Climate Change and Greenhouse gases.
Burning fossil fuels releases large amounts of this greenhouse gas, which traps heat in Earth's atmosphere.
What is carbon dioxide (CO₂)?
Unlike coal and oil, these energy resources replenish naturally.
What are renewable energy resources?
At these plate boundaries, plates move toward each other.
What are convergent boundaries?
The maximum population size an environment can support.
What is carrying capacity?
These organisms form the base of most food webs.
What are producers?
Scientists have observed that as atmospheric CO₂ levels increase, this generally increases as well.
What is global temperature?
This renewable energy source is less effective in regions with little sunlight.
What is solar energy?
Deep ocean trenches form primarily through this process.
What is subduction?
Population growth that slows as resources become limited follows this pattern.
What is logistic growth?
This process converts sunlight into chemical energy for ecosystems.
What is photosynthesis?
As Earth warms, more water evaporates, creating more warming through this type of feedback.
What is a positive feedback mechanism?
Producing electricity without direct carbon emissions is an environmental advantage of this energy source that uses moving air.
What is wind energy?
Underwater volcanic activity can create these submerged mountains.
What are seamounts?
Oysters and many fish species exhibit this survivorship pattern.
What is a Type III survivorship curve?
A severe drought that reduces plant growth would most directly affect these consumers first.
What are herbivores (primary consumers)?
The meat industry contributes to greenhouse gases through livestock methane production and this land-use change.
What is deforestation?
Replacing fossil fuels with renewable energy reduces emissions of this greenhouse gas.
What is carbon dioxide?
The collision of continental plates often forms these major landforms.
What are mountains?
Food, water, and habitat space are examples of these influences on population size.
What are limiting factors?
Increased photosynthesis allows ecosystems to support larger populations because it increases this.
What is available energy (primary productivity)?
The long-term storage of carbon in forests, soils, and underground formations is called this.
What is carbon sequestration?
This process conserves raw materials by turning used products into resources for new products.
What is recycling?
During this process, one tectonic plate sinks beneath another into the mantle.
What is subduction?
Ecosystems with high levels of this are generally more stable and resilient.
What is biodiversity?
Replacing a rainforest with a single crop plantation usually decreases this ecological characteristic.
What is biodiversity?