Environmental Science Exam 3 Outline Diversity Tropical regions around the world extremely high concentrations and variations of plants In addition to the species ad genetic diversity these areas have many communities and ecosystems within a variety of habitats and trophic levels Biodiversity includes genetic variation much variation of plant species and many different community interactions Genetic Diversity Variations in the genes among individuals of the same species Species Diversity The variety of species present in an area includes the number of different species that are present as well as their relative interactions The Everglades Drainage canals have interrupted the balance of the community and changed the way the Everglades functions Former uninterrupted web of natural ecosystems marshes prairies swamps and forests Alterations to the Everglades have included resorts sugar plantations and urban centers Mangrove trees are a keystone species that development and other changes to land use threatens o Change to keystones has a great impact on the ecosystem Biotic and abiotic factors shape the everglades Mutualism Both species benefit The moth gains nutrition while the flower gets pollinated Energy The Basics Energy Ability to do work PE Potential Energy KE Kinetic Energy m Mass v Velocity W Fd P W t PE mgh KE 1 2 mv 2 W KE PE1 KE1 PE2 KE2 Although we consume energy in many forms sunlight is by far the predominant source and it contains a surprisingly large amount of energy o Solar energy reaches Earth with more than enough energy in a single square meter to illuminate five 60 watt light bulbs if all the sunlight could be captured and converted to electricity 40 of US energy from all sources is used to generate electricity 85 of the energy used in the United States is provided by fossil fuels 20 of our electricity is generated by nuclear fuels 7 of our total energy spent is from renewable resources The ability of the energy to do work Higher quality of the energy more easily converted to work Lower energy quality more difficult to do work Nuclear Fuels Energy Quality Hydroelectricity Nearly 100 efficient Why don t we make more use of this energy resource o Energy o Availability Some places are not suited for a dam regionally wherever creeks or rivers or bodies of water aren t nearby o What if availability wasn t an issue and we could easily build dams Should we Maybe not as it can harm the environment Energy Sources and Consumption Industrialized countries o Small of the total population Large user of total energy produced o Example United States Only 5 of the world s population but 25 of the world s consumption of total energy Consumption distributed in 3 sectors Residential commercial Industrial Transportation o Using less energy o Adjusting our energy needs and uses to minimize the amount of high quality energy necessary for a given task Increased Energy Efficiency Designing equipment to yield more energy output from a given amount of input energy first law efficiency Better matches between energy source Cogeneration Processes designed to capture and use waste heat no thermal pollution o Captured waste heat increases overall efficiency of a typical power plant from 33 to 75 Electric or Hybrid vehicles Improvement has several causes and have better mpg Increased efficiency and resulting conservation of fuel Cars that are smaller engines constructed of lighted materials Issues toxic batteries before in production and after in disposal o Automobile design o Gasoline electric Where Does Earth s Heat Come From Electromagnetic Spectrum Sun radiates heat and energy Longer wavelengths have less energy Shorter wavelengths have more energy Infrared energy is heat energy Example of greenhouse effect when car warms up during the day when the sun comes through the window and hits the seats the heat is absorbed and re radiates but can t escape and therefore becomes warmer and increase interior pressure Greenhouse Gases GHGs H2O CO2 o 2 of the most important prevalent gases all are empirical o CO2 levels are rising o CO2 comes from both plants and combustion Burning fossil fuels Temperatures are rising Recording of temperatures The US Historical Climatology Network USHCN consists of 1218 observing stations across the 48 contiguous United States When recording temperatures human activity in itself can effect and change averages due to placement of cell towers air condition units emissions etc Empirical IR Heat H2O C2O CH2 o Greenhouse Gases These are heat absorbing gases It is known that the earth IS heating but the question at hand is do humans have anything to do with it Proxy Data In the study of past climates climate proxies are preserved physical characteristics of the past that stand in for direct measurements as statistical proxies to enable scientists to reconstruct the climatic conditions that prevailed during much of the Earth s history Wikipedia definition They don t have direct evidence but it s data that they can use to approximate values Propaganda Uses truths half truths or lies Omits information selectively Plays on emotions