Exam #3
Equilibrium
A state of balance - inputs=outputs
mathematical and statistical model
Tests out diff. situations and plugs in data
examples of primary pollutants
VOCs ( gasoline) , CO ( carbon monoxide) , NOx ( nitrogen oxide), SO2 ( sulfur oxide ), Lead
dynamic equilibrium
constantly changing relationship among the variables of a system within a range of tolerance around a typical or average state
Windward side of a mountain
cool and moist due to expansion (low pressure)
Ways to reduce environmental impact
stream restoration, use less nonrenewable resources
normal lapse rate
the average rate of temperature decrease with increasing altitude in the lower atmosphere
adiabatic process
A process in which no heat is transferred to or from the system by its surroundings.
Where is air pressure the greatest?
sea level
Earth's average albedo
0.3 or 30%
Benefits of stream restoration
- Improve water quality in the streams - restore the connection between the stream channel and the floodplain -create habitats for aquatic and terrestrial life
Ultisols
-Humid subtropical areas -High levels of leaching and weathering -Red color -Thick clay B layer -dominated by minerals (quartz, kaolinite (clay mineral), iron oxides (what turns our soil red)(hematite) -most nutrients are concentrated in the upper few inches -moderately low capacity to retain additions of lime and fertilizer -infertile -occur in the Southern United States, Ultisols are also found in regions of Africa, Asia, and South America.
ground level ozone
-the pollutant of ozone near the earth's surface - formed: VOC + NOx + sunlight = ozone (smog)
When did the last ice age end?
10,000 years ago
periods of major glaciation
100,000 yr cycle
When was the last glacial maximum?
18,000 years ago
periods of minor glaciation
40,000 yr cycle
Photosynthesis equation
6CO2 + 6H2O + light energy --> C6H12O6 + 6O2
aerobic respiration equation
6O2 + C6H12O6 -> 6CO2 + 6H2O + Energy
threshold in a natural system
A condition that if its exceeded ( or not met) will cause a dramatic, often irreversible change in the system ex: elastic limit for eqs and coral reef bleaching
Mollisols
A dark colored surface horizon, high in content of organic matter, quite fertile, under grass in climate, have a moderate to pronounced seasonal moisture deficit -Occurs in the great plains
geyser
A fountain of water and steam that erupts from the ground
USGS (United States Geological Survey)
A government organization that produces topographic maps for all areas in the USA.
Turbidity
A measure of how clear water is.
renewable resource
A natural resource that can be replaced at the same rate at which the resource is consumed ex: fertile topsoil, fish populations, freshwater, forests, wind and solar energy
nonrenewable resource
A natural resource that is not replaced in a useful time frame. ex: fossil fuels, metallic minerals ( lithium, iron, copper, gold, silver, and aluminum) and non metallic minerals ( sheet mica, salt ( halite), clay, sand, gypsum and phosphate)
Springs
A natural source of water formed when water from an aquifer percolates up to the ground surface.
trophic cascade
A series of changes in the population sizes of organisms at different trophic levels in a food chain, occurring when predators at high trophic levels indirectly promote populations of organisms at low trophic levels by keeping species at intermediate trophic levels in check. Trophic cascades may become apparent when a top predator is eliminated from a system.
keystone species
A species that influences the survival of many other species in an ecosystem - Critical for life ex: Grey wolf taken out of yellowstone
closed system
A system in which no matter is allowed to enter or leave, only energy is moving in and out -carbon cycle , water cycle Earth as a whole is a closed system
Albedo
Ability of a surface to reflect light
Feedback
An adjustment in one part of a system in response to a change that occurred in another part of the system
Thermophiles
Archaea that thrive in very hot environments, such as volcanic springs. - Produce some bright colors
thermal springs and geysers
Are the result of groundwater being heated to high Tºs either by the thermal gradient or in association with volcanic activity.
why is the wet adiabatic lapse rate less than the dry adiabatic lapse rate
Because of release of latent heat
what causes the hot spring and geysers in yellowstone national park?
Caldera- a crater like feature when a volcano collapses
adiabatic pressure
Change in the air pressure due to the rising and falling of air over a mountain
Coastal Plain
Changes in relative sea level may alter the position and morphology of coastlines, causing coastal flooding, waterlogged soils, and a loss or gain of land. They also may create or destroy coastal wetlands and salt marshes, inundate coastal settlements, and induce saltwater intrusion into aquifers, leading to salinization of groundwater.
The dust bowl region
Colorado, New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas -Happened due to poor land management -climate is dry and a lot drought
reservoirs within the carbon cycle
Deep oceans = 38,400 gigatons Fossil fuels = 4,130 gigatons Terrestrial biosphere = 2,000 gigatons Surface oceans = 1,020 gigatons Atmosphere = 720 gigatons Sediments = 150 gigatons - Largest is marine sediments and sedimentary rocks altering : burning of fossil fuels
perpetual resource
Essentially inexhaustible resource on a human time scale because it is renewed continuously. ex: wind, solar energy, tides
computer generated model
Google earth
A map showing a large area
Has less detail compared to a map showing a smaller area
sustainable yield
Highest rate at which a renewable resource can be used indefinitely without reducing its available supply
Was sea level higher or lower during the last ice age?
It was lower due to the large amount of sea water that had evaporated and been deposited as snow and ice,
100th Meridian Line
John Wesley Powell, a geologist, warned in 1874 that beyond the 100th meridian so little rain fell that agriculture was impossible without massive irrigation -the dividing line between groundwater dominated irrigation in the west and precipitation dominated irrigation in the east
location and formation of the dead zone
Located : Gulf of Mexico Formation: An area of hypoxic water ( not a lot of oxygen) happening because of nitrates and phosphates -These phosphates help feed phytoplankton and algae( producers) - which results in an algad bloom ( increase in producers) -Eventually algae die ( run out of food source) - Bacteria consumes dead algae - They take oxygen out of the water makes it ( hypoxic water)
Clean smokestacks act
Made in 2002 to improve air quality ( in NC) and reduce emissions - Scrubbers were used to reduce but still have air pollution - Pollution shifts from air to water pollution - Benefits: Reduced smog
Inputs of a system
Matter and/ or energy entering a system
outputs of a system
Matter and/ or energy leaving a system
elastic limit
Maximum stress that a material will withstand without permanent deformation.
natural capital
Natural resources and natural services that keep us and other species alive and support our economies. - Humans use the non and renewable resources
temperate rainforest in the US
Oregon, Washington, California
1862 Homestead Act
Passed in 1862, it gave 160 acres of public land to any settler who would farm the land for five years. The settler would only have to pay a registration fee of $25.
interglacial
Period of glacial retreat; temps are warmer, ice sheets are smaller, and sea level is higher
glacial
Pertaining to glaciers; cold, icy, slow, unsympathetic
negative feedback
Reaction to a change in a system that counteracts that change and leads to dynamic equilibrium in the system -Tends to maintain and stabilize the systemP
positive feedback
Reaction to a change in a system that reinforces that change and leads to imbalance in the system
environmentally sustainable society
Society that satisfies the basic needs of its people without depleting or degrading its natural resources and thereby preventing current and future generations of humans and other species from meeting their basic needs.
natural resources
Substances needed to support life, or are by humans to improve our living conditions - Classified as nonrenewable and renewable
Climate and soil of the Great Plains
The Great Plains have a continental climate. Much of the plains experience cold winters and warm summers, with low precipitation and humidity, much wind, and sudden changes in temperature. More rainfall occurs in summer than in winter, except in some of the northwestern parts of the Great Plains.
relationship between the sahara desert and the amazon forest
The Sahara desert provides nutrients to the Amazon
What happens to air pressure as altitude increases?
The air pressure decreases as you rise, and the air expands which decreases the temp.
Cartography
The design and production of maps, focuses on the many ways to display spatial info
Before
The landscape around Toby Creek has changed significantly over the past several hundred years.Toby Creek is on campus at UNCC.The floodplain of Toby Creek is considered detached from its stream channel.
carbon cycle
The organic circulation of carbon from the atmosphere into organisms and back again
wet adiabatic lapse rate
The rate at which rising moist air cools adiabatically after it has reached its dew point and condensation has begun - varying depending on moisture content from 5ºC to 9ºC for every 1,000 meters it rises.
dry adiabatic lapse rate
The rate at which the temperature of a parcel of dry air decreases as the parcel is lifted in the atmosphere.
Sea level as the ice age ended
The sea-level rose
Thermoelectric Power
Water is used in generating electricity with steam-driven turbine generators, uses natural resources and coal-fired to fuel it
The name of the prevailing wind that influences weather in the US
Westerlies
ways humans alter the water cycle
Withdrawing large amounts of freshwater at rates faster than nature can replace it Clearing vegetation Increases runoff Draining and filling wetlands for farming and urban development Wetlands provide flood control Absorb and hold overflows of water
photochemical reaction
a chemical reaction in which light provides the energy needed to initiate the reaction
New Madrid Fault Zone
a fault zone which runs through Missouri, Illinois, Arkansas, Kentucky, Mississippi-thick sediments increase eq. shaking-infrastructure "choke point" : a lot of trans.
conceptual model
a mental map/image you have in ur head of the real world
soil conversation
a method to maintain the fertility of the soil by protecting the soil from erosion and nutrient loss -rice paddies reduce erosion
rain shadow
a region with dry conditions found on the leeward side of a mountain range as a result of humid winds from the ocean causing precipitation on the windward side
environmental overshoot
a situation where the rate of resource use is unsustainable, given the existing supply or renewability of that resource.
artesian spring
a spring whose water flows from a crack in the cap rock over the aquifer
open system
a system in which exchanges of matter or energy occur across system boundaries - most natural systems (human body, food web, ecosystems, plants, hurricanes)
Milankovitch Theory
a theory to explain variations in climate are a result of 1) orbital eccentricity, shape of Earth's orbit around the sun; - 100,000 yr cycle 2) tilt obliquity, the angle that Earth's axis makes in the plane of Earth's orbit; - 40,000 yr cycle 3) axial precession, the change in the direction of Earth's axis of rotation ( where the axis is pointing) - 26,000 yr cyle Developed by Milutin Milankovitch -Helps us to understand why we have glacial periods and why we have interglacial periods - in 11,000 yrs the north will point to vega not the north star
geologic regions in North Carolina
blue ridge, piedmont, deep river basin ( Triassic basin ), coastal plain
Fondation Species
change there environment and create new habitats for others ( beavers)
orographic lifting
cloud formation that occurs when warm moist air is forced to rise up the side of a mountain
systems analysis
determining the parts of a system, the processes involved, and studying how changes in interactions among those parts and processes may affect the system and its operation.
health effects of ozone exposure
injuring respiratory epithelial cells and type 1 alveolar cells with inflammatory mediator. Decreased lung function, chest discomfort, ozone-induced asthma (airway hyper-reactivity and neutrophilia) -coughing -sore throat - lung diseases (asthma)
Oxisols
intensely weathered soils of tropical and subtropical environments, (quartz, kaolinite (clay mineral), iron oxides ), low natural fertility -occurs in tropical rainforest
riparian zone
land next to the stream, starting at the top of the bank, with heavy plant cover on either side
Yellowstone National Park without wolves
no veg. , more erosion , banks are unstable, water quality decreased, turbidity increased, less habitats, coyotes trying to outcompete
examples of secondary pollutants
ozone and sulfuric acid, nitrogen dioxide
feedback loop
path of change as its effect moves through a system until the effect impacts the variable originally experiencing change
ice cores and marine sediments
pieces of ice used to track earths past weather
process of photosynthesis
plants convert the energy of sunlight into chemical energy stored in the bonds of carbohydrates
sources of anthropogenic pollution
point source- single identifiable sources ex: power plant and factories non-point source- many sources that are hard to identify ex: cars, trucks, fertilizer, runoff and pesticides overspray
primary pollutants
pollutants that are put directly into the air by human or natural activity.
secondary pollutants
pollutants that form from chemical reactions that occur when primary pollutants come in contact with other primary pollutants or with naturally occuring substances, such as water vapor.
natural services
processes in nature which support life and human economies ex: water purification, ozone layer, climate control, nutrient recycling, pest control
pictorial and graphic model
representation of a portion of Earth's surface by means of maps, photographs, graphs, or diagrams.
Health effects of pollution
respiratory + cardiovascular illness, cancer risk, headaches, fatigue, nausea, skin irritation, gastroenteritis
leeward side
side of mountain that gets very little precipitation and can be desert like ( warm and dry)
Models
simplified representations of a more complex reality that is useful for analysis and prediction ex: Maps, globe , Google maps
oxygen isotope ratio
the ratio of different isotopes of oxygen in ocean water, varying with the temperature of the water - Used in paleoclimatology
Yellowstone with Wolves back
veg. growed back along stream banks, more habitats, beavers came back, increase in biodiversity
geothermal water
water heated by contact with hot rocks in the subsurface.
economically depleted
when the cost of extracting and using the resource exceeds its economic value.
