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Cycles of Matter
Gus Cox Key Terms
| Definition | Term |
|---|---|
| States that matter is neither created nor destroyed during chemical or physical changes | The Law of Conservation of Mass |
| States that energy can neither be created nor destroyed - only converted from one form of energy to another | The Law of Conservation of Energy |
| The process in which producers, mainly plants take in carbon dioxide and water with the aid of sunlight to produce food and oxygen | Photosynthesis |
| The process in which producers, consumers, and decomposers convert food and oxygen to produce energy, carbon dioxide, and water | Cellular Respiration |
| Describes the movement of water from the Earth's surface to the atmosphere and back in various forms/states | Water Cycle |
| The process of water (liquid) changing to water vapor (gas) due to increase heat | Evaporation |
| The process of plants releasing water vapor from their leaves | Transpiration |
| The process of rising "water going up" water vapor (gas) cooling and changing into water droplets (liquid) | Condensation |
| Condensation taking place on plants or other objects on a cool morning | Dew |
| The process in which heavy droplets of water fall to the ground in the form of rain, snow, sleet, or hail | Precipitation |
| Describes the movement of carbon atoms through the ecosystem between living organisms (biotic) and the atmosphere (abiotic) | The Carbon Cycle |
| Describes the movement of oxygen atoms through the ecosystem between living organisms (biotic) and the atmosphere (abiotic) | The Oxygen Cycle |
| Decreases the number of producers that create oxygen | Deforestation |
| Describes how nitrogen moves between plants, animals, bacteria, the atmosphere (the air), and soil in the ground | The Nitrogen cycle |
| The process of changing free nitrogen gas (N2) into a usable form of nitrogen called nitrogen compounds | Nitrogen fixation |