Chapter 9: Food And Agriculture

Front 1

Chronically Undernourished

Back 1

-nearly 60 percent of residents in developing countries (1960)
-diet doesn't provide 2200kcal per day on average

Front 2

With increasing populations, will we have enough food to feed everyone in the sufficiently?

Back 2

Yes, if the food was distributed equally, everyone could have 2800kcal per day. By 2030, everyone could have 3050kcal.

Front 3

Food Security

Back 3

the ability to obtain sufficient food on a day-to-day basis.

poverty is the greatest threat to this.

Front 4

How might a healthy diet affect poverty?

Back 4

-it might eliminate as much as 60% of all premature deaths worldwide.
-improved nutrition also contributes to economic growth (could yield more than $120 billion in economic growth by extending the lifespan of millions of people)

Front 5

Famine

Back 5

large-scale food shortages, massive starvation, social disruption, and economic chaos. and are also characterized by mass migrations of people to refugee camps in search for food and medical care.

Front 6

What are the root causes of starvation and national food emergencies?

Back 6

Environmental conditions are the immediate triggers, but politics and economics are usually the source of the conflict.

Front 7

Malnourishment

Back 7

a nutritional imbalance caused by a lack of specific dietary components or an inability to absorb or utilize essential nutrients. (3 billion ppl in the world suffer from vitamin, mineral, or protein deficiencies)

Front 8

Anemia

Back 8

low hemoglobin levels in the blood, usually caused by dietary iron deficiency. It is the most common nutritional problem in the world. (2 billion people)

Front 9

Good sources of iron?

Back 9

Red meat, eggs, legumes and green vegetables

Front 10

Chronic iodine deficiency

Back 10

Iodine is essential for the synthesis of thyroxin, an endocrine hormone that regulates metabolism and brain development. The iodine deficiency causes goiter (swollen thyroid gland), stunted growth and reduced mental ability.

Front 11

Kwashiorkor (protein deficiency)

Back 11

means "displaced child" - a young child is displaced and deprived of nutritious breast milk. This condition most often occurs in young children who eat mostly cheap starchy foods and dont get enough good-quality protein. They have reddish-orange hair, and puffy discolored skin and a bloated belly

Front 12

Marasmus

Back 12

"to waste away". It is caused by a diet low in both calories and protein. A child is usually thin and shriveled, like a tiny, very old, starving person. They have low resistance to infection, have stunted growth, mental retardation, and more.

Front 13

Obese

Back 13

seriously overweight; generally considered to be a body mass greater than 30 kg/m^2 (30 pounds above normal for an average person)

annually, 300,000 people die from diseases related to obesity in the United States

Front 14

Dietary recommendations in 1992

Back 14

eat daily servings of meat, dairy products, grains and fruits and vegetables.

Front 15

New recent recommendations on diet

Back 15

red meat, starchy foods - eat sparingly. nuts, legumes, fruit, vegetables, whole grain foods - substantial part of your diet. unsaturated plant oils - 30% of calories. trans fat - none at all.

Front 16

What are the three major crops on which humanity depends?

Back 16

wheat, rice, maize (corn)
1900 million metric tons are grown each year.

Front 17

Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs)

Back 17

-where most of the livestock in North America is raised
-facilities in which large numbers of animals spend most of or all of their life in confinement.

Front 18

Problems with CAFOs

Back 18

-serious local air and water pollution
-storage and disposal of waste
-dumping waste can contaminate groundwater supplies
-constant use of antibiotics and growth hormones causes antibiotic resistant in the humans that eat the meat.

Front 19

"By-catch"

Back 19

Large boats sweep patches of the ocean clean of any fish in a few hours, and end up catching many animals they never intended to pick up. The by-catch will most likely die and be thrown back into the ocean.

Front 20

Aquaculture

Back 20

when one grows aquatic species in net pens or tanks.

Front 21

Soil

Back 21

a complex mixture of weathered mineral materials from rocks, partially decomposed organic molecules, and a host of living organisms.

Front 22

Describe the effect particle size can have on soil.

Back 22

-The spaces between sand particles allows sandy soil to have good drainage and can be well aerated. But, this is also causes it to dry out quickly.
-In silty or clay soils, the small particles are tightly packed. This makes them less permeable to air and water. But, they can store water and mineral ions better.

Front 23

Heavy soils vs. light soils

Back 23

Soils with a high clay content are called "heavy soils"
Soils that are composed mostly of sand or silt are called "light soils"
A mixture can be used.
Sandy loam is the best for farmers to use.

Front 24

Humus

Back 24

a sticky, brown, insoluble residue from the partially decomposed bodies of dead plants and animals. It is the most significant factor in the structure of the soil - how the soil particles clump together.

Front 25

Describe the important of living organisms in the soil

Back 25

-help create structure, fertility, and tilth
-thin top layer of soil can contain thousands of species and organisms per hectare.
-they aid in many important processes in the soil.

Front 26

Micorrhizal symbiosis

Back 26

an association between the roots of most plant species and certain fungi. The plant provides organic compounds to the fungus, while water and inorganic nutrients are absorbed from the soil and transferred to the plant. So, micorrhizal plants grow better than those lacking fungal partners.

Front 27

Soil horizons

Back 27

horizontal layers in the soil

Front 28

Soil profile

Back 28

All of the characteristics from all of the horizons, including the thickness, color, texture, and composition of each one.

Front 29

O horizon

Back 29

a layer of leaf litter, crop residues, or other partially decomposed organic material.

Front 30

A horizon

Back 30

the topsoil. It is composed of mineral particles mixed with organic material. Most plants spread their roots to absorb water and nutrients in the O and A horizons

Front 31

Contour plowing

Back 31

plowing across the hill rather than up and down

Front 32

Cover crops

Back 32

when crop residues are not adequate to protect the soil or are inappropriate for subsequent crops or farming methods, cover crops can be planted after harvest to hold and protect the soil

Front 33

Desertification

Back 33

conversion of productive lands to desert. this contributes to food insecurity, famine and poverty.

Front 34

Genetically modified organisms (GMOs)

Back 34

synthesizing artificial DNA sequences to create desired characteristics

Front 35

Genetic engineering

Back 35

removing genetic material from one organism and splicing it into the chromosomes of another. This can increase the quantity and quality of our food supply.

Front 36

Green revolution

Back 36

dramatically increased agricultural production brought about by "miracle" strains of grain; usually requires high inputs of water, plant nutrients, and pesticides.

Front 37

Gully erosion

Back 37

when rills enlarge to form bigger channels or ravines that are too large to be removed by normal tillage operations.

Front 38

Streambank erosion

Back 38

the washing away of soil from the banks of established streams, creeks, or rivers, often as a result of removing trees and brush along streambanks and by cattle damage to the banks.

Front 39

Mulch

Back 39

the general term for protective ground cover that can include manure, wood chips, straw, seaweed, leaves, and other natural products.

Front 40

Perennial species

Back 40

plants that grow for more than two years. they can help protect unstable soils on sloping sites or watercourses

Front 41

Reduced tilage systems

Back 41

minimum till - reducing the number of times a farmer disturbs the soil by plowing, cultivating, etc.
conserv-till - uses a coulter which slices through the soil, opening up a furrow or slot justwide enough to inert seeds. This disturbs the soil very little.
no-till - drilling seeds into the ground directly through mulch and ground cover. this allows a cover crop to be interseeded with a subsequent crop.

Front 42

Regolith

Back 42

made of weathered rock fragments with very little organic material

Front 43

subsoil

Back 43

the B horizon; can have a dense or clayey texture because of the accumulated clays.

Front 44

rill erosion

Back 44

when little rivulets of running water gather together and cut small channels in the soil

Front 45

sheet erosion

Back 45

a thin layer taken off the land surface

Front 46

salinization

Back 46

mineral salts accumulate in soil, occurs particularly when soils in dry climates are irrigated with saline water. as the water evaporates, it leaves behind a salty crust on the soil surface that is lethal to most plants

Front 47

sustainable agriculture

Back 47

regenerative farming, or agroecology, all of which aim to produce food and fiber on a sustainable basis and repair the damage caused by destructive practices.

Front 48

terracing

Back 48

involves shaping the land to create level shelves of earth to hold water and soil.

Front 49

waterlogging

Back 49

soil that is saturated with water and plant roots die from lack of oxygen.