Flashcards
Environmental Test 1
Cards in this deck (107)
- 1Environmental ScienceStudy of how the natural world works, how the environment affects us, and how we affect it.
- 2Natural ResourcesThe substances/energy sources we take from the environment.
- 3Renewable natural resources.Replenishes over short periods of time.
- 4Inexhaustiblesunlight, wind, and wave energy are perpetually renewed.
- 5ExhaustibleTimber, Water, Animal Populations, and Fertile soil take months to years to replenish.
- 6Nonrenewable natural resourcesFormed much slowly then we use them and are no longer available once depleted.
- 7Ecosystem servicesAir, water purification, cycling of nutrients, climate regulation, pollination, and waste cycling.
- 8Agricultural Revolutiongrows crops and domestic animals.
- 9Industrial RevolutionShifted life towards an urban society powered by fossil fuels.
- 10Ecological footprintsThe total area of land and water needed to provide resources and waste disposal for a person.
- 11OvershootWhen we surpass earth's capacity to sustainably support our population
- 12Natural CapitalEarth's store of resources and ecosystem services
- 13Natural StudiesFocus on how the natural world works
- 14Social SciencesAddress human interactions and institutions
- 15EnvironmentalismA social Movement dedicated to protecting the natural world from undesirable changes brought on by human actions.
- 16Scientific MethodFormalized technique for testing ideas.
Observation -> Questions -> Hypothesis -> Test -> Result. - 17Independent VariableCondition that changed and will be tested.
- 18Dependent VariableResulting condition that depends on the independent variable.
- 19Controlled ExperimentIndependent variable is only changed
- 20Manipulative ExperimentResearcher chooses/manipulated the independent variable.
- 21Natural ExperimentCompare how different variables are expressed in naturally occurring, but different, context.
- 22TheoryWidely accepted, well-tested explanation of one or more cause-and-effect relationships that have been extensively validated by a great amount of testing.
- 23EthicsBranch of philosophy that studies how people decide what is good/bad and right/wrong.
- 24RelativistsEthics vary with social context.
- 25UniversalistsEthics are consistent across all cultures/contexts.
- 26Environmental EthicsApplication of ethical standards to the relationships between humans and nonhuman entities.
- 27BiocentrismInherent value to both human and nonhuman life.
- 28AnthropocentrismHuman-centered view that evaluates costs and benefits of actions solely on their impact on people.
- 29EcocentrismJudges actions based on their effects on ecological systems.
- 30Gifford PinchatPromoted conservation ethic.
- 31John MuirPromoted a preserved ethic.
- 32SustainabilityBuilding principle of modern ES.
- 33SpeciesA classification of organisms whose members can interbreed and produce fertile offspring.
- 34PopulationA group of individuals from the same species that live in the same area at the same time.
- 35DemographyThe study of how and why the number of individuals in a population changes over time.
- 36EvolutionPopulations change over multiple generations as genetics change alter their physical and behavioral characteristics.
- 37Natural SelectionA process that favors certain inherited characteristics over others, causing them to be passed on more frequently.
- 38Natural selection was first proposed in 1850 by?Charles Darwin and Alfred Wallace
- 39The idea of natural selection is based on 3 observations.-Organisms face a constant struggle to survive and reproduce.
- Organisms tend to produce more offspring than can survive to maturity.
- Individuals of a species vary in their attributes. - 40MutationsAccidental change in DNA that gives rise to genetic variation in individuals.
- 41Convergent EvolutionUnrelated species living in similar environments may independently acquire similar traits.
- 42BiodiversityThe variety of life across all levels,.
- 43SpeciationThe process by which new species are generated.
- 44Allopatric SpeciationPopulations become physically separated over a geographic distance.
- 45Phylogenetic TreesThe way scientists represent the history of divergence.
- 46FossilAn imprint of a dead organism.
- 47Fossil RecordThe body of fossils worldwide.
- 48How many extinctions are there?5 Mass extinctions that wiped 50-95% of earths species.
- 49Mass ExtinctionRapid extinction of a large # of lineages scattered throughout the tree of life.
- 50EcologyThe study of the interactions among organisms and with their environments.
- 51OrganismA single living thing.
- 52PopulationA group of individuals of the same species that live in the same area.
- 53CommunityAll the populations of species that live and interact within an area.
- 54EcosystemsInclude communities and all of the abiotic, or nonliving, parts of the environment.
- 55Ecosystem EcologyStudies the flow of energy and nutrients between the living and nonliving parts.
- 56BiosphereThe sum total of all living things and habitats on earth.
- 57NicheAn organisms role in its community.
- 58GeneralistsSpecies that can utilize a wider variety of resources.
- 59Population SizeThe # of organisms in an area at a given time, will grow when resources are abundant and natural enemies are few.
- 60Population DensityDescribes the # of individuals per unit area.
- 61Population DistributionThe spatial arrangement of organisms within an area.
- 62Sex RatioProportion of males to females.
- 63Age StructuresThe number of individuals of different ages within a population.
- 64Rate of natural increaseSubtract the death rate from birth rate.
- 65Population Growth Rate(Birth rate - death rate) +
(immigration rate - emigration rate) - 66Growth rate expressed by percentagepopulation growth rate x 100%
- 67Exponential GrowthWhen a population increases by a fixed percentage each year.
- 68CompetitionOrganisms that seek the same resource have a relationship.
- 69Intraspecific CompetitionTakes place between members of the same species.
- 70InterspecificTakes place between members of different species.
- 71PredationThe process by which individuals of one species (the predator) capture, kill, and consume individuals of another (the prey).
- 72ParatismA relationship where 1 organism depends on the other for nourishment.
- 73PathogensParasites that cause disease.
- 74CoevolutionParasites and hosts adapt and counter-adapt to each other.
- 75Evolutionary Arms RaceThe duel of escalating adaptions between parasites and hosts.
- 76HerbivoryAnimals feed on the tissues of plants.
- 77MutualismA relationship where 2 or more species benefit each other.
- 78Community EcologistsStudy which species coexist, how they interact, how communities change over time, and why these patterns occur.
- 79Trophic LevelsWhen species in a community are given a rank within the feeding hierarchy.
- 80How the food chain worksTertiary Consumers --> Secondary Consumers --> Primary Consumers --> Producers
- 81DetritivoresScavenge waste and dead bodies.
- 82BiomassCollective mass of living matter in a given place and time.
- 83Food WebIncorporate all of the interlinking food chains within an entire community, showing the map of energy flow.
- 84Keystone SpeciesA species that has a far impact greater than its abundance.
- 85Trophic CascadeIf top predators are lost, primary consumers will over consume producers and alter the entire ecosystem.
- 86DisturbanceAny event that has rapid and drastic effects on the community and ecosystems.
- 87SuccessionSevere disturbance may eliminate all or most of the species in a community, initiating a series of changes.
- 88Primary SuccessionOccurs when a disturbance removes all plant or soil life.
- 89Secondary SuccessionBegins with a disturbance that alters that the community but leaves the soil life intact. (farming, fires)
- 90Regime ShiftThe entire chara cter of the community changes from a disturbance.
- 91Introduced SpeciesNon-Native arrivals to a community brought by people.
- 92Invasive SpeciesMost fail to establish populations, but these are the one that thrive.
- 93Restoration EcologyScientists who study this, devise ways to restore altered areas to their condition before industrialized civilization.
- 94Ecological Restoration has two aims- Restore the functionality of an ecosystem.
-Return a community to its "pre-settlement" condition. - 95BiomeA regional Complex of similar communities.
- 96Climate Diagrams/ClimatographsDepict seasonal changes in temperature and precipitation and help to tell the story of biome.
- 97Deciduous ForestsFound at mid latitudes and have relatively even precipitation throughout the year. Winters are frozen.
- 98Temperature GrasslandsExperience seasonal temperature variation and two little precipitation for trees to grow.
- 99Temperature RainforestsRich in rainfall but, still found in mid-latitudes. Soils are fertile, and most contain coniferous trees.
- 100Tropical RainforestsHave dark, damp interiors, lush vegetation, and highly diverse communities. Acidic soils, that are low in organic matter.
- 101Tropical Dry ForestsHave wet and dry seasons that each occupy about half the year. Temperature consistently warm and leaves shed during dry season.
- 102SavannasTropical grassland interpreted with trees. Distinct wet and dry seasons and found in dry tropical areas.
- 103DesertThe driest biome, receiving less than 25 cm of rain per year. Soils have high minerals and low organic matter.
- 104TundrasVery dry; but are consistently cold all year. Occupied by humans. Underground soil is frozen.
- 105PermafrosUnderground soil is permanently frozen.
- 106Boreal Forest/TaigaCold, but receive more precipitation than tundras. Soils are acidic and nutrient-proof and dominated by few species of evergreen trees.
- 107ChaparralOnly found in a few small patches throughout the world. Mild wet winters, warm dry summers.
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- Flashcards on Environmental Test 1, created by Noel Giordano on 10/10/2022.
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- Noel Giordano
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