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Ch 18 Sec 4 Terms
Chapter 18 Section 4 Terms
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Biogeochemical Cycle | The circulation of substances through living organisms from or to the environment. |
| Groundwater | The water that is beneath the Earth's surface. |
| Water Cycle | The continuous movement of water between the atmosphere, the land, and the oceans. |
| Transpiration | the process by which plants release water vapor into the air through stomata; also the release of water vapor into the air by other organisms. |
| Carbon Cycle | The movement of carbon from the nonliving environment into living things and back. |
| Nitrogen Cycle | The process in which nitrogen circulates among the air, soil, water, plants, and animals in the ecosystem. |
| Nitrogen Fixation | the process by which gaseous nitrogen is converted into nitrates, compounds that organisms can use to make amino acids and other nitrogen-containing organic molecules |
| Nitrogen-fixing bacteria | a bacterium that converts atmospheric nitrogen into ammonia |
| Ammonification | The formation of ammonia compounds in the soil by the action of bacteria on decaying matter. |
| Nitrification | the process by which nitrites and nitrates are produced by bacteria in the soil |
| Denitrification | The liberation of nitrogen from nitrogen-containing compounds by bacteria in the soil. |
| Phosphorus Cycle | the cyclic movement of phosphorous in different chemical forms from the environment to organisms and then back to the environment. |