Resources Society and the Environment

Environment

A broad term used to describe the surroundings or conditions in which ant organism exists

Environmental Science

An interdisciplinary field of research that draws on natural and social sciences and the humanities in order to understand the natural world and our relationship to it

Empirical Science

A scientific approach that investigates the natural world through observation and experimentation

Applied Science

is research who findings are used to help solve practical problems

Wicked problems

environmental problems that are multifaceted hard to solve and have multiple causes

Triple Bottom Line

Solutions must be good for the environment, society, and be affordable

Traditional Ecological Knowledge

is knowing how to live in place and access and use available resources in means of the environment

Sustainable Development

meets present needs without compromising the ability of future generations to do the same

Anthropocene

A proposed new geologic epoch marked by modern human impact

Planetary Boundaries Framework

Safe operating zones for important earth systems we are in high risk territory for climate change and biodiversity loss

Millennium Ecosystem Assessment

a UN report that evaluates environmental problems and makes recommendations about addressing those problems

Renewable energy

is energy that comes from an infinitely available or easily replenished source

Biodiversity

the variety of life on earth

Nonrenewable Resources

Are formed more slowly than used or is present in a finite supply

Social Traps

decisions by individuals or groups that seem good at the time but harms society in the long run

Tragedy of the commons

social trap that involves a conflict over resources between interests and the common good.

environmental ethic

is the personal philosophy that influences how a person interacts with his or her natural environment

anthropocentric worldview

is noe where human lives and interests are the most important

Biocentric worldview

Values all life

ecocentric worldview

values the ecosystem as a whole

Science

is Both a body of knowledge and the processes used to get that knowledge

Empirical Observations

information detected with the senses

experimental Study

research that manipulates a variable in a test-group and compares the response to a control group

observational study

is research that gathers data in a real world setting without manipulating any variable

Scientific Method

the procedure scientists use to empirically test a hypothesis

Experimental Prediction

is a statement that identifies what is expected to happen if the hypothesis is correct

Precautionary Principle

Acting in a way that leaves a safety margin when the data are uncertain

information literacy

the ability to find and evaluate the quality of information

Tertiary Sources

information sources that use information from at least one secondary source

Media literacy

the ability to evaluate digital sources of information

Logical Fallacies

arguments that attempt to sway the reader without using reasonable evidence

Species

group of plants or animals that have a high degree of similarity and can generally only breed among themselves

Population

all the individuals of a species that live in the same georgraphic area and are able to interact

Community

ALL THE POPULATIONS living and interacting in an area

Biosphere

the sum total of all of earths ecosystems

Biomes

terrestrial geographic regions that have a particular combination of average annual temperature and annual precipitation and contain distinctive plant growth forms that are adapted to that climate Terrestrial, Marine, Freshwater

Ecosystem

all of the organisms in a given area and the physical environment of which they interact with

Matter Cycles

Matter is the movement of life essential chemicals and never disappears it just cycles through

Energy flows

Energy is a one-way passage through an ecosystem

Sinks

abiotic or biotic components of the environment that serve as storage places for cycling materials

Carbon Cycle

the movement of carbon through biotic and abiotic parts of an ecosystem via photosynthesis and cellular repiration

Nitrogen Cycle

a continuous series of natural processes by which nitrogen passes from the air to the soil to organisms and back

Nitrogen fixation

the conversion of atmospheric nitrogen into a biologically usable form

nitricfication

the conversion of ammonia to nitrate

denitrification

process by which bacteria convert nitrates into nitrogen gas

Phosphorus Cycle

series of natural processes by which the nutrient phosphorus cycles from rock to water to organism back to the soil

Range

the geographic area a species or population can be found

Population distribution

the location and spacing of individuals within their range

clumped distribution

individuals are found in groups or patches

Random distribution

indivudals are spread out ireegurally

Uniform Distribution

individuals are spaced evenly

population dynamics

changes in time to population size and composition

minimum viable population

the smallest number of individuals that would still allow a population to be able to persist or grow

carrying capacity

the maximum population size that an environment can support indefinitely

population density

the number of individuals per unit area

population growth rate

the change in population size over time R=(N-N1)/N1

Growth factors

resources individuals need to survive and reproduce

Resistance factors

things that directly or indirectly reduce population size

Bitotic potential

maximum rate at which the population can grow due to births if each member survives and reproduces

Exponential growth

produces a J curve and population continuously gets larger

Doubling time

70/r r=growth rate

Logistic growth

the kind of growth in which population size increases rapidly at first and then slows down as the populations become larger producing an S curve

Density dependent factors

factors such as predation or diseasee whose impact on the population is influenced by the populations size

density indepenent factors

factors whose impact on a population is not related to population size

Life history strategies

biological characteristics of a species such as life span and fecundity that influence how quickly a population can potentially increase

R species

high biotic potential, short life span, early maturity, high fecundity

K species

low biotic potential, logistic population growth, long lifespan

Bottom Up regulation

population that is limited bt avalibatly ogf resources lower on the food chain

top down regulation

population sizes in a community that are limited by predation at the top of the food chain

Trophic cascade

top down effects that effect every level of the food chain

community ecology

the study of all the populations living and interacting in an area

habitat

the physical environment in which indivudals of a particular species are found

Niche

the role a species plays in its community

niche specialists

species with very specific habitat and resource requirements that restrict where they can live

Niche generalists

are species who occupy a broad niche excuse it can utilize a wide variety of resources

food chain

a simple linear path starting with a plant

food web

the linkage of all food chains together that shows the many connections in a community

producers

an organism that converts solar energy to chemical energy via photosynthesis

consumers

organisms that obtain energy and nutrients by feeding on another organism

indicate species

species that are particularly vulnerable to ecosystem perturbations and can give us advance warning of a problem

trophic levels

feeding levels in a food chain

dertivores

consumers that eat dead organic material

decomposers

organisms that break down organic matter all the way to its atoms

Resilience

the ability of an ecosystem to recover when it is damaged or perturbed

Species Diversity

the variety of species including how many are present and their abundance related to others

Species richness

the total number of different species in a community

Species Evenness

the relative abundance of each species in a community

Ecotones

Regions that serve as boundaries between different communities

Edge Effects

the change in species diversity that occurs due to different conditions that either attract or repel different species

Keystone species

a species that impacts its community more than its mere abundance would predict

Predation

the species interaction in which one feeds on another

Competiitonn

species interaction in which species are vying for limited resources

resource partitioning

the use of different parts or aspects of a resource by different species

symbiosis

close biological or ecological relationship between species

Mutualism

symbiotic relationship between indivudals in which both parties benefit

parasitism

symbiotic relationship in which one species benefits and the other is negatively impacted

Restoration Ecology

the science that deals the repair of damaged or disturbed ecosystems

Ecological Succession

the progressive replacement of plant species in a community over time due to changing conditions

Primary Succession

A ecological succession that occurs in an area where no ecosystem existed before

Pioneer species

Species that move into an area during early stages of succession