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Assistance In Kind

Public assistance that provides particular goods and services, like food or medical care, rather than cash

Asymmetric Information

A situation in which the parties to a transaction have different information, as when the seller of a used car has more information about its quality then the buyer.

Atmosphere

The mixture of gases surrounding the Earth. The Earth's atmosphere consists of about 79.1% nitrogen (by volume), 20.9% oxygen, 0.036% carbon dioxide and trace amounts of other gases. The atmosphere can be divided into a number of layers according to its mixing or chemical characteristics, generally determined by its thermal properties (temperature). The layer nearest the Earth is the troposphere, which reaches up to an altitude of about 8 km (about 5 miles) in the polar regions and up to 17 km (nearly 11 miles) above the equator. The stratosphere, which reaches to an altitude of about 50 km (31 miles) lies atop the troposphere. The mesosphere which extends up to 80-90 km is atop the stratosphere, and finally, the thermosphere, or ionosphere, gradually diminishes and forms a fuzzy border with outer space. There is relatively little mixing of gases between layers.

Atmospheric lifetime

See lifetime.

Atmospheric Water

Water contained in the atmosphere, mostly in vapor form, some of which falls to the earth’s surface in various forms as precipitation.

Atomic weight

The average weight (or mass) of all the isotopes of an element, as determined from the proportions in which they are present in a given element, compared with the mass of the 12 isotope of carbon (taken as precisely 12.000), that is the official international standard; measured in daltons.

Atoms

Minute particles that are the basic building blocks of all chemical elements and thus all matter.

Atrazine

A selective herbicide, widely used on corn. It is environmentally significant, since it was the second most commonly detected pesticide residue in an Environmental Protection Agency survey of drinking water wells conducted during 1988-1990. Due to concerns about groundwater contamination and worker exposure, EPA is conducting a special review of atrazine registration.

Autochthonous

Refers to something formed in its present location. Antonym of allochthonous.

Average Costs

The total costs divided by the total output

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