Questions and Answers
What defines the environment?
A sum total of all the living and non-living elements and their effects that influence human life.
Which of the following are components of the environment? (Select all that apply)
What does the hydrosphere include?
All water bodies such as lakes, ponds, rivers, streams, and oceans.
What is the lithosphere?
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What is the lowest layer of the atmosphere?
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What is environmental sociology?
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What does the tragedy of the commons refer to?
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Give an example of the tragedy of the commons.
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Study Notes
Definition of Environment
- Environment comprises all living (biotic) and non-living (abiotic) elements that influence human life.
- Biotic elements include animals, plants, forests, fisheries, and birds.
- Abiotic elements encompass water, land, sunlight, rocks, and air.
Components of Environment
- The environment is categorized into four primary components:
- Hydrosphere: Encompasses all water bodies, including lakes, rivers, and oceans. Operates through the hydrological cycle.
- Lithosphere: Refers to the Earth's crust and consists of soil, rocks, and mountains. Comprises three layers: crust, mantle, and core.
- Atmosphere: A thin layer of gases enveloping Earth, it protects from harmful solar radiation and contains oxygen and carbon dioxide.
- Biosphere: The life layer, including all organisms interacting with water and air, from microscopic organisms to large animals.
Atmosphere Layers
- Contains five distinct layers based on temperature:
- Troposphere: Lowest layer (up to 15 km), where most weather occurs; temperature decreases with altitude.
- Stratosphere: Ranges from 15 km to 50 km; contains the ozone layer, which absorbs UV radiation.
- Mesosphere: Extends from 50 km to about 85 km; where most meteoroids burn up, creating shooting stars; temperature is cold.
- Thermosphere: Above 80 km, extremely high temperatures due to solar radiation absorption.
- Exosphere: Outermost layer; gradually transitions to space with sparse gas molecules; where satellites orbit.
Environmental Sociology
- This subfield examines how human activities and behaviors impact the environment.
- Aims to encourage sustainable practices and a conscientious relationship with our surroundings.
- Examples include the consequences of deforestation, where human actions neglect environmental effects.
Tragedy of the Commons
- Describes a scenario where individuals exploit public resources for personal gain, leading to resource depletion.
- Examples include overfishing, traffic congestion, deforestation, and groundwater overuse.
- Illustrates resource management challenges, where individual exploitation harms collective resources’ sustainability.
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Description
Explore the fundamental concepts of the environment in this sociology quiz. Understand the components of living and non-living elements that influence human life. Test your knowledge on how these elements interact and impact society.
