 Crude Oil- petroleum as it comes out of the ground before it has been refined or processed  Nonrenewable resource- a resource that cannot be replaced  Oil reserves- oil that has been discovered but remains unused in the ground  Renewable resource- a resource that can’t be used up or can be replaced.

 Oil began as plants and animals that lived and died in the oceans  The water, earth’s core and chemical changes transformed these creatures into oil and natural gas  Oil and natural gas seeped into tiny holes in the earth

 Most of the world’s oil lies buried under S.W. Asia  This area used to be under water  Also, tectonic plates collided to form pockets were oil can be trapped  Oil companies have drill to get oil  Crude oil needs to be refined or processed to make useful products

 Oil exists in some places and not others  Saudi Arabia has the most oil  Kuwait has 1/10 of the world’s oil

 Oil money has improved the life of many people  Life expectancy has increased, infant mortality has decreased  The GDP (country’s wealth) and Per capita (people’s wealth) are higher

 A high per capita GDP does not mean everyone is rich. It is an average.  Some people may be rich, others can still be poor  The Human Development Index (HDI) measures general quality of life (education, life expectancy)

 There is still poverty in SW Asia  Some countries have made a lot of money off of oil, but does not use it to improve the quality of life for the people  They may spend money on weapons, building armies and fighting wars

 Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) controls the supply of oil  OPEC wants to keep prices steady  OPEC does not control all of the world’s oil  Some OPEC countries refuse to follow OPEC decisions on how much oil to sell

 The US and Japan take a great interest in the flow of oil  Saddam Hussein (dictator of Iraq) tried to take over Kuwait to control the oil fields  The US and other countries went to war to stop this (Persian Gulf War)

 The world mainly relies on nonrenewable resources  These will run out one day  Getting energy from renewable resources has cost more than burning oil or gas  Sunlight and wind may become key resources