Test 1 Flashcards
(32 cards)
Science
Science is a search for patterns in nature, based on evidence, in an attempt to understand it and to form an organized body of knowledge that has predictive power and an application in society
The Scientific World View
- the world is understandable
- scientific ideas are subject to change
- scientific knowledge is durable
- science cannot provide complete answers to all questions
Scientific Inquiry
- Science demands evidence
- science is a blend of logic and imagination
- Science explains and predicts
- Scientists try to identify and avoid bias
- science is not authoritarian
The Scientific Enterprise
- Science is a complex social activity
- Science is organized into various disciplines
- There are accepted ethical principles in conducting science
- Scientists are citizens as well as specialists
Science Literacy
Content
Process
Attitudes
Environment
the circumstances and conditions that surround an organism or a group of organisms
Environmental Science
is the systematic study of our environment and our place in it
Natural experiment
Observational only
Ecology
the study of an organism or organisms, the impact of the environment on them, and their impact on the environment
Manipulative experiments
Controlled Studies
- Blind: Patients don’t know what they are taking
- Double Blind: scientists doesn’t know who is taking what
Dependent Variable
The one you are measurin
Independent Variable
the one that is manipulated
Paradigms
-Overarching models of the world guide our interpretation of events
Ex. tectonic plate movement, Einstein’s theory of relativity
Paradigm Shift
- Occurs when a majority of scientists accept that the old explanation no longer explains new observations very well
- sometimes contentious and political
- Pragmatic Resource Conservation
President Theodore Roosevelt and his chief conservation advisor, Gifford Pinchot, believed in utilitarian conservation
- forests should be saved so they can be used to provide homes and jobs
- Should be used for “the greatest good for the greatest number, for the longest time”
- Moral and Aesthetic Nature Preservation
John Muir, first president of the Sierra Club, opposed Pinchot’s utilitarian policies
-Biocentric Preservation
-Emphasizes the fundamental right of all organisms to pursue their own interests
John Muir, Aldo Leopold
- Modern Environmentalism
Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring (1962) started the modern environmental movement
-awakened the public to threats of pollution and toxic chemicals to humans as well as other species
-modern environmentalism extends concerns to include natural resources and environmental pollution
Barry Commoner
- Global Concerns
Increased travel and communication enables people to know about daily events in places in previous generations.
Global environmentalism is the recognition that we share one environment that is common to all humans
Rene Dubois, Maurice Strong
4 distinct stages of conservation and environmentalism history
- Pragmatic Resource Conservation
- Moral and Aesthetic Nature Preservation
- Modern Environmentalism
- Global Environmental Citizenship
Major Causes of Environmental Degradation
- Population Growth
2. Resource Extraction and Use
Population Growth
- Almost 6.5 billion people now occupy the earth, and we are adding about 85 million more each year
- In the next decade, most population growth will be in the poorer countries- countries where present populations already strain resources and services
Resource Extraction and Use
- burning of fossil fuels
- destruction of tropical rainforests and other biologically rich landscapes
- production of toxic wastes
Sustainability
to be truly enduring, the benefits of sustainable development must be available to all groups, not just to the members of a privileges group
Sustainable Development
progress in human well-being that we can extend or prolong over many generations, rather than just a few years
