Ch.3 And 5 Vocab

Question 1

Average residence time

Answer 1

A measure of the time it takes for a given part of the total pool or reservoir of a particular material in a system to be cycled through the system.

Question 2

Biosphere

Answer 2

The part of a plant where life exists. The planetary system that includes and sustains life and therefore is made up of the atmosphere ocean soil’s upper bedrock and all life.

Question 3

Biota

Answer 3

All the organisms of all species living in an area or region up to and including the biosphere.

Question 4

Closed System

Answer 4

A type of system in which there are definite boundaries two factors such as mass and dinner jeep such that exchange of these factors with other systems does not occur.

Question 5

Doubling time

Answer 5

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

Question 6

Exponential growth

Answer 6

Growth in which the rate of increase is a constant percentage of the current size that is the growth occurs at a constant rate for time.

Question 7

Lag time

Answer 7

The period of time between two closely related events, phenomenon etc. as between stimulus and response or between cause and effect a time lag between the declaration of war and full war production

Question 8

Open system

Answer 8

A type of system in which exchanges of mass or energy occur with other systems

Question 9

Positive feedback

Answer 9

A type of feedback that occurs when an increase in output leads to a further increase in output.

Question 10

Negative feedback

Answer 10

Occurs when the systems response is in the opposite direction of the output it is self-regulating

Question 11

Steady-state

Answer 11

When input equals output in a system, there is no net change and the system is said to be in a steady-state

Question 12

Uniformitarianism

Answer 12

States that processes that operate today operated in the past observations of processes today can explain events that occurred in the past and leave evidence

Question 13

Flux

Answer 13

The action or process of flowing or flowing out.

Question 14

Reservoir

Answer 14

A large natural or artificial lake used as a source of water supply

Question 15

Biotic

Answer 15

Of, relating to, or resulting from living things, especially in their ecological relations.

Question 16

Abiotic

Answer 16

Physical rather than biological not derived from living organisms

Question 17

Dynamic equilibrium

Answer 17

The state of balance between continuing process

Question 18

Biogeochemical cycles

Answer 18

The cycling of a chemical elements through the biosphere, it’s pathways,storage locations, and chemical forms in living things, the atmosphere, oceans, sediments, and lithosphere

Question 19

Carbon cycle

Answer 19

Biogeochemical cycle of carbon carbon combines with and is chemically and biologically linked with the cycles of oxygen and hydrogen that form the major compounds of life

Question 20

Nitrogen cycle

Answer 20

A complex biogeochemical cycle responsible for moving important nitrogen components through the biosphere and other Earth systems

Question 21

Phosphorus cycle

Answer 21

Biogeochemical cycle involving the movement of phosphorus throughout the biosphere and lithosphere

Question 22

Rock cycle

Answer 22

A group of process that produces igneous metamorphic and sedimentary rocks

Question 23

Hydrologic cycle

Answer 23

Circulation of water from the oceans to the atmosphere and back to the oceans by way of evaporation run off from streams and rivers and groundwater flow.

Question 24

Tectonic cycle

Answer 24

The process that change earths crust producing external forms such as ocean basins, continents, and mountains.

Question 25

Denitrification

Answer 25

The conversion of nitrate to molecular nitrogen by the action of bacteria an important step in the nitrogen cycle.

Organic nitrogen compounds are returned to N2 by soil bacteria

Question 26

Nitrification

Answer 26

Conversion of ammonium to Nitrate through nitrifying bacteria

Question 27

Nitrogen fixation

Answer 27

The process by which atmospheric nitrogen is converted to ammonia, nitrate ion, or amino acids. Microorganisms perform most of the conversion, but a small amount is also converted by all living things.

Atmospheric nitrogen dissolved in rainwater enters the soil and is fixed by bacteria to make ammonia.

Question 28

Ammonification

Answer 28

Decaying organic material in the soil is turned into ammonium by bacteria and fungi.

Question 29

Limiting factor

Answer 29

The single requirement for growth available in the least supply in comparison to the need of an organism. Originally applied to crops but now often applied to any species.

Question 30

Macronutrients

Answer 30

Elements required in large amounts by living things. These include the big six-carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, phosphorus, and sulfur.

Question 31

Micronutrients

Answer 31

Chemical elements required in very small amounts by at least some forms of life. Boron, copper, and molybdenum are examples of micronutrients.

Question 32

Nitrate

Answer 32

A salt or water of nitric acid,
containing the anion
Very soluble in water

Question 33

Sink

Answer 33

A forest, ocean, or other natural environment viewed in terms of its ability to absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

Question 34

Phosphate

Answer 34

A salt or water of phosphoric acid, containing PO43- or a related anion or a group such as OPO(OH)2

Question 35

Nitrogen fixing bacteria

Answer 35

Microorganism present in the soil or in plant roots that change nitrogen compounds that plants can use in the soil.

Question 36

Assimilation

Answer 36

Absorption of nitrate by the roots of plants; obtain by animals from eating plants

Question 37

Ammonia

Answer 37

colorless gas with a characteristic pungent smell. It dissolves in water to give a strongly alkaline solution.