the apex of technology and its natural backlash

8/2/2019 The Apex of Technology and Its Natural Backlash

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The Apex of Technologyand its Natural Backlash


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The Advent of Industrialization

As populations expanded and desire forconsumer items grew, inventors andbusinessmen pursued manufacturing

efficiency in order to meet demand andincrease profit


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Changing the world, theimpact of fuels


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Fossil Fuels

Fossil fuels, coal, oil and natural gas, are anon-renewable source of energy.

Formed from plants and animals that livedup to 300 million years ago, fossil fuels arefound in deposits beneath the earth.


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The fuels are burned to release thechemical energy that is stored within thisresource.

Energy is essential to moden society aswe know it.

Over 85% of our energy demands are metby the combustion of fossil fuels.


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Coal is made of decomposed plant matterin conditions of high temperature andpressure, though it takes a relatively

shorter amount of time to form. Coal is not a uniform substance either, it's

composition varies from deposit to deposit.

Factors that cause this deviation are thetypes of original plant matter, and theextent the plant matter decomposed.


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Coal


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Pollutant Sources Effects

Ozone

A gas that can befound in twoplaces.

Near the ground

(the troposphere),it is a major part ofsmog.

Ozone is not

created directly,but is formedwhen nitrogenoxides and volatileorganic

compounds mix insunlight.

That is why

ozone is mostlyfound in thesummer.

Ozone near the

ground can causea number of healthproblems.

Ozone can leadto more frequentasthma attacks inpeople who haveasthma and can

cause sorethroats, coughs,and breathingdifficulty.


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The harmful ozonein the loweratmosphereshould not beconfused with theprotective layer ofozone in the upperatmosphere(stratosphere),

which screens outharmful ultravioletrays.

Nitrogen oxidescome from burninggasoline, coal, orother fossil fuels.

There are manytypes of volatileorganiccompounds, andthey come from

sources rangingfrom factories totrees.

It may evenlead toprematuredeath.

Ozone canalso hurt plantsand crops.


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Carbonmonoxide

A gas thatcomes from the

burning of fossilfuels, mostly incars.

Carbon monoxide isreleased whenengines burn fossilfuels

Emissions are higherwhen engines are nottuned properly, andwhen fuel is notcompletely burned.

Cars emit a lot of thecarbon monoxidefound outdoors.

Furnaces and heatersin the home can emithigh concentrations ofcarbon monoxide, too,if they are not properly

Carbon monoxidemakes it hard forbody parts to getthe oxygen theyneed to runcorrectly.

Exposure tocarbon monoxidemakes people feel

dizzy and tiredand gives themheadaches.

In high

concentrations it is


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Nitrogen

dioxide

A reddish-brown gas that

comes from theburning of fossilfuels

It has a strong

smell at highlevels.

Nitrogen dioxide

mostly comes frompower plants andcars

Nitrogen dioxide

is formed in twowayswhennitrogen in the fuelis burned, or whennitrogen in the airreacts with oxygenat very hightemperatures

High levels of

nitrogen dioxideexposure can givepeople coughsand can makethem feel short ofbreath

People who areexposed tonitrogen dioxidefor a long timehave a higherchance of gettingrespiratory

infections.


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Nitrogendioxide can alsoreact in theatmosphere to

form ozone,acid rain, andparticles

Nitrogendioxide reactsin theatmosphere to

form acid rain,which can harmplants and

animals


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Particulatematter

Solid or liquidmatter that is

suspended in theair.

To remain in theair, particles

usually must beless than 0.1-mmwide and can beas small as

0.00005 mm.

Particulate matter

can be divided intotwo typescoarseparticles and fineparticles.

Coarse particlesare formed fromsources like roaddust, sea spray,

and construction.Fine particles areformed when fuelis burned in

automobiles andpower plants.

Particulate matter

that is smallenough can enterthe lungs andcause health

problems.Some of theseproblems includemore frequent

asthma attacks,respiratoryproblems, andpremature death.


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Sulfur dioxide

A corrosive gasthat cannot beseen or smelled

at low levels butcan have arotten egg

smell at high

levels.

Sulfur dioxide

mostly comes fromthe burning of coalor oil in powerplants.

It also comesfrom factories thatmake chemicals,paper, or fuel.

Like nitrogendioxide, sulfurdioxide reacts inthe atmosphere toform acid rain andparticles.

Sulfur dioxide

exposure canaffect peoplewho have

asthma oremphysema bymaking it moredifficult for them

to breathe. Itcan also irritatepeople's eyes,noses, and

throats. Sulfur


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LeadA blue-graymetal that isvery toxic and is

found in anumber offorms andlocations.

Outside, leadcomes from carsin areas whereunleaded gasolineis not used

Lead can alsocome from powerplants and otherindustrial sources.

High amountsof lead can bedangerous forsmall children

and can lead tolower IQs andkidneyproblems


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Inside, lead

paint is animportantsource of lead,

especially inhouses wherepaint is peeling

Lead in old

pipes can alsobe a source oflead in drinkingwater.

For adults,

exposure tolead canincrease the

chance ofhaving heartattacks orstrokes.


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Toxic air

pollutantsA large numberof chemicalsthat are knownor suspected tocause cancer

Some

importantpollutants in thiscategory includearsenic, asbestos,

benzene, anddioxin.

Each toxic air

pollutant comesfrom a slightlydifferent source,but many are

created inchemical plantsor are emittedwhen fossilfuels areburned

Toxic air

pollutants cancause cancer.Some toxic airpollutants can

also cause birthdefects

Other effects

depend on thepollutant, butcan include skinand eye irritationand breathingproblems.


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Some toxic airpollutants, likeasbestos andformaldehyde,

can be found inbuildingmaterials andcan lead to

indoor airproblemsMany toxic airpollutants can also

enter the food andwater su lies.


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Stratospheric

ozonedepleters

Chemicals thatcan destroy the

ozone in thestratosphere

These chemicalsinclude

chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), halons,and othercompounds thatinclude chlorine orbromine.

CFCs are used in

air conditionersand refrigerators,since they workwell as coolants

They can also befound in aerosolcans and fireextinguishers

Other

stratosphericozone depletersare used assolvents in

industry.

If the ozone in the

stratosphere isdestroyed, peopleare exposed tomore radiationfrom the sun

(ultravioletradiation).

This can lead toskin cancer and

eye problems.Higher ultravioletradiation can alsoharm plants and

animals.


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Greenhouse

gases

Gases that stayin the air for a

long time andwarm up theplanet bytrapping

sunlight.

Carbon dioxide

is the mostimportantgreenhousegas.

It comes fromthe burning offossil fuels in

cars, powerplants, houses,and industry.

The

greenhouseeffect can leadto changes inthe climate ofthe planet.

Some of thesechanges might

include moretemperatureextremes,higher sea

levels,


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This is called

thegreenhouse

effect because

the gases actlike the glass ina greenhouse.Some of the

importantgreenhousegases arecarbon dioxide,

methane, andnitrous oxide.

Methane is

released duringthe processingof fossil fuels,and also comesfrom naturalsources likecows and rice

paddies.Nitrous oxidecomes fromindustrial sources

and decayingplants.

changes in

forestcomposition,and damage toland near thecoast

Human healthmight be affectedby diseases thatare related totemperature or bydamage to landand water.


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Hydropower

Flowing water creates energy that can becaptured and turned into electricity.

This is called hydroelectric power orhydropower


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The most common type of hydroelectricpower plant uses a dam on a river to storewater in a reservoir.

Water released from the reservoir flowsthrough a turbine, spinning it, which in turnactivates a generator to produce

electricity.


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But hydroelectric power doesn'tnecessarily require a large dam. Somehydroelectric power plants just use a small

canal to channel the river water through aturbine.


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But hydroelectric power doesn'tnecessarily require a large dam.

Some hydroelectric power plants just usea small canal to channel the river waterthrough a turbine.


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Nuclear Power

Nuclear power ispower (generallyelectrical) produced

from controlled (non-explosive) nuclearreactions.


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a nuclear reaction isthe process in whichtwo nuclei or nuclear

particles collide toproduce productsdifferent from theinitial particles.


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Commercial plants in use to date usenuclear fission reactions.

Electric utility reactors heat water toproduce steam, which is then used togenerate electricity.


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Nuclear fission is a nuclear reaction inwhich the nucleus of an atom splits intosmaller parts, often producing free

neutrons and lighter nuclei, which mayeventually produce photons (in the form ofgamma rays).


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Fission of heavy elements is anexothermic reaction which can releaselarge amounts of energy both as

electromagnetic radiation and as kineticenergy of the fragments (heating the bulkmaterial where fission takes place).


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For fission to produce energy, the totalbinding energy of the resulting elementshas to be higher than that of the starting

element.

Fission is a form of nuclear transmutationbecause the resulting fragments are not

the same element as the original atom.


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In 2009, 15% of the world's electricitycame from nuclear power, despiteconcerns about safety and radioactive

waste management

P lif i Ri k f N l


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Proliferation Risk of NuclearPower

Plutonium is a man-made waste product ofnuclear fission, which can be used eitherfor fuel in nuclear power plants or for

bombs.


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In the year 2000, an estimated 310 tons(620,000 pounds) of civilian, weapons-usable plutonium had been produced.

Less than 8 kilograms (about 18 pounds)of plutonium is enough for one Nagasaki-type bomb.

Thus, in the year 2000 alone, enoughplutonium was created to make more than34,000 nuclear weapons.


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The technology for producing nuclearenergy that is shared among nations,particularly the process that turns raw

uranium into lowly-enriched uranium, canalso be used to produce highly-enriched,weapons-grade uranium.


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The International Atomic Energy Agency(IAEA) is responsible for monitoring theworlds nuclear facilities and for preventing

weapons proliferation, but their safeguardshave serious shortcomings.


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Though the IAEA is promoting additionalsafeguards agreements to increase theeffectiveness of their inspections

The agency acknowledges that, due tomeasurement uncertainties, it cannotdetect all possible diversions of nuclear

material

Ri k f A id t f N l


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Risk of Accident of NuclearPower

On April 26, 1986 the No. 4 reactor at theChernobyl power plant (in the formerU.S.S.R., present-day Ukraine) exploded,

causing the worst nuclear accident ever.

30 people were killed instantly, including28 from radiation exposure, and a further

209 on site were treated for acuteradiation poisoning.


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The World Health Organization found thatthe fallout from the explosion wasincredibly far-reaching.

For a time, radiation levels in Scotland,over 1400 miles (about 2300 km) away,were 10,000 times the norm.

Thousands of cancer deaths were a directresult of the accident.


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The accident cost the former Soviet Unionmore than three times the economicalbenefits accrued from the operation of

every other Soviet nuclear power plantoperated between 1954 and 1990.


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In March of 1979 equipment failures andhuman error contributed to an accident atthe Three Mile Island nuclear reactor at

Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, the worst suchaccident in U.S. history.

Consequences of the incident include

radiation contamination of surroundingareas, increased cases of thyroid cancer,and plant mutations.


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According to the US House ofRepresentatives, Subcommittee onOversight & Investigations, "Calculation of

Reactor Accident Consequences (CRAC2)for US Nuclear Power Plants (1982,

1997)

An accident at a US nuclear power plantcould kill more people than were killed bythe atomic bomb dropped on Nagasaki.

En ironmental Degradation


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Environmental DegradationCaused by Nuclear Power

All the steps in the complex process ofcreating nuclear energy entailenvironmental hazards.

The mining of uranium, as well as itsrefining and enrichment, and theproduction of plutonium produce

radioactive isotopes that contaminate thesurrounding area, including thegroundwater, air, land, plants, and

equipment.


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As a result, humans and the entireecosystem are adversely and profoundlyaffected.

Some of these radioactive isotopes areextraordinarily long-lived, remaining toxicfor hundreds of thousands of years.

Presently, we are only beginning toobserve and experience theconsequences of producing nuclear

energy


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Nuclear Waste

Nuclear waste is produced in manydifferent ways.

There are wastes produced in the reactor

core, wastes created as a result ofradioactive contamination, and wastesproduced as a byproduct of uranium

mining, refining, and enrichment.


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The vast majority of radiation in nuclearwaste is given off from spent fuel rods.

A typical reactor will generate 20 to 30

tons of high-level nuclear waste annually.

There is no known way to safely disposeof this waste, which remains dangerously

radioactive until it naturally decays


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The rate of decay of a radioactive isotopeis called its half-life, the time in which halfthe initial amount of atoms present takes

to decay. The half-life of Plutonium-239, one

particularly lethal component of nuclear

waste, is 24,000 years.


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The hazardous life of a radioactiveelement (the length of time that mustelapse before the material is considered

safe) is at least 10 half-lives. Therefore, Plutonium-239 will remain

hazardous for at least 240,000 years.


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There is a current proposal to dumpnuclear waste at Yucca Mountain,Nevada.

The plan is for Yucca Mountain to hold allof the high level nuclear waste everproduced from every nuclear power plant

in the US.


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However, that would completely fill up thesite and not account for future waste.

Transporting the wastes by truck and rail

would be extremely dangerous.


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Repository sites in Australia, Argentina,China, southern Africa, and Russia havealso been considered.

Though some countries reprocess nuclearwaste (in essence, preparing it to sendthrough the cycle again to create more

energy)


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This process is banned in the U.S. due toincreased proliferation risks, as thereprocessed materials can also be used

for making bombs. Reprocessing is also not a solution

because it just creates additional nuclear

waste.


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The best action would be to ceaseproducing nuclear energy (and waste), toleave the existing waste where it is, and to

immobilize it. There are a few different methods of

waste immobilization. In the vitrification

process, waste is combined with glass-forming materials and melted.


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Once the materials solidify, the waste istrapped inside and can't easily bereleased.


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Non-ConventionalSources of Power and

Other Sources


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Geothermal Power

Geothermal power (from the Greek rootsgeo, meaning earth, and thermos,meaning heat) is power extracted from

heat stored in the earth. This geothermal energy originates from

the original formation of the planet, from

radioactive decay of minerals, and fromsolar energy absorbed at the surface


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Geothermal power is cost effective,reliable, sustainable, and environmentallyfriendly, but has historically been limited to

areas near tectonic plate boundaries. Recent technological advances have

dramatically expanded the range and size

of viable resources, especially forapplications such as home heating,opening a potential for widespread

exploitation.


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Wind Power

Wind power is the conversion of windenergy into a useful form of energy, suchas using wind turbines to make electricity,

wind mills for mechanical power, windpumps for pumping water or drainage, orsails to propel ships.


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Biomass

Biomass, a renewable energy source, isbiological material derived from living, orrecently living organisms, such as wood,

waste, and alcohol fuels. Biomass is commonly plant matter grown

to generate electricity or produce heat.


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For example, forest residues (such asdead trees, branches and tree stumps),yard clippings and wood chips and

garbage may be used as biomass. However, biomass also includes plant or

animal matter used for production of fibers

or chemicals.


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Biomass may also include biodegradablewastes that can be burnt as fuel.

It excludes organic materials such as

fossil fuels which have been transformedby geological processes into substancessuch as coal or petroleum.


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Biogas Power

Mainly methane and carbon dioxide,biogas is produced from the unaerobicdecomposition of waste


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Solar Power

Solar Power was until recently notconsidered economically feasible for largescale electricity generation.

Although the total radiation reaching theEarth from the Sun is tremendous, it is toodiffused compared to the energy packed in

coal, oil, or the uranium nucleus.


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the apex of technology and its natural backlash

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