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Ch. 1 Earth Science
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| astronomy | study of objects beyond Earth's atmosphere |
| meteorology | study of the atmosphere, which is the air surrounding Earth |
| geology | study of materials that make up Earth and the processes that form and change these materials and the history of the planet and its life forms since its origin |
| oceanography | study of Earth's oceans including the creatures that inhabit its waters its physical and chemical properties and the effects of human activities |
| environmental science | study of the interactions of humans with environmental |
| geosphere | part of earth from its surface to its center |
| atmosphere | blanket of gases surrounding earth that contains about 78 percent nitrogen, 21 percent oxygen, and 1 percent other gases such as argon, carbon dioxide, and water vapor |
| hydrosphere | all the water in earths oceans, lakes, seas, rivers, and glaciers plus all the water in the atmosphere |
| biosphere | all of earth's organisms and the environments in which they live |
| scientific methods | problem solving procedures |
| hypothesis | testable explanation of a situation that can be supported |
| independent variable | an experiment is the factor that is changed by the expirementer |
| dependent variable | factor that is affected by changes in the independent variable |
| control | used in an experiment to show that the results of an experiment |
| le systeme international d'Unites | modern version of the metric system |
| scientific notation | a number is expressed as a value between 1 and 10 |
| scientific model | an idea, picture, or system |
| scientific theory | explanation based on many observations during repeated investigations |
| scientific law | principle that describes the behavior of a natural phenomenon |