Name: measuring ecosystem health
Uploaded: 2019-01-29T11:04:46.000Z
Duration: 5 min 49 s
Channel: JoVE

K12 Standards

north-carolina-k-12-science-standard-course-of-study

North Carolina K-12 Science Standard Course of Study

9-12

Earth and Environmental Science

Earth and Human Activity

ESS.EES.5.6

Community Diversity

生态系统是指在某一区域内相互作用的生物与非生物成分所组成的群落。生态系统可大到整个地球或一片充满动植物的森林，也可小到一个拥有多种微生物定居者的胃。生态系统的健康状况可以通过多种方式来衡量，而其中一个重要指标是生物多样性，即衡量生态系统中生物物种丰富程度的指标。

我们可以使用一种称为香农-维纳指数（Shannon-Wiener Index）的指标来评估生物多样性，该指数由克劳德·香农（Claude Shannon）和诺伯特·维纳（Norbert Wiener）在20世纪40年代提出。香农-维纳指数是一个无量纲的测量值，用H表示。该指数包含两个变量：物种丰富度（species richness），即存在的物种数量，用K表示；以及物种均匀度（species evenness），即各物种所占比例，用PI表示。物种丰富度指一个生态系统中独特物种的数量。本示例中有七个物种。物种均匀度用于衡量生态系统中物种的分布情况。这意味着，若一个生态系统中各物种个体数量相近，则其均匀度较高；而若其中一两个物种占据了大多数个体，如本例中野兔数量相对过多的情况，则均匀度较低。

现在我们已经知道需要测量什么，接下来学习如何测量生物多样性。由于生态系统可能非常庞大，生态学家必须设法快速随机地对大面积区域进行抽样。其中最简单的方法是使用样方，这是一种固定大小的框架，通常随机放置在采样地点内。科学家调查样方内部的区域，记录物种丰富度以及物种均匀度。通过在生态系统中多个位置放置这些小范围的“窗口”，他们可以外推研究结果，从而估算整个研究区域的多样性。然而，尽管这种方法能够对大范围区域进行可管理的评估，但它并不完美。样方的随机放置可能会遗漏个体，导致某些物种被低估，从而造成生物多样性估算结果偏低。

这一局限性意味着，对于某些群落，尤其是呈斑块状或不均匀分布的群落，采用更系统的取样方法能获得更好的代表性样本。在此例中，我们的草甸与森林相邻，实际上由不同的生境斑块组成。为了更全面地覆盖该群落，我们可以将景观划分为核心生境和重要的边缘生境。通常，边缘区域具有更高的生物多样性，因为来自两种生境类型的物种均可能在此共存。然而，传统的随机取样方法可能忽略这一现象。相反，为了测量此类群落的生物多样性，一种有效的策略是首先在核心区域使用样方进行随机取样。所收集的数据可用于计算每个核心生境的 H 值。接着，可在每个核心生境内设置一条样线或取样线，并延伸至边缘区域。然后，在样线上的固定点位放置样方，记录物种丰富度和均匀度。随后，利用香农-维纳公式，可计算样线上每个距离点的多样性指数，并进行比较。H 值较高的区域通常比 H 值较低的区域具有更高的多样性。这种结合随机样方与样线法的技术，能够对同一群落内不同生境的多样性进行灵活且更公平的评估。

除了物种数量的测量外，科学家还可能检测生态系统的化学成分以评估其健康状况。例如，他们可以检测是否存在污染，或通过测定土壤中的养分含量来评估土壤质量。这些信息还有助于解释群落不同区域生物多样性变化的模式。因此，在我们的示例中，如果草地的土壤质量低于森林和边缘地带，则可能支持的物种数量更少。

在本实验中，您将测量两个不同核心区域的生物多样性与土壤质量，然后检验边缘生境如何影响生物多样性。

群落多样性

种群并非孤立生存；因此，每个种群都会以某种方式与其他种群发生相互作用。这些相互作用形成了种群网络。因此，生态群落由同一区域内不同物种之间相互作用的种群网络构成。这些生物性（即生物）组分还可能与非生物性（即非生物）组分密切相互作用，从而形成生态系统。生态系统可以小到人类消化道内受环境pH值和营养物质结构调控的微生物群落，也可以大到通过碳循环紧密关联的树木与昆虫所组成的森林。随着人类通过城市化和气候变化在全球范围内持续对生态系统造成重大改变，生态学家和保护工作者对生态系统的关注日益增加。对生态系统中任一组分的改变都可能影响其他紧密关联的组分，进而可能导致整个系统发生剧烈变化。因此，量化并预测生态系统当前及未来的“健康”状况已成为生态学研究的重要课题。

<h4>生物多样性</h4>

“生态系统健康”这一术语具有隐喻性，因为很难比较差异极大的生态系统之间的健康状况，且不存在单一数值可用于量化生态系统的健康程度。例如，沙漠和森林的物种多样性差异很大，但并不意味着其中一个必然比另一个更健康。因此，人们提出了多种指标来表征生态系统的健康状况，具体使用哪些指标取决于研究目的。因此，“生态系统健康”可能指生态系统对人类的价值。例如，可通过树木固碳或蜜蜂授粉等生态系统服务的价值来量化生态系统的健康状况。其他指标可能测量生态系统中稀有物种的数量、生态系统对火灾的抵抗能力，或其他生物与非生物因素的测量结果。对生态学家而言，一个广受欢迎的健康指标是生物多样性（biodiversity）。生物多样性用于衡量某一区域内生物物种的丰富程度，可通过香农-维纳多样性指数（Shannon-Wiener biodiversity index）进行计算。

香农-维纳指数需要从一个局部群落中获取两个测量值：物种丰富度和均匀度。物种丰富度是指一个局部群落中不同物种的总数。没有物种存在的区域，例如刚铺设好的停车场，其丰富度值为0。而以支持地球上最多样化群落之一著称的热带雨林，则具有更高的物种丰富度。尽管物种数量多通常意味着生态系统具有较高的多样性和健康性，但仍需考虑均匀度。例如，当某一物种在区域内占主导地位，而其他物种极为稀少时，该区域的生物多样性低于各物种个体数量相近的区域。因此，物种数量较多且各物种个体数量相对均衡的区域具有最高的生物多样性得分。

香农-维纳指数并非衡量生态系统生物多样性和健康状况的唯一指标。例如，一种常用的指数称为EPT指数，通过为单个生物赋予健康值来评估河流系统的水质。具体而言，该指数考虑河流中三类对污染物敏感的无脊椎动物目：蜉蝣目（mayflies）、襀翅目（stoneflies）和毛翅目（caddisflies）。若在水体中发现这些不耐污染的物种，则表明水质良好，相应生态系统被视为健康。

通常，具有生态学意义的区域过于广阔，无法进行整体取样。为解决这一问题，生态学家在研究区域内使用样方进行多个较小样地的取样。样方是预先规定尺寸的小型框架，放置在研究地点的各个位置，研究人员在其中识别并记录所有目标物种的个体。当考虑足够多样方样本时，科学家便可据此推断，对生态群落做出准确估算。

<h4>生态变化的影响</h4>

大多数自然生态变化发生在较长时间尺度上。此外，人类持续改变着生态系统。为了评估生态系统的长期变化，科学家建立了长期生态研究站点（LTERs）。其中运行时间最长的站点之一是位于美国新罕布什尔州的哈伯德布鲁克实验林。该站点及其他类似站点增进了人们对由森林砍伐、水文系统变化以及其他长期生态干扰所导致的生态系统尺度格局的认识1。

当一个重大变化发生得非常迅速时，被称为生态扰动。火灾、飓风和洪水就是生态扰动的例子。扰动会通过清除养分并改变生物群落的组成来改变生态系统。在扰动发生后，具有最强抗性和恢复力的物种更易存活。抗性强的物种或群落是指能够在重大扰动中以最小损害存活下来，并能迅速从扰动中恢复的物种或群落，例如草坪被割草后蒲公英的恢复。在扰动前后对某一地点进行多年的采样是不可行的，但通过比较具有不同扰动模式的区域，可为解决这一问题提供部分方案。

受干扰的生境通常呈斑块状分布，因此，若随机布设样方，可能导致物种被低估，从而得出错误的生物多样性估计结果。为此，必须考虑研究区域的周边环境以及生境的某些特征。在景观生态学中，这一目标通过研究核心生境和边缘生境来实现。核心生境位于斑块中央，周围被同类型的生境所包围。相比之下，边缘生境（也称为边界生境）则与不同类型的生境相邻。例如森林生境与草地生境交界处的边缘生境，可能具有更高的生物多样性，因为两类生境的物种均可能在此出现。这种在生境边缘出现的生物多样性差异被称为边缘效应。为了评估这些过渡区域，生态学家沿生境设置路径，称为样线，并在路径上按固定间隔记录各个小型取样点的生物多样性。然而，并非所有生境都会出现边缘效应，有时边缘物种为入侵种，可在更广泛的生境中生长，因而不能代表“健康”生态系统。

除了物种指标外，科学家还可能测量生态系统的化学成分以评估其健康状况。例如，他们可能会检测污染情况，或通过测定土壤中的养分含量来评估土壤质量。这些信息还有助于解释群落不同区域中生物多样性格局的变化。此外，还有许多变量，如特定时间段内的温度、降水量以及物种的功能性状，这些变量难以直接测量，且需要复杂的统计分析。生态学家正不断探索在更广泛的时间和空间尺度上记录这些变量的新方法。这催生了诸如生态系统遥感等新技术，即利用卫星影像来估算全球范围内的目标变量2。这些数据的分析需要使用多变量统计方法及其他正在持续发展的复杂数学工具。

随着全球人口持续增长并不断改变生态系统，科学家和关心环境的公众正致力于保护和挽救濒危的生态系统。恢复严重受损生态系统的一种方法是生物修复，即通过引入生物体（通常是微生物）来降解污染物，并使生态系统恢复有利的特性3。其中一个实例是在废水中投放微生物，以分解污染物并使水质恢复到适合鱼类生存的状态4。因此，创新的生态系统恢复方法将日益重要，以修复人类活动对生态系统造成的影响。

<h4>参考文献</h4>

<ol class="references">
	<li>Likens, Gene E. 哈伯德溪生态系统研究（1963–2013年）连续五十年的降水和溪流化学数据。Ecology. Vol. 98 , 8: 2224.</li>
	<li>Zhaoqin Li, Dandan Xu, Xulin Guo. 生态系统健康遥感：机遇、挑战与未来展望。Sensors (Basel). 2014, Vols. 14(11): 21117–21139.</li>
	<li>Garbisu, Itziar Alkorta Lur Epelde Carlos. 气候变化所改变的环境参数影响参与生物修复的土壤微生物活性。FEMS Microbiology Letters. 2017, Vol. 364, 19.</li>
	<li>P. Padmavathi, K. Sunitha, K. Veeraiah. 益生菌在改善鱼塘水质和细菌群落中的功效。Afr. J. Microbiol. Res. 2012, 6(49). 7471-7478.</li>
</ol>

种群并非孤立生存；因此，每个种群都会以特定方式与其他种群发生相互作用。这些相互作用形成了一个复杂的网络……

Education

教育

JoVE Lab Manual

Biology

生物学

Ecology

生态学

社区多样性

measuring ecosystem health

Ecosystem health is measured by looking at how species, habitats, and nonliving conditions interact in the same area. An ecological community includes many populations that live together and affect one another. When biotic parts, or living parts, also interact with abiotic parts, or nonliving parts, they form an ecosystem. These systems can be very small, like microbes in the human digestive tract, or very large, like a forest linked by the carbon cycle.

Ecologists study ecosystem health because urbanization and climate change are changing ecosystems around the world. A change in one part of an ecosystem can affect other connected parts. That can lead to major shifts in the whole system. Because of this, scientists want to measure and predict the current and future health of ecosystems.

There is no single way to measure ecosystem health. The term is metaphorical, and different ecosystems are not easy to compare directly. A desert and a forest may have very different species diversity, but one is not automatically healthier than the other. Researchers use different metrics based on the goal of the study. Some look at ecosystem services, such as carbon sequestration by trees or pollination by bees. Others measure rare species, fire resistance, or other biotic and abiotic factors.

One common measure is biodiversity, or biological diversity. Biodiversity describes the variety of species in an area and can be calculated with the Shannon-Wiener biodiversity index. This index uses two measurements: species richness and evenness. Species richness is the total number of different species in a local community. A freshly paved parking lot would have a richness of 0, while a rainforest would have a much higher richness. Evenness matters too. If one species dominates and the others are rare, biodiversity is lower than in a community where species are more evenly abundant.

Another health measure is the EPT index, which is used in river systems to check water quality. EPT stands for Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera, and Trichoptera, which are mayflies, stoneflies, and caddisflies. These invertebrates are sensitive to pollution, so finding them in a waterway is a sign of good water quality. In that case, the ecosystem is considered healthy.

Ecologists often cannot sample a large habitat all at once. To solve this, they use quadrats, which are small frames of a set size placed at different points in the study area. Inside each quadrat, a researcher identifies and records the species of interest. With enough samples, scientists can estimate the ecological community more accurately.

Ecological change can happen slowly over many years or quickly as a disturbance. Fires, hurricanes, and floods are examples of disturbances. They can remove nutrients and change the makeup of the biological community. Afterward, the most resistant and resilient species are more likely to survive. A resistant species can handle major disturbance with little harm and recover quickly, like dandelions after a lawn is mowed.

To study long-term change, scientists use Long Term Ecological Research sites, or LTERs. The Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest in New Hampshire is one of the longest running examples. These sites have helped scientists understand long-term patterns linked to deforestation, changes in water flow, and other major disturbances. Since it is not practical to sample the same site for many years before and after every event, researchers also compare areas with different disturbance histories.

Disturbed habitats are often patchy, so random quadrats can miss important species and give poor biodiversity estimates. Ecologists also study landscape patterns by comparing core habitats and edge habitats. A core habitat is found in the middle of a patch. An edge habitat, or boundary habitat, borders a different habitat type. For example, where a forest meets a meadow, biodiversity may be higher because species from both habitats can be present. These changes are called edge effects, and they are often measured with transects, or paths across the habitat, where small sampling sites are recorded at set intervals.

Not every edge shows an edge effect. Some edge species are invasive and can live in many habitat types, so they may not indicate a healthy ecosystem. Scientists also measure chemical features of ecosystems, such as pollution levels or soil nutrients. These data help explain biodiversity patterns in different parts of a community. Other variables, including temperature, precipitation over time, and species traits, can be harder to measure and may require advanced statistical analysis.

To study ecosystems across large areas and long time scales, ecologists are using remote sensing. This method uses satellite images to estimate variables across the globe. The data often require multivariate statistics and other complex math tools that are still being improved. As people continue to change ecosystems worldwide, conservation and restoration have become increasingly important. One restoration method is bioremediation, which uses biological organisms, usually microorganisms, to break down pollutants and restore favorable ecosystem traits. In wastewater, for example, microorganisms can help remove pollution and make the water habitable for fish.

Measuring Ecosystem Health

animal behavior

Drosophila Taxis in Animal Behavior

Drosophila taxis behavior is a key part of animal behavior studies. The common fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster, is a widely used model organism in biology. It is easy to keep in small tubes, it has a short generation time of about two weeks, and males and females are easy to tell apart because males have black coloration toward the posterior and females have banded abdomens. Scientists have used Drosophila for more than a century. Thomas Hunt Morgan and his students studied mutant flies in...

energy dynamics

Food Chain Energy Flow and Biomass

Food chain energy flow shows how energy moves through ecosystems from one organism to the next. Energy cannot be created or destroyed, so it can only change form or be passed along to another organism. When a cow grazes on grass or an osprey eats fish, energy moves to the consumer. Each transfer is part of a trophic level, and these links help explain how ecosystems stay balanced. Primary producers sit at the base of the food chain. They are autotrophs, or self-feeding organisms, because they...

measuring biodiversity

Why Biodiversity Matters in Ecosystems

Biodiversity matters because it helps keep ecosystems healthy and stable. Biodiversity is the variety of living organisms in an ecosystem, and it can be measured at the genetic, species, community, and ecosystem levels. Ecologists often focus on species richness, which is the total number of different species in a local community. They also consider evenness, which describes how similar the abundances of those species are. A community with many species is not always the most diverse if one...

extinction

Mass Extinction and the Fossil Record

Mass extinction is a major loss of species, and the fossil record shows how these events changed life on Earth. Fossils from different rock layers helped scientists see that life has a long history. In the early 19th century, that idea helped launch paleontology, the study of fossils and ancient life. At first, many scientists did not fully accept that a species could disappear forever. They thought unknown organisms seen only in fossils might still live in unexplored places on Earth. By 1859,...

species distribution and biogeography

Island Biogeography and Species Richness

Island biogeography explains why species are found in some places and not others. It looks at how biotic factors, like competition and predation, and abiotic factors, like habitat size and distance, shape birth, death, immigration, and emigration rates. For a species to avoid local extinction, births and immigration must match or exceed deaths and emigration. Edward O. Wilson and Robert MacArthur helped define this field in 1967 by studying isolated oceanic islands. Islands gave early...

population growth

Population Models and Carrying Capacity

Population ecology examines how a species population changes over time. A population is a group of individuals of the same species living in the same area at the same time. To persist, a population must grow or at least stay about the same size. Ecologists study birth rate, death rate, and age distribution to understand whether a population is increasing, declining, or at risk of extinction. Population ecologists use models to predict how population size changes. Two simple models are...

community diversity

Ecosystem health is measured by looking at how species, habitats, and nonliving conditions interact in the same area. An ecological community includes many populations that live together and affect one another. When biotic parts, or living parts, also interact with abiotic parts, or nonliving parts, they form an ecosystem. These systems can be very small, like microbes in the human digestive tract, or very large, like a forest linked by the carbon cycle. Ecologists study ecosystem health...

climate change

Climate Change Effects on Sea Level and Species

Climate change affects Earth’s average temperature, sea level, and living things. Scientists distinguish climate from weather by time scale. Weather describes short-term conditions in one place, such as temperature and precipitation. Climate describes those same conditions over long periods, and global climate is measured using data from across the entire Earth. Researchers track climate change with help from meteorology, geography, oceanography, and computer models. Much of this work focuses...

group behavior

Hawk-Dove Strategy in Animal Populations

Hawk-dove strategy helps explain how animals compete and cooperate in populations. Organisms often face costs when they try to get food, shelter, or mates. Because of that, individuals can use different behavioral strategies to gain an advantage. This is clear in polymorphic mating systems, where one sex, usually males, uses more than one mating strategy. For example, dominant male sea lions defend groups of females on the beach. Non-dominant males stay in or near the water and try to mate...

optimal foraging

Patch Use in Optimal Foraging

Patch use in optimal foraging explains how organisms balance food gain against the time and energy needed to search for it. Foraging is not limited to food. Animals also search for habitats, shelter, and mates. Each choice has costs and benefits. A resource provides a benefit, but finding and capturing it takes effort. Optimal Foraging Theory models how organisms reach the best balance between those costs and gains. A key idea in this theory is that resources are often clumped into patches...

sexual selection and mate choice

Mate Competition and Fitness Traits

Mate competition and fitness traits shape how organisms choose partners and pass genes to the next generation. Evolutionary fitness depends on surviving and producing offspring, and sexual selection is a major part of that process. It creates pressure on traits used in courtship and mating, such as bright colors, ornamentation, and other features that help attract a mate. These traits can also create sexual dimorphism, which means males and females of the same species look different. Sexual...

eusociality and division of labor

Honeybee Altruism and Inclusive Fitness

Eusociality is a highly organized form of animal social life. It includes division of labor, where different individuals take on different roles in the group. In these systems, some animals help others even when it comes at a cost to their own survival or reproduction. That self-sacrificing behavior is called altruism. Early evolutionary biologists used to explain fitness only at the level of the individual. Observations of eusocial species, such as honeybees, challenged that idea. W. D.

ecology

Learn how ecologists measure ecosystem health with biodiversity, quadrats, EPT index, disturbance studies, remote sensing, and bioremediation.

Measuring Ecosystem Health | JoVE K12

ESS.EES.6.1

ESS.EES.6.3

Earth's Systems

ESS.EES.4.1

ESS.EES.4.2

Louisiana Student Standards for Science

High School

Earth Science

Human Sustainability

HS-ESS3-3

HS-ESS3-4

Environmental Science

Resources And Resource Management

HS-EVS1-1

ecosystems-interactions-energy-and-dynamics

Ecosystems: Interactions, Energy And Dynamics

HS-LS2-1

HS-LS2-6

HS-LS2-7

Virginia  Standards of Learning

HIgh School

ES.8

ES.8.b

Alabama Course of Study Science

Unity and Diversity

9-12.EVS.2.3.a

new-york-state-science-learning-standards

New York State Science Learning Standards

Life Science

interdependent-relationships-in-ecosystems

Interdependent Relationships in Ecosystems

HS-LS2-2.

HS-LS2-7.

Georgia Standards of Excellence

SEC1.

SEC1.a

Botany

SBO1.

coevolution-plant-morphological-anatomical-structures-with-animals-ie

Coevolution of plant morphological and anatomical structures with animals (i.e., pollination), Rhizobium (i.e., nitrogen fixation), and Mycorrhiza (i.e., fungi in rhizosphere).

通过这段 1 分钟的教师指南，准备教授 群落多样性。涵盖 JoVE Lab Manual 上 Biology 实验的关键准备步骤。

Biology 中的 群落多样性 教师准备 - 1.3K+ 观看次数 | JoVE Lab Manual

在这段 13 分钟的学生实验流程视频中，逐步学习 群落多样性 的操作步骤。属于 JoVE Lab Manual 上的 Biology 系列。

Biology 中的 群落多样性 学生实验流程 - 2.3K+ 观看次数 | JoVE Lab Manual

Threats to Biodiversity

There have been five major extinction events throughout geological history, resulting in the elimination of biodiversity, followed by a rebound of species ...

The Carbon Cycle

Carbon is the basis of all organic matter on Earth, and is recycled through the ecosystem in two primary processes: one in which carbon is exchanged among ...

Energy Dynamics

The Food Chain
Energy is one of the most important abiotic factors in an ecosystem and organisms in an ecosystem are connected by the flow of energy and ...

What is Climate?

Climate refers to the prevailing weather conditions in a specific area over an extended period. As the saying goes, &#8220;Climate is what you expect. ...

Sustainable Development

As the human population continues to grow and use resources, we must be mindful of our planet&rsquo;s natural limits. Sustainable development provides a ...

Global Climate Change

Throughout its ~4.5 billion year history, the Earth has experienced periods of warming and cooling. However, the current drastic increase in global ...

Extinction

The History of Life on Earth
Fossils of organisms that were different from anything alive today had been documented as early as the 17th century, but it ...

Ecological Disturbance

An ecological disturbance is a temporary disruption in the environment resulting from abiotic, biotic, or anthropogenic factors, causing a pronounced ...

Climate Change

The certainty of climate change remains a public controversy despite the consensus among approximately 97% of active climate researchers, who not only ...

Habitat Fragmentation

Habitat fragmentation describes the division of a more extensive, continuous habitat into smaller, discontinuous areas. Human activities such as land ...

Analyze and interpret data to explain the impacts of land use on Earth's systems.

ESS.EES.5.1

water-quality-analysis-via-indicator-organisms

Water Quality Analysis via Indicator Organisms

Source: Laboratories of Dr. Ian Pepper and Dr. Charles Gerba -The University of Arizona
Demonstrating Author: Luisa Ikner
Water quality analysis monitors ...

Nutrients in Aquatic Ecosystems

Source: Laboratories of Margaret Workman and Kimberly Frye - Depaul University
Nitrogen and phosphorus are essential plant nutrients found in aquatic ...

turbidity-and-total-solids-in-surface-water

Turbidity and Total Solids in Surface Water

Source: Laboratories of Margaret Workman and Kimberly Frye - Depaul University
Turbidity and total solids are related measurements addressing clarity of ...

environmental-applications-of-microorganisms

Environmental Applications of Microorganisms

Microorganisms play a pivotal role in maintaining ecosystem balance by recycling essential elements such as carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus, as well as ...

Dissolved Oxygen in Surface Water

Source: Laboratories of Margaret Workman and Kimberly Frye - Depaul University
Dissolved oxygen (DO) measurements calculate the amount of gaseous oxygen ...

The Water Cycle

The Earth&rsquo;s hydrosphere includes all of the areas where the storage and movement of water occurs. Since water is the basis of all living processes, ...

Biodiversity and Human Values

Human civilization relies on biodiversity in many ways. Sudden changes in species biodiversity result in environmental changes that can modify weather ...

Analyze and interpret data to evaluate how human use of ground and surface waters impacts water quality and availability in river basins, wetlands, estuaries, and aquifers.

ESS.EES.5.2

Measuring Tropospheric Ozone

Source: Laboratories of Margaret Workman and Kimberly Frye - Depaul University
Ozone is a form of elemental oxygen (O3), a molecule of three oxygen atoms ...

determination-of-nox-in-automobile-exhaust-using-uv-vis-spectroscopy

Determination Of NOx in Automobile Exhaust Using UV-VIS Spectroscopy

Source: Laboratories of Margaret Workman and Kimberly Frye - Depaul University
In the troposphere, ozone is naturally formed when sunlight splits nitrogen ...

What is Weather?

Overview

Weather refers to the current state of atmospheric conditions at a specific time and place. Weather is temporary and is influenced by the ...

The Sulfur Cycle

Sulfur, an important element in the chemical makeup of proteins, is recycled through the atmosphere and aquatic and terrestrial environments. Found in the ...

design-example-sustainability-in-concrete-building

Design Example: Sustainability in Concrete Building

A construction firm specializing in concrete buildings constructed a sustainable commercial building.&#160;
The various sustainable practices incorporated ...

The Efficient Level of Pollution

Producing goods often results in pollution as a byproduct, but eliminating all pollution isn&#39;t practical. Doing so would mean halting the production ...

Construct an argument to evaluate the ways that human activities influence atmospheric composition.

ESS.EES.5.3

Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells

Source: Laboratories of Margaret Workman and Kimberly Frye - Depaul University
The United States consumes a large amount of energy &#8211; the current ...

Dye-sensitized Solar Cells

Source: Tamara M. Powers, Department of Chemistry, Texas A&#38;M University
Today&#39;s modern world requires the use of a large amount of energy. While ...

Energy

The universe is composed of matter in different forms, and all forms of matter contain energy.&#160; The different forms of energy on Earth originate from ...

Construct an argument to evaluate the benefits and trade-offs of using non-renewable or renewable energy sources for electricity production and transportation fuels.

ESS.EES.5.4

Proper Waste Disposal

Robert M. Rioux and Taslima A. Zaman, Pennsylvania State University, Pennsylvania, PA

Users are responsible for the proper disposal of the waste ...

Green Marketing

Green marketing is about promoting products or services by highlighting their environmental advantages.
These products or services are produced and ...

The Efficient Amount of Recycling I

In an imaginary town, Greendale, residents carelessly dispose of recyclable plastics due to minimal additional trash pickup fees, leading to recyclable ...

The Efficient Amount of Recycling II

In the town of Greendale, tackling the recyclable plastic waste issue with price or quantity mechanisms, such as a disposal fee, quota, or disposable ...

Bioremediation

Bioremediation is the use of prokaryotes, fungi, or plants to remove pollutants from the environment. This process has been used to remove harmful toxins ...

Construct an argument to evaluate potential solutions that will ensure sustainable consumption of Earth's resources.

ESS.EES.5.5

Populations do not live in isolation; thus, every population interacts with others in certain ways. These interactions give rise to a network of ...

What is Conservation Biology?

Conservation biology is a scientific field that focuses on the preservation of biodiversity in order to protect ecosystems while meeting the needs of the ...

Construct an argument to evaluate a range of solutions to mitigate impacts of human activities on Earth's systems.

Dimensions of Health and Illness

The factors influencing the health-illness continuum can be internal or external and may or may not be under conscious control. They are related to the ...

The Soil Ecosystem

Plants obtain inorganic minerals and water from the soil, which acts as a natural medium for land plants. The composition and quality of soil depend not ...

Analyze and interpret data to infer how use of natural resources impacts ecosystems and human populations, including human health.

simulating-impacts-of-ice-storms-on-forest-ecosystems

Simulating Impacts of Ice Storms on Forest Ecosystems

Ice storms can have profound and lasting effects on the structure and function of forest ecosystems in regions that experience freezing conditions. ...

Construct an argument to infer how some natural hazards (such as flooding and wildfires) are increasing in frequency and intensity due to human activities.

ESS.EES.6.2

Construct an argument to explain how natural hazards and other environmental problems may impact some human populations more than others.

Evaluate how human consumption patterns impact Earth's systems.

Measuring Ecosystem Health

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