NOTES

NOTES!
in Room 213!

Cycles in Nature: [Chapter 3 Lesson 1] pp. 76-79...

1	Matter on Earth is limited. It has been cycled over and over. All of this substance has been on the earth since its creation.
2	The water cycle is the movement of water between the atmosphere, the oceans, land, and living things.
3	Water that falls from the atmosphere to the land and oceans is called precipitation. Four types of precipitation are: rain snow sleet hail
4	Precipitation that rolls off land into streams, rivers, and lakes is called runoff. Precipitation that seeps into the ground and is stored in spaces between rocks is called groundwater.
5	Evaporation: the sun's heat changes liquid (water) into a gas. Condensation: the collection of water vapor in the atmosphere (clouds) where it cools and falls back to earth as precipitation.
6	Water so very important on earth because: 1. all organisms are composed of water... 2. transports nutrients and waste within an organism... 3. regulate temperature in organisms... 4. plants transpire (releasing large amounts of water into the atmosphere)...
7	About 78% of the Earth's atmosphere is nitrogen gas. Oxygen makes up very little of the atmosphere in comparison. The exchange of carbon between the environment and living things is called the nitrogen cycle. Organisms need nitrogen to build proteins and DNA for new cells. Many organisms aren't able to use nitrogen gas in that form, therefore eating plants is an important way to get the necessary nitrogen for building protein and DNA.
8	The conversion of nitrogen gas into nitrogen that is usuable for plants is called nitrogen fixation. Lightning cause some nitrogen fixation. Bacteria and plant roots in the soil produce most of the nitrogen fixation. Plants get nitrogen from their roots. Animals get nitrogen from plants. Decomposing matter (dead stuff) breaks down and deposits more nitrogen back into the soil. The process then starts all over again.
9	The breakdown of substances in simplier molecules is called decomposition. Bacteria in the soil are able to change nitrogen gas into forms that plants can use. Fungi and bacteria breakdown matter and then return carbon dixoide and water back to the environment.
10	The burning of a substance is called combustion.
11	succession: a community taking the place of anohter in a single place over time. primary succession: a community taking growth in an area, without dirt, that was previously uninhabited by living species. (rock)... secondary succession: a community taking growth in an area with dirt that was previously inhabited by anohter community that has been removed. (farm)... Decomposition makes dirt.
12	biodiversity: lots of varied species in one area. pioneer species: a species taking growth in an area where none had been, thus making it possible for other species to take hold eventually.