Units 1-4 Flashcards
What is sustainable agriculture? Why is it important?
Agriculture that can be practiced in the way very and some place in the future
How much land is used for food production?
38%
Why is demand for land to produce food increasing?
It increases as human population increases
How has agriculture changed over time? Why? What problems has this caused?
Changes to industrialized agriculture led to large population growth. Increased erosion, pollution, and groundwater
Was it the Green Revolution?
Third wave of new tech and farming practices were introduced to developing countries
What is soil degradation and why is it happening?
From deforestation land became galvanized to do over irrigation/fertilization
What is the result of soil degradation?
Reduced potential food crop production by 13%
Describe a time in history when this became a major problem
A long time ago when humans slated being more active
Name and describe some sustainable farming practices.
Crop rotation- growing different crops year after another
Wind breaks - rows of trees planted along the edges of fields to slow the wind
Describe how a more plant based diet is more sustainable?
Eating lower on the food chain feeds more people
Describe genetic engineering in crops and include pros and cons of them as a whole? Give examples.
Mixes of genes of different species pro decreased irrigation can contaminate organisms
How is overfishing causing problems?
Leaving people hungry, fish aren’t able to reproduce making their population small
How much of our world’s fisheries are overexploited?
74%
What is the difference between renewable and renewable resources? Which energy sources fall into each category?
renewable -source that can be replenished nonrenewable does not replenish fossil fuels
How much do we currently rely on fossil fuels and why is this a problem?
86% of all energy sources used by humans
Fossil fuels
Pros- clean energy, small land, footplant
Cons- Water intensive, non-renewable, radio active
nuclear power
Pros- renewable, green until end of life
Cons- Doesn’t work for every foot top expensive
Wind energy
Pros- Renewable, good paying jobs, low cost
Cons- Fires leakes, remote locations
hydroelectric energy
Pros- Start quickly, uses water, renewable, clean
Cons- Expensive displaces people
geothermal
Pros- Reliable small and footprint
Cons- Expensive, earthquakes, location restricted
biomass
Pros- Less waste, clean energy
Cons- Deforestation, expensive, not clean
What is the ecological footprint of humans?
17% of the population on consumes 90% of resources
What factors affect the ecological footprint? Give an example.
Country of residence, quality of goods, consumed resources used
When is a country considered an ecological debtor vs creditor? Give examples of countries in each category. What are the reasons this happens?
Debtor- When ecological footprint exceeds biocapacity
Creditor- Biocapacity exceeds footprint
What is biocapacity?
Biologically productive area available to provide resources we use and absorb
What is global overshoot?
Point where human consumption and waste production exceeds natures capacity to create more
What is sustainability and what should we consider when discussing sustainability of human behavior?
The date each year we run out of resources
What is an atom
Smallest component of matter that keeps the properties of particular elements
What is at the center of an atom?
Nucleaus
What are the 3 subatomic particles in an atom Number of protons
Where are they located in the atom and what is their charge? Protons (Positive +), Neutrons( Neutral 0), and Electrons (-)
The atomic number is the total number of which particle in the nucleus
Number of protons
Explain anion and cation. Ions that are charged due to the loss or gain of electrons
Anion- negative (-)
Cation- positive (+)
What does the number 84 in Krypton-84 represent
84 nucleons
Atoms with the same number of protons, but different numbers of neutrons are called
Isotopes
Why are the atomic masses on the periodic table not whole numbers
It’s the average of the various isotopes
What is the nucleus of an atom composed of
Protons and neutrons
What is the charge of the nucleus of an atom
Positive
What is the overall charge of an atom with 5 protons and 6 electrons
-1
Chlorine has two naturally occurring isotopes, Cl-35 and Cl-37. The atomic mass of chlorine is 35.45. Which of these two isotopes of chlorine is more abundant in nature
Cl-35 because the mass averages just 0.2 above 35
What is the difference between mass number and atomic mass? Why are they different?
Mass number is the number of protons and neutrons and the atomic the mass of an element from their natural abundance from their isotope
How is the modern periodic table organized
Rows-Periods Numbers 1-7 (across), Columns-Groups 1-18 (up and down)
How did Dmitri Mendeleev originally organized the periodic table
Also rows and columns
What subatomic particle has such a small mass that scientists ignore its mass when calculating the mass number of an atom
Electrons
Do Groups go across or up & down the periodic table
Up and down
What are the different properties of metals, metalloids, and nonmetals
Metals- Group 1 lustrous and shiny, Ductile and malleable, good conductors
Metalloids- The stairstep line both characteristics of metals and nonmetals
Non-Metals- Top of the stairstep line , dull and brittle, poor conductors
How many valence electrons does Chlorine have? Which group do they want to “hang out with?
7 valence electrons
What is a niche?
A species or organisms role in the environment
What is competition? Who does this occur between? Give an example.
When different populations or animals are fighting for the same resource
What is indirect competition? Give an example.
When species compete with one another even if they never come in contact with each other
What is a symbiotic relationship?
Interaction between two or more species that live together on direct contract
Define the four symbiotic relationships and give an example of each.
Parasitism- on organism benefits while living of another- tapeworm
Commensalism- one organism benefits and the other is unharmed- barnacles/whale
Mutualism- both organisms benefit and help each other- flowering plants
Predation- one animal preying on another organism
What is Ecology?
The interaction among organisms with each other and environment
What is the relationship between kelp, sea otters and sea urchins?
Sea otters keep the urchin population so low that kelp can grow healthy
Name and define the levels of organization on Earth and number in order largest to smallest
Population
Community
Ecosystem
Biome
Biosphere
What is an autotroph? Heterotroph?
Autotrophs- produces food on its own
Heterotrophs- does not produce food on its own lives off other organisms
Name and define the 4 different types of heterotrophs. What do they eat?
Herbivores- Plants
Carnivores- meat
Omnivores- both
Detritivores- dead organic material
Draw an example of a food chain and use arrows to show the direction of the energy flow.
A species where other species depend on it
What is a keystone species?
Species where other species depend on it
What are trophic levels? Provide an example below.
Producers- plants
Primary consumers
Secondary consumers
Tertiary consumers
What are keystone species responsible for doing within the ecosystem?
Regulates population, enhances habitat, recycles nutrients and waste
What is an energy pyramid?
Shows how much energy is produced at each level
Demography
Study of human populations
Limiting Factors
Anything that constrains a population’s size and slows or stops it from growing
Carrying capacity
Maximum number of individuals of an ecosystem that can support
Cultural carrying capacity
The maximum number of people who could live in reasonable freedom and comfort indefinitely without decreasing the ability of the Earth to sustain future generations
Immigration
The action of coming to live permanently in a foreign area
Emigration
The action of leaving one’s area to settle permanently
Death rate
The ratio of deaths to a population of a particular area
Birth rate
The number of live births per thousand of population per year
Fertility rate
Total births per woman
Demographic transition model
Explains why countries go through a period of rapid population growth
Eutrophication
Process where algae grows in excessive amounts due to an abundant amount of nutrients
Greenhouse Effect
The way in which heat is trapped close to Earth’s surface by “greenhouse gasses”
What type of growth is taking place in regards to global human populations?
Exponential growth
What is the world’s current population estimate?
8.1 Billion
What is the difference between r and k strategist organisms? Which group are humans?
The R straight live in unstable and unpredictable environments while k stategiest live in more stable conditions Humans are K straight.
What type of growth is an S shaped curve graph? Why does this occur over the J shaped curve?
Logistic growth, Population increases then reaches its carrying capacity
When did the human growth rate peak? What has it done since its peak?
1960s peak annual rates in excess of a percent
What event in the mid 1700s significantly changed human population growth?
Industrial Revolution
Where is population growth greater? Developing nations or developed nations? Why?
Developing nations, they don’t have the right education
What are some contributing factors for the exponential increase in human population during the last century?
Birth rates going up
What is the current world population growth rate?
0.88% increase
What are factors that contribute to lowering fertility rates?
More jobs for women and more education
What factors affect birth and death rates?
Female employment, marriage age
What are some of the methods/inventions that have allowed humans to increase their carrying capacity?
Carb picker, crop rotation
A population of 1000 alligators has a birthrate of 400 per year. Each year, 150 alligators die, and 150 leave the population to look for new territory, but 30 alligators arrive from other territories to join the population. Calculate the population change
1000/130 = 7.69
Where will most of the population growth in the world over the next century occur?
Africa
Describe what is occurring with the population during each of the stages of the demographic transition model?
Stage 1—High birth and death rates lead to slow population growth. Stage 2—The death rate falls but the birth rate remains high, leading to faster population growth. Stage 3—The birth rate starts to fall, so population growth starts to slow
