Chapter 2 Flashcards
What does biogeochemical cycles mean
How chemicals cycle around and affect life on earth
What is the composition and % make up of our atmosphere
Carbon- 1%
Oxygen - 20%
Sulfur - 1%
Nitrogen - 78%
What is the difference between rapid and slow cycling
Rapid cycling is when matter can be cycled as fast as a year or a day
Slow cycling is when matter can take up to 1000 or a million years to cycle
What is a nutrient reservoir and what are the types
A temporary storage location for matter/nutrients in their cycle
Types - abiotic and biotic
What is an abiotic nutrient reservoir
Temporarily stores non-living components of an ecosystem
Eg. atmosphere, soil, water, minerals in rocks
What’s a biotic nutrient reservoir
Temporarily stores living or once living components of an ecosystem
Eg. living or recently living organisms, coal, oil, peat
Memorize the diagram on page 43 of the textbook.
https://d2l.cbe.ab.ca/d2l/le/content/1145447/fullscreen/14598355/View
Did u get it?
What are the equations for photosynthesis and cellular respiration
Photosynthesis: 6CO2 + 6H2O + Sunlight -> 6O2 + C6H12O6
Cellular Respiration: C6H12O6 + 6H2O + ATP -> 6CO2 + 6H2O
Define a carbon sink
A reservoir that absorbs carbon
Give 4 examples of slow carbon cycling
Trees in forest
Formation of sediments
Formation of Fossil fuels
Ocean
Give 4 examples of rapid carbon cycling
Forest fires
Weathering
Burn fossil fuels
Carbon moving through the food chain
Search up the nitrogen cycle and be able to label N2 fixation, ammonification, denitrification, and nitrification
Could u do it?
How does burning fossil fuels affect the environment
Burning of fossil fuels consume O2 and release CO2 and H2O(g) which are greenhouse gases which cause the radiant energy from the sun to get trapped and warm up the earth (global warming)
How is nitrogen used in our bodies
DNA, protein
What is nitrogen fixation
It is where bacteria on plant roots convert atmospheric nitrogen (N2) into Ammonium (NH4+) for plants to use
In return bacteria get sugar
What is ammonification
It is where bacteria in soil convert NH4+ into nitrite (NO2-) and nitrate (NO3-)
What is denitrification
Bacteria in soil and water convert NO2- and NO3- into N2
What is nitrification
When N2 gets in contact with lightning it is turned into NO3-
What is crop rotation
Farmers use legumes to release nitrogen back into the soil so that they don’t have to use fertilizers in order to save money and the environment
What are the human impacts of Sulfur
Sulfur fertilizers and Burning of fossil fuels which releases SO2 into the environment
How is acid deposition formed
It is when SO2 reacts with H2O(g) in the atmosphere to produce form acid rain which can increase the pH of lakes, kill plants, and leech nutrients from the soil
How is Sulfur used by us
It is used to make up proteins such as muscles, skin, and bones
How is Sulfur released into the atmosphere
Burning coal - human
Weathering of rocks containing Sulfur - natural
Volcano activity - natural
What are some examples of slow cycling of Sulfur
Dissolving in water
Absorbed by plants
Move through the food chain
What are some examples of rapid cycling of Sulfur
Burning fossil fuels
Volcano activity
What % of the atmosphere is made of phosphorus
0%
How is phosphorus used by us
DNA, ATP, bones, teeth
How do plants get phosphorus
They can can only get phosphates (PO43-)
How do we get phosphorus
Milk, grains, meat
How is phosphorus released into the environment
Weathering - Natural
Sewage - human
Fertilitizer run off - human
What are the steps in algal bloom
- Excess phosphorus enters the aquatic ecosystem (sewage and fertilizers)
- Algal bloom and overgrowth occurs
- Sunlight cannot penetrate below the surface
- Plants below the surface can no longer photosynthesize and die
- Decomposer population quickly grows, depleting oxygen
- Fish and other organisms requiring oxygen die
Define productivity
The rate at which an ecosystem’s producers capture and store light over a length of time
How is productivity measured
J/m^2/a
Joules/meters squared/year
Give 2 examples of ecosystems and their productivities in relation to their biomass
Forest - large biomass, low productivity
Grassland - low biomass, high productivity
What does productivity depend on
Number of producers
Amount of light
Amount of heat
Amount of rainfall
What’s the Gaia hypothesis
The biosphere acts like an organisms that regulates itself, maintaining environmental conditions within certain limits.
Label the water cycle
Could u do it?
What are some properties of water
Universal solvent, high melting and boiling point, adhesive and cohesive, high specific heat capacity, surface tension, polarity
What do plants use nitrogen for
Chlorophyll
What are ways we can tell what life was like on earth millions of years ago
- Ice core samples
- Stratification of Earth’s layers
- Can look at stromatolites
What are stromatolites
rocks with layers in them so we can use those layers to date and look at how life was back then
