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First Law of Thermodynamics

Energy is neither created nor destroyed, but may be converted from one form to another.

Second Law of Thermodynamics

When energy is changed from one form to another, some useful energy is always degraded into lower quality energy (usually heat).

Hydrologic Cycle Components

evaporation, transpiration, runoff, condensation, precipitation, and infiltration.

Watershed

all of the land that drains into a body of water

Aquifer

any water-bearing layer in the ground.

La Nina

Easterly trade winds and ocean currents pool warm water in the western Pacific, allowing upwelling of nutrient rich water off the West coast of South America.

Nitrogen Fixation

because atmospheric N cannot be used directly by plants, it must first be converted into ammonia by bacteria.

Ammonification

decomposers covert organic waste into ammonia.

Nitrification

ammonia is converted to nitrate ions (NO -).

Assimilation

inorganic N is converted into organic molecules such as DNA/amino acids & proteins.

Denitrification

bacteria convert ammonia back into N.

Phosphorus

does not exist as a gas; released by weathering of phosphate rocks, it is a major limiting factor for plant growth. Phosphorus cycle is slow, and not atmospheric.

Photosynthesis

plants convert CO2 (atmospheric C) into complex carbohydrates (glucose C6H12O6).

Aerobic Respiration

oxygen consuming producers, consumers & decomposers break down complex organic compounds & convert carbon back into CO2.

Biotic

living components of an ecosystem.

Abiotic

nonliving components of an ecosystem

Producer/Autotroph

organisms that make their own food—photosynthetic life.

Trophic Levels

producers → primary consumer → secondary consumer → tertiary consumer.

Energy Flow through Food Webs

10% of the usable energy is transferred to the next trophic level. Reason: usable energy lost as heat (2nd law), not all biomass is digested & absorbed, predators expend energy to catch prey.

Primary succession

development of communities in a lifeless area not previously inhabited by life (ex. lava).

Secondary succession

life progresses where soil remains (ex. clear-cut forest, old farm).

Mutualism

symbiotic relationship where both organisms benefit (e.g. clownfish and anemone)

Commensalism

symbiotic relationship where one organism benefits & the other is unaffected (e.g. epiphytic plants, such as many orchids, that grow on trees)

Parasitism

relationship in which one organism (the parasite) obtains nutrients at the expense of the host (e.g. mosquitoes and humans)

Carrying Capacity

the number of individuals that can be sustained in an area.

r-strategist

reproductive strategy in which organisms reproduce early, bear many small, unprotected offspring (ex. insects, mice).

K-strategist

reproductive strategy in which organisms reproduce late, bear few, cared for offspring (ex. humans, elephants).

Natural Selection

organisms that possess favorable adaptations (through mutations) pass them onto the next generation.

Doubling Time

(rule of 70) doubling time equals 70 divided by average growth rate. (ex. a population growing at 5% annually doubles in 70 ÷ 5 \= 14 years)

Replacement Level Fertility

the number of children a couple must bear to replace themselves (2.1 developed, 2.7 developing).

World Population

slightly over 8 billion.

Demographic Transition Model

preindustrial, transitional, industrial, and postindustrial stages

Preindustrial stage

birth & death rates high, population grows slowly, infant mortality high.

Transitional stage

Aid from other countries and increase in industrialization lowers death rates (infant mortality). Birth rates high (from of the amount of people in the reproductive stage).

Industrial stage

decline in birth rate, population growth slows.

Postindustrial stage

low birth & death rates.

Age Structure Diagrams

broad base → rapid growth; narrow base → negative growth (NPG); uniform shape → zero growth (ZPG)

Most populous nations

1)China 2)India 3)US 4)Indonesia

Low Economic/Social Status of Women

Most important factor keeping population growth rates high.

Methods to Decrease Birth Rates

Family planning, contraception, economic rewards & penalties.

Eutrophication

rapid algal growth caused by an excess of nitrogen & phosphorus.

Keystone Species

species whose role in an ecosystem is important for the ecosystem to sustain itself (manatee, alligator, sea otter, etc)

Indicator Species

species that serve as early warnings that an ecosystem is being damaged (amphibians).

Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs)

new organisms created by altering the genetic material (DNA) of existing organisms; usually in an attempt to remove undesirable or create desirable characteristics in the new organism.

Troposphere

first layer of atmosphere 0-10 miles above the Earth's surface. Contains weather, greenhouse gases (bad ozone)

Stratosphere

second layer of atmosphere 10-30 miles above the Earth's surface. Contains protective ozone layer (good ozone)

Most Endangered species

have a small range, require large territory, have long generations, have very specialized niche, or live on an island

Biome

large distinct terrestrial region having similar climate, soil, plants & animals.

Tropical Rain Forests

characterized by the greatest diversity of species, believed to include many undiscovered species. Occur near the equator. Soils tend to be low in nutrients. Distinct seasonality: winter is absent, and only two seasons are present (rainy and dry). Low soil nutrients due to rapid decomposition.

Temperate Deciduous Forests

occur in eastern North America, Japan, northeastern Asia, and western and central Europe. Dominated by tall deciduous trees, such as maples, oaks, and birches. Well-defined seasons include a distinct winter. Nutrient rich soils. USA has the largest area of TDF.

Boreal Forests or Taiga

represent the largest terrestrial biome. Dominated by needleleaf, coniferous trees. Found in the cold climates of Eurasia and North America: two-thirds in Siberia (Russia) with the rest in Scandinavia, Alaska, and Canada. Seasons are divided into short, moist, and moderately warm summers and long, cold, and dry winters. Extensive logging may soon cause their disappearance.

Temperate Shrub Lands

occurs along the coast of Southern California and the Mediterranean region. Characterized by areas of Chaparral-miniature woodlands dominated by dense stands of shrubs.

Savannas

grassland with scattered individual trees. Cover almost half the surface of Africa and large areas of Australia, South America, and India. Warm or hot climates where the annual rainfall is 20-50 inches per year. The rainfall is concentrated in six or eight months of the year, followed by a long period of drought when fires can occur.

Temperate Grasslands

dominated by grasses, trees and large shrubs are absent. Temperatures vary more from summer to winter, and the amount of rainfall is less than in savannas. Temperate grasslands have hot summers and cold winters. Occur in South Africa, Hungary, Argentina, the steppes of the former Soviet Union, and the plains and prairies of central North America.

Deserts

covers about one fifth of the Earth's surface and occur where rainfall is less than 50 cm/year. Most deserts occur at low latitudes (30 degrees North and South of the equator), have a considerable amount of specialized vegetation, as well as specialized animals. Soils have abundant nutrients, need only water to become productive, and have little or no organic matter. Common disturbances include occasional fires or cold weather, and sudden, infrequent, but intense rains that cause flooding.

Tundra

treeless plains that are the coldest of all the biomes. Occur in the arctic and Antarctica. Dominated by lichens, mosses, sedges, and dwarfed shrubs Characterized by extremely cold climate, permanently frozen ground (permafrost) low biotic diversity, simple vegetation structure, limitation of drainage, short season of growth and reproduction.

Wetlands

areas of standing water that support aquatic plants including marshes, swamps, and bogs. Reduce flooding. Species diversity is very high.

Fresh Water

defined as having a low salt concentration (less than 1%). Plants and animals are adjusted to the low salt content and would not be able to survive in areas of high salt concentration (i.e., ocean). There are different types of freshwater regions: ponds and lakes, streams and rivers, and estuaries.

Oceans

the largest of all the ecosystems. The ocean regions are separated into separate zones: intertidal, pelagic, abyssal, and benthic. All four zones have a great diversity of species.

Endangered Species Act

identifies threatened and endangered species in the US, and puts their protection ahead of economic considerations. (examples prevents construction, logging, trade in species if it will impact endangered species.

Niche

organism's job in the ecosystem of which it lives

Invasive Species

introduced into an ecosystem and out-compete native species

El Nino Southern Oscillation

A reversal of wind and water currents in the South Pacific. This can be observed through warm water off coasts, lack of upwelling, and loss of fish populations.

albedo effect

the ability of a surface to reflect away solar radiation

Polar Cell

Cells of air circulation occurring between 60 degrees north and south and each pole.

Hadley Cell

Convection Currents that cycle between the equator, 30 degrees North and South.

Ferrel Cell

A convection current in the atmosphere that lies between Hadley cells and polar cells

rain shadow effect

Low precipitation on the far side (leeward side) of a mountain when prevailing winds flow up and over a high mountain or range of high mountains. This creates semiarid and arid conditions on the leeward side of a high mountain range.

Upwelling

The movement of deep, cold, and nutrient-rich water to the surface

thermohaline circulation

Movement of ocean water caused by density difference brought about by variations in temperature and salinity. As ocean water freezes at the poles it concentrates salt, and the colder, denser water sinks.

coral reef

A structure of calcite skeletons built up by coral animals in warm, shallow ocean water.

coral bleaching

the loss of color in corals that occurs when stressed corals expel the algae that live in them

littoral zone

a shallow zone in a freshwater habitat where light reaches the bottom and nurtures plants

limnetic zone

a zone of open water in lakes and ponds

benthic zone

the muddy bottom of a lake, pond, or ocean

profundal zone

zone in a freshwater habitat that is below the limits of effective light penetration

negative feedback loop

A feedback loop in which a system responds to a change by returning to its original state, or by decreasing the rate at which the change is occurring.

positive feedback loop

a feedback loop in which change in a system is amplified. Ex. Arctic ocean ice melting causes ocean surface water temperature to increase, causing more ice to melt.

ecosystem services

the processes by which life-supporting resources such as clean water, timber, fisheries, and agricultural crops are produced

Sustainability

meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs

ecological footprint

the impact of a person or community on the environment, expressed as the amount of land required to sustain their use of natural resources.

ionic bond

Formed when one or more electrons are transferred from one atom to another

covalent bond

A chemical bond that involves sharing a pair of electrons between atoms in a molecule

Acid

A substance that increases the hydrogen ion concentration of a solution. (pH 0-6.9)

Base

A substance that decreases the hydrogen ion concentration in a solution. (pH of 7.1-14)

Carbohydrates

the starches and sugars present in foods

Proteins

Chains of amino acids, main components of muscle, enzymes, and antibodies.

Lipids

Energy-rich organic compounds, such as fats, oils, and waxes, that are made of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen.

Entropy

A measure of disorder or randomness.

open system

a system in which exchanges of matter or energy occur across system boundaries

closed system

a system in which matter and energy exchanges do not occur across boundaries

GPP (gross primary productivity)

Rate at which an ecosystem's producers capture and store a given amount of chemical energy as biomass in a given length of time.

NPP (Net Primary Productivity)

The energy captured by producers in an ecosystem minus the energy producers respire. Open ocean because of it's surface area is the biome with the largest NPP.

logistic growth

Growth pattern in which a population's growth rate slows or stops following a period of exponential growth

Hypoxic

pertaining to a low level of oxygen

species evenness

the relative proportion of individuals within the different species in a given area

species richness

the number of different species in a community

Adaptation

inherited characteristic that increases an organism's chance of survival

carrying capacity

Largest number of individuals of a population that a environment can support

density dependent factors

factor that limits a population more as population density increases.