Friday, January 22, 2010

Upfront magazine 01.18.10 - Climate change


Magnet pottery
Originally uploaded by trudeau
Upfront Magazine activities, pp 3 - 5
1. P 3: The implication is that "bovine" means a) wearing a bikini b) tourist c) cow d) avatar. answer: cow
2. The principal religion of India: a) Hindu b) Muslim c) Jain d) Sikh. All are religions of India. The principal is Hinduism.
3. The implication is that the term "sweatshop" means a place where __ labor for low wages. a) students b) peons c) union workers d) Central Americans Answer: peons, which means peasants.
4. P 4: The surname is your a) "first" or individual name b) "last" or family name.
5. Who has more variety in surnames? a) US b) China Answer: "last."
6. China has about almost %1000 more commonality in names than the US. T / F True.
7. a) Huang or b) Trudeau: which is going to offer almost 30 million mentions on Google? Which one has about 3 million items? Huang: 30 million links.
8. At the end of the day, would you say "It is what it is" or, you know, "Whatever" or "Anyway" or "May I go to the water closet, please?" a) You know me better than that b) Would you spell that one more time, please? c) No way d) Smart Harold watches Seinfeld re-runs every weekend. Answer: which shibboleth bugs you?
9. The length of text messages grew by what percentage in 2009? a) 20%
b) 80% c) we are waiting on those statistics. Answer: text messaging is still growing; the length of messages we do not know.
10. Might Mozart have played the 18th century violin which recently sold for $10 million? a) Yes b) No. Answer: Yes.
11. The Bard, aka Wm Shakespeare, probably wrote an additional historic play at age 32, says a Dutch software designer. The evidence lies in a writing comparison that seeks matching phrases in 2 pieces of writing. The software used to identify Shakespeare - and a probable collaborator, playwright Thomas Kyd - was developed to identify __ in student papers. a) originality b) plagiarism c) incompetence.
Is your lunch causing global warming? p 6 Answer: software which detects plagiarism. Magnet has such software, btw.
12. P 6: Greenhouse gas emissions are caused by auto exhaust, power generation and production of __, says Upfront. Answer: production of food.
13. Compare beef to chicken in regards production of emissions. Answer: Beef production is carbon intensive.
14. Instead of eating grasses, meat-providing animals are fed __ and __ . Answer: corn and soy - for quick marketability.
15. Animals contribute to greenhouse gas production by their __ and their __.
Answer: gas, which is methane, and poops, known after they hit the ground as cow patties.
16. Feedlot production centers in the US are so efficient that today beef, once a luxury item, is __ . Answer: cheap.
17. What's the resource that's a principal component of fertilizer? ___ . Answer: petroleum.
18. How does a 10,000 acre section of rain forest in Brazil have any relationship to an American burger from McDowell's? The rain forest acreage may have been cleared to plant corn to feed the beef herds bought by McD's for hamburger production.
19. Typical dietary sources of protein aside from beef? Answer: beans, fish.
20. Trying to control emissions has led to a strategy called cap and trade. Some environmentally-aware rock musicians have used cap and trade to minimize the impact of their touring. In terms of the consumption of electricity, gasoline and jet fuel, a performance tour can be unfriendly to the environment. The band Pearl Jam donated $100,000 to nine organizations working on climate change, renewable energy, and other green causes. On their previous tour, the band donated funds to help preserve Madagascan rainforest. Also donating to Green efforts: the Roots, Willie Nelson, KT Tunstall, Jack Johnson and Green Day.
21. Industrialized nations versus developing nations. What's the environmental issue?
Answer: Industrialized nations are comfortable and are ready to make sacrifices to offset environmental concerns; developing nations are striving to raise their material standards and are mostly ignoring the environment (ex, China) in their quest.
22. What does "sustainable" mean?
Answer: Sustainability is the capacity to endure. In ecology the word describes how biological systems remain diverse and productive over time.