Environmental 1.1 – Flashcards
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Environment
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Th environment is all living and nonliving things with which organisms interact.
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Environmental Science
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The study of how the natural world works, how our environment affects us, and how we affect our environment
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Environmentalism
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A social movement dedicated to protecting the natural world from undesirable changes brought about by human actions.
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Natural Resource
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A material or energy source provided by nature that people need to survive.
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Renewable Resource
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Natural resources such as fruits and grains, are naturally replenished, or renewed over short periods.
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Nonrenewable Natural Resource
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Resources such as coal and oil are nonrenewable because they are naturally formed much more slowly than we use them.
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Sustainable
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Resource use is considered sustainable if it can continue at the same rate into the foreseeable future.
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Fossil Fuel
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Nonrenewable energy resources such as oil, coal, and natural gas are known as fossil fuels.
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Ecological Footprint
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Expresses the environmental effects of an individual or population in terms of the total amount of land and water required.
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List three examples of nonliving things in the environment.
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Continents, oceans, clouds.
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Give two reasons why environmental science is important.
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- studying environmental science reminds us that we are part of the natural world and how we interact with it matters a great deal.
- understanding interactions between humans and the environment is the first step toward solving environmental problems.
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Name four of the disciplines that contribute to the study of our interactions with the environment.
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Biology, chemistry, ecology, economics
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What is the difference between environmental science and environmentalism?
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Environmental science is the pursuit of knowledge about the workings of the environment and our interactions with it. Environmentalism is a social movement dedicated to protecting the natural world.
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Nature makes resources at similar speeds.
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False; Nature makes resources at different speeds.
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Fruit is an example of a renewable resource.
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True.
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For most of human history, population has been high and relatively stable.
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False; For most of human history, the population has been low and relatively stable.
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The Industrial Revolution marked a shift from a rural society to an urban society powered by renewable resources.
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False; The Industrial Revolution marked a shift from a rural society to an urban society powered by nonrenewable resources.
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Our ecological footprint is affected by the number of people on Earth and how much we consume.
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True.
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The tragedy of the commons refers to the overuse of unregulated resources.
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True.
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Why are sunlight and oil on opposite sides of the renew ability continuum?
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Sunlight is always available and oil is a nonrenewable resource.
