Unit 13: Looking Forward: Our Global Experiment // Glossary

acid rain: Rainfall with a greater acidity than normal.
adsorption: Process that occurs when a gas or liquid solute accumulates on the surface of a solid or, more rarely, a liquid (adsorbent), forming a molecular or atomic film (the adsorbate). It is different from absorption, in which a substance diffuses into a liquid or solid to form a solution.
anthropogenic: Describing effects or processes that are derived from human activities, as opposed to effects or processes that occur in the natural environment without human influences.
aquifers: Underground formations, usually composed of sand, gravel, or permeable rock, capable of storing and yielding significant quantities of water.
aragonite: A carbonate mineral that forms naturally in almost all mollusk shells, as well as the calcareous endoskeleton of warm- and cold-water corals
base load power: The average amount of electricity consumed at any given time. Base load power stations are designed to operate continuously, unlike peaking power stations that generally run only when there is a high demand.
coral bleaching: Refers to the loss of color of corals due to stress-induced expulsion of symbiotic, unicellular algae called zooxanthellae that live within their tissues. Stress can be induced by: (1) increased water temperatures (often attributed to global warming), (2) starvation caused by a decline in zooplankton levels as a result of overfishing, (3) solar irradiance (photosynthetically active radiation and ultraviolet band light), (4) changes in water chemistry, (5) silt runoff, or (6) pathogen infections.
effluent: An outflowing of water from a natural body of water, or from a man-made structure, generally considered to be pollution, such as the outflow from a sewage treatment facility or the wastewater discharge from industrial facilities.
Fischer-Tropsch process: A catalyzed chemical reaction in which carbon monoxide and hydrogen are converted into liquid hydrocarbons of various forms. The principal purpose of this process is to produce a synthetic petroleum substitute, typically from coal or natural gas, for use as synthetic lubrication oil or as synthetic fuel.
greenhouse gases: Atmospheric gases or vapors that absorb outgoing infrared energy emitted from the Earth naturally or as a result of human activities. Greenhouse gases are components of the atmosphere that contribute to the Greenhouse effect.
pathogen: A biological agent that causes disease or illness to its host.
pelagic: Water coming from the part of the open sea or ocean that is not near the coast
scleractinian corals: Stony or hard corals responsible for the very existence of the reef. As living animals, they provide habitats for many other organisms. The breakdown of their skeletons during calcium-carbonate accretion and especially after death provides material for redistribution and consolidation into the reef framework.
zooxanthellae: Unicellular yellow-brown (dinoflagellate) algae which live symbiotically in the gastrodermis of reef-building coral.

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