USEFUL DEFINITIONS
TERMS 1-8
TERMS 9-16
  1. Atmosphere: The envelope of gases that surround our planet. The major components of the atmosphere are nitrogen, oxygen and carbon dioxide (CO2). Climate change directly affects the atmosphere, which in turn creates weather. Definition from: The Weather Channel Online at http://climate.weather.com/science/globalwarming/glossary.html
  1. Biofuel: Fuel produced from renewable resources, especially plant biomass, vegetable oils, and treated municipal and industrial wastes. Biofuels are considered neutral with respect to the emission of carbon dioxide because the carbon dioxide given off by burning them is balanced by the carbon dioxide absorbed by the plants that are grown to produce them. The use of biofuels as an additive to petroleum-based fuels can also result in cleaner burning with less emission of carbon monoxide and particulates. Definition from: biofuel. (n.d.). The American Heritage® Science Dictionary. Retrieved March 29, 2008, from Dictionary.com website: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/biofuel
  1. Carbon dioxide: A heavy, colorless, odorless gas, present in the atmosphere or formed by the burning of fuels containing carbon. Carbon dioxide is also exhaled by animals and used by plants in photosynthesis. Definition from: The Weather Channel Online at http://climate.weather.com/science/globalwarming/glossary.html
  1. Carbon footprint: The total amount of greenhouse gases produced to directly and indirectly support human activities, usually expressed in equivalent tons of carbon dioxide. Definition from: Time for Change at http://timeforchange.org/what-is-a-carbon-footprint-definition
  1. Climate: The average of weather over at least a 30-year period. Note that the climate taken over different periods of time (30 years, 1000 years) may be different. The old saying is climate is what we expect and weather is what we get. Definition from: The Weather Channel Online at http://climate.weather.com/science/globalwarming/glossary.html
  1. Climate change: The term “climate change” is sometimes used to refer to all forms of climatic inconsistency, but because Earth’s climate is never static, the term is more properly used to imply a significant change from one climatic condition to another. In some cases, climate change has been used synonymously with the term, global warming; scientists however, tend to use the term in the wider sense to also include natural changes in climate. Definition from: The Weather Channel Online at http://climate.weather.com/science/globalwarming/glossary.html
  1. Compact fluorescent light bulbs: compared to general service incandescent lamps giving the same amount of visible light, CFLs use less power and have a longer rated life. In the United States, a CFL can save over 30 USD in electricity costs over the lamp’s lifetime compared to an incandescent lamp and save 2000 times their own weight in greenhouse gases. Definition from: Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compact_fluorescent_lamp
  1. Compost: Partially decomposed organic plant and animal matter that can be used as a soil conditioner or fertilizer. Definition from: The Weather Channel Online at http://climate.weather.com/science/globalwarming/glossary.html