EVPP 201 STEM Environment and You: Final Exam Preparation Flashcards

Comprehensive vocabulary flashcards covering environmental science concepts including the scientific method, ecosystems, biodiversity, agriculture, toxicology, and waste management for the EVPP 201 final exam.

Scientific method

The traditional experimental approach that scientists use to learn how the world works, involving observations, questions, hypotheses, predictions, testing, and results.

Renewable natural resources

Natural resources that are virtually unlimited or replenished by the environment over relatively short periods, such as sunlight, wind, biomass, and hydropower energy.

Nonrenewable natural resources

Natural resources in limited supply that are formed much more slowly than humans use them, such as fossil fuels and minerals.

Eutrophication

The process of nutrient enrichment, increased production of organic matter, and subsequent ecosystem degradation in a water body, characterized by more phosphorus and nitrogen than the water can handle.

Ecosystem services

Processes or outcomes of processes that naturally result from the normal functioning of ecological systems from which humans draw benefits, such as pollination and water purification.

Aquifers

Underground reservoirs of water replenished through the process of infiltration.

Denitrification

The final stage of the nitrogen cycle where denitrifying bacteria convert nitrates in the soil or water back into gaseous nitrogen, releasing it into the atmosphere.

Phosphorus sink

The location where most phosphorus is found, specifically in sediment and sedimentary rock.

Biodiversity

The variety of life across all levels of biological organization, including the diversity of species, genes, populations, and communities.

Keystone species

An individual who has a strong, wide-reaching, and significant impact on a community's health, serving as a foundation piece of that community.

Primary succession

An ecological event where all individuals, soils, and vegetation are eliminated from a community.

Secondary succession

A dramatic and significant ecological event that alters a population without eliminating all life or organic matter.

Biome

A major regional complex of similar plant communities; a large ecological unit defined by dominant plant type and vegetation structure.

IPAT formula

A model used to calculate human impact where $I$ (Impact) is the product of $P$ (Population), $A$ (Affluence), and $T$ (Technology), sometimes including $S$ (Sensitivity).

Total Fertility Rate ($TFR$)

The average number of children born per woman during her lifetime.

Soil

A complex system of disintegrated rock, organic matter, water, gases, nutrients, and microorganisms that supports life forms.

Slash-and-burn agriculture

A mode of agriculture used in the tropics where natural vegetation is cut and burned to add nutrients back into the soil before farming begins.

Drip irrigation

An irrigation method where hoses drip water directly into soil near plant roots to minimize water waste.

Terracing farming

A technique used on extremely steep terrains to transform slopes into steps like staircases to use hilly land without losing soil to water erosion.

Contour farming

A farming method that uses legume plants with nitrogen bacteria on their roots, often involving crops like wheat, corn, or soybeans.

Integrated Pest Management ($IPM$)

The use of multiple techniques in combination, such as biological control, pesticides, and crop rotation, to achieve long-term suppression of pests.

Species richness

A component of species diversity representing the number of species inhabiting a particular area.

Species evenness

Also known as relative abundance, it is the degree to which species in a given area differ in terms of the number of individuals.

Biophilia

A term promoted by Dr. Edward O. Wilson describing the instinctive love for nature and emotional bond humans feel with other living things.

Habitat fragmentation

The disruption of an unbroken expanse of forest or grassland by farming, road building, or development.

Invasive species

Non-native organisms introduced to new environments where they outcompete native species due to an absence of natural predators or competition.

Maximum sustainable yield

The practice of extracting the maximum amount of a good or service before reaching the point of depletion.

Ecosystem-based management

A management approach where the extraction of resources is governed by an understanding of the ecosystem services created by that resource.

Carcinogen

A toxic substance that causes cancer.

Mutagen

A toxin that increases the rate of genetic mutations in DNA.

Teratogen

Toxins that specifically affect the development of the unborn.

Neurotoxin

Toxins that affect the nervous system or neural tissue.

Endocrine disruptor

Toxins that interfere with hormone processes and the endocrine system.

Dose-response analysis

A method of quantifying toxicity by measuring the magnitude of negative effects ($Response$) against the amount of substance received ($Dose$).

Strip mining

The removal of soil at the surface to extract minerals located just underneath the surface.

Placer mining

A cost-effective and efficient mining method that uses water to sift through soil to collect minerals.

Solution mining

A process where a solvent is injected into a well to dissolve targeted minerals, which are then recovered at the surface as concentrated brine.

Marine reserves

Protected areas of the ocean where fishing is prohibited to keep the environment intact and improve fisheries.

Oligotrophic

A water body characterized by low nutrient levels and high oxygen levels.

Eutrophic

A water body characterized by high nutrient levels and low oxygen levels.

Primary pollutants

Air pollutants released directly from a source, such as carbon monoxide ($CO$) or sulfur dioxide ($SO_2$).

Secondary pollutants

Pollutants formed when primary pollutants react with each other or with other atmospheric constituents.

Temperature inversion

An atmospheric condition where a layer of warm air traps cooler, pollutant-heavy air near the Earth's surface.

Volatile organic compounds ($VOCs$)

Carbon-containing chemicals emitted by vehicles and a variety of solvents, paints, and household chemicals.

Photochemical smog

Also known as brown-air smog, it is formed by light-driven reactions of primary pollutants with normal atmospheric compounds, often containing tropospheric ozone.

Energy returned on investment ($EROI$)

A ratio calculated as $ext{Energy returned} / ext{Energy invested}$ to measure the efficiency of an energy source.

Municipal solid waste

Non-liquid waste that originates from human households and businesses.