Biosphere, carbon

Question 1

All living things share 4 essential processes:
1.
2.
3.
4.

Answer 1

1. metabolism
2. growth
3. reproduction
4. evolution

Question 2

Are viruses living or non-living?

Answer 2

they’re in a grey area
- most say they’re not

Question 3

metabolism=

Answer 3

chemical changes in an organism that make energy/ materials needed to grow, reproduce, etc

Question 4

the biosphere is a(n) ____ system

Answer 4

open
ie exchanges matter/ energy with hydrosphere and atmosphere etc

Question 5

• organisms absorb ____ from:
  1. _____ or
  2.
• ____ is used to maintain processes within the organism
• energy is released as:
  1.
  2.

Answer 5

energy
1. light
2. chemical substances that they consume

energy

1. heat
2. other chemical substances expelled

Question 6

what is the process of growth

Answer 6

• organization of small molecules into large chain or sheet-like molecules
• new copies of these large molecules are made (chemical processes)

Question 7

reproduction is the formation of new ____
- population can expand while individuals remain the ~___ ___

Answer 7

individuals

aprox same size

Question 8

what are the 2 ways of reproducing?

Answer 8

1. asexual: separating off part of an individual
2. sexual: sharing of material from 2 individuals

Question 9

what are the 3 domains of life

Answer 9

1. archea
2. bacteria
3. eurkaryotes

Question 10

all life on earth is built around ___ atoms

Answer 10

carbon

Question 11

list 4 oxidized forms of carbon

Answer 11

• carbon dioxide CO2
• carbonic acid H2CO3
• bicarbonate ions HCO3-
• carbonate ions CO3 2-

Question 12

what is reduced carbon?

Answer 12

ie organic carbon
= the carbon in the biosphere that does not share any outer e- with oxygen
eg. methane CH4

Question 13

the bonding of most elements with C releases ___(less/more) energy than with oxygen

Answer 13

less

Question 14

which major process converts inorganic carbon to organic carbon in the biosphere?

Answer 14

photosynthesis

• CO2 + water = carbohydrate + O2

Question 15

most of the energy input to the biosphere is captured via photosynthesis, but a small amount comes from other sources like ____
give definition

Answer 15

chemosynthesis
= involves reactive chemicals emitted from (mostly) submarine hot springs

Question 16

most of the energy input to the biosphere is captured via photosynthesis, but a small amount comes from other sources like ____
give definition

Answer 16

chemosynthesis
= involves reactive chemicals emitted from (mostly) submarine hot springs

Question 17

what’s the typical path of carbon through the spheres?

Answer 17

atmosphere (CO2) –> biosphere (organic C) –> geosphere (coal)

Question 18

organisms that obtain energy by photosynthesis or chemosynthesis are called ____ (mostly ___)

Answer 18

autotrophs
plants

Question 19

what happens to carbon once it’s in organic form?

Answer 19

• some is captured by plants to build their body structures (bark etc)
• the rest is recombined with oxygen to release the energy (so it can fuel their living processes)

Question 20

respiration=

Answer 20

all the processes organisms use to obtain energy, including breathing

Question 21

heterotrophs obtain ____ ____ by consuming bodies of other organisms
- mostly heterotrophs are ____
- obtain energy by:

Answer 21

organic matter

animals

reacting some of that organic carbon with oxygen

Question 22

photosynthesis uses energy to fix ___ from the atmosphere into ___ ____

Answer 22

carbon
organic material

Question 23

the carbon cycle is closely related to ___ flow

Answer 23

energy

Question 24

_____ of ____ by humans is a major driver of increasing atmospheric CO2 and warming

Answer 24

oxidization of carbon

Question 25

carbon compounds store ___ in organisms and contribute to the ____ ___ of organisms

Answer 25

energy

body structure (biomass)

Question 26

list the 2 forms of carbon and gives examples for each

Answer 26

1. Inorganic Carbon (carbonates) - oxidized
   - CO2
   - biocarbonate ions (HCO3-)
   - carbonate ions (CO3 2-)
2. Organic Carbon- reduced
   - organic polymers like DNA, protein
   - carbohydrates
   - buried organic remains
   - fossil fuels (natural gas, oil, coal)
   - diamonds

Question 27

Which sphere contains the most carbon? List them in order

Answer 27

1. geosphere (most)
2. hydrosphere
3. atmosphere
4. biosphere (least)

Question 28

• CO2 falls during ___ ____ because of _____
• CO2 rises during ____ ____ because there is less ___ ____ in the southern hemisphere

Answer 28

• northern summer, photosynthesis
• southern summer
  forested land

Question 29

most of the carbon contained in the hydrosphere is ___ carbon stored in the ___
- some carbon in the hydrosphere is ___, and that comes from ____ of plants and animals

Answer 29

inorganic, oceans

organic, remains

Question 30

~40% of anthropogenic CO2 ends up in the _____, and ~60% ends up in the _____

Answer 30

atmosphere
oceans

Question 31

there is uncertainty on the distribution of C in the geosphere, but it is the largest sink out of all the spheres
- most of the C in the geosphere is contained in ___ ___ (____ carbon)

Answer 31

carbonate rocks- inorganic