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2-1 What Do Scientists Do?
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE 13e
Lecture 2
Science, Matter, and Energy
What is Science?
• Science consists of
2 things:
– All the information
that scientists know;
and
– The Scientific
Method which allows
scientists to learn
new things.
Hypothesizing and Predicting
• A hypothesis is a testable
explanations for an
observation.
• A hypothesis does not
have to be right.
– Often, much can be
learned by testing false
hypothesis.
• The key is to formulate a
hypothesis and test it.
• Concept 2-1 Scientists collect data
and develop theories, models, and
laws about how nature works.
Observing
• All science begins and
rests upon observation.
– Therefore, science requires
good, accurate and detailed
observations.
• For information to be
valuable, it needs to be
recorded so that it can be
shared with others.
Experimenting
• In order to check a
hypothesis, an experiment
needs to be done.
• In an experiment, there are
usual two groups which
are identical in every way
except one:
– The group that receives the
difference is called the “Test
Group”.
– The group that does not
receive the difference is the
“Control Group”.
1

Organizing and Interpreting Data
• Once the experiment is
done, scientists need to
organize and assemble all
the facts that they gathered.
• Often scientists use math to
determine whether their
observations are important
and to explain relationships
in their observations.
Communicating Results
• The last step in conducting
scientific experiments is to
communicate the results to others.
– This is very important as it
allows other scientists to check
to see if the information is
accurate and to use that
information for other purposes.
• The best science comes from
scientists who write and publish
their findings in journals that and
papers that are reviewed by other
scientists and open for everyone
to see.
Making Environmental Decisions
• Making good
environmental decisions
requires balancing many
needs and answering
many questions.
• These include
– How much will it cost?
– Who or what will benefit?
– Is it possible to do that?
– What alternatives are
there?
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Using Graphics and Sharing
Information
• Scientific data and
information is often best
shown in charts and
graphs.
• Charts and graphs can
show different
relationships between
things that may not be
seen using other
methods.
Why Do I Need To Know This?
1. Because you will have to make many
environmental decisions in your life,
ranging from easy ones (such as
recycling) to difficult ones (such as
supporting government bonds to
protect wetlands).
2. Because you can use this decision-
making model in any aspect of your
life.
An Environmental Decision-
Making Model
• There are 4 steps to the Environmental
Decision-Making Model.
• They are:
– Gather Information
– Consider Values
– Explore Consequences
– Make a Decision
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How To Use The Decision-

A Hypothetical Situation
• The environmental decision-making
model can apply to real situations or
hypothetical situations.
Making Model
• You can use the decision-making model for
any situation that you encounter.
• The key is to follow it in order.
• The more information that you gather AND the
more consequences that you consider, the
better your decision will be.
• As with anything in life, not making a decision
is a decision in and of itself.

The Scientific Process (1) The Scientific Process (2)

• Identify problem/question
• Learn what is known about
problem/question
• Ask question to be investigated
• Collect data
• Formulate a testable scientific
hypothesis
• Make testable projections
• Test projections with experiments
• Develop models
• Propose scientific theories
• Derive natural laws

Identify a problem

Find out what is known

The Scientific Process (3) about the problem

(literature search)

Ask a question to be
investigated

• Four features of the scientific Perform an experiment

to answer the question

process: and collect data

Analyze data
Scientific law
Well-accepted
(check for patterns)
– Curiosity pattern in data

Propose an hypothesis
to explain data
– Skepticism
Use hypothesis to make testable

– Peer review predictions

Perform an experiment

– Reproducibility to test predictions

Accept Revise Make testable

hypothesis hypothesis predictions

Test
predictions
Scientific theory
Well-tested and Stepped Art
widely accepted
hypothesis Fig. 2-2, p. 25

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Results of Science Scientific Limitations

• Goals • Limitations – 100% certain?
– Scientific theories – Absolute proof versus probability
– Scientific laws – Observational bias
• Degree of certainty and general – Complex interactions, many variables
acceptance – Estimates and extrapolating numbers
– Frontier/tentative science – Mathematical models
– Reliable science
– Unreliable science

2-2 What Is Matter and How Do Physical

and Chemical Changes Affect It?

• Concept 2-2A Matter consists of

elements and compounds, which are in
turn made up of atoms, ions, or molecules.

• Concept 2-2B Whenever matter

undergoes a physical or chemical change,
no atoms are created or destroyed (the
law of conservation of matter).

Table 2-1, p. 29

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100
Hydrochloric
acid (HCl) 10–1
Gastric fluid
(1.0–3.0)
10–2
Lemon juice,
some acid rain
10–3
Vinegar, wine,
beer, oranges
10–4
Tomatoes
Bananas
Black coffee 10–5
Bread
Typical rainwater
10–6
Urine (5.0–7.0)
Milk (6.6)
10–7
Pure water
Blood (7.3–7.5) 10–8
Egg white (8.0)
Seawater (7.8–8.3)
Baking soda 10–9
Phosphate detergents
Bleach, Tums
Soapy solutions, 10–10
Milk of magnesia
Household ammonia 10–11
(10.5–11.9)
10–12

Hair remover
10–13
Oven cleaner
Sodium hydroxide (NaOH) 10–14

Supplement 6, Fig. 6, p. S28

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H2 O2 N2 CI2
hydrogen oxygen nitrogen chlorine

NO CO HCI H 2O
nitric oxide carbon monoxide hydrogen chloride water

NO2 CO2 SO2 O3

nitrogen dioxide carbon dioxide sulfur dioxide ozone

CH4 NH3 SO3 H2S

methane ammonia sulfur trioxide hydrogen sulfide
Supplement 6, Fig. 5, p. S27

Table 2-2, p. 29 Table 2-3, p. 30

Organic Compounds
• Carbon-based compounds
– Hydrocarbons
– Chlorinated hydrocarbons
– Simple carbohydrates
– Complex carbohydrates
– Proteins
– Nucleic acids (DNA and RNA)
– Lipids

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A human body contains trillions

of cells, each with an identical set
Matter Becomes Life of genes.

Each human cell (except for red

• Cells blood cells) contains a nucleus.

• Genes Each cell nucleus has an identical set

of chromosomes, which are found in
– DNA pairs.

A specific pair of chromosomes

– Traits contains one chromosome from each
parent.
• Chromosomes
Each chromosome contains a long
– DNA DNA molecule in the form of a coiled
double helix.
– Proteins Genes are segments of DNA on
chromosomes that contain instructions
to make proteins—the building blocks
of life.
Fig. 2-4, p. 31

High Quality Low Quality

Matter Quality
Solid Gas

• Usefulness as a resource
Salt Solution of salt in water
– Availability
– Concentration
• High quality Coal Coal-fired power
plant emissions
• Low quality
Gasoline Automobile emissions

Aluminum can Aluminum ore Fig. 2-5, p. 32

Changes in Matter
Reactant(s) Product(s)

• Physical Carbon + Oxygen Carbon dioxide + Energy

• Chemical C + O2 CO2 + Energy

• Law of Conservation of Matter
– Matter only changes from one form to O
C + O C O + Energy
another
O

Black solid Colorless gas Colorless gas

p. 32

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Nuclear Changes (1) Nuclear Changes (2)

• Radioactive decay – unstable • Nuclear fission
isotopes – Large mass isotopes split apart
– Alpha particles – Chain reaction
– Beta particles • Nuclear fusion
– Gamma rays – Two light isotopes forced together
– High temperature to start reaction
– Stars

Nuclear fission Uranium-235

Radioactive decay

Alpha particle Radioactive decay

Radioactive isotope
+ (helium-4 nucleus)
occurs when nuclei of
+ unstable isotopes
spontaneously emit fast-
moving chunks of matter
(alpha particles or beta
particles), high-energy
Gamma rays radiation (gamma rays), or
both at a fixed rate. A
particular radioactive
isotope may emit any one
or a combination of the
Beta particle three items shown in the
(electron) diagram.
Nuclear fission occurs when the
Fission
Energy nuclei of certain isotopes with large
fragment
n n mass numbers (such as uranium-235)
are split apart into lighter nuclei when
Neutron n n struck by a neutron and release
Energy Energy
energy plus two or three more
n
Uranium-235
n neutrons. Each neutron can trigger an
additional fission reaction and lead to
Fission a chain reaction, which releases an
Energy
fragment enormous amount of energy.

Fig. 2-6, p. 33 Fig. 2-6, p. 33

2-3 What Is Energy and How Do Physical

Nuclear fusion and Chemical Changes Affect It?
Reaction
Fuel Products
Proton Neutron
conditions
Helium-4 nucleus • Concept 2-3A When energy is converted from
Hydrogen-2
one form to another in a physical or chemical
(deuterium nucleus) Nuclear fusion occurs when two change, no energy is created or destroyed (first
isotopes of light elements, such
100
as hydrogen, are forced together law of thermodynamics).
Energy at extremely high temperatures
million °C
until they fuse to form a heavier
nucleus and release a tremendous

Hydrogen-3
amount of energy. • Concept 2-3B Whenever energy is converted
(tritium nucleus) Neutron from one form to another in a physical or
chemical change, we end up with lower quality
or less usable energy than we started with
(second law of thermodynamics).

Fig. 2-6, p. 33

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What Is Energy? Types of Energy

• Energy – the capacity to do work or • Potential energy – stored energy
transfer heat – Gasoline
– Water behind a dam
• Kinetic energy – energy in motion
– Wind, flowing water, electricity
– Heat – flow from warm to cold
– Electromagnetic radiation
• wavelength and relative energy

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Energy Quality (1)
Energy emitted from sun (kcal/cm2/min)

• High-quality energy
10
– Concentrated, high capacity to do work
– High-temperature heat
– Nuclear fission
5
Visible – Concentrated sunlight
Ultraviolet

Infrared
– High-velocity wind
– Fossil fuels
0
0.25 1 2 2.5 3
Wavelength (micrometers) Fig. 2-7, p. 34

Energy Quality (2) Laws of Thermodynamics

• Low-quality energy • First law of thermodynamics
– Dispersed – Energy input = Energy output
– Heat in atmosphere – Energy is neither created or destroyed
– Heat in ocean – Energy only changes from one form to
another
• Second law of thermodynamics
– Energy use results in lower-quality
energy
– Dispersed heat loss

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Consequences of the Second

Law of Thermodynamics
• Automobiles
– ~13% moves car
– ~87% dissipates as low-quality heat into the
environment
• Incandescent light bulb
– ~5% useful light
– ~95% heat

Three Big Ideas of This Chapter

Mechanical
Chemical
Solar
energy
Chemical energy
(photo-synthesis) energy
(food)
energy
(moving,
• There is no away
thinking, living)
– Law of conservation of matter
Waste Waste Waste Waste
heat heat heat heat
• You cannot get something for nothing
– First law of thermodynamics
• You cannot break even
– Second law of thermodynamics

Fig. 2-8, p. 36

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