I. Earth’s Spheres

A. Hydrosphere: Water part of the planet

B. Atmosphere: Gas part of the earth

C. Biosphere: Life part of the earth

D. Geosphere: Rock/Soil part of the earth

E. Mr. Wright’s famous saying, “Small Changes Can Have

Big Effects.”

II. Needs of Organisms

Biosphere

A. All parts of the earth that contains and support life 1. Geosphere 2. Atmosphere 3. Hydrosphere

B. Most life lives: 1. 500 meters below the ocean 2. 6 km above sea level 3. Layer is about 20 km thick

C. Water

1. Dissolved Oxygen

2. Controls body temperature

3. Receive Nutrients

D. Food and Energy

1. Nutrients

a. Minerals

b. Vitamins

2. Ingestion

3. Absorb through cells on body

4. Drinking

E. Living Space

1. Shelter

2. Territory

a. Size is determined by needs

b. Marking territory

c. Competition for territory

F. Climate

1. Most animals are accustomed to a certain climate

2. Examples

1. Differences between warm blooded and cold blooded

2. Hibernation

III. Ecosystem Structure

A. Habitat

1. Specific environment in which a particular species lives

B. Geographical Range

1. The total area in which a species can live

C. Species

1. A group of organism that are very similar

a. Breed and produce fertile offspring

2. Climate tolerance

3. Size of territory

4. Types of food

D. Population

1. All members of a species that live in the same

geographical area

E. Community

1. All the different populations that live and interact in

the same area

F. Ecosystem

1. Includes all the communities

2. Abiotic factors

G. Biomes

1. A major type of ecosystem with a distinctive

temperature, rainfall and organisms.

H. Biosphere

IV. Roles of Living Things

A. Producers

1. Make own food

2. Photosynthesis

3. 6H2O + 6CO2+ Energy C6H12O6+ 6O2

B. Consumers

1. Obtain energy from eating other organisms

2. Herbivores

a. Eat only plants

b. Primary Consumers

3. Carnivores

a. Eat herbivores or other carnivores

b. Secondary or tertiary consumers

4. Omnivores

a. Eats both producers and consumers

b. Secondary or tertiary consumers

5. Scavengers

a. Feed on the dead bodies of organisms

b. Primary, secondary, and tertiary

6. Detritivores

a. Feeds on decaying plant or animal matter or fecal

matter

b. Primary, secondary, and tertiary

7. Decomposers

A. Example: Bacteria and Fungi

B. Consume the bodies of dead organisms or organic

wastes

C. The recyclers of the ecosystem

D. Nutrients are returned back to the soil

WHY ARE DECOMPOSERS IMPORTANT?

V. Food Chains and Food Webs

A. Trophic Levels

1. feeding relationships in ecosystem

2. producers: first level: autotrophs

3. consumers: second and higher: heterotrophs

B. Food Chain

1. Series of organisms

2. Transfer of food between the trophic levels

3. Energy Transfer

C. Food Web

1. Network of food chains

2. All food chains in an ecosystem

3. Link organisms in an ecosystem

D. Bioaccumulation

1. The accumulation of a toxic chemical in the tissue of a

particular organism.

E. Biological Magnification

1. Increasing amounts of a pollutant in organisms at

higher trophic levels in a food web.

F. Stable Ecosystem

1. More trophic levels and more animals in a food web

means more stable the ecosystem.

2. Example: Tundra versus Deciduous Forest.

VI. Energy and Food

A. Biomass: The total amount of organic matter present in a

trophic level

B. Energy is transferred from each trophic level in the form

of biomass

C. Only part of the energy is transferred from one trophic

level t the next (10% is passed up)

1. Used for:

a. Generating heat

b. Motion

c. Body Functions

d. Other life functions

D. Loss of energy for one trophic level to the next explains

the reason where there is a limit to the number of trophic

levels that can be supported in the ecosystem.

E. Ecological Pyramids

1. Pyramid of numbers: Overall population

2. Pyramid of biomass: Shows the entire mass of an

ecosystem

3. Pyramid of Energy: Shows the amount of energy of an

ecosystem.

VII. Nitrogen Cycle

A. Organisms need forms of nitrogen to make amino acids and

proteins(This helps build muscle)

B. Nitrogen Fixation

1. Nitrogen from atmosphere is change to ammonium (N2

to NH4)

2. Occurs by lighting or soil bacteria (legumes)

C. Denitrification

1. Process of turning a nitrate or nitrite into nitrogen gas

(NO3 to N2) or (NO2 to N2)

2. Nitrate=NO3

3. Nitrite=NO2

4. This occurs by bacteria

D. Nitrification

1. Process of turning ammonium into nitrates

2. NH4 to NO3

3. Bacteria cause this to happen

E. Assimilation

1. Process of changing nitrates (NO3) into organic

nitrogen

2. This occurs in plants and animals

3. Digestion and absorption

F. Ammonification (Mineralisation)

1. Process of changing organic nitrogen into Ammonium

(NH4)

2. Decomposers cause this to happen

VIII. Carbon Cycle

A. Make up your body structure (fats and proteins)

B. Needed to make carbohydrates

C. 18% of your body is made up of carbon

D. The cycle has places where carbon is absorbed (carbon

sinks)

E. Carbon can be released (carbon source)

F. Biological “Short” Cycle

G. Long or “Delayed” Cycle

H. Carbon Sink: Anything that absorbs more carbon then it

releases

I. Carbon Source: Anything that emits more carbon then it

absorbs

J. Carbon Reservoir: Anything that stores carbon with no

inflows or outflows.

K. Carbon Pool: Anything that can act like a carbon source or

sink.

L. Feedback Loop: Something that can either enhance or slow

down a process.

i. Positive Feedback Loop: Example:

ii. Negative Feedback Loop: Example:

VIV. Water Cycle

A. Hydrosphere: Water part of the earth

B. 70% water on the planet

1. 97% saltwater

a. 35 grams per liter

2. 3% freshwater

a. surface water: Lakes, streams, ponds, and rivers

b. groundwater

i. Aquifer: underground layer of porous rock that contains water.

3. 2/3 of the 3% of water is frozen in glaciers and ice caps

X. Water Lab

A. Temperature

1. A measure of degree of hotness or coldness of a substance

B. Heat

1. The kinetic energy of a molecule

A. Kinetic energy if the energy of motion

B. Increasing(faster)

C. Decreasing (slower)

C. Calorie

1. The amount of heat required to raise the temperature of 1 gram of water 1 oC.

D. Freezing

1. Liquid to a solid

2. Heat is released (80 cal)

E. Melting

1. Solid to Liquid

2. Heat is absorbed (80 cal)

F. Evaporation

1. Liquid to gas

2. Heat is absorbed

3. (540-600 cal)

G. Condensation

1. Gas to liquid

2. Heat is released

3. (540 to 600 cal)

H. Sublimation

1. Solid to gas

2. Heat is absorbed

3. 680 cal

I. Deposition

1. Gas to solid

2. Heat is released

3. 680 cal

4. Parts of the water cycle

a. Evaporation

b. Precipitation

c. Runoff

d. Groundwater flow

e. Evapotranspiration

f. Infiltration

g. condensation

X. Water Lab

A. Temperature

1. A measure of degree of hotness or coldness of a substance

B. Heat

1. The kinetic energy of a molecule

A. Kinetic energy if the energy of motion

B. Increasing(faster)

C. Decreasing (slower)

C. Calorie

1. The amount of heat required to raise the temperature of 1 gram of water 1 oC.

D. Freezing

1. Liquid to a solid

2. Heat is released (80 cal)

E. Melting

1. Solid to Liquid

2. Heat is absorbed (80 cal)

F. Evaporation

1. Liquid to gas

2. Heat is absorbed

3. (540-600 cal)

G. Condensation

1. Gas to liquid

2. Heat is released

3. (540 to 600 cal)

H. Sublimation

1. Solid to gas

2. Heat is absorbed

3. 680 cal

I. Deposition

1. Gas to solid

2. Heat is released

3. 680 cal

VIII. Phosphorus Cycle

A. Helps with bone and teeth growth

B. Helps release energy from fat, protein, and carbohydrates

during metabolism

C. Used in the formation of genetic material

D. Geochemical Phase

a. Main Reservoirs of phosphorus

b. Stored in rocks and marine sediments

c. Released during the weathering of rocks

d. In the form of phosphate (PO4)

E. Ecological Phase

a. Land Ecosystem

2. Phosphates released in soil

3. Taken up by plants

4. Eaten by herbivores/carnivores

5. Animal/plant decay returns phosphates to the

soil

b. Marine Phase