GED Science: Greenhouse FX!
Hey dudes, it’s jacket time! Seriously, it’s cold out there!!! Sometimes I have to wear a thermal under shirt, two t-shirts, a small sweatshirt, a giant sweatshirt, AND a jacket when I got outside! Then I’m nice and toasty! It doesn’t snow where I live, but sometimes I go up to the mountains and snowboard! I’ve got serious snowboarding skillz! I do flips and jump off trees and buildings and even people! …ok, well I run into trees and buildings and people. But other than carving ice, there’s not much to do when it’s cold but FREEZE! I like the summer way better.
However, if it weren’t for the greenhouse effect, we’d all be ice statues! Check it out!!
Much of the Sun’s energy is absorbed by the Earth’s surface. When the ground heats up, it sends energy back into the atmosphere. The atmosphere absorbs the energy as well and some of it escapes up into space while some falls back down to Earth. This is called the greenhouse effect. This system of rising and falling energy is what keeps Earth warm enough for human life to exist.
Which of the following gives the best reason for calling this system “the greenhouse effect?”
1. Greenhouses have an atmosphere that is similar to Earth.
2. Both greenhouses and Earth have many plants.
3. There are tiny particles of glass in Earth’s atmosphere that trap the warm air.
4. There is no relation to the greenhouse effect and actual greenhouses.
5. The glass in greenhouses behave similarly to that of the Earth’s atmosphere.
The greenhouse effect is pretty kewl! I wish I lived in a greenhouse. Then I could lay out and get a sweet tan in January.
So, number one is totally bogus. Greenhouses are tiny little houses made out of glass. They don’t have an atmosphere!
Number two is totally true because Earth DOES have a lot of plants. And so do greenhouses. I mean, that’s what greenhouses exist for, right? But since the passage doesn’t say anything about plants, then that’s probably not the best answer. And it doesn’t say anything about there being glass in the atmosphere either. It just says that the atmosphere lets some of the sun’s energy escape, and bounces the rest back. Maybe it acts like glass, but there isn’t any actual glass in the air! Otherwise we’d all have some serious breathing problems!
Number four is bogus too. Come on, it’s called the GREENHOUSE effect. I mean, it COULD be just a coincidence that the two have the same name, but it’s unlikely. And check it out, number four doesn’t even ANSWER the question! “What is the reason they call it the greenhouse effect?” “There’s no relation between greenhouses and the greenhouse effect.” That doesn’t make sense! So, there’s no way that’s right.
Five is the best answer. Even if I’d never seen or been to a greenhouse before, everyone knows what it’s like to get in a car on a really hot day. The air inside is like 100 degrees hotter, dude! All because of the windows, right? That sounds a lot like how the atmosphere bounces back warm energy, so the glass in a greenhouse has got to do the same thing!
Stay warm while you’re studying, everyone. Maybe you should try to find a greenhouse to study in! Sweet!!
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