APES Topic
Pages in Withgott and Brennan
APES Topic outline correlated with Environment by Withgott and Brennan
I.
Earth systems and resources (1015%)
A. Earth Science Concepts
1. geologic time scale
2. plate tectonics, earthquakes,
volcanism
3. seasons
4. solar intensity and latitude
B. The Atmosphere
1. composition
2. structure
3. weather and climate
4. atmospheric circulation and
the Coriolis Effect
5. atmosphere-ocean
interactions
6. ENSO
C. Global Water resources and use
1. freshwater/saltwater
2. ocean circulation
3. agricultural, industrial,
domestic use
4. surface and groundwater
issues
5. global problems
6. conservation
D Soil and Soil dynamics
1. rock cycle
2. formation
3. composition
4. physical, chemical properties
5. main soil types
6. erosion other soil problems
7. soil conservation
206-211
108-111; fig 23.11
207-209
502 fig 17.5
fig 17.4
498-505
498
498-499
501-504
505
fig. 18.5; 533-34
534; 536-37
chap. 15 and 16
fig. 16.5; 469-471
440-449
chapter 15
456-57; 447
450-451
Chapter 9
206-07; fig 7.15
251-252
252-254
253-54
254; fig 9.9
255-268
269; 271-272
APES Topic
II
The Living World (10-15%)
A. Ecosystem Structure
a. Populations/communities
b. Niches
c. Species interactions
d. Keystone species
e. Species diversity and edge
effects
f. biomes
B. Energy flow
a. Photosynthesis & cell
respiration
b. Food webs & trophic levels
c. Ecological pyramids
C. Ecosystem Diversity
a. Biodiversity
b. natural selection
c. evolution
d. ecosystem services
D. Natural Ecosystem Change
a. Climate shifts
b. Species movement
c. Ecological succession
E. Natural biogeochemical cycles
a. Carbon
b. Nitrogen
c. Phosphorus
d. sulfur
e. water
f. conservation of matter
Pages in Withgott and Brennan
Ch 6; 156151
150-156
162
*
170-178
Chapter 4 (part)
p. 103-108
p. 156-159
p. 158 (no diagram)
Chapter 5
p. 122; p 141-144
p. 118-122
p. 122-129
p. 39-41; T 2.2 p41; p 48-53;
p325
p. 504-505; 530-540; Ch. 18
p. 163-166
p 195-206
APES Topic
III
Population (10-15%)
A. Population biology concepts
a. Population ecology
b. carrying capacity
c. reproductive strategies
d. survivorship
B. Human Population
a. Human population dynamics
i. Historical pop. Sizes
ii. Distribution
iii. Fertility rates
iv. Growth rates &
doubling times
v. Demographic
transition
vi. Age-structure
diagrams
b. Population size
i. Strategies for
sustainability
ii. Case studies
iii. National policies
c. Impacts of population growth
i. Hunger
ii. Disease
iii. Economic effects
iv. Resource use
v. Habitat destruction
IV
Land and Water Use (10-15%)
A. Agriculture
a. Feeding a growing
population
i. Human nutritional
requirements
ii. Types of agriculture
iii. Green Revolution
iv. Genetic engineering
and crop production
v. Deforestation
vi. Irrigation
vii. Sustainable
agriculture
Pages in Withgott and Brennan
p. 131 –
p. 136-137
p. 138-139
p. 135
Chapter 8
p. 218-219; p 222 fig 8.5
p 223-224; fig 8.6; fig 8.8
p. 227-235
p.135-137; *
p. 228-229; fig8.14
p. 224-226; fig 8.10
p. 229-240
p. 217-218; 230-231; 234
p. 229p.278-282; p. 305
p. 404-405; *
p. 228-229; 235-236
p. 393-396; p8-9
p. 8-9; 447; 319 *
Chapter 10; chapter 9
**
p. 279-282
p. 287- 295
p. 270-272; 346 -; chapter 12
p 264-266
p. 300-305
APES Topic
b. Controlling pests
i. types of pesticides
ii. costs/benefits of
pesticide use
iii. integrated pest
management
iv. relevant laws
B. Forestry
a. tree plantations
b. old growth forests
c. forest fires
d. forest management
e. national forests
C. Rangelands
a. Overgrazing
b. Deforestation
c. Desertification
d. Rangeland management
e. Federal rangelands
D. Other land use
a. Urban land development
i. Planned development
ii. Sprawl
iii. Urbanization
b. Transportation infrastructure
i. Fed. Highway system
ii. Canals and channels
iii. Roadless areas
iv. Ecosystem impacts
c. Public and federal lands
i. Management
ii. Wilderness areas
iii. National parks
iv. Wildlife refuges
v. Forests
vi. Wetlands
d. Land conservation options
i. Preservation
ii. Remediation
iii. Mitigation
iv. Restoration
e. Sustainable land use
strategies
Pages in Withgott and Brennan
p. 282p. 282; *
p. 282-286; *
p. 285
**
Chapter 12
p. 355
p. 343-344; p348-349
358-360
346-361
354-358
268-271
349-354
259-260
267-271
*
Chapter 13
373-397
378388-391
*
*
*
344-346
365
364-369
346-361
435-436; 362
**
34-35;
89-93(bioremediation); 112
300-304; 361;
APES Topic
E. Mining
a. mineral formation
b. extraction
c. global reserves
d. relevant laws and treaties
F. Fishing
a. Fishing techniques
b. Overfishing
c. Aquaculture
d. Relevant laws and treaties
G. Global economics
a. Globalization
b. World bank
c. Tragedy of the commons
d. Relevant laws and treaties
V. Energy Resources and Consumption (1015%)
A. Energy concepts
a. Energy forms
b. Power
c. Units
d. Conversions
e. Laws of thermodynamics
B. Energy consumption
a. History
i. Industrial revolution
ii. Exponential growth
iii. Energy crisis
b. Present global energy use
c. Future energy needs
C. Fossil fuel resources and use
a. Formation of coal, oil, natural
gas
b. Extraction/purification
methods
c. World reserves and global
demand
d. Synfuels
e. Environmental
advantages/disadvantages of
sources
D. Nuclear energy
a. Nuclear fission process
b. Nuclear fuel
c. Electricity production
Pages in Withgott and Brennan
**
482-492
485
482
299-300
*
691-692
83
6
83-83, *
103-108
103
*
*
*
104
562-; 592
4
fig 20.2
*
563
*
Chap. 19
Chap. 20
592-593
593-595
594
APES Topic
d. Nuclear reactor types
e. Environmental advantages or
disadvantages
f. Safety issues
g. Radiation and human health
h. Radioactive wastes
i. Nuclear fusion
E. Hydroelectric power
a. Dams
b. Flood control
c. Salmon
d. Silting
e. Other impacts
F. Energy conservation
a. Energy efficiency
b. CAFÉ standards
c. Hybrid electric vehicles
d. Mass transit
G. Renewable energy
a. Solar energy
b. Solar electricity
c. Hydrogen fuel cells
d. Biomass
e. Wind
f. Small-scale hydroelectric
g. Ocean waves and tidal energy
h. Geothermal
i. Environmental advantages or
disadvantages
VI Pollution (25-30%)
A. Pollution types
a. Air pollution
1. sources-primary & secondary
2. major air pollutants
3. measurement units
4. smog
5. acid deposition-causes and
effects
6. heat islands and temperature
inversions
7. indoor air pollution
8. remediation and reduction
strategies
9. Clean Air Act & other laws
Pages in Withgott and Brennan
594
596-607
597
604-605; 597-600
600-602
595
612-615
446-449
444-445
*
*
582-585
*
*
583
389-391
Chapter 21
623-627
625
637-642
607-612
627-633
*
635-637
633-635
Ch. 21
505-525
505-506
507-508
509-511
514-518
*, 503
519-525
*,512
506-509
APES Topic
b. Noise pollution
1. sources
2. effects
3. control measures
c. Water pollution
1. Types
2. sources, causes, effects
3. cultural eutrophication
4. groundwater pollution
5. maintaining water quality
6. water purification
7. sewage treatment/septic
systems
8. Clean Water Act & other
laws
d. Solid Waste
1. Types
2. disposal
3. reduction
B. Impacts on the Environment and Human
Health
a. Hazards to human health
1. Environmental risk analysis
2. Acute and chronic effects
3. Dose-response relationships
4. Air pollutants
5. Smoking and other risks
b. Hazardous chemicals in the
environment
1. types of hazardous waste
2. treatment/disposal of
hazardous waste
3. cleanup of contaminated sites
4. biomagnification
5. relevant laws
C. Economic Impacts
1. cost-benefit analysis
2. externalities
3. marginal costs
4. sustainability
Pages in Withgott and Brennan
**
451-462
452-454
fig 15.18 p 452
453; 188-189
454-456
*
457-458
458-461
455-456; 78
Ch. 22
p. 648
Ch. 14
p. 422-424
p. 421
p. 420
p. 415
p. 522-524
p. 403, p. 664-671
p. 664-669
p. 667
p. 670, *
p. 416
p. 426
p. 660-662
p. 42
p. 43
p. 42
p. 19-22; p. 682-685
APES Topic
VII Global Change (10-15%)
A. Stratospheric Ozone
1. Formation
2. ultraviolet radiation
3. causes of ozone depletion
4. effects of oz depletion
5. strategies for reducing oz dep
6. relevant laws and treaties
Pages in Withgott and Brennan
511-513
**
511
511-513; fig 17.15
513
513-514
513-514
B. Global Warming
1. Greenhouse gases/effect
2. impacts/consequences of GW
3. reducing climate change
4. relevant laws and treaties
Chapter 18
531-532; fig 18.1; table 18.1
541-45; table 18.3; figs 18.12,13
548-552
550
C. Loss of Biodiversity
1. Habitat loss
2. overuse
3. pollution
4. introduced species
5. endangered/extinct species
chapter 11
319
323
322
319-322
316-318
6. Maintenance through
conservation
324-338
7. relevant laws and treaties
331-335
Useful web sites
http://www.enviroliteracy.org/article.php/1492.html
This is the APES course outline, with hyperlinks for most topics