It's Us

Notes from our reviewers

The CLEAN collection is hand-picked and rigorously reviewed for scientific accuracy and classroom effectiveness. Read what our review team had to say about this resource below or learn more about how CLEAN reviews teaching materials.

• Teaching Tips
  Use to start a discussion or unit about various sources and types of CO2 in the atmosphere. This video helps debunk the misconception that volcanoes emit more CO2 into the atmosphere than human activities. Humans emit far more CO2 into the atmosphere than volcanoes. Additional resources from this program are available here: [http://earththeoperatorsmanual.com/] If needed, students can review fossil fuel formation in segment 3 of this same set of resources.
• About the Science
  Penn State climatologist Richard Alley describes how we know that most of the carbon being added to the atmosphere in the last century is from fossil fuels. Alley explains that by measuring the different carbon isotopes and the changes in carbon compared to oxygen, we know how much carbon is added to the atmosphere by living organisms and volcanoes (small) compared to that added by burning fossil fuels (large). Comment from expert scientist: The video and the corresponding student activities are useful show how scientists know that the rise in CO2 is due to burning of fossil fuels, rather than natural processes. Richard Alley is a dynamic personality and does a good job presenting the science in the video. Below the video, there are four different activities that teachers can use follow up on the concepts presented in the video.
• About the Pedagogy
  Audio track is augmented by word track running along the bottom. Teaching tips, learning objectives, and an annotated script are included to facilitate the use of this resource in classrooms.
• Technical Details/Ease of Use
  Excellent quality. This segment is from the hour-long episode but stands alone quite well. Richard Alley is a well-known climate scientist and an engaging presenter.