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Science Midterm
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| natural resource | a material or energy source provided by nature that people need to survive |
| ethics | the study of right and wrong |
| dependent variable | a factor determined by the conditions set up in an experiment |
| peer review | formal examination of a research report by the scientific community |
| environment | all living and nonliving things with which organisms interact |
| independent variable | a factor scientists manipulate in an experiment |
| sustainable | used at a rate equal to the rate of replenishment into the foreseeable future |
| data | information gathered from a study |
| theory | a broad explanation for a wide range of situations and observations |
| environmentalism | a social movement dedicated to protecting the natural world |
| hypothesis | a testable idea that attempts to explain a phenomenon |
| ecological footprint | the environment effects of an individual or group in terms of resources used and waste produced |
| tectonic plate | a large section of lithosphere that moves across Earth's surface |
| macromolecule | a protein, nucleic acid, carbohydrate, or lipid |
| aquifer | an underground water reservoir |
| primary producer | an organism that can produce its own food |
| feedback loop | a cyclical process that can be either positive or negative |
| hydrocarbon | an organic compound that contains only hydrogen and carbon |
| landform | a mountain, island, or continent that forms above and below an ocean's surface |
| atom | the basic unit of matter |
| nutrient | matter needed by an organism to live |
| eutrophication | an overgrowth of producers often caused by the release of phosphorus |
| law of conservation of matter | that matter can be transformed but not created or destroyed |
| erosion | soil removal by water, wind, ice, or gravity |
| consumer | an organism that must eat other organisms to obtain nutrients |
| solution | mixture in which all ingredients are evenly distributed |
| hydrosphere | all the water above and below Earth's surface |
| immigration | the arrival of individuals from outside an area |
| sex ratio | the proportion of males to females in a population |
| population | members of a species that live in the same area |
| habitat | the specific environment in which an organism lives |
| population distribution | how organisms are arranged within an area |
| limiting factor | characteristic of the environment that restricts population growth |
| community | all the populations in a particular area |
| ecosystem | all the living things and their physical environments within a particular area |
| carrying capacity | the largest population size that an environment can sustainably support |
| exponential growth | occurs when a population increases by a fixed percentage each year |
| population density | the number of individuals within a population per unit area |
| species | a group of individuals that interbreed and produce fertile offspring |
| mutualism | a relationship in which two or more species benefit |
| tolerance | the ability to survive and reproduce under changing environmental conditions |
| speciation | the process by which new species are generated |
| evolution | change over time |
| symbiosis | a physically close relationship in which at least one organism benefits |
| herbivores | primary consumers |
| adaptation | a heritable trait that increases individual fitness |
| extinction | the disappearance of species |
| niche | an organism's use of resources and functional role in a community |
| predation | the process by which one species hunts and kills another |
| succession | series of ecological changes over time |
| biome | a group of ecosystems that share similar abiotic and biotic conditions |
| canopy | tall, dense covering of trees in a tropical rain forest |
| salinity | a measurement of he amount of salts dissolved in water |
| littoral zone | the shallow near-shore portion of the photic zone |
| estivation | a deep, sleep like period of dormancy during dry conditions |
| benthic zone | the very bottom of a body of water |
| coniferous | producing seed-bearing cones |
| aphotic zone | an aquatic area where no photosynthesis takes place |
| climate | the average temperature and precipitations over long periods |
| limnetic zone | the area some distance from shore where there are no rooted plants |
| flood plain | the area nearest a river's course that is periodically overrun with water |
| epiphytes | plants that grow on other plants instead of in the soil |
| estuary | where a river flows into the ocean, mixing fresh water with salt water |
Created by:
ruggieroma