Environmental Science and Population Dynamics Lecture Notes

A comprehensive set of vocabulary flashcards covering industrial history, demographic theories, ecology, atmospheric layers, pollution, and environmental management policies based on lecture transcript questions.

Steam engine

The invention that marked the beginning of the mechanization period, invented by James Watt in 1784.

Demographic Transition Theory

A theory that models population growth through 5 distinct stages.

Emigration rate

The rate at which people leave their country and move to another country during a year per $1,000$ persons.

Knowledge economy

The alternative name for the industrial economy in the post-industrial era.

Stationary population pyramid

A population structure where the age and sex percentages remain constant over time because birth rates and death rates are equal.

Population Doubling Time ($0.7\%$ rate)

If a population grows at an annual rate of $0.7\%$, the population will double in $100$ years.

Malthus’s theory

The statement that populations tend to increase at an exponential or compound rate while food production remains stable or increases slowly.

Cyanobacteria

The first living organism on Earth to possess photosynthesis capacity.

Agricultural revolution

A historical advancement that occurred approximately $10,000$ years ago, leading to increased food security but also higher use of fossil fuels and monocultures.

Age structure

The relative proportion of individuals of various age groups within a population.

Carrying capacity

The population size of a species that the environment is capable of supporting.

r-selected species

Species that typically have many offspring at one time.

Density-independent regulation

Environmental factors, such as a forest fire, that regulate population size regardless of its density.

Ecological footprint

Determined by estimating the area of productive land or aquatic systems required to sustain a population at its specific standard of living.

Earth Overshoot Day

The day when humanity's demand for ecological resources and services exceeds nature's budget for the year.

Equivalence factor

Relates the average productivity of a given land type to the world-average productivity of all biologically productive land types.

Global Warming Potential (GWP)

A measure of atmospheric gas impact; CH4 has higher GWP than CO2, while CO2 has the lowest GWP among major greenhouse gases.

Acid rain gases

Atmospheric gases, specifically $SO_2$ and $NO_x$, that contribute to the formation of acidic precipitation.

Troposphere

The layer of the atmosphere where human activities primarily take place.

Biosphere

The portion of Earth where life exists, including the hydrosphere, the atmosphere up to $10\,km$, and the lithosphere to a thickness of $2-3\,km$.

Sustainable Development

Development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs; defined by the WCED in 1987.

Primary productivity

The amount of energy absorbed by producer organisms and retained as chemical energy in organic compounds via photosynthesis.

Biogeochemical cycle

The external transfer of an element among different ecosystem components or major Earth reservoirs.

Nitrogen fixation

The process of converting atmospheric nitrogen into usable forms, as nitrogen in the atmosphere cannot be used directly by organisms.

Nonrenewable resources

Resources such as fossil fuels, metallic minerals, and nonmetallic minerals that cannot be replaced once used.

Eutrophication

A condition in closed water bodies caused by nutrient pollution, specifically involving Nitrogen (N) and Phosphorus (P).

AQI (Air Quality Index)

An integrated assessment value for air quality; a value of 151-200 is classified as not good for health.

Command and Control (CAC)

An environmental management instrument based on direct regulation and enforcement.

UNFCCC

Stands for the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.

Ramsar Convention

An international convention focused on the protection and sustainable use of wetlands.

Vienna Convention 1985

An international agreement focused on the protection of the ozone layer.