Science in Personal and Social Perspectives (E)

National Science Education Standard: Science in Personal and Social Perspectives

  • K-4
    1. Personal health
    2. Characteristics and changes in populations
    3. Types of resources
    4. Changes in environments
    5. Science and technology in local challenges
  • 5-8
    1. Personal health
    2. Populations, resources, and environments
    3. Natural hazards
    4. Risks and benefits
    5. Science and technology in society
  • 9-12
    1. Personal and community health
    2. Population growth
    3. Natural resources
    4. Environmental quality
    5. Natural and human-induced hazards
    6. Science and technology in local, national, and global challenges

Ocean Currents Change Our Earth


Oil Trap Model

Discuss how a 3-D model illustrates the geology of oil deposits. What challenges do you think petroleum geologists must overcome to recover oil?

Parks Past, Present, and Future


Particle Size and Oil Production

What factors affect how easily a fluid can move through sediments? How is this flow rate connected to oil production? In this investigation, you will explore the permeabilities of different materials. You will then use your observations to determine what affects permeability and how this might relate to oil production.

Places on the Planet: Latitude and Longitude


Plant an Ozone Monitoring Garden


Products from Petroleum

Where would we be without petroleum? You can kiss lipstick goodbye!

Not only does petroleum provide fuel to run our vehicles, cook our food, heat our homes, and generate electricity, it is also used in plastics, medicines, food items, and countless other products, from aspirin to umbrellas and, yes — lipstick! We use many oil products as synthetic alternatives to natural materials, including synthetic rubber instead of natural rubber, and detergent instead of soap. Oil also gives us entirely new, unique materials such as nylon.

Products Made from Petroleum


Properties of Fluids in Reservoirs

Petroleum geologists play a vital role in locating energy resources. They use a variety of methods to collect the data they need to find reservoirs of oil and natural gas. When they find these reservoirs, petroleum geologists need to calculate their volume. They also need to estimate how much they can recover (remove) from the reservoir. This helps them to determine the possible value of the discovery. By using a model, this investigation will help you to understand the physical relationships between natural gas, oil, and water in a reservoir and how these relationships can affect recovery.

Rock Abrasion



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