everything Flashcards
Ecological footprint
- Impact of a person or community on the environment in terms of land required for natural resource consumption.
- Example: Calculating the land needed to sustain a family’s food, water, and energy usage.
Subsistence farming
- Agricultural practice focused on producing food for immediate consumption.
- Example: Small-scale farmers growing crops for personal sustenance.
Biomes
- Large ecological areas with distinct climates, flora, and fauna which have adapted to their specific environmental conditions.
- Examples: Deserts, forests, grasslands, tundras, and aquatic ecosystems.
Land degradation
- Decline in land quality and productivity due to human and natural factors.
- Causes: Deforestation, overgrazing, mining, and urbanization.
habitat
Natural environment providing resources for species survival and reproduction. Protecting ecosystems to maintain biodiversity and ecological balance.
Biodiversity
Variety of life forms crucial for ecosystem health and resilience. Impact of habitat destruction and climate change on species extinction rates.
climate change
Is the long-term change in weather. Global climate change occurs very slowly over thousands of years.
Causes of climate change
Milankovitch Cycle, Sunspots, Agriculture, use of fossil fuels and Deforestation,
Anthropogenic Activities that cause Climate change.
Deforestation, Burning Fossil fuels, cars and factories producing extreme amounts of greenhouse gases and agriculture.
Strategies to combat Climate Change
- Reduce Meat Consumption: Lowering carbon footprint.
- Adopt Solar Energy: Utilizing renewable resources.
- Use Sustainable Transport: Minimizing emissions.
International Agreements
Kyoto Protocol Aimed to reduce CO2 emissions by 5.2% below 1990-2012 average, with global participation.
Paris Agreement Seeks to limit global temperature rise and provide financial aid for developing nations.
Impacts of climate change on people
- Health: Increased heatwaves, natural disasters and disease risks.
- Food/Water: Disruptions in supply and agriculture.
- Economy: Damage to infrastructure and financial losses.
- Migration: Forced relocation and potential conflicts.
- Inequality: Greater effects on vulnerable communities.
Impacts on the natural world
- Biodiversity: Loss of species unable to adapt.
- Oceans: Acidification and impacts on marine life.
- Weather: More frequent and severe extreme events.
- Ice Melt: Rising sea levels and reduced freshwater.
- Ecosystems: Disruption and species shifts.
Natural Factors driving climate change.
- Solar Energy: Sun emits energy as infrared radiation.
- Greenhouse Effect: Traps infrared radiation, reflecting heat back to Earth.
- Volcanic Impact: Eruptions release sulfur dioxide, forming aerosols that reflect solar radiation.
- Milankovitch Cycles: Long-term variations in Earth’s orbit and axial tilt.
Positive feedback mechanisms
- Ice-Albedo Feedback: Melting ice reduces reflectivity, absorbing more heat.
- Water Vapor Feedback: Increased temperatures lead to more water vapor, trapping more heat.
- Permafrost Thawing: Releases greenhouse gases, intensifying warming.
- Vegetation Feedback: Loss of vegetation reduces carbon sequestration, warming the climate.
- Ocean Circulation Feedback: Disruptions in ocean currents affect global climate patterns.
Human impact on climate change
- Increased population size, industrial revolution, and reliance on fossil fuels.
- Fossil fuel combustion leading to CO2 emissions.
- Human activities producing 7 gigatons of carbon dioxide annually.
- Deforestation reducing CO2 absorption capacity.
- Heightened greenhouse effect due to human actions.
Data Visualization Techniques
- Scatter Graph Creation Steps: Line of best fit, accuracy, labeling, identifying anomalies, key, scaling.
- Describing Scatter Graph Relationships: Highlighting extreme values, ranking, and noting minimal differences.
- Sunspots: Temporary dark spots on the Sun’s surface due to magnetic activity.
- Ecological Footprint Reduction: Lifestyle changes like diet, energy use, and transportation choices.
Key concepts
- Positive Correlation: Variables increasing together.
- Negative Correlation: Variables moving in opposite directions.
- No Correlation: Lack of relationship between variables.
- Albedo: Measure of surface sunlight reflection.
what are strategies to address ocean plastics
- 6Rs
1. Redesign
2. Refuse
3. Reduce
4. Reuse
5. Recycle
6. Repair
what is a gyre
A large system of circulating ocean currents, particularly those involved with large wind movements.
what are the steps to analyze a scatter graph?
Topic sentence (positive or negative correlation?)
Elaborate: explain the correlation relating to the specific data
Provide two examples from the data (countries which illustrate this trend)
Explain logical reasons/factors for this relationship?
Any anomalies? Name & explain potential reason
what is the great pacific garbage patch
It spans waters from the West Coast of North America to Japan. It is 1.6 million km^2 with 79,000 tonnes of plastic
It is like a soup with some parts being denser with rubbish and some less.
