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The document discusses the concept of resources, defining them as anything that fulfills a need and holds value, including natural, man-made, and human resources. It highlights the importance of time and technology in transforming substances into valuable resources and emphasizes the need for conservation and sustainable development. Key principles of sustainable development are outlined, along with the significance of human resources and the distinction between renewable and non-renewable resources.

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4 views

selfstudys_com_file (5)

The document discusses the concept of resources, defining them as anything that fulfills a need and holds value, including natural, man-made, and human resources. It highlights the importance of time and technology in transforming substances into valuable resources and emphasizes the need for conservation and sustainable development. Key principles of sustainable development are outlined, along with the significance of human resources and the distinction between renewable and non-renewable resources.

Uploaded by

dhairyabundel2012
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Revision Notes

Class - 8 Social Science (Geography)


Chapter 1 - Resources

What are Resources?


Anything that can be used to fulfil a need and has some value is a resource.
Substances like water, electricity, vegetables, cars and textbooks all have a
specific utility and hence they are considered as resources. Some resources are
economically valuable while some are not. Beautiful scenery does not have an
economical value like gold, but it is equally important to satisfy human utility.
Some resources may gain value with time while some may lose their value.

Time and Technology


Time and technology play a significant role in changing substances into valuable
resources. These two factors are related to the needs of the people. As people
themselves are the most significant resource, their ideas, knowledge, inventions
and discoveries with time lead to the formation of more resources. With the
advancement of technology, every discovery or invention leads to many other
subsequent ones. Here are a few examples:
● The discovery of fire gave the idea of cooking.
● Agricultural development came out as a result of domestication of animals.
● The invention of the wheel caused the invention of various modes of transport.
● The technology to produce hydroelectricity has resulted in the successful
harnessing of energy present in fast-flowing water.

Types of Resources
Resources are classified into natural, man- made and human resources.

Natural Resources are extracted from nature and are mainly utilized without
making any change in their form. For example, air, water, minerals, etc.

Man Made Resources are the ones which are made by humans. They are derived
from natural resources but are not used in their original form. For example, roads,
machines, etc.
Human Resources are the quality and quantity of humans who can use their
skills to create more resources for mankind. Every human is a resource if they
can create man made resources.
The natural resources can be either Renewable or Non-Renewable. Renewable
resources can be renewed easily and quickly and they can be used for millions of
years. For example, sunlight, wind, etc. but the non-renewable resources take
millions of years to form and get renewed so they can be used only for a few
centuries. For example, coal, petroleum, etc.
The training and improvement of skills of a human by education is called Human
Resource Development. It enhances the mental and physical capability of
humans so that they can be of use to humanity.

Conservation of Resources
The use of resources for need, without greed is called conservation of resources.
It enables the resources to be renewed for future generations. Also, when the
resources are used in a manner that they remain useful for the future generations
too, it is called Sustainable Development. We can do this by recycling and
reusing things. We can also follow a reduction of use for the unimportant things
in our life.

Principles of Sustainable Development


● Respect and care for all forms of life
● Improve the quality of human life
● Conserve the earth’s vitality and diversity
● Minimise the depletion of natural resources
● Change personal attitude and practices towards the environment
● Enable communities to care for their own environment

Important Questions and Answers


1. Explain how resources have value.
Ans: Resources have a value if they are of any use to the people, directly or
indirectly. The resources can either have a commercial value or they do not have
a commercial value. Here are some examples:
Platinum is a resource that has economic value as we make many valuable
products from it like jewellery.
A beautiful landscape that you observe may not have economic value but is still
said to be a resource as it is functional in providing pleasure to the human mind.
2. What is wind energy and why is it becoming important?
Ans: Wind energy is the use of power of wind to generate electricity which we
can use for other purposes. A turbine is rotated using wind energy and this
generates electricity we can use.
As wind turbines are an environmentally clean and sustainable renewable form
of electricity, wind power is gaining popularity. Wind energy is also emerging as
an economically competitive source of energy as compared to most conventional
power sources.

3. Why is a human resource important?


Ans: Human resources are important because humans are sometimes skilled and
can be trained to make the best use of nature in order to use the existing resources
and also generate more resources using the knowledge and technology that they
gain over time.

4. Mention and define the major types of natural resources.


Ans: Broadly, there are two types of resources:
Renewable Resources whose availability is not affected by human consumption.
These resources get renewed quickly even with constant human usage.

Non-Renewable Resources which have a limited supply and are highly affected
by human consumption. These resources decline with human consumption. They
take thousands of years to get formed. For example, coal and petroleum.

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