Biology 20 - Unit A: Energy, Matter, and the Biosphere (Terms)

A theory in which the earth resembles a complex, living organism where the biotic and abiotic systems interact and are interdependent

The theoretical state of the earth in which change is continually occurring, but adjustments are being made to keep the system stable

Enhances/magnifies the changes in a complex system

Minimizes or brings to an equilibrium the changes in a complex system

All areas of the earth where life is found

The envelope of gases surrounding earth, refers to the area above the ground

The crust of the earth, the ground

The combined mass of water on earth, including precipitation and ice

An individual plant, animal, or single-celled life form

A group of a particular species of organisms living in a particular place at a specific time

All of the populations that live in a specific area at a specific time

Communities and their abiotic environments

Describes the biological diversity, number, and variety of species that live in an ecosystem

Species which can help to define an entire ecosystem due to its disproportionately large affect on its natural environment relative to its abundance

Species of organisms that provide an early warning that an ecosystem’s biodiversity is compromised because it is very sensitive to changes of ecosystem conditions

The concentration of toxins in an organism as a result of its ingesting other plants and animals in which the toxins are more widely dispersed

A category of living things that is defined by how it gains its energy

An organism that creates its own energy

An organism that obtains energy from other organisms

Describe trophic levels

A representation of the feeding relationships amongst organisms in an ecosystem

Energy cannot be created or destroyed, only transferred

During any energy transformation, some of the energy will be transformed into an unusable form (such as heat) and will therefore be lost to the system

Only around 10% of energy stored in a trophic level is available to be passed from one level to the next

A graphical representation of energy flow within an ecosystem; at each level the energy found within the bodies of organisms is graphed

A tool used by scientists to represent the flow of energy in an ecosystem by using the number of organisms that exists at each level

A tool used by scientists to represent the flow of energy in an ecosystem by using biomass of organisms that exist at each level

Any compound made by living things that contain carbon

Any compound that does not contain carbon

The phenomenon in which molecules stick to each other

The phenomenon in which molecules stick to other surfaces

The general term for the process of water evaporating into the atmosphere

The process in which water vapour is turned into liquid water

Water/snow falling to the earth

Unconfined water flowing over the surface of the ground

The process of water moving downwards through the soil due to gravity

The loss of water-soluble plant nutrients from the soil due to cohesion or adhesion

Where pores/fracture of the ground are saturated with water

Replenishment of an aquifer by absorption of water

Acid rain/snow from the burning of fossil fuel

A single-celled photosynthesizing microbe that was first responsible for producing oxygen on Earth

Layered mounds of sheet-like limestone rocks that were originally formed by the growth of cyanobacteria

Carbon compounds that are not made by living things

The atmosphere, the ocean, and the lithosphere

A carbon compound derived from plants or animals that usually contains carbon and hydrogen

The bodies of living organisms; in peat, coal, crude oil, and natural gas stored in the ground

The increase in concentrations of greenhouse gases due to the burning of fossil fuels, which is causing the atmosphere to absorb more heat and increase the rate of climate change

The transformation of atmospheric nitrogen gas to a useable form of nitrogen by soil bacteria or legume roots

The incorporation of useable nitrogen into tissue

The transformation of organic nitrogen compounds to ammonia gas during decomposition

The transformation of ammonia into nitrites or nitrites into nitrate via nitrifying bacteria

Converts ammonia to nitrites

Converts nitrites to nitrates

The transformation of nitrites into nitrogen gas via denitrifying bacteria

When the environment becomes enriched with nutrients from the accumulation of nitrates and phosphates, which results in prolific algae growth

Water that is low in oxygen