Matter, Energy and LIFE!!!

Energy Flow

First Law of Thermodynamics- Energy is _____________, not created or destroyed. It can only change in form.

Second Law of Thermodynamics- Energy transfers lead to the energy being in a less "_________", lower form.

Energy always degrades to a less concentrated level.

• High Quality Energy: Very ___________, rich, intense, has high temperatures.
  
• Low Quality Energy: dispersed, diffused, sporadic, ________ temperature

Conservation of Matter

Matter recycles itself, unlike energy.

Photosynthesis: Plants convert energy from sun along with carbon dioxide and water into _______ and oxygen within the chlorophyll.

Formula:

Only _______% of the sunlight ever makes it into the plant's tissue!

Cellular Respiration: Oxygen consuming producers, consumers and decomposers break down complex organic compounds (glucose, etc) and convert carbon back into carbon dioxide.

Formula:

• The energy stored in the glucose bonds is transformed into ___________ and heat energy- it is not lost!
• The formulas for photosynthesis and respiration are the same but ____________!

Biotic- __________ components of the ecosystem
Abiotic- ____________ components of the ecosystem

Trophic Levels:

   1. Tertiary Consumers- eats ___________ consumers
   2. Secondary Consumers- eats primary consumers
   3. Primary Consumers/Herbivores -eats ____________
   4. Producers/Autotroph- Photosynthesize energy

The biomass of each level of the ecological pyramid is _______% less than the one below it! Only _____% of useable energy is transferred up to the next trophic level because so much is lost.

WHY?

1. Some of the food source many be __________ or indigestible.
   
2. Energy may be expended catching the _________
   
3. Energy is degraded through normal ______________ processes (Second Law of Thermodynamics).

Food Chain- A __________ list of who eats who. The arrow points to who is doing the consuming!
Food Web- A more complex ___________ diagram of which organisms prefers to eat each other.

Scavenger- Feeds on ________ animals. ex. coyote, vulture
Detritivore- Eats decomposing organic matter: leaf litter, dung. ex. ants, beetles
Decomposers- Organsims that ___________ down or feed on dead organic matter. Can be done on a molecular level. ex. Fungus or bacteria

Nutrient Cycles

Carbon Cycle: The building blocks of life.

Short cycle:

• Photosynthesis and Respiration. Carbon is incorporated into a sugar during photosynthesis and then released during ____________. Plants, animals and microbes all respire which send the ______ back into the air.

Long term cycle:

• Carbon can stay in one form for years to ____________ of years before changing.
  Carbon sinks: plants, animals, ocean life (especially in ___________, coral and fish skeletons), coal, ________, atmosphere, and limestone (___________).
• Largest storage reservoirs of carbon are in ___________ rocks.
• Carbon sources are ___________ fossil fuels, fires, volcanism, limestone weathering, and respiration.
• Man is upsetting this cycle by __________ fossil fuels and tearing down the jungles and woodlands of the world.

Nitrogen Cycle: Nitrogen is a critical limiting factor for plant growth.

• A majority of nitrogen exists as an inert gas (_____) the in air (_____%), yet plants can’t take it up.
• How can a plant access it?
  
  1. Nitrogen _________: Atmospheric nitrogen is "fixed" or transformed by bacteria living symbiotically on plant roots of _________ or in blue green algae (cynobacteria). The bacteria change the ______ into ammonia. (This form of nitrogen is _________ to most plants). Examples of legumes are peas, ________, soy, ________, vetch and alfalfa.
     
  2. Nitrification- A different set of __________ break down the ammonia by combining it with oxygen to create nitrites and then finally _________. Plants can absorb ________ nicely.
     
  3. Assimilation- The plants then incorporate the nitrogen into _________ molecules (DNA, amino acids, proteins, etc!). Animals might then chow on the plants incorporating the nitrogen into their bodies.
     
  4. Ammonification- _______ plants and organic waste (like cow dung) convert their stored nitrogen back into ammonia with the help of ____________.
     
  5. Denitrification- Some of the nitrates can be converted back into atmospheric ____ through the help of (you guessed it)- ____________!

• Man is upsetting the natural balance of nitrogen by fixing nitrogen artifically to make ___________.
• These fertilizers as well as excess sewage rich in nitrogen (from large ____________ farms or crappy munipal waste systems for ___________) is added to aquatic ecosystems by rain runoff or sewage overflows.
• This in turn destroys the health of our fresh water streams and ponds by promoting rampant algae growth, which eventually renders the aquatic environment ____________!!! :(
• Nitrogen oxides, a main component of acid rain, is also belched out of tailpipes of cars and trucks when they burn _______.

Phosphorus Cycle: A veeerrry sllloow cycle. It is a crucial element required for _________ transfer in organisms.

• Soils contain very little phosporous ___________, so it is also major limiting factor for growth.
• Phosphorous does not circulate as easily as nitrogen because it does not exist as a ______, but is released by weathering of phosphate rocks (fungus helps with this).
• The phosphorous (PO4) is then dissolved in _________ and absorbed by plants. Animals that eat plants then pass the phosphorous along to the decomposers through their waste products, or when they die and decay. The decomposers then break down the phosphorous to the soil.
• Dissolved phosphorus and phosphorus waste settles back into the __________ to become ________ again.
• The largest storage reservoir of phosphorous is in ________.
• Man is creating an imbalance in phosphorous levels by mining ___________ (bird poop rich in phospates) for fertilizers and detergents.
• These products then make their way to our fresh waterways causing massive ________ blooms and wide zones devoid of _______.

Sulfur Cycle: Another slow cycle upset by mans influence.

• Most sulfur is bound up inside _______ (like pyrite and gypsum) in deep ocean rocks.
• On a good day sulfur can become _________ through volcanic eruptions or deep-sea vents.
• Sulfur is also released through bacterial breakdown, evaporation from water or decaying organisms.
• Unfortunately, burning coal and other fossil fuels adds massive amounts of sulfur into the air, which causes the rain to be damagingly ___________. :(

Water Cycle: Water moves through the environment by evaportation, precipitation, runoff and infiltration.