# data[].attributes.body
Atmosphere - The layer of gases surrounding our planet (oxygen and nitrogen)

Lithosphere - The solid and rigid outer layer of Earth

Hydrosphere - All solid, liquid and gas forms of water on Earth

Biosphere - The zone where life can exist inside the atmosphere, lithosphere and hydrosphere

# data[].attributes.body
Ecosystem - A group of organisms that interact with each other and their environment

Biotic Factors - Living beings and anything they create or produce (waste, nests, etc.)

Abiotic Factors - Non-living components of the ecosystem's environment (temperature, wind, water, etc.)

Sustainable Ecosystem - An ecosystem that is able to maintain its full functions and properties naturally

Sustainability - The ability to maintain a healthy ecological balance

# data[].attributes.body
Radiant Energy - Energy that travels through empty space

Light Energy - Energy that travels through empty space but is visible

Thermal Energy - Energy that travels during the heating or cooling process

Photosynthesis - A process used by plants and other organisms to convert light energy into chemical energy

Producer - An organism that photosynthesizes light energy  to make their own energy

Cellular Respiration - The chemical process when sugar is turned into carbon dioxide, water, and energy

Consumer - An organism that gets its energy by eating or consuming other organisms

# data[].attributes.body
Ecological Niche - The function or role a certain species has in their ecosystem

Food Chain - A diagram to show the transfers of energy between organisms in an ecosystem

Trophic Level - The level a certain organism has depending on its place in the food chain

Food Web - A network of food chains to show the feeding relationships within a community

Ecological Pyramid - A diagram to represent the relations of biomass, energy, and numbers in an ecosystem

Biomass - The mass of a group of organisms in a given area or zone

# data[].attributes.body
Earth is the only planet in our solar system with millions of species

There are many different habitats on earth to house all these species

A habitat is a place where an organism or organisms live

A habitat can be terrestrial or aquatic

Earth orbits our star, the Sun, approximately 150,000,000 km away

Viewed from space, Earth appears as a small blue dot but as you approach, you will begin to see the atmosphere, land, and water

Since Earth's mass has such a strong force of gravity, it holds a layer of gas near its surface called the atmosphere

The atmosphere is made of roughly 78% nitrogen and 21% oxygen while the remaining 1% is made of a variety of different gases such as argon, water vapor, etc.

The atmosphere is essential to life on Earth as it regulates surface temperature and blocks some solar radiation

The atmosphere insures that during the day there is no excessive heating and during the night there is no excessive cooling

The atmosphere also blocks some incoming solar radiation (including most ultraviolet light) which is linked to skin cancer

Most species on Earth would go extinct or be unable to survive without the atmosphere

The outer shell of Earth is called the lithosphere

The lithosphere is rocky, solid, and rigid, it includes mountains, ocean floors, and the entirety of Earth's solid landscape

The lithosphere ranges from  50 - 150 km in thickness

All water on, above, and below Earth's surface is part of what we call the hydrosphere

The hydrosphere includes all oceans, lakes, ice, groundwater, and clouds

97%, which is nearly all Earth's water, is contained in oceans

Lastly, all the places where life can exist within the atmosphere, lithosphere, and hydrosphere is called the biosphere

Life forms can exist on land and in water as well as beneath the Earth's surface like some micro-organisms

Even though the Earth is very large, the biosphere is very thin in comparison

All things required for life exists in the biosphere (water, land, space, etc.)

Inside the biosphere, the supply of these resources is limited

Due to these limits, there is only a certain number of species that can survive on Earth

In the 1960's, James Lovelock came up with the Gaia hypothesis

The Gaia hypothesis proposes that Earth behaves like a living organism, meaning it could respond to changes in its environment and maintaining roughly consistent conditions over a long period of time

This hypothesis is not considered as a scientific concept in today's science

# data[].attributes.body
Scientists define an ecosystem as all living organisms that share area and how they interact with each other and their environment

The living components in an ecosystem are called biotic factors, such as animals and all they produce (nests, remains, etc.)

The non-living components in an ecosystem are called abiotic factors, such as temperature, water, and air

However, there are materials tough to classify, such as a hard coral reef, they are built by animals and are biotic, but overtime some of the reefs parts break away and form coral sand which is usually classified as abiotic

Many different individual species form an ecosystem

Individuals from the same species that populate a certain area come together to form a population

2 or more different populations in a certain area come together to form a community

Once the species in that community starts to interact with each other and their environment (biotic and abiotic factors), they become an ecosystem

Ecosystems can vary drastically in size and abiotic and biotic factors

Ecosystems are usually considered larger areas like forests or lakes but ecosystems can be as small as fungi or bacteria living on a rotting log

Therefore, there can be many smaller ecosystems inside a larger ecosystem

Every ecosystem is characterized by certain and distinctive features, such as temperature range, organisms, or water depth

Most natural ecosystems are sustainable meaning they can maintain a consistent set of characteristics over a period of time

Humans often alter the biotic or abiotic factors in an ecosystem and sometimes that causes ecosystems to become unsustainable

Sustainability means that an ecosystem has the ability to maintain its natural ecological conditions without interruption, weakening, or loss of value

Humans can artificially make ecosystems, such as a farm

To create an artificially made ecosystem, you must introduce plants and animals and you must maintain the ecosystem as well

Artificially made ecosystems usually are not sustainable enough to support themselves naturally, the biotic and abiotic factors need to be maintained

Like any other species or animal, humans are influenced by living and non-living factors of ecosystems all around them

# data[].attributes.body
All organisms need energy to stay alive and function properly

Almost all of this energy we need is radiant energy, it comes from the Sun

Earth is constantly hit with radiant energy, including ultraviolet and light energy (visible radiant energy) from the Sun

Around 70% of the radiant energy is absorbed by the lithosphere and hydrosphere

Once absorbed that energy is turned into thermal energy (energy transferred while heating and cooling)

Thermal energy warms the atmosphere, evaporates water, and creates wind

The remaining 30% of radiant energy that is not absorbed is reflected back into space

A small fraction of the radiant energy (around 0.023%) is used directly by organisms in photosynthesis

While thermal energy can keep Earth's surface warm, it can not provide energy to organisms that helps them grow and function

Light energy can be used by some organisms but light energy can not be stored and is only available during the day

However, chemical energy can be stored in cells and can be used by all organisms to function properly (reproduction, movement, growth)

When chemical energy is used, it depletes and must be replaced

The chemical energy used by organisms comes from the sun

This energy is used for photosynthesis which is one of the most important chemical processes on Earth

Photosynthesis is very important and without it Earth would not exist

Organisms that use photosynthesis or photosynthesize take light energy and make energy-rich food for themselves

These organisms are called producers

The organisms that do not photosynthesize depend greatly on the ones who do

On land the main producers are  green plants (the green colour is due to chlorophyll, which captures light energy)

In water, the main producers are microscopic organisms (they also contain chlorophyll)

Generally all chemical energy found in food was once light energy in photosynthesis

Photosynthesizing takes carbon dioxide and water (low-energy) and uses light energy to turn it into sugar (high energy)

When creating the sugar, as a result the photosynthesizer will release oxygen into the air

This sugar that is formed contains chemical energy which is then stored in the roots, stems, leaves, and seed of the plant

Though, not all sugar produced from photosynthesis goes towards energy, instead some are used making oxygen and sugar gas

The carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen in the water and carbon dioxide plants use, are rearranged to form different combinations of gases

Those can be used to make carbohydrates or proteins

Back to the chemical energy that gets stored into the seeds, roots, leaves, and stems, to make this energy available, a plant goes through a process called cellular respiration

Cellular respiration is when a plant uses the sugar and oxygen to make carbon dioxide and water

When this reaction takes place, the plant releases energy, originally stored in the sugar, it can be used to carry out required functions

Cellular respiration is done constantly and requires no light energy

There are many organisms that can't photosynthesize and therefore eat other organisms

Though consumers don't photosynthesize, like plants they use cellular respiration

Consumers use this to obtain usable energy from other organisms

Therefore, organisms depend on other organisms for survival (for example, if plants don't photosynthesize, they don't make oxygen or we can not eat them)

# data[].attributes.body
1. Explain how Earth's mass is related to its ability to have an atmosphere?
Earth's mass is what allows Earth to have an atmosphere. Due to Earth's mass and size, it makes the gravitational pull on our planet very strong. The gravitational pull Earth has is so strong it can even hold gas near it's surface. That gas being held by gravity is what makes our atmosphere.

2. In what way does the presence of an atmosphere enhance conditions for life on Earth's surface?
The atmosphere is very important to us on Earth. The atmosphere is used to regulate surface temperature and block some incoming solar radiation. Regulating the surface temperature is important because the atmosphere prevents excessive heating during the day and cooling during the night. Without anything to regulate the temperature, it would drop 15 degrees Celsius to -18 degrees Celsius. Meaning it would become very cold and effect a lot of organisms and plants. In addition, the atmosphere blocks some incoming solar radiation. This is important because some of the solar radiation is linked to skin cancer. In conclusion, the atmosphere is essential to life on Earth and without it, most species would go extinct.

5. If the Earth is so large, why do scientists consider the biosphere to be fragile?
Even though Earth is very large, the biosphere is fragile. This is due to the fact that the biosphere is very thin in comparison to Earth's size. All requirements for life must be maintained inside this thin layer. All living things, including us, need space, water, and food to survive, and all resources are limited. Meaning that we have a limited number of species that can exist on Earth or we will run out of resources. Therefore, the biosphere is fragile because it must be maintained. If we do not maintain our biosphere we will run out of resources and therefore go extinct.

# data[].attributes.body
1. Classify these factors as biotic and abiotic:
- Temperature = Abiotic
- Bacteria = Biotic
- Wind = Abiotic
- Sunlight = Abiotic
- Dead Leaves = Biotic
- Mosquitoes = Biotic
- Sand = Abiotic
- Milk = Biotic
- Hair = Biotic
- Ice = Abiotic
- Plastic = Abiotic
- An Empty Snail Shell = Biotic

2. Does a community include abiotic features?
I do not think that a community includes abiotic factors. The definition of a community is multiple different populations that share an area or region. No where in that definition did it mention anything about abiotic factors.  In addition, the definition of an ecosystem is a community and its interactions with the abiotic environment. Therefore, if we were to include the abiotic factors into our community, it would become an ecosystem instead. Communities do interact with their abiotic environment, but if we were talking about specifically a community, I would not include abiotic factors. In conclusion, I do not think that abiotic factors can be incorporated into a community.

3. Which of the following are considered to be an ecosystem?
- Back yard pond = This back yard pond is in fact an ecosystem. The pond with have abiotic elements (water, air, temperature) and biotic elements (fish, frogs, insects). The 2 factors will interact with other in the pond and therefore I consider it an ecosystem.
- All the cats in your neighborhood = All the cats a neighborhood would not be an ecosystem. This is because there is no community. Cats are a population or 1 species, while an ecosystem has multiple species. In addition, these cats may never interact, meaning that they can't be an ecosystem. In conclusion, these cats may be ecosystems on their own (due to the organisms that live on them), but all together they are not an ecosystem.
- Tree = A tree would be considered an ecosystem. This is because there are tiny organisms living on that tree (bacteria, fungi, etc.). Those organisms interact with the tree, each other, and their abiotic environment. For example, there is water and air inside that tree. Therefore, a tree can be considered an ecosystem.
- School yard = Technically, a school yard can be considered an ecosystem. A school yard consists of plants, children, bacteria, insects, and more species. Meaning that there is a community in the yard. That community does interact with the abiotic environment (air, maybe water, temperature, rocks). Meaning that a school yard technically can be considered an ecosystem.
- Vase of cut flowers = A vase of cut flowers would not be an ecosystem. This is because the flowers are now non-living since they have been cut. In addition, the ecosystem is very unsustainable because it will slowly die off with the flowers.
- Potted plant = A potted plant can be considered an ecosystem. Though it is not a very sustainable ecosystem, there are many living organisms and non-living things on and in the plant. Therefore, it can be considered an ecosystem.
- Your digestive system = Even though a human body is considered an ecosystem, a digestive system is generally not. However, there is bacteria in a digestive system, making it harder to classify. In the end, it is not generally considered an ecosystem because

4. "Human activities change only the biotic features of the ecosystem". True or False?
This statement is completely false. We know that humans can affect biotic factors of an ecosystem, such as taking a certain species habitat. However we can also affect the abiotic factors. For example, humans cause pollution when using factories, which affects the air (abiotic). In addition, humans litter causing plastic to end up in the ocean and affect the quality of the water (abiotic). In conclusion, humans can affect both abiotic and biotic factors of an ecosystem.

5. Would you consider a large city to be a population or a community?
I would consider a large city an ecosystem. The definition of an ecosystem is a community that interacts with each other and its abiotic environment. If we take a look at a larger city, there is a community. There are populations of humans, birds, insects, and many more species that come together to form this community. Now that we have our community, the question is does this community interact with each other an its environment. The community does in fact interact with each other and their environment everyday. The sunlight, the water, the air, etc. is all part of the abiotic environment. In summary, I would consider a large city an ecosystem because it meets the criteria of what an ecosystem looks and acts like.

# data[].attributes.body
1. How much energy reaching Earth is used for photosynthesis? Where does the other energy go?
Around 0.023% of the energy reaching Earth is taken and used for photosynthesis. The other percentages are either absorbed and converted into thermal energy (around 70%) or is reflected back to space (around 30%).

3.  Explain how you know plants contain energy-rich substances?
We know plants contain energy-rich substances because we eat them. All organisms, including humans, need energy to survive. Us humans eat plants to survive. Therefore, plants have energy-rich substances because we can eat them to get or obtain energy to survive.

4. Identify the other uses for these substances (sugar).
While sugars are used for storing energy, they also have other uses. Sugars are also used to fuel cellular activity, such as growth. They are also used for rearranging or assembling carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen. They take those gases and can make carbohydrates or even proteins.

5. How are photosynthesis and cellular respiration related?
Photosynthesis and cellular respiration are related because they are the opposite of each other. Photosynthesis takes carbon dioxide and water, and turns it into sugar and oxygen. Cellular respiration takes sugar and oxygen, and turns them into water and carbon dioxide. Therefore meaning, they are the opposite of each other.

6. What chemical processes do consumers and producers share? Which do they not share?
Producers and consumers share a process called cellular respiration. Plants use cellular respiration to release and use energy. Consumers use cellular respiration to obtain usable energy from food. They both use that energy to grow and function. However, consumers and producers do not both use photosynthesis, only producers do. Consumers are unable to perform photosynthesis, resulting in them eating other organisms for energy.

8. Prior to reading this section, would you have considered plants as more essential produces of food or oxygen?
Prior to reading this section, I would have assumed that plant are mostly useful for food. I believed that since animals eat plants all the time. However, now I am under the impression that they are both equally as important for sustainability. We need oxygen to breath and plants to eat. Without either, life for most species would be impossible (with a few exceptions). In conclusion my opinion has changed now that I have seen how everything relies on each other for survival.

11. Describe how plants preform photosynthesis only during the day while cellular respiration happen at anytime.
The reason for photosynthesis happening only during the day while cellular respiration can happen anytime is due to the Sun. In order for photosynthesis to take place, there must be light energy (from the Sun) and therefore it can only happen during the day. On the other hand, cellular respiration does not require light energy and therefore does not require the Sun. Meaning cellular respiration can take place anytime during the day or night.

# data[].attributes.body
1. What is meant by the term ecological niche? Describe humans and 3 other species niches.
An ecological niche is the function a species serves in its ecosystem including its prey, it predators, and its behavior.
Humans - Humans are omnivores (for the most part) and eat a variety of meats and plants, humans do not have predators, the superior species
A Black Bear - A black bear eats berries and fish, nothing eats a bear, bears hibernate in the winter and in the spring the female
usually has 1 or 2 cubs.
Mouse - Mouse is a omnivore (for the most part), are a lot of predators prey, birds, snakes, omnivorous mammals, etc. feed on mice, mice usually feed on grains, seeds, and fruit
Deer - they live in forests habitats, on wooded farmlands and sometimes in suburban areas, in winter they stay in forests for shelter, deer are a prey species, providing food for coyotes, bobcats, cougars, wolves and occasionally humans.

3. Describe some possible impacts of removing a species or adding a species to an ecosystem.
Removing or adding a species to an ecosystem can greatly affect it. Lets say you remove a species from an ecosystem, many things can happen. For example, that species prey can over populate due to the fact that nothing is eating it. Another example is that the species predator won't have anything eat, they will have to find a new food source. That can result in that new food source depleting. Now a possible reaction to adding a species is off putting the balance. For example, that species can come in and start eating a certain prey. That can be troublesome because that prey may have other predators. That means that if too many animals are feeding on that prey, the population will deplete. In conclusion, ecosystems have a good balance that should not be tempered with.

4. As you go up in trophic levels, the energy decreases. Where does the energy go?
As you can tell, when you go up trophic levels, the energy gets lower. This is because not all the energy is getting transferred. Only around 10% of the energy travels from one trophic level to the other. So, where does the remaining 90% go? The remaining 90% of energy is used or lost to the environment. That energy from an organism needs to be used to function. It is used to grow, reproduce, and even just to walk. In addition, sometimes not all the organism will be eaten. For example, if a deer was eaten, the bones may not be eaten. Meaning that some energy will be lost as well. Therefore, when an organism eats another organism, only around 10% of the energy will travel.

7. Bison, zebra, and kangaroos are 3 large mammals. Explain why if they have similar ecological niches, they can't be shown in the same food web.
It is true that bison, zebras, and kangaroos have similar niches. However, they can not be in the same food web. This is due to the fact that they live in completely different areas around the world. Bison in North America, zebras in Africa, and kangaroos in Australia. A food web represents the feeding relations within a community. Meaning that since these animals live so far away from each other, they can not be in a community. Therefore meaning, they can not be in a food web together.

8. a) How would the food web change if the red fox were killed off by rabies?
If the red fox were killed off by rabies, a few things may happen.
One of them being that the rabbits, mice, and squirrels will start to increase in population. They will no longer have one of there predators and therefore may overpopulate. Then leading to their populations eating more and therefore will decrease the population of grasses, berries, and tree seeds.
b) Who benefits from this?
The hawk would benefit if the red fox disappeared since it would have more to eat. The rabbit, mouse, and squirrels would also benefit since they are not hunted as much.
c) What species may decline?
The food the rabbit, mouse and squirrel feet on might decrease. All 3 eat berries and with many more rabbits, mice and squirrels, the berries might get all eaten up.

# data[].attributes.body
Species are influenced to where they live by the resources they require

The interactions from one species to another form the species ecological niche

And ecological niche is a species job in their ecosystem, it includes what they eat, their predators and its behavior

No two species have identical niches

Consumers are further divided into different categories based on what they eat

Herbivores eat plants or other producers (they eat plants)

Carnivores eat other animals (they eat meat)

Omnivores eat both producers and other animals (they eat meat and plants)

Scavenger eats the remains of other organisms

The most common interactions from on species to another is through feeding

An easy, yet effective way, to show these relations is through a food chain

A food chain shows whom eats whom and where energy travels from one organism to another

The arrows on a chain are used to show where the energy has gone (where ever the arrow points, the energy goes)

However, energy is lost because organisms are constantly using and releasing energy

The position of an organism on the food chain determines their trophic level (ex. 1st trophic level is the producers, 2nd is primary consumers)

Herbivores occupy the 2nd trophic level, while carnivores occupy the 3rd and 4th levels

Food chains do not actually exist in nature but are rather used simply to show feeding relationships

Just because one species eats a certain organism on a food chain, it does not mean they don't eat anything else

A way to show a variety of interconnected food chains is through a food web

Food webs are very complex and complicated, many consumers feed on each other throughout a food web

It is better to have more species on a food web rather than little, this is because if there are only a few species, that species may run out or go extinct based on the web

Food webs are good ways to determine what could happen if a certain species is removed from an ecosystem (ex. if a predator disappears from the web, their prey may over populate)

Another diagram to show the relations between organisms is what we call an ecological pyramid

An ecological pyramid is used to  display relationships between trophic levels

There are 3 types of pyramids, energy (energy transfer and loss between levels), biomass, and numbers

The size of the levels in an energy pyramid determine the amount of energy available

When an organism consumes another organism, they obtain physical matter (nutrients( and chemical energy which is needed to grow, reproduce, and survive

However, when energy is transferred between levels or organism to organism, energy is used or lost (becomes thermal energy)

Only around 10% of the energy is passed through levels (90% is either used or lost)

Due to this, the further you go up the pyramid, the energy will get less and less

In result, the species closer to the top will have a smaller population (ex. hawks are at the top of the pyramid and mice are at the bottom, there are way more mice then hawks)

Every trophic level can vary in biomass (the mass of the entire population) and numbers

Energy pyramids always decrease in size from lower to higher

Organisms close to the bottom of the pyramids usually have more numbers, energy, and biomass

Therefore, organisms that feed on lower levels usually have more energy and biomass (ex. there are generally more herbivores than carnivores)

In addition, that means if something goes wrong with a lower level, it will have a greater impact

# data[].attributes.body
This is a lovely background and very appropriate for the assignment. You have done a very thorough job of summarizing the jot notes. As well, you have gone into a great level of detail with your questions. The addition of pictures is well done! Overall, great work!