Earth Science

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Earth Science

• Chapter 1 The Nature of Science

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Earth Science
OBJECTIVES Differentiate among the four major
branches of Earth Science. Contrast the four
systems of Earth. Discuss how Earth science
effects your daily life.
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• Chapter 1 Major Areas

There are four major areas in Earth science.
Astronomy is the study of objects beyond the
Earths atmosphere.
M101 is a large Milky-Way-like galaxy in Ursa
Major, about 25 million light-years (ly) distant.
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• Chapter 1 Major Areas (continued)

The study of the materials that make up Earth
and the processes that form and change these
materials is known as geology.
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• Chapter 1 Major Areas (continued)

The study of Earths Oceans is called
oceanography.

• The following activities are usually performed by
  oceanographers
• studying the creatures that inhabit salty water
• measuring physical and chemical properties of the
  oceans
• examining the effects of human activities on
  Earth's saltwater bodies

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• Chapter 1 Major Areas (continued)

Meteorology is the branch of Earth science that
deals with Earths atmosphere.
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• Chapter 1 Spheres

Earth can be divided into four major systems (or
spheres). The lithosphere includes the rocks
that make up the crust and rigid upper mantle.
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• Chapter 1
• Spheres
• continued

The atmosphere is the blanket of gas that
surrounds Earth.
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• Chapter 1 Spheres - continued

Earths hydrosphere is the system of all of the
water on the planet.
The water in Earths oceans, seas, lakes, rivers,
glaciers, and in Earths atmosphere makes up the
hydrosphere.
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• Chapter 1 Spheres - continued

The biosphere is Earths inhabitants and their
environments.
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• Chapter 1 The Spheres the Summary

• Earths four main systems interact with one
  another.
• You are part of the biosphere.
• You live on the crust, which is part of the
  lithosphere.
• You breathe the gases in the atmosphere.
• You depend in many ways on the water in the
  hydrosphere.

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1.2 Methods of Scientists
OBJECTIVES List the steps used in a scientific
method. Compare and Contrast experimental
variables and controls. Identify basic SI
units. Explain how to write numbers using
scientific notation.
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• Chapter 1 Section 2

• The first step in a scientific method is to
  identify the problem and determine what you want
  to know.
• defining the problem,
• stating a hypothesis
• analyzing the results of the test
• and drawing conclusions.

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Comparing Contrasting the independent variable
and the dependent variable.

• Independent variable

• Dependent variable

Both variables are involved in scientific
experimentation.

• An independent variable is a factor that can be
  manipulated.
• The x-axis.

• A dependent variable is a factor that results
  from manipulating the independent variable, and
  is measured by the experimenter.
• The y-axis

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Control

• To show that the results of the experiment are
  actually due to the condition being tested,
  scientists use a control, which is a standard for
  comparison.

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• Chapter 1 Section 2

In scientific notation, a number is expressed as
a value between 1 and 10 multiplied by a power of
10.
525,600 Minutes
5.256 x 105 Minutes
0.001 M
1.0 x 10-3 M
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• Chapter 1 Section 2

Most scientific studies use a standard system of
units called SI (Le Systeme International
d'Unites ), which is a modern version of the
metric system.
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SI Le Systeme International d'Unites

• The SI unit of mass is kilogram (kg).

• Mass ? gram

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SI Le Systeme International d'Unites

• Length ? meter

• Temperature ? Kelvin

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SI Le Systeme International d'Unites

• Time ? second

• Liquid equivalent ? liter

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SI Le Systeme International d'Unites

• Weight ? Newton

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1.3 Communicating in Science
OBJECTIVES List several ways in which
scientific information is communicated.
Differentiate between a scientific theory and a
scientific law.
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• Chapter 1 Section 3

• Scientific information is communicated through
• lab reports,
• professional papers.
• either of which may include tables and graphs,
  and models.

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• Chapter 1 Section 3

A basic fact that describes the behavior of a
natural phenomenon is called a scientific law.
May be thought of as a rule of nature, even
though the cause of the law may not be known.
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• Chapter 1 Section 3

• Scientific theory is based on an explanation
  which is based on many observations during
  repeated experiments.

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• Chapter 1 Section 3

• A scientific theory is valid only if
• it is consistent with observations,
• makes predictions that can be tested, and
• is the simplest explanation of observations.

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• Chapter 1 Section 3

• A theory can be changed or modified if it is
  found to be incorrect.