Nutrient Cycles Flashcards
(34 cards)
What are Nutrients?
Nutrients are chemicals that are required for living things to survive, grow, and reproduce
Nutrients are matter
What is the principle related to the particles that make up matter?
The particles that make up matter cannot be created or destroyed
What is a nutrient cycle?
Ecological processes that move nutrients back and forth from the physical environment to living organisms
What are biogeochemical cycles?
Nutrient cycles that involve living organisms and occur on Earth
What are the four spheres that make up Earth?
- Atmosphere
- Lithosphere
- Hydrosphere
- Biosphere
What happens to nutrient cycles without human interference?
Nutrient cycles are almost perfectly balanced
Name the four main nutrient cycles.
- Water Cycle
- Carbon Cycle
- Nitrogen Cycle
- Phosphorus Cycle
How does water move around Earth?
Through a series of processes known as the water cycle
What is the water cycle?
The series of processes that cycles water through the environment
What causes water to evaporate in the water cycle?
The Sun
What is condensation in the water cycle?
The process where water vapour forms liquid water or ice crystals
What is precipitation in the water cycle?
Rain, hail, or snow that falls back to Earth
What is infiltration in the water cycle?
Water entering the soil and groundwater
What is run-off in the water cycle?
Water moving across the Earth’s surface and collecting in bodies of water
What is transpiration in the water cycle?
The process where water taken in by plant roots is released into the air by leaves
How does carbon move in the carbon cycle?
Between the abiotic and biotic parts of an ecosystem
What two important processes cycle large quantities of carbon?
- Photosynthesis
- Cellular respiration
What is photosynthesis?
A chemical reaction that transforms light energy into chemical energy, storing carbon
What is cellular respiration?
A chemical reaction that allows living things to release chemical energy stored in sugar, releasing carbon
What releases carbon into the atmosphere besides biological processes?
- Forest fires
- Volcanic eruptions
Where is most of Earth’s carbon stored?
In carbon-rich deposits
What are examples of carbon deposits?
- Rocks and sediments
- Fossil fuels
- Limestone
What are carbon sinks?
Areas that store more carbon compounds than they release, lowering atmospheric CO2
True or False: Human activities have no impact on the carbon cycle.
False
