Energy comes in many forms, and it is essential to everyone’s lives. The food you eat provides energy to your body, gasoline provides fuel for vehicles, and electricity powers people’s homes. Fuels can be renewable or nonrenewable, and various types of fuel have different advantages and disadvantages. You will explore various energy sources, the role science has played in understanding how to use them, and if their use damages the environment.

Start by writing a brief introduction to the topic of the role of science in understanding how and if humans should be using nonrenewable energy resources. Remember, as one part of your introduction, to define nonrenewable energy resources, and contrast them with renewable sources. Then, choose an energy resource from the list below, and write the body of your paper based on the following prompts:

• What type of fuel is extracted using the topic you selected?
• How is this fuel extracted? Briefly describe the process.
• What environmental risks does this process cause?
• What role did science play in understanding how to extract this fuel? What role did science play in discovering and understanding what risks the process has?
• Have changes been made, based on scientific discovery, to perform this process with less risk to people and the environment? Describe these changes.

The following are some of the major methods for harvesting nonrenewable energy resources that you can choose from:

• Oil in the Alaskan National Wildlife Refuge
• Offshore oil drilling
• Mountaintop mining in Kentucky
• Nuclear power
• Hydrological fracturing, also known as fracking