Lansing Community College - Biology 120 - Environmental Science - MOST TERMS FOR ENTIRE SEMESTER
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| 632043651 | Environmental Science | The systematic study of our environment and our place in it | |
| 632043652 | Teddy Roosevelt | Conservationist who formed the Forest Service, National Forest system, & 1st Wildlife Refuge | |
| 632043653 | John Muir | Preservationist who founded the Sierra Club | |
| 632043654 | Rachel Carson | Author of "Silent Spring", & alerted the public about the dangers of DDT | |
| 632043655 | Primary Producers | Another name for photosynthetic organisms | |
| 632043656 | Sustainable Development | Development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. | |
| 632043657 | Inputs & Outputs of photosynthesis | Inputs: Sunlight, Water, Carbon Dioxide Outputs: Sugar, Oxygen | |
| 632043658 | Energy | The ability to do work | |
| 632043659 | Food Chain | The transfer of energy from one organism to another | |
| 632043660 | Kinetic Energy | Energy associated with motion. *Types of kinetic energy - Wind (moving mass of air), flowing water, electricity (flowing electrons), and heat. | |
| 632043661 | Heat | The total kinetic energy of all moving atoms, ions, or molecules within a given substance. (When two objects w/ different temperatures make contact, heat transfers to cooler object) | |
| 632043662 | Electromagnetic Radiation | Energy that travels in the form of a wave, due to changes in electrical and magnetic fields. There are several different forms in which each have a different wavelength and energy content. | |
| 632043663 | Potential Energy | Energy which is stored and potentially available for use. (Can be changed to kinetic energy). | |
| 632043664 | Thermodynamics | The study of energy transformations. | |
| 632043665 | Natural Services | Processes in nature, such as purification of air and water and renewal of topsoil, which support life and human economies. | |
| 632043666 | Natural Capitol | Range of natural resources that ecosystems can provide, they contribute to human consumption. | |
| 632043667 | Matter | Takes up space. Is a solid, liquid, or gas. | |
| 632043668 | First Law of Thermodynamics - #1 Second Law of Thermodynamics - #2 | #1. ENERGY cannot be created or destroyed, only converted from one form of energy to another (physical or chemical) #2. When ENERGY changes forms, some is lost as heat | |
| 632043669 | 3 Scientific Laws ( 3 Big Ideas) | *There is no "away" - According to the Law of Conservation of Matter, no atoms are created or or destroyed when matter undergoes a physical/chemical change. "We cannot do away with chemicals; only change them from one physical state or chemical form, to another. *First Law of Thermodynamics: Cannot get more energy out than we put in *Second Law of Thermodynamics: When energy changes forms, physical or chemical, we always end up with lower quality or less usable energy than we started with. | |
| 632043670 | Photosynthesis | process by which plants and some other organisms use light energy to convert water and carbon dioxide into oxygen and high-energy carbohydrates such as sugars and starches. **Plays a key role in the Carbon Cycle | |
| 632043671 | Decomposition | The breaking down of dead organisms and organic waste *Important part of the Carbon, Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and Sulfur cycles | |
| 632043672 | The Sun | Basis for all energy | |
| 632043673 | Carbon Cycle | Process driven by photosynthesis, respiration, and burning. | |
| 632043674 | Hydrologic Cycle | A cycle driven by gravity and evaporation | |
| 632043675 | Nitrogen Cycle | The cycle in which nitrogen gas is changed into forms of nitrogen that plants can use. (Atmosphere => Soil => Living organisms => Plants => (back to) Atmosphere) | |
| 632043676 | Phosphorous Cycle | Cycles mainly through water, soil and sediments. Phosphorus moves slowly from deposits on land and in sediments, to living organisms, and than much more slowly back into the soil and water sediment. *Often the limiting factor in plant growth. | |
| 632043677 | Sulfur Cycle | Cyclic movement of sulfur in different chemical forms from the environment to organisms and then back to the environment. Human impacts include the burning of coal and the internal combustion engine, causing sulfuric acid to be emitted into the atmosphere, becoming another component of acid rain. | |
| 632043678 | Legumes | A family of plants that can fix nitrogen and make it available for plant use | |
| 632043679 | Science | The process of trying to understand how nature works through careful observations, measurements, experimentation, and modeling. Based on a cause & effect pattern. | |
| 632043680 | Scientific Process | Identify a problem, research, ask a question, experiment, collect and analyze data, come to a conclusion, report. *There is no limit to the number of scientific methods used. | |
| 632043681 | Four Important features of the Scientific Process | curiosity - skepticism - peer review - reproducibility | |
| 632043682 | Scientific Theory | An explanation/hypothesis that is well supported by many tests and accepted by a general consensus of scientists. | |
| 632043683 | Atomic Theory | The idea that all elements are made up of atoms | |
| 632043684 | Subatomic Particles | Particles inside an atom (protons, neutrons, electrons) Each different atom contains a certain amount of each of these particles. | |
| 632043685 | Atomic number | The number of protons in the nucleus of an atom | |
| 632043686 | Mass number | The total number of neutrons and protons in an atomic nucleus | |
| 632043687 | Ion | An atom or group of atoms that has one or more positive or negative electrical charges | |
| 632043688 | Cells | The basic unit of structure and function in living things | |
| 632043689 | Trait | A characteristic that an organism (animal or plant) can pass on to its offspring through reproduction | |
| 632043690 | Genes | A specific sequence of nucleotides in DNA molocules | |
| 632043691 | Chromosome | Thousands of genes make up a single chromosome, a special DNA molecule together with a number of protiens | |
| 632043692 | High Quality Matter | is highly concentrated, is typically found near the earth's surface, and has great potential for use as a resource. | |
| 632043693 | Low Quality Matter | dilute resource, often deep underground or highly dispersed in ocean or atmosphere, little potential for use | |
| 637050372 | Producer | an organism that makes its own food | |
| 637050373 | Consumer | organisms that obtain food by eating other organisms | |
| 637050374 | Decomposer | an organism that gets energy by breaking down the remains of dead organisms or animal wastes and consuming or absorbing the nutrients | |
| 637050375 | Cellular Respiration | process that releases energy by breaking down glucose and other food molecules in the presence of oxygen | |
| 637050376 | Food Chain | series of steps in an ecosystem in which organisms transfer energy by eating and being eaten | |
| 637050377 | Food Web | a diagram that shows the feeding relationships between organisms in an ecosystem | |
| 637050378 | Trophic Level | step in the movement of energy through an ecosystem; an organism's feeding status in an ecosystem. | |
| 637050383 | Ecological Succession | series of changes in the species in a community, often following a disturbance | |
| 637050384 | Primary Succession | succession that occurs in an area in which no trace of a previous community is present | |
| 637050385 | Secondary Succession | succession on a site where an existing community has been disrupted | |
| 637050386 | Pioneer Species | first species to populate an area | |
| 637050387 | Climax Community | a stable, mature community that undergoes little or no change in species over time, | |
| 637050388 | AMPHIBIANS | (Frogs, Toads, Salamanders, Caecilians) -Spend portion of life in water and on land - ~6000 species-Good adaptors to change -33% are threatened with extinction (80% in Carribean) - Another 43% declining | |
| 637050389 | CAUSES OF DECLINE | 1. Habitat loss and Fragmentation 2. Prolonged Drought 3. Increased Ultraviolet Radiation 4. Parasites 5. Viral & Fungal Diseases 6. Pollution 7. Climate Change 8. Over-hunting 9. Nonnative species | |
| 637050390 | PROLONGED DROUGHT | Dries up breeding pools, killing tadpoles | |
| 637050391 | INCREASED ULTRAVIOLET RADIATION | Due to recent reductions in ozone, causes high doses of radiation affecting embryos in shallow water and adults using the sun for warmth | |
| 637050392 | PARASITES | ie. Trematode flatworms, feed on amphibian eggs laid in water resulting in deformities (missing or extra appendages) | |
| 637050393 | VIRAL AND FUNGAL DISEASE | -Chytrid fungus attacks the skin of frogs, reducing ability to take in water resulting in death by dehydration - Can be spread among adults that congregate to breed | |
| 637050394 | POLLUTION | - Exposure to pesticides in water and through the insects they consume - Skin permeable and can absorb pollution easily -Can make them more vulnerable to bacterial, viral, and fungal diseases and parasites - Can lead to deformities in body including sex | |
| 637050395 | CLIMATE CHANGE | - Can be the source of many of these factors | |
| 637050396 | OVERHUNTING | Frogs legs, Asia and France | |
| 637050397 | NONNATIVE PREDATORS AND COMPETITORS | Not adapted to deal with increased pressure | |
| 637050398 | SPECIES | - A set of individuals that can mate and produce fertile offspring - Every organism is a member of a certain species, with certain distinctive traits | |
| 637050399 | SPECIES DIVERSITY | - Number of species combined with relative abundance of individuals within each of those species in a given area -Only one component of Biodiversity -Insects make up most of them | |
| 637050400 | GENETIC DIVERSITY | -variability in the genetic makeup among individuals within a single species -allows life on Earth to adapt to and survive environmental changes | |
| 637050401 | ECOSYSTEM/ECOLOGICAL DIVERSITY | - the variety of desserts, grasslands, forests, mountains, oceans, lakes, rivers, wetlands, and other biological communities interacting with one another and with their non-living environment | |
| 637050402 | BIOMES | -terrestrial portions of biosphere -large regions with distinct climates and certain species adapted to them | |
| 637050403 | FUNCTIONAL DIVERSITY | -Biological and chemical processes or functions such as energy flow and matter cycling needed for the survival of species and biological communities. - Occur within ecosystems as species interact with one another in food chains or webs | |
| 637050404 | ECOSYSTEMS | store genetic and species diversity | |
| 637050405 | BIOLOGICAL EVOLUTION | - change in genetic makeup of a population of a species in successive generations -The process whereby Earths life changes over time through changes in the genetic characteristics of populations -Populations not Individuals | |
| 637050406 | THEORY OF EVOLUTION | all life forms developed from earlier life forms | |
| 637050407 | CHARLES DARWIN | - On the Origin of Species, 1859 - Proposed natural selection as a mechanism for biological evolution | |
| 637050408 | 3 OBSERVATIONS OF THE PROCESS OF NATURAL SELECTION | - genes code for advantageous trait/s - Individuals with the trait are more likely to survive and reproduce under a given set of environmental conditions than those without the trait -results in populations that contain a greater proportion of organisms with the genes better adapted to those environments | |
| 637050409 | NATURAL SELECTION | process by which a particular beneficial gene or set of genes is produced in suceeding generations more than other genes | |
| 637050410 | GENETIC VARIABILITY | -variety in the genetic makeup of individuals in a population -heterogeneity | |
| 637050411 | MUTATIONS | -random changes in DNA molecules making up genes that can alter anatomy, physiology, or behavior in offspring -can result from random changes within a cell or without such as radiation | |
| 637050412 | ADAPTION OR ADAPTIVE TRAITS | any heritable trait that improves the ability of an individual organism to survive and to reproduce at a higher rate than other individuals in a population can under prevailing environmental conditions | |
| 637050413 | TRAIT | characteristic passed on from parents to offspring during reproduction in an animal or plant | |
| 637050414 | ORGANISM FACED WITH ENVIRONMENTAL CHANGE MUST | -Adapt through evolution -Migrate -Become extinct | |
| 637050415 | KEY ADAPTATIONS | -enabled us to modify environment -ooposable thumbs -walk upright -complex brains | |
| 637050416 | SPECIATION | -natural selection leads to a new species -one species splits into two or more different species -usually takes thousands of years -happens in sexually reproducing organisms when there is no mate -caused when a barrier or distant migration prevents the flow of genes between two or more species | |
| 637050417 | TWO PHASES OF SPECIATION | Geographic Isolation and Reproductive Isolation | |
| 637050418 | GEOGRAPHIC ISOLATION | -Different groups of the same population of a species become physically isolated from one another for a long period of time -migrate in search of food and begin living in different conditions -volcanic eruption, tectonic plates move, winds or flowing water carrying a few individuals | |
| 637050419 | REPRODUCTIVE ISOLATION | -Long term geographic seperation of members of a particular sexually reproducing species | |
| 637050420 | ARTIFICIAL SELECTION | Selective breeding: crossbreeding varieties within same species to achieve desired traits | |
| 637050421 | GENETIC ENGINEERING | -Add, delete, or alter DNA segments -Add desirable genes from other species -New drugs, pest-resistant plants -Controversial | |
| 637050422 | EXTINCTION | Process that affects the number and types of species on the planet | |
| 637050423 | BIOLOGICAL EXTINCTION | -Process by which an entire species ceases to exist globally -Usually the result of accumulation of local extinctions | |
| 637050424 | LOCAL EXTINCTION | -(extirpation) a population of a species becomes extinct in a given area,but not globally | |
| 637050425 | ENDEMIC SPECIES | -Species found in only one area -vulnerable to extinction -exists on islands and in other unique small areas | |
| 637050426 | BACKGROUND EXTINCTION | -considered normal; a result of changes in local conditions -occurs at a low rate -speciation more rapid | |
| 637050427 | MASS EXTINCTION | -Catastrophic, widespread, often global event in which major groups of species (25-95% of all species) are wiped out over a short period of time (few million years or less) | |
| 637050428 | SPECIES RICHNESS | -Number of different species contained in a community - higher in the tropical rain forest & Coral Reef -less species evenness (few of each species) | |
| 637050429 | SPECIES EVENNESS | Relative abundance of individuals within each species in a community | |
| 637050430 | NICHE | -an organisms place and function in the environment -includes all physical, chemical, and biological conditions that a species needs to survive -not to be confused with habitat | |
| 637050431 | GENERALIST SPECIES | Species with a broad niche. | |
| 637050432 | SPECIALIST SPECIES | Species with a narrow niche and will become extinct faster | |
| 637050433 | NATIVE SPECIES | species that normally live and thrive in a particular ecosystem | |
| 637050434 | NONNATIVE SPECIES | species that migrate into an ecosystem or are deliberately or accidentally introduced into an ecosystem by humans | |
| 637050435 | INDICATOR SPECIES | -species that serve as early warnings that a community or ecosystemis being degraded | |
| 637050436 | TROUT | INDICATORS- an indication of water quality - need clean water and high levels of oxygen | |
| 637050437 | BIRDS | INDICATORS-found almost anywhere and arre effected quickly by changes in the environment due to loss or fragmentation of habitat due to pesticides and other things | |
| 637050438 | BUTTERFLIES | INDICATORS-because they associate with many plant species they are vulnerable to fragmentation and habitat loss | |
| 637050439 | AMPHIBIANS | INDICATORS- Especially sensitive to environmental disruption at different life stages: -as tadpoles they live in water and eat plants -as adults they live on land and eat insects and expose themselves to pesticides -adults take in water and air through their thin skin which can absorb pollutants from air, water, and soil -no hair, feathers, or scales to protect them | |
| 637050440 | KEYSTONE SPECIES | -species that play roles affecting many other organisms in the ecosytem and in sustaining ecosystems -play a significant role in their food web and the abundance and diversity of other species in the ecosystem -usually small populations which make them vulnerable to extinction -extinction of these species could drastically alter the structure and function of an ecosystem Bees,butterflies,hummingbirds,bats,alligators,wolf,leopard,lion,some sharks | |
| 637050441 | TOP PREDATORS | KEYSTONE -feed on and help regulate populations of other species - alligator, wolf, leopard, lion, some sharks | |
| 637050442 | FOUNDATION SPECIES | -species that play a major role in shaping communities by creating or enhancing their habitats or ecosystems that benefits other species -beavers, elephants, seed dispersers | |
| 637050443 | Foundation Animal Examples | *Beavers - "Ecological Engineers" -create ponds and wetlands with their dams *Elephants -move trees which creates forest openings that allow for the growth of grass for grazers to eat *Seed Dispersers - gather and spread seeds | |
| 637050444 | AMERICAN ALLIGATOR - Keystone | * TOP PREDATOR -only natural predator is human -1967- endangered species list but made a successful environmental comeback -dig deep depressions (gator holes), which hold freshwater during dry spells, serve as refuges for aquatic life and supply freshwater and food for other animals -provide nesting and feeding sites with their nests -eat large numbers of gar and other predatory fish -keep out invading vegetation, waterways stay open | |
| 637050445 | SHARKS - Keystone | -remove injured sick animals -many are gentle giants (3 largest species) -provide potential insight into cures for human diseases such as cancer -attacks are very rare(60-75 people worldwide) -hunted and killed by humans -for every one person injured we kill ~500,000 of them | |
| 637050446 | AMPHIBIAN EXTINCTIONS IMPORTANCE | -their extinction suggests that environmental health is deteriorating -they play important ecological roles in biological communities such as eating insects -they are genetic storehouses from which pharmaceutical products can be developed such as Painkillers, Antibiotics, and Burn Treatments | |
| 637050447 | POLLINATORS | KEYSTONE -play critical roles in sustaining ecosystems -bees, butterflies, bats, hummingbirds, etc | |
| 637050448 | DIFFERENCE BETWEEN KEYSTONE AND FOUNDATION | Keystone creates habitat and ecosystems like foundation, but keystone also maintains the ecosystem | |
| 640224781 | water cycle | the continuous cycle of the transfer of water through an ecosystem, which involves evaporation, transpiration, condensation, and precipitation | |
| 640224782 | Generalist Species | Species with a broad ecological niche. They can live in many different places, eat a variety of foods, and tolerate a wide range of environmental conditions. Examples are flies, cockroaches, mice, rats, deer, raccoon's, and human beings. | |
| 640224783 | Specialist Species | Species with a narrow ecological niche. They may be able to live in only one type of habitat, tolerate only a narrow range of climatic and other environmental conditions, or use only one type or a few types of food. | |
| 640224784 | Niche | A species way of life in a community, and how it survives certain conditions. | |
| 640224785 | Cryptic coloration | Camouflage, making potential prey difficult to spot against its background |
