115 Ways to go APE!!!
Terms
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- Ionizing Radiation
- enough energy to knock electrons from atoms forming ions, capable of causing cancer (ex gamma, xrays)
- High Quality Energy
- organized and concentrated, can perform useful work (ex fossil fuel and nuclear)
- Low Quality Energy
- disorganized and dispersed (ex heat in air, wind, solar)
- First Law of Thermodynamics
- energy is neither created nor destroyed but may be converted from one form to another
- Second Law of Thermodynamics
- when energy is changed from one form to another, some useful energy is always degraded into lower quality energy (usually heat)
- Natural Radioactive Decay
- unstable radioisotopes decay releasing gamma rays, alpha and beta particles
- Half Life
- the time it takes for 1/2 the mass of a radioactive element to decay
- Estimate of how long a readioactive isotope must be stored until it decays to a safe level
- approximately 10 half lives
- Nuclear Fission
- nuclei of isotopes split apart when struck by neutrons
- Nuclear Fusion
- 2 isotopes of light elements forced together at high temperatures til they fuse and form a heavier nucleus. Expensive, break even point not reached yet
- Ore
- rock that contains a large enough concentration of a minteral making it profitable to mine
- Organic Fertilizer
- slow acting and long lasting because the organic remains need time to be decomposed
- Best Solution to energy shortage
- conservation and increased efficiency
- Surface Mining
- cheaper and can remove more mineral, less hazardous to workers
- Leaching
- removal of dissolved materials from soil by water moving downwards
- Illuviation
- deposit of leached material in lower portions of sand, silt and clay
- Loam
- perfect agricultural soil with equal portions layers (B)
- Conservation
- allows the use of resources in a responsible manner
- Preservation
- setting aside areas and protecting them from human activities
- Parts of the hydrologic cycle
- evaporation, transpiration, run off, condensation, precipitation, infiltration
- Aquifer
- any water bearing layer in the ground
- Cone of depression
- lowering of the water table around a pumping well
- Salt water intrusion
- near the coast, overpumping of groundwater causes saltwaterto move into the aquifer
- ENSO
- El Nino Southern Oscillation- see sawing of air pressure over the S. Pacific
- During an El Nino year
- trade winds weaken and warm water sloshed back to South America
- During a non El Nino year
- Easterly trade winds and ocean currents pool warm water in the western pacific allowing upwelling of nutrient rich water off the coast of South America
- Effects of El Nino
- upwelling decreases disrupting food chains, N US has mild winters, SW US has increased rainfall, less Atlantic hurricanes
- Nitrogen fixing
- because atmospheric N can not be used directly by plants it must first be converted into ammonia by bacteria
- Assimilation
- inorganic N is converted into organic molecules suchas DNA/amino acids and proteins
- Denitrification
- bacteria convert ammonia back to N
- Phosphorous does not circulate as easily as N because
- it does not exist as a gas butis released by weathering of phosphate rocks
- Sustainability
- the ability to meet humanities current needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs
- Excess Phosphorous is added to aquatic ecosystemsby
- run off of animal wastes, fertilizer, discharge of sewage
- Photosynthesis
- plants convert atmospheric C (CO2) into complex carbohydrates (glucose C6H12)6)
- Aerobic Respiration
- oxygen consuming producers, consumers and decomposers break down complex organic compounds and convert C back into CO2
- Largest reservoirs of C
- carbonate rocks first, oceans second
- Biotic/abiotic
- living and non-living components of an ecosystem
- Producer/autotroph
- photosynthetic life
- Fecal Coliform
- indicator of sewage contamination
- Energy flow in food webs
- only 10% of the usable energy is transferred because usable energy lost as heat (2nd law) not all biomass is digested and absorbed, predators expend energy to catch prey
- Chlorine
-
good - disinfection of water
bad - forms trihalomethanes - Primary succession
- development of communities in a lifeless area not previously inhabited by life (lava)
- Secondary succession
- life progresses where soil remains (clear cut forest)
- Cogeneration
- using waste heat to make electricity
- Mutualism
- symbiotic relationship where both partners benefit
- Commensalism
- symbiotic relationship where one partner benefits and the other is unaffected
- Parasitism
- relationship in which one partner obtains nutrients from at the expense of the host
- Biome
- large distinct terrestrial region having similar climate, soil,plants animals,dependent upon latitude and rainfall-
- Carrying Capacity
- the number of individuals that can be sustained in an area
- R strategist
-
reproduce early, many small unprotected off spring
(fish, frogs, insects) - Positive feedback
- when a change in condition triggers a response that intensifies the changing condition (ex. warmer earth leads to snow melt, less sunlight is reflected and more is absorbed by earth leading to an even warmer earth)
- Natural Selection
- organisms that possess favorable adaptations pass them onto the next generation
- Malthus
- said human population cannot continue to increase the result is war famine and disease
- Doubling time
-
Rule of 70
70 divided by the percent growth rate - Replacement level fertility
- number of children a couple must have to replace themselves (2.1 developed countries 2.7 developing)
-
World Population is:
US Population is: -
almost 6.5 BILLION
300 million - Preindustrial stage
- birth and death rates high, population grows slowly, infant mortality high
- Postindustrial stage
- low birth and death rates
- Age structure diagrams
-
broad base rapid growth
narrow base negative growth
uniform shape zero growth - 1st and 2nd most populated countries
- China and India
- BOD
-
Biological Oxygen Demand
amount of dissolved oxygen needed by aerobic decomposers to break down organic materials - Eutrophication
- rapid algal growth due to an excess of N and P
- Hypoxia
- when aquatic plants die, the BOD rises as aerobic decomposers break down the plants the DO drops and the water cannot support life
- Minamata Disease
- mental impairment caused by Hg
- Primary Air Pollutants
- produced by humans and nature (CO2, CO, SO2, NO, hydrocarbons, particulates)
- Negative Feedback
- when a change in some condition triggers a response that counteracts the changed condition (warmer earth -more ocean evaporation - more stratus clouds-less sunlight reaches the earth - cooler earth
- Particulate matter (source, effect, reduction)
- burning fossil fuels and car exhaust, reduces visibility and respiratory irritation, filtering, electrostatic precipitators, alternative energy
-
Nitrogen Oxides
source
effects
reduction -
auto exhaust
acidification of lakes, respiratory irritation, leads to smog and ozone
acid formation = NO+O2=HNO3
Catalytic converters -
Sulfur Oxides
source
effects
reduction -
coal burning
acid deposition,respiratory irritation, damages plants
scrubbers, burn low sulfur coal -
Carbon Oxides
source e
effects
reduction -
auto exhaust,incomplete combustion
CO binds to hemoglobin reducing ability to carry O in blood, CO2 contributes to global warming
SO2+O2=SO3+H2O=H2SO4
catalytic converter, emission testing, oxygenated fuel, mass transit -
Ozone
Formation
Effects
Reduction -
Secondary pollutant, NO2+UV =NO +O O+O2= O3, with VOCs
respiratory irritant, plant damage,
Reduce NO emissions and VOCs - Radon
- radioactive gas, formed from the decay of Uranium, causes lung cancer
- Photochemical smog
- formed by chemical reactions involving sunlight (NO, VOC, O)
- Acid Deposition
- caused by sulfuric and nitric acids resulting in lowered pH of surface waters
- Greenhouse gases
-
H2O, CO2, O3, CH4, CFCs
trap outgoing infrared heat
energy causing earth to warm - Effects of Global Warming
- rising sealevel (thermal expansion), extreme weather, droughts (famine), extinctions
- Ozone depletion caused by
- CFCs, methyl chloroform, carbon tetrachloride, halon, methyl bromide, all of which attack stratospheric ozone.
- Effects of Ozone depletion
- increased UV, skin cancer, cataracts, decreased plant growth
- Love Canal
- chemicals buried in old canal and school and homes built over it causing birth defects and cancer - Superfund Site
- Municipal Solid Waste
- is mostly paper and most is landfilled
- True cost/External Cost
- harmful environmental side effects that are not reflected in a products price
- Sanitary Landfill problems and solutions
-
leachate, liner with collection systems
methane collect gas and burn
volume of garbage compact and reduce - Incineration advantages
- volume of waste reduced by 90% and waste heat can be used
- Incineration disadvantages
-
toxic emissions, polyvinyl chloride - dioxin
scrubbers and electrostatic precipitators needed, ash disposal contains heavy metals - Best way to solve waste problems
- reduce teh amounts of waste at the source
- Keystone species
- species whose role in an ecosystem are more important than others ex sea otter
- Indicator species
- species that serve as early warnings that an ecosystem is being damaged ex. trout
- Most Endangered Species
- have a small range, require large territory or live on an island
- In a natural ecosystem, 50-90% of pest species are kept under control by
- predators., diseases and parasites
- Major insecticide groups
-
chlorinated hydrocarbons -DDT
organophosphates - malathion
carbamates-aldicarb - Pesticide Pros
- saves lives from insect transmitted diseases, increases food supply increases profits for farmers
- Pesticide Cons
- genetic resistance, ecosystem imbalance, pesticide treadmill,persistence, bioaccumulation, biomagnification
- Natural pest Control
- better agricultural practices, genetically resistant plants, natural enemies, biopesticides, sex attractants
- Electricity is generated by
- using steam (from water boiled by fossil fuels or nuclear power) or falling water to turn generator
- Petroleum forms from
- microscopic aquatic organisms in sediments converted by heat and pressure into a mixture of hydrocarbons
- Pros of petroleum
- cheap,easily transported, high quality energy
- Cons of petroleum
- reserves limited, pollution during drilling, transport and refining burning makes CO2
- Steps in coal formation
- peat lignite bituminous, anthracite
- Major parts of reactor core
- core, control rods, steam generator, turbine, containment building
- Two most serious nuclear accidents
-
Chernobyl, Ukraine
Three Mile Island, PA - Alternate energy sources
- wind,solar, waves, geothermal, fuel cells,
- LD 50
- amount of chemical that kills 50% of the animals in the test population
- Mutagen, Teratogen, Carcinogen
- causes hereditary changes, Fetus deformities, cancer
- Endangered Species
-
Northern Spotted Owl (loss of old growth forest)
Bald Eagle )thinning of egg shells caused by DDT, Piping Plover, nesting areas threatened by development - LI Exotic Species
-
gypsy moth
Asian Long Horned Beetle - Garrett Hardin and the Tragedy of the Commons
- Freedom to breed is bringing ruin to all, Global commons such as atmosphere and oceans are used by all and owned by none.
- Volcanoes and Earthquakes occur
- at plate boundaries (divergent, spreading, mid-ocean ridges)(convergent, trenches) (transform,sliding, San Andreas)
- K strategist
- reproduce late, few, cared for offspring
- Ammonification
- decomposers convert organic waste into ammonia
- Nitrification
- Ammonia is converted to nitrate ions NO-3
- industrial stage
- decline in birth rate, population growth slows
- transitional stage
- death rate lower, better health care, population grows fast