UNIT 1 & 2
the rate at which plants and other autotrophs convert energy, primarily from sunlight, into organic matter through processes like photosynthesis.
What is primary productivity?
This type of population growth results in a J-shaped curve.
What is exponential growth?
Clear-cutting leads to this type of erosion.
What is soil erosion?
This pollutant forms when NOx and VOCs react with sunlight.
What is ground-level ozone (tropospheric ozone)?
The warming of Earth's atmosphere due to human activities.
What is climate change?
The theory that larger islands closer to the mainland will have more species.
What is island biogeography theory?
A survivorship curve where most organisms die young.
That is a Type III curve?
These aquatic farms can reduce pressure on wild fish populations.
What is aquaculture?
A colorless, odorless gas that binds to hemoglobin.
What is carbon monoxide?
The loss of coral reefs due to high temperatures and acidification.
What is coral bleaching?
These organisms break down dead material and recycle nutrients.
What are decomposers?
This type of weathering involves the breakdown of rocks through chemical reactions.
What is chemical weathering?
This fossil fuel is primarily used for electricity generation.
What is coal?
These devices remove particulate matter from power plant emissions.
What are scrubbers or electrostatic precipitators?
This gas has the lowest global warming potential per molecule.
What is carbon dioxide?
This cycle involves nitrogen fixation, nitrification, assimilation, ammonification, and denitrification.
What is the nitrogen cycle?
This term describes the number of births in a population over a period of time.
What is birth rate?
The fastest-growing renewable energy source.
What is solar power?
A class of chemicals banned for their persistence and bioaccumulation.
What are PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyls)?
The phenomenon that causes sea levels to rise.
What is the melting of polar ice and thermal expansion?
This biome is characterized by permafrost and low biodiversity.
What is tundra biome?
The number of individuals per unit area.
What is population density?
Overgrazing and poor agricultural practices can lead to this desert-like condition.
What is desertification?
This law governs the cleanup of hazardous waste sites.
What is CERCLA (Superfund)?
This protocol aimed to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions.
What is the Kyoto Protocol?