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These flashcards are designed to enforce the user's knowledge about some basic details of concepts such as systems, ecosystems, characteristics of organisms, the different types of symbiotic relationships, Keystone Species, hotspots, population density and dispersion, scale, genetic diversity, subpopulations, different sampling techniques, immigration/emigration, Exponential vs. Logistic Growth, Carrying Capacity, Limiting Factors, Disturbances, Flux, Destabilize, resilience vs. resistance, ecological succession, and the design process.
System
A set of interacting components or parts
Input
Energy, matter, or information that goes into a system.
Output
Energy, matter, or information that comes out of a system.
Open System
One of the three types of systems. This is when both inputs and outputs flow in and out freely.
Closed System
One of the three types of systems. This is when the flow of inputs and outputs are limited; only energy is exchanged.
Isolated System
One of the three types of systems. This is when inputs and outputs are all contained within the system (system is self-sustaining).
Control
Helps keep systems functioning properly by monitoring inputs and outputs and sending feedback. They can be automatic, manual, or both
Feedback
Information from one step of a cycle that acts to change the behavior of a previous step of a cycle.
Feedback Loop
When an output returns to become an input in the same system that generated the output
Component
Individual parts of a system.
Emergent Property
Larger units of a system.
Five Interconnected Spheres
Makes up the Earth system; geosphere, hydrosphere, biosphere, atmosphere, anthrosphere
Ecosystem
Systems that include abiotic and biotic factors.
Terrestrial Ecosystem
Land-based ecosystems (makes up 29%).
Aquatic Ecosystem
Water-based ecosystem that can be freshwater or marine (makes up 71%).
Characteristics of Living Things
Includes being made up of one or more cells, being able to grow, being able to reproduce, being able of evolve, being able to respond to environmental changes, and being able to maintain homeostasis (stable internal conditions).
Habitat
Where the organism lives (includes both abiotic and biotic facotrs).
Ecological Niche
How the organism lives within its habitat (everything the organism needs to survive and reproduce, like food sources, abiotic conditions, and behavior).
Food Source
The type of food, how species compete for food, and where it is in the food web.
Abiotic Condition
Non-living factors in ecosystems. It can include things like the range of air temperature and amount of water a species can tolerate.
Behavior
How an organism behaves. Can include things like the time of day the species is active, when and where they feed, and reproduce.
Predation
One of the types of relationships in ecosystems. This is when one organism captures and eats another organism (allows for the transfer of energy up the food-web/food-chain.
Competition
One of the types of relationships in ecosystems. This is when organisms compete with other organisms in different or the same species for limited resources such as food, shelter, water, space, mates, etc.
Symbiosis
The types of relationships in ecosystems. This is split into three sub-categories of relationships that include mutualism, commensalism, and parasitism.
Mutualism
One of the types of symbiosis. This is when both species benefit from the relationship.
Commensalism
One of the types of symbiosis. This is when one benefits, and the other is neither harmed or benefited in the relationship.
Parasitism
One of the types of symbiosis. This is when one species is benefited and the other is harmed.
Biodiversity
The measure of the number of different species found in an area; the more complex ecosystems are, the more resilient and bio-diverse it is.
Hotspot
An area with high levels of biodiversity (can posses new medicine).
Keystone Species
Unique organisms specific to a location that cannot be found anywhere else (typically a single species that has a strong effect on the whole ecosystem).
Human Activities
Actions that positively or negatively affect the rate of change in genetic and bio-diversity such as using pesticides, introducing invasive species to the environment, and clearing land that affects biodiversity.
Population Density
The number of individuals in a given area.
Population Dispersion
How organisms are separate themselves within a population.
Clumped
One of the 3 main patterns of population dispersal. This is when organisms travel is packs, herds, etc. to thrive in unevenly spread resources, defend against predators, and make finding mates easier.
Uniform
One of the 3 main patterns of population dispersal. This is when there are limited resources/territory. As a result, they tend to compete.
Random
One of the 3 main patterns of population dispersal. This is the most uncommon types of population dispersal. In this case, organisms are spread randomly due to wind, plants, water, or animals.
Scale
Different levels of area that may contain organisms with different growth rates.
Genetic Diversity
How much variation in DNA is among the same species.
Subpopulation
The same species with different traits.
Sampling Technique
Various methods biologists use to measure the number of individuals in a given area.
Immigration
Organisms coming into an area.
Emigration
Organisms going out of an area.
Exponential Growth
One of the two patterns of population growth (shape of J on a graph). This is when population size increases drastically over a short time due to a species being met with an ideal amount of resources, no predators, enough space, or more births than deaths. This usually occurs when a species moves into an area.
Logistic Growth
One of the two patterns of population growth (shape of S on a graph). This is when population size increases slower until it reaches carrying capacity.
Carrying Capacity
The maximum number of individuals that an environment can sustain and support. It can change at any time due to ecosystem disturbances.
Limiting Factor
Factors that affect the carrying capacity. They are split into two types.
Dependent Limiting Factor
These limiting factors rely on an increase in population to be effective. Includes things like competition, predation, and parasitism.
Independent Limiting Factor
These limiting factors don’t need population size to be high at all in order to be effective (random chances). Includes things like weather, natural disasters, and human activity.
Disturbance
Big or small scaled occurrences that cause change to an environment. They can be physical, chemical, biological, natural, or man-caused. They can destroy habitats, wipe out populations, decrease diversity, turn ecosystems into fragments, alter the relationships between organisms, or affect he cycling of abiotic factors.
Physical Agent
Disturbances that use physical force to destroy parts of ecosystems.
Chemical Agent
Disturbances that kill parts of ecosystems due to a more chemical aspect.
Biological Agent
Disturbances that occur with the introduction to a new species in an environment.
Flux
A state of constant change. Ecosystems are in flux because of temperature change, rainfall variation, and introduction of new organisms.
Destabilize
When the viability of an ecosystems is threatened.
Resilience
The ability of an ecosystem to bounce back from a disturbance (determined by biodiversity and genetic diversity). Complex ecosystems are more resilient because more species perform the same function. As a result, keystone species will be harder to completely eliminate.
Resistance
The ability of an ecosystem to resist change caused by a disturbance.
Ecological Succession
A series of biotic change that occurs on bare land to create a community (can be Primary or Secondary)
Pioneer Species
The first species to live in an environment right after a disturbance.
Climax Community
The “endpoint” of succession within the context of an environment.
Primary Succession
When an ecosystem is created from bare rock (takes hundreds of year to become a recovered ecosystem). Pioneer species include Lichens, moss, and fungus.
Secondary Succession
When an ecosystem is developed on bare soil (only takes 150 years to become a climax community). Pioneer species include plants, seeds, and some organisms (huge head start).
Technology
The application of scientific knowledge for practical purposes.
Engineering Design Process
Criteria
List of standards on which a solution can be based (identifies the “wants”) and can include safety, reliability, cost, and aesthetics.
Constraint
Limitations that a design or solution must stay within. Includes cost, weight, dimensions, available resources, time, and the environment the solution must function in.
Tradeoff
Exchange for one thing in return for another in a design.
Decision Matrix
An evaluation chart with custom criterion and constraints with weights (how important the criterion is) assigned to each one. The brainstormed solutions are rated based on the sum of their products (criterion weight multiplied by the score of the solution with the criteria).
Iterative Process
An approach to continuously improving a concept, design, or product.
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