8th Grade Science - State of Water on Earth All substances have different freezing and melting points.

Humans take advantage of these properties and depend on them. What would life be like if the melting point of metal was the same as water? What about if the boiling and freezing points of water were different? Your assignment is to describe how Earth would be different if the freezing and boiling points of water were significantly different than they currently are on Earth. You must choose if those phase change temperature points are higher or lower than on the real Earth. Describe how the lithosphere (land), hydrosphere (oceans, rivers, etc.), biosphere (organisms), and atmosphere (layer of air around the Earth) would all be different. Provide specific examples for each sphere. You may include audio, visuals, or video to show your understanding. 8A/8B Due Date: 10/24/12 8C/8D Due Date 10/23/12

Please follow all these directions to ensure your project is done correctly and that I receive it. Completing and turn in in the project: 1. Use the description above and the scoring guide below to guide you. 2. You can submit the assignment in the following methods: a. Type in this document in the space provided below b. Copy a URL to your project in the space provided below c. Share with me in google docs and copy the URL to that file in the space provided below. d. Write detailed descriptions in the space provided below of how to easily find it (only for assignments done in a format that cant be completed by methods a-c.

Scoring Guide Assessment Goals Describes how the current boiling and freezing points of water on Earth affect the lithosphere, biosphere, hydrosphere, and atmosphere Describes different boiling and freezing temperatures of water on Earth (different than todays current ones) Describes how the lithosphere would be affected by these different boiling and freezing points. Describes how the biosphere would be affected by these different boiling and freezing points. Describes how the hydrosphere would be affected by these different boiling and freezing points. Describes how the atmosphere would be affected by these different boiling and freezing points. Exceeds Meets Needs Improvement

10 pts - All exceeds, only minor errors 9 pts - 1 meets 8 - All meets or above

7 - 1 or more needs work. Fix and resubmit 6 - Multiple needs work. Fix and resubmit

Submit your Assignment Here If the freezing and boiling points were different than they are currently on Earth, the world would have been very different. If the freezing point was higher, the entire world may have still been in an ice age. Over the years, as the world became warmer, the ice began to melt, and therefore is only concentrated at the poles. However, in the past, where the entire Earth was covered in layers of ice, if the freezing temperature was higher, then we still might be in an era of cold. The oceans would be frozen, and so would the land, making it impossible to grow crops. In fact, we might not even have existed to grow those crops, because our ancestors may have been unable to survive the cold. There may have been a thinner atmosphere, because there would have been a less urgent need to block the sunlight from reaching the earth, since the ice wouldnt melt as well. If the boiling points were lower, the whole world would be much hotter than it is today. Oceans may be boiling, or have boiled away, so that the world is one large desert. Perhaps there may not have been water left for us to boil. The oceans may be gone, and the land would be dry deserts. Only the most enduring organisms would have survived, if they could manage to find water. The atmosphere may have been thicker to prevent the sunlight from further heating the earth. If the boiling point was higher, then there may be more water existing on the earth. Although the temperature now is a reasonable number, in the early times, when the earth was a fairly new planet, and still very hot, if the boiling point was higher, then even though the temperature may have been hot, less water may have evaporated. Also, if that situation was extended till today, it would have been beneficial to both the land and the people, because there would be less droughts, and also sudden downpours of rain, and floods, due to the cycle of evaporationcondensation-precipitation-accumulation (aka the water cycle), since water wouldnt evaporate as easily. The atmosphere may have been very cold, since the water doesnt boil easily.