THE MAN AND EARTH

Course Code: SGES 1301

Semester 2 2013/2014

Week 1

Dr. Muhammad Aqeel Ashraf

Credit: 2

2 hours/week

Medium of Instruction English

Learning Strategy: Lecture plus continuous assessment

THE MAN AND EARTH

Recommended Books

1. Skinner, B.J. and Porter, S.C. (2000): The Dynamic Earth (4th Ed). John Wiley & Sons Inc. 575p.

2. Hamblin, W.K. and Christiansen, E.H. (1998): Earth’s Dynamic Systems (8th Ed) . Prentice-Hall Inc. 740p.

3. White, I.D., Mottershead, D.N. and Harrison, S.J. (1994):

Environmental Systems (2nd Ed ) 616p.

THE MAN AND EARTH

Teaching Schedule

14 Weeks

Week 1

Introduction to course

Week 2

Man and Environment

Week 3

The Earth’s Hydrosphere and Man

Week 4

Sources of Water

Week 5

The Earth’s Atmosphere and Man

Week 6

Contamination of the Atmosphere

Week 7

Contamination of the Atmosphere – Cont’d Continuous Assessment Test 1

THE MAN AND EARTH

Teaching Schedule

Week 8

The Earth’s Internal Lithosphere and Man

Week 9

Mineral and Metallic Resources

Week 10

The Earth’s External Lithosphere and Man

Week 11

Weathering, Soils and Contamination Disasters

Week 12

The Earth’s Biosphere and Man

Week 13

Plant/Forest Management, Wildlife Resources, Biodiversity

Week 14

Natural Disasters and Man

Continuous Assessment Test 2

THE MAN AND EARTH

OUR EARTH... OUR...

History of Earth

Earth and the other planets in the Solar System formed 4.54 billion years

ago.

About 535 million years ago there have been five mass extinctions.

The last extinction event occurred 65 million years ago, when a meteorite

collision probably triggered the extinction of the (non-avian) dinosaurs and

other large reptiles years ago.

The development of photosynthesis allowed the Sun's energy to be harvested

directly by life forms; the resultant oxygen accumulated in the atmosphere

and resulted in a layer of ozone (a form of molecular oxygen [O3]) in the

upper atmosphere

Billions of years ago dust whirling around the

newborn Sun started to pull together forming

lumps of rocks .

These rocks by their mutual gravity

clumped together to form planets .

The atmosphere

containing

poisonous gases

wrapped around

the planet .

It took over a

billion years for

the air to clear .

Today, this is what our solar system looks like..

Graphics in Solar System

Earth:

the third planet.

the fifth largest planet.

the densest planet.

has only one satellite, the Moon.

has distance – 149600000 km from the Sun.

Atmosphere of Earth

The atmospheric pressure on the surface of the Earth averages 101.325

kPa, with a scale height of about 8.5 km.

The Earth's atmosphere is composed mainly of nitrogen (77%), oxygen

(21%), argon (.93%), and carbon dioxide (0.03%).

Layers:

hydrosphere

stratosphere

troposphere

biosphere

lithosphere

ionosphere

Composition

Chemical:

34.6% Iron

29.5% Oxygen

15.2% Silicon

12.7% Magnesium

2.4% Nickel

1.9% Sulphur

0.05% Titanium

Mass

atmosphere = 0.0000051

oceans = 0.0014

crust = 0.026

mantle = 4.043

outer core = 1.835

inner core = 0.09675

x10^24 kilograms

FACTS ABOUT EARTH

Earth is the only planet whose English name does not derive from

Greek/Roman mythology.

The Earth is 4.5 to 4.6 billion years old, but the oldest known rocks are

about 4 billion years old.

There is no record of the critical period when life was first getting started.

The oxygen in Earth's atmosphere is produced and maintained by biological

processes.

Earth has a modest magnetic field produced by electric currents in the outer

core

Moon

It is called Luna by the Romans, Selene and Artemis by the Greeks, and

many other names in other mythologies. It is the second brightest object in the sky after the Sun

As the Moon orbits around the Earth once per month, the angle between the Earth, the Moon and the Sun changes

Moon was first visited by the Soviet spacecraft Luna 2 in 1959

The first landing was on July 20, 1969 and the last was in December

1972 The gravitational forces between the Earth and the Moon cause tides.

The Moon's gravitational attraction is stronger on the side of the Earth nearest to the Moon and weaker on the opposite side

The Moon has no atmosphere

The Moon's crust averages 68 km thick

Most rocks on the surface of the Moon seem to be between 4.6 and 3 billion years old.

Satellites

First artificial satellite launched by Soviet Union is Sputnik-1 in 1957.

Types

Communicational

Observational

Navigational

Weather

Research

Satellites orbits vary depending on purpose of satellite and classified as:-

Low earth orbit

Polar orbit

Geostationary orbit

Mountains

highest mountain in world is Mount Everest(8848m) in Asia.

Tallest mountain in world is Mouna Kea in Hawaii.

Types

Volcanic

Domed

Folded

Plateau

Fault-block

Minerals

Minerals can be classified acc. to chemical composition.

Types of minerals

1. Silicates

2. Carbonate

3. Sulphate

4. Halide

5. Oxide

6. Sulphide

7. Phosphate

8. Element

9. Organic

Rocks

The Earth's lithosphere is made of rock.

Types

Igneous

Metamorphic

Sedimentary

Rocks are classified by mineral and chemical composition

Rocks are used to construct buildings and infrastructure.

The Earth is a

truly beautiful

and

fascinating

place.

The Earth

The Earth is unique because of water and a

variety of living things that can survive here

VEGETATION

THE ANIMAL KINGDOM

BIRDS

LIFE UNDER WATER

INSECTS

THE AMAZING SAND DUNES

THE VAST OCEANS

THE MAJESTIC MOUNTAINS

THIS BEAUTIFUL CREATION CALLED

EARTH IS A GIFT TO US..

Sign of life

1. Highly complex organization = all

other characteristics of life emerge

from an organism’s complex

organization

2. Self-homeostasis =

Self-maintenance of a steady-state

internal environment in the

variations of external environment.

3. Self-perpetuation

= Life comes only from life.

4. Growth and development = the increment

of volume and changes in structure and

functions to suit with new form of life

5. Interactions = Life needs energy and

matter utilization for maintenance of

life

6. Adaptation = Life evolve as a result

of the interaction between organisms

and their environments

7. Response = Life adjusts itself to the

environment.

The First Humans

Hominids are the family of mankind

and his or her relatives.

65 Million Years Ago

Dinosaurs died out about 65 million years

ago. The first human like hominids did not

appear until around 3 million years ago.

No matter what you may have seen in the

movies, early man did not live during the

same period in history as dinosaurs!

Not that early man had it easy, but he did not have to fight dinosaurs!

3 Million Years Ago

3 million years ago, our planet was teeming

with life!

There were deer, giraffes, hyenas, sheep,

goats, horses, elephants, camels, beavers,

cave lions, ants, termites, woolly mammoths,

saber-toothed tigers, giant sharks, dogs with

huge teeth, and all kinds of birds and plants

and fish.

Very Early Humans

It was during this time that the higher primates, including

apes and early man, first appeared.

Their hands were different, too. Ape hands

were made for climbing and clinging. Man’s

hands were jointed differently, which allowed

them to make and use tools.

There was a difference between apes and man.

Early human-like hominids could stand upright.

Apes could not.

Very Early Humans

How do scientists know about an early man

who lived 3 million years ago?

Lucy told them!

Lucy

In 1974, a skeleton was found in Africa. The bones were those of a female,

about 20 years old or so when she died. Scientists named her Lucy. About

3 million years

ago, when Lucy was alive, she was about 4 feet tall and

weighed about 50 pounds. Scientists suspect that she

fell into a lake or river and drowned.

Scientists are like detectives. They can tell a

great deal from a skeleton, whether it's one

year old or 3 million years old!

Handy Man

The Stone Age refers to the materials used to make

man-made tools. In the Stone Age, man made tools

out of stone. “Handy Man” was one of the first

hominids to use stone tools.

Hunters & Gatherers: The Old Stone Age people were

hunters/gatherers. We know this because scientists have

found fossils and artifacts, which reveal traces of their

life. These people did not plant crops. They gathered wild

fruits, nuts, berries, and vegetables.

Handy Man

These early human-like hominids were taller

and smarter than Lucy’s people, but they did

not know how to make fire.

When they broke camp, they probably

tried to bring fire with them by carrying lit

branches to use to start a new campfire.

If their branches went out, they did without

fire until they found something burning.

Upright Man

Many years passed. Another group of man was born. Scientists nicknamed

this group “Upright Man”. Upright Man did know how to make fire.

That changed everything!

People began to cook their food, which helped

to reduce disease. People collected around

the fire each night, to share stories of the

day's hunt and activities, which helped to

develop a spirit of community.

Upright Man

These Stone Age people were about the same size as

modern humans. Their tool-making skills were

considerably improved. Their weapons included stone

axes and knives.

Because Upright Man could make fire, he was free

to move about in search of food. He did not have to

worry about freezing. He made warm clothes from

animal skins. At night, he built a campfire to cook

his food and to stay warm.

Man Leaves Home

About one million years ago, Upright Man began to

slowly leave Africa. These early people began to

populate the world.

Scientists have found artifacts of their tools and

weapons, which help us to understand how they lived,

where they went, and how they got there.

They did not need a boat. The Ice Age was here! They

traveled across giant walkways of frozen ice, over

what later would become vast rivers and seas.

Neanderthals

But scientists had made a mistake!

The bones were bent because

they were part of the skeleton of

an old man suffering from

arthritis! Arthritis is a disease

that bends and cripples bones.

Neanderthals

Still, Neanderthals were different from other species

of early humans. They were tall and smart, and used

caves as their homes. They were great hunters.

Considering how smart they were, and how advanced

for their time, scientists are puzzled that the

Neanderthals were one of the early species of man to

die out. Many species of man died out in these early

days. But why the Neanderthals? It is a history

mystery.

Cro-Magnon Man

Another group of early men stood out during this period.

Scientists nicknamed this group “Cro-Magnon man”.

Cro-Magnon man lived in Europe.

This group did not live a life of constant struggle for

survival because they worked together to provide

food for their tribe.

Cro-Magnon Man

These Stone Age people learned to cure and store food for the long winter.

They used traps, which allowed them to catch food while they were busy

doing something else. Fisherman used nets woven from vines and

fishhooks.

Some groups built rafts and canoes to catch

bigger fish in deeper waters.

They made clothing and jewelry. They

invented the bow and arrow.

Cave Paintings

Cro-Magnon man did something rather unusual. For some reason, he drew

paintings deep inside dark caves, on cave walls.

His paintings were added to the paintings already

on the cave walls, left by other Cro-Magnon men.

Over time, a cave

might accumulate hundreds of

paintings. Colors used most often

were brown, yellow/tan, dark red,

and coal black.

Cave Paintings

Animals were well drawn and filled in with natural colors to give them even

more shape and substance. They drew stick figures for hunters. They drew

stencils of hands.

Cave Paintings

To reach the deepest part of the cave, where other paintings could be found,

Cro-Magnon man had to crawl through the maze like tunnels of the cave,

holding a spoon-like oil lamp to light his way, while carrying his carefully

prepared paints.

A Mystery

It was quite dangerous. Cro-Magnon man had no idea if he might run into a

cave lion. He might fall into a hole and die.

There are many

history mysteries.

This is one of them.

Why did he do it? Perhaps it was a coming of age ceremony, or perhaps it

served a religious purpose. Maybe it was a sort of, “I was here.”

The human animal

Leaving a Mark on the World

Have you ever seen very old photographs of the

town or city in which you now live? Has your area

changed? Perhaps there are more buildings or

roads than there were many years ago. Maybe

your town or city has more trees and flowers now

than it had years ago. Humans, like all organisms,

have an effect on their environment.

The Earth

Earth is a kind of island

Limited resources

Nature must sustain the resources

Human populations is growing

The planet is not

The Earth

Demands on

Air

Water

Land

Living things

We must protect these resources

What human activities do you think have an impact on the earth’s

natural resources?

Hunting and gathering

Agriculture

Industry

Urban development

The Earth

Recent study concluded that human activity uses as

much energy as all of earth’s other multicellular

species combined

Humans are the most influential in changing the

environments of the planet

The Earth

HUNTING AND GATHERING

Hunting and gathering has been the primary means

of human survival for most of human history

Fished, gathered seeds, fruits, and nuts

Lived in small groups

The Earth

Early man

Built dams

burned grasslands to encourage growth of certain plants

Some scientists hypothesize that humans are responsible for the mass

extinction of

woolly mammoths

giant ground sloths

sabertooth cats

cheetahs

zebras

yaks

Agriculture

Early humans learned how plants grew, which were

edible, and which were good medicines

They began to plant those that were important near

their settlements

11,000 years ago, humans started farming

(Agriculture)

Agriculture

Agriculture spread

With dependable food supply, people started

living in larger settlements – towns and cities

Domestication of Animals

Over time, people started keeping herds of

domesticated animals

Agriculture

List 3 reasons people keep animals

Milk, meat, hides, wool, companionship, perform work

Overgrazing changed grasslands ecosystems –

eroded soils, large demand on water

Human population grew at an increasing rate.

Green Revolution

Monoculture – large fields plowed, and planted

with a single crop year after year

Irrigation, fertilization, and pesticides were relied

on to sustain the crops

Animal and human power was replaced with

machine power

Within 20 years, Mexican farmers increased

production of wheat 10 times

Green Revolution

By 1950’s food supply was straining

Green Revolution – to increase food supply,

governments and scientists introduced new farming

techniques to increase yields of crops (rice, wheat,

corn)

Relied on new, highly productive strains of crops

Green Revolution

Problems have been introduced by the green

revolution. Can you name a few?

Depletion of water supplies

Pollution of water by pesticides and fertilizers

Industrial growth and Urban

Development

Wastes from manufacturing and energy production

have been poured into the air, water, and soil

Tied to high standard of living that we all enjoy

Tragedy of the Commons

Resource is something that can be used to take

care of a need

When an environmental resource is owned by

many people, or no one, but no one is responsible

for it, it is called a “common resource”.

The question is: How do we control the harmful effects of human activity on the

environment?

Tragedy of the Commons

The Tragedy of the Commons – any resource open

to everyone will eventually be destroyed because

although everyone owns the resource, no one is

responsible for it.

Air, Water – shared by many countries, but no one

is responsible.

Whaling – if some countries attempt to protect

whales, but others continue to hunt whales to

extinction, what will eventually happen?

Tragedy of the Commons

Human

Activities

that have changed the biosphere include

may have once caused often relies on the methods of the have resulted in

which increased

Food supply Pesticide use Monoculture use

Hunting and gathering

Agriculture Industrial

growth Urban

development

Extinctions of large animals

Green revolution

High standard of living

Increased pollution

Concept Map

Atmospheric CO2 concentration

Etheridge et al. Geophys Res 101: 4115-4128

Northern hemisphere average surface temperature

Mann et al Geophys Res Lett 26(6): 759-762

Atmospheric N2O concentration

Machida et al Geophys Res Lett 22:2921-2925

Atmospheric CH4 concentration

Blunier et al J Geophy Res 20: 2219-2222

Ozone depletion

JD Shanklin British Antarctic Survey

Natural climactic disasters

Tropical rainforest and woodland loss

Richards, the Earth as transformed by human action, Cambridge University Press

Domesticated land

Klein Goldewijk and Batties

Species extinctions

Wilson, the Diversity of Life.

1

2

• overfishing, coastal

eutrophication

• phosphorous accum-

ulation in soil and mud

• fire prevention

3

state shift

• disease,

hurricane

• flooding, warming,

overexploitation

of predators

• good rains, continu-

ous heavy grazing

coral dominance

clear water

grassland

4

algal dominance

turbid water

shrub-bushland

Valuable Ecosystem Services Loss of ecosystem services

(Desirable) (Undesirable)

Earth’s Natural Resources Exemplify Earth materials that are used as fuel, as a resource for building materials, and as a medium for growing plants

The Earth is rich in natural resources that we use everyday.

These resources are any valuable material of geologic origin

that can be extracted from the earth.

Energy resources: A major natural resource that all

Americans rely on is petroleum fuel (oil or natural gas).

Petroleum is an earth material that forms within the Earth and

can be burned to produce heat and electricity or made into

gasoline. Other fuels are coal, uranium, and alternative energy

(wind, tidal, solar). Nonmetallic resources: Another natural resource that is very

important to us is rock. We depend on sandstone, granite and

other types of bedrock formed within and on the Earth to build

our schools, homes, and skyscrapers. We use the mineral

calcite as a main ingredient in cement and red clay to make

bricks. We use sand, gravel gypsum and sulfur in everyday

items. Soil is yet another natural resource that is necessary to

support all plant life on Earth.

Metallic resources: Iron, copper, aluminum, lead, zinc,

gold, silver and many more are considered valuable

resources that are vital for our modern society. Aluminum Copper

A pencil uses zinc and copper (to make the brass), petroleum

for the eraser, iron (in the machinery to make the pencil),

pigments, clay and graphite. The only renewable resource in

your pencil is the wood!

Your jeans, although they may be almost all cotton, are usually

blended with petroleum-based synthetic fibers to cut down on

shrinking

The zipper on those same jeans is made out of copper and

zinc.

The dye in all your fabrics come from petroleum

Common uses of natural resources are everywhere. It is nearly impossible to cease

consuming natural or geologic resources altogether. Here are just a few examples of

things you commonly use, but probably don’t think about:

Eyeglasses and windows are made of quartz sand and

petroleum

Dental fillings are made of mercury and silver

Videotapes are made of vinyl and iron and chromium

Common uses of Earth’s Resources

87

Natural resources that can be replaced and reused by nature are termed renewable. Natural

resources that cannot be replaced are termed nonrenewable.

Nonrenewable vs. Renewable Resources Classify resources as renewable or nonrenewable and explain the implications of their depletion and the importance of

conservation.

Renewable resources are replaced through natural

processes at a rate that is equal to or greater than the rate

at which they are used, and depletion is usually not a worry.

Some common examples include:

Air (wind)

Fresh water

Soil

Living organisms (trees)

Sunlight

Fossil fuels (coal, oil, natural gas)

Diamonds and other precious gems and minerals

Types of metals and ores

Trees: A renewable resource

Oil: A nonrenewable resource

Nonrenewable resources are exhaustible and are extracted

faster than the rate at which they formed. Some common

examples are:

Important: Nonrenewable resources such as these exist

in a fixed amount and can only be replaced by processes

that take millions of years. If they are depleted, they are

depleted for good.

Sometimes, however, renewable resources can be depleted if they are used too fast!

Here are a few examples of how this can happen:

Nonrenewable vs. Renewable Resources

While fresh water is a renewable resource, in some areas, overpopulation and increased demand on the water supply, lack of water conservation practices, and pollution of the water source can cause water to become scarce. This is especially a big problem in cities situated in dry areas. A decrease in water availability can affect agriculture, farmland, livestock, and other living organisms (including humans) in the area.

If trees and vegetation are removed without being replanted, this can have effects on the land, air, and water. Common effects include runoff and water quality.

If an area undergoes severe deforestation and the

soil erodes quickly, this will deplete the land of fertile

topsoil needed to support plant growth, so trees and

shrubs cannot grow back.

Earth’s resources have properties that make them important and useful. The two properties are:

1. Physical property: Hardness, luster, color, texture, cleavage, and density (see section on

Minerals)

2. Chemical property: Ability to burn or reactivity to acid.

Three of the most common earth resources that have importance on the basis of these properties

are:

1. Minerals: Natural, solid materials found on Earth that are the building blocks of rocks. Each

has a chemical makeup and set of properties that determine value and use (quartz, sapphires,

talc, gypsum).

2. Ores: Minerals that are mined because they contain useful metals or nonmetals (iron, copper).

3. Fossil Fuels: Natural fuels that come from the remains of living things. Fuel gives off energy

when burned (coal, peat, petroleum).

Summarize the importance of minerals, ores, and fossil fuels as Earth resources on the basis of their physical and chemical

properties

Ores, Minerals and Fossil Fuels

Introduction:

Problems with our energy sources and supply (i.e. pollution, foreign oil) have become an important

conservational and political topics over the past 25 years. Alternate energy sources such as wind,

water, and solar have been investigated, but only a fraction of the U.S.’s energy comes from these

alternate sources.

1. What is a Fossil Fuel?

Because coal, oil, and natural gas form from ancient organic matter, they are called

fossil fuels.

Coal is actually a sedimentary rock that was originally formed from ancient plant matter

through decomposition and millions of years of compaction. Coal, made of carbon, is by

far the most abundant fossil fuel in the world. The eastern and midwestern U.S. have

abundant coal seams that formed during the Pennsylvanian Period (300 ma), when the

region was located close to the equator.

Petroleum: A broad term that includes both crude oil and natural gas. Crude oil is a

thick, black liquid mixture of naturally occurring hydrocarbons (compounds containing

hydrogen and carbon) that forms from the buried remains of marine organisms. Natural

gas forms under similar conditions but is in a gaseous state. These two products form

the bulk of the U.S.’s energy consumptions:

Oil Natural Gas Coal Nuclear

Hydroelectric Biomass Geothermal, wind,

solar and other

39.4% 23.6% 22.7% 8.3% 2.7% 2.8% 0.5%

The United States’ energy consumption resources as of 2007

Fossil Fuels

Although we know that fossil fuels form from the decomposed remains of past life over millions of

years, large amounts of pressure and high temperatures are also necessary. As marine organisms,

called plankton, die and fall to the seafloor, they are covered by sediment. After they are buried

deeply enough, pressure and heat cause the dead plankton to change to oil and gas.

3. How can we find fossil fuel?

There are specific but known conditions that must be met in order to find the oil and gas. Oil and

gas are usually found within a permeable rock such as sandstone. Permeable simply means that

the rock is porous, and liquids or gases can easily flow through it.

A finer grained sedimentary rock, like shale, is relatively impermeable. Fluids cannot easily flow,

but they form good boundaries for trapping gas or oil. These rock boundaries are sometimes called

a roof or trap rock. If a layer of sedimentary rocks is tilted upwards with a shale on top of a

sandstone, the natural gas will rise upward since it is less dense than water, the gas is trapped by

the layer of shale.

2. How do fossil fuels form?

Oil

Shale boundary

(roof rock)

Gas

Reservoir

Rock

Well

Once oil or gas is found beneath earth’s surface by geologists, it must be extracted. Usually this is done by drilling through the rock to where the resource is trapped. When the well is completed, oil or gas can flow into the well and the resources are pumped up to the surface.

Oil companies drill for oil, and they employ geologists who usually identify the favorable areas that may have oil or gas. These geologists include stratigraphers, sedimentologists, and geophysicists. Many times, however, dry holes are drilled and geologists must move on to

other locations.

In 2005, the United States produced an estimated 9 million barrels of crude oil per day and imported 13.21 million barrels per day from other countries. This oil gets refined into gasoline, kerosene, heating oil and other products. To keep up with our consumption, oil companies must constantly look for new sources of petroleum, as well as improve the production of existing wells.

The U.S.’s dependence on foreign oil, primarily from the Middle East, has

been a major concern for over 3 decades. Politicians have presented the

Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska, home to thousands of migratory

animals and precious woodlands, as a potential source for American oil. If

Congress approves development, it would take 10 years for oil production to

commence. If production were to commence, oil production would peak at

780,000 barrels per day in 19 years and decline to 710,000 barrels per day in

22 years. Currently, the United States consumes about 20 million barrels of oil

per day! Drilling for oil beneath the pristine tundra of the Arctic National

Wildlife Refuge would do little to ease world oil prices and destroy thousands of

acres of wilderness.

Solitary oil rig pumping

beneath the ground

(source: Wikipedia commons)

The Arctic national Wildlife

Refuge (source: U.S. fish and

wildlife service)

Current Event

Extracting Earth’s Resources: Oil

94

MESSAGE

“SAVE NATURE”