How can you tell which materials are useful or harmful?

Answer 1

Materials Engineering can be subdivided into the following sub-fields:

Nanotechnology - rigorously, the study of materials where the effects of quantum confinement, the Gibbs-Thomson effect, or any other effect only present at the nanoscale is the defining property of the material; but more commonly, it is the creation and study of materials whose defining structural properties are anywhere from less than a nanometer to one hundred nanometers in scale, such as molecularly engineered materials.

Benefits: microelectronic advances

Harms: electronic monitoring devices (bugs)

Microtechnology - study of materials and processes and their interaction, allowing microfabrication of structures of micrometric dimensions, such as MicroElectroMechanical Systems (MEMS).

Benefits: improved computer hardware

Harms: increased sedentary activity, obesity, and Diabetes caused by spending more time at the computer & less time exercising

Crystallography - the study of how atoms in a solid fill space, the defects associated with crystal structures such as grain boundaries and dislocations, and the characterization of these structures and their relation to physical properties.

Benefits: Improved glass products

Materials Characterization - such as diffraction with x-rays, electrons, or neutrons, and various forms of spectroscopy and chemical analysis such as Raman spectroscopy, energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), chromatography, thermal analysis, electron microscope analysis, etc., in order to understand and define the properties of materials.

Benefits: Greater understanding of the properties of materials

Metallurgy - the study of metals and their alloys, including their extraction, microstructure and processing.

Benefits: Improved, stronger, more durable metal alloys

Biomaterials - materials that are derived from and/or used with biological systems.

Benefits: Improved medical therapies, greater human longevity

Harms: Ethical concerns about artificial insemination, cloning, stem cell research, and other issues

Electronic and magnetic materials - materials such as semiconductors used to create integrated circuits, storage media, sensors, and other devices.

Benefits: More data storage in hard drives and RAM chips

Harms: Greater ability of government and private firms to accumulate massive personal data about any and every individual

Tribology - the study of the wear of materials due to friction and other factors.

Benefits: Greater durability of construction and clothing materials

Forensic materials engineering - the study of material failure, and the light it sheds on how engineers specify materials in their product

Benefits: Greater ability of law enforcement to identify criminals and establish their guilt

Harms: Greater ability of Big Brother to encroach on private activities; increasingly larger prison populations.

Answer 2

The fact that we have so many natural materials in the environment is both good and bad. We have many resources here for the taking, to use and make human life easier, but they are finite. We don't have a supply of these things that will last forever. We only have so many to use before our resources are gone.

Answer 3

You cannot. Any material, if used in excess or improperly is harmful. Water is essential for survival but too much water can kill you. You cannot live without oxygen, but breathing pure oxygen would kill you.

Answer 4

The harmful effects of sulfur dioxide is that it forms acidic rainfall. Acidic rainfall leads to the faster corrosion of automotive coating. It also leads to the death of the aquatic life.

Answer 5

Burning or combustion: Burning produces smoke that affects the ozone layer. When the layers of the ozone layer becomes thin, the global temperature rises.

Answer 6

THE HARMFUL EFFECT: you will be addict in smoking and drinking alcohol.

THE BENEFICIAL EFFECT: you can work easier and faster.

Good luck!