ENVS 1000 Exam 1
The environment - ANS-all of the physical, chemical, and biological factors and processes that
determine the growth and survival of an organism or community of organisms (our
surroundings)
Sustainability - ANS-meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future
generations to meet their own needs
nonrenewable resource - ANS-its amount in an ecosystem declines with virtually any level of
use
environmental tipping point - ANS-alter ecosystems so that they can't return to their normal point
ecosystem - ANS-the combination of a community of organisms and its physical and chemical
environment, functioning as an integrated unit - connected by the flow of energy and matter
four ecosystem services - ANS-provisioning services: supply us with resources
regulating services: ways that ecosystems control important conditions/processes
cultural services
supporting services: the basic ecosystem processes that are needed to maintain other services
ecosystem functions - ANS-the flow of matter and energy and the process of influencing the
distribution and abundance of organisms
ecosystem integrity - ANS-the web of interactions that regulate ecosystem functions
ecosystems have the ability to adjust to disturbances and changes in their environment
system - ANS-any portion of the universe that can be isolated from the rest for the purpose of
observing changes
isolated system: closed to everything
closed system: closed to matter but open to energy
open system: open to matter and energy
ecosystems are open systems, the earth is a closed system
dynamic homeostasis - ANS-the process by which systems adjust to changes in ways that
minimize how much features and processes vary from their normal values. occurs because of
feedback (the ability of a system to adjust based on changes in the system itself)
, negative feedback - ANS-occurs when directional change in a process alters the system in a
manner that reverses the direction of that change (ex. thermostat)
positive feedback - ANS-occurs when the directional change in a process alters the system to
reinforce that change. can destabilize ecosystems if not counteracted
signal vs noise - ANS-signal: long-term change in climate, noise: seasonal changes
uncertainty in environmental sciences - ANS-comes from ignorance and complexity
makeup of earth's atmosphere - ANS-78% nitrogen and 21% oxygen
Pressure - ANS-the force that gas exerts on container walls
atmospheric pressure - ANS-the force exerted by weight of gases on a unit area of the earth's
surface
force caused by the pull of gravity on a column of air
why is there higher pressure at lower altitudes - ANS-more particles at lower altitudes due to
gravity
also, the weight of the atmosphere gets heavier the thicker the atmosphere is, again causing
this structure
humidity - ANS-the amount of water vapor in the air
absolute humidity - ANS-mass of water vapor for given volume of air
specific humidity - ANS-mass of water vapor for given mass of air
vapor pressure - ANS-water's relative contribution to total atmospheric pressure
relative humidity - ANS-how much water is in the air compared to how much water could be in
the air (measure of the extent to which air is saturated with water vapor)
saturation vapor pressure - ANS-the maximum amount of water that air can hold at a given
temperature
dew point - ANS-temperature at which a given mass of air becomes saturated
low pressure system - ANS-hurricanes, rain
high pressure systems - ANS-clear skies, sunny and hot
The environment - ANS-all of the physical, chemical, and biological factors and processes that
determine the growth and survival of an organism or community of organisms (our
surroundings)
Sustainability - ANS-meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future
generations to meet their own needs
nonrenewable resource - ANS-its amount in an ecosystem declines with virtually any level of
use
environmental tipping point - ANS-alter ecosystems so that they can't return to their normal point
ecosystem - ANS-the combination of a community of organisms and its physical and chemical
environment, functioning as an integrated unit - connected by the flow of energy and matter
four ecosystem services - ANS-provisioning services: supply us with resources
regulating services: ways that ecosystems control important conditions/processes
cultural services
supporting services: the basic ecosystem processes that are needed to maintain other services
ecosystem functions - ANS-the flow of matter and energy and the process of influencing the
distribution and abundance of organisms
ecosystem integrity - ANS-the web of interactions that regulate ecosystem functions
ecosystems have the ability to adjust to disturbances and changes in their environment
system - ANS-any portion of the universe that can be isolated from the rest for the purpose of
observing changes
isolated system: closed to everything
closed system: closed to matter but open to energy
open system: open to matter and energy
ecosystems are open systems, the earth is a closed system
dynamic homeostasis - ANS-the process by which systems adjust to changes in ways that
minimize how much features and processes vary from their normal values. occurs because of
feedback (the ability of a system to adjust based on changes in the system itself)
, negative feedback - ANS-occurs when directional change in a process alters the system in a
manner that reverses the direction of that change (ex. thermostat)
positive feedback - ANS-occurs when the directional change in a process alters the system to
reinforce that change. can destabilize ecosystems if not counteracted
signal vs noise - ANS-signal: long-term change in climate, noise: seasonal changes
uncertainty in environmental sciences - ANS-comes from ignorance and complexity
makeup of earth's atmosphere - ANS-78% nitrogen and 21% oxygen
Pressure - ANS-the force that gas exerts on container walls
atmospheric pressure - ANS-the force exerted by weight of gases on a unit area of the earth's
surface
force caused by the pull of gravity on a column of air
why is there higher pressure at lower altitudes - ANS-more particles at lower altitudes due to
gravity
also, the weight of the atmosphere gets heavier the thicker the atmosphere is, again causing
this structure
humidity - ANS-the amount of water vapor in the air
absolute humidity - ANS-mass of water vapor for given volume of air
specific humidity - ANS-mass of water vapor for given mass of air
vapor pressure - ANS-water's relative contribution to total atmospheric pressure
relative humidity - ANS-how much water is in the air compared to how much water could be in
the air (measure of the extent to which air is saturated with water vapor)
saturation vapor pressure - ANS-the maximum amount of water that air can hold at a given
temperature
dew point - ANS-temperature at which a given mass of air becomes saturated
low pressure system - ANS-hurricanes, rain
high pressure systems - ANS-clear skies, sunny and hot
