Ms. Yetter
Order of Business
 Introduction
 Expectations and Grading Policy
 Textbook Responsibilities
 Themes of the Course – Overview
 Summer Assignments
 Pill bugs
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Upon successful completion of this AP
Environmental Science course and the AP test,
students may be eligible to earn up to four
credits of a college laboratory science.
Be sure to check with the colleges you are
applying to (and ultimately plan on attending),
to determine whether they will accept the AP
course for credit.
Don’t assume: “your mileage may vary”
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Miller & Spoolman Living in the Environment,
16th edition
Textbook Responsibilities –
cover them
 use them at home
 I’ll let you know when you need to bring them to
class
 keep them safe-- they are expensive and your
responsibility
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What are the causes of the environmental problem?
 We will look at history, ways of thought, social and economic
factors.
What is the nature of each problem?
 We will investigate the science behind each problem.
What are the ramifications of each problem?
 We will look for connections between seemingly unrelated
problems. How does one change (the problem) cause other
reactions in the environment?
What are possible solutions to the problem? What must be
changed to solve this problem?
 Consider ecological, economic, legal and psychological
(changes in our way of thinking) factors. We will look at the
pros and cons of each possible solution.
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Science is a process.
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Science is a method of learning more about the
world.
Science constantly changes the way we understand
the natural world
Energy conversions underlie all ecological
processes.
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Energy cannot be created; it must come form
somewhere.
As energy flows through systems, at each step more
of it becomes unusable
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Earth itself is one interconnected system.
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Natural systems change over time ansd space.
Biogeochemical systems vary in ability to recover
from disturbances
Humans alter natural systems.
Humans have had an impact on the environment for
millions of years
 Technology and population growth have enabled
humans to increase both the rate and scale of their
impact on the environment.
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Environmental problems have both a cultural
and social context.
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Understanding the role of cultural, social, and
economic factors is vital to the development of
solutions.
Human survival depends on developing
practices that will achieve sustainable systems.
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A suitable combination of conservation and
development is required.
Management of common resources is essential.
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Aka “Rolly-pollies”
Look for them under or in anything outside
Cool, damp places
At least 10 per lab pair
Bring them in a closed jar with holes in the lid
Of the 6 themes, which one do you think we should
emphasize most, and why? (3 complete sentences).
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Science is a process.
Energy conversions underlie all ecological processes.
Earth itself is one interconnected system.
Humans alter natural systems.
Environmental problems have both a cultural and
social context.
Human survival depends on developing practices that
will achieve sustainable systems.
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Review safety contract
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Safety equipment in the lab – scavenger hunt!
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Homework: review safety contract with your
parent or guardian, and have him or her sign
off acknowledging the rules of the lab have
been read. Hand in the signed copy for me to
confirm all parties acknowledge the issues; I
will return it to you so it can be kept in your
notebook for future review.