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Env Sci > 5.0 > Flashcards

5.0 Flashcards

1
Q

What is evolution?

A

Change over time.

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2
Q

What is a gene?

A

A sequence of DNA that codes for a particular trait.

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3
Q

What is a mutation?

A

A change in DNA.

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4
Q

What is genetic drift?

A

Biological evolution that occurs by chance.

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5
Q

What is natural selection?

A

The process by which traits that improve an organism’s chance for survival and reproduction are passed on more frequently to offspring than those that do not.

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6
Q

What is fitness?

A

The degree to which an organism can reproduce successfully in its environment.

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7
Q

What is adaptation?

A

A heritable trait that increases the likelihood of an individual’s survival and reproduction.

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8
Q

What is artificial selection?

A

A human-controlled process to produce individuals with certain traits.

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9
Q

What is speciation?

A

The process by which new species are generated.

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10
Q

What is extinction?

A

The disappearance of a species from Earth.

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11
Q

What is a niche?

A

An organism’s habitat, resource use, and fundamental role in a community.

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12
Q

What is tolerance?

A

The ability to survive and reproduce under changing environmental conditions.

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13
Q

What is resource partitioning?

A

A process that allows different species to share common resources.

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14
Q

What is predation?

A

The process by which individuals of one species (the predators) hunt, capture, and feed on individuals of another species (the prey).

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15
Q

What is coevolution?

A

The process by which two species evolve in response to changes in each other.

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16
Q

What is parasitism?

A

A relationship between two organisms from different species in which one organism (the parasite) depends on the other (the host) for nourishment or some other benefit.

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17
Q

What is symbiosis?

A

A long-term and physically close relationship between two organisms from different species in which at least one organism benefits.

18
Q

What is herbivory?

A

The act of feeding on a plant.

19
Q

What is mutualism?

A

A relationship between two organisms from different species in which both organisms benefit.

20
Q

What is commensalism?

A

A relationship between two organisms from different species in which one benefits and the other is unaffected.

21
Q

What is a primary producer?

A

An organism that can capture energy from the sun or from chemicals and store it; also called autotroph.

22
Q

What is photosynthesis?

A

The process by which primary producers use sunlight to convert carbon dioxide and water into sugars, releasing oxygen.

23
Q

What is chemosynthesis?

A

The process by which bacteria use energy stored in bonds of hydrogen sulfide to convert carbon dioxide and water into sugars.

24
Q

What is a consumer?

A

An organism that relies on other organisms for energy and nutrients; also called heterotroph.

25
Q

What is cellular respiration?

A

The process by which organisms use oxygen to release the chemical energy of sugars, producing carbon dioxide and water.

26
Q

What is a herbivore?

A

An organism that eats plants.

27
Q

What is a carnivore?

A

An animal that kills and eats other animals.

28
Q

What is an omnivore?

A

An animal that eats both plants and animals.

29
Q

What is a detritivore?

A

An organism (e.g., a millipede or soil insect) that scavenges the waste products or dead bodies of other community members.

30
Q

What is a decomposer?

A

An organism (e.g., a fungus or bacterium) that breaks down nonliving matter into simple parts that can be taken up and reused by primary producers.

31
Q

What is a trophic level?

A

A rank in a feeding hierarchy.

32
Q

What is biomass?

A

The total amount of living tissue in a trophic level.

33
Q

What is a food chain?

A

A linear series of feeding relationships.

34
Q

What is a food web?

A

A diagram of feeding relationships and energy flow showing the paths by which nutrients and energy pass from organism to organism as one consumes another.

35
Q

What is a keystone species?

A

A species that has a strong or wide-ranging impact on a community.

36
Q

What is succession?

A

A somewhat predictable series of changes over time in a community.

37
Q

What is primary succession?

A

The somewhat predictable series of changes in a community that follows a disturbance so severe that no vegetation or soil life remains.

38
Q

What is a pioneer species?

A

One of the first species to colonize newly exposed land.

39
Q

What is secondary succession?

A

The somewhat predictable series of changes in a community that follows a disturbance (e.g., a fire, logging, or farming) that dramatically alters the community but does not destroy all vegetation or soil life.

40
Q

What is an invasive species?

A

A nonnative species that spreads widely in a community.

Env Sci (1 decks)

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