EVR 1001 Final Exam

Environmental Science

The field that looks at interactions among humans and nature.

environment

sum of all the conditions surrounding us that influence life

Biotic

The living part of the Earth

Abiotic

The non-living part of the Earth

Ecosystem

The living and non-living components of a particular place on Earth

Anthropogenic Change

changes in nature from human decisions

Ecosystem Services

Provide life-supporting services

Environmental indicators

describes the current state of the environment

5 Main Environmental Indicators

Biological diversity, Food production, Average global temperature and carbon dioxide, human population, and resource depletion.

What are the different types of biological diversity

genetic diversity, species diversity, and ecosystem diversity

Food Production

Ability to grow food to nourish the entire human population

What is the current Human Population

7.7 billion

Sustainability

the practice of living on earth in a way that allows humans to use resources without depriving future generations of those resources.

Sustainable development

development that balances current human well-being on sustainable practices.

Theory

A hypothesis that has been repeatedly tested and confirmed by multiple groups of research and is widely accepted as truth.

Natural Law

When a theory has been tested multiple times and there are no known exceptions

What are the steps of the scientific method?

observation and questions, hypothesis, collecting data, interpreting results, and share findings

Hypothesis

a testable idea about how something works

Null Hypothesis

a statement that can be unsupported or proved wrong

Replication

Taking repeated measurements as much as possible

Accuracy

how close a measured value is to the actual/true value

Inductive reasoning

used to formulate hypothesis and theories

Deductive reasoning

apply theories to specific situations

Observational study

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

Test Group

The group in an experimental study that is manipulated such that it differs from the control group in one way.

control group

the group in an experimental study to which the test groups results are compared

policy

a formalised plan that addresses a desired outcome or goal

Triple bottom line

How the policy is going to impact the society, environment, and economy

primary source

Information source that presents original data or firsthand information

Secondary source

information source that presents and interprets information solely from primary sources

tertiary source

Information source that uses information form at least one secondary source

controlled experiment

an experiment conducted in the controlled conditions

Natural experiments

when a natural event acts as an experimental treatment in an ecosystem.

Matter

Anything that occupies space and has mass

Mass

A measure of the amount of matter an object contains

Atoms

the basic building block of matter and is the smallest particle that contains the chemical properties of an element.

atomic number

the number of protons in one atom of the elements

atomic weight

the number of protons plus neutrons in one atom of the element

Half-life

the time it takes for one-half of the original radioactive parent atoms to decay

covalent bonds

elements that do not readily gain or lose electrons form compounds by sharing electrons.

Hydrogen Bonds

A type of chemical bond that is weaker than covalent bonds.

Energy

the capacity to do work or transfer heat

Matter Cycles

biochemical cycles that refer specially to the movement of life' essential chemical or nutrients through an ecosystem

Energy flow

enters ecosystems as solar radiation and is passed along from organism to organism

Closed System

matter and energy exchanges across system boundaries do not occur

open system

matter and energy exchanges occur across system boundaries.

Potential energy

stored energy, measured as a capacity to do work

Kinetic energy

Energy of motion, released potential energy.

Thermal Energy

Energy released as heat

Chemical energy

potential energy stored in molecules

First Law of Thermodynamics

Energy can neither be created nor destroyed, it can only be changed from one form to another

Second Law of Thermodynamics

When energy is transformed, the quantity of energy remains the same, but its ability to do work declines.

Energy Efficiency

The Ratio of the amount of work that is done to the total amount of energy that is introduced into the system.

Positive feedback loop

accelerates a response

Negative feedback loops

reduce the effect of change/maintain balance

Boiling

water boils and becomes gas at 100 C

Freezing

Water freezes at 4 C and it reaches its maximum density.

Solvent

Many substances dissolve well in water because their polar molecules bond easily with other polar molecules.

Surface Tension

Results from the cohesion of water molecules at the surface of a body of water, creates a sort of skin on water's surface.

Biome

one of many distinctive types of ecosystems that is determined by climate and identified by the dominate vegetation and organisms that have adapted to live there.

Clean Water Act

most water in America with some flow is protected

littoral zone

the shallow area of soil and water near the shore where algae and emergent plant grow.

Wetlands

aquatic biomes that are submerged or saturated by water for at least part of the year, but shallow enough to support emergent vegetation

Photic Zones

the zone that receives enough light to allow photosynthesis to occur

Aphotic zone

the deeper water that lacks sufficient light for photosynthesis

Chemosynthesis

the process that occurs in the photic zone when some species of bacteria uses methane and hydrogen sulphide to generate energy.

Respiration

cells convert glucose and oxygen into carbon dioxide and water.

Photosynthesis

producers use solar energy to cover carbon dioxide and water into glucose and oxygen.

Biomass

the total mass of all living mater in a specific area

Standing crop

the amount of biomass present in an ecosystem at a particular time

Ecological Efficiency

the proportion of consumed energy that can be passed from one trophic level to another

Trophic pyramid

the representation of the distribution of biomass between trophic levels

The Rule of 10

When energy is passed from one trophic level to another only 10% of the energy is bypassed on.

Biosphere

region where life can possibly exist

Carbon Cycle

movement of carbon through biopic (living_ and abiotic (non-living_ parts of an ecosystem vial photosynthesis and cellular respiration.

Albedo

the amount of energy reflected by a surface.

Water vapor capacity

warm air has a higher capacity for water vapor that cold air.

Circular Cells

Convection currents between the equator and 30N and S

Coriolis Effect

the deflection of an object's path due to Earth's rotation

Gyres

the large-scale patterns of water circulation

Upwelling

surface currents diverge causing deeper water to rise and replace the water that has been moved away

thermohaline circulation

a worldwide current system in which the warmer, fresher water moves along the surface while colder, saltier water moves beneath

El Niño

Every 3 to 7 years, Earth's atmosphere and ocean surface currents interact in the tropical Pacific Ocean to reverse directions

La Niña

can impact the Atlantic hurricane season by helping make atmospheric conditions and more conductive for tropical storms.

Biodiversity

the variety of life on Earth; including species, genetic, and ecological diversity.

Ecosystem Service

essential ecological processes that make life on Earth possible

3 types of biodiversity

genetic, species, and ecological diversity

Genetic Diversity

the heritable variation among individuals of a single population or within the species as a whole

Species diversity

the variety of species, including how many are present (richness) and their abundance relative to each other (evenness).

Ecological diversity

the variety within an ecosystem's structure, including many communities, habitats, niches, and trophic levels.

biodiversity hotspots

areas with high numbers of endangered endemic species and have lost at least 70% of their original habitat.

Endangered species

species at high risk of becoming extinct

Endemic species

a species that is nativee to a particular area and is not naturally found elsewhere

magnitude

the percentage of species that have gone extinct

Rate

measures how quickly these extinctions happened- the number of extinctions per unit of time

Ecological Diversity

the variety of ecosystem in each place

Species Diversity

the variety of species within a habitat or a region

Species richness

the number of species in each area

Species eveness

the relative abundance of the different species in an area (dominance).

Natural Selection

the environment determines which individuals are most likely to survive and reproduce