definitions geography

7/28/2019 Definitions geography

1/7

2a) The Ecosystem as an open system

The study of living organisms in relation to their environment

The zone in which all living things are found

A very large scale or global ecosystem

Surroundings i.e. external factors which affect individuals/communities

Living organisms found in an ecosystem e.g. animals, plants

Inorganic or physical and chemical elements of an ecosystem e.g. soil, climate

The total mass of organic matter present at any moment in an ecosystem

The dead twigs, leaves and branches not yet decayed on the soils surface

The decayed organic matter incorporated into the soil

A series of organisms through which energy is passed as each organism provides

food for the next organism in the sequence

Each level or stage in the food chain where energy is stored

A diagram showing the biomass/number of organisms and energy loss from each

trophic level by using different sized boxes

Organisms which obtain their energy from the sun or from inorganic sources e.g.

green plants and some bacteria

Organisms which obtain their energy either by eating green plants or by eating

animals which have previously eaten green plants

Shows the amount of nutrients stored in an ecosystem and the transfer of nutrients

between the stores

The breakdown of litter to humus

The removal of soluble material in solution


2/7

2b) Plant Succession

The study of the distribution of plants and animals over the earths surface

The process whereby pioneer species colonise a newly available area. Plants

change over time and form a sequence of changes that will eventually produce a

balanced community of plants called the climatic climax vegetation

A stage in a sequence of events by which the vegetation develops over a period of

time

A sequential and continuous change, involving a series of transitional plant

communities heading towards the climatic climax community

Complete chain of successive seres beginning with the pioneer species and ending

with a climax vegetation

The point when the vegetation achieves its potential within the climatic limitations

and is in dynamic equilibrium with the prevailing environmental conditions

The plant community that has resulted from human activity that has permanently

changed the climatic climax or succession e.g. Heather Moorland- Antrim Plateau

2c) Human Interaction with Ecosystems

The soil of the mid-latitude grasslands, it is a fertile and means black earth. It isapproximately 2 metres deep with a 3 layer horizon


3/7

The removal of soil by wind or water

The specialisation of farming activities into the growth of a single crop

The careful management of the soil which means ensured it is continued to be a

renewable source

3a) Atmospheric Processes

Describes how the amount of incoming insolation to the Earth and outgoing

terrestrial radiation is in balance and explains why the Earth isnt heating up or

cooling down

The state of the atmosphere at a particular place and at a particular time

The average weather over a significant period of time, usually 30 years, it is a

statistical average and doesnt relate to any particular time

Carry surplus energy from the earths surface to the atmosphere

Short wave radiation is absorbed by the ground surface. Infa-red radiation is then re-

emitted into the atmosphere, transferring heat away from the Earths surface

When the ground absorbs solar energy, heat is passed up from one layer of solid

particles to another. Heat may also pass directly from one air molecule to the next,

transferring heat from the ground

When the ground is heated by the sin, air molecules above are also heated. As

warm air rises, heat is then transferred vertically by the physical movement of

warmed air molecules

When water evaporates from oceans, heat is added in the process. When the warm

air rises and water vapour cools, condensation occurs and latent heat is released

into the atmosphere, therefore, heat is transferred vertically from the surface

Heat is transferred away from the tropics, thus preventing the equator from

becoming increasingly hotter and the poles increasingly cooler.


4/7

Ocean currents act to transfer heat away from the equator and draw cooler waters

back towards the tropical regions. As a fluid with a low thermal efficiency, water

forms an effective mechanism for the transfer of energy across latitudes

The movement of air from an area of high pressure to an area of low pressure

The difference between the pressure at two points

An effect which causes any free moving object that crosses lines of latitude to bedeflected.

A diagram showing the relationship between temperature, pressure and wind

explained through three interconnected cells in the northern and southern

hemisphere

A measure of the water vapour content in the atmosphere and depends upon the

temperature of the air

The actual amount of water vapour present in a given volume of air measured in

grams per cubic metre (g/m3)

The amount of water vapour in the air at a given temperature expressed as a

percentage of the maximum amount of vapour air could hold at that temperature

The temperature to which a body of unsaturated air must be cooled to become

saturated i.e. achieve a relative humidity of 100%

3c) Human Interaction with Ecosystems

Systems of air or areas of low pressure and are polar front boundaries between

warm and cold air masses

A large body of air with relatively similar temperature and humidity characteristics at

any given level

A large mass of subsiding air which produces an area of high pressure on the

earths surface

3c) Extreme Weather Events

A large rotating storm centred around an area of very loss pressure with strong


5/7

winds blowing at an average speed in excess of 74mph

1a) Processes and features in fluvial environmentsThe area of land drained by a river and its tributaries

A system with inputs and outputs of energy and matter

A system with inputs, transfers, processes and outputs of energy but not matter

Energy or matter that enters the system e.g. precipitation

Energy or matter that leaves the system e.g. evaporation


6/7

Natural reservoirs of water in the environment e.g. soil

The volume of water passing a specific point, per unit of time, expressed as cumecs

A means of showing the discharge of a river at a given point over a short period of

time

A measurement of the relationship between drainage basin area and the total lengthof the river channel in the basin

The wearing away of the bed and banks of the river channel

The occurs when rock fragments carried by the river wear down the bed and banks

of the channel

The wearing down of the rover load itself as particles strike each other and the bed

and banks

The erosive power of the water itself which can dislodge particles from the bed and

banks of the river channel. Cavitation= a form of hydraulic action caused by bubbles

of air collapsing

The minerals in the rock are dissolved in water that is slightly acidic and is carriedaway in solution

The carrying away of eroded material

Very fine particles of clay and silt are dislodges and carried by turbulence in a fast

flowing river

Water flowing in a river channel contains acids which may dissolve soluble bedrock

and carry it in a solution

Pebbles, sand and gravel are temporarily lifted up by the current and bounced along

the bed in a hopping motion

Large cobbles and boulders roll or slide along the bed

When the velocity of the river falls it no longer has the competence or capacity to

carry its load and so starting with the largest particles material is deposited


7/7

A graph showing the relationship between velocity and particle size

Maximum size of material which a river is capable of transporting

Total load actually transported

A geological formation resulting from water flowing over the edge of an erosion

resistant rock formation

Bends in the course of the river channel

Deep areas of water between riffles

Areas of deposition of coarse material that creates areas of shallow water

A crescent shaped former meander loop that was cut off from the river by lateral

erosion

A mostly flat area of land bordering a river that is subjected to periodic flooding

High banks of silt close to the river channel

An area at the mouth of a river where fine sediment is deposited

A triangular/fan shaped formation found in areas where longshore drift operates

keeping the edge of the delta relatively smooth

Fingers of deposited material extend out into the sea along the line of distributaries

definitions geography

Documents