Earth’s Resources

Chapter 25

Discovery Lab

• All the material goods that you use every day are matter. One way in which matter can be classified is whether it comes from living things or from nonliving things. In this activity, you will identify the origins of some common materials.

Discovery Lab

1.On a blank sheet of paper, make a data table with the headings “Item,” “Living,” “Nonliving,” “Easily Replaced,” and “Not Replaceable.”

Item Living NonlivingEasily

Replaced

Not Replaceab

le

Discovery Lab

2.Look around the classroom and list 10 common items you see in the first column of your table.

3.Classify the matter in each item as coming from either living or nonliving things, and as either being easily replaced or not replaced by placing check marks in the appropriate columns.

Discovery Lab - Conclusion Questions

• Compare your data table with the person next to you. Answer the following questions using complete sentences.

1. Which of the items were identified as coming from living things?

2. Which are easily replaced?

3. What criteria did you use to classify each item?

4. Were you unable to classify any item using just these categories? EXPLAIN!

Land Resources

What are two resources found on land?

Two resources found on land include topsoil, bedrock, and minerals

Air Resources

Why is air considered to be a resource?

Air contains gases essential to life and the maintenance of balanced ecosystems on Earth

How can air be polluted by natural processes?

A natural source of air pollution is gases given off by erupting volcanoes.

How can air be polluted by humans?

A human-generated source of air pollution is the gases produced from the burning of fossil fuels

Water Resources

How do humans provide freshwater for our needs?

Humans provide freshwater for our needs by:

drilling deep wells

holding water behind dams

building aqueduct systems to carry water from one location to another

Pass Out Of Class

1. What is a natural resource?

2. Explain the difference between a renewable and a nonrenewable resource.

3. Name three renewable resources and three nonrenewable resources.

4. Explain why it is important to know whether a resource that you are using is renewable or nonrenewable.

5. Fossil fuels are derived from the remains of once-living organisms, and living things are renewable resources. Why, then, are fossil fuels considered to be nonrenewable resources?