1.1 systems in physical geography
Define the term ‘system’ in Geographical terms?
An area with inputs, outputs, store and flows that allows it to sustain itself
System Approach Terminology
Term | Definition | Eg Drainage basin - Water | Eg Woodland - Carbon |
Input | External matter entering the system | Rain | CO2 dissolved in water |
Output | Internal matter exiting the system | Runoff | CO2 dissolved in water |
Energy | Power or driving force | Kinetic energy from movement of water | Photosynthesis |
Store | The components to the system | Plants | Trees |
Flow | The linkage between the components | Precipitation | Absorption |
Positive Feedback | When something is added and its presence causes the amount of itself to increase | Rising sea levels making ice shelves melt | Global warming causing forest fires |
Negative feedback | When something is added and its presence cancels itself out | Cliffs eroding away from the sea then making barriers | Excess CO2 making plants grow |
Dynamic equilibrium | When positive and negative feedback are equal so the amount of everything stays the same | An untouched and unaffected drainage basin where humans have neither added nor taken away | An untouched and unaffected An untouched and unaffected woodland where humans have neither added nor taken away |
Water Cycle System Diagram
