https://padlet.com/cameron_allton/34jn2q8pwdrm en-us 2016-09-01 15:51:37 UTC 2026-03-23 20:44:00 UTC hello@padlet.com cameron_allton https://padlet.com/cameron_allton/34jn2q8pwdrm/wish/121129808 The carbon cycle is the constant routine of carbon moving from abiotic factors to biotic factors to the atmosphere and back.  Consumers get their carbohydrates by eating producers or other consumers who also eat producers, and the producers create their carbohydrates through photosynthesis using the CO2 already in the atmosphere.  As consumers undergo cellular respiration to break down their carbohydrates into glucose, carbon is released into the atmosphere.  The same release occurs when animals produce waste or decomposing of living things begins.  Soil can also absorb this particular carbon release.  In some cases, these carbon molecules form deposits that we know as fossil fuels.  ]]> 2016-09-01 15:53:10 UTC https://padlet.com/cameron_allton/34jn2q8pwdrm/wish/121129808 cameron_allton https://padlet.com/cameron_allton/34jn2q8pwdrm/wish/121130959 Nitrogen is essential for organisms to construct proteins, but it cannot be used directly from the atmosphere.  In order to use nitrogen and allow its cyclical movement to take place- from the air, to the soil and water, to the producers, and lastly to the consumers- it must be "fixed".   Nitrogen-fixing bacteria do just that, converting nitrogen into ammonia.  Nitrogen-fixing bacteria are found in legume roots, such as beans and clover.  They take the plants' glucose and create nitrates, depositing any that they don't need into the soil.  Much like the carbon cycle, nitrogen is released back into the soil when an organism dies or excretes waste, and is broken down by a decomposer such as wild mushrooms.  The nitrogen-fixing bacteria will then take the discarded nitrogen and convert some of it back into nitrogen gas to move back into the atmosphere.  

]]> 2016-09-01 15:56:39 UTC https://padlet.com/cameron_allton/34jn2q8pwdrm/wish/121130959 cameron_allton https://padlet.com/cameron_allton/34jn2q8pwdrm/wish/121131028 Phosphorus is another essential element to organismic structure.  Producers extract it from the soil and water, and consumers extract it from eating producers or those that have also eaten producers.  Rocks break down and release phosphorus into the soil and water.  When they dissolve, they become phosphate in the soil which is then absorbed by plants.  Phosphorous also rinses off into the ocean.  Since phosphate salt can't dissolve in water, they deposit into the water as sediment.  ]]> 2016-09-01 15:56:48 UTC https://padlet.com/cameron_allton/34jn2q8pwdrm/wish/121131028 cameron_allton https://padlet.com/cameron_allton/34jn2q8pwdrm/wish/121131234 Burning fossil fuels-those products of the carbon cycle-releases the millions of years of carbon stored away back into the atmosphere.  Such a large amount of carbon cannot all be utilized at once, so it gets trapped within the atmosphere and causes Earth to heat up faster than it should.  This is a very human-caused outcome and examples of fossil fuel burning include factory coal usage for electricity and natural gas usage for in-home heating. ]]> 2016-09-01 15:57:20 UTC https://padlet.com/cameron_allton/34jn2q8pwdrm/wish/121131234 cameron_allton https://padlet.com/cameron_allton/34jn2q8pwdrm/wish/121344672 The nitrogen cycle relies heavily on the legumes that house the nitrogen-fixing bacteria all living organisms need.  We, as humans, don't often consider clover or beans as vital parts of our daily lives.  As industrialization continues, we may develop an even more cavalier attitude towards these plants that actually enable us to continue living and tear them out of the ground to make way for more housing.  But the more nitrogen-fixers we lose, the more we put our species- and all others- in grave danger.]]> 2016-09-02 15:02:02 UTC https://padlet.com/cameron_allton/34jn2q8pwdrm/wish/121344672 cameron_allton https://padlet.com/cameron_allton/34jn2q8pwdrm/wish/121364591 The Connection
Nitrogen and phosphorous are utilized by humans to create fertilizers that help plants grow more efficiently.  Fertilizer has a tendency to runoff into aquatic environments, spurring algal bloom.  Too much algae in an ecosystem deprives oxygen from the other aquatic organisms, killing them off.

Acid Rain
Burning fuel causes excess release of nitric oxide.  Once it joins with oxygen and water it becomes nitric acid, which then becomes acid rain after dissolving in rain/snow. Precipitation, the natural water we need to survive, has to maintain a pH of 7 in order to be healthy, clean, and safe for organisms to consume, as well as to allow it to evaporate and circulate through the water cycle once more. If this is disrupted due to acid precipitation, we may end up with a water depletion.  Without water, nothing can survive or be created; there are no alternatives. What we have is what we get, and if we ruin it, all species globally will die out. ]]> 2016-09-02 16:02:01 UTC https://padlet.com/cameron_allton/34jn2q8pwdrm/wish/121364591