17 Questions
What is the fundamental characteristic of an open system?
Some energy or material moves into or out of the system.
What is the estimated time of Earth's formation?
4.7 billion years ago
How long ago did life begin on Earth?
3.5 billion years ago
What is the key feature of a stable system?
It remains in a condition unless disturbed.
What is the principle of Environmental Unity?
Everything affects everything else.
What is the primary cause of many extinctions in the last couple hundred years?
Human activities
What is the result of land-use changes in mid-western US cities, such as Chicago?
An increase in river channels and flood hazard.
What is the term for the region of Earth where life exists?
Biosphere
What is the principle of Uniformitarianism?
The physical and biological processes presently forming and modifying Earth are the same now as they were in the past.
What do all living things require to survive?
Energy and materials
What is the term for a community of organisms and its local nonliving environment?
Ecosystem
What is the key to understanding the future, according to Uniformitarianism?
A study of both past and present processes.
What is common to all ecosystems, regardless of their scale?
Existence of processes
What is an example of a system that exhibits Environmental Unity?
All of the above.
What is the outcome of human activities on the frequency and magnitude of natural processes?
Increase and decrease in natural processes
What is the result of the construction phase in urban development, according to the text?
An increase in runoff and sediment load.
What was the profession of the person who killed the last known wild Tasmanian tiger?
Farmer
Understand the basics of complex systems, including the definition of a system, open and closed systems, and the concept of stability. Learn how systems function and respond to disturbances.
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