Intro to Global Systems
The scientific study of interactions among organisms, populations and communities and their interaction with their environment
What is "ecology"?
Defined by patterns and averages of temperature, precipitation, clouds and wind over many years
What is climate?
A group of ecosystems that share similar climates and typical organisms
What is a biome?
What are autotrophs?
Process in which some bacteria convert nitrates into nitrogen gas to obtain energy
What is denitrification?
All parts of the Earth in which life exists
What is the "biosphere"?
Phenomenon in which gases in the atmosphere trap heat and increase the temperature of the planet
What is the greenhouse effect?
A material formed from decaying leaves and other organic matter
What is humus?
Process in which plants make their own food using carbon dioxide, water and light
What is photosynthesis?
Any nutrient whose supply limits productivity
What is a limiting nutrient?
Any nonliving part of the environment, such as sunlight, heat, precipitation, humidity, wind, water currents and soil type
What are abiotic factors?
These are driven and shaped by patterns of warming and cooling, by winds, and by the location of continents
What are ocean currents?
Biome where permafrost may be found as well as ground-hugging mosses and migrating animals
What is Taiga?
Network of feeding interactions
What is a food web?
Includes precipitation, condensation, evaporation and runoff
What is the water cycle?
Any living part of the environment with which an organisms might interact
What are "biotic factors"?
Region of the Earth that receives the most direct solar radiation, leading to warmer average temperatures
What is the tropical zone?
Biome that makes up much of Nebraska; characterized by hot summers and cold winters, grasses, and burrowing animals
What is temperate grassland?
Each step in a food chain or food web
What is a trophic level?
Includes burning fossil fuels, carbon dioxide dissolving in rainwater, carbon dioxide returning to plants during photosynthesis
What is the carbon cycle?
Consists of all of Earth's freshwater and saltwater, including water vapor, rain, and groundwater
What is the hydrosphere?
Length of time since the last glacial period of Earth
What is 10,000 years ago?
Biome with the most species; warm and wet year round, nutrient poor soils
What is tropical rainforest?
The total amount of living tissue within a given trophic level
What is biomass?
Process in which some bacteria convert nitrogen gas into ammonia
What is nitrogen fixation?