In this lab, you will see the time progression of impacts associated with either coal-fired or nuclear power plants for electricity generation to help you write up a scientific paper that centers on the following:
- Given that the current 2 primary sources of electricity generation are coal and nuclear power plants, which of these sources is better for human sustainability?
Analyze Energy Sources Lab
Everything people do in their daily lives involves the consumption of resources—particularly energy. With respect to energy, electricity is one of the most important resources consumed and also one of the highest in demand. Traditionally, fossil fuels such as coal, natural gas, and oil have dominated the U.S. energy mix; however, as it is well-known, carbon-emitting energy sources are very detrimental to the environment and are contributing to global warming. Fortunately, alternative energy resources such as solar, wind, hydro, and geothermal power are becoming more efficient and prevalent in today’s energy economy.
Using the M.U.S.E. link, review the background information and gather your data.
Instructions: You will write a 1-page lab report using the scientific method.
When your lab report is complete, post it in Submitted Assignment files.
Part I: Using the lab animation, fill in the data table below to gather your data, and use it to help you generate your hypothesis, outcomes, and analysis.
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Energy Source
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Fuel (Coal)/Uranium Needed (tons)
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CO2Emissions
(tons) |
Sulfur Dioxide and Other Emissions (tons)
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Radioactivity mSv (millisievert)
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Solid Waste (tons)
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Accidents
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Coal
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Nuclear
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Part II: Write a 1-page lab report using the following scientific method sections:
- Purpose
- State the purpose of the lab.
- Introduction
- This is an investigation of what is currently known about the question being asked. Use background information from credible references to write a short summary about concepts in the lab. List and cite references in APA style.
- Hypothesis/Predicted Outcome
- A hypothesis is an educated guess. Based on what you have learned and written about in the Introduction, state what you expect to be the results of the lab procedures.
- Methods
- Summarize the procedures that you used in the lab. The Methods section should also state clearly how data (numbers) were collected during the lab; this will be reported in the Results/Outcome section.
- Results/Outcome
- Provide here any results or data that were generated while doing the lab procedure.
- Discussion/Analysis
- In this section, state clearly whether you obtained the expected results, and if the outcome was as expected.
- Note: You can use the lab data to help you discuss the results and what you learned.
Provide references in APA format. This includes a reference list and in-text citations for references used in the Introduction section.
Give your paper a title and number, and identify each section as specified above. Although the hypothesis will be a 1-sentence answer, the other sections will need to be paragraphs to adequately explain your experiment.
