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ESS > Glossary Key Terms > Flashcards

Glossary Key Terms Flashcards

0
Q

Agenda 21

A

Outcome of the 1992 Rio Earth Summit - blueprint for action to achieve sustainable development worldwide

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1
Q

Acid rain

A

Any precipitation which is distinctly more acid than normal rainfall (pH 5.5-6) - caused by emissions of sulfur dioxides and/or oxides of nitrogen

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2
Q

Agribusiness

A

Farming based on the desire to maximize productivity and profit in order to compete in a global market. Involves large-scale monocultures, intensive use of fertilisers and pesticides, mechanised ploughing and harvesting & food production geared to mass markets including export

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3
Q

Albedo

A

The amount of incoming solar energy reflected back into the atmosphere by the earths surface

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4
Q

Altruism

A

Unselfish concern for the welfare of others

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5
Q

Anoxia

A

Total decrease in levels of oxygen - low levels of oxygen

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6
Q

Anthropocentric

A

Human-centred worldview where nature exists and is used for human benefit

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7
Q

Bioaccumulation

A

Pesticides build up in the body tissue - mainly fats - of primary consumers

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8
Q

Biomagnification

A

Pesticides become concentrated in animal tissues at each successive trophic level of a food chain

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9
Q

Birth rate, age specific (ASBR)

A

The number of births per 100 women of any specified year groups

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10
Q

Buffer zone

A

Areas of habitat - which may be either disturbed or managed - that surround conservation areas

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11
Q

Interspecific competition

A

Competition between different species

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12
Q

Intraspecific competition

A

Competition within a species

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13
Q

CITES

A

International agreement between governments that aims to ensure international trade in specimens of wild animals and plants does not threaten their survival

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14
Q

In situ conservation

A

Helping to protect a species in zoos

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15
Q

DDT

A

Dichloro-diphenyl-trichloroethane - a synthetic pesticide that is strongly absorbed by soils - not very soluble in water but very soluble in lipids (fats) and so builds up in the fatty tissue of organisms

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16
Q

Density- dependent factors

A

Factors that lower birth rate or raise death rate as a population grows in size

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17
Q

Density-independent factors

A

Factors that affect a population irrespective of population density e.g environmental change

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18
Q

Diversity

A

The number of species and their relative abundance in a given area or sample

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19
Q

Ecocentric

A

A worldview that sees nature as having an inherent value

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20
Q

Ecological deficit

A

Relates to the available capacity of a country - if the ecological footprint of the country exceeds the biologically productive area then the country has an ecological deficit

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21
Q

Ecological footprint

A

Represents the hypothetical area of land required by a society, group or individual to fulfil all their resource needs and assimilation of wastes

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22
Q

Stable equilibrium

A

Where a system returns to the original equilibrium following disturbance

23
Q

Static equilibrium

A

Systems where there is no input or output of energy and matter and there is no change in the state over time

24
Q

Steady-state equilibrium

A

Despite constant inputs and outputs of energy and matter the overall stability of the system remains

25
Q

Unstable equilibrium

A

Where a system does not return to the same equilibrium following disturbance but forms a new equilibrium

26
Q

Export subsidies

A

Government policy to encourage support of goods and discourage sale of goods on the domestic market through low-cost loans and tax relief for exporters

27
Q

Mass extinctions

A

Periods when a large proportion of the total number of species on the Earth at the time have been wiped out

28
Q

General fertility rate

A

The number of births per thousand women aged 15-49

29
Q

Total fertility rate

A

The average number of births per women of a child bearing age

30
Q

Global dimming

A

The effect of small droplets (aerosols) that reflect solar energy, blocking light from entering the lower atmosphere, thereby having a cooling effect on the Earth

31
Q

Goods

A

Marketable commodities derived from natural capital such as timber and grain

32
Q

Import tariffs

A

Taxes imposed on imports to a country that make them more expensive

33
Q

Inertia

A

Resistence of an ecosystem to being altered

34
Q

J-curve

A

Population growth curve which shows exponential growth - initially slow then increasingly rapid and doesn’t slow down

35
Q

Life expectancy

A

The average number of years that a person can be expected to live, given that demographic factors remain unchanged

36
Q

Macrophyte

A

Plant that grows in or near water

37
Q

Mutualism

A

An interaction in which two organisms live together and both species benefit from the relationship

38
Q

Neonatal deaths

A

Deaths that occur between birth and 7 days

39
Q

GOs

A

Governmental organisations - bodies established through international agreements to bring together governments to work on an international scale e.g UNEP

40
Q

NGOs

A

Non-governmental organisations - bodies not run by, funded by or influenced by governments of any country e.g Greenpeace, WWF

41
Q

Over-population

A

Occurs when there are too many people relative to the resources and technology locally available to maintain an adequate standard of living

42
Q

Paradigm

A

A model or template based on evidence or experience

43
Q

Parasitism

A

Interaction where one organism (parasite) benefits at the expense of another

44
Q

Photochemical smog

A

A pollution cloud at ground level caused by a mixture of nitrogen oxides and volatile organic compounds (VOCs)

45
Q

Population density

A

The number of individuals of each species per unit area

46
Q

S-curve

A

Population growth curve which shows an initial rapid growth (exponential) and then slows down as the carrying capacity is reached

47
Q

Secular migration (siècle in French)

A

Dispersal of species over geological timescales (thousands to millions of years)

48
Q

Services

A

Ecological services derived from natural capital e.g flood and erosion protection climate stabilisation, maintenance of soil fertility

49
Q

Species richness

A

The number of species in a given area or sample

50
Q

K-strategists

A

Individuals with lower reproductive rates but better competitive ability

51
Q

R strategists

A

Individuals with a high reproductive rate and rapid development

52
Q

Succession

A

The orderly process of change over time in a community

53
Q

Primary succession

A

Succession occurring on a previously uncolonised substrate

54
Q

Secondary succession

A

Occurs in places where a previous community has been destroyed e.g after forest fires

55
Q

Technocentric

A

A worldview that sees technology as providing solutions to environmental problems even when human effects push natural systems behind their normal boundaries

56
Q

Xerophytes

A

Plants adapted to dry conditions e.g desert plants

ESS (4 decks)

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