GLOBAL WARMING AND NUCLEAR POWER - раздел Иностранные языки, THE PRE_ATOMIC AGE The Idea Behind Global Warming Is Simple Enough. Earth’S Atmosphere Retains S...
The idea behind global warming is simple enough. Earth’s atmosphere retains some of the heat that Earth receives from the Sun. The amount of heat retained depends upon the chemical composition of the atmosphere. If the chemical properties of Earth’s atmosphere are changed, then the thermal properties of the atmosphere—that is, its heat-retention properties—change as well.
Burning fossil fuels releases carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. The combustion reaction in which fossil fuels are consumed produces, in the main, two products: carbon dioxide and water. At ordinary temperatures and pressures, carbon dioxide is a gas, and so burning fossil fuels releases carbon dioxide gas into the air. There is ample evidence that carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere have increased as a result. Consequently, the thermal properties of the atmosphere have changed. More carbon dioxide in the atmosphere means more of the energy that Earth receives from the Sun is retained. Temperatures are, as a consequence, rising.
Many questions about the effects of a warmer atmosphere on storm systems, ocean currents, and rainfall patterns have yet to be resolved. But there will be effects—there have, in fact, already been numerous easy-to-measure effects—and over time these effects will increase in magnitude as atmospheric carbon dioxide levels continue to increase. In fact, the rate of fossil fuel consumption continues to increase as more of the world’s population becomes accustomed to lifestyles previously identified only with developed nations. The reason? Western lifestyles are heavily dependent on the consumption of enormous quantities of fossil fuels.
Nuclear power plants produce no carbon dioxide. They depend, instead, on an entirely different mechanism for producing heat than the chemical processes associated with burning fossil fuels. Nuclear plants are, therefore, capable of producing large amounts of electricity without affecting the global climate. By contrast, replacing an average size nuclear plant with coal-burning power stations would entail burning 2.8 million tons (2.5 million metric tons) of coal each year. Nuclear power plants are, therefore, one possible answer to the questions posed by Raymond L. Orbach, Under Secretary for Science at the U.S. Department of Energy, in a 2007 speech at Iowa State University: “We must find a way to meet the increasing demand for energy without adding catastrophically to atmospheric carbon dioxide. The world, therefore, has a twofold problem: Where will this new energy come from, and how can it be carbon-free?”
To see the impact of nuclear plants on carbon emissions, consider what has happened in France: Between 1970 and 1995 France’s population increased by 13 percent; the size of its economy increased by 71 percent; the amount of electricity it produced increased by 214 percent, and its carbon dioxide emissions decreased by 16 percent. This happened because during this same period of time the percentage of electricity generated by nuclear power in France rose from 6 percent to 77 percent. Nuclear output has since held steady at about 80 percent of France’s total electrical output. The remaining 20 percent is evenly divided between hydroelectric and fossil fuels. Despite much debate about the importance of reducing greenhouse gas emissions among the major developed nations, only France has managed to make substantial reductions in emissions, because only France has almost eliminated its dependence on fossil fuels for electricity generation.
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Pre-reading tasks
1. The text you are to read is headlined “The Pre-atomic Age”. In your opinion, what can it run about?
2. Think of and write down 4-5 questions the answers to which you expect
THE PRE-ATOMIC AGE
Ancient Greek philosophers were the first known scientists to suggest that matter was made up of small, unseen elements, a theory described as “atomism” by Democritus of Abdera in the 5th century В
Comprehension check
1. Choose the best ending a, b, or c to complete the sentences.
1. Ancient Greek philosophers
a) were the first to suppose that matter was composed of small
Vocabulary work
1. The words given in A are used in the text above. Find their synonyms in B.
A
B
to suggest
Pre-reading tasks
1. Have you ever heard about John Dalton, Heinrich Geissler, William Crookes?
2. Can you recollect what they are famous for? What contributions to science did they make?
Comprehension check
1. Consult the text above and complete the following sentences.
1. Atomism reentered scientific ... in the 19th century.
2. Dalto
Pre-reading tasks
1. Do you know:
a) the names of Henri Becquerel and Pierre and Marie Curie? What are they famous?
b) when the Curies and Becquerel worked?
c) what
HENRI BECQUEREL AND THE CURIES’ DISCOVERIES
X-rays were only the first, surprise of the 1890s. New rays were soon detected which proved to be even more profoundly alien to known science.
The French p
Comprehension check
1. Match the discoveries and inventions with the names of scientists.
Marie Curie
found out that uranium salt emitted pen
Vocabulary work
1. There are some words given in bold type in the text. Choose their synonyms in the box below.
to emit
to discover
Pre-reading tasks
1. The text you are going to read is headlined “Further advances in the field of radioactivity”. In your opinion,
- what does it run about?
- what
FURTHER ADVANCES IN THE FIELD OF RADIOACTIVITY
Their work, which led to the Nobel Prize for both (and two prizes for Marie, a rare honor), confirmed the cathode-ray research of British scientist J. J.Thomson, who had experimente
RADIOACTIVITY AND RADIOACTIVE EXPOSURES
Radioactivity and the associated radiation exposures are sometimes thought of as environmental problems that have been created by modern science and technology. However, substantial
Pre-reading tasks
1. If you were asked to make a report on the theme “From nuclear reactions to nuclear fission” which events would you include in it and what scientists would you mention? Comment
FROM NUCLEAR REACTIONS TO NUCLEAR FISSION
In 1913, Neils Bohr, a brilliant Danish physicist and a post-doctoral student of Rutherford’s, elaborated and modified Rutherford’s model by incorporating quantum mechanical (the study of mechanica
Comprehension check
1. Some dates, namely years are mentioned in the text. Match them with the events described.
J. Chadwick discovered the
Vocabulary work
1. The words given in two columns of the box are mentioned in the text and they have similar meanings. Find and name these pairs.
A
Pre-reading tasks
1. The paragraphs of the text given below are jumbled. Arrange them in the logical order. Comment on your choice of paragraphs succession.
2. You are sure to know the name of a f
SPECULATIONS BEFORE THE DISCOVERY OF FUSION
Atomic energy, now usually called nuclear energy, became a gleam in the eye of scientists in the early part of the 20th century. The possibility that the atom held a vast
Pre-reading tasks
1. Otto Hahn, Lise Meitner, Fritz Strassman made several key breakthroughs revealing secrets of nuclear fission. Can you give any information about these scientists? If nothing is known to you,
REVEALING SECRETS OF NUCLEAR FISSION
Enrico Fermi and his colleagues missed a reaction in the uranium which would later be determined to be the first example of nuclear fission. The task, therefore, fell tо scientist Otto Hahn, who wa
Comprehension check
1. Match the names of scientists with the information about them. (Sometimes information refers to more than one scientist).
Otto Hahn
co
Vocabulary work
1. Find synonyms or antonyms among the words given in italics in the text and name them. Be careful as the verbs are used in different forms
2. Fill in the tab
Follow-up activities
1. In pairs, discuss the information given in the text.
2. Make up a short report based on the text. (Presenting only key ideas).
3. Find some add
FISSION AND THE FIRST REACTORS
Fission of uranium was discovered—or, more precisely, recognized for what it was—in 1938. Scientists quickly recognized that large amounts of energy are released in fission and that
Pre-reading tasks
1.In the text below the names of Henri Becquerel, Pierre and Marie Curie, Ernest Rutherford are mentioned. Recollect what each of them is famous for. The table below will help you to fulfill the
RADIOACTIVE MATERIALS AS SOURCES OF NUCLEAR ENERGY
Radioactive … involves the spontaneous disintegration of an atomic nucleus. As the nucleus …, various particles as well as high-energy electromagnetic waves are … . Ra
Pre-reading tasks
1. The text you are to read is headlined “Boiling water reactors”. In your opinion, what problems are discussed in this text?
2. If you were to make a report on this theme wha
BOILING WATER REACTORS
Consider the simplified schematic of one of the most common types of nuclear reactor, a boiling water reactor. (See the accompanying illustration.) Boiling water reactors were firs
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