Agriculture: The cultivation of plants, animals, and fungi to meet human needs, such as food, fuel, chemicals, and medicines.
Atmosphere: The outer layer of gas that surrounds Earth or another planet or moon.
Atom: The basic unit of a chemical element. An atom consists of a dense nucleus containing positively charged protons and uncharged neutrons. A cloud of negatively charged electrons orbits the nucleus.
Bacteria: (singular: bacteria) Single-celled organisms that live almost everywhere on Earth, from the ocean floor to inside other organisms (such as plants and animals). Bacteria are one of the three domains of life on Earth.
Carbon: A chemical element that is the physical basis of all life on Earth. Carbon exists freely as graphite and diamond. It is an important component of coal, limestone, and petroleum and can chemically combine with itself to form a vast number of molecules of chemical, biological, and commercial importance. (In climate studies) the term carbon is sometimes used roughly interchangeably with carbon dioxide to imply the possible effect of any action, product, policy, or process on long-term atmospheric warming.
Carbon dioxide: (or CO2) Carbon dioxide is a colorless, odorless gas produced by all animals when the oxygen they breathe reacts with the carbon-rich foods they eat. Carbon dioxide is also released when organic matter is burned (including fossil fuels like oil and gas). It acts as a greenhouse gas, trapping heat in the Earth’s atmosphere. Plants convert carbon dioxide into oxygen during photosynthesis to make their own food.
Chemicals: A substance formed by the combination of two or more atoms in a certain ratio and structure. For example, water is a chemical formed by two hydrogen atoms combined with one oxygen atom. Its chemical formula is H2O. Chemical can also be used as an adjective to describe the properties of substances that result from various reactions between different compounds.
Climate: Weather conditions typically existing in an area, generally or over an extended period of time.
Climate Change: Long-term, significant changes in the Earth’s climate, which can occur naturally or in response to human activities such as burning fossil fuels or deforestation.
Dairy products: A place containing or relating to milk, or a building or business where milk is prepared for distribution and sale.
Fossil fuel: Fuels such as coal, petroleum (crude oil), and natural gas that are produced inside the Earth over millions of years from the decaying remains of bacteria, plants, and animals.
Fuel: A substance that releases energy during a controlled chemical or nuclear reaction. Fossil fuels (coal, natural gas, and oil) are common types that undergo chemical reactions that release energy when heated (usually to the point of combustion).
Greenhouse gases: A gas that absorbs heat and contributes to the greenhouse effect. Carbon dioxide is an example of a greenhouse gas.
Intestine: An informal term referring to the digestive tract, specifically the intestines.
Hydrocarbon: Any of a series of large molecules containing carbon and hydrogen atoms chemically bonded. For example, crude oil is a naturally occurring mixture of many hydrocarbons.
Hydrogen: The lightest element in the universe. As a gas, it is colorless, odorless, and highly flammable. It is an essential part of many fuels, fats, and chemicals that make up living tissues. It consists of one proton (which acts as the nucleus) and one electron orbiting it.
Industrial Revolution: Around 1750, there were new manufacturing processes and a shift in the main energy source from wood to coal and other fossil fuels.
Fertilizer: Livestock waste. The manure can be used to fertilize the land.
Methane: Hydrocarbons with the formula CH4 (that is, one carbon atom with four hydrogen atoms bonded to it). It is a naturally occurring component of what is called natural gas. It is also released by decomposing plants in wetlands and by the burping of cows and other ruminant animals. From a climate perspective, methane is a very important greenhouse gas because it is 80 times more powerful than carbon dioxide at trapping heat in the Earth’s atmosphere.
Molecule: A group of electrically neutral atoms that represents the smallest amount of a compound. A molecule can be made up of a single type of atom or different types of atoms. For example, oxygen in the air is made up of two oxygen atoms (O2), whereas water consists of two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom (H2O).
Natural gas: A mixture of gases (often associated with crude oil) that has formed underground over millions of years. Most natural gas starts out as 50-90 percent methane, with smaller amounts of heavier hydrocarbons like propane and butane.
Organic: (in chemistry) an adjective indicating that something contains carbon, also a term relating to the basic chemicals that make up living things.
Oxygen: A gas that makes up about 21 percent of Earth’s atmosphere. All animals and many microorganisms require oxygen to fuel their growth (and metabolism).
Sun: The star at the center of Earth’s solar system. It is located about 27,000 light years from the center of the Milky Way galaxy. It is also a general term for stars like the Sun.
Source: www.snexplores.org
