ENV100 - The Environment

Environmental Science - A pursuit of knowledge about the natural world and it focuses on - How the natural world works How natural resources and processes support life How human activities affect the environment With all of this, scientists try to remain objective. How to Define the Environment Biotic (living things) - Animals, plants, forests, soils. Abiotic (non living things) - Continents, rocks, oceans, clouds, icecaps Our Built Environment - Roads, buildings, dams, factories. Social Rela

What is Environment? Environment is more than just water, land, and air; it is everything around us, which we interact with. Environment includes: Biotic: Living things (Ex. Animals, plants, trees, forests, soil etc.) Abiotic: Non-living things (Ex. Clouds, rocks, oceans etc.) Our Built Environment Roads, buildings, schools etc. Social Relationships and Institutions Government, religion, political, economical, culture Environment dates from 1600s From an old French verb “environer” which means “

ENV100 is a Life-Style Not a Course - A LIFE STYLE The difference of environmental science and environmentalism is important: There is 2 profs, they have HUGE brains Nature has transformed through industry Recycling yards Mines Quarries We are both consciously and unconsciously aware that the world is suffering for our successes Dialogue between attraction and repulsion Dependence on nature to provide materials for our consumption What is our relationship with the natural environment? The 'Envi

Law of Conservation of Matter Matter cannot be created or destroyed Can be transformed from one substance to another Matter- All the material in the universe that has mass and occupies space, whether solid, liquid, or gaseous All matter is composed of elements Element - A fundamental type of matter, a chemical substance with a given set of properties, that cant be be broken down into substances with other properties. Composed of atoms, the smallest components that maintain the chemical prope

How science operates: "thinking like a scientist" How language and worldview influence our understanding of the environment Sustainability as an approach to environmental problems Defining the Environment The environment is a legal entity The environmental policies/practices need to be defined by various organizations You can sue on behalf of the environment, or for environmental damages Culturally and philosophically how do we think about the environment? In many places, the environment is a l

What is Science and how does it work? A systematic process for learning about the world and testing our understanding of it The accumulated body of knowledge that arises from this dynamic process The Scientific Method What is it? Testing ideas through observation, questioning and experimentation Assumptions: Idea that the universe works according to natural law Events arise from causes, and cause other events We use logic, systematic testing, and our senses to understand natural law Key Element

System Is a network of relationships among parts, elements, or components that interact with and influence one another through the exchange of energy, matter, or information. Systems receive inputs of energy, matter, or information, process these inputs and produce outputs Closed System - Matter doesn’t arrive or leave Open System - Matter arrives and leaves Feedback Loops Negative Feedback Loop - Output that results from a system moving in one direction acts as input that moves the system in o

Perception of Environmental Problems People differ in their perception Interdisciplinary communication is difficult Communications about environmental issues is further complicated by differences in language and worldview Perception is Influenced by World-Views Policy/Legal/Government vs. Scientific Academic vs. Applied Profane/Secular vs. Religious/Sacred Affluence vs. Poverty Industrialized vs. Developing Nations Anthropocentric vs. Ecocentric Ecosphere vs. Technosphere Economy vs. Ecology E

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Ecosystem Ecology Study of interactions among organisms and their physical environment as an integrated system What Is an Ecosystem? A way of looking at organisms and their interactions with the environment as an integrated system Focused on functions, processes, flux(energy,nutrients)biochemical cycle etc Systems Thinking in Ecology  Ecosystems are nested and hierarchical: there is little cycles going on in bigger cycles  Ecosystem are dynamic : they change over very short and long time sca

Hypothesis - A provisional statement (temporary statement) that proposes a possible explanation for a particular observed explanation Example Cigarette smoking increases the probability of developing certain types of lung cancer Null Hypothesis - A statement of "no effect" Experimental results are analyzed to see whether they support the (alternate) hypothesis or the null. Example Cigarette smoking has no effect on the probability of developing certain types of lung cancer which means that c

Biotechnology and Food Resources Food security is a huge issue today in our world today Almost 1 billion people don’t get enough to eat on a regular basis On the other hand, we have 1 billion people who get too much to eat, leading to overweight or obese Too Little and Too Much Food is Both Problematic From a Global Perspective Malnutrition: unbalanced diet (shortage of required nutrients OR excess). People may get enough calories; however, these may be poor quality calories which do not provid

Genetic change in population of organisms across generations Genetic change often leads to modifications in appearances, functioning, or behaviour of organism through time Mechanism of evolution Mutation Migration Random drift Natural selection: traits that enhance survival and reproduction are passed on more frequently to future generations than those that do not Charles Darwin Proposed the concept of natural selection Descent with Modification - Traits are passed on from parents to children

Food Production Diverted to Biofuel Production Fuel derived from recently-dead biological material Wood fuels, crop waste, energy-from-waste, etc. Usually from crops high in sugar or oils (e.g., corn or sugarcane for ethanol) “Food-or-fuel” controversy When we use land that is traditionally used to grow food and use it for biofuel, generally the poor people who live on those lands are not the major consumers of the biofuel, which is why using these lands for biofuel results to consequences for t

Age of the sun and solar system ~4.57 Billion years old (Giga Annums) Based on models of stellar evolution and dating of primitive solar system objects Age of earth: ~4.54 Ga Based on ages of terrestrial rocks + age of solar system + models of solar system formation Nebular Hypothesis Explains the Origin of the Solar System Interstellar cloud of gas and dust Rotating gently One part of the cloud began to get denser and began a gravitational collapse Solar nebula is formed We now have a nebula w

Earth History Time Scale Age of sun & solar system ~ 4.57 Ga (Billions of years) Based on models of stellar evolution and dating of primitive solar system objects Example Carbonaceous chondrites (meteorites) Age of earth ~ 4.54 Ga Based on ages of terrestrial rocks + age of solar system + models of solar system formation Example Acasta Gneiss The Nebular Hypothesis AKA the Nebular Theory of Solar Nebula Model explains the origin of the solar system Interstellar cloud inherits elements from

Agriculture, Food & Technology Pesticides are positive as they provide both intensive and extensive uses of lands However, there are problems associated with pesticides as they are toxic to people and the environment. Ex. Defects in a born child with no hands (as shown in slides) Pests can evolve resistance to pesticides later on once they are exposed. As years go on, resistence continues to increase for these pests to pesticides We are using different types of pesticides, which results to wide

Early earth was a magma oceans We had an atmosphere, but because earth was too hot, the atmosphere just floated away. Earth is still degassing a lot of it is water vapours, many water vapours are coming out of volcano's. ATMOSPHERE hydrosphere and geosphere interacted dynamically Surface cooled enough to sustain liquid water Oceans began to accumulate (4.4 Ga) Still hot, water precipitated and re-evaporated Water + atmospheric gases = acids Cyclical chemical and physical interactions Hydrospher

Water on Earth Water molecules have chemical characteristics that support life They are polar which facilitates bonding with other chemicals "universal solvent" Liquid over a wide range of temperatures Stabilizes systems against change Water ­based processes occur in a variety of conditions Strong cohesion Facilitates the transport of chemicals High heat capacity Transparent to light Photosynthesis is possible Solid less dense than liquid Floating ice insulates water Earth's Early Atmosphere

Soil is a Complex Material Soil consists of mineral matter, organic matter, water, air, and other gases Dead and living microorganisms and decaying material Bacteria, algae, earthworms, insects, mammals, amphibians, reptiles Soil can support the growth of a plant Soil Formation Starts with Bedrock Parent material - base geologic material of soil Bedrock: continuous mass of solid rock and is part of the Earth’s crust). This bedrock gives birth to soil by being broken up into pieces (due to volcan