Ap Enviro Part 2

Front 1

death rate

Back 1

the rate at which deaths occur in a population. number of individuals dying per unit of time or percentage of deaths per time

Front 2

decomposers

Back 2

organisms that feed on dead matter

Front 3

demographic transition

Back 3

Patterns of births and death rates as country goes from underdeveloped to developed.

1. birth and death rates are high and growth rate is low.

2. Birth rate is high but death rate decreases and the growth rate is high

3. birth rate drops toward the death rate and the growth rate decreases

Front 4

Dentrification

Back 4

the conversion of nitrate to molecular nitrogen by the action of bacteria. Important for Nitrogen cycle

Front 5

Desertification

Back 5

the process of creating a desert where there was not one before

Front 6

divergent Evolution

Back 6

organisms with the smae ancestral genetic heritage migrate to different habitats and evolve into species with different external forms and structures but typically continue to use the same kind of habitats

Front 7

dominants

Back 7

the tallest, most numerous, and vigorous trees in a forest community

Front 8

doubling Time

Back 8

the time necessary for a quantity of whatever is being measured to double

Front 9

Drainage Basin

Back 9

the area that contributes surface water to a particular stream network

Front 10

Early-Successional Species

Back 10

Spcies that occur only or primarily during early stages of succession

Front 11

Ecological Island

Back 11

An area that is biologically isolated so that a species occurring within the area cannot mix with any other population of the same species

Front 12

Ecological Niche

Back 12

The general concept is that the niche is a species' "profession"- what it does to make a living

Front 13

Ecological Succession

Back 13

the process of the development of an ecological community or ecosystem, usually viewed as a series of stages-early,middle, late, mature (climax), and sometimes postclimax. Primary succession is an original establishment; secondary succession is a reestablishment

Front 14

Ecosystem

Back 14

An ecological community and its local, nonbiological community. An ecosystem is the minimum system that includes and sustains life. It must include at least an autotroph, a decomposer, a liquid medium, a source and sink of energy, and all the chemical elements required by the autotroph and the decomposer

Front 15

Ecosystem Energy Flow

Back 15

the flow of energy through an ecosystem-from external environment through a series of organisms and back to the external environment

Front 16

Energy

Back 16

an abstract concept referring to the ability or capacity to do work

Front 17

Energy Efficiency

Back 17

The ratio of the actual amount of energy delivered to the amount of energy supplied to meet a particular need (First law of efficiency). The ratio of the maximum available work needed to perform a particular task to the actual work used to perform that task (Second law efficiency)

Front 18

Entropy

Back 18

a measure in a system of the amount of energy that is unavailable for useful work. As disorder of system increases, entropy increases.

Front 19

Environmental Unity

Back 19

Everything affects everything else around it.

Front 20

Exotic Species

Back 20

Species introduced into a new area, one in which it had not evolved

Front 21

Exponential Growth

Back 21

Growth in which the rate of increase is a constant percentage of the current size.

Front 22

Facilitation

Back 22

During succession, a species prepares for the next

Front 23

Feedback

Back 23

a kind of system response that occurs when output of the system also serves as input leading to changes in the system

Front 24

First Law of Thermodynamics

Back 24

energy may not be created or destroyed but it is always conserved

Front 25

First-Law Efficiency

Back 25

the ration of the actual amount of energy delivered where it is needed to the amount of energy supplied in order to meet the need; expressed as a percentage

Front 26

Fission

Back 26

splitting of an atom into smaller fragments with the release of energy

Front 27

Food Chains

Back 27

the linkage of who feeds on whom

Front 28

Food Web

Back 28

a network of who feeds on whom or a diagram showing who feeds on whom. Same as food chain but more complex.

Front 29

Fossil Fuels

Back 29

Forms of stored solar energy created from incomplete biological decomposition of dead organic matter

Front 30

Fuel Cells

Back 30

a device that produces electricity directly from a chemical reaction in a specially designed cell. Hydrogen may be used a fuel while oxidant is the suppliant. Oxygen combines with Hydrogen if hydrogen were burned it then separated by an electrolyte solution then releasing the electrons through wire

Front 31

Fusion

Back 31

combining light elements to form heavier element with the release of energy

Front 32

Gaia Hypothesis

Back 32

organisms interact with their inorganic surroundings on Earth to form a self-regulating, complex system that helps to maintain the conditions for life on the planet

Front 33

Gene

Back 33

A single unit of genetic information comprised of a complex segment of the four DNA base-pair compunds

Front 34

genetic drift

Back 34

Changes in the frequency of a gene in a population as a result of chance than mutation, selection, or migration

Front 35

GMC (Genetically Modified Crops)

Back 35

Crops modified through genetic engineering to produce higher crop yields and increase resistance many factors

Front 36

Geothermal Energy

Back 36

the useful conversion of natural heat from the interior of Earth

Front 37

Geologic cycle

Back 37

The formation and destructio of earth materials and the processes responsible for these events. Cycle includes: hydrologic, tectonic, rock, and geochemical

Front 38

Green revolution

Back 38

new wave of cultural programs that have led to the development of new strains of crops with higher yields, resistance to disease, or grow better under poor conditions

Front 39

Gross Production

Back 39

Production before respiration losses are subtracted

Front 40

Growth Rate

Back 40

Net Increase of factor per unit time. (B-D=G)

Front 41

Habitat

Back 41

where an individual, species, or population exists or can exist

Front 42

Hard Path

Back 42

energy policy based on the emphasis of energy quantity generally produced from large, centralized power plant. Energy focuses on the fossil fuels we use now.

Front 43

Heterotrophs

Back 43

Cannot produce own food from energy or inorganic material so they feed off of other organisms

Front 44

High-Level Radioactive Waste

Back 44

Extremely toxic nuclear waste

Front 45

Human Carrying Capacity

Back 45

Theoretical estimates of the number of humans who could inhabit earth at the same time