Tuesday February 24

Find an article about nuclear power and answer the following questions.

1. In a few short sentences (complete) explain what your article is about.
2. Is your article in favor of or opposed to nuclear power?
3. What are the reasons given (evidence) for your answer to #2?
4. What is your opinion about nuclear power? Should we build nuclear power plants?
5. Did this article change your opinion in any way?

Wednesday February 18

Here is my coal presentation. I will review this material on Wednesday and Thursday. You will have a 15 question multiple choice and 1 question short answer quiz on Friday. Everything that you need is online, but if you are lost, here is a summary of our coal unit thus far...
Unit 4 Coal
-BTU & Coal Comparisons
-Coal Questions
-Coal Diagram
-Coal Timeline
-Coal Study Guide
-Coal Article
-Coal Article Review
I will review any of the above, just come see me!

Wednesday February 18

Unit 4: Coal Study Guide

1. What is a BTU?
2. What does a BTU measure?
3. What are the 4 types of coal?
4. How do the types of coal differ?
5. What does the term energy content mean?
6. Which type of coal has the highest energy content?
7. What are the "ingredients" of coal? (HINT: Think about the periodic table of elements)
8. What is the result of the combustion of coal?
9. What are the steps required to convert coal into electricity?
10. What type of water pollution occurs as a result of the use of cooling towers (condensation)?
11. What part of a coal power plant is responsible for removing air pollution that happens after the coal is combusted?
12. What are the steps involved with the creation/formation of coal?
13. What is the original source of the energy that is contained in the coal?
14. What are the current uses of coal?
15. What has coal been used for historically?
16. Where (in the United States) is coal found today?
17. What would happen to the use of coal if more people began driving "plug-in hybrid" cars?
18. What sectors of the economy is coal used in most often? least often?
19. How does coal pollute the air?
20. How does coal pollute the water?
21. How does coal pollute the land/soil?
22. In your opinion, given all that you have learned about coal, would you recommend that we continue to use coal? Why or why not?

Friday February 13

5 questions for the coal article...

1. What is the type of resource that your article discusses?
2. What is the energy use sector that your article discusses?
3. What is an issue associated with the resource?
4. Where does the resource come from?
5. How is the resource used? 

Thursday February 12

1. Create a diagram with labels of the coal fired power plant using this link.
2. Focus on the turbine specifically.
3. Create a list of materials that you need to create and build a turbine.

Here is a link to a website that has an example of a "do-it yourself" turbine.

Wednesday February 11

In class today, you should finish #6 (the coal timeline) with your group. When the timeline is done, you need to complete the remainder of the questions and update your portfolio with 3 assignments.
The Unit 4 assignments are:
Unit 4:Coal

1. BTU's & Coal Comparisons
2. Coal Questions
3. Coal Timeline (obviously not in your portfolio)

Tuesday February 10

Unit #4: Coal

To begin... how do we measure the amount of energy that a lump of coal contains?
Here is an energy calculator.  In your reading, you will find different energy contents for different types of coal (BTU's/pound).
Use the calculator to answer the following questions.

1. What is a BTU? 
2. What does BTU measure?
3. How many pounds of each type of coal (look at page 15 of your packet) would be needed to light your room with a 100 watt bulb for 12 hours? I have completed the Lignite example for you, just click on the link below. We will review this in class on Tuesday.
1. Lignite: 
2. Bituminous
3. Sub-Bituminous
4. Anthracite

Use the information contained in your packet to answer the questions below.

1. What is coal?
2. What are the types of coal?
3. How do the different types vary? (What makes them different?)
4. Which of the types of coal is most valuable? Why?
5. Is coal a renewable or non-renewable resource? Why?
6. Create a timeline for coal. 
1. Start with as far back as you can find in the reading and continue all the way up to the present day. 
2. Include the ways that coal is formed and where the coal started out.
3. Include the different uses for coal along that timeline. 
4. You may work with one other person to complete this part of the activity.
7. What are the two (2) ways that coal is mined?
8. When are each of the two ways of mining used?
9. What are two (2) types of underground mining?
10. What do you think are the some positives and negatives associated with each of these types of mining operations?
11. What must happen after the coal has been mined?
12. Where does coal come from? 
13. What are the 5 highest coal producing states?
14. How is/was coal used?
15. What are the primary uses of coal today?
16. What are the environmental issues associated with coal?
1. Focus on air pollution
2. Focus on water pollution
3. Focus on soil/land pollution
17. What are some ways that coal can be converted into electricity that are cleaner than present technologies?

Monday February 9

5 questions for the article

1. What is the type of resource that your article discusses?
2. What is the energy use sector that your article discusses?
3. What is an issue associated with the resource?
4. Where does the resource come from?
5. How is the resource used? 

For your portfolio... Label Unit 3: Electrical Generation study guide, article & article questions. 

Friday February 6

Unit 3: Electrical Generation

Study Guide

1. What is electricity?
2. What are the parts of an atom?
3. Why is it important that the electrons are on the outside of the nucleus?
4. What is a magnet? What are the two parts of a magnet? 
5. What is a magnetic field?
6. What is a conductor?Provide an example.
7. What is a resistor? Provide an example.
8. What is a turbine? What are three (3) examples of turbines that were shown in the video?
9. What is the purpose of a turbine? (What does it do?)
10. What is a generator? (What does it do?)
11. How do generators and turbines work together?
12. What is the 1st Law of Thermodynamics?
13. When a resource is converted into electricity, what does most of the energy in the resource get turned into?
14. What is the maximum efficiency that could (theoretically) be achieved?
15. Why are all energy transfers always less than the answer to #14?

Monday February 2

Directions: Start a google document to share with me (jboyce@cherrycreekschools.org)

1. Start by defining the following terms in your own words. 
1. Magnetism
2. Electricity
3. Induction
4. Electro-magnetism
5. Conductor
6. Resistor
2. Look at this series of diagrams/simulations. For each page listed below, answer the red question(s) at the top of the page. Note: For some of the pages, the question is re-stated at the bottom of the page. 
1. A Review of the Atom
2. Magnetic Lines of Force
3. Magnetic Field
4. Electromagnets
5. Electricity and Magnetism
6. More on Electricity andMagnetism
7. Magnetism and the Direction of Current Flow
8. The Electric Motor