AP Enviromental Science Flash Cards Flashcards
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| 293457362 | Ionizing radiation: | enough energy to knock electrons from atoms forming ions, capable of causing cancer (ex gamma-Xrays-UV) | 1 | |
| 293457363 | High Quality Energy: | organized & concentrated, can perform useful work (ex fossil fuel & nuclear) | 2 | |
| 293457364 | Low Quality Energy: | disorganized, dispersed (heat in ocean or air wind, solar) | 3 | |
| 293457365 | First Law of Thermodynamics: | energy is neither created nor destroyed, but may be converted from one form to another | 4 | |
| 293457366 | Second Law of Thermodynamics: | when energy is changed from one form to another, some useful energy is always degraded into lower quality energy (usually heat) | 5 | |
| 293466655 | Natural radioactive decay: | unstable radioisotopes decay releasing gamma rays, alpha & beta particles | 6 | |
| 293466656 | Half life: | the time it takes for 1/2 the mass of a radioisotope to decay | 7 | |
| 293466657 | Estimate of how long a radioactive isotope must be stored until it decays to a safe level: | approximately 10 half-lives | 8 | |
| 293466658 | Nuclear Fission: | nuclei of isotopes split apart when struck by neutrons | 9 | |
| 293466659 | Nuclear Fusion: | 2 isotopes of light elements (H) forced together at high temperatures till they fuse to form a heavier nucleus. Expensive, break even point not reached yet | 10 | |
| 293466660 | Ore: | a rock that contains a large enough concentration of a mineral making it profitable to mine | 11 | |
| 293466661 | Mineral Reserve: | identified deposits currently profitable to extract | 12 | |
| 293466662 | Best solution to Energy shortage: | conservation and increase efficiency | 13 | |
| 293466663 | Surface mining: | cheaper & can remove more mineral, less hazardous to workers | 14 | |
| 293466664 | Humus: | organic, dark material remaining after decomposition by microorganisms | 15 | |
| 293466665 | Leaching: | : removal of dissolved materials from soil by water moving downwards | 16 | |
| 293466666 | Illuviation: | deposit of leached material in lower soil layers (B) | 17 | |
| 293466667 | Loam: | perfect agricultural soil with equal portions of sand, silt, clay | 18 | |
| 293466668 | Solutions to soil problems: | conservation tillage, crop rotation, contour plowing, organic fertilizers | 19 | |
| 293466669 | Parts of the hydrologic cycle: | evaporation, transpiration, runoff, condensation, precipitation, infiltration | 20 | |
| 293466670 | Aquifer: | any water bearing layer in the ground | 21 | |
| 293466671 | Cone of depression: | lowering of the water table around a pumping well | 22 | |
| 293466672 | Salt water intrusion: | near the coast, overpumping of groundwater causes salty water to move into the aquifer | 23 | |
| 293466673 | ENSO: | El Nino Southern Oscillation, see-sawing of air pressure over the S. Pacific | 24 | |
| 293466674 | During an El Nino year: | trade winds weaken & warm water sloshed back to SA. 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 | 25 | |
| 293487758 | Effects of El Nino: | welling decreases disrupting food chains, N US has mild winters, SW US has increased rainfall, less Atlantic Hurricanes | 26 | |
| 293487759 | Nitrogen fixing: | because atmospheric Nitrogen cannot be used directly by plants it must first be converted into ammonia by bacteria | 27 | |
| 293487760 | Ammonification: | decomposers covert organic waste into ammonia | 28 | |
| 293487761 | Nitrification: | ammonia is converted to nitrate ions (NO-3) | 29 | |
| 293487762 | Assimilation: | inorganic N is converted into organic molecules such as DNA/amino acids & proteins | 30 | |
| 293487763 | Denitrification: | bacteria convert ammonia back into Nitrogen. | 31 | |
| 293487764 | Phosphorus does not circulate as easily as N because: | it does not exist as a gas, but is released by weathering of phosphate rocks | 32 | |
| 293487765 | Because soils contain very little phosphorus: | it is a major limiting factor for plant growth | 33 | |
| 293487766 | Excess phosphorus is added to aquatic ecosystems by: | runoff of animal wastes, fertilizer discharge of sewage | 34 | |
| 293487767 | Photosynthesis: | plants convert atmospheric C (CO2) into complex carbohydrates (glucose C6H12O6). | 35 | |
| 293487768 | Aerobic respiration: | oxygen consuming producers, consumers & decomposers break down complex organic compounds & convert C back into CO2 | 36 | |
| 293487769 | Largest reservoirs of C: | carbonate rocks first, oceans second | 37 | |
| 293487770 | Biotic/abiotic: | living & nonliving components of an ecosystem | 38 | |
| 293487771 | Producer/Autotroph: | photosynthetic life | 39 | |
| 293487772 | Major trophic levels: | producers-primary consumer-secondary consumer-tertiary consumer | 40 | |
| 293487773 | Energy flow in food webs: | only 10% of the usable energy is transferred | 41 | |
| 293487774 | Why is only 10% transferred: | usable energy lost as heat (2nd law), not all biomass is digested & absorbed, predators expend energy to catch prey | 42 | |
| 293487775 | Primary succession: | development of communities in a lifeless area not previously inhabited by life (lava) | 43 | |
| 293487776 | Secondary succession: | life progresses where soil remains (clear cut forest) | 44 | |
| 293487777 | Mutualism: | symbiotic relationship where both partners benefit | 45 | |
| 293487778 | Commensalism: | symbiotic relationship where one partner benefits & the other is unaffected | 46 | |
| 293487779 | Parasitism: | relationship in which one partner obtains nutrients at the expense of the host | 47 | |
| 293487780 | Biome: | large distinct terrestrial region having similar climate, soil, plants & animals | 48 | |
| 293487781 | Carrying capacity: | the number of individuals that can be sustained in an area. | 49 | |
| 293487782 | R strategist: | reproduce early, many small unprotected offspring | 50 | |
| 293487783 | K strategist: | reproduce late, few, cared for offspring | 51 | |
| 293487784 | . Natural selection: | organisms that possess favorable adaptations pass them onto the next generation | 52 | |
| 293690808 | Thomas Malthus: | said human population cannot continue to increase -->consequences will be war, famine & disease | 53 | |
| 293690809 | Doubling time: | rule of 70 ---> 70 divided by the percent growth rate | 54 | |
| 293690810 | Preindustrial stage: | birth & death rates high, population grows slowly, infant mortality high | 55 | |
| 293690811 | Transitional stage: | death rate lower, better health care, population grows fast | 56 | |
| 293690812 | Industrial stage: | decline in birth rate, population growth slows | 57 | |
| 293690813 | Postindustrial stage: | low birth & death rates | 58 | |
| 293690814 | Most important thing affecting population growth: | low status of women | 59 | |
| 293690815 | Ways to decrease birth rate: | family planning, contraception, economic rewards & penalties | 60 | |
| 293690816 | Salinization of soil: | in arid regions, water evaporates leaving salts behind | 61 | |
| 293690817 | Ways to conserve water: | (agriculture, drip/trickle irrigation)(industry, recyling)(home, use gray water, repair leaks, low flow fixtures) | 62 | |
| 293690818 | Point vs non point sources: | (Point, from specific location such as pipe)(Non-point, from over an area such as runoff) | 63 | |
| 293690819 | BOD: | biological oxygen demand, amount of dissolved oxygen needed by aerobic decomposers to break down organic materials | 64 | |
| 293690820 | Eutrophication: | rapid algal growth caused by an excess of N & P | 65 | |
| 293690821 | Hypoxia: | when aquatic plants die, the BOD rises as aerobic decomposers break down the plants, the DO drops & the water cannot support life | 66 | |
| 293690822 | Minamata Disease: | mental impairments caused by mercury | 67 | |
| 293690823 | Primary air pollutants: | produced by humans & nature (CO, CO2, SO2, NO, hydrocarbons, particulates) | 68 | |
| 293690824 | Secondary pollutants: | formed by reaction of primary pollutants | 69 | |
| 293690825 | Particulate matter (source, effect, reduction): | (burning fossil fuels & car exhaust) (reduces visibility & respiratory irritation) (filtering, electrostatic precipitators, alternative energy) | 70 | |
| 293690826 | Nitrogen Oxides: | (Source: auto exhaust) (Effects: acidification of lakes, respiratory irritation, leads to smog & ozone) (Equation for acid formation: NO + O2 = NO2 + H2O = HNO3) (Reduction: catalytic converter) | 71 | |
| 293690827 | Sulfur oxides: | (Source: coal burning) (Effects: acid deposition, respiratory irritation, damages plants) (Equation for acid formation: SO2 + O2 = SO3 + H2O = H2SO4) (Reduction: scrubbers, burn low sulfur fuel) | 72 | |
| 293690828 | Carbon oxides: | (Source: auto exhaust, incomplete combustion) (Effects: CO binds to hemoglobin reducing bloods ability to carry O, CO2 contributes to global warming) (Reduction: catalytic converter, emission testing, oxygenated fuel, mass transit) | 73 | |
| 293690829 | Ozone: | (Formation: secondary pollutant, NO2+UV=NO+O O+O2=O3, with VOC's) (Effects: respiratory irritant, plant damage) (Reduction: reduce NO emissions & VOCs) | 74 | |
| 293690830 | Industrial smog: | found in cities that burn large amounts of coal | 75 | |
| 293690831 | Photochemical smog: | formed by chemical reactions involving sunlight | 76 | |
| 293690832 | Acid deposition: | caused by sulfuric and nitric acids resulting in lowered pH of surface waters | 77 | |
| 293690833 | Greenhouse gases: | (Examples: H2O, CO2, O3, methane (CH4), CFC's) (EFFECT: they trap outgoing infrared (heat) energy causing earth to warm 84. Effects of global warming: rising sea level (thermal expansion), extreme weather, droughts (famine), and extinctions | 78 |