Module 1: Lesson 1

Poverty - a condition in which people are unable to meet their basic needs (food, clothing, shelter,
education, health)

Rich and Poor Countries

Industrialization Population Growth Income per person

Highly Developed COMPLEX LOW RATE HIGH

Countries

Moderately MEDIUM HIGH RATE LOW

Developed Countries

Less Developed LOW HIGH RATE LOW (lower than

Countries Moderately Developed
Countries)

Nonrenewable resources - are natural resources that are present in limited supplies and are
depleted as they are used (e.g., minerals and fossil fuels)
Renewable resources - are resources that are replaced by natural processes and that can be used
forever, provided that they are not overexploited in the short term (e.g., fish, trees, water)

A country is overpopulated if the level of demand on its resources results in damage to the
environment.

People overpopulation - is a situation in which there are too many people in a given geographic
area.
Consumption overpopulation - is a situation in which each individual in a population consumes too
large a share of resources.

The poorer the country the larger its resource consumption.

Ecological footprint - is an amount of productive land, fresh water, and ocean required on a
continuous basis to supply each person with food, wood, energy, water, housing, clothing,
transportation, and waste

IPAT equation (I=PAT)

- Uses the 3 factors: number of people (P), affluence per person or the amount of resources
used per person (A), and environmental effects of technologies used to obtain and
consume the resources (T), to determine and estimate environmental impact

Environmental sustainability - is the ability to meet humanity’s current needs without compromising
the ability of future generations to meet their needs.
 Module 1: Lesson 2

Levels of Organizational Hierarchy

Atoms →Molecules→Cells→Tissues→Organ→Organ System→Organism→Population↓

Ecosphere←Biome←Ecosystem←Community

Ecosystem
- Biotic organisms + Abiotic Environment
- First in the ecological hierarchy complete with all the components important for survival
- 2 layers
a.) Autotrophic stratum - contains chlorophyll-containing plants
b.) Heterotrophic stratum - contains decaying matter
- Components
a.) Organic substances -e.g. C, N, O2, S,P
b.) Organic compounds - link biotic and abiotic components
c.) Abiotic factors - air, water, climate, soil
d.) Biotic factors - producers, consumers, decomposers

Autotrophs - organisms that can produce food on their own using light, water, CO2 and other
chemicals.
Heterotrophs - organisms that cannot produce its own food but instead rely on other organisms for
nourishment.

Trophic Levels
Producers - provide energy for other organisms; needs sunlight to produce energy
1. Macrophytes - large floating plants, home for other smaller animals
2. Small floating plants and Phytoplanktons
Consumers
1. Herbivores - primary consumers; feed directly on plants
a. Macroconsumers
b. Microconsumers - zooplanktons and benthic organisms (lives on the ocean floor)
2. Carnivores - secondary consumers; feed on other type of consumers
a. Nekton - organisms free-swimming in the water
3. Detritivores - feed on decaying matter, or wastes from other type of consumers
Decomposers- breaks down decaying matter or wastes
1. Bacteria
2. Flagellates
3. Fungi

10% of energy consumed is transferred every trophic level. 90% of that energy will be lost as heat.

Energy
1. 1st law of Thermodynamics: Law of Conservation of Energy
- Energy cannot be created nor destroyed, it can only be converted into other forms of
energy

2. 2nd law of Thermodynamics: Law of Entropy

- Unless outside energy is provided, a system will always seek disorder or entropy.
- No process involving energy transformation will spontaneously occur unless there is
degradation of energy from a low disorder(concentrated) to high disorder (dispersed)
Entropy
- Measure of disorder
- Low entropy = Low disorder = High quality of energy
- High entropy = High disorder = Low quality of energy

Food chain - simplest way to show energy transfer between organisms

The shorter the food chain the greater the energy consumed by that organism.

Biogeochemical cycles
1. Nitrogen cycle
a.) Nitrogen fixation - converting N2 from the atmosphere to Ammonia (NH4) by
nitrogen-fixing bacteria
b.) Nitrification - converting NH4 in the soil to Nitrates (NO3) and Nitrites (NO2)
c.) Assimilation - organisms take in NH4/NO3/NO2
d.) Ammonification - when organisms die or produce waste, decomposers convert these
organic matter with Nitrogen back to NH4
e.) Denitrification - converting NO3/NO2 to N2

2. Phosphorus cycle
a.) Weathering - sedimentary rocks which is the largest source of P is broken down
b.) Absorption - of animals and plants
c.) Decomposition - P present in the waste of animals will make their way back to the soil
which will be broken down by decomposers
d.) Recycle - P will then return to the rocks thru cementation

3. Sulfur cycle
- Typically the same processes as the Phosphorus cycle, also includes Sulfur sources
in the water present as Hydrogen Sulfide (H2S)

4. Carbon Cycle
a.) Photosynthesis - formation of O2 and glucose from the sunlight absorbed by plants
b.) Cellular Respiration - O2 will be inhaled by animals and will be converted back to CO2

5. Water Cycle
a.) Evaporation
b.) Condensation
c.) Precipitation

Niche - an area which consist of all the environmental factors needed for an organism’s survival

Limiting Factors - any environmental factor that limits a specie/organism’s population growth (e.g.
Soil, Temperature, Light),l typically answers the question “what”

Limits of Tolerance - the upper or lower range of a particular limiting factor within an organism can
survive; typically answers the question “how much”
Type of Interaction between two species
 Module 1: Lesson 3
Biomes
- A large, relatively terrestrial region with similar climate, soil, plants, and animals,
regardless of where it occurs in the world

CLIMATE SOIL ORGANISMS

Arctic Tundra Harsh winters and Nutrient-poor Mosses, Lichens,

extremely short Grass
summers Little detritus
Lemmings, Voles,
Little Precipitation Permafrost is present Weasels, Arctic foxes,
(10-25cm annually) beneath the surface Snowy owls, Oxen

Boreal Forest/Taiga Winters are not as Acidic Pine trees, Spruce,

harsh as in Tundras Fir, Conifers
Mineral-poor
Little precipitation Caribou, Wolves,
(50cm annually) Permafrost deep Black Bears, Moose
under the surface

Temperate Rainforest Cool weather with Relatively Evergreen trees,

dense fogs nutrient-poor Cedar, Spruce,
Mosses, Lichens,
High precipitation High organic content Ferns
(>127cm annually)
Squirrels, Rats, Deer,
Mild winters, Cool Elk
summers

Temperate Deciduous Mild precipitation Topsoil is rich in Hardwood trees, Oak,

Forest (75-126 cm annually) organic content Hickory, Beech

Hot summers and cold Lower layer is rich in Puma, Wolves, Bison,
winters clay Deer, Bears

Tropical RainForest Warm and moist Highly weathered Evergreen flowering

throughout the year ancient soil plants, Ferns, Orchids,
Bromeliads
High precipitation Mineral poor
(200-450 cm annually) Abundant insects,
Little organic matter Reptiles, Amphibians,
because of high Sloths, Monkeys
temperatures

Has layers of
vegetation

Chaparral Mild, moist winters, Thin and not fertile Evergreen shrubs,
Hot, dry summers small trees

Deer, Rats,
Chipmunks, Lizards,
Birds

Temperate Grassland Hot summers, cold Considerable organic Trees are rare near
winters matter rivers, tall grasses
 Less precipitation Grazing animals and
(25-75 cm annually) Prairie dogs

Savanna/Tropical Low rainfall (85-150cm Low in essential Wide expanse of

Grassland annually) or intense nutrients/minerals grass interrupted by
seasonal rainfall with because of heavy occasional trees
prolonged dry periods leaching (Acacia)

Antelope, Giraffe,
Elephants

Desert Less to no High mineral content Cactus, Sagebrushes,

precipitation (<25 cm Yuccas
annually) Low organic material
Tarantulas, Scorpions,
Extremes: Hot and Rattlesnake,
cold climates Kangaroo

Tropical RainForest layers:

Emergent story - the layer 50m and above from the ground
Canopy - 30-40m from the ground (most of the sunlight received in the Tropical rain forest are
found in this area
Understory - 1-30m from the ground
Forest Floor - the ground

Aquatic Ecosystems

Factors affecting distribution of organisms in an aquatic ecosystem:

1. Salinity - the concentration of dissolved salts in a body of water
2. Dissolved Oxygen - measure of how much O2 is dissolved in water
3. Nutrient minerals

3 categories of organisms in an aquatic ecosystem:

1. Plankton - microscopic organisms that drift according to the water’s current
2. Nekton - larger swimming organisms (e.g. fish, turtles, whales)
3. Benthos - bottom-dwelling organisms that fix themselves in one spot (e.g., sponges and
oysters), burrow into the sand (e.g., worms and clams) or walk on the seafloor (e.g., crawfish)

Freshwater Ecosystems
1. Standing-water Ecosystem
- A body of fresh water surrounded by land
- Water does not flow
- Zonation is present
● Littoral zone - near the shore, shallow, has lots of nutrients
● Limnetic zone - from the Littoral zone to the open water
a. Euphotic- near the surface, sunlight reaches the water
b. Profundal- near the lake/pond floor, the zone in which the sunlight
does not reach
● Benthic zone - floor of the lake or pond, rich in sediments
 2. Flowing-water Ecosystem
- Highly variable
- Environment changes greatly between a river’s source and its mouth

3. Wetlands
- Lands that shallow freshwater covers for at least part of the year
a. Marshes - soft stemmed plants, grasslike
b. Swamps - woody plants
c. Bogs - moss
d. Fens - peat
4. Freshwater Swamps
- Inland areas covered by water and dominated by trees
5. Brackish Ecosystem
- Coastal body of water
- Partly surrounded by land, with an Estuary (access to the open ocean from a
river; where freshwater and saltwater mixes)
- Water levels rises and falls with the tide
a. Salt Marshes
b. Mangrove forests - roots stabilize the submerged soil thereby
preventing coastal erosion

Major Ocean Life Zones

1. Intertidal zone - area of shoreline between low and high tides
2. Pelagic zone - form the shoreline to the open water, receives most of the sunlight
a. Neritic province - less than 200m depth
b. Oceanic province - more than 200m in depth
3. Benthic zone - the ocean floor - from the shoreline to the deep ocean trenches
a. Bathyal
b. Abyssal
c. Hadal - trenches

Coral reefs - provide habitats for many kind of organisms and protect coastlines from shoreline
erosion

Sea grasses - their roots help stabilize sediments reducing erosion