AP bio Chapter 55, 56, 3

LQ 55.3: Explain why aquatic ecosystems may have inverted biomass pyramids

the phytoplankton continually replace their biomass at such a rapid rate, they can support a biomass of zooplankton bigger than their own biomass.

56.4: Define restoration ecology and describe its goals

to initiate or speed up the recovery of degraded ecosystems. Assumes that most environmental damage is at least partly reversible.

55.4: Describe the phosphorus cycle and explain how phosphorus is recylcled locally in most ecosystems.

•Over time, rain and weathering cause rocks to release phosphate ions and other minerals. This inorganic phosphate is then distributed in soils and water. •Plants take up inorganic phosphate from the soil. The plants may then be consumed by animals. Once in the plant or animal, the phosphate is incorporated into organic molecules such as DNA. When the plant or animal dies, it decays, and the organic phosphate is returned to the soil. •Within the soil, organic forms of phosphate can be made available to plants by bacteria that break down organic matter to inorganic forms of phosphorus. This process is known as mineralisation. •Phosphorus in soil can end up in waterways and eventually oceans. Once there, it can be incorporated into sediments over time.

55.3: Explain why areas of upwelling in the ocean have exceptionally high levels of primary production.

deep waters are rich in nutrients as a result of decompsition of sinking organic matter from surface water. When brought to the surface these nutrients are utilized by phytoplankton combined with light energy from the sun to have high levels of primary productivity.

LQ 55.4: Name the main processes driving the water cycle

evaporation, precipitation, transpiration, condensation, and movement through surface and groundwater.

55.4: Name the major reservoirs of carbon

fossil fuels, soils, the sediments of aquatic ecosystems, the oceans, plant and animal biomass, and the atmosphere

LQ 3.1 & 3.2: Distinguish between hydrophobic and hydrophilic substances.

A hydrophilic substance is one that has an affinity for water. (Ex. Like Dissolves Like) A hydrophobic substance is one that does not have an affinity for water. (Ex. Oil in H₂O)

LQ 55.3: Explain what factors may limit primary production in aquatic ecosystems.

--Light: the depth of light penetration affects primary production in the photic zone of an ocean or lake --about ½ of all solar radiation is absorbed in the 1st 15 meters of water --only ~5-10% of solar radiation may reach a depth of 75 meters

LQ 55.3: Distinguish between each of the following pairs of terms a. primary and secondary production b. production efficiency and trophic efficiency

--Primary production: The rate at which energy is converted by photosynthetic and chemosynthetic autotrophs to organic substances. --Secondary Production: amount of chemical energy in food converted to their own new biomass during a given period of time. --Production efficiency: Fraction of energy stored in food that is not used for respiration --Trophic efficiency: Percentage of production transferred from one trophic level to the next

LQ 55.4: Describe the four nutrient reservoirs and the processes that transfer the elements between reservoirs.

--Water: Reservoirs: ocean etc. Transfer: evaporation, precipitation, transpiration, condensation, and movement through surface and groundwater. --Carbon: Reservoirs: fossil fuels, soils and sediments, solutes in ocean, plant and animal biomass, atmosphere Transfer:photosynthesis, volcanoes, burning of fossil fuels --Nitrogen: Reservoirs: atmosphere Transfer: nitrogen fixation by bacteria, --Phosphorous: Reservoirs: sedimentary rocks of marine origins, the ocean and organisms. Transfer: Phosphate binds with soil particles and movement is often localized

56.1: Distinguish between conservation biology and restoration biology.

-conservation biology: seeks to preserve life and integrates ecology, physiology, molecular bio, genetics, and evolutionary bio -restoration ecology: applies ecological principles to return ecosystems that have been disturbed by human activity to a condition as similar as possible to their natural state

3.1 & 3.2: Distinguish between a solute, solvent, and a solution

A solution is a liquid mixture (or a compound) in which a solute gets easily dissolved in a solvent. Usually, Solute is the smaller component of the solution which gets dissolved in the larger component, Solvent

3.1 & 3.2: Why are water molecules A.) Polar B.) Capable of h-bonding with 4 neighboring water molecules

A.) water molecules are polar because of their shape B.)The oxygen atom is charged as 2- .And the two hydrogen atoms are charged as 1+ each.Therefore the oxygen atom can attract two hydrogen atoms of other two water molecules and the two hydrogen atoms can attrat two oxygen atoms of another two water molecules.And four water molecules are bind with one water molecule.

LQ 3.3: Briefly explain how the burning of fossil fuels may affect: a. Acid precipitation b. Ocean acidification

A:Acid rain is caused by a chemical reaction that begins when compounds like sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides are released into the air. These substances can rise very high into the atmosphere, where they mix and react with water, oxygen, and other chemicals to form more acidic pollutants B: reduction in the pH of the ocean over an extended period of time, caused primarily by uptake of carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere.

3.3: Define acid, base, and pH

Acid: Substance that increases the hydrogen ion concentration of a solution. Base: Substance that reduces the hydrogen ion concentration of a solution. pH: A figure expressing the acid or basic of a solution on a logarithmic scale on which 7 is neutral, lower values are more acid, and higher values more basic.

56.4: Explain the importance of bioremediation and biological augmentation of ecosystem processes in restoration efforts

Bioremediation: use of organisms, usually prokaryotes, fungi, or plants, to detoxify polluted ecosystems Biological augmentation: uses organisms to add essential materials to a degraded ecosystem

3.3: Using the bicarbonate buffer system as an example, explain how buffers work.

Buffer systems prevent extreme changes in pH by dissociating and reassociating easily. When excess hydrogen ions are added to the system, the pH goes down Some of the added hydrogen ions will react with the bicarbonate ions to produce carbonic acid; the carbonic acid will dissociate into carbon dioxide and water. The pH goes back up. When hydrogen ions are removed from the reaction, the pH goes up. More carbon dioxide will combine with water; more carbonic acid will be produced and more hydrogen ions and bicarbonate ions will be produced. The pH goes down.

LQ 3.1 & 3.2: List four characteristics of water that are emergent properties resulting from hydrogen bonding

Cohesive, moderate temperature, expansion upon freezing, versatility as a solvent (dissolves more substances than any other liquid)

55.4: Explain how decomposition affects the rate of nutrient cycling in ecosystems.

Decomposition rates varies in all ecosystems. Decomposition takes an average of four to six years in temperate forests, while in a tropical rain forest, most organic material decomposes in a few months to a few years. The difference is largely the result of warmer temperatures and more abundant precipitation in tropical rain forests.

55.3: Explain why energy is said to flow rather than cycle through ecosystems.

Energy is lost at each trophic level as heat or waste. energy never returns to the producer.

55.3: Distinguish between a pyramid of net production and a pyramid of biomass.

Energy pyramids are in terms of net primary productivity and a pyramid of biomass is in terms of total dry weight of an organism in a given area.

56.1: Describe the three levels of biodiversity

Genetic diversity: Compromises not only the individual genetic variation within a population but also between populations. Species diversity: the variety of species in an ecosystem or throughout the biosphere. Ecosystem diversity: refers to the variety of ecosystems in a given place.

3.3: Name the products of the dissociation of water and give their concentration in pure water.

H+, OH-, 10^-7 M

3.1 & 3.2: Distinguish between heat and temperature.

Heat: The measure of total kinetic energy Temperature: The measure of heat intensity and represents average kinetic energy.

55.3: Explain why worldwide agriculture could feed more people if all humans consumed only plant material.

It is not energy efficient to eat meat. The amount of energy passed on isn't very much because it's lost in the animal moving around and conducting respiration.

LQ 55.4: Describe the nitrogen cycle and explain the importance of nitrogen fixation to all living organisms. Name three other key bacterial processes in the nitrogen cycle.

N2 from the atmosphere gets converted into NH3 from nitrogen fixing bacteria. NH3 gets converted into NH4+ from the H+ in the soil and decomposers. Nitrifying bacteria converts NH4+ into NO3-. Then denitrifying bacteria convert it back into N2 and put it back in the atmosphere. The rest is involved in plant uptake as NH4+.

LQ 55.2: Define and compare NPP and standing crop

NPP: PP- respiration Standing crop: The total biomass of photosynthetic autotrophs at a given time

55.2: Compare net primary production in specific marine, freshwater; and terrestrial ecosystems.

Net primary production is gross primary production-cellular respiration. Marine ecosystems have high NPP because its has algal beds, reefs etc. terrestrial ecosystems are also high because of land that includes plants besides deserts. Freshwater ecosystems are low because not that many organisms that use photosynthesis live in freshwater ecosystems.

55.4: Explain why nutrients are said to cycle rather than flow within ecosystems.

Nutrients are passed on at each trophic level until eventually the consumer dies and decomposes back in the soil etc. which helps the primary producers grow.

LQ 3.1 & 3.2: Define cohesion and adhesion.

One example of adhesion is water climbing up a paper towel that has been dipped into a glass of water, and one example of cohesion is rain falling as drops from the sky. During adhesion, water is attracted to other substances, causing the positive and negative molecules of the water to be attracted to the paper. During cohesion, water is attracted to itself and turns molecules into drops.

55.1: Explain how decomposition connects all trophic levels in an ecosystem.

Organisms are recycled Their matter, released by decomposers, is used by other organisms and passed on.

55.1: Describe the fundamental relationship between autotrophs and heterotrophs in an ecosystem

Producers (autotrophs) convert sunlight into organic chemical energy then (consumers) Heterotrophs utilize that stored energy.

LQ 55.5: Explain why toxic compounds usually have the greatest effect on top-level carnivores

Since 90% of energy is lost at each tropic level, a consumer has to eat far more food than it ultimately stores as body tissue. The food may contain toxins that cannot be metabolized or excreted which will lead to it accumulating in the body. A carnivore eating the first consumer will receive a high dose of the material and pass it on to the next.

55.4: Describe how net primary production and the rate of decomposition vary with temperature and water availability.

Temperature and availability of water affect the rates of decomposition and thus nutrient cycling times. The rate of decomposition in terrestrial ecosystems increases with the actual evapotranspiration (annual amount of water transpired by plants and evaporated from a landscape).

LQ 55.1: Explain how the first and second laws of thermodynamics apply to ecosystems.

The first law of thermodynamics states that energy cannot be created or destroyed; it can only be changed from one form to another. Energy for the functioning of an ecosystem comes from the Sun. Solar energy is absorbed by plants where in it is converted to stored chemical energy. The second law of thermodynamics states that whenever energy is transformed, there is a loss energy through the release of heat. This occurs when energy is transferred between trophic levels as illustrated in a food web

LQ 55.2: Define and compare GPP and NPP

Total primary production is known as an ecosystems GPP. NPP= GPP- respiration

55.2: Explain why the amount of energy used in photosynthesis is so much less than the amount of solar energy that reaches earth.

most solar energy is absorbed, scattered, reflected by the universe. also most solar energy that reaches the earth hits bare ground or water.