...Purpose To assess your ability to: define biodiversity explain how species diversity arises explain the patterns of biodiversity on Earth list several regions of high biodiversity (e.g., biodiversity hotspots) discuss how interactions among species affect their fates and that of communities discuss why the special properties of a community are important explain the relationship between species diversity and community stability discuss the role of disturbance in a community discuss how disturbance affects a community identify the major terrestrial biomes identify the environmental conditions that control the distribution of the major terrestrial biomes identify the activities that threaten global forests discuss activities that can be taken to preserve global forests discuss the impact of road construction on the Earth's forests discuss how vertical stratification differentiates life zones in oceans discuss why coral reefs, mangroves, estuaries, and wetlands are biologically important identify the locations of the world's most extensive grasslands discuss human-mediated activities that degrade the world's grasslands identify the original purposes of parks and nature preserves in North America identify the major benefits of biodiversity discuss the major human-caused threats to biodiversity discuss in what ways we humans can reduce the human-caused threats to biodiversity define wilderness discuss why wilderness areas are both important and controversial ...
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...Sustainable Development and Planetary Boundaries BACKGROUND RESEARCH PAPER Johan Rockström and Jeffrey D. Sachs with Marcus C. Öhman and Guido Schmidt-Traub Submitted to the High Level Panel on the Post-2015 Development Agenda This paper reflects the views of the author and does not represent the views of the Panel. It is provided as background research for the HLP Report, one of many inputs to the process. May 2013 Draft for Discussion Sustainable Development and Planetary Boundaries Draft for Discussion Background paper for the High-Level Panel of Eminent Persons on the Post-2015 Development Agenda Prepared by the co-chairs of the Sustainable Development Solutions Network Thematic Group on Macroeconomics, Population Dynamics, and Planetary Boundaries: Johan Rockström Executive Director, Stockholm Resilience Centre Professor of Environmental Science, Stockholm University Jeffrey D. Sachs Director, The Earth Institute, Columbia University Director, The Sustainable Development Solutions Network Special Advisor to Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon on the Millennium Development Goals with Marcus C. Öhman Associate Professor and Senior Researcher in Ecology and Environmental Science, Stockholm Resilience Centre Guido Schmidt-Traub Executive Director, The Sustainable Development Solutions Network 15 March 2013 1 Draft for Discussion The world faces a serious challenge, indeed one that is unique to our age. Developing countries rightly...
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... Thomas Edison State College Technical summary of climate change Overwhelming scientific study demonstrate the earth’s atmosphere is warming rapidly, mostly because of human activities, and that this will lead to significant climate change during this century (Miller, Spoolman 2010). Climate change throughout history has affected evolution and natural selection, moving continents and dispersing populations throughout the world with these movements. Until the industrialization of the human population a hundred and sixty years ago our atmosphere maintained a unique combination of chemicals. Absorbing the natural emissions from volcanic action and the life cycle, balancing the chemical composition providing a life sustaining biome. The atmosphere provides both life and protection to the ecosystems on the planet from the sun’s UV rays and a variety of debris from space. The atmosphere acts as a blanket working in a layering system to...
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...| [pic] |Course Syllabus | | |College of Natural Sciences | | |ENV/100 Version 2 | | |Principles of Environmental Science | Copyright © 2011, 2009 by University of Phoenix. All rights reserved. Course Description This course will provide students with the scientific principles, concepts, and methodologies that are required to identify and analyze risks associated with environmental problems, and examine alternative solutions for resolving or preventing these problems. Policies Faculty and students/learners will be held responsible for understanding and adhering to all policies contained within the following two documents: • University policies: You must be logged into the student website to view this document. • Instructor policies: This document is posted in the Course Materials forum. University policies are subject to change. Be sure to read the policies at the beginning of each class. Policies may be slightly different depending on the modality in which you attend class. If you...
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...BIODIVERSITY Biodiversity is the degree of variation of life. This can refer to genetic variation, species variation, or ecosystem variation within an area, biome, or planet. Terrestrial biodiversity tends to be highest at low latitudes near the equator, which seems to be the result of the warm climate and high primary productivity. Marine biodiversity tends to be highest along coasts in the Western Pacific, where sea surface temperature is highest and in mid-latitudinal band in all oceans. Biodiversity generally tends to cluster in hotspots, and has been increasing through time but will be likely to slow in the future. Rapid environmental changes typically cause mass extinctions. One estimate is that less than 1-3% of the species that have existed on Earth are extinct. Since life began on Earth, five major mass extinctions and several minor events have led to large and sudden drops in biodiversity. The Phanerozoic eon (the last 540 million years) marked a rapid growth in biodiversity via the Cambrian explosion—a period during which the majority of multi-cellular phyla first appeared. The next 400 million years included repeated, massive biodiversity losses classified as mass extinction events. The Carboniferous, rainforest collapse led to a great loss of plant and animal life. The Permian–Triassic extinction event, 251 million years ago, was the worst; vertebrate recovery took 30 million years. The most recent, the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event, occurred 65 million...
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...1 ESSAYS ON SUSTAINABILITY Thirteen Challenging Essays for Earthlings By Peter E. Black, 2008 Wheels and Water .......................................................page 1 Water and Humans on Planet Earth ................................... 2 Climate, Weather, and Global Warming ............................. 3 A Catastrophic Loss of Species ......................................... 4 The Naked Truth................................................................... 5 Asymmetrical Resource Distribution ................................. 6 Stormwater and Groundwater Runoff ................................ 7 Economy, Energy, Environment ......................................... 8 Drill in the ANWR? No Way! ............................................... 9 The Wonder of Water ......................................................... 10 Buffering Sands of Time.................................................... 11 Ecology and Civilization .................................................... 12 With a Bang, not a Whimper.............................................. 13 © 2008 Peter E. Black, PhD (US Copyright Registration TXu 1-580-484, July 13, 2008 as “Conservation is the Cornerstone of Sustainability”) Distinguished Teaching Professor of Water and Related Land Resources, Emeritus, State University of New York, College of Environmental Science and Forestry, 1 Forestry Drive, Syracuse, NY 13210 peblack@esf.edu and www.watershedhydrology.com Essays on Sustainability Thirteen Challenging...
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...Fisheries and Human Impact on Puget Sound The Puget Sound runs along the northeastern coast of Washington state. It is made up of a mixed estuarine environment and complex waterways (United States Environmental Protection Agency). Fishing is a main industry in the Puget Sound area. It accounts for more than $100 million in the state of Washington’s economy (Radtke, 2011). Fisheries are the study of the ecology of fish in a given environment. In oceanography it is defined as ecological organization of a biome, community, population, or species (Govoni, 2005). There are many different sectors of fisheries to study. For example, abundance and distribution of different fishes, human impact, and the study of the physical processes are difference...
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...Brandon Parezo Environmental Science Research Paper November 23rd, 2011 Maldives The country of Maldives is officially known as the Republic of Maldives, or as many people know of it as the Maldive Islands. It is located in the Indian Ocean, island nation, and the way that it is formed is by a double chain of twenty-six atolls (1). An “atoll” is a coral island that surrounds a “lagoon” partially or completely (1). The major surrounding countries near Maldives are Sri Lanka and India, Maldives is about 430 miles from Sri Lanka and about 250 miles from India (1). The major type/s of topography for Maldives is the fact that it is a cluster of around 1,200 small islands (2). One of the islands consists of just the capital, Male, and another one of the islands serves the purpose of the nation’s airport. Besides those two islands, basically every island serves a single purpose. They have an island just to store their fuel, one for their dump yards, 199 of them for population, and 80 islands that consist of major tourist locations (2). For the Maldive Islands there really only one major language spoken, Dhivehi (1). It is a Indo-European language and it spoken by at least 350,000 people on the islands (1). The present-day script that is used on the islands is called Thanna and what is quite interesting about this is that it is written from right to left, unlike us who go from left to right (1). According to the UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural...
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...The Latitudinal Diversity Gradient Hypothesis: the state of knowledge Biogeography Spring 2013, Term Paper Title: Latitudinal Diversity Gradient Hypothesis, the state of knowledge By Schibon 1. Introduction Latitudinal gradients in species diversity are generally understood to be increases in the number of species from high (cold-temperate) to low (warm) latitudes (Rohde, 2011). As early as 1807, von Humboldt provided the first formulation for this hypothesis (based on climate) to explain latitudinal gradients of richness (Hawkins 2001) which has remained one of the key questions in Evolutionary Ecology. No single pattern of biodiversity has fascinated ecologists more than the increase of richness toward the Tropics (Pianka 1966; Rohde 1992; Rosenzweig 1995; Gaston and Blackburn 2000). Still, there is an astonishing lack of consensus about the mechanisms leading to this spatial variation in diversity (Hillebrand, 2004). As the search for a primary cause to this latitudinal gradient has been hampered by the increase number of hypotheses (Pianka 1966; Rohde 1992), their interdependence (Currie 1991; Gaston and Blackburn 2000), and the lack of rigorous falsification (Currie et al. 1999), it makes sense to assess the current state of knowledge on this issue. The current paper aims at updating on the current state of knowledge concerning the latitudinal diversity gradient particularly through reviewing the most dominant hypotheses and theories striving...
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...inhabit a territory or state; the number of inhabitants (either the total number or the number of a particular race or class) in a given place (country or city etc.) 5. community - noun (ecology) a group of interdependent organisms inhabiting the same region and interacting with each other; a group of people living in a particular local area; a group of people having ethnic or cultural or religious characteristics in common; a group of nations having common interests; common ownership; agreement as to goals; the body of people in a learned occupation; a district where people live; occupied primarily by private residences 6. ecosystem - noun a system formed by the interaction of a community of organisms with their physical environment 7. biome - noun a major biotic community characterized by the dominant forms of plant life and the prevailing climate 8. autotroph - noun plant capable of synthesizing its own food from simple organic substances 9. producer - noun something that produces; someone who finds financing for and supervises the making and presentation of a show (play or film or program or similar work); someone who manufactures something 10. photosynthesis - noun synthesis of compounds with the aid of radiant energy (especially in...
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...BS & 2 years MS (Revised 2009) | | HIGHER EDUCATION COMMISSION ISLAMABAD CURRICULUM DIVISION, HEC Dr. Syed Sohail H. Naqvi Executive Director Prof. Dr. Altaf Ali G. Shahikh Member (Acad) Miss Ghayyur Fatima Director (Curri) Mr. M. Tahir Ali Shah Deputy Director (Curri) Mr. Shafiullah Deputy Director Composed by Mr. Zulfiqar Ali, HEC Islamabad CONTENTS 1. Introduction………………………………… 6 2. Aims and Objectives……………………… 10 3. Standardized Format for 4-years BS degree programme ………………………. 12 4. Scheme of Studies for BS …………………. 14 5. Details of Courses for BS …………………. 16 6. Elective Group Papers ……………………. 45 7. Scheme of Studies for MS Programme …. 48 8. Details of Courses for MS …………………. 50 9. Optional Courses Model……………………. 56 10. Recommendations …………………………. 61 11. Annexures A,B,C,D & E …………………… 63 PREFACE Curriculum of a subject is said to be the throbbing pulse of a nation. By looking at the curriculum one can judge the state of intellectual development and the state of progress of the nation. The world has turned into a global village; new ideas and information are pouring in like a stream. It is, therefore, imperative to update our curricula regularly by introducing the recent developments in the relevant fields of knowledge. In exercise of the powers conferred by sub-section (1) of...
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...Mangroves are ever green forests between land and sea, found essentially in the intertidal zone and occupying large tracts along the shallow coasts, estuaries and in the deltas where they are influenced by tides, widely differing conditions of saline and rainfall regimes. The coastline of Pakistan is 1,050 km long and 40-50 km wide shared by the provinces of Sindh (350 km) and Balochistan (700 km). In the Sindh province, mangroves are found in the Indus Delta which occupies approximately 600,000 ha extending from Korangi Creek in the north to Sir Creek in the South. Indus Delta comprises 17 major creeks, numerous minor creeks and extensive mudflats and constitutes 97% of total mangrove forests found in Pakistan. Mangroves of Indus delta are unique in being the largest arid climate mangroves in the world. The survival of these forests is largely associated with perennial freshwater supplies from the River Indus, which flows through the delta before reaching the Arabian Sea. An area of 344,845 ha of the Indus delta has been declared as protected forests and is under the control of Sindh Forest Department. The Indus Delta is believed to have had as many as eight mangrove species in the past. However at present, only four species have been left. Nearly 95% of the mangroves located in the Indus Delta comprise the species Avicennia marina. Very small patches of Ceriops tagal and Aegiceras corniculatum are found near the mouth of the Indus at Keti Bunder. Rizophora mucronata has...
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...GRADUATE DIPLOMA IN INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS AND DIPLOMACY STUDENT GUIDELINE NOTES GLOBAL POLITICAL ECONOMY MODULE Paste the notes here… Political economy originally was the term for studying production, buying and selling, and their relations with law, custom, and government. Political economy originated in moral philosophy (e.g. Adam Smith was Professor of Moral Philosophy at the University of Glasgow), it developed in the 18th century as the study of the economies of states — polities, hence political economy. In late nineteenth century, the term "political economy" was generally replaced by the term economics, used by those seeking to place the study of economy upon mathematical and axiomatic bases, rather than the structural relationships of production and consumption (cf. marginalism, Alfred Marshall). History of the term Originally, political economy meant the study of the conditions under which production was organized in the nation-states. The phrase économie politique (translated in English as political economy) first appeared in France in 1615 with the well known book by Antoyne de Montchrétien: Traicté de l’oeconomie politique. French physiocrats, Adam Smith, David Ricardo and Karl Marx were some of the exponents of political economy. In 1805, Thomas Malthus became England's first professor of political economy, at the East India Company College, Haileybury, Hertfordshire. The world's first professorship in political economy was established...
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...National Curriculum Statement (NCS) Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement LIFE SCIENCES Further Education and Training Phase Grades 10-12 basic education Department: Basic Education REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA CurriCulum and assessment PoliCy statement Grades 10-12 life sCienCes CAPS LIFE SCIENCES GRADES 10-12 department of Basic education 222 Struben Street Private Bag X895 Pretoria 0001 South Africa Tel: +27 12 357 3000 Fax: +27 12 323 0601 120 Plein Street Private Bag X9023 Cape Town 8000 South Africa Tel: +27 21 465 1701 Fax: +27 21 461 8110 Website: http://www.education.gov.za © 2011 department of Basic education isBn: 978-1-4315-0578-4 Design and Layout by: Ndabase Printing Solution Printed by: Government Printing Works CURRICULUM AND ASSESSMENT POLICY STATEMENT (CAPS) LIFE SCIENCES GRADES 10-12 FOREWORD by thE ministER Our national curriculum is the culmination of our efforts over a period of seventeen years to transform the curriculum bequeathed to us by apartheid. From the start of democracy we have built our curriculum on the values that inspired our Constitution (Act 108 of 1996). the Preamble to the Constitution states that the aims of the Constitution are to: • heal the divisions of the past and establish a society based on democratic values, social justice and fundamental human rights; improve the quality of life of all citizens and free the potential of each person; lay the foundations for a democratic and open society in which...
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...Breaking Into Cars—Stephen I had never broken into a car before. We were in Laredo, having just finished our first day at a Habitat for Humanity work site. The Hotchkiss volunteers had already left, off to enjoy some Texas BBQ, leaving me behind with the college kids to clean up. Not until we were stranded did we realize we were locked out of the van. Someone picked a coat hanger out of the dumpster, handed it to me, and took a few steps back. “Can you do that thing with a coat hanger to unlock it?” “Why me?” I thought. More out of amusement than optimism, I gave it a try. I slid the hanger into the window’s seal like I’d seen on crime shows, and spent a few minutes jiggling the apparatus around the inside of the frame. Suddenly, two things simultaneously clicked. One was the lock on the door. (I actually succeeded in springing it.) The other was the realization that I’d been in this type of situation before. In fact, I’d been born into this type of situation. My upbringing has numbed me to unpredictability and chaos. With a family of seven, my home was loud, messy, and spottily supervised. My siblings arguing, the dog barking, the phone ringing—all meant my house was functioning normally. My Dad, a retired Navy pilot, was away half the time. When he was home, he had a parenting style something like a drill sergeant. At the age of nine, I learned how to clear burning oil from the surface of water. My Dad considered this a critical life skill—you know, in case my aircraft...
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