling Processes and Environmental Impact
Glass Recycling
Glass is a silicate that melts at 1200 degrees Celsius. It consists primarily of silica (mainly from quartz), along with limestone and other materials that impart different colors.
Glass Recycling Process:
- Washing, screening, and selection
- Magnetic phase selection
- Manual separation of contaminants
- Screening
- Manual separation of pollutants or grinding
Polymer Recycling
A polymer is a high molecular mass compound consisting of many repeating units (monomers).
Polymer Recycling Process:
- Opening
Recombinant DNA Technology and Evolutionary Theories
Recombinant DNA Technology
Recombinant DNA technology involves several key steps:
- Locating and Isolating the Gene: Restriction enzymes are used to cut DNA into fragments, isolating the desired gene.
- Choosing a Vector: A vector (plasmid or virus) is cut with the same restriction enzyme. The isolated DNA is joined to the vector DNA using DNA ligases, creating recombinant DNA.
- Introducing Recombinant DNA: The recombinant DNA is introduced into a host cell, creating a transgenic organism.
- Checking Gene Expression:
Tsunamis: Formation, Impact, and Safety Measures
The Destructive Power of Tsunamis
In 479 BC, when Persian soldiers besieged the Greek city of Potidaea, the tide retreated much farther than usual, leaving a convenient invasion route.
But this wasn’t a stroke of luck. Before they had crossed halfway, the water returned in a wave higher than anyone had ever seen, drowning the attackers. The Potidaeans believed they had been saved by the wrath of Poseidon…
…but what really saved them was likely the same phenomenon that has destroyed countless others:
Earth’s Energy: Sources, Transfer, and Phenomena
Energy
Energy Transfer Mechanisms
- Convection: Heat transfer by mass movement or circulation within a substance.
- Radiation: Energy emitted by matter at a given temperature, produced directly from the source outwards in all directions.
- Conduction: The only way to transfer heat in solids.
Forms of Energy Entry and Exit on Earth
Reflection and Radiation
Winds
Winds are the movement of air in the atmosphere, especially in the troposphere, due to natural causes. It is a meteorological phenomenon. The cause of
Read MoreOrganisms, Environment, and Climate Factors
Agencies and Environment
Organisms are categorized into domains:
- Bacteria: Unicellular and prokaryotic, most are surrounded by a cell wall. Some perform photosynthesis, primarily absorbing their food from the environment.
- Archaea: Prokaryotic and unicellular, many can survive in extreme conditions. Their method of feeding is by absorption.
- Eukarya:
- Protista: Eukaryotic, unicellular, may perform photosynthesis, ingest, or absorb their food. They often move using cilia or flagella.
- Fungi: Generally absorb