Eco Test 1
Gravity
helps earth holds onto its atmosphere
Biotic
living organisms
Respiration
the cells of all living things respire to use energy to do metabolic work and release heat- Anaerobic Cellular Respiration and Aerobic cellular Respiration
What do plants release during photosynthesis and transpiration
water
Primary Production
(rate of individual) amount of chemical energy made by autotrophs (primary producers) through photosynthesis + chemosynthesis Enegy assimlated by autrophs is stored in the plant's tissue as carbon compounds carbon is the currency used for the measurement of primary production biomass is the wieght of C in a population source of energy + most O2 Primary productivity: rate of the captue of carbon over a period of time
Non-point Sources
dispersed + often difficult to identify ex. pesticides that are runoff and blown into land + air + water
Biomass
dry weight of all organic matter ecosystem can support based on its solar energy captured and stored by its producers but chemical energy is degraded w. each transfer + given off into the environment as heat the weight of living material in a species or a trophic level in a given area (expressed in units of carbon per area)
When does water purification happen
during evaporation
Anaerobic Cellular Respiration (fermentation)
end products are carbon compounds used by prokaryotes in extreme environments takes in O2 and releases O2
Harmful costs of goods and services
ex. timber companies cut down entire forests and ruin environments
Altering of the Water Cycle: Withdrawal of large quarters of fresh water
faster than it can be restored
Detritivore
feeds on dead organisms-help nutrient cycling ex, vultures + beetles earthworms: eats soil
Provisioning services
food, water, timber, and fiber
Population
group of individuals living in a specific area interacting
Decomposers
has no mouth): absorbs nutrients from the environment-absorbs from wood +inorganic things ex. bacteria + fungi
Respiration gives off
heat because energy is inefficiency transformed from one form to another
When can phosphate be lost
hen they're carried into the ocean because they get trapped as marine sediments
Environmental science
how humans interact w/ the living + nonliving parts of their environment
Population Growth
humans exponential growing natural → consumption rate increases (faster than the earth can provide) + wasting resources → ecological footprint increases
Agricultural Revolution:
humans learned to grow + breed plants and animals
Poverty
impoverished live a short term lifestyle which is hurtful for the environment + natural resources + the pollution it creates
Lack of Phosphate
in Soil it can it limits plants + growth + population
Altering of the Water Cycle: cleaning vegetation from land for agriculture + roads + etc.
increases run off, reduces infiltration that restore ground water + accelerates erosion + risk of flooding
Industrial Medical Revolution
large machinery + factories built which got its energy from fossil fuels + grew crops of food + medical growth so people live longer
Trophic Interactions
links to hold everything together specifically linking organisms together what they eat and what eats them
Altering Carbon Cycle: Carbon footprint growing
lters carbon cycle's energy flow and nutrient cycle
where is the largest storage of carbon at
mariane sediments
Natural Resources
materials + energy found in nature needed for human existence ex. renewable resources: air, water, plants, wind, soil + nonrenewable resources: copper, oil, soal
Biodiversity
multiple options for life): variety of organisms + natural systems + nature
Environmental degradation
natural capital degradation humans have degraded 60% of the natural resources
Component of Sustainability
natural services + natural resource
1. Natural Capital
natural services + natural resource; supported by energy from sun
Abiotic
not living (ex. soil, solar energy, water, nutrients, heat, etc.)
Factors that Sustain the Earth's Life
one way for high quality energy, Cycling nutrients, Gravity
What does carbon control
ontrols atmosphere; if too much carbon is removed it chills the atmosphere which changes clinker
who removes CO2
producers-they use it for photosynthesis to make glucose helps cycle carbon in the atmosphere
Chemosynthetic
prokaryotes living in extreme places: uses chemical (thermal) energy to fix CO2 and make glucose
Cultural services
recreational, aesthetic, and spiritual benefits
Chemical cycling
reduce waste):nutrient cycling: cycle of chemicals from environment to organism then back to the environment
Ecology tipping point
resistance tested + irreversible change in nature environment of degradation
Point Source
single + identity ex. smokestack comes from coal burning
3. Solutions: scientific solutions
stop cutting + burning forests + stop pollution + dumping in lakes
ecology
studies how organisms + living things interact w. one another + environments
Perpetual Resources
supplies continously + lasts for a long time ex. sun
Renewable Resources
takes a while to replenish through natural process ex. air, fish, forests, soil
where does carbon go in the ocean
to the bottom sediments
Biodiversity
variety of organisms + natural systems (grasslands, oceans) + natural servies (water + air purification, pest control) they provide
transpiration
water evaporates from plants
evaporation
water from surface
Altering of the Water Cycle
withdrawal of fresh water, clearing vegetation, flooding
Gross Primary Production
: Total amount of carbon made my autrophs in an ecosytem over time depends on photosynthetic rate, climate, nutrients, light, photosynthetic leaves per ground area for a habitat (it varies in land biomes ex. tundra vs. forest) rate of producers converting solar energy into chemical energy + biomass Plants use half of the carbon they make to support biosynthesis and maintenance ex. at night plants lose carbon
Major Culture Change
Agricultural Revolution, Industrial Medical Revolution, Information Revolution, Sustainability Revolution
tmosphere
Air: 78% Nitrogen + 21% oxygen + 1% water + green house gasses trophsphere → stratsphere has ozone gas to filter out ultraviolet radiation
Components of Earth's Life-Support Systems
Atmosphere, Hydrosphere, Geosphere, Biosphere
1st Level: Primary Producers
Autotrophs: produces more dead organic matter + generates most of its energy from sunlight + (environment) inorganic chemical compounds
Solar Energy
(Sun): reliance on solar energy-supports photosynthesis + creates solar energy
Cycling nutrients
(atoms, ions, molecules): each has limited supply of nutrients and it needs to recycle them ( not atoms are created or destroyed)
Sustainability Revolution
(not done, but needed): learn not reduce ecological footprint + live sustainability
who releases carbon
decomposers
Decomposition
decomposers, detritivores
Carbon cycle
cycle of carbon in different forms of chemical energy through environment to organisms to environment
synergism
2 factors who interact and create a nasty effect, but individually don't really cause anything.
How we add excess nitrogen in the atmosphere:
. we add lot of nitric oxide by burning any fuel which can cause acidic rain 2. we add nitrous oxide into the atmosphere through anaerobic process: bacteria in fertilizer warms the atmosphere and depletes ozone layer 3. we release stored nitrogen from plants as gaseous compounds from deforestation 4. in aquatic systems we add lots of nitrate into the water through runoff from sewage and fertilizers which makes a lot of algae 5. we release nitrogen from topsoil by harvesting crops + clearing + burning grasslands + forests for crops]
How does nitrogen enter the atmosphere
1. atmospheric deposition from rain or dust 2. nitrogen fixation in which prokaryotes convert N2 to a form that can be used to synthesize amino acids.
Humans affecting phosphate cycle:
1. removing large amounts of phosphate from earth to make fertilizer 2. clearing forests reducing phosphate levels
Key processes of the Phosphorus Cycle
1. weathering of rocks: running water erodes rocks and inorganic compound w. phosphate ions that get carried into the water 2. decomposition 3. Humus (in water) and soil particles bind phosphate, so recycling tends to be localized
Information Revolution
Globalization: development of new technology + we get rapid access to information + resources all around the globe
2nd Level: Primary Consumers
Herbivores : * includes detritivores that eat dead organic matter
Altering of the Water Cycle: flooding
Increase of flooding by draining + wetlands for farming + urban development
Biosphere
Living things: all living things are found here
nitrate (NO3-)
Nitrification converts ammonium to nitrate by nitrifying bacteria by enhancing decomposition. Under anaerobic conditions, denitrifying bacteria use nitrate instead of O2, releasing N2 gas through denitrification.
Aerobic cellular Respiration
O2 used to burn glucose-releases cO2 + Water + Heat done by all eukaryotes + some prokaryotes (plants + animals + decomposers) Glucose + O2 → ATP + CO2 + H2O ATP is the energy currency of the cell (powers work) Photosynthesis process involves storing organic material in plant
Process to Sustain Life:
One Way Flow of Energy, Biodiversity, Chemical Cycling
One Way Flow of Energy:
One way energy Flow: sun →plants → consumer's → environment as heat → radiation into space Energy flows, but does not cycle, through an ecosystem (energy from the sun ultimately dissipates into space as heat and thus it flows through the ecosystem without being recaptured by living things). directed by physical laws. For example, the 2nd Law of Thermodynamics dictates that energy transformation is inefficient between trophic levels and this limits energy flow from one trophic level to another.
3. Chemical Cycling: nutrient cycling
cycle of chemicals from environment → to organisms → to environment Chemical elements and some compounds (e.g., water) are continually recycled however.
Two types of Autotrophs (Primary Producers
Photosynthetic and Chemosynthetic
pollution comes from 2 sources:
Point source and non-point source
Basic Causes of Environmental Problems
Population Growth, Poverty, Harmful costs of goods and services
3rd Level: Secondary Consumers
Primary Carnivores: eat animals from the level below them
Natrual Services
Processes in nature that supports life ex. water/air purification, renewal of topsoil
Ecosystem services:
Provisioning services, Cultural services, Regulating services, Supporting services
Altering Carbon Cycle
Releasing large amounts of CO2 , Cleaning Carbon. Carbon footprint growing
Altering Carbon Cycle: Releasing large amounts of CO2
Releasing large amounts of CO2 in the atmosphere
Geosphere
Rocks, soil, Sediments: has earth's core → mantle →crust contains nonrenewable resources (fossil fuels) + renewable resources (soil)
4th Level: Tertiary consumers
Secondary carnivores: eat animals from the level below
Principles of Sustainability
Solar Energy, Biodiversity, Chemical cycling
Supporting services
Such as soil formation, photosynthesis, and nutrient cycling.
Photosynthetic
Use CO2 + H2O + sunlight = Glucose + O2 ex. plants + trees + some bacteria
Hydrosphere
Water: has all water found as water vapor in atmosphere
Altering Carbon Cycle:Cleaning Carbon
absorbing vegetation faster than can be restored
Regulating services
affect climate, floods, disease, wastes, and water quality
2 organic compounds made from nitrogen
ammonium (NH4+) or nitrate (NO3-).
community
an association of different population species living in the same are
Nutrients
an inorganic compound necessary for plant growth
Pollution
anything within the environment that harms it some is natural like volcanoes
Where does water get stuck
as ground water or in glaciers
Humans can deplete Natural Capital
by using resources too fast than the earth can restore them + overloading natural systems w. pollution
Phosphorus Cycle
circulation of phosphate through water + the earth's crust + living organisms
Water/hydrologic cycle
collects + purifies + distributed earth's water powered by the sun: evaporates, precipitation, transpiration + run off
Nitrogen Cycle
conversion of nitrogen into nutrient slants use one of two inorganic forms of N