13851263362 | the first law of thermodynamics | sttes that energy is neither created nor destroyed | 0 | |
13851264908 | the second law of thermodynamics | states that with each successive energy transfer, less energy is avaliable to do work because some of it is diffused as heat | 1 | |
13851270384 | photosynthesis | is the process by which green plants capture the light energy from the sun and convert it into useful, high quiality chemicl energy in the form of organic molecules. | 2 | |
13851286054 | photosynthesis formula | solar energy + 6CO2 + 6H2O --> C6H12O6 + 6O2 | 3 | |
13851291626 | cellular respiration | reverses photosynthesis by breaking down glucose for energy | 4 | |
13851292787 | cellular respiration formula | C6 H12 06 + 6O2 ---> 6CO2 + 6H2O + ATP | 5 | |
13851294503 | species | all organisms that are genetically similar enough to reproduce and create live, fertile offspring. | 6 | |
13851297255 | population | consists of all members of species that live in the same area at the same time. | 7 | |
13851299274 | biological community | all the populations living and interacting in an area | 8 | |
13851300620 | ecosystem | a community and its physical environment | 9 | |
13851303416 | biomass | the total mass of organisms in a given area or volume. | 10 | |
13851304389 | productivity | the amount of biomass (biological material) produced in a given area during a given period of time | 11 | |
13851308852 | primary productivity | productivity of plants through photosynthesis | 12 | |
13851309611 | secondary productivity | rate of accumulation of herbivore and carnivore biomass | 13 | |
13851310431 | foodchain | linear chart showing flow of energy in an ecosystem | 14 | |
13851311701 | trophic level | an organisms feeding position in an ecosystem | 15 | |
13851316857 | primary producers | photosynthesizing organisms (plants), which support the rest of the foodchain | 16 | |
13851318828 | consumers | get their nutrients and energy by eating other things | 17 | |
13851321273 | scavangers | consume animals that are already dead | 18 | |
13851323078 | detritvores | consume detritus (litter, debris, dung) | 19 | |
13851325855 | decomposers (fungi and bacteria) | complete the final breakdown of organic mateer and return nutrients to the soil to fertilize the producers | 20 | |
13851325856 | food web | many interconnected foodchains | 21 | |
13851331203 | ten percent rule | 10% of the energy available at one trophic level is transfered to the next trophic level . | 22 | |
13851367632 | law of conservation of matter | matter is neither created or destroyed but is tranfromed and recycled over and over again | 23 | |
13851372794 | sink | takes in and absorbs element | 24 | |
13851373325 | source | releases element | 25 | |
13851376284 | steps of water cycle - cycle driven by solar energy | evaporation transpiration -> water vapor released from plants condensation percipitation runoff/percolates -> water seeps through soil to join ground water or aquifiers | 26 | |
13851393397 | carbon cycle steps | 1. carbon enters the atmosphere as carbon dioxide from respiration and combustion. 2. absorbed by producers to make carbohydrates in photosynthesis. 3. animals feed on the plant passing the carbon compounds along the food chain. Most of the carbon they consume is exhaled as carbon dioxide formed during respiration. The animals and plants eventually die. 4. the dead organisms are eaten by decomposers and the carbon in their bodies is returned to the atmosphere as carbon dioxide. 5. in some conditions decomposition is blocked. The plant and animal material may then be available as fossil fuel in the future for combustion. | 27 | |
13855004708 | carbon sinks | plants, the ocean, calcium carbonate and coral reefs | 28 | |
13855009863 | nitrogen cycle steps | nitrogen fixation (converting it to ammonia by nitrogen -fixing bacteria) ammonification (assimilated by plants) nitrification denitrification (bacteria converts ammonia back into N2 or decomposers breaking down waste) | 29 | |
13855073493 | phosphorus cycle steps | phosphorus compounds leach from the rock and into the water. The water seeps/percoolates through the soil this inorganic phosphorus assimilate into organic phosphorus in the soil is taken up by plants, and passed on to consumers Decompostion returns back into the cycle or it goes to sediments deep in the ocean, where the phosphorus can come back via uplifting of the ocean floor (this takes a long time) Humans have affected this cycle by the use of fertilizers that run off into lakes and ocean causing aglal bloom and eutrophication. | 30 | |
13855172798 | sulfer cycle | released by emmisions or volanic eruptions or by biogenic deposits od phytoplankton. the sulfer is cycled through and is taken in by plants which is then transfered to consumers. consumed sulfer re-eneters the cylce when decomposers break down the dead organisms (sulfer is a component of protein) Acid rain can also bring sulfer into the cycle - human activity | 31 | |
13855223494 | divergent evolution | occurs when two specis branch off from a shared ancestral species EX: humans and apes | 32 | |
13855228890 | convergent evolution | occurs when unrelated species devolop similar traits because they were devoloped under similar environmental conditions EX: shark and dolphin | 33 | |
13855254498 | Things that can accelerate extinction | 1. Habitat Destruction -> deforestation. 2. Hunting and Fishing -> over-hunt 3. Commerical Products -> smuggling of rare species or selling parts of their body EX: ivory tusks of the african elephant 4. Genetic Assimilation -> species disapear because genes are diluted due to crossbreeding with closely related species | 34 | |
13855303306 | The Endangered Species Act | U.S law that identifies endangered, threatned, and vulnerable species and regulating commerical and recreational activities involving them. | 35 | |
13855316617 | CITIES | International agreement regulating trade in living speicemens and products derievd ffrom listed endangered species. DIFFICULT TO ENFORCE DUE TO SMUGGLING. | 36 | |
13855338428 | Predator | any organism that feeds directly upon another lving organism important because the help maintain stable populations and reduce competition among their prey. | 37 | |
13855347285 | coevolution | process in which species exert selective pressures on each other is called coevolution... common between predator and prey | 38 | |
13855365640 | intraspecific competition | competition between members of the same species | 39 | |
13855365641 | interspecific competition | competition between members of different species | 40 | |
13855379168 | territoriality | when an animal defends a well-defined space. this gurantees its owner access to shelter and food | 41 | |
13855387715 | symbiosis | relationship in which two species live closely together | 42 | |
13855393713 | mutualism | both members benefit EX: coral and algae, oxpecker and the zebra | 43 | |
13855408434 | commensalism | one member benifits, and the other remains unharmed. EX: epiphytes (grow on top of tress) and tress | 44 | |
13855423498 | parasitism | One member benefits (parasite) the other is harmed (host) EX: tapeworms live and feedoff of humans, making them sick. | 45 | |
13855443890 | defence mechanisms | toxic chemicals, body armor, spikes and thorns for plants, camouflage. | 46 | |
13855451345 | batesian mimicry | a type of mimicry in which a harmless species looks like a species that is poisonous or otherwise harmful to predators. | 47 | |
13855457582 | mullerian mimicry | two species, both of which are poisonous, evole to look alike. | 48 | |
13855477189 | habitat (address) | is the place or set of environmental conditions in which an organism lives. | 49 | |
13855488311 | ecological niche (job) | role a species plays in a biological community - how it obtains food - interactions with biotic and abiotic factors - what services it provides to the community | 50 | |
13855516762 | fundamental nice | potential niches (jobs) it can biological occupy | 51 | |
13855522207 | relized niches | role it ACTUALLY plays | 52 | |
13855529664 | genralists | -very adaptable - less danger of exitinction - tolerate a wide range of environmental conditions - can eat a variety of food - EX: rodents and insects | 53 | |
13855542776 | specialists | - less adaptable - live in very specific habitats - tollerate narrow range of environmental conditions - picky regarding food EX: panda and orangutan | 54 | |
13855570592 | law of competitive exclusion | no two species in the same ecosystm can occupy the same ecological niche. | 55 | |
13855606786 | limiting factor | is a factor that controls the growth of a population | 56 | |
13855611765 | tolerance factor | factors min and max levels | 57 | |
13855631747 | keystone species | a species whose impact on its community or ecosysyem is much more influential. species with the most important niche. - decomposers who aid in cycling of nutrients, pollinators | 58 | |
13855666742 | abundance | the total nuber of organisms in the community | 59 | |
13855670054 | diversity | the number of different species | 60 | |
13855677617 | DIVERSITY TENDS TO DECREASE __________________ | AS WE MOVE FROM THE EQUATOR TOWARDS THE POLES. SO TROPICAL RAINFORESTS ARE THE MOST DIVERSE AND PRODUCTIVE ECOSYSTEMS. | 61 | |
13855688357 | complexity | number of species at each trophic level | 62 | |
13855698867 | resilience | community's ability to recover from disturbance | 63 | |
13855704996 | stability | a community's constancy | 64 | |
13855718186 | ecotone | the boundary between two different communities or ecosystems | 65 | |
13855725542 | closed ecosystem | boundary is sharp between the communities or ecosystems | 66 | |
13855729535 | open ecosystems | when one ecosystem gradually blends into another | 67 | |
13855861717 | primary succession | occurs when a community begins to devolop on a site previosuly unoccupied by living organism. EX: New Island | 68 | |
13855930137 | seconday succesion | occurs is a destroyed ecosysytem where life exsisted previously EX: area around a volcano after it erupted | 69 | |
13855960738 | seral communities | replace the pioneer species and continue to replace each other. | 70 | |
13855963595 | climax community | reached when the community reaches a stable state thar resists further change | 71 | |
13855998589 | Fire helps... | helps return nutrients to the soil, clear dead plant matter and incase of conferous forests -> melt sap in the cones, thereby releasing their seeds | 72 | |
13856030259 | biomes | ecosystems characterized by climate, soil conditions and biological communities. | 73 | |
13856041792 | desert | characterized by low moisture levels, and infrequent percipitation along with poor quality sandy soil. | 74 | |
13856065150 | grasslands | moderate temp and percipation, with enough rain to supports abundant grass yet not enough to support tress. Soil is the richest and BEST for farming THREAT: conversion to agricultural land | 75 | |
13856087785 | tundra | a treeless biome at high altitudes. has permenently frozen topsoil called permafrost. Damage to tundra heals very slowkly | 76 | |
13856138243 | coniforous forest | dominated by cone-bearing trees that occur in a wide rande of temperate regions. | 77 | |
13856157668 | boreal forest | northern coniferous forest with low moisture sandy soil and cool temps | 78 | |
13856172218 | taiga | boreal forests that border tundra. have harsh, cold temps and a layer of peat (partially decomposed organic matter) | 79 | |
13856182171 | deciduous forest | trees that shed in winter, lots of rainfall. canopy warm and frozen seasons temps vary THREAT: Deforestation | 80 | |
13856210726 | Chaparral | vegetation consisting chiefly of tangled shrubs and thorny bushes. mild, rainy winters and long, hot, dry summers. | 81 | |
13856234347 | tropical moist forests | - ample rainfall and uniform temps. - hold more than half of all terestrial plants and insects on earth - soil is acidic and nutrient poor THREAT: deforestation | 82 | |
13856252670 | tropical rainforests | near the equator where rains a lot and temps are warm year round | 83 | |
13856266877 | thermostratification | division of freshwater lakes based on temperature | 84 | |
13856273425 | epilimnion layer | is the layer with warmeer water on the surface that ABSORBS sunlgiht | 85 | |
13856280676 | thermocline layer | rapid decrease in temp over a short distance | 86 | |
13856291063 | hypolimnion layer | cooler area closer to the bottom | 87 | |
13856295279 | benthos | lake bottom where there is little oxygen by rich organic matter from the detritus that sinks to the bottom | 88 | |
13856309899 | seasonal turnover | occurs during fall and spring where water mixes freely to replenish nutrienrs and oxygen. NO THERMOCLINE during this. | 89 | |
13856329055 | littoral zone | area of a lake or pond closest to the shore | 90 | |
13856332477 | limnetic zone | deeper region of lake, further from the shore | 91 | |
13856345086 | riparian ecosystem | ecosystem around a river | 92 | |
13856355120 | marine biome | aquatic biome in the salt water of the ocean | 93 | |
13856355121 | photic zone (ocean) | ocean layer closer to the top of water to get enough sunlight for photosynthesis by algae and phytoplankton | 94 | |
13856369419 | aphotic zone (ocean) | where little or no light reaches | 95 | |
13856375564 | abyssal zone (ocean) | deepest part of ocean, no light | 96 | |
13856385839 | intertidal zone of ocean | area closest to shore where tides come in | 97 | |
13856388838 | pelagic zone of ocean | open water | 98 | |
13856405724 | Wetlands | - supports a high degree of biodiversity - replenish aquafiers - act as sponges, and prevent flooding - naturally filter sediments and polllutants | 99 | |
13856431758 | estuary | the fresh water of a river meets the salt water of the ocean. | 100 | |
13856445339 | restoration ecology | repairing damage or destruction done to an ecosystem by human activity | 101 | |
13856452973 | rehabilitation | rebuilding the certain elements of an ecosystem wituhout completly restoring to its orginal conditon. AIM: to make an ecosystem usable for human again | 102 | |
13856478705 | remediation | chemical contaminant is cleaned from polluted area | 103 | |
13856481810 | bioremediation | using living organisms to clean contaminated areas | 104 | |
13856492866 | reclamation | the process of returning land to its original condition after mining is completed | 105 | |
13856498293 | Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act | Requires coal strip mines to reclaim the land after mining is completed. | 106 | |
13856515774 | exponential growth | - constant yearly growth (J CURVE) - no limitations - endless resources, ideal environmental conditions | 107 | |
13856530740 | biotic potential | max reproductive rate for a species in ideal circumstances | 108 | |
13856543849 | denisty dependent factors | predation, competition and sresss have a greater impact with larger populations | 109 | |
13856552420 | density independent factors | climate limiting factor that affects all populations in similar ways | 110 | |
13856561677 | carrying capacity (k) | max # of species an ecosystem can hold | 111 | |
13856568000 | logistic growth | - S CURVE - type of growth where reality is present - accounts environmental resistance and carrying capacity | 112 | |
13856599279 | irruptive growth | cycle of population explosions followed by die backs. | 113 | |
13856603802 | r-selected species | - typically generalists - have lots of offspring - offer little parental care - have high infant mortality rates - population fluctates a lot | 114 | |
13856668660 | K-selected species | - specialists - follow a logistic growth pattern - tend to be larger and live longer - produce fewer offspring - populations stay farily stable and around carrying capacity | 115 | |
13856692236 | survivorship curve | graphs that represent the number of individuals still alive at each age | ![]() | 116 |
13856704945 | doubling time | time it take for a population to double 70 /% annual growth | 117 | |
13856728320 | fecundity | the physical ability to reproduce | 118 | |
13856732701 | life span | max # of year a species can survive | 119 | |
13856737735 | life expectancty | avg age that an induvisual is expected to life | 120 | |
13856751865 | POPULATIOR GROWTH RATE (%) | (B+I) - (D+E) | 121 | |
13856771340 | Neomalthusians | We are going to run out of other resources, not just food - advocate birth control | 122 | |
13856788070 | Neomarkists | beleive populations will only stabalize through social justice - advocate fair wealth distribution | 123 | |
13856799831 | brandt line | divides the more developed north from the less developed south - devoloped uses nearly 80% of earth's resources - only 20% are devoloped | 124 | |
13856819835 | food security | access to a constant food source | 125 | |
13856823459 | malnourishment | An imbalance in vitamins and nutrients. | 126 | |
13856826332 | undernourishment | not enough calories | 127 | |
13856848096 | pathogens | disease causing agents | 128 | |
13856858954 | emergent diseases | those not previously known or that have been absent for at least 20 years | 129 | |
13856868947 | hazardous | dangerous chemical | 130 | |
13856874503 | toxins | kills cells and alter growth | 131 | |
13856878071 | allergens | substances that activate the immune system | 132 | |
13856890813 | sick building syndrome | occurs in relatively older buildings where mold (mostly) builds up in walls and floors causing sickness | 133 | |
13856894229 | LD50 | measures toxicity of a chemical by its dose lethal to 50% of a test polulation. lower means more toxic | 134 | |
13856913079 | nuerotoxins | like mercury and lead kill nuerons in nervous system | 135 | |
13856918986 | mutgens | cause mutations by latering DNA | 136 | |
13856922081 | carcinogens | cause cancer | 137 | |
13856927041 | Delaney Clause | prohibits adding carcinogens to food | 138 | |
13856929988 | teratogens | toxins that cause abnormal embryonic growth and result in birth defects EX: alcohal | 139 | |
13856954139 | antagonistic toxins | interfere with effects of other chemicals and work against each other | 140 | |
13856957067 | additive toxins | cumulative effect; increasing level of toxicity when many chemicals are mixed | 141 | |
13856963859 | synergistic toxins | toxins put together make each other more toxic than they would be alone | 142 | |
13856979476 | bioaccumulation | organism absorbs and stores toxin in tissues | 143 | |
13856988161 | biomagnification | accumulation of pollutants at successive levels of the food chain | 144 | |
13856996819 | DDT | insecticide | 145 | |
13857085517 | supply | how much of a product is avalible | 146 | |
13857088554 | demand | amount of the product consumbers will buy | 147 | |
13857141856 | cost-benefit analysis | is the process of accounting and comparing the costs and benefits of a project before it is enacted - who or what is being affected - potential outcomes | 148 | |
13857156506 | green business | businesses that are environmentally friendly and aim at creating a more sustainable future. | 149 | |
13857171494 | National Environmental Policy Act | Environmental Impact Statements must be done before any project affecting federal lands can be started | 150 | |
13857191957 | wicked problems | problems with no simple solution EX: How to save rainforests, how to deal with global warming | 151 | |
13857204873 | precautionary principle | putting laws in place before the disaster or something bad actaully happens | 152 | |
13857248320 | soil | renewable resource mad up of a mixture of weathered rock, partially decomposed organic matter and living organisms. | 153 | |
13857275628 | humus | decomposed matter that gives soil its structure by sticking the particles together | 154 | |
13857284954 | heavy soil | large amount of clay | 155 | |
13857288753 | light soil | more sand and silt | 156 | |
13857298085 | land degradation | soil becomes defecient in nutrients | 157 | |
13857306855 | factors that contribute to land degradation | - water and wind erosion - soil acidifiction - too much minerals and salt - too much water (waterlogging) in the soil | 158 | |
13857339716 | erosion | the process of eroding or being eroded by wind, water, or other natural agents. - loss of topsoil - siltation of lakes and rivers | 159 | |
13857356376 | rill erosion | running water cuts small channels into the soil | 160 | |
13857361121 | gully erosion | when rills enlarge to form bigger channels | 161 | |
13857471324 | Green Revolution | a dramatic increase in agricultural production brought by the devolopment of high-yeild varities of grain | 162 | |
13857496662 | debt-for-nature swap | when agencies make a deal with third world countries that they will cancel their debt if the country will set aside a certain amount of their natural resources | 163 | |
13857516528 | selective cutting | cutting down only some trees in a forest and leaving a mix of tree sizes and species behind | 164 | |
13857525929 | Artic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) | a national wildlife refuge in northeastern Alaska, United States. - reserve the oil and not open it for the sake of the fragile biome | 165 |
ap environmental science vocabulary Flashcards
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