Chapter 3: Ecosystems Study Guide
Questions with Actual Answers.
Ecosystems - Answer A biological community of interacting organisms and their physical
environment of matter and energy
- Comprised of living (biotic) and nonliving (abiotic) components
Ecology - Answer Science of organism's interactions with each other and their nonliving
environment
Ecologists study interactions within and among:
- Organisms
- Populations
- Communities
- Ecosystems
- Biosphere
Community - Answer Populations of different species living in a particular place and
potentially interacting with each other
Population - Answer Group of individuals of the same species living in a particular place
Organism - Answer Individual living being
Cell - Answer Fundamental structural and functional unit of life
Molecule - Answer Chemical combination of two or more atoms of the same or different
elements
Atom - Answer Smallest unit of a chemical element that exhibits its chemical properties
Earth's Life Support System - Answer atmosphere (air), hydrosphere (water), geosphere
(rock, soil, sediment) and the biosphere (living things).
Atmosphere - Answer Contains many layers:
, - TROPOSPHERE extends 17 km up and contains the air we breathe. About 1% is composed of
greenhouse gases (water vapor, methane and carbon dioxide), which absorb energy to warm
the lower atmosphere. This is where weather happens.
- STRATOSPHERE lies 17-50 km above the troposphere and filters the sun's harmful radiation.
Contains ozone layer
- HYDROSPHERE consists of earth's water, found in liquid water, ice, and water vapor.
- GEOSPHERE consists of the earth's core, mantle, and crust.
- BIOSPHERE is where life is found.
3 Factors Sustain Life on Earth - Answer 1. The one-way flow of high-quality solar energy:
- Sun -> plants -> living things -> environment as heat -> radiation to space
2. The cycling of nutrients through parts of biosphere
3. Gravity that holds earth's atmosphere
Solar Energy - Answer High-quality solar energy flows from the sun to the earth. It is
degraded to lower-quality energy (mostly heat) as it interacts with the earth's air, water, soil,
and life-forms, and eventually returns to space. Certain gases in the earth's atmosphere retain
enough of the sun's incoming energy as heat to warm the planet in what is known as the
greenhouse effect.
Reaches earth as electromagnetic waves in the form of visible light, UV radiation, and heat
Greenhouse Effect - Answer As solar radiation interacts with the earth, infrared radiation is
produced. Greenhouse gases trap the heat and warm the troposphere. This natural greenhouse
effect makes the planet warm enough to support life.
Human activities add greenhouse gasses to the atmosphere, intensifying the greenhouse effect.
Major Components of Ecosystem - Answer - Some organisms produce the nutrients they
need
- Others get their nutrients by consuming other organisms
- Some recycle nutrients back to producers by decomposing the wastes and remains of
organisms
Trophic (feeding) Level - Answer Every organism occupies a trophic (feeding) level.
- PRODUCERS/AUTOTROPHS make their own food from compounds in the environment
- PHOTOSYNTHESIS is the process by which plants take solar energy, carbon dioxide and water
to form energy rich sugars.
- CHEMOSYNTHESIS is the process by which some organisms can use geothermal energy to
produce complex nutrient compounds.
Questions with Actual Answers.
Ecosystems - Answer A biological community of interacting organisms and their physical
environment of matter and energy
- Comprised of living (biotic) and nonliving (abiotic) components
Ecology - Answer Science of organism's interactions with each other and their nonliving
environment
Ecologists study interactions within and among:
- Organisms
- Populations
- Communities
- Ecosystems
- Biosphere
Community - Answer Populations of different species living in a particular place and
potentially interacting with each other
Population - Answer Group of individuals of the same species living in a particular place
Organism - Answer Individual living being
Cell - Answer Fundamental structural and functional unit of life
Molecule - Answer Chemical combination of two or more atoms of the same or different
elements
Atom - Answer Smallest unit of a chemical element that exhibits its chemical properties
Earth's Life Support System - Answer atmosphere (air), hydrosphere (water), geosphere
(rock, soil, sediment) and the biosphere (living things).
Atmosphere - Answer Contains many layers:
, - TROPOSPHERE extends 17 km up and contains the air we breathe. About 1% is composed of
greenhouse gases (water vapor, methane and carbon dioxide), which absorb energy to warm
the lower atmosphere. This is where weather happens.
- STRATOSPHERE lies 17-50 km above the troposphere and filters the sun's harmful radiation.
Contains ozone layer
- HYDROSPHERE consists of earth's water, found in liquid water, ice, and water vapor.
- GEOSPHERE consists of the earth's core, mantle, and crust.
- BIOSPHERE is where life is found.
3 Factors Sustain Life on Earth - Answer 1. The one-way flow of high-quality solar energy:
- Sun -> plants -> living things -> environment as heat -> radiation to space
2. The cycling of nutrients through parts of biosphere
3. Gravity that holds earth's atmosphere
Solar Energy - Answer High-quality solar energy flows from the sun to the earth. It is
degraded to lower-quality energy (mostly heat) as it interacts with the earth's air, water, soil,
and life-forms, and eventually returns to space. Certain gases in the earth's atmosphere retain
enough of the sun's incoming energy as heat to warm the planet in what is known as the
greenhouse effect.
Reaches earth as electromagnetic waves in the form of visible light, UV radiation, and heat
Greenhouse Effect - Answer As solar radiation interacts with the earth, infrared radiation is
produced. Greenhouse gases trap the heat and warm the troposphere. This natural greenhouse
effect makes the planet warm enough to support life.
Human activities add greenhouse gasses to the atmosphere, intensifying the greenhouse effect.
Major Components of Ecosystem - Answer - Some organisms produce the nutrients they
need
- Others get their nutrients by consuming other organisms
- Some recycle nutrients back to producers by decomposing the wastes and remains of
organisms
Trophic (feeding) Level - Answer Every organism occupies a trophic (feeding) level.
- PRODUCERS/AUTOTROPHS make their own food from compounds in the environment
- PHOTOSYNTHESIS is the process by which plants take solar energy, carbon dioxide and water
to form energy rich sugars.
- CHEMOSYNTHESIS is the process by which some organisms can use geothermal energy to
produce complex nutrient compounds.
