Systems/Cycles
The continuous movement of water from the Earth's surface to the atmosphere and back again.
What is the water cycle (or hydrological cycle)?
A large community of plants and animals that is characterized by its climate and main vegetation, like a tropical rainforest or a desert.
What is a biome?
The release of harmful substances into the environment, causing damage.
What is pollution?
The wise and careful use of resources so that they are not depleted.
What is conservation?
A group of organisms that can interbreed and produce fertile offspring.
What is a species?
The process where plants convert sunlight, water, and carbon dioxide into food (glucose) and oxygen.
What is photosynthesis?
All the individuals of the same species living in the same area at the same time.
What is a population?
The cutting down of large areas of trees, often for agriculture or logging.
What is deforestation?
Protecting and preserving an ecosystem or species in its natural state, without human interference.
What is preservation?
The variety of life in the world or in a particular habitat or ecosystem.
What is biodiversity?
In a system, this is the part that transforms an input into an output. For example, a leaf is this for sunlight in a tree.
What is a process or transfer?
The role or "job" a species has in its ecosystem, including where it lives, what it eats, and how it affects other species.
What is an ecological niche?
The process where fertile land becomes desert, typically as a result of drought, deforestation, or inappropriate agriculture.
What is desertification?
The maximum population size of a species that an ecosystem can support indefinitely without being degraded.
What is carrying capacity?
The part of the Earth (air, water, land) where life exists.
What is the biosphere?
This type of system, like a compost bin, is open to exchanges of both energy and matter with its surroundings.
What is an open system?
The process of one community gradually replacing another in an area over time, starting with pioneer species like lichens and ending with a climax community.
What is ecological succession?
The term for the process where emissions of greenhouse gases cause the average global temperature to rise.
What is global warming?
The study of how to meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.
What is sustainability?
A "consumer" in a food web that feeds on the remains of dead animals and plants (like vultures or earthworms).
What is a detritivore (or decomposer)?
The concept that a system can reach a point of no return when it can't recover from a disturbance, leading to a new, stable state. (Hint: Think of a forest turning into a grassland after a fire).
What is a tipping point or critical threshold?
This ecological rule states that when energy is transferred from one trophic level to the next (e.g., from plants to herbivores), only about 10% of the energy is passed on. The rest is lost as heat.
What is the 10% Law (or the Law of Thermodynamics in ecology)?
A concept in ESS that suggests the "carrying capacity" of the Earth for humans is not fixed, but can be expanded through technology and innovation.ESS中的一个观点，认为地球对人类的“承载力”并非固定不变，而是可以通过技术和创新来扩大的。
What is the Cornucopian view (or Cornucopianism)?
An example of an international agreement aiming to reduce the impact of climate change by setting targets for emission reductions.
What is the Paris Agreement (or Kyoto Protocol)?
A common pollutant in waterways from agricultural runoff that causes excessive growth of algae, leading to oxygen depletion. It's a key component of fertilizers.
What are nitrates (or phosphates)?