CD3 M12 - August 22, 2017
LESSON 1
Biotic and Abiotic Factors in the Balance of Nature
An Ecosystem refers to a community of living things and their relationships to their surroundings
Biotic refers to the living organisms in an ecosystem while Abiotic refers to the nonliving things in it
A food chain is a sequence of organisms arranged in such a way that each feeds on the organisms before it in the chain while a food web is an interlocking pattern formed by a series of food chains
A Photosynthesis is the process wherein green plants produce carbohydrates from carbon dioxide and water using light energy from sunlight and chlorophyll
Respiration is the biological process in which carbohydrates are broken down in the presence of oxygen into carbon dioxide and water
Fixation refers to the conversion of a chemical substance into a form that does not evaporate
Assimilation and Biosynthesis are responsible for the manufacture of complex organic compounds from simple molecules obtained from the environment
Ammonification is the process of converting nitrogenous residues to ammonia
Nitrification is the process of converting or being converted into nitrates or nitrites through the action of bacteria
Leaching refers to washing a soluble substance out (of a solid) by allowing a suitable liquid solvent to percolate through it
Denitrification is the process wherein bacteria convert nitrates or nitrites to N2 and some nitrous oxides (NO2)
Evaporation is the process wherein water changes from its liquid state to a gaseous state
Condensation is the process wherein a gas is changed into liquid
Precipitation occurs when the small droplets of water in clouds form larger droplets
Surface runoff refers to the water that returns to Earth as Precipitation that runs off the surface of the land and flows downhill into steams, rivers, ponds, and lakes
Infiltration is the process wherein rainwater soaks into the ground, through the soil and into underlying rock layers
Transpiration is the process of evaporation through plant leaves
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LESSON 2
Man as a Factor in the Balance of Nature
Pollution is the adverse effect on the natural environment including human, animal or plant life of a harmful substance that does not occur naturally or the concentration to harmful levels of a naturally occurring substance
Chlorofluorocarbons are chemicals compounds composed of Chlorine, Fluorine and Carbon formerly widely used as aerosol propellants and refrigerants but now banned by many countries as a result of concern about the damaging effects on the ozone layer
The Ozone layer is a layer of the upper atmosphere between 15 and 30 km above the Earth's surface where ozone which filters harmful ultraviolet radiation from the sun and prevents it from reaching the Earth is formed
Global warming is the gradual increase in the average temperature of the Earth's surface and its atmosphere which has been attributed to the greenhouse effect
The greenhouse effect refers to the warming of the Earth's surface as a result of the tapping of long-wave radiation by Carbon dioxide, Ozone and certain other gases in the Earth's surface
Erosion refers to the loosening, fragmentation and transport if rock materials by water, wind, ice, gravity or living organisms including human activity from one place to another
Siltation is the process that contributes tiny soil particles to water bodies through natural and human-induced erosion
Eutrophication is the process wherein a body of water becomes overenrich with nutrients from sewage disposal and runoff of agricultural fertilizers, etc. which results in overgrowth of Algea and depleted oxygen levels in the water leading to the death of aquatic animals
Biological magnification is the process by which substances such as pesticides or heavy metals become concentrated as they move up the food chain
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