Renewable Resources, Pollution, and Sustainable Development
Renewable and Nonrenewable Resources
Renewable resources can be replaced at the same rate they are consumed. However, some may cease to exist if they are overused, like animal or plant species, which, once extinguished, do not recover. Non-renewable resources require a long and complex formation process. Once exhausted, they are gone forever. This is the case with geological resources (minerals and fossil fuels).
Biomass Energy in Corn Crops
In a pilot plant with corn crops, biomass energy could be
Read MoreHealth and Safety: Diseases, Natural Disasters, and Self-Esteem
Epidemic, Endemic, and Pandemic Diseases
An epidemic disease crosses borders, extending into several countries and affecting continents, e.g., AIDS. An endemic disease persists for a long time in a specific location, e.g., Chagas’ disease. An epidemic is a sudden appearance of a disease that attacks a large number of individuals in a particular area, e.g., the dengue outbreak in 1989.
Malaria
Malaria is a disease caused by Plasmodium, a parasite of the genus Plasmodium.
Plasmodium Life Cycle
The Plasmodium
Read MoreMineralogy: Properties, Bonds, and Crystallography
Minerals
A mineral is an inorganic compound in its natural state and must comply with four conditions:
- It must be an inorganic, natural substance.
- Its composition must be represented by a chemical formula.
- It must have a defined internal structure.
- Its physical properties must be determined and governed by its composition and texture.
Ionic and Covalent Bonds
- Ionic bonds are formed through an electrostatic force that binds ions in an ionic compound.
- Covalent bonds are formed when two electrons are shared
Landforms and Coastal Features: A Comprehensive Overview
Morphostructural Units
Morphostructural units are the shape and internal arrangement adopted by the relief.
Erosion, Orogeny, and Sedimentation
Erosion is the wearing of relief by some agents that can be erosive, climatic, or atmospheric, and biological agents.
Orogeny is the process of creating mountains.
Sedimentation is the deposit on the Earth’s crust of material from the disintegration of rocks or substances in solution.
Rock Types and Geological Processes
Marl is a sedimentary rock composed mainly
Read MoreWater Resources: Management, Uses, and Wastewater Treatment
Technical Measures to Meet Growing Water Demand
The management of water resources is becoming a very important issue for governments as water, an essential resource, is becoming more scarce due to environmental problems that its use is unleashing.
As a result of population and economic growth, needs increase, as does water consumption. This creates problems of overfishing and pollution, which results in loss of both quantity and quality of available water.
Supply management has been based on human
Read MoreTectonic Plates and the Formation of the Universe and Solar System
Tectonic Plate Boundaries and Their Effects
Destructive Margins (Convergent Boundaries)
Destructive plate boundaries, or convergent boundaries, are areas where volcanic activity produces new oceanic lithosphere. These areas of lithosphere creation are called constructive margins. At these ridges, huge fracture zones exist where basaltic magma exits under pressure. These zones are often patchy and unstable. As the extension of the seafloor originates from each zone, a contraction occurs when two sections
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