Environmental Sciences A Multidisciplinary Field PDF

# Environmental Sciences: A Multidisciplinary Field ## Environment - is defined as anything that surrounds living and nonliving things under dynamics. ## Physical Elements - spaces, landforms, water bodies, climate, soils, rocks and minerals. ## Biological Elements - plants, animals, microorga...

# Environmental Sciences: A Multidisciplinary Field ## Environment - is defined as anything that surrounds living and nonliving things under dynamics. ## Physical Elements - spaces, landforms, water bodies, climate, soils, rocks and minerals. ## Biological Elements - plants, animals, microorganisms, and humans that constitute the biosphere. ## Scopes of Environment ### Atmosphere - contains the gases that surrounds the earth. ### Biosphere - indicates the realm of living organisms and their interactions with the environment, atmosphere, lithosphere, and hydrosphere. ### Hydrosphere - comprises all types of water resources such as oceans, seas, lakes, rivers, streams, reservoir, polar ice caps, glazers, and groundwater. ### Lithosphere - the outer mantle of the solid earth. It consists of minerals occurring in the earth's crust and soil. ## Layers of Atmosphere ### Troposphere - lowest layer where weather occurs and where human lives. ### Stratosphere - the layer above troposphere. It contains the ozone layer which absorbs the scatters uv radiation. ### Mesosphere - the middle layer and the coldest layer, meteors burn up in this layer. ### Thermosphere - a very thin layer that contains the ionosphere and where auroras occur. The temperature increases significantly with altitude, this is the hottest layer because of its direct absorption of solar radiation. ### Exosphere - the outermost layer and gradually fades into spaces that contains very few particles. ## Main Parts of Hydrosphere ### Ocean - the largest bodies of water covering 70% of earth's surface. ### Rivers and Streams - flowing fresh bodies of water. ### Lakes and Ponds - bodies of water that accumulate in depression in the land. ### Ground Water - the water found beneath Earth's surface. ### Glaciers - large mass of frozen water. ### Atmospheric Water - water in the form of vapor in the atmosphere. ### Wetlands - areas where water covers the soils for part of the year. ## The Scientific Method 1. Determine the problem. 2. Problem statements. 3. Determining the goal of the study. 4. Develop a hypothesis. 5. Test the hypothesis. 6. Analyze the result. ## Skills in the Environmental Science Field - Researching skills - Practical application of scientific knowledge - Data gathering and practical application skills - Documentation - Data management - Familiarization and use of tools and equipment - Coding, programming and use of software - Analysis of result and technical writing ## Careers in Environmental Science - Cartographer, mapper, and planner - Researcher or laboratory analyst - Journalist or writer - Manager of an environmental related business or company - Teacher or professor - Corporate social responsibility off ## 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals 1. No poverty 2. Zero hunger 3. Good health and well-being 4. Quality education 5. Gender equality 6. Clean water and san 7. Affordable and clean energy 8. Decent work and economic growth 9. Industry, innovation and infrastructure 10. Reduce inequality ## Chemistry - a branch of science that deals with the identification of the substance of which matter is composed. ### Element - a chemical substance that cannot be broken down into other substance by chemical reaction. ### Atom - a basic particle that constitute a chemical element. ### Proton, Electrons, and Neutrons ### Isotopes - the elements with the same numbers of protons but different numbers of neutrons. ### Radiation - the emitted energy in the process. ### Radioactivity or Radioactive Decay - the process of emitting energy. ## Biology - deals with living things, their anatomy and physiological processes. ### Biologist - an expert for student of the branch of science concerning living organisms. ## Famous Environmental Scientist ### Penny Whetton - a climate scientist who spent her career researching the effects of global warming on australia. ### Rachel Carson - mother of the modern environmental protection. She released her book "silent spring" which exposed the harmful effects of synthetic pesticides. ### Aldo Leopold - the father of wildlife ecology. Most famous for the book of a sand country almanac, which was published in 1949. ### Johann Rockstrom - a swedish scientist that won the tyler price or often called the environmental nobel prize for his research on the limits of the life support system. In his book "planetary boundaries" it says that earth system processes have boundaries or limits that humanity should never cross. ## 9 Critical Earth System Processes 1. **Climate Change:** based on the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere in the energy imbalance of the earth's surface. 2. **Biodiversity Integrity (Genetic Diversity):** focus on the rate of species extinction. 3. **Biogeochemical Flows (Nitrogen and Phosphorus Cycle):** excessive use of nitrogen and phosphorus in agriculture. 4. **Ocean Acidification:** the uptake of CO2 by oceans give to acidification. 5. **Land System Change:** refers to changes and land use such as deforestation and urbanization. 6. **Fresh Water Use:** the consumption of freshwater resources. 7. **Atmospheric Aerosol Loading:** particulates in the atmosphere from pollution fires and dust affect the climate, cloud formation, and regional weather patterns. 8. **Ozone Depletion:** the thinning of the stratospheric ozone layer due to human made chemicals. 9. **Novel Entities:** this includes the introduction of new substances such as plastic, heavy metals, radioactive materials, and organic pollutants into the environment. ## Branches of Biology ### Botany - study of plants ### Agronomy - the application of plant science to crop production. ### Bryology - study of moses and liverworts. ### Economic Botany - study of the utilization of plants by human. ### Dendrology - study of trees. ### Anthology - study of both flowers and plants. ### Forestry - science and practice of establishing, managing, using and conserving forest and trees. ### Zoology - study of animals. ### Entomology - study of insect. ### Herpetology - study of reptiles and amphibians. ### Ichthyology - study of fish. ### Mammalogy - study of mammals. ### Ornithology - study of birds. ### Primatology - study of primates. ### Microbiology ### Bacteriology - studies of morphology, ecology, genetics, and biochemistry of bacteria. ### Mycology - study of eukaryotic organism such as fungi. ### Protozoology - study of protozoa. ### Phycology - study of algae. ### Nematology - study of nematodes or roundworms. ### Virology - study of biological virus. ## Properties of Life 1. **Order**: living organism exhibit complex organization. 2. **Sensitivity or response to the environment**: refers to the ability of organism to detect and react changes in their surrounding. 3. **Adaptation**: the process by which organism adjust their environment in order to enhance their chances of survival and reproduction. 4. **Evolution**: the changes in the heritable traits of biological population over successive generations. Often leading to the emergence of new species. 5. **Reproduction**: biological process through which organisms generate offsprings, it can occur through various mechanisms resulting in the transfer of genetic materials. 6. **Growth and development**: - **Growth** - refers to the increase in size, mass, or number of cells in an organism. - **Development**- involves the progression of an organism through various stages of life. 7. **Homeostasis**: the process by which living organisms regulate their internal environment such as temperature, ph, hydration, and nutrient levels, to maintain optimal conditions. 8. **Metabolism**: the sum of all biochemical reactions in an organism. 9. **Interaction**: biological and environmental interaction. Refers to the complex relationship and connections that living organism have with each other and their environment. 10. **Nutrition**: refers to the needs of organisms to consume or produce foods to container their biological processes. ## Ecology - the study of how organisms interact with one another and with their non-living environment. ## Ecosystem - a community of different species interacting with one another with their non-living environment of soil, water, other forms of matter, and energy, mostly from the sun. ## 2 Broad Categories of Ecosystem - **Terrestrial**: can be found in the land - **Aquatic**: can be found in bodies of water. ## Common Types of Ecosystem - **Grassland ecosystem**: ecosystem with grass and herbs types of vegetation - Temperate grasslands - Savanna grasslands - **Forest ecosystem**: consists of a variety of plants, animals, and microorganisms that live in coordination with the abiotic factors in the environment. - **Tundra ecosystem**: ecosystem which do not possess a lot of trees and vegetation in are found in cold climates or where rainfall is scarse. - Arctic - **Desert ecosystem**: ecosystem with very little rainfall. - Sahara desert. - **Freshwater ecosystem**: ecosystems in lakes, pond, rivers, streams, and Wetlands. - **Marine ecosystem**: saltwater based ecosystem such as seas and oceans. ## Components of an Ecosystem - **Biotic**: living aspects such as plants animals microorganism and humans. **Sub-Categories of Biotic components** **Autotrophs**: organism that can produce their own food source through light, water, carbon dioxide or other chemicals. Primary producers in a food chain. - Example: - Plants - Algae - Phytoplankton - And some bacteria like iron bacteria and sulfur bacteria. **Heterotrophs**: organisms that eat other plants or animals for energy and nutrients. Known as consumer. - Examples: - Animal - Fungi - Some bacteria like agrobacterium and escherichia, and many protest like amoebas. **Sapatrophs**: organisms that feed on non-living or decayed organic matter. Known as decomposer. - Example: - Fungi - Some bacteria like vibrio japonicus. **Abiotic**: non-living aspects of an ecosystem such as water, air, nutrients, rocks, heat, and solar energy. **Food chain**: a food chain in an ecosystem is a series of production and consumption of energy the chain can be described by its trophic levels. **Food web**: a graphical representation of the feeding relationship with an ecological community. - **Producers**: include all autotrophs such as plants, they can produce your own food via photosynthesis due to this all other organisms hire up on the food chain rely and producers for food. - **Consumer**: rely on plants and immediate consumers for foods. - **Herbivores**- primary consumers, these are animals that ingest plants. - **Carnivores**- secondary consumers, animals that ingest primary consumers. - **Omnivores**- tertiary consumers or the carnivorous predators and omnivores are animals that ingest lower level consumers. - **Decomposers**- organisms that ingest non-living or decaying matter by breaking them down. **Ecological Niche**: it is the role or position that a species place in its ecosystem, including the condition it needs to survive in the interactions it has with other species. - **Conditions**: physical and environmental conditions that a species needs to survive such as temperature, terrain, food, water, and shelter. - **Interactions**: the interaction a species has with other species, such as competition, predation, parasitism, and mutualism. - **Influence**: the influence that the species has on its ecosystem. ## Biological Interaction - **Predation**: one organism kills to consume another organism, (lion hunting and eating zebra). - **Competition**: two or more organisms compete for the same limited resources, (cheetahs and lions) - **Mutualism**: a type of interaction in which both organisms benefit from the relationship. (Bees pollinating flowers while obtaining nectar for food). - **Commensalism**: organisms benefits from the relationships while the other is neither helped nor harmed. (Barnacles game mobility and access to food while the whale remains unaffected. - **Parasitism**: one organism benefits at the expense of the other often harming it in the process. (Ticks feeding on the blood of mammals). - **Herbivory**: type of predation where an organism consumes plants or plant parts. (House grazing on grass). - **Amensalism**: one organism is inhibited or destroyed while the other remains unaffected. (Props like barley, sorghum, and sunflower prevents weeds from growing nearby). ## Symbiosis - a close and long term biological interaction between two different biological species this can include mutualism, commensalism, and parasitism. (Lichens, which are symbiotic association between fungi and algae or cyanobacteria). ## Neutralism - relationship where two species coexist in the same environment without significantly affecting each other. (Two species of birds nesting in the same tree but feeding on different types of food). ## Co - Evolution - a process where two or more species influence each other's evolutionary trajectory through interactions over time. (Hummingbird has a long mouth that co - evolved with the tubular flower in pollinate. ## Photosynthesis - describe as the process by which plants use sunlight, water, in carbon dioxide to create oxygen and energy in the form of sugar. - It's chemical equation is written as 6CO2 + 6H2O < C6H12O6 + 602 ## Chemosynthesis - process by which certain microbes create energy by mediating chemical reactions. Mostly those who belong to the producers category undergo chemosynthesis. - Example: deep sea creatures such as mussels which reside and stay in seafloor hydrothermal vents are the usual chemosynthesis. ## Cellular Respiration ### Aerobic respiration - consume organic molecules and O2 and yields ATP. ### Anaerobic respiration - similar to aerobic respiration but consumes compounds other than 02, formation of ATP without oxygen. - Example: Fermentation: one example of an aerobic respiration is fermentation by which glucose is converted to gas compounds. ## Four types of fermentation: 1. **Lactic acid**: metabolic process that breaks down sugar to produce energy and lactic acid. 2. **Alcohol**: carried out by yeast in which simple sugars are converted to ethanol and carbon dioxide. 3. **Acetic acid**: process that uses acetic acid bacteria (AAB) to convert ethanol into acetic acid also known as vinegar. 4. **Alkaline fermentation**: process that breaks down proteins in raw materials into amino acids and peptides. ## Energy pyramid - diagram that shows the transfer of energy through an ecosystem by quantifying the amount of energy available at each trophic level. ## Biomass - each level in the chain consist of biomass it is the dry weight of all organic matter contained in its organisms. ## Ecological efficiency - the percentage of usable chemical energy transferred as biomass from one trophic level to the next. ## Nitrogen cycle - it enables conversion of nitrogen into nutrients for plants and animals. ## Sulfur cycle - process where sulfur regulated via the natural pathways in the hydrosphere and atmosphere. ## Transfer of phosphorus - it happens via natural means as well such as erosion and plate tectonics and biosphere. ## Species - defined as organisms that breed in nature and produce fertile offspring. ## Evolution - change in the characteristic of a species over several generations and relies on the process of natural selection. It explains the origin of species and the diversity of life forms on earth. - components of evolution: heredity, variation, and fitness. - **Heredity**: refers to specific mechanisms by which characteristics or traits are passed from one generation to the next via genes. - **Charles Darwin**: father of the theory of evolution. He mentioned three vital components of evolution: heredity, variation, and fitness. - **Variation**: the degree by which progeny differs from their parents, the differences in physical traits or functional traits among individual within a population. - **Fitness**: a measure of how well a genotype can survive and reproduce in its environment, relative to other genotypes. ## Adaptation - it is defined as acquiring characteristic of other living things in order to survive its habitat and the environment. ## Ecological succession - process by which the structure of a biological community evolves over time. - **Sere**: a stage of succession sequence. - **Serial progression**: a progressive development of a vegetation community. - **Pioneer community**: the first sere which is characterized by the first plants that develop and colonize. - **Climax community**: refers to a stable environment in its final stage of ecological succession. ## Plagioclimax community - human interference can lead to plagio climax community (prevention of succession where by one Sere is maintained). - Example: Heather Morland- the most extensive areas of semi-natural vegetation in the british isles. ## Interruptive succession - natural interruptions preventing the environment reaching the climatic climax. ## 2 Types of Primary Succession 1. **Primary succession**: begins in essentially lifeless areas, such as regions in which there is no soil or where the soil is incapable of sustaining life. 2. **Types of primary succession**: - **Xerosere**: occurring in dry conditions. - Example: Psammoseres(on sand dunes), Lithospheres (bare rocks). - Stages of Xeroseres: - Bear rock stage: lichens and mosses are the first to colonize bear rocks. - Grasses and small plant stage: a soil develops, grasses and hardy plant start to grow. - Shrub stage: shrubs and small bushes establish, further stabilizing the soil. - Young forest stage: trees like pines begin to grow increasing biodiversity. - Climax forest stage: a mature forest, such as hardwood forest forms as the climax community. - **Hydrosere**: occurring in wet conditions. It represents a conversion of water body and its community into a land community. - Example: Hydroseres (in freshwaters), Haloseres (in bear mad estuaries, bays, depositional coasts). - Stages in Hydroseres: - Pioneer/phytoplankton stage: algae and simple microorganism colonize the water surface. - Submerged plant stage: a sediments accumulates, submerged aquatic plants such as pond weeds and bladderworts, take root in the sediment. - Floating plant stage: as the pond becomes shallower, emergent plants, such as cattails, bulrushes, and reeds, establish around the edges and start moving inward. - Marsh or swamp/emergent stage: as emergent plants grow denser, the water becomes marshy, allowing for the growth of shrubs and small water tolerant trees. - Sedge-Meadow stage: a sediments feels most of the pond, the remaining moisture supports grasses and low growing plants rather than aquatic species. - Climax community: depending on the climate and conditions, the area may eventually develop into a stable climax community such as forest, grassland or other terrestrial ecosystem. ## Secondary succession - the plants and animals who colonized a habitat after a major disturbance such as devastating food, wildfire, landslide, lava flow, or human activity. ## Population - refers to the total number of a single species living in an area. ## Rate of growth - the number of individuals which can be produced per unit of time under ideal conditions. ## What Can We Do A Population of Species? - Reduction of population may happen due to limited food and resources. - An increase in predator populations can lead to higher mortality rates and pre species. - Outbreaks of disease - Shifts and climate. - Natural disasters (like floods or droughts, earthquakes, and wildfires). ## Carrying capacity (K) - refers to the population of species that can be supported without depleting the available resources. ## Boom and bust - happens when a population undergoes are repeated cycle of overshoots followed by crashes. ## Total species - would be range of 5 to 10 million eukaryotes. ## Genetic diversity - the variation within a species. Variety of genetic characteristic within a species. ## Genetics - the study of how genes, genetic variation, and heredity work in organisms. ### Gregor Mendel - father of genetics that discovered the fundamental laws of inheritance through his work on pea plants. ## 1. Monohybrid cross - in this experiment mendel to pea plants of opposite traits one short and one tall and cross them. He found the first generation of string were tall and called it F1 Progeny. ## 2. Dihybrid cross - mendel considered two traits each having two alleles. He crossed wrinkled-green seed and round-yellow seed and observe that all the first generation progeny where round-yellow. This means that dominant traits were the round shape and yellow color. ## Genotype - the genetic makeup of the plant. ## Phenotype - the physical appearance of the plant. ## Alleles - the genes transferred from parents to the offspring in pairs. ## Homozygous alleles - when the alleles are the same. ## Heterozygous alleles - when the alleles is different. ## Mendel's Law of Inheritance 1. **Law of dominance**: this is also called as mendel's first law of inheritance according to this law hybrid offspring will only inherit the dominant rate in the phenotype. 2. **Law of independent assortment**: also known as mendel's second law of inheritance. It states that a pair of traits segregates and dependently of another pair during gamete formation. 3. **Law of segregation**: states that during the production of gametes, two copies of each hereditary factors segregate so that offspring acquire one factor from each parent. ## How Do Genetic Diversity Reduce? - Genetic drift: random changes in allele frequencies within a population. - Types of genetic drifts: - Population bottleneck: few members of a species survive and a catastrophic event. A sudden and significant reduction in population size. - Founder effect: a form of genetic drift that occurs when a small group of individuals establishes a new population. - Invasive species: non-native species that disrupt local ecosystem. ## Species diversity - the number of different species present in an ecosystem and relative abundance of each of the species. ## Ecological diversity - the variety of ecosystem in a geographical area and the range of species and genetic diversity within those ecosystem.