Environmental Science Final Exam Review – Flashcards
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Environmental Science
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The study of the impact of humans on the environment.
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Ecology
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the branch of biology concerned with the relations between organisms and their environment.
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Ecological Footprint
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The amount of biologically productive land and water needed to support a person or population.
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Natural Resource
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any material in nature that people use and value.
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Pollution
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Release of harmful materials into the environment.
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Biodiversity
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variety of many different species in an area, the variety of species living within an ecosystem.
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Hunter-Gatherers
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people who hunt animals and gather wild plants, seeds, fruits, and nuts to survive.
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Agricultural Revolution
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The time when human beings first domesticated plants and animals and no longer relied entirely on hunting and gathering. Started 10,000 years ago.
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Industrial Revolution
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the change from an agricultural to an industrial society and from home manufacturing to factory production, especially the one that took place in England from about 1750 to about 1850.
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Sustainability
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The ability to keep in existence or maintain. A sustainable ecosystem is one that can be maintained.
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Biodegradable
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Able to be broken down naturally.
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Geosphere
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The mostly soild, rocky part of the earth; extends from the center of the core to the surfaceof the crust.
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Lithosphere
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the solid part of the earth consisting of the crust and outer mantle.
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Asthenosphere
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The solid, plastic layer of the mantle beneath the lithosphere; made of mantle rock that flows very slowly, which allows tectonic plates to move on top of it.
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Tectonic Plate
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a block of lithosphere that consists of the crust and the rigid, outermost part of the mantle.
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Erosion
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The process by which wind, water, ice, or gravity transports soil and sediment from one location to another.
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Atmosphere
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the mass of air surrounding the Earth.
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Troposphere
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The lowest layer of the atmoshere, in which temerature decreases at a constant rate as altitude increases.
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Stratosphere
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the layer of the atmosphere that contains the ozone layer; temperature increases as you go up. Roughly 10-50 km above the earth.
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Ozone
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a gas molecule that is made up of three oxygen atoms.
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Greenhouse Effect
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warming of the Earth due to the insulating effect of gases in the atmosphere, such as carbon dioxide and water vapor.
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Water Cycle
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the continuous process by which water moves from Earth's surface to the atmosphere and back.
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Evaporation
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the process by which water changes from liquid form to an atmospheric gas.
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Condensation
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the process of changing from a gaseous to a liquid or solid state.
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Precipitation
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the falling to earth of any form of water. (rain or snow or hail or sleet or mist)
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Salinity
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the relative proportion of salt in a solution.
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Biosphere
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the regions of the surface and atmosphere of the Earth (or other planet) where living organisms exist.
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Ecosystem
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a system formed by the interaction of a community of organisms with their physical environment.
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Biotic Factor
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a living part of an ecosystem.
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Abiotic Factor
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a nonliving part of an ecosystem.
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Organism
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A living thing.
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Species
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group of similar organisms that can breed and produce fertile offspring.
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Population
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a group of organisms of the same species populating a given area.
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Community
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(ecology) a group of interdependent organisms inhabiting the same region and interacting with each other.
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Habitat
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Place where an Organism lives.
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Natural Selection
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a natural process resulting in the evolution of organisms best adapted to the environment.
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Evolution
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change in a kind of organism over time; process by which modern organisms have descended from ancient organisms.
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Adaptation
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inherited characteristic that increases an organism's chance of survival.
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Artificial Selection
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selection by humans for breeding of useful traits from the natural variation among different organisms.
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Resistance
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ability to tolerate a chemical or disease.
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Archebacteria
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prokaryotic live in harsh enviroments.
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Eubacteria
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True bacteria.
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Fungus
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decomposer.
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Protist
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algae and protozones.
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Gymnosperm
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cone bearing plants.
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Angiosperm
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flowering plants.
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Invertebrate
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animals without backbones.
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Vertebrate
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animals with backbones.
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Photosynthesis
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plants using sunlight to make food.
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Producer
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makes it's own food.
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Consumer
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must find and eat food.
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Decomposer
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breaks down dead organisms.
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Cellular Respiration
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how an organism uses food for energy.
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Food Chain
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pathway of energy tranfer by feeding.
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Food Web
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a diagram of feeding relationships.
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Carbon Cycle
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the organic circulation of carbon from the atmosphere into organisms and back again.
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Nitrogen Cycle
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the transfer of nitrogen from the atmosphere to the soil, to living organisms, and back to the atmosphere.
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Ecological Succession
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gradual change in living communities that follows a disturbance.
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Primary Succession
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succession that occurs on surfaces where no soil exists.
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Secondary Succession
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succession on a site where an existing community has been disrupted.
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Pioneer Species
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first species to populate an area during primary succession.
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Climax Community
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Last community in a succession.
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Biome
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a major biotic community characterized by the dominant forms of plant life and the prevailing climate.
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Climate
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the weather in some location averaged over some long period of time.
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Latitude
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an imaginary line around the Earth parallel to the equator.
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Altitude
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elevation especially above sea level or above the earth's surface.
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Population Density
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number of individuals per unit area.
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Dispersion
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The pattern of distribution of organisms in a population.
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Growth Rate
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population growth over time.
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Exponential Growth
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growth pattern in which the individuals in a population reproduce at a constant rate.
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Carrying Capacity
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largest number of individuals of a population that a environment can support.
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Niche
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(ecology) the status of an organism within its environment and community. (affecting its survival as a species)
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Predation
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the act of preying by a predator who kills and eats the prey.
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Parasitism
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Symbolic relationship in which one organism lives on or in another organism and harms it.
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Mutualism
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symbiotic relationship in which both species benefit from the relationship.
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Symbiosis
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relationship in which two species live closely together.
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Demography
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the branch of sociology that studies the characteristics of human populations.
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Age Structure
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proportion of people in different age groups in a population.
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Fertility Rate
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the ratio of live births in an area to the population of that area.
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Migration
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the movement of persons from one country or locality to another.
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Life Expectancy
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an expected time to live as calculated on the basis of statistical probabilities.
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Mortality
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death rate.
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Emigration
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movement of individuals out of an area.
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Immigration
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movement of individuals into an area occupied by an existing population.
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Developed
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industrialized, lower population growth.
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Developing
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agricultural, higher population growth.
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Endangered Species
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close to extinction.
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Threatened Species
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a species that could become endangered in the near future.
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Exotic Species
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organisms that are not native to a particular area.
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Poaching
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illegal hunting.
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Endemic Species
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species that are native to and found only within a limited area.
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Surface Water
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Water above the surface of the land, including lakes, rivers, streams, ponds, floodwater, and runoff.
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River System
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a river and its tributaries.
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Watershed
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the area of land that is drained by a water system.
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Groundwater
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water under the earth's surface.
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Aquifer
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a body of rock or sediment that stores groundwater and allows the flow of groundwater.
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Porosity
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The percentage of the total volume of a rock or sediment that consists of open spaces.
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Permeability
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ability of rock or soil to allow water to flow through it.
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Recharge Zone
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an area in which water travels downward to become part of an aquifer.
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Potable
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suitable for drinking.
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Reservoir
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artificial body of water.
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Point-Source Pollution
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Pollutants discharged from a single identifiable location (e.g., pipes, ditches, channels, sewers, tunnels, containers of various types).
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Non-Point Pollution
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water pollution that does not have a specific point of origin.
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Thermal Pollution
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The excessive heating of a body of water.
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Biomagnifications
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The accumulation of pollutants at successive levels of the food chain.
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Primary Pollutant
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a pollutant that is put directly into the air by human activity.
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Secondary Pollutant
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A pollutant that forms in the atmosphere by chemical reaction with primary pollutants, natural compenents of the air, or both.
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Smog
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smoke and fog.
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Acid Precipitation
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acid rain.
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Ozone Layer
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a layer in the stratosphere (at approximately 20 miles) that contains a concentration of ozone sufficient to block most ultraviolet radiation from the sun.
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Chloroflurocarbons
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A compound causing ozone depletion. This reaction occurs in polar stratopheric clouds over Antartica.
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Ozone Hole
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an area of the ozone layer (near the poles) that is seasonally depleted of ozone.
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Greenhouse Gases
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gases in the atmosphere that trap energy.
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Kyoto Protocol
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Countries which ratify this protocol commit to reduce their emissions of carbon dioxide.
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Fossil Fuel
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energy source from dead organsims.
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Nuclear Energy
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energy from atomic fission and fusion.
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Renewable Energy
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self making energy.
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Solar Energy
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energy from the sun.
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Biomass Fuel
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Fuel that derives from plant material and animal waste.
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Hydroelectric Energy
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energy from water.
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Geothermal Energy
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energy from heat.
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Alternative Energy
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energy not from fossil fuels.
