Intro to Environmental Science- Chapters 1-3

element

substance that cannot be broken down chemically into other substances

atom

bit of matter that cannot be subdivided any further without losing its essential properties

matter

anything that occupies space and has mass

radioactive isotopes

living cells cannot distinguish between isotopes of the same elements, can damage DNA, breaks chemical bonds or forms abnormal bonds

65%

oxygen

18.5%

carbon

3%

nitrogen

9.5%

hydrogen

molecule

consists of two or more atoms held together by covalent bonds

hydrocarbons

organic molecules consisting of only carbon and hydrogen

smallest unit of life

cell

population

all the individuals of the same species living within a specific area

community

association of populations of two or more different species inhabiting a particular area

ecosystem

all the living organisms in a particular area together with the abiotic, non-living parts of that environment

biosphere

the collection of all ecosystems

freshwater ecosystem

rarest, occurring only on 1.8 percent of the Earth’s surface; fish amphibians, reptiles, insects, phytoplankton, fungi, and bacteria

ocean water (marine)

most common, 75% of Earth’s surface, shallow ocean ecosystems include extremely biodiverse coral reef ecosystems

terrestrial

grouped into large categories called biomes

ecosystem services

Earth’s natural systems provide things required for our survival; air and water purification, climate regulation, and plant pollination, nutrient cycling, soil formation, and primary production

natural sciences

biology, chemistry, geology, ecology, etc.

social sciences

ethics, economics, political science, etc.

scientific theory

an integrated explanation of many hypotheses, each supported by many observations and experiments, generally accepted as true

variable

factor that influences a process

carrying capacity

population size finally stabilizes (zero population growth rate) at the maximum population size that can be supported by the environment

interspecific competition

competition between individuals of different species

intraspecific competition

competition between individuals from the same species

survivorship

chance of an individual in a given population surviving to various ages

tracers

follow molecules as they undergo chemical changes in an organism

pre-industrial

no countries currently in this stage, isolated groups of people with limited contact to global society

transitional

developing, or less-industrialized countries just gaining access to improved healthcare and sanitation

industrial

developed, or more industrialized countries experiencing societal changes that continue to decrease the death rate and begin to decrease the birth rate

post-industrial

developed, or more industrialized countries where birth rate and death rate are equally low

first law of thermodynamics

energy cannot be created or destroyed

second law of thermodynamics

the amount of usable energy in the universe decreases over time

trophic level

each link in a food chain

first trophic level

producers

second trophic level

primary consumers

third trophic level

secondary consumers

sector

industrial, vehicular, residential, commercial

application

electricity, transportation, heating/cooling, etc

source

coal, oil, natural gas, nuclear, renewables

nation of origin

domestic use, imports, exports

scrubbers

remove sulfur and particulates from emissions