COASTAL WETLANDS |
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In physical geography, a wetland is an environment "at the interface between truly terrestrial ecosystems...and truly aquatic systems...making them different from each yet highly dependent on both" (Mitsch & Gosselink, 1986). In essence, wetlands are ecotones.
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COOLING TOWERS |
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Cooling towers are structures for cooling water or other working medium to near-ambient temperature. The primary use of large, industrial cooling towers is to lower the temperature of the cooling water used in power plants, petroleum refineries, petrochemical plants, natural gas processing plants and other industrial facilities. It is desirable to cool the water rather than simply discharging it because the cooling water is typically demineralized and it is cheaper to cool it rather than getting more demineralized water. Furthermore, discharging large amounts of hot water may raise the temperature of the receiving river or lake to an unacceptable level for the local ecosystem. A cooling tower serves to dissipate the heat into the atmosphere instead and wind and air diffusion spreads the heat over a much larger area than hot water can distribute heat in a body of water.
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GEOLOGY |
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Geology (from Greek γη- (ge-, "the earth") and λογος (logos, "word", "reason")) is the science and study of the Earth, its composition, structure, physical properties, history and the processes that shape it. It is one of the Earth sciences. Geologists have helped establish the age of the Earth at about 4.6 billion (4.6x109) years, and have determined that the Earth's lithosphere, which includes the crust, is fragmented into tectonic plates that move over a rheic upper mantle (asthenosphere) via processes that are collectively referred to as plate tectonics. Geologists help locate and manage the earth's natural resources, such as petroleum and coal, as well as metals such as iron, copper, and uranium. Additional economic interests include gemstones and many minerals such as asbestos, perlite, mica, phosphates, zeolites, clay, pumice, quartz, and silica, as well as elements such as sulfur, chlorine, and helium. Experts who analyze slope creep, slides, earthquake damage, fault studies, environmental contamination, and construction claims.
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HYDROLOGY |
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Hydrology (from Greek: Yδρoλoγια, Yδωρ+Λoγos, Hydrologia, the "study of water") is the study of the movement, distribution, and quality of water throughout the Earth, and thus addresses both the hydrologic cycle and water resources. A practitioner of hydrology is a hydrologist, working within the fields of either earth or environmental science, or civil and environmental engineering.
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MANGROVE FORESTS |
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Mangrove are woody trees or shrubs that grow in coastal habitats or mangal (Hogarth, 1999), for which the term mangrove swamp also would apply. Mangrove plants are found in depositional coastal environments where fine sediments, often with high organic content collect in areas protected from high energy wave action.
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POWER PLANTS |
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A fossil fuel power plant is an energy conversion center that combusts fossil fuels to produce electricity, designed on a large scale for continuous operation.
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TECHNOLOGY |
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Technology is a word with origins in the Greek "technologia" ("τεχνολογία") "techne", "τέχνη" ("craft") and "logia", "λογία" ("saying")." "Technology" is a broad term dealing with the use and knowledge of humanity's tools and crafts.
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