AP Environmental Science Course Orientation and Foundations Notes

Classroom Procedures and Logistics

• Arrival and Setup: Upon entering the classroom, backpacks must be placed on top of the counter located by the butterflies. Students are required to take out their notebook and pencil immediately. Seats are filled from the front of the room.

• Cell Phone Policy (State Law): Phones must remain inside the student's backpack at all times in accordance with state law. If a phone is visible, it must legally be collected. If a student refuses to relinquish a phone, the Assistant Principal (AP) will be contacted. The first violation results in immediate In-School Suspension (ISS). Collected phones can be retrieved from the main office.

• Hall Pass and Restroom Procedures: The class uses e-hallpass procedures. Only one male and one female are permitted out of the room at a time. All personal belongings must remain in the classroom while the student is out. Students must create a pass, ask politely, and wait patiently.

• Food and Beverages: No meals are permitted in the classroom. Reusable water bottles are allowed. Small snacks are acceptable provided that students clean up after themselves. Under no circumstances is food permitted on lab days.

• Counselor and Schedule Changes: If students need to see a counselor for schedule changes, they must access the Paetow High School (PHS) Counselors and College & Career tile in Canvas. Students are not to be sent out of the room for schedule issues. Teachers will display schedules via eSchool for students to copy onto blank forms if Chromebook access is unavailable. If a student has a "hole" in their schedule, they must report to the counselor only during the specific period that the hole exists.

• Identification (ID) Cards: All students must wear their school ID at all times. Teachers perform ID checks alongside attendance daily. For the first three days of school, English teachers send students without IDs to the library to have them printed.

Academic Integrity and Artificial Intelligence Usage

• Academic Integrity: Honesty and integrity are fundamental to the Katy Independent School District mission. Academic dishonesty is defined as any action taken to gain an unfair advantage or pretending someone else's work is one's own. This includes cheating, plagiarism, unauthorized collaboration, and improper or undisclosed use of Artificial Intelligence (AI).

• Cheating and Plagiarism: Cheating includes giving or receiving help on tests, possessing unauthorized materials, copying assignments, or using electronic devices to send/receive exam information. Plagiarism involves using ideas or products from another person or machine without credit. The penalty for these offenses is a grade of zero and potentially further disciplinary action under the Discipline Management Plan.

• Generative AI Acceptable Use Menu (Katy ISD): Students may only use AI with explicit teacher permission. For AP, KAP, and dual credit courses, additional limitations may apply. The use categories are:

  • Level 1: No Use: AI is not permitted for reading, content creation, or problem-solving. No disclosure is required.

  • Level 2: AI as a Thought Partner: AI used only for initial inquiry and brainstorming. Reading aid is allowed, but the original text must be read. Students must disclose use and submit chat copies.

  • Level 3: AI as an Editor: AI used to edit or receive feedback on original content. It cannot be used to correct errors in problem-solving. Students must disclose use and submit chat copies.

  • Level 4: AI as an Analyst: AI used to analyze data and identify themes. Content must be cited in APA format and chat copies submitted.

  • Level 5: AI as a Co-Creator: AI used to help complete assignments, such as creating summaries or generating parts of solutions. Content must be verified for accuracy, cited in APA format, and chat copies submitted.

Student Performance, Grading, and Discipline

• Grade Breakdown:

  • Other (10%): Homework (HW) and reinforcement assignments. These are vital for practice and passing the class.

  • Minor (20%): Labs, select projects, and primarily quizzes.

  • Major (70%): Primarily exams. Early in the year, exams consist of $40$ Multiple Choice Questions (MCQ). Eventually, the breakdown shifts to $60\%$ MCQ and $40\%$ Free Response Questions (FRQ).

• Late Work Policy (Applies to both Minor and Major grades):

  • $1$ day late: Maximum grade of $75$.

  • $2$ days late: Maximum grade of $50$.

  • $3$ or more days late: A grade of zero is assigned.

• Test Corrections and Re-teaching:

  • Students scoring below $70\%$ on a major grade must attend a re-teach session and complete a new test.

  • Corrections occur outside of regular class time (before school, lunch, advisory, or after school).

  • The opportunity for credit recovery is up to a maximum score of $70\%$.

  • Corrections must be completed within $5$ school days of receiving the grade. Failure to attend results in an AP referral and parent notification.

Dress Code Policy

• Regulations: Katy ISD policy FNCA (LOCAL) requires students to conform to the dress code to maintain an orderly environment. Clothing must not be lewd, offensive, or advertise prohibited substances (tobacco, alcohol, drugs).

• Specific Violations: Head coverings are prohibited unless for religious or medical reasons. Blankets and bonnets are considered violations. All shirts must cover the entire designated shaded area of the torso. Shorts and skirts must reach mid-thigh. Shoes must be worn at all times.

• Consequences: The dress code resets each semester. Refusal to change results in ISS and a mandatory parent meeting.

  • $1^{st}$ Infraction: One-hour detention.

  • $2^{nd}$ Infraction: Two-hour detention.

  • $3^{rd}$ Infraction: Four-hour Saturday detention. Missed Saturday detentions result in lunch detentions until completed.

  • Dress code items provided by the school must be returned by the end of $7^{th}$ period, or the student is charged $15$.

Required Supplies for AP Environmental Science

• Mandatory Items:

  • Spiral notebook or binder for handwritten notes (Chromebook note-taking is for home use only).

  • Pencils or mechanical pencils (with extra lead).

  • Colored pencils.

  • Ruler.

  • Markers.

  • Glue sticks.

  • Reusable water bottle.

  • $400$ flash cards.

• Optional Items: Box of tissues and nitrile gloves (most lab gloves are provided, but personal supply is an option).

College Credit and AP Exam Statistics

• Exam Performance: Out of $39$ students who took the exam last year, $15$ scored a $3$, $14$ scored a $4$, and $5$ scored a $5$.

• University Credit Requirements:

  • Rice University: Requires a score of $4$ for credit.

  • University of Houston (UH): Requires a score of $3$ for credit.

  • Credit can be applied as engineering credit, core science credit (biology), or elective credit depending on the major.

Key Environmehntal Legislation and Regulations

1. Clean Air Act (CAA): Sets limits for $7$ major pollutants: Sulfur Oxides ($SO_x$), Carbon Monoxide ($CO$), Particulate Material ($PM$), Volatile Organic Compounds ($VOCs$), Nitrogen Oxides ($NO_x$), Tropospheric Ozone ($O_3$), and Lead ($Pb$). Note: Carbon Dioxide ($CO_2$) is not regulated under the CAA.

2. Clean Water Act (CWA): Regulates the appearance and dumping of point source pollutants into waterways. Protects water quality in rivers, lakes, and other bodies of water.

3. Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES): An international agreement regulating the global trade of endangered species.

4. Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA): Created a "superfund" account funded by business contributions for the closure and cleanup of contaminated sites.

5. Montreal Protocol: International agreement that phased out Chlorofluorocarbons ($CFCs$) in favor of Hydrofluorocarbons ($HFCs$), and eventually banned them to repair the ozone layer.

6. Kyoto Protocol: International agreement aimed at lowering global greenhouse gas emissions.

7. Endangered Species Act (ESA): A United States law designed to protect at-risk species from extinction.

8. Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA): Regulates the taste and safety of drinking water in the United States.

9. Delaney Clause: A component of the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act that bans cancer-causing additives in food.

10. Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA): Regulates hazardous waste and establishes a "cradle to grave" monitoring system; also monitors sanitary landfills.

Mathematical Foundations for Environmental Science

• Metric System Ladder Method: To convert units, determine the starting point and count the "jumps" to the ending point, moving the decimal that many places in the same direction.

  • Kilo ($k$): $10^3$ ($1000$ units)

  • Hecto ($h$): $10^2$ ($100$ units)

  • Deka ($da$): $10^1$ ($10$ units)

  • Base Unit (Meter, Liter, Gram): $10^0$ ($1$ unit)

  • Deci ($d$): $10^{-1}$ ($0.1$ units)

  • Centi ($c$): $10^{-2}$ ($0.01$ units)

  • Milli ($m$): $10^{-3}$ ($0.001$ units)

  • Micro ($\mu$): $10^{-6}$

  • Nano ($n$): $10^{-9}$

• Scientific Notation Rules:

  • The coefficient must be a number between $1$ and $9$.

  • Multiplication: Multiply the coefficients and add the exponents: $(1.2 \times 10^4) \times (5 \times 10^6) = 6 \times 10^{10}$.

  • Division: Divide the coefficients and subtract the exponents: $(5.5 \times 10^8) \div (1.1 \times 10^2) = 5 \times 10^6$.

  • Addition/Subtraction: Convert numbers to the same power of ten base, perform the operation, then convert back to scientific notation. Increasing an exponent (moving it toward zero for negatives) requires moving the coefficient's decimal to the left.

• Percent Change and Proportions:

  • $\text{Percent Change} = \frac{\text{New Value} - \text{Old Value}}{\text{Old Value}} \times 100\%$

  • $\text{Percentage of a Whole} = \frac{\text{Part}}{\text{Whole}} \times 100$

• Dimensional Analysis: Used for converting units. Rules include:

  1. Units must be the same diagonally to cancel.

  2. Values in the conversion factor must be equal vertically (e.g., $\frac{1\,\text{foot}}{12\,\text{inches}}$).

  3. Always start with the given value.

Introduction to Environmental Science and Sustainability

• Definition: Environmental Science is a field of study focused on understanding the relationship between humans and the environment, incorporating ecology, biology, chemistry, economics, ethics, and sociology.

• Sustainability: The ability to use a resource or engage in an activity without jeopardizing the ability of future generations to do the same.

• Anthropogenic: Refers to environmental changes caused specifically by human activity.

• Environmental Management:

  • Mitigation: Reducing the impact of an issue to make it less severe (e.g., planting vegetation to prevent erosion).

  • Remediation: Fixing a problem by treating or removing pollutants (e.g., excavating contaminated soil or removing asbestos).

• Footprints:

  • Carbon Footprint: Total greenhouse gases (carbon dioxide and methane) generated by actions.

  • Ecological Footprint: Metric measuring the biologically productive land and water area required to support a population's consumption and waste assimilation.

Earth Systems and Feedback Mechanisms

• Open vs. Closed Systems:

  • Open System: Materials and energy enter and leave (e.g., energy from the sun enters and leaves Earth daily).

  • Closed System: Materials are not exchanged. Nutrients on Earth must be recycled because no new nutrients arrive.

• Feedback Loops:

  • Positive Feedback Loop: A process where an initial change is amplified, moving the system away from the normal baseline (e.g., childbirth: baby pushes cervix $\rightarrow$ brain stimulates oxytocin $\rightarrow$ contractions increase $\rightarrow$ baby pushes more).

  • Negative Feedback Loop: A process where the output reduces the original stimulus to return the system to its baseline stability or homeostasis (e.g., thermoregulation: body temperature increases $\rightarrow$ sweating activates $\rightarrow$ temperature decreases).

Aquatic Ecosystem Health and Eutrophication

• Lakes States:

  • Eutrophic: Rich in nutrients and plant life; low dissolved oxygen ($DO$).

  • Oligotrophic: Poor in nutrients with clear water; high dissolved oxygen ($DO$).

• Eutrophication Process (Sequential steps):

  1. Nitrogen and Phosphorus from fertilizers and feces contaminate water bodies.

  2. Algae in the water absorb the nitrogen and reproduce quickly (algal bloom).

  3. Algae die of natural causes.

  4. Bacteria decompose the dead algae.

  5. Bacteria consume dissolved oxygen during the decomposition process.

  6. The water becomes hypoxic (low oxygen).

  7. Aquatic organisms, such as fish, drown from the lack of dissolved oxygen.

Atmospheric Science: Criteria Air Pollutants

• Nitrogen Dioxide ($NO_x$): Released from fossil fuel combustion.

• Ozone ($O_3$): Formed due to the breakdown of $NO_x$ in sunlight.

• Sulfur Dioxide ($SO_x$): Released from coal combustion.

• Carbon Monoxide ($CO$): Released from incomplete combustion.

• Lead ($Pb$): Formerly found in gasoline.

• Particulate Matter ($PM$): Released from construction and mining.

Scientific Method and Experimental Design

• Hypothesis Formulation:

  • Null Hypothesis ($H_0$): Assumes no relationship between two variables (e.g., "If patients take the drug, blood pressure will not be affected").

  • Alternative Hypothesis ($H_1$): Proposes a measurable relationship or effect.

• Variable Types:

  • Independent Variable: The cause or manipulated factor (X-axis).

  • Dependent Variable: The response or effect that is measured (Y-axis).

  • Constants/Control Variables: Factors that must stay the same in all groups to avoid confounding results (e.g., amount of water, soil, and light for plants).

• Experimental Groups:

  • Experimental Group: Receives the treatment being tested.

  • Control Group: Receives no treatment; serves as the baseline for comparison.

• Relationship Types:

  • Direct: Both variables increase or decrease together.

  • Inverse: One variable increases as the other decreases (e.g., altitude vs. temperature).

Human Impact: Tragedy of the Commons

• Concept: The Tragedy of the Commons suggests that individuals will use shared resources in their own self-interest rather than for the common good, leading to the depletion of those resources.

• Case Study: Mississippi River (Minneapolis-St. Paul):

  • Historically, the river was used as a "commons" for dumping untreated sewage and industrial contaminants.

  • Consequences: Typhoid fever from tainted water killed an average of $95$ people per year between $1891$ and $1910$. By the $1930s$, a mat of sludge formed behind the Ford dam. A $1926$ study found only two living fish south of St. Anthony Falls.

  • Remedy: Large public investment in the $1990s$ separated storm sewers from sanitary lines to stop raw sewage flow during storms.