AICE Environmental Management AS Level Exam Review (units 1 & 2)

identify & name world's continents and major oceans

WTR: PAAIPS acronym. look at how the oceans are lined up (pacific, atlantic, arctic, indian, pacific again, and then southern at the bottom)

low income country

gross national income under 1k (afghan)

middle income country

gross national income btwn 1000-13000 (egypt)

high income country

gross national income above 13000 (US)

sustainability

ability to meet needs of present w/o compromising ability of future generations to meet their own needs

condensation

gas -> liquid

precipitation

any form of water from clouds

interception

water can't reach surface bc trees/grass

infiltration

water on ground surface enters soil

surface run-off

water stays on soil SURFACE, RUNS OFF to source

through flow

water FLOWS THROUGH the soil

groundwater flow

water flows beneath ground

transpiration

water evaporates from plant leaves

earth's major atmosphere gases

WTR: "NOCAWT"

nitrogen,

oxygen,

carbon,

argon

water vapor

trace gases

atmosphere layers

(farthest -> closest)

WTR: TMST mnemonic - the mess started there

thermosphere

mesosphere

stratosphere

troposphere

ozone layer

in the stratosphere, absorbs portion of sun's UV rays preventing skin cancer and cataracts.

natural greenhouse effect

- UV rays goes thru atmosphere & get absorbed by earth's surface

- some of that energy goes back into the atmosphere as IR rays

- greenhouse gases absorb the IR rays & prevent it from leaving the atmosphere.

biome

broad area of similar ecosystems, soils, and climates spread out around world based on latitude

ecosystem

place where organisms meet needs (food, shelter, water)

habitat

natural enviroment where organism lives

population

# of individuals of same species/area/time

community

grps of diff organisms living @ same place/time

niche

organism role in ecosystem

biotic factors of an ecosystem

- producers

- consumers (1st, 2nd, 3rd)

- decomposers

abiotic examples

- temperature

- humidity

- water

- oxygen

- salinity

- light

- pH

biotic interactions

- competition (interspecific & intraspecific)

- grazing

- predation

grazing

wild herbivores eat grass

WTR: graz = grass

biotic factors affecting organism size/diversity

- disease

- predation

- parasitism

- competition

photosynthesis word process

plants synthesis glucose using carbon dioxide, water and energy from sunlight

in land/oceans, it's a vital part of the carbon cycle & has important effect on CO2 concentrations in the atmosphere by forming carbon stores.

photosynthesis word/chemical equations

6CO2 + 6H2O →light→ C6H12O6 + 6O2

carbon dioxide + water →light→ glucose + oxygen

photosynthesis rate limiting factors

- water/light availability

- CO2 concentration

trophic levels

feeding levels within food chains

food chain

energy transferred btwn organisms, starting w/ producer

how much energy is lost in food chains?

90%

aerobic respiration chemical/word equation

C6H12O6 + 6O2 → 6CO2 + 6H2O

glucose + oxygen → carbon dioxide + water

aerobic respiration

chemical reactions in cells breaking down glucose molecules & releasing energy, CO2, and water

factors influencing whether to use random/systematic strategy

- size

- ease of access

- environment knowledge

frame quadrat (pros & cons)

square frame divided into small grid. species type & number in each grid is recorded.

- easy to collect sample

- easy to estimate size

- can be time-consuming

- may not be evenly spaced

point quadrat (pros & cons)

frame w/ horizontal bar & set intervals for points in ground. each plant touching point is recorded.

- accurate bc u can see the plant touching point

- easy to collect data

- can damage plant

- time consuming

pitfall traps (pros & cons)

dig hole ground lvl, put antifreeze cup & funnel before covering w/ tarp

- estimate of insect population

- insects wont escape antifreeze

- predators can eat insects

- hard to identify insects

sweep nets (pros & cons)

catch insects in areas of long grass

- time consuming

- can damage plants

- easy to do

- cheap

beating trays (pros & cons)

lightly hit branch and collect falling insect w/ tray

- cheap

- easy to do

- can damage plant

- time consuming

kick sampling (pros & cons)

kick water, hold net opposite flow & catch any organisms flying out.

- easy to get large sample

- good for deep waters

- species can be stuck to rocks

- small species can be missed

light traps (pros & cons)

get flying-organisms attracted to light like moths

- gets certain species

- easy to do

- some insects attract light @ long range, not short

- temp/humidity can limit species caught

capture-mark-recapture (benefits + lims)

collect sample, mark w paint, release. after some time, collect more & see how many marked.

- shows population growth

- estimate large populations

- increases predation

- paint can kill

secchi disc (pros & cons)

circular disk to measure turbidity. lower into water until invisible, & depth = turbidity.

- easy to do

- cheap

- measured w/ eyes, vulnerable to research bias

- can be time consuming

ACFOR abundance scale

abundant: 80-99%

common: 60-79%

frequent: 40-59%

occasional: 20-39%

rare: 0-19%

frequency

# of times plant shows up in # of quadrants as %

data collections w/ technology

- geospatial systems

- satellite sensors

- radio trackin

- computer modelling

- crowd sourcing

big data

data so huge that traditional data processing apps can't work

benefits & lims of big data analysis

- amt/type of data stored

- speed which new data generates

- data's trustworthiness

- ways data can be used