ENSC Ch.1

These flashcards cover essential vocabulary and concepts from environmental science, aiding in the understanding of key themes and terms necessary for exam preparation.

Sustainability

The ability to maintain ecological balance by living within the Earth's means and ensuring that resources are available for future generations.

Biodiversity

The variety and variability of life forms within a given ecosystem, including the number of species and their relative abundance.

Environmental Science

The study of interactions among physical, chemical, and biological components of the environment and their relationship to human impacts.

Tragedy of the Commons

A situation in which individuals acting in their own self-interest deplete shared resources, leading to long-term negative consequences for the whole group.

Ecosystem Services

The benefits that humans derive from ecosystems, including provisioning, regulating, supporting, and cultural services.

Scientific Method

An orderly, systematic process for exploring, testing, and refining hypotheses, leading to the development of scientific knowledge.

Critical Thinking

The ability to think clearly and rationally, understanding the logical connection between ideas, and questioning the validity of assumptions and conclusions.

Renewable Natural Resources

Resources that are replenished naturally over short periods, such as sunlight, wind, water, and biomass.

Nonrenewable Natural Resources

Resources that do not replenish naturally and are limited, such as fossil fuels, minerals, and metals.

Paradigm Shift

A fundamental change in the underlying assumptions or practices of a particular scientific discipline.

Carrying Capacity

The maximum population size of a biological species that can be sustained indefinitely by a given environment without degrading the environment.

Ecological Footprint

A measure of the demand placed by humanity on the Earth's ecosystems, represented as the area of productive land and water required to support a specific population or activity.

Biocentric Preservation

An ethical standpoint that emphasizes the inherent value of all living things and advocates for the preservation of wild nature in its untouched state.

Anthropocentric View

A human-centered perspective on nature, valuing the environment primarily based on its usefulness or benefit to humans.

Conservation

The careful management of natural resources and environments to prevent exploitation, destruction, or neglect.

Sustainability

The ability to maintain ecological balance by living within the Earth's means and ensuring that resources are available for future generations.

Biodiversity

The variety and variability of life forms within a given ecosystem, including the number of species and their relative abundance.

Environmental Science

The study of interactions among physical, chemical, and biological components of the environment and their relationship to human impacts.

Tragedy of the Commons

A situation in which individuals acting in their own self-interest deplete shared resources, leading to long-term negative consequences for the whole group.

Ecosystem Services

The benefits that humans derive from ecosystems, including provisioning, regulating, supporting, and cultural services.

Scientific Method

An orderly, systematic process for exploring, testing, and refining hypotheses, leading to the development of scientific knowledge.

Critical Thinking

The ability to think clearly and rationally, understanding the logical connection between ideas, and questioning the validity of assumptions and conclusions.

Renewable Natural Resources

Resources that are replenished naturally over short periods, such as sunlight, wind, water, and biomass.

Nonrenewable Natural Resources

Resources that do not replenish naturally and are limited, such as fossil fuels, minerals, and metals.

Paradigm Shift

A fundamental change in the underlying assumptions or practices of a particular scientific discipline.

Carrying Capacity

The maximum population size of a biological species that can be sustained indefinitely by a given environment without degrading the environment.

Ecological Footprint

A measure of the demand placed by humanity on the Earth's ecosystems, represented as the area of productive land and water required to support a specific population or activity.

Biocentric Preservation

An ethical standpoint that emphasizes the inherent value of all living things and advocates for the preservation of wild nature in its untouched state.

Anthropocentric View

A human-centered perspective on nature, valuing the environment primarily based on its usefulness or benefit to humans.

Conservation

The careful management of natural resources and environments to prevent exploitation, destruction, or neglect.

Ecological Restoration

The process of assisting the recovery of an ecosystem that has been degraded, damaged, or destroyed.

Environmental Ethics

The philosophical discipline that examines the moral relationship of human beings to, and also the value and moral status of, the environment and its nonhuman contents.

Pollution

The introduction of harmful substances or products into the environment, typically by human activity.

Climate Change

A long-term shift in global or regional climate patterns, often referring specifically to the rise in global temperatures from the mid-20th century to present.

Greenhouse Effect

The process by which radiation from a planet's atmosphere warms the planet's surface to a temperature above what it would be without its atmosphere.

Carbon Footprint

The total amount of greenhouse gases produced to directly and indirectly support human activities, usually expressed in equivalent tons of carbon dioxide.

Ecotourism

Responsible travel to natural areas that conserves the environment, sustains the well-being of the local people, and involves interpretation and education.

Species Extinction

The complete disappearance of a species from Earth, often a result of environmental changes or human activities.

Deforestation

The clearing of forests by logging or burning, often for agricultural or urban development, leading to habitat loss and climate change.

Desertification

The process by which fertile land becomes desert, typically as a result of drought, deforestation, or inappropriate agriculture.

Sustainable Development

Development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

Biomagnification

The increasing concentration of a substance, such as a toxic chemical, in the tissues of organisms at successively higher levels in a food chain.

Eutrophication

The enrichment of an ecosystem with chemical nutrients, typically compounds containing nitrogen or phosphorus, leading to an increase in the primary productivity of the ecosystem.

Indicator Species

A species whose presence, absence, or abundance reflects a specific environmental condition or a characteristic