When Dr. Solomon posed the question to the audience “What is soil?” you could hear crickets. The soil beneath our feet is taken for granted and it is hard to comprehend its importance. To be honest, the only thing I really knew about soil is that you can plant stuff in it and watch it grow into something. I didn’t know that the soil could trap carbon dioxide reducing the amount that ends up in the atmosphere which in turn helps to reduce the greenhouse effect. The debate regarding climate change is very controversial and who would have thought that soil could potentially play a role. What I also thought was interesting, was when Dr.Solomon explained his research regarding Africa and how soil degradation can lead to malnutrition and that cow bone fertilizer can actually aid in reducing this effect. Who would have thought that cow bones and some dirt could help the environment.