*Biodiversity: the variation of life within a particular area; a healthy area will have a high level of
biodiversity with a variation of biotic and abiotic factors
1. (4) Ch 3.3: List and explain the Earths 4 spheres.
Name of Sphere
Explanation/Characteristics
Geosphere
Biosphere
Atmosphere
Hydrosphere
Earth’s crust, mantle, and the core. Land forms – Pangea; tectonic
plates move = earthquakes
Bio = life, where living things interact with nonliving things; “The Living
Earth”
Ocean of gases that support and protect Earth; contain the ozone.
Encompasses all water- salt, fresh; liquid, ice, vapor on Earth’s
surface, underground and in the atmosphere.
2. (1) Ch 3.4: Describe the Law of Conservation of Matter: Matter can be transformed; Matter can
be neither created nor destroyed. Nutrients cycle through the environment endlessly.
3. (6) Ch 1: Identify and explain the parts of an experiment to include:
Experiment Parts
Description
Control
Constant
Independent Variable
Dependent Variable
Hypothesis
Conclusion
Variables kept in at a constant in a study.
Values that do not change; can be measured-out but not changed; a
set value/substance that you can compare results to.
The variable that is manipulated or changed. In an experiment. The
variable that you can control. For example: time
The variable that depends on the conditions set up in the experiment.
For example: temperature change over time (independent)
A testable idea that attempts to explain a phenomenon or answer a
scientific question written as an ‘If/then’ statement.
The end result of an experiment.
4. (4) Ch 5.3: Understand how energy flows through ecosystem:
Energy Flow through system
Description
Food Chain
Linear series of feeding
relationships
Food Web
Visual map of feeding
relationship among
individuals and energy flow
within the ecosystem
Energy Pyramid
Shows the relationship and
interaction between
ecological communities, lose
90% of energy at each level,
only 10% is passed on to the
next level
Trophic Levels
An organism’s rank in a
feeding hierarchy
Draw an example
Grass -> Deer -> Alligator
5. (1) Ch 4.1: Make a VENN diagram to COMPARE/CONTRAST biotic and abiotic environmental factors.
Biotic: living or once living
Both:
Abiotic: never living
Ex: Plants, Animals, Fungi
Make-up an ecosystem
Ex: Temperature, Wind, pH
6. (5) Ch 4.1:Differentiate between the levels of ecological organization
Ecological Organization
Definition
Example
Species
A group of individuals that
dolphin
interbreed and produce fertile
offspring
Population
Group of the same species
Pod of dolphin
living in the same area at the
same time
Community
All the populations in a
Pod of dolphin with fish, turtles,
particular area
sharks, sea weed; kelp, algae
(all biotic)
Ecosystem
All of the living things and their
Community (Pod of dolphin with
physical environments within a
fish, turtles, sharks, sea weed;
particular area
kelp, algae) + abiotic:
temperature, pH, rocks,
nutrients
Biosphere
Where living things interact with All of the ecosystems on Earth
nonliving things
7. (4) Ch 6.3: Compare the four types of wetlands:
Wetland
Description
Freshwater Marshes
Shallow water, tall grass-like
plants (cattails)
*Swamps
Shallow water, rich in
vegetation with woody shrubs
and trees, few grasses
Bogs
Low nutrients, acidic pH of
water, floating mats of
vegetation, usually moss,
result of secondary
succession
Fens
Rich in nutrients, less acidic,
connected to a source of
groundwater
8. (5) Ch 5: Compare/contrast the 5 types of species interaction:
Types of
Description
Species
Interactions
Predator/Prey
Process by which an individual of one
species hunts, captures and kills prey (+/-)
Competition
Occurs when organisms seek the same
limited resource (-/-)
Mutualism
Two or more organisms benefit from
sharing this relationship (+/+)
Draw an Example
Example
Commensalism
Parasitism
Relationship in which one species benefits
and the other is unaffected (+/0)
One organisms depeds on the other for
nourishment or some other benefit, one is
harmed (+/-)
9. (3) Ch 6.2: Describe the unique characteristics of the major biomes and their occurrence to
average temperature and precipitation (think latitude)
Biome
Description
Average
Average
Latitude
How would you describe to
Temperature Precipitation
someone who couldn’t see it??
Tropical Rain
12 hour days, dense canopy, trees, Warm;
Very wet
Around
Forest
vines, plants; nutrient rich
tropical
equator
vegetation, not soil
Tropical Dry
Seasonal variations, dry and wet
Warm
Heavy rainy
Just
Forest
season
season with
above/below
a long dry
the equator
season
Tropical region, with less rain than
20 degree C 40mm –dry
Just
Savanna
tropical dry forest but more than a
warm
with a rainy
above/below
desert, “Tropical Grassland”
season
tropical dry
forests
Desert
Dry area full of sand, rocks, little to HOT, can get VERY DRY,
Found just
no plants
chilly/cold at
little to no
above
night, 30 C
rain- 25cm
savanna
Temperate Rain
Damp, high humidity, surrounded
25 degree C, Very rainyJust above
Forest
by vegetation
can be chilly 200-300 mm desert areas
Temperate
Seasons, broad leafy trees, forests, 25 C
Moderate
Found
Forest
abundant with variety of vegetation, Seasonal
rain, 80above
nutrient rich soil –deciduous trees
variations
100mm
temperate
rain forest
Temperate
No big trees due to little rain,
23 C
30-50 mm –
Found
Grassland
variety of tall grasses, deciduous
little rain
around
flowers
temperate
forest areas
Chaparral
Highly seasonal; wet winters, dry
20 C
80mm
Found
summer; hills with shrubs
around
temperate
grasslands
Boreal Forest
Coniferous trees; cool, dry region,
15 C
70mm
Found in the
ranges of tall pine needle trees:
North
“coniferous forest”
Tundra
Snowy, dry, cold area; can be
5 C, very
30mm
Found
mountainous, full of scrubby
cold winters
between
vegetation; broad hoofed animals
with mild
boreal and
with think fur
summer
near Poles,
around polar
ice caps
Polar Ice Caps
Very cold region, snow, ice, no
Negative/LoC Little – snow poles
Mountains
plants at all
Steep mountains, full of small and
large trees
Variation
dependent
on latitude
and altitude
Varies
Makes up
parts of
many areas
10. (5)Ch 12.1: Explain various sustainable farming practices that reduce erosion.
Sustainable Farming Type
Description
Shelter Belts
“wind breaks”; rows of trees (other plants) planted along the edges of
fields to slow the wind
Conservation Tillage
Turning over of soil before planting
Intercropping
Planting of different crops in a mixed arrangement
Terracing
Used on steep hillsides, transforms steep slopes into a series of steps
Contour Farming
Plowing sideways across a hillside, perpendicular to the hills slope
11. (3) Ch 12: Describe the factors that contribute to soil pollution
Soil
Description
Pollutants
Irrigation
Providing water to plants; short-term: good; long-term: pollutes leading to erosion and
increases salinization
Salinization
Build-up of salts in upper soil horizons; increased through irrigation
Pesticides
Chemicals that kill organisms that attack or compete with plants can kill plants,
animals, fungus, bacteria or viruses
12. (3)Ch 19: List/describe the advantages and disadvantages of the various methods of
hazardous waste disposal
Hazard
Description
Advantages
Disadvantages
Waste
Disposal
Surface
Shallow pit, lined with plastic,
Reduce volume of
Can crack and leak
Impoundment used to hold liquid or semisolid
hazardous waste
wastes; only a
hazardous wastes
material
temporary solution
Sanitary
A facility in which waste is
Prevent contamination
Expensive, uses a lot of
Landfill
buried in the ground or piled up
of groundwater and soil space, can be seen
in large, engineered mounds
Deep Well
A method of hazardous waste
Out of sight, and away
Pollutes aquifer
Injection
disposal in which the waste is
from people
(groundwater that can
pumped into a well that has
be used for drinking
been drilled beneath the water
water)
table into porous rock
13. (1)Ch 19: What is Integrated Waste Management (IWM).
A comprehensive solid waste program that emphasizes REDUCE, REUSE, RECYCLE;
through prevention, recycling, composting and disposal program; Considers how to prevent,
recycle, and manage solid waste in waste that promote human health and the environment.
14. (1) Ch 2: Explain how supply and demand effect the economy.
The amount of a product offered for sale at a given price is supply. The amount of a product
people will but at a given price if free to do so is demand. Working to equilibrium is best,
however as the as the supply decreases and demand increases, so does the price. If the
supply increases and the demand decreases, so does the price.
15. (3) Ch 18: Explain the positive and negative affect of the various forms of alternative energy
Alternative
Description
Positive Effects
Negative Effects
Energy
Nuclear
Uranium is sued to generate
Does not create air
Very expensive to
electricity without creating air
pollution, safer for
maintain; possible risk of
pollution
workers
meltdown’s waste
disposal
Hydro
Using the kinetic energy of
Renewable energy;
*drastically change
moving water to turn turn-bines
clean-nothing burns =
ecosystems leading to a
and generate electricity
no air pollution,
decrease in biodiversity
inexpensive
Wind
Wind turn-bines convert wind’s
Non-polluting; efficient
Unpredictable supply;
kinetic energy into electrical
damage to landscape
energy
and wildlife
Solar
Using the sun’s energy directly
Limitless supply
Weather dependent’
for electricity
expensive
Biomass
Energy produced from organic
Releases no net carbon Biofuel crops take up
material; ie: plants (wood/grain)
into the atmosphere,
land deforestation,
and manure (animals/human
economic benefits
erosion, desertification,
waste)
not efficient; causes
indoor air pollution
Geothermal Steam or how water produced by Releases few
May not be sustainable;
pressure combining with the
greenhouse gases;
could run out of water;
breakdown of radioactive
reduces air pollution
not available
elements producing heat used to
everywhere; may trigger
turn turn-bines
earthquakes
16. (1) Ch 14: Explain the causes and effects of *eutrophication in the ecosystem.
Causes
Effects
The addition of phosphorus to bodies of
water.
Can lead to an overgrowth of producers
(algae).
Ex: *Farmers use of fertilizer to grow crops
leads to a big contribution of phosphorus into
the water.
Extreme cases lead to hypoxia (extremely low
levels of oxygen- Dead Zones)
17. (5) Ch 12: Explain the various components of soil formation to include
Factor
Effects
*Climate
*soil forms faster in warm, wet climates than in cold, dry climates
Time
Takes decades, centuries, millennia to form soil
Structure
A mixture of biotic and abiotic materials
Parent Material
Chemical and physical attributes of a parent material influence properties
of soil formed from it
Material with a carbon atom; living things/once living = biotic
Organic Material
18. (5) Ch 12: Explain the characteristics of soil to include:
Characteristic
Description
*Color
Dark = rich in humus = rich in nutrients
Pale = low in humus = poor nutrients
*Size
Determines the texture of the soil
*Texture
3 particle sizes: *clay – silt – sand (mixture of these = loam) – know that
clay is smallest, sand is largest; Indicates how porous soil is; determines
the work ability (how easy it is to plant and harvest from)
*Structure
Describes the arrangement of soil; particles “clumpiness”; more clumpy =
more humus = better soil for agriculture
*pH
Level of acidity – plants need slightly acidic/slightly alkaline soil in which to
grow
19. (1) Ch 9: Make a VENN diagram to COMPARE/CONTRAST bioaccumulation with biomagnification.
Bioaccumulation
Organisms can build up
large concentrations of
toxic substances in their
bodies
Ex: DDT build-up in
Fatty tissues
Both
Toxic chemicals
accumulate in
organisms as they
feed on another
*Biomagnification
concentration of toxic
substances can be greatly
magnified with each step
in the food chain
Ex: DDT – more harm to
tertiary predator because
the concentration is greater
20. (5)Ch 13: Describe the advantages and disadvantages of the various types of mining to include
Mining
Description
Advantages
Disadvantages
Type
Open Pit
Digging a large hole and
Safer, Easier
Leaves environmental
removing the ore and unwanted
disaster
(strip mining) rock that surrounds ore
Undersea
Large machines vacuum sand
Safe
Expensive, difficult to
and gravel from sea floor
access
(dredging)
Mountain
Forest clear-cut, burned, topsoil
Easy
Destroys environment
Top
removed, rock blasted
by removing mountains;
Removal
expensive
Placer
Sifting through the material in
Easy
Time-consuming,
Mining
modern or ancient riverbed
endangers wildlife
(looking
deposits
ecosystems
for gold)
Subsurface
(tunneling)
Vertical shafts are dug deep into
the ground, networks of tunnels
Doesn’t destroy forests
Dangerous to workers;
expensive
21. (1) Ch 12: Describe the advantages/disadvantages of monoculture.
Advantages
Disadvantages
Little variation in tree species and age =
A plantation of large-scale plantings
not as much habitat variety as in natural
of a single crop
forests = low biodiversity
Even-aged rotation time; supply of a
certain type of tree species
TOTAL = 78 pts
May 6th – May 8th
22. Ch 12: Explain the importance of industrial agriculture and the Green Revolution.
Industrial technology (use of machines/technology in farming) was part of the Green
Revolution, which gave developing countries a way to sustain themselves and feed their
people. This lead to an increase in fossil fuel use to produce fertilizer and pesticides.
23. Ch 15-16: Make a Venn Diagram to Compare/contrast low-level and high-level ozone.
Low – tropospheric, dangerous, due to vehicles and industry
High – stratospheric, safe, natural process to warm the Earth
Both- contain similar chemicals
24. Ch 14: Make a Venn Diagram Compare / contrast point and non-point pollution
Point – distinct locations of pollution; ex: factories or sewer pipes
Non-Point – comes from many places spread over a large area; ex: runoff produced by rain or
snow, runoff from oil covered streets, runoff from agricultural fields
Both: types of pollution sources
25. Ch 14: Explain why ground water (aquifer) pollution is difficult to clean up.
Hidden from view and difficult to monitor; takes years to rid contaminants – better to prevent
than clean-up; positive: permeable, allows water to cycle through naturally.
26. Ch 19: Explain the composition of municipal solid waste (trash).
Paper products make-up the largest component of trash. Also includes yard debris, food
scraps and plastic.
27. Ch 4: Compare the impact extirpation, extinction and mass extinction have on biodiversity
Factor
Effects on Biodiversity
Impact Extirpation Disappearance of an organism from a particular area
but not globally; does push organism towards extinction, further
decreasing biodiversity.
Extinction
The disappearance of a species from the Earth; 99% of all species that
once lived are now gone = decreases biodiversity
Mass Extinction
Many species become extinct at once; 5 worldwide extinctions in history,
decreases biodiversity greatly
28. Ch 11: Describe resource management approaches to include
Approach
Effects on Resource Management
Maximum
Harvest the maximum amount of a resource without reducing the amount
Sustainable Yield of future harvests
Ecosystem Based
Management
Adaptive
Management
Harvest resources in ways that minimize impact on the ecosystems and
ecological processing that provide resources
Scientifically testing different management approaches in an area; one
after the other, then customizing an approach based on the results
29. Ch 11: Explain why there is less biodiversity in a tree plantation than in a similar sized
naturally occurring forest.
A tree plantation is a large scale planting of a single crop of trees that are roughly the same
age and size, unlike those in a natural forest. This leads to a lower biodiversity.
***Succession: the regrowth of a forest after a natural or man-made disaster; EX: after a mudslide,
plants and animals will return to an area
30. CH 17/18: Using a VENN diagram Compare/contrast renewable with nonrenewable resources.
Renewable: a resource that can be recycled or get more of; ex: soil, wind, solar
Non-Renewable: a resource that once it is used, it is gone and cannot get more of it; EX:
fossil fuels: oil, coal, natural gas
31. Ch 15/16: Understand various environmental laws/policies and agencies to include:
Environmental
Law/Policy
NEPA
EPA
ESA
What does the
abbreviation
represent?
The National
Environmental Policy
Act
Environmental
Protection Agency
Endangered Species
Act
Description
Promotes enhancement of the environment,
lead to the Environmental Impact Statement
(EIS)
Increase air quality and human health
Helps to protect endangered species; no
hunting/poaching/trading; no harming habitat;
US Fish and Wildlife keeps a list and develops
recovery plans
32. Ch 2: Explain the different approaches to environmental policies to include
Approach
Description
Command
A government body sets rules and threatens punishment for violations
and Control
Subsidy
A give away of cash or public resources that is intended to encourage a
particular activity or lower the price of a product
Green Tax
Taxes imposed on companies that participate in activities or produce
products that are harmful to the environment
Cap and Trade
A government determines the overall amount of pollution it will accept for
a specific pollutant and issues permits that allow polluters to emit a certain
fraction of that amount
33. Ch 11: Compare the advantages and disadvantages of timber harvesting methods to include:
Timber
Description
Advantages
Disadvantages
Harvesting
Method
Clear Cutting All trees in a certain area are
Creates more lumber Reduces our oxygen
cut down
and destroys animal
habitats, leads to
erosion and evenaged regrowth of
trees leading to
decrease in
biodiversity
Seed Tree
Small numbers of mature and Less harmful than
Even-aged regrowth
healthy seed-producing tress
clear-cutting
are left standing so they can
reseed the logged area
Shelter
Wood
Small number of trees are left
in place to provide shelter for
the seedlings as they grow
Less harmful that
clear cutting
Even age regrowth
Selection
Systems
Only some trees are cut at
once
Resembles a forest
Dangerous to workers
and expensive
*Biodiversity: reduced by only planting one type of tree back into the ecosystem after clear-cutting.
Ex: Clear cut the forest, only plant back spruce trees.
34. Ch 7: Differentiate between the three types of species diversity to include:
Type
Description
Species Diversity The number or variety of species of a particular region
Genetic Diversity
The differences in DNA among individuals within species and populations
Ecosystem
Diversity
The number and variety of ecosystems within a given area
35. Ch 7: What human activity results in the greatest loss of biodiversity?
habitat change that leads to habitat loss, could be due to pollution, invasive species,
overharvesting, or climate change
36. YOU NEED TO REMEMBER THIS: Cost effectiveness is the greatest factor in the
development and implementation of alternative energy sources.
37. Ch 3: Identify and describe the biogeochemical cycles in the ecosystem to include:
Biogeochemical
Description
Example
Cycle
Carbon Cycle
How a carbon atom cycles through the
Photosynthesis, cellular
environment
respiration. Sediments,
ocean
Nitrogen Cycle
How nitrogen moves through the
Important for DNA/RNA;
environment – cannot cycle out of
essential for plant growth
biosphere on its own
Hydrological
How water cycles through the
Evaporation/transpiration,
Cycle
environment
condensation,
precipitation
Phosphorus
How phosphorus cycles through the
Keeps phosphorus
Cycle
environment
availability low, overuse
of fertilizer can lead to
eutrophication
38. Ch 3: What is a carbon sink and provide examples:
Description/Definition
Carbon Sink
Absorbs more carbon that it releases;
roughly 1-2 billion metric tons of carbon
unaccounted for, not returned to
atmosphere or ocean
Examples
Taken in by the
coniferous trees of
the Boreal Froest
(northern forests)
39. Ch 8: Explain the various population demographics to include:
Population
Description
Example
Demographics
Population
The number of individuals within a
“how crowded it is”;
Density
population per unit area
“how many people live in a
square mile”
Age Structure
“Age Distribution”; describes the relative
Can look at individuals who
numbers of organisms of each age within make-up the prea population
reproductive/reproductive/post
reproductive populations
Distribution
How organisms are arranged within an
Clumped, random or uniform
Patterns
area
****Demographic Transition
40. Ch 8: What is a Population Structure Histogram and how do you interpret it.
A population structure histogram is describes the relative numbers of organisms of each age
within a population.
Use the population structure histogram above to answer the following questions:
a. Which country has the SMALLEST percentage of adults reaching age 80? Congo
b. Looking at the US, are there more females OR males over the age of 80? Females
c. Does Germany or the US have a higher percentage of people age 0-4?
US
41. Ch 12: How can biotechnology impact biodiversity? (think: cloning, selective breeding, GMOs)
Negatively: by increasing land cultivation, population growth and other environmental
pressures. Positively: cloning animals on the brink of extinction
42. Ch 5: How does natural selection and evolution impact the biodiversity of an ecosystem?
(think: genetic changes)
The biodiversity decreases because the ‘most fit’ out compete and out-live the ‘less fit’.
*HINT: Try to study 10 of these questions each night to help increase your EOC grade!