Key Words Flashcards
Finite Systems
A perception shift- the idea existed that the planet was too big for us to ever have an effect - this is not true
Positive Feedback Systems
a sequence of event that work to further the system
Negative Feedback Systems
dampens / slows down / stops changed within the system
Axial Tilt
Axial tilt is the angle between the planet’s rotational axis and its orbital axis. A planet’s orbital axis is perpendicular to to the ecliptic or orbital plane, the thin disk surrounding the sun and extending to the edge of the solar system
Political Dimensions to Feedback Loops
each society and political movements effect feedbacks and therefore each group effects the system differently.
Abiogenesis
the natural process by which life arises from non-living matter-life forms the self replication of molecules based on a chemistry based on carbon and water. 4 key : lipids (fatty cell walls), carbohydrates, amino acids (protein), nucleic asids (DNA and RNA)
Ba
Bilion Amon = bilion years
What is Abiotic Oxygen ?
Oxygen from non biological sources .
Oxygen is considered a biosignature, but there are chemical processes that can generate oxygen gas without the presence of living organisms, e.g., chemical reactions that break down water.
What are Prokaryotes?
Prokaryotes are organisms whose cells lack a nucleus and other organelles. Prokaryotes are divided into two distinct groups: the bacteria and the archaea, which scientists believe have unique evolutionary lineages. Most prokaryotes are small, single-celled organisms that have a relatively simple structure.
What are Eukaryotes?
any cell or organism that possesses a clearly defined nucleus. The eukaryotic cell has a nuclear membrane that surrounds the nucleus, in which the well-defined chromosomes (bodies containing the hereditary material) are located
What are Stromatolites?
layered mounds, columns, and sheet like sedimentary rocks formed by the incremental growth of layer upon layer of cyanobacteria, a single-celled photosynthesizing microbe
aka the living rock
What are multicellular organisms (Metazoa)?
All multicellular organisms, from fungi to humans, started out life as single cell organisms. These cells were able to survive on their own for billions of years before aggregating together to form multicellular groups.
What is the Principle of Uniformitarianism?
the operations of nature are consistent, slow and not goal-directed (anthropocentric).
Uniformitarianism, also known as the Doctrine of Uniformity or the Uniformitarian Principle, is the assumption that the same natural laws and processes that operate in our present-day scientific observations have always operated in the universe in the past and apply everywhere in the universe.
What is Phylogeny?
a family tree of species
Gradualistic vs. punctuated equilibrium models of evolution
Natural selection vs human breeding species
What is the equation for Silicate Rock Weathering?
2CO2(s) +3H2(s)0 + CaSiO3(s)= Ca2(+) +2HCO3(s)(-) + H4(s)SiO4
Lithsophere
lithos = rocks
dynamic of tectonics
Cryosphere
comprises all the solid ice which is frozen water but it’s so important in the earth system it’s considered separate from the hydropshere
Atmosphere
Oxygen and Nitrogen account for 99% if the volume of the atmosphere
Hydrosphere
Water
97% of the water on earth is in the ocean.
Biosphere
plant and life on top of the lithosphere.
Outer Boundry
Outside of the earth e.g. the sun
provides the earth w energy that drives the earth but is not effected by the systems. Large amounts of energy are exchanged across the top of the atmosphere but relatively little matter. Some hydrogen atoms can escape Earth’s gravity into space, and some meteoric material crosses into the Earth system (~44 tonnes per day on average)
Transfers of energy and sometimes transfer of Mass
Inner Boudry
The whole earth interior
The Earth has its own internal heat source (fueled by radioactive decay and heat remaining from the accretion of the planet) that drives plate tectonics: geothermal heat.
There are parts of the inner earth that are fundamental to life on earth
Open Systems
the earth itself is an open system, inputs of mass and energy e.e. meteorites. Subsystems are also open systems. Nested in a hierarchy of systems.
Glaciers and ice sheets are natural open systems- inputs: precipitation, rock detritus, gravity, insolation, geothermal heat. Outputs: water vapor, water, ice, rock detritus, heat. Throughputs: precipitation and transfer of energy (stuff that moves through the system)