Ch. 2 Flashcards
Corrective feedback loop
A system to change in the opposite direction which it is moving.
Ecological tipping point
System can be distically changed experiencing severe degradation or collapse.
Feedback
Any progress that increases or decreases a change to a system.
Outputs
Matter and energy to the environment.
Flow/through puts
Of matter and energy with in the system.
Inputs
The matter and energy from the environment.
System
A set of components that function and interact in some regular way.
Second law of thermodynamics
Resulting low-quality energy usually takes the form of heat that flows into the environment.
Law of conservation of energy
Energy is converted from one form to another in a physical or chemical change.
Low-quality energy
Energy that is so dispersed that it has little capacity to do useful work.
High-quality energy
Concentered energy that has a high capacity to do useful work.
Energy quality
A Measure of capacity of a type of energy to do useful work.
Potential energy
Stored and potentially available for use.
Electromagnetic radiation
Energy travels in the form of a wave as a result of changes in electrical and magnetic fields.
Heat or thermal energy
The total kinetic energy of all moving atoms, ions, or molecules in an object body of water, or volume of gas.
Kinetic energy
Energy associated with motion.
Energy
The Capacity to do work.
Law of conservation of matter
Whenever matter under goes a physical or chemical change no atoms are created or destroyed.
Nuclear fusion
When two nuclei of lighter atoms are formed together at extremely high temperatures until they fuse to form a heavier nucleus and release a tremendous amount of energy.
Nuclear fission
When the nuclei of certain isotopes with large mass numbers are spilt apart into lighter nuclei and release energy when stuck by a neutron.
Radioactive decay
When nuclei of unstable isotopes spontaneously emit fast-moving chunks of matter, high-energy radiation, or both at a fixed rate.
Nuclear change
Change in the nuclei of its atoms.
