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What's Up with the Weather?

Ideas from Teachers

(Gr. 3-High School/Early College)
This activity could be used with NOVA's "What's Up with the Weather?" program. Have students calculate if there's enough energy (resource) to power the United States or the world on renewable energy sources such as solar, biomass and wind (a simple calculation).

Answer: Current human energy use is approximately 10-12 terawatts. The conversion efficiency for converting sunlight to biomass is below 1 percent. However, both solar thermal and solar photovoltaic technologies are currently on the market at 10-15 percent conversion efficiency.

Using data from the book Energy Efficiency and Human Activity by L. Schipper and S. Meyers, Cambridge Press, 1992, this means that converting sunlight on 1 percent of Earth's land area at 10 percent conversion efficiency would result in 26TW, which is more than enought to meet the world's needs. Expecially true when one considers adding in the potential contributions of other renewable technologies.

Sent in by
Greg Smestad, Ph.D.
Monterey Inst. of International Studies
Monterey, CA

(Gr. 7-12)
Here is a short set of questions that may help encourage students to pay close attention to NOVA's "What's Up with the Weather?" program. Please feel free to copy and use with your classes. Answers are included below.

1. Over the last century, global surface temperature has risen ______ degree Farenheit.

2. Why do some climate historians study records having to do with cherry blossoms?

3. What did Charles David Keeling begin measuring in 1957?

4. What is the average surface temperature of the Earth? _______ degrees Farenheit

5. How long does carbon dioxide produced from burning fossil fuels remain in the atmosphere before being absorbed by the ocean?

6. What percent of U.S. electricity is produced by burning coal?__________ percent

7. How many pounds of carbon is emitted per year by lighting an average house?

8. As a result of the Kyoto treaty,
   (A) Most developing nations agreed to cut back 20 percent in carbon dioxide emissions by 2020.
   (B) No nations agreed to cut carbon dioxide emissions.
   (C) Developing countries made no binding commitments to cut back carbon dioxide emissions.
   (D) Atmospheric carbon dioxide levels in the year 2100 will be about half of what they are today.

9. The total energy consumption of all humankind today is about _______ trillion watts.

10. How long is it projected that it will take before total world energy consumption reaches 40 trillion watts?

11. How many U.S. Senators voted against the Kyoto treaty?

Answers:

1. 1 degree Farenheit
2. date of blooming indicates mildness of spring
3. carbon dioxide levels
4. 59 degrees Farenheit
5. About 100 years
6. 56 percent
7. 2,000 lbs.
8. C
9. 10 trillion watts
10. 100 years
11. 95

Sent in by
Frank Virzi
North Middlesex Regional High School
Townsend, MA

(Gr. 9-12)
I had my students do what was directed in NOVA's "What's Up with the Weather?" printable activity, Temperature Trends. I then made overheads of all 10 years of data. I could then place them one on top of another and make visual comparisons. I used different-coloredmarkers, and different lines, dots, dashes to differentiate the years. After we had completed Part 1, I then added the moving average algorithm data to these same graphs and used them in a similar manner.

I think that this technique provides a much better comparison than simply laying the graphs side-by-side (as originally instructed in the guide). I made the overheads from the blank graph forms in the guide.

Editor's note: To read an extended description of this idea, see Featured Teachers.

Sent in by
David A. MacIver
Southwick-Tolland Regional High School
Southwick, MA