1: Systems And Models Flashcards
Define ‘ecosystem’
Biological community of interdependent organisms and they physical environment they inhabit
Define ‘biome’
Ecosystems with similar climatic conditions (e.g. The desert)
Define ‘The Gaia hypothesis’
Our planet function as a single organism - James Lovelock 1860’s
Define ‘open system’
A system where both matter and energy are exchanged across
Define ‘closed system’
System where energy but not matter is exchanges across
Define ‘isolated system’
A system where neither energy nor matter is exchanged
Give an example each of the open system, closed system and isolates system
E.g. Open = ecosystem, closed = water or nitrogen cycles, isolated = our entire universe
What is the first law of thermodynamics
Energy cannot be created nor destroyed
List all kinds of energy
Light, heat, chemical, electrical and kinetic
Define ‘equilibrium’
Statement of balance in a system
List all 4 equilibriums
Steady state, static, stable and unstable
Define ‘steady-state equilibrium’
An equilibrium despite constant inputs and outputs of energy and matter, the overall stability of the system remains
Define ‘static equilibrium’
Systems whet they rid bit input if energy or matter, and there is no change in the system over time
Define ‘unstable equilibrium’
Where a system does not return to the same equilibrium following disturbance but forms a new equilibrium
Define ‘stable equilibrium’
Where a system deserves to the original equilibrium following a disturbance
