The Promise Of Genetic Engineering
.... and determine in which ways it can
be used to humanity's best advantage. This speech will investigate the
ways in which genetic engineering affects two important areas in today's
society. The first one will be the improvement of the world's agricultural
techniques. With an ever-increasing growth in world population, the
Earth's resources are constantly becoming scarce. The advent of genetic
engineering may be used to avert the occurrence of worldwide famine and
starvation. The second one investig .....
|
|
The Depletion Of The Ozone Layer
.... or CFC's. CFC's were commonly
found in spray cans during the early 1970's but were invented in the 1920's.
They contain chlorine, fluorine, and carbon atoms which all form bonds
with the rare ozone molecules. A few more products with CFC's are coolants
for refrigerators and air conditioners, foam products, such as cups, and
insulation for houses.
Considering that ozone molecules are so rare, it is extremely
important to keep them intact. Without them, radiation would leak into th .....
|
|
Destruction Of The Ozone Layer
.... to ozone ( Stoker 1).
The question about the destruction of the ozone layer revolves
around whether human-made CFCs (chloroflurocarbons) used in air-
conditioners and refrigerators are breaking it down. This is the ozone
thinning theory: "CFCs release chlorine into the stratosphere... leading to
ozone destruction and exposing the planet to harmful ultraviolet rays."
Critics who discount the thinning theory still say that chlorine comes from
natural sources like volcanic eruptions and does no permanent da .....
|
|
Hurricanes
.... hurricanes are most noted for their destruction, some
parts of the world, especially eastern Asia, rely on them for much of their
precipitation.
Although numerous tropical storms develop each year, only a few
reach hurricane status, which by international agreement requires wind
speeds in excess of 119 kilometers per hour and a rotary circulation.
Hurricanes average 600 kilometers in diameter, and often extend 12,000
meters above the ocean surface. From the outer edge of the hurricane to
the center the .....
|
|
Electrochemistry
.... (more safely),
with less hazardous waste (better for the environment), and in higher
yields (better for your wallet) than a similar process using chemical
reagents. Some synthetic processes can only be done using electrochemical
methods, and electrochemical methods are used in the large-to-medium-scale
synthesis of organic "fine chemicals" because of the financial, safety and
environmental advantages. Here's a page outlining some current research by
one of my graduate school professors.
I can think of at .....
|
|
Nuclear Weapons
.... No one ever considered the fact that plutonium
could be used for more constructive purposes such as: sources of energy or
to keep a person's heart beating. We did begin to produce more plutonium
but the majority of the substance was used towards our nuclear weapons
programs.
Along with reactors, sometimes comes a meltdown which can cause
harmful effects if it isn't controlled quickly enough. After such
instances as the Hanford, Washington reactor meltdown and the accident in
the U.S.S.R. at .....
|
|
Cloning
.... cut from a plant and placed in a flask with a nutrient
medium. The cells grow and divide, forming embryonic tissues that are
transferred to soil, where they produce complete plants. Grafting is
another method of cloning used in Horticulture. Matching cuts are made in
the stems of two plants, which are then fitted together so that their
transport systems are in contact. The wounded area heals, and the two stems
become a single physiological unit. All the McIntosh apple trees now in use
and many other fruit .....
|
|
El Nino
.... decreases
rapidly with depth.
This depression of the thermocline has great effects on the worlds fishing
industry. The cutting of nutrient rich therocline water reduces the growth
of algae, which in trun, collapses the food chain. Thus, leaving our
worlds subsistence and commercial fishermen with out food and money.
With the already descendeing food chain on our earth, the warming water
also effects the atmosphere, resulting in more extreme temperatures, more
rain, and more drought periods, costing more .....
|
|
Platinum
.... platinum contains from 60 to 85 percent pure platinum. The small,
irregular grains that contain the ore also contain other rare metals, such
as iridium, osmium, palladium, rhodium, and ruthenium. The grains also
contain small amounts of iron, copper, chromium, and titanium. A large
nugget of platinum will be found only on occasion, like in 1843, a lump
weighing over 21 pounds was found in Russia. Russia produces the worlds
largest share of platinum-group metals. Other important sources of
plat .....
|
|
Why We Have Seasons
.... hits the northern surface at an angle
instead of hitting it directly. By hitting the earth's surface at an angle
there is not as much radiation warming the surface. As the earth rotates
and the sun moves further north the temperature increases and the weather
turns warmer. During the three months of spring the sun continues to move
north and warming the earth more efficiently. At around June 21st the sun
is directly facing the tropic of cancer. At this time the movement north
comes to a halt and th .....
|
|
The Mystery Of Area 51
.... spy plane (Misage
15). According to many Americans, these are not the only flying machinery
which exists in Area 51.
On July 7, 1947, two ranchers in Roswell, New Mexico, observed
something that would be the beginning of what might be one of mankind's
most unexplained phenomenons in history. According to these ranchers, (who
asked to be anonymous) a flying object came out of the South East and went
flying into the Northwesterly direction. These ranchers observed it for 40
or 50 seconds before it dis .....
|
|
Animal Testing: Animals Suffer
.... experiments are done on animals. The thousands of animals put to
suffer outweighs any of the research that has been gotten from them. Peter
Singer the author of a piece called “Animal Experimentation” in the book
Intervention and Reflection displays and evokes the actual suffering of
many harmless animals.
"In 1953 R. Soloman, L. Kamin, and L. Wynne, experimenters at
Harvard University, placed forty dogs in a device called a 'shuttle
box,' which consists of a box divided .....
|
|
The Aftermath Of Hurricane Mitch
.... to wash and salvage their goods.
A muddy valley runs past the Central Prison, where some of the
incarcerated swam to freedom as Mitch's floodwaters rose and propelled them
over the walls. Hundreds of homes, streets, and businesses were washed away,
and those that remained standing found themselves anchored beneath several
feet of mud and debris.
In some places, the stench is overpowering. The smell from
intermingled garbage, rotting food, rancid floodwater, animal and -- very
possibly - .....
|
|
Mescaline
.... ceremony.
Mescaline carries a wide margin for dosage error and has little or
no withdraw effects, although the dangers do increase with higher dosages.
A light dose (100-200mg) can give the user feelings of giddiness or anxiety,
and a moderate dose of Mescaline (200-300mg) begins to impair the senses.
Strong doses (300-500mg) will induce hallucinations and effect the user's
perceptions of color, time, and space. Heavy does of Mescaline (500-700mg)
and frequent use of mescaline will cause symptoms o .....
|
|
Acid Rain
.... changes are usually to gradual for them to be noticed early.
At the beginning of the 20th century most rivers and lakes like the
river Tovdal in Norway had not yet begun to die. However by 1976 local
inspectors were noticing that many of the lakes were beginning to show
signs of death. Fish were found dead along the banks of many rivers. As the
winters ice began to melt off more and more hundreds upon hundreds more
dead fish were being found. As scientists continued to work they found many
piles of dead .....
|
|
|
|
