Ecology, Biodiversity, Biomes
This includes both the living (biotic) and nonliving components of an area. (abiotic)
Ecosystem
This cycle involves evaporation, condensation, and precipitation.
Water Cycle
Water beneath the surface that resides within pores in soil or rock.
Groundwater
Practice of managing society’s demand for forests against maintaining them as ecosystems
Forestry
Name a greenhouse gas.
- Water Vapor (H20)
- Carbon Dioxide (CO2)
- Methane (CH4)
- Nitrous Oxide (N2O)
The variety of life found in an area is known as this.
Biodiversity
Plants remove this gas from the atmosphere during photosynthesis.
Carbon Dioxide
What are the three types of weathering?
Physical weathering results from wind, rain, freezing, and thawing.
Chemical weathering occurs as water or gaseshemically alter rock.
Biological weathering involves living things such as lichens producing acid or tree roots rubbing against rock.
What led to urbanization?
Short answer: Industrial Revolution
Long answer: Increased agricultural production freed many people from farm life and accelerated when the industrial revolution created jobs and opportunities in urban centers.
What is the greenhouse effect?
process through which heat is trapped near Earth's surface by substances known as 'greenhouse gases.', acting as blanket for earth.
What is one major cause for biodiversity loss?
1. Habitat Loss
2. Air/Water Pollution
3. Poaching
4. Invasive Species
5. Climate Change
The conversion of nitrates back into atmospheric nitrogen gas is called this.
Denitrification (process denitriying bacteria convert nitrates (NO₃⁻) and nitrites (NO₂⁻) into inert dinitrogen gas (N₂), releasing it back into the atmosphere)
The removal of material from one place and its transport to another by wind or water.
Erosion (which threatens ecosystems and agriculture)
What is one reason forests are important?
1. Forest plants filter pollution, take in carbon dioxide, and produce oxygen that we breathe.
2. Forests also provide cultural, aesthetic, and recreation values to people.
3. Forests Provide Us Valuable Resources (plants used for medicine, dyes, etc)
Heavy metals (lead, arsenic) that directly poison people and wildlife are an example of what?
Pollutants
This species has a disproportionately large effect on its ecosystem compared to its abundance.
Keystone Species
What is the largest reservoir of carbon?
Sediments
The majority of freshwater is used for
Agriculture (The increased demand for irrigation has led to consumptive use of aquifers and surface waters, where we remove water but do not return it.)
Why are big cities usually warmer than their surrounding areas?
Urban heat island effect: it results from the concentration of buildings, vehicles, factories, and people.
What's one way global climate change threatens protected areas?
1. Increasing wildfire risk
2. Intensifying droughts, floods, and storms
3. Shifting species ranges toward cooler latitudes and elevations
Name 3 of the Earth's 10 major terrestrial biomes
Tropical Rainforest
Tropical Dry Forest
Savannas
Desert
Chaparral
Temperate Grassland
Temperate Forest
Temperate Rainforest
Boreal Forest
Tundras
The Haber-Bosch process has reduced a bottleneck and greatly enhanced the availability of what nutrient
Nitrogen
How does soil form?
Parent material (ex. hardened lava, bedrock) being broken down into particles through weathering.
What is one way urban sprawl impacts the environment?
1. Sprawl promotes physical inactivity, as driving takes the place of walking in daily errands.
2. As more land is developed, less is left as forests, fields, farmland, or ranchland.
3. Funds that are needed for maintaining downtown centers are instead spent on extending the road, sewer, and water system for outlying areas and providing other amenities.
Name the four types of Enviromental Hazards
1. Physical hazards arise from natural environmental processes, such as U V radiation from sunlight and natural disaster
2. Chemical hazards include syntheticchemicals such aspharmaceuticals,disinfectants, andpesticides and natural toxins like venom
3. Biological hazards result from interactions with other organisms, such as viruses, bacteria, insects, or parasites.
4. Cultural hazards occur as the result of our place of residence, socioeconomic status, occupation, or behavioral choices. (ex. smoking)