Extra Credit
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YOU MAY EARN UP TO 25 POINTS. ALL WORK MUST BE TURNED IN BY THE DATE SPECIFIED ON THE CALENDAR. Except for the service project, extra credit assignments should be submitted through Blackboard. If you complete a service project you will need to bring in a certification form, which is available in Blackboard under Assignments or in the syllabus.

1. 5 POINTS Count a Billion--Pick a familiar object and measure it's length and/or volume. Figure out how long a line of a million objects would be, or how large an area you would cover with a million of them. For small objects such as rice, you might calculate number of grains in a teaspoon, then grains in a cup, etc. Then extend your measurement to a billion.
   • EXAMPLE--A ballpoint pen is 6.25 inches long. A million in a line would be 6,250,000 inches long. This is equivalent to 520,833 1/3 feet or 98.643 miles. A billion of these would 98,643 miles, which is almost 4 times around the equator.
   
   
   
2. 5 POINTS Leave the water running while brushing your teeth, and collect it. Measure how much you wasted. Repeat this experiment two more times. Figure out your average waste, and calculate how much you waste in a year.
   
   
3. 5 POINTS For 7 days, keep a log of ALL energy you use including:
   • electric lights
   • electric appliances-list them
   • appliances that are plugged in that you do not use
   • hot water, heat, airconditioning
   • gasoline
   • battery powered items such as a watch, walkman
   • elevators and lights in public areas
   • community energy use such as traffic lights, street lamps, lighted signs, public transportation you use
   For each category, tell how you could conserve energy.
   
   
4. 5 POINTS For 5 days, keep a log of ALL food you use but do not eat, including:
   • unfinished meals or snacks
   • spilled food
   • discarded oil or grease
   • discarded ketchup packets, etc.
   • spoiled food, burned food, unpopped popcorn kernels
   • meat- on bones, or trimmed-off fat
   • fruit or vegetables- trimmed or around core
   • food stuck to eggshell, jar inside, pizza box, etc.
   • food stuck to bowls or plates
   If you do not prepare your meal, write down what you think may have been discarded in the preparation. Estimate how many ounces of food you discarded during this time. Presume you are an average American. How many pounds of food would 295 Million people throw out in a year? Most of the waste is at restaurants, schools, groceries, hospitals, etc. Tell what we can do to stop the waste.
   
   
5. UP TO 15 POINTS Attend a public hearing or lecture about an environmental issue and write a short summary.
   
   
6. UP TO 15 POINTS Participate in a pre-approved service project. Information is available at Service Projects.
   
   
7. 5 POINTS Corrosion Experiment- equipment: 3 iron or steel nails (not stainless), 3 small dishes, vinegar or lemon juice. Place each nail in a dish and cover halfway with water. Add a few drops of acid(vinegar, etc.) to one dish and about 3 times as many drops to another dish. Make sure to label the dishes as plain, weak, or strong. Wait a few days to see the difference in rust. Comment on the effect of acid rain on corrosion.
   
   
8. 5 POINTS Air Pollution Indicator- equipment: 2 pieces of sticky paper (tape, bumper sticker, paper smeared with petroleum jelly,etc.), magnifier (can use glasses). Place one piece of tape outside in a location safe from rain, with the sticky side exposed to the air. Place the other piece inside. After 2-3 weeks, examine both pieces with a magnifier. Hand in a summary of the differences found in the two locations.
   
   
9. 5 POINTS Cigarette Pollution- equipment: a smoker, cigarette and match, white handkerchief. Ask the smoker to do the following;
   1. Fill his/her mouth with smoke, being careful not to inhale. Shape their lips in a way to concentrate the smoke, and slowly blow the smoke through the handkerchief.
   2. Inhale smoke and then exhale, blowing smoke through another spot on the handerchief.
   Hand in a description of the difference in the 2 spots. Tell why they are different, and tell how the smoker reacted.
   
   
10. 5 POINTS Apply conservation to your intended career. Write a one page report on how you can encourage conservation if you take a job in your major field. This could include trash control, using environment-friendly materials, publicity, etc.
    
    
11. 15 POINTS Write an action letter as described in Action Letters.



12. 5 OR MORE POINTS This assignment is only available for a short time at the beginning of the course. Details are available in Blackboard. Look at the Population Clock link at the top of the syllabus. Make a prediction for US and world populations on the date specified in Blackboard and submit according to instructions. Everyone who makes a reasonable estimate for each will get 5 points extra credit. Additional points will be awarded to the students with the most accurate guesses.



13. 10 POINTS Watch either An Inconvenient Truth or Who Killed the Electric Car? and write a 2 page summary.