Many people enjoy riding in hot air balloons. Some use them for romantic picnics and marriage proposals. Others race in competitions. Being above the earth gives a whole new perspective on the world around us. As the beginning of a hot air balloon ride, the balloon is flat because the pressure inside the balloon equals the pressure outside. When the air inside the balloon is heated, the speed of movement of those air molecules increases and the pressure goes up. After a while the balloon is completely expanded and the flight is ready to take off. Bob just came from a hot air balloon ride. On his way home he saw two balloons, balloon A and balloon B. Balloon A was flat, but balloon B was inflated. He was wondering how balloons go up so effortlessly. Would balloon A have higher or lower inside pressure than balloon B?
Ans: lower

Beginning in September 2012, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration will require larger, more prominent cigarette health warnings on all cigarette packaging and advertisements in the United States. These warnings are a significant advancement in communicating the dangers of smoking. These new cigarette health warnings contains nine different warnings that will increase awareness of the specific health risks associated with smoking, such as death, addiction, lung disease, cancer, stroke and heart disease. These warnings include: David collects cigarette packs of different years. He found that two of his packs, pack A and pack B, are very different. Pack A is from before September 2012, and pack B is from after September 2012. He started searching on the internet to find out why the packs were different. Which pack would be more efficient at communicating dangers of smoking, pack A or pack B?
Ans: pack B

Wildfire smoke contains particulate matter that may have adverse effects upon the human respiratory system. Evidence of the health effects of wildfire smoke should be relayed to the public so that exposure may be limited. Evidence of health effects can also be used to influence policy to promote positive health outcomes.Inhalation of smoke from a wildfire can be a health hazard. Wildfire smoke is composed of combustion products i.e. carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, water vapor, particulate matter, organic chemicals, nitrogen oxides and other compounds. The principal health concern is the inhalation of particulate matter and carbon monoxide.Particulate matter (PM) is a type of air pollution made up of particles of dust and liquid droplets. They are characterized into three categories based on the diameter of the particle: coarse PM, fine PM, and ultrafine PM. Coarse particles are between 2.5 micrometers and 10 micrometers, fine particles measure 0.1 to 2.5 micrometers, and ultrafine particle are less than 0.1 micrometer. Each size can enter the body through inhalation, but the PM impact on the body varies by size. Coarse particles are filtered by the upper airways and these particles can accumulate and cause pulmonary inflammation. This can result in eye and sinus irritation as well as sore throat and coughing. Coarse PM is often composed of materials that are heavier and more toxic that lead to short-term effects with stronger impact.Smaller particulate moves further into the respiratory system creating issues deep into the lungs and the bloodstream. In asthma patients, PM2.5 causes inflammation but also increases oxidative stress in the epithelial cells. These particulates also cause apoptosis and autophagy in lung epithelial cells. Both processes cause the cells to be damaged and impacts the cell function. This damage impacts those with respiratory conditions such as asthma where the lung tissues and function are already compromised. The third PM type is ultra-fine PM (UFP). UFP can enter the bloodstream... Bobby and Sally are siblings that currently live in different cities. Bobby lives in a city that has wildfires on a regular basis. The local government is effective at combating these fires, but there are still quite a few over the course of a year. Sally lives somewhere that has never had a wildfire before, and she wasn't even aware they existed until her brother started talking about them. Who is less likely to experience eye irritation?
Ans: Sally

Pollutants also affect the atmosphere through their contribution to global warming. Global warming is an increase in the Earth's temperature. It is thought to be caused mostly by the increase of greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide. Greenhouse gases can be released by factories that burn fossil fuels. Over the past 20 years, burning fossil fuels has produced about three-quarters of the carbon dioxide from human activity. The rest of the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is there because of deforestation, or cutting down trees ( Figure below ). Trees absorb carbon dioxide during cellular respiration, so when trees are cut down, they cannot remove carbon dioxide from the air. Tokyo recently had a large explosion in one of their largest steel manufacturing plants. The combination of heat, steel, and manufacturing materials released an extraordinary amount of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Meanwhile, Osaka has dramatically decreased the amount of carbon dioxide it releases through the installation of many public transportation projects and tree planting initiatives. Which city, Tokyo or Osaka, will contribute more to global warming?
Ans: Tokyo