Vocab Flashcards
(21 cards)
Explicate
- to explain or analyze (such as an idea or work of literature);
- give a detailed explanation of
- develop the implications of (analyze logically)
Phenology
- branch of science dealing with the relations between climate and periodic biological phenomena
- periodic biological phenomena that are correlated with climatic conditions
Labile
- readily or continually undergoing chemical, physical, or biological change or breakdown; unstable; open to change
Substrate
- the base on which an organism lives (soil is substratum of most seed plants)
- a substance acted upon (as by an enzyme)
Heterogeneous
made of parts that are different; consisting of dissimilar or diverse ingredients or constituents; mixed
Heterotrophic
requiring complex organic compounds of nitrogen and carbon for metabolic synthesis (such as from plants or animal matter) (vs. autotrophs which can create their own such as via photosynthesis)
Cryosphere
the frozen water part of Earth’s system
Albedo
- the fraction of solar energy (short wave radiation - SWR) reflected from the Earth back into space.
- a measure of the reflectivity of the earth’s surface
Paleoclimatic
of, relating to, or being a climate distinctive to a past geological age
Proxy data
data that paleoclimatologists gather from natural recorders of climate variability (tree rings, ice cores, fossil pollen, ocean sediments, etc.)
External forcing
processes external to Earth and its atmosphere that influence Earth’s climate (galactic variations, orbital variations, sunspots)
Normative
Based on what is considered the normal or correct way of doing things
Positivism
a theory that theology and metaphysics are earlier imperfect modes of knowledge and that positive knowledge is based on natural phenomena and their properties and relations as verified by the empirical sciences
Colluvial soils
Colluvium is a loose deposit of sharp edged rock debris accumulated through the action of gravity at the base of a cliff or slope. Colluvium is sediment that has moved downhill to the bottom of the slope without the help of running water in streams.
Acrisol soils
Acrisols occur dominantly in the wetter parts of the tropics and subtropics and the warm temperate regions in relatively young landscapes.
Stochastic
Random, involving a random variable; involving chance or probability
Primary Productivity
The flow of energy through any ecosystem starts with the fixation of sunlight by plants and other autotrophic organisms. In this way the plant accumulates energy and this energy is called primary production. The rate at which this energy accumulates is called primary productivity.
Gross primary production
The total energy accumulated through gross primary production is gross primary production, however, since plants use some of this energy themselves, it is not all available for the food web.
Net primary production
The difference between energy accumulated (gross primary production) and what is available for the food web is called net primary production
Expressed in kilocalories or grams m-2 y-1 or kcal or g/m2/y. This is measured by sequentially measuring growth of the biomass over time by marking the plants somehow, or measuring a total at the end of the growing season. Alternatively you can measure oxygen production or CO2 consumption both of which equal grams C produced. (experiment possiblities!)
In general, swamps and marshes have the highest primary production of all the world’s ecosystems.
heuristic
using experience to learn and improve;
involving or serving as an aid to learning, discovery, or problem-solving by experimental and especially trial-and-error methods
recruitment
the process of adding new individuals to a population or subpopulation (as of breeding or legally catchable individuals) by growth, reproduction, immigration, and stocking
