The Incredible Journey of Oil

Study questions for Crude: The Incredible Journey of Oil

Under what conditions did most oil form?

Did oil form from dinosaurs, as various oil companies have portrayed in corporate logos or advertising? Why or why not?

What role did oxygen play in the formation of oil?

When and where was oil discovered in such quantities that initiated rapid expansion of oil consumption?

After the Middle East, in what environments did oil companies begin to extract large quantities of oil?

Where and when did US oil production begin? How long did the first US oil fields produce?

What was the effect of the introduction of mass produced automobiles on the demand for oil?

Oil releases about ________ times more energy than it takes to produce it. Define energy density.

What are some of the products that can be developed from oil?

Describe the relationship between oil and modern food production.

During which decade did M. King Hubbert predict that US oil production would peak?

How are conditions of maximum oil formation (Jurassic) related to greenhouse conditions at the time?

What were some of the consequences of super-greenhouse events?

How does the rate of greenhouse gas increase from the Jurassic compare with our current rates of increase?

What are recent signs of climate warming?

Give an example of a feedback loop that could greatly increase global warming.