ter reading chapters 13 (America in Black and Green) and 14 (Throwaway Society) from the Steinberg textbook and Martin Melosi’s article, answer the following question: In general, how would you describe the pattern of energy consumption in the U.S. in the twentieth century?

Unit Four

Assignment 4

Assignment Instructions

This assignment is worth 12% of your final grade. There are two parts: short and long answer questions related to your course readings.

Short Answer Questions

In four or five sentences, briefly answer five of the following questions. Ten marks each.

1. After reading chapters 13 (America in Black and Green) and 14 (Throwaway Society) from the Steinberg textbook and Martin Melosi’s article, answer the following question: In general, how would you describe the pattern of energy consumption in the U.S. in the twentieth century?
2. After reading the articles by Alan Olmstead and Paul Rhode, and Matthew Evenden, outline the role governments played in each case and explain the relative importance of volunteerism in controlling consumption patterns.
3. Based upon the documentary “Birth of a Movement” and Chapter 15 (Shades of Green) from the Steinberg textbook, explain some of the social, cultural, and political factors that inspired the modern environmental movement of the 1960s and 1970s.
4. According to Samuel P. Hays and Robert Gottlieb, what are some of the main differences between the conservation movement and the modern environmental movement?
5. What argument does Steinberg make in the final chapter (In Corporations We Trust) about the current state of the American environment and the relationship with growing corporate power?
6. How was the 2007 report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change received by the popular media?
7. How do Matthew Nisbet and Teresa Myers view the different representations of climate change or global warming? How does Mark Carey? How does Spencer Weart?

Long Answer Questions

Answer two of the following questions. 250-350 words per question. Twenty-five marks each.

1. Reflecting on the types of energy resources you consume, in what ways are your consumption patterns influenced by government, private corporations, and individual choice? Based on the readings, how effective have governments and private corporations been in regulating the consumption of energy resources in the twentieth century and what factors shaped those regulations?
2. Considering the cultural, political, and economic context of the 1960s and 1970s in North America, why did events like the Santa Barbara oil spill, the publication of Silent Spring, and the Love Canal emergency help lead to the emergence of a modern environmental movement that was different from the earlier conservation movement?
3. Reflecting back on previous course material on the conservation movement and the environmental movement, why has global warming captured the attention of environmentalists, policy-makers, and the broader public at the turn of the twenty-first century? How have social and biophysical factors shaped perceptions of global warming?

The following criteria will be used to evaluate your answers.