What is Ocean Acidification and how does it affect you?

Ocean Acidification is the process by which water in the Ocean becomes more acidic due to it's ability to absorb excess carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. The pH of the ocean is held in check by the presence of bicarbonate organisms such as coral reefs and mollusks which release bicarbonate as the pH of ocean water rises. If the equilibrium is pushed to far bicarbonate based organisms will be unable to survive. This will cause millions of people to lose their source of income and a major source of food and could cause mass starvation in the third world.

What makes something polar or non-polar?

Polar molecules have an imbalanced charge due to the placement of their electrons, whereas nonpolar molecules have a balanced charge. Some polar molecules are ionic and one side of the molecule has an atom with a negative charge and one side of the molecule has an atom with a negative charge however, polar molecules can also have covalent bonds such as the atoms in a water molecule. Covalently bonded molecules are polar when there is a large difference in electronegativity in the bonded atoms.

Can our current education system meet the needs of the changing modern world?

Our current education system was designed to fit the needs of an industrial economy. Our world has shifted to service and technology-based economy which is poorly served by our current educational model. Our schools need to re-align with the modern world by teaching their students valuable and modern life skills including personal finance, basic computer skills, website design, entrepreneurship, and environmental science. Students should also be encouraged to find their passion and build on their personal strengths, and they should be given the resources and guidance to do this.