140 Ap Environmental Science Terms
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| 61978846 | Aquifer | any water bearing layer in the ground | |
| 61978847 | Hydrolic Cycle Parts | EVAPORATION, TRANSPIRATION, RUNOFF, CONDENSATION, PRECIPITATION, INFILTRATION | |
| 61978848 | Conservation | allows the use of resources in a responsible manner | |
| 61978849 | Preservation | setting aside areas & protecting them from human activities | |
| 61978850 | Loam | perfect agricultural soil with equal portions of sand, silt, clay | |
| 61978851 | Illuviation | deposit of leached material in lower soil layers (B) | |
| 61978852 | Leaching | removal of dissolved materials from soil by water moving downwards | |
| 61978853 | Humus | organic, dark material remaining after decomposition by microorganisms | |
| 61978854 | Surface Mining | cheaper & can remove more mineral, less hazardous to workers | |
| 61978855 | Organic Fertilizer | slow acting & long lasting because the organic remains need time to be decomposed | |
| 61978856 | Cone of Depression | Lowering of the water table around a pumping well | |
| 61978857 | Nuclear Fission | nuclei of isotopes split apart when struck by neutrons | |
| 61978858 | Half Life | the time it takes for 1/2 the mass of a radioisotope to decay | |
| 61978859 | Natural Radioactive Decay | unstable radioisotopes decay releasing gamma rays, alpha & beta particles | |
| 61978860 | 2nd Law of Thermodynamics | when energy is changed from one form to another, some useful energy is always degraded into lower quality energy | |
| 61978861 | 1st Law of Thermodynamics | energy not created or destroyed, just changes phase | |
| 61978862 | Low Quality Energy | Disorganized, dispersed (heat in oceean or air wind, solar) | |
| 61978863 | High Quality Energy | organized & concentrated, can perform useful work (fossil fuel & nuclear) | |
| 61978864 | Ionizing Radiation | enough energy to knock electrons from atoms forming ions, capable of causing cancer (gamma-Xrays-UV) | |
| 61978865 | Ore | a rock that contains a large enough concentration of a mineral making it profitable to mine | |
| 61978866 | Nuclear fusion | 2 isotopes of light elements (H) forced together at high temperatures till they fuse to form a heavier nucleus. Expensive process | |
| 61978867 | Estimate of how long a radioactive isotope must be stored until it decays to a safe level | approximately 10 half-lives | |
| 61978868 | Best solutions to energy shortage | conservation, increase efficiency, explore alternative energy options | |
| 61978869 | Saltwater Intrusion | Near the coast, over-pumping of ground water causes saltwater to move into the aquifer | |
| 61978870 | ENSO | El Nino Southern Oscillation, see-sawing of air pressure over the S. Pacific | |
| 61978871 | During an El Nino Year | trade winds weaken & warm water sloshed back to SA | |
| 61978872 | During a non El Nino year | Easterly trade winds and ocean currents pool warm water in the western Pacific, allowing upwelling of nutrient rich water off the West coast of South America | |
| 61978873 | Effects of El Nino | upwelling decreases disrupting food chains, N US has mild winters, SW US has increased rainfall, less Atlantic Hurricanes | |
| 61978874 | Nitrification | ammonia is converted to nitrate ions (NO-3) | |
| 61978875 | Assimilation | inorganic N is converted into organic molecules such as DNA/amino acids & proteins | |
| 61978876 | Denitrification | Bacteria convert Nitrate into Nitrite back into N-2 gas | |
| 61978877 | Phosphorus does not circulate as easily as Nitrogen because | it does not exist as a gas, but is released by weathering of phosphate rocks | |
| 61978878 | Sustainability | the ability to meet humanities current needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs | |
| 61978879 | How excess phosphorus is added to aquatic ecosystems | Runoff of animal waste, fertilizer, discharge of sewage | |
| 61978880 | Photosynthesis | Plants convert atmospheric carbon into complex carbs |