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AP Environmental Science > Chapter 4: Earth's Independent Systems (Taylor) > Flashcards

Chapter 4: Earth's Independent Systems (Taylor) Flashcards

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1
Q

a system of chronological dating that relates geological strata to time. Describes the timing and relationships of events that have occurred during Earth’s history

A

geological time scale

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2
Q

The innermost layer of the Earth. Made up of mostly iron and nickel and has two parts: a solid innerand a liquid outer

A

core

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3
Q

The layer of the earth between the core and the crust. It is about 1,800 miles thick and makes up nearly 80% of the planet’s total volume. Made of magma and rock.

A

mantle

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4
Q

the upper layer of the earth’s mantle, blow the lithosphere, in which there is relatively low resistance to plastic flow and convection is thought to occur

A

asthenosphere

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5
Q

the rigid outer part of the earth, including the crust and upper mantle

A

lithosphere

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6
Q

the earth’s hard outer layer. Made up of different types of rocks. Above the mantle.

A

crust

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7
Q

the two sub-layers of the earth’s crust (lithosphere) that move, float, and sometimes fracture and whose interaction causes continental drift, earthquakes, volcanoes, mountains, and oceanic trenches.

A

tectonic plates

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8
Q

a tectonic plate boundary where two plates are moving toward each other. If they are of equal densities, then the plates with push up against each other and form a mountain chain. If they are not, one will usually sink beneath the other in a subduction zone.

A

convergent

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9
Q

a tectonic boundary where two plates are moving away from each other and new crust is forming from magma that rises to Earth’s surface between them.

A

divergent

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10
Q

a type of strike-slip fault that accommodates the relative horizontal slip between tectonic plates. Common along the edges of plates in mid-ocean ridge.

A

transform fault

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11
Q

a volcano that has had a least one eruption during the past 10,000 years. Could be erupting or dormant

A

active

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12
Q

a volcano that is active, not erupting, and supposed to erupt again

A

dormant

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13
Q

a volcano that is not expected to erupt again

A

extinct

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14
Q

volcanoes that form when magma rises into the gap between diverging plates. Occur at or near actual plate boundaries

A

rift

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15
Q

When one of two converging tectonic plates sinks below the other into the mantle, usually because the other has greater density

A

subduction

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16
Q

volcanic regions thought to be fed by underlying mantle that is anomalously hot compared with the surrounding mantle

A

hot spot

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17
Q

a broad, domes volcano with gently sloping sides, characteristic of the eruption of fluid, basaltic lava

A

shield

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18
Q

(aka stratovolcano) a conical volcano build up by many layers (strata) of hardened lava, tephra, pumice, and volcanic ash.

A

composite

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19
Q

(aka scoria cone) a volcano composed of volcanic cinders (scoria), or small, rough particles of hardened lava.

A

cinder

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20
Q

The location at which an earthquake begins

A

focus

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21
Q

the point on the Earth’s surface located directly above the focus

A

epicenter

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22
Q

an instrument that measures and records details of earthquakes, such as force and duration

A

seismograph

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23
Q

a long, high sea wave caused by and earthquake, submarine landslide, or other disturbance

A

tsunami

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24
Q

an idealized cycle of processes undergone by rocks in the earth’s crust, involving igneous intrusion, uplift, erosion, transportation, deposition as sedimentary rock, metamorphism, remelting, and further igneous intrusion

A

rock cycle

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25
Q

a type of rock that had formed from sediment deposited by water or air

A

sedimentary

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26
Q

a type of rock that has undergone transformation by heat, pressure, or other natural agencies

A

metaphorphic

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27
Q

a type of rock that is formed when lava or magma solidifies.

A

igneous

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28
Q

What is the term used for the nonliving part of an ecosystem?

A

abiotic

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29
Q

What is the term used for the living part of an ecosystem?

A

biotic

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30
Q

The smallest particle–in size–that can be found in soil.

A

clay

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31
Q

The medium particle–in size– that can be found in soil

A

silt

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32
Q

The largest particle–in size–that can be found in soil

A

sand

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33
Q

the level of acid in substances such as water or soil; acidity can be measured via the pH scale, ranging between 0, very acidic, to 7, neutral

A

acidity

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34
Q

What is the name given to the quantitative capacity of an aqueous solution to neutralize an acid?

A

alkalinity

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35
Q

a term that refers to the geological process of rocks breaking apart without changing their chemical composition

A

physical weathering

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36
Q

the erosion or disintegration of rocks caused by chemical reactions rather than mechanical processes

A

chemical weathering

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37
Q

the weakening and disintegration of rock by plants, animals, and mircrobes

A

biological weathering

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38
Q

Layers parallel to the soil surface whose physical characteristics differ from the layers adjacent to it. In order from top to bottom, O(organic), A (surface), B (subsoil), C (sub stratum), and R (bedrock)

A

soil horizons

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39
Q

the organic component of soil, formed by decomposition of leaves and other plant material by soil microorganisms

A

humus

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40
Q

the process of draining chemicals or minerals away from soil, ash, or similar materials by the action of percolating liquid, like rainwater

A

leaching

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41
Q

the introduction of salts or colloids into one soil horizon from another by percolating water

A

illuviation

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42
Q

used or suitable for growing crops

A

arable

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43
Q

Soil that is composed of sand, silt, and a smaller amount of clay is referred to as ____. It is suitable for growing most plant varieties

A

loamy

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44
Q

the cultivation of a single crop or animal in a given area

A

monoculture

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45
Q

the simultaneous cultivation or exploitation of several crops or kinds of animals

A

polyculture

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46
Q

the action or system in agriculture of rotating between different crops in one area over time to avoid depletion of soil and control diseases, pests, and weeds.

A

crop rotation

47
Q

a large increase in crop production in developing countries achieved by the use of fertilizers, pesticides, and high-yield crop varieties

A

Green Revolution

48
Q

the process of increases the salt content within soil want water.

A

salinization

49
Q

a process in which the value of the biophysical environment is affected by a combination of human-induced processes acting upon the land; any change or disturbance to the land perceived to be undesirable.

A

land degradation

50
Q

an irrigation system that delivers a slow moving supply of water at a gradual rate directly to the soil; prevents soil degradation from erosion, salinization, etc.

A

drip irrigation

51
Q

the gradual destruction of a substance, such as soil or rock, by wind, water, or other natural agents

A

erosion

52
Q

soil laws

A

The Soil Conservation and Domestic Allotment Act of 1936: allows government to pay farmers to reduce production to conserve soil and prevent erosion

53
Q

the lowest region of the atmosphere, reaching to about 6-10 km above sea level

A

troposphere

54
Q

the trapping of the sun’s warmth in a planet’s lower atmosphere by the absorption of infrared radiation by greenhouse gases; GLOBAL WARMING

A

greenhouse effect

55
Q

the interface between the troposphere and the stratosphere

A

tropopause

56
Q

the layer of earth’s atmosphere above the troposphere and below the mesosphere; home to the ozone layer

A

stratsphere

57
Q

a colorless, unstable, toxic gas that is bad for humans to inhale, but good for us because it protects us from harmful UV radiation

A

ozone

58
Q

the region of earth’s atmosphere between the stratosphere and thermosphere

A

mesosphere

59
Q

the outermost layer of the earth’s atmosphere, above the mesosphere

A

thermosphere

60
Q

the state of the atmosphere at a place and time as regards to temperature, dryness, cloudiness, wind, rain, etc.

A

weather

61
Q

the weather conditions prevailing in an area in general or over a long period of time.

A

climate

62
Q

the winds from the direction that is predominant at a particular place or season

A

prevailing winds

63
Q

the apparent curving of the path of a moving object moving through the air from an otherwise straight path due to the earth’s rotation

A

Coriolis effect

64
Q

When the sun heats the earth’s surface, then, when cooler air comes in to contact with it, the air warms and rises, creating an upward current, which can cause wind, clouds, or other weather. What is this current called?

A

convection current

65
Q

air moving at the same speed and in the same direction (horizontally) with little to no cross-over of air streams.

A

horizontal airflow

66
Q

the atmospheric temperature below which water droplets begin to condense and dew can form

A

dew point

67
Q

What is the term used to describe rain, snow, sleet, or hail that falls to the ground

A

precipitation

68
Q

a system of air that rises when hot and drops when cooled

A

convection cell

69
Q

convection cell in which air rises at the equator and sinks at medium latitudes

A

Hadley cell

70
Q

exposure to the sun’s rays

A

insolation

71
Q

the proportion of the incident light or radiation that is reflected by a surface, such as a planet or moon

A

albedo

72
Q

wind blowing steadily towards the equator

A

trade winds

73
Q

wind blowing from the west

A

westerly

74
Q

dry, cold prevailing winds that blow from the high-pressure areas of the polar highs towards the low-pressure areas within the westerlies at high latitudes

A

polar easterlies

75
Q

a belt of calm air and sea occurring in both the northern and southern hemispheres between the trade winds and the westerlies

A

horse latitudes

76
Q

(aka equatorial calms) equatorial regions of light ocean currents and winds within the intertropical convergence zone, a belt of winds and rising air around the equator

A

doldrums

77
Q

a narrow, variable band of very strong, predominantly westerly air currents encircling the globe several miles above the earth.

A

jet stream

78
Q

a seasonal prevailing wind blowing from the southwest between May and September and bringing rain (aka the wet ___), or from the northeast between Octover and April (aka the dry ___)

A

monsoon

79
Q

when an area has little precipitation due to the effect of a topographic barrier, commonly a mountain range, that causes the prevailing winds to lose their moisture on the windward side, causing the leeward side to be dry.

A

rain shadow effect

80
Q

a storm with a violent wind, in particular a tropical cyclone in the Caribbean

A

hurricane

81
Q

a tropical storm in the region of the Indian or western Pacific oceans

A

typhoon

82
Q

an irregularly occurring and complex series of climatic changes affecting the equatorial Pacific region and beyond every few years, characterized by the appearance of unusually warm, nutrient-poor water off northern Peru and Ecuador

A

El Niño

83
Q

a periodic seesaw fluctuation in sea-level atmospheric pressures over the southern Pacific and Indian oceans that is believed to be linked to El Niño and La Niña events

A

Southern Oscillation

84
Q

a cooling of the water in the equatorial Pacific that occurs at irregular intervals and is associated with widespread changes in weather patterns complementary to those of El Niño, but less extensive and damaging in their effects

A

La Niña

85
Q

refers to the El Niño/Southern Oscillation, the interaction between the atmosphere and ocean in the tropical Pacific that results in somewhat periodic variation between below- and above-normal sea surface temperatures and dry and wet conditions over the course of a few years

A

ENSO events

86
Q

water in or taken from the sea

A

seawater

87
Q

of or found in fresh water; not of the sea

A

freshwater

88
Q

an area or ridge of land that separates waters flowing to different rivers, basins, or seas; an area or region drained by a river, river system, or other body of water

A

watershed

89
Q

a landform that forms from deposition of sediment carried by a river as the flow leaves its mouth and enters slower-moving or standing water

A

delta

90
Q

the tidal mouth of a large river, where the tide meets the stream; where saltwater from the ocean meets the freshwater of a river

A

estuary

91
Q

land consisting of marshes or swamps; saturated land

A

wetland

92
Q

the upper layer of water in a stratified lake

A

epilimnion

93
Q

the lower layer of water in a stratified lake, typically cooler than the water above and relatively stagnant

A

hypolimnion

94
Q

a steep temperature gradient in a body of water such as a lake, marked by a layer above and below which the water is at different temperatures

A

thermocline

95
Q

the region of a freshwater body lying along the shore

A

littoral

96
Q

the open surface of a freshwater body, surrounded by the littoral zone

A

limnetic

97
Q

the deep zone of a freshwater body, located blow the range of effective light penetration.

A

profundal

98
Q

the lowest level of an ocean

A

benthic

99
Q

a long, narrow island lying parallel and close to the mainland, protecting the mainland from erosion and storms

A

barrier island

100
Q

a ridge of rock in the sea formed by the growth and deposit of coral

A

coral reef

101
Q

the layer of the ocean close enough to the surface that it receives enough light for photosynthesis to occur.

A

euphotic

102
Q

the zone of the sea between the continental shelf and the abyssal zone

A

bathyal

103
Q

the lowest zone of the ocean at the ocean floor

A

abyssal

104
Q

the zone of the ocean at surface beside the coast

A

coastal

105
Q

an oceanographic phenomenon that involves wind-driven motion of dense, cooler, and usually nutrient-rich water towards the ocean surface, replacing the warmer, usually nutrient-depleted surface water

A

upwelling

106
Q

a discoloration of sea water caused by an algal bloom of toxic, red dinoflagellates

A

red tide

107
Q

a term used to describe man-made conveyance schemes which move water from one river basin where it is available to another basin where water is less available or could be utilized better for human development

A

interbasin transfer

108
Q

water held underground in the soil or in pores and crevices

A

groundwater

109
Q

a body of permeable rock that can contain or transmit groundwater

A

aquifer

110
Q

an aquifer into which water seeps from the ground surface directly above the aquifer

A

unconfined aquifer

111
Q

an aquifer in which an impermeable dirt/rock layer exists that prevents water from seeping into the aquifer from the ground surface located directly above.

A

confined aquifer

112
Q

when the demand for water exceeds the available amount or when poor quality restricts its use.

A

water-stressed/scarce

113
Q

an interface between land and a river or stream; relating to or situated on the banks of a river

A

riparian

114
Q

___ ___ water rights is the legal doctrine that the first person to take a quantity of water from a water source for beneficial use, such as agricultural, industrial, or household, has the right to use that quantity of water for that purpose

A

prior appropriation

AP Environmental Science (33 decks)

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