Earth is the only planet in our solar system that provides an environment suitable for life as we know it. Sustaining these conditions requires constant recycling of materials between the living and nonliving components of ecosystems. Select one of the material cycles we have studied (water, nitrogen, carbon, sulfur and phosphorus) and identify the elements of your lifestyle that affect the cycle.a . What are the most notable impacts you achieve?b. How might your life change if you reduced your impacts? What should you give up?c. How difficult is it to balance personal choices with environmental considerations? Your response should be between 700 and 900 words and include introduction and conclusion sections. Water is a necessity for the existence of human beings. About 71% of the earth is made up of water and exists in many different forms. From water vapor in the atmosphere, to rivers and lakes on the Earth's surface, to glaciers and polar ice caps, to aquifers in the ground. Water is constantly moving from one place to another and from one state to another and this process is known as the water cycle. When water evaporates, the vapors rise and condense into clouds. Clouds move over the land and precipitation falls as rain, ice or snow. The water fills streams and rivers and eventually flows back into the oceans where evaporation restarts the process. The state of water (solid, liquid or gaseous) is mainly determined by temperature. Although water continually changes state from solid to liquid to gaseous, the amount of water on Earth remains constant. There is as much water today as there was hundreds of millions of years ago (Project, 1995). The most notable impacts humans have on the water cycle… middle of paper… automobile emissions, etc. it has an effect on the overall increase in Earth's temperature and the water cycle. Sulfur and CO2 mix with water vapor in the atmosphere, so when it falls as rain, the chemicals in the water also fall as acid rain. This sometimes kills trees, meaning there will be fewer trees to slow surface runoff so it can sink into the ground and become groundwater. Additionally, rising Earth temperatures may mean increased evaporation, melting ice, or other water cycle processes that negatively affect Earth's climate. If we stopped littering and chose to properly store waste, we could reduce the effects of water pollution that affects the water cycle. If we stop smoking and excessive and unnecessary driving, we will be able to reduce the negative impacts of global warming on the water cycle.