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The concepts and principles of ecology are the basic foundation of environmental
science. These concepts and principles serve as a working framework and at the same
managers make more informed environmental decisions that are in line with
available in an environment and the conditions it has. But each organism has an
adaptive capability in coping with changes in the conditions and the stresses an
These are some of the things an environmental manager has to consider in making
concepts and principles of ecology because he or she is applying what these concepts
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What is the consequence of a living system being in equilibrium, energy-wise,
with the environment? Explain briefly.
energy. Living systems, according to Grisham and Garrett (2010), are complicated
and highly organized. Their biological structures are there for functional purposes –
from the limbs and organs of an organism down to the presence of enzymes. They
also added that living systems are actively engaged in energy transformations where
they emphasized that the living state is manifested by the flow of energy through the
organism, and it is only death that an organism reaches equilibrium (or state of
number of energy sources to retain the needed energy for it to function. Since, the
along the way, minute amount of energy is left to those that belong in the upper level
of the food pyramid, thus, the need to have a number of sources of energy.
An organism, or man in this particular example, sustain his or her life through the
transfer of energy and matter from the environment. Man, as a system, has been able
to adapt with its environment. Humans exchange energy and matter by eating,
inhaling and exhalation of air, and excretion of body wastes. A human body system is
1Medina, C. , Zafaralla, M., Sierra, Z., and et. Al. (1999). Module 1. Ecosystem Dynamic and
Structure. University of the Philippines Open University. Philippines. p. 14
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composed of cells, tissues and organs, where each has interaction with one another.
The human body has developed overtime wherein each cell has a coping mechanism
in interacting with energy flow (- capacity to store and utilize energy), to avoid
Being a top predator/consumer also imply that an organism is safe from being a prey
to other organisms, but has to look after itself to sustain its existence.
Why can't a food chain with infinite number of links exist in nature? (10pts)
would be no sufficient
in the higher
stratum/strata of the
food chain.
Fig. 1. Food Pyramid
The law of thermodynamics expressed that energy can neither be created destroyed.
Energy can be transferred but lost of energy in each step of the food chain happens. It
can be illustrated this way, the 1000 unit of energy consumption at the primary
producer level, only 10% of the original amount of energy will be transferred or will
be received by the primary consumer. And the same goes with the succeeding links or
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Because of the lost of energy in each step or link of the food chain, it takes a lot of
producers to support the energy needs of some of the top consumers. The implication
of having too many links would be an organism belonging in the higher level of
pyramid would consume as many organisms belonging to the lower level, if this
happens, there would be resource depletion or starvation in the process that may not
sustain the other needs of other organisms to exist or worst could lead to cannibalism.
Illustrate (sketch) energy flow in a rice farming village. How can village
inhabitants get a bigger share of solar energy converted during the
photosynthetic process considering the reality of the second law of
thermodynamics? (20pts)
In the visual representation (Fig. 2) prepared below, it shows the energy flow I have
represent the rice fields and other green and leafy organisms) and consumers
5a
1 2a
3a 5b
3 4a
2 4
5c
5d
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You can find different arrows with corresponding numbers. Each number set
highlighted in this figure: carabao (#2), chicken (#3), worms (#4), and the rice farmer
(#5).
The plants (as the primary producer) receive a greater amount of solar energy in the
process, energy conversion decreases the amount being transferred from the plants to
its consumers. The rice-farmer can act as the primary consumer of the plants or the
tertiary consumer in the food pyramid. For the inhabitants to have a bigger share of
solar energy converted during the photosynthetic process, they need to feed on the
plants directly.
The law of thermodynamics emphasized that energy lost happens in every interaction
it has with an organism in the process. By directly feeding into the primary
consumers, rice-farmers get a bigger share of a converted solar energy. The farmers
may consider planting vegetables or crops rich in protein that can substitute meat
proteins that has been part of their dietary requirement, and at the same time sustain
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Show in a detailed sketch that sustaining a closed nutrient cycling in the tropical
forest ecosystem will ensure clean waters in springs and rivers flowing towards
lakes and coastal areas. (20pts)
Above is the sketch on nutrient cycling in a tropical forest ecosystem. I would just to
emphasize that the absence of factories and other man-made industries help in
ensuring that clean waters flow through the bodies of water from the tropical forest
ecosystem. Also, the presence of rocks and soil help in filtering water coming from
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Identify your enjoyable lifestyle that would disrupt closed cycling of each of the
following: Phosphorus, Nitrogen and Sulfur
How can you enjoy life and at the same time sustain the closed cycling of
these nutrient elements? (20pts)
I have identified the following enjoyable lifestyle that could disrupt the cycle of
Phosphorus, Nitrogen and Sulfur: washing clothes using detergent soaps, eating
Detergent soaps are one of the many sources of phosphorus running off to the bodies
of water. I prefer using detergent soaps over organic-based soaps because I feel like
my clothes are cleaner using the detergent soaps. After reading further the
implications of disturbing the natural flow of the phosphorus cycle, I am now more
Eating poultry products (chicken, ducks, eggs, etc.) is something that I have been
doing since birth. I may not be the one owning a poultry farm, but the fact that these
poultry products have body excretions, which contain nitrogen and may have been
produced in a large amount, could basically affect the nitrogen cycle. From my part,
since poultry product has been basically part of my lifestyle already, the best way to
and at the same time educate poultry owners. Help in managing poultry waste
Lastly, riding a cab has been part of my busy life. I find it more convenient to ride a
cab instead of using a public utility vehicle. But since the burning of fossil fuel and
car emissions have added drastically to the presence of sulfur in the atmosphere, my
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contribution in minimizing its presence is to walk if the place I am going to is just
nearby or take a public utility vehicle instead of riding a cab to minimize the
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Annotated Bibliography
Grisham, Charles M. and Reginald H. Garrett (2010). Chapter 1: The Facts of Life-
Chemistry is the logic of Biological Phenomena, page 2. Biochemistry.
Retrieved June 30, 2010, from the Google Books website:
http://books.google.com/books?id=iGPsen3fSOIC&lpg=PP1&pg=PR11#v=one
page&q&f=false
In this particular chapter, the authors gave a list of distinctive properties of a living
system, where they have tackled about energy and its role in a living system.
Halls, Chares (2009). Ecological Energetics. The Encyclopedia of Earth. Retrieved
June 26, 2010, from the Encyclopedia of Earth website:
http://www.eoearth.org/article/Ecological_energetics
The author gave an overview of what Ecological Energetics is. It gave a snippet of the
energy study of Howard Odum on the efficiency of transfer of energy in a food level.
Ho, Mae-wan (2007). Thermodynamics of Organisms and Sustainable Systems.
Lecture for the conference on Environment, Agriculture, Food, Health and
Economy, World Food Day, La Sapienza University, Rome, Italy. Retrieved
June 30, 2010, from the Institute of Science in Society website: http://www.i-
sis.org.uk/ThermodynamicsOfOrganisms.php
The author presented her paper on a conference in Italy. Her presentation revolved
around the zero-entropy model of organisms and sustainable systems. The article
gave an overview of Schrodinger’s negentropy and the importance of cycles. It also
tries to redefine the second law of thermodynamics. It introduced the zero-entropy
model, gave a snippet on sustainable systems as organisms and diagnostic signs of
sustainability.
Medina, C. , Zafaralla, M., Sierra, Z., and et. Al. (1999). Modules 1-3. Ecosystem
Dynamic and Structure. University of the Philippines Open University.
Philippines.
The authors tackled the history of ecology and explained concepts on ecology. They
also discussed energy flow, and the physical processes on earth. They described the
nature of solar energy, and tackled components of the earth – atmosphere, climate
and weather, in the context of ecology. They also discussed each biogeochemical
processes and how these processes are affected by disruptions or interventions of
humans.
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