Students will learn about common boating-related threats to waterways. They will learn about the problems created in waterways by recreational boaters and discuss ways boaters can change their behaviors to reduce their impact on waterways. Students will also learn about the history of water pollution through a study of the Cuyahoga River. They will create a commercial to raise awareness about boating-related pollution. Exercises will also help students explore the reliability of information on the Internet by comparing various articles on MTBE, a common gasoline additive that can contribute to water pollution, and expose students to the problems associated with unintentionally transporting invasive species in ballast water. An experiment that will help students visualize measurements parts per million is also included.

As part of their general education studies, all students at the University of Kentucky must take two natural science courses. Many non-science majors choose the biology sequence of courses. Unfortunately these courses are lecture-only courses, and so some students can graduate without ever having had a science laboratory course. In an effort to provide students with some laboratory experience, I have developed / adapted a number of laboratory activities, which I have successfully incorporated into a non-majors biology course (Human Ecology). These activities are carried out in a lecture hall with 300 students in 50-minute time periods. In this chapter, two of these laboratory activities are presented. 1) Soil Testing - students test soil samples for nitrogen, potassium, phosphate and pH; compare the relative fertility of different soil samples; and carry out an inventory of animal and microbial life in soil samples. 2) Water Pollution Testing - students examine the effects of household chemicals on water quality (from Using Fast Plants and Bottle Biology in the Classroom, published by National Association of Biology Teachers, 1994, ISBN #0-941212-17-3).

This lesson is designed to help students gain knowledge in using the MY NASA DATA Live Access Server (LAS) to specify and download a microset of data, then to use the data to investigate the carbon monoxide level at a fixed latitude.

This lesson is designed to help students gain knowledge in graphing a microset of data, then using the graphs to investigate trends in cloud coverage over a given locale. Students are provided content-related activities to enhance background knowledge.

Students will use the Live Access Server (LAS) to form maps and a numerical text file of snow cover for each continent on a particular date. They will analyze the data for each map and corresponding text file to determine an estimate of snow cover for each continent.

This lesson is designed to help students gain knowledge in using the MY NASA DATA Live Access Server (LAS) to specify and download a microset of data, then to use the data to compare the ozone levels of selected regions around the world.

In this lesson, students download cloud coverage and surface data from the NASA CERES S-COOL website student observation database, then use the Excel spreadsheet program to develop plots of the data. Students will use S'COOL data to identify factors that affect cloud formation.

This lab is designed to simulate the process of eutrophication over an eight to ten week period. Students use a water-soluble fertilizer (similar to Miracle Grow) to determine the effects of nutrient loads on both terrestrial and aquatic environments. By using three aquariums, Elodea, and radish plants, students can examine the ongoing process of eutrophication by taking weekly measurements of water quality and looking at plant growth. Students become "experts" on such equipment as dissolved oxygen meters, conductivity meters, pH meters, and spectrophotometers. The project culminates in a student and teacher evaluated poster session.

In this lesson, students download cloud and surface data from the NASA CERES S-COOL website student observation database, then develop and compare graphs to explore the relationships between surface temperature, pressure, and humidity.

This lesson is designed to help students gain knowledge in using the MY NASA DATA Live Access Server (LAS) to obtain a microset of data, in using Excel to graph the data. Students will be using data microsets of mean near-surface air temperature and tropospheric ozone residual averages to infer patterns. Analyze changes in tropospheric ozone and then hypothesize about the consequences of these changes.

This video segment from a WPSU documentary Liquid Assets connects public health to the availability of clean and safe drinking water and elaborates on the threats our bodies face due to increasing kinds and quantities of pollutants.

This video from a WPSU documentary Liquid Assets shows the transformation of Las Vegas’ water infrastructure. A desert community, Las Vegas is reducing water consumption and re-using wastewater, making optimal use of limited water resources.

This simulation was created by Dr. Robert S. Dooley of Oklahoma State University and Dr. Gerald Fryxell of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University. It is based on "The Tragedy of the Commons" by Garrett Hardin. The simulation demonstrates the role of collaboration and trust in solving environmental problems. Students act as managers of industries that border on a lake and use the water as a resource. Profits are related to water quality, but each industry also releases pollutants into the lake. The problem is how to profitably operate the industries when the process is dependent on the lake as a common resource.

This lesson is designed to help students gain knowledge in using the MY NASA DATA Live Access Server (LAS) to specify and download a microset of data, then to use the data to determine the seasonal cloud coverage and the occurrence of different cloud types.

Using data sets from MYNASADATA students will create graphs comparing the amount (percentage) of snow cover along selected latitudes by date.

In this lesson, students will explore the causes of water pollution and its effects on the environment through the use of models and scientific investigation. In the accompanying activities, they will investigate filtration and aeration processes as they are used for removing pollutants from water. Lastly, they will learn about the role of engineers in water treatment systems.

This lesson is designed to help students gain knowledge in using the MY NASA DATA Live Access Server (LAS) to specify and download a microset of data, then to use the data to investigate tropospheric ozone for several US cities.

In this video segment from Louisville Life, high school students in Louisville, Kentucky describe the benefits of creating rain gardens as a solution to non-point source water pollution.

This lesson is designed to help students gain knowledge in graphing a microset of data, then using the graphs to investigate the relationship between volcanic activity and the presence of atmospheric aerosols.