1 Already, people are buying tickets to space. Companies including SpaceX, Virgin Galactic and Space Adventures want to make space tourism more common. 2 The Japanese billionaire Yusaku Maezawa spent an undisclosed sum of money with SpaceX in 2018 for a possible future private trip around the moon and back. And this June, an anonymous space lover paid $28m to fly on Blue Origin’s New Shepard with [Amazon billionaire Jeff] Bezos—though later backed out due to a ”scheduling conflict.” 3 But this launch of a new private space industry that is cultivating tourism and popular use could come with vast environmental costs, says Eloise Marais, an associate professor of physical geography at University College London. Marais studies the impact of fuels and industries on the atmosphere. 4 When rockets launch into space, they require a huge amount of propellants to make it out of the Earth’s atmosphere. For SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket, it is kerosene, and for Nasa it is liquid hydrogen in their new Space Launch System. Those fuels emit a variety of substances into the atmosphere, including carbon dioxide, water, chlorine, and other chemicals.
1. What evidence backs up the statement in paragraph 8 that even something that seems innocuous can be harmful?
A. Rocket emissions go into the upper atmosphere.
B. Water can form clouds and cause warming.
C. Rocket fuels include kerosene and liquid hydrogen.
D. It is possible to be responsible and do exciting work at the same time.
2. Students should be able to carry cell phones in schools. What would be a counterclaim to the claim?
A. Cell phones are often stolen at school.
B. It is good for students to carry cell phones for emergency use.
C. Students use cell phones to communicate with friends.
D. Cell phones distract from learning.
3. Banning plastic water bottles removes a healthy option for a beverage. Which claim might someone argue and include the counterclaim?
A. Plastic water bottles are one of the leading contributors to landfill waste
B. Plastic water bottles should be banned. They cause enormous waste and environmental issues.
C. Plastic bottles could contain harmful chemicals.
D. Plastic water bottles cost a lot of money to produce and there are many cheaper options.
4. Claim: Junk food should not be offered in school cafeterias. It’s unhealthy and leads to bad food habits. Counterclaim: People should be allowed to make their own choices about food. This builds their capacity to make mindful choices. What overall claim could you make about the claim and counterclaim?
A. Junk food is unhealthy and causes many health problems.
B. junk food leads to bad habits, and people make all sorts of choices in their lives, good and bad.
C. Choices allow people to build their personalities.
D. Junk food leads to bad food habits, but people need to be able to make their own choices.
1. A - Rocket emissions go into the upper atmosphere.
2. D - Cell phones distract from learning.
3. B - Plastic water bottles should be banned. They cause enormous waste and environmental issues.
4. B - Junk food leads to bad habits, and people make all sorts of choices in their lives, good and bad.