A.

Definition
Ecology - is the scientific analysis and study of interactions among organisms and
their environment. It is an interdisciplinary field that includes biology, geography,
and Earth science. Ecology includes the study of interactions organisms have with
each other, other organisms, and with abiotic components of their environment.
Ecosystem - is a community of living organisms in conjunction with the nonliving
components of their environment (things like air, water and mineral soil), interacting
as a system. These biotic and abiotic components are regarded as linked together
through nutrient cycles and energy flows. As ecosystems are defined by the network
of interactions among organisms, and between organisms and their
environment, they can be of any size but usually encompass specific, limited
spaces.
Ecosystem ecology is the integrated study of living (biotic) and non-living (abiotic)
components of ecosystems and their interactions within an ecosystem framework.
This science examines how ecosystems work and relates this to their components
such as chemicals, bedrock, soil, plants, and animals.
Abiotic
components or abiotic
factors are
non-living
chemical
and physical parts of the environment that affect living organisms and the
functioning of ecosystems. Abiotic factors and phenomena associated with them
underpin all biology.
Biotic describes a living or once living component of a community; for example,
organisms, such as plants and animals.
Natural history - the scientific study of animals or plants, especially as concerned
with observation rather than experiment, and presented in popular rather than
academic form.
Autotrophic - requiring only carbon dioxide or carbonates as a source of
carbon and a simple inorganic nitrogen compound for metabolic synthesis of
organic molecules (as glucose)
Autotroph - an organism that is able to form nutritional organic substances from
simple inorganic substances such as carbon dioxide.
Population the number of all the inhabitants of a particular town, area, or
community.
Population ecology or autecology is a sub-field of ecology that deals with the
dynamics of species populations and how these populations interact with the
environment. It is the study of how the population sizes of species change over time
and space.
Physiological ecology is a biological discipline that studies the adaptation of an
organism's physiology to environmental conditions.
Community ecology or synecology is the study of the interactions between
species in communities on many spatial and temporal scales, including the

distribution, structure,
coexisting populations.

abundance,

demography,

and

interactions

between

Species - a group of living organisms consisting of similar individuals capable of

exchanging genes or interbreeding. The species is the principal natural taxonomic
unit, ranking below a genus and denoted by a Latin binomial
Heterotrophic - requiring complex organic compounds of nitrogen and
carbon (as that obtained from plant or animal matter) for metabolic
synthesis.
Heterotrophs - An organism that cannot manufacture its own food and instead
obtains its food and energy by taking in organic substances, usually plant or animal
matter.
Trophic - Relating to feeding and nutrition.
Autecology - the ecological study of an individual organism, or sometimes a
particular species.
Biosphere - the regions of the surface, atmosphere, and hydrosphere of the earth
(or analogous parts of other planets) occupied by living organisms.
Biomes - a large naturally occurring community of flora and fauna occupying a
major habitat, e.g., forest or tundra.
Eutrophic - rich in nutrients and so supporting a dense plant population, the
decomposition of which kills animal life by depriving it of oxygen.
Genetic ecology is the extension of our modern knowledge in molecular
genetics to studies of viability, gene expression and gene movements in natural
environments like soils, aquifers and digestive tracts.
Systems ecology is an interdisciplinary field of ecology, a subset of
Earth system science, that takes a holistic approach to the study of ecological
systems, especially ecosystems.
Landscape ecology is the study of spatial variation in landscapes at a variety of
scales. It includes the biophysical and societal causes and consequences
of landscape heterogeneity.
Biodiversity - the variety of life in the world or in a particular habitat or ecosystem.
Photosynthesis - the process by which green plants and some other organisms
use sunlight to synthesize foods from carbon dioxide and water. Photosynthesis in
plants generally involves the green pigment chlorophyll and generates oxygen as a
byproduct.
Chemosynthesis - the synthesis of organic compounds by bacteria or other living
organisms using energy derived from reactions involving inorganic chemicals,
typically in the absence of sunlight.

Fungi/Fungus - any of a group of unicellular, multicellular, or syncytial sporeproducing organisms feeding on organic matter, including molds, yeast,
mushrooms, and toadstools.
Environment - the surroundings or conditions in which a person, animal, or plant
lives or operates.

B. Discussion

Photosynthesis is the process by which plants, some bacteria and some

protistans use the energy from sunlight to produce glucose from carbon dioxide
and water. This glucose can be converted into pyruvate which releases adenosine
triphosphate (ATP) by cellular respiration. Oxygen is also formed.

Hydrologic Cycle

The hydrologic cycle begins with the evaporation of water from the surface of
the ocean. As moist air is lifted, it cools and water vapor condenses to form
clouds. Moisture is transported around the globe until it returns to the surface as
precipitation.
The overall process of the hydrologic cycle can be divided into five parts:
condensation, precipitation, infiltration, runoff, and evaporation. Water vapor in
the atmosphere condenses, forming clouds, which eventually become so
saturated that they release the water to the solid earth in the form of
precipitation.

Carbon Cycle

The carbon cycle is the circulation and transformation of carbon back and forth
between living things and the environment.
1.
2.
3.

4.

Steps
Carbon enters the atmosphere as carbon dioxide from respiration and
combustion.
Carbon dioxide is absorbed by producers to make carbohydrates in
photosynthesis.
Animals feed on the plant passing the carbon compounds along the food
chain. Most of the carbon they consume is exhaled as carbon dioxideformed
during respiration. The animals and plants eventually die.
The dead organisms are eaten by decomposers and the carbon in their
bodies is returned to the atmosphere as carbon dioxide. In some conditions
decomposition is blocked. The plant and animal material may then be available
as fossil fuel in the future for combustion.

Biogeochemical Cycle

The most important biogeochemical cycles are the carbon cycle, nitrogen cycle,
oxygen cycle, phosphorus cycle, and the water cycle. The biogeochemical cycles
always have a state of equilibrium. The state of equilibrium occurs when there is a
balance in the cycling of the elements between compartments.
The term "biogeochemical" tells us that biological, geological and chemical
factors are all involved. The circulation of chemical nutrients like carbon, oxygen,
nitrogen, phosphorus, calcium, and water etc. through the biological and physical
world are known as biogeochemical cycles. In effect, the element is recycled,
although in some cycles there may be places (called reservoirs) where the element
is accumulated or held for a long period of time (such as an ocean or lake for
water).
Biogeochemical cycles is the chemical interactions that exist between the
atmosphere, hydrosphere, lithosphere, and biosphere.

National University
Sampaloc, Manila
College of Engineering
Bachelor of Science in Environmental and Sanitary Engineering

SE 518/161- ECOLOGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL

Homework No. 2

MATIAS, CHRISTIAN DON S.

Student
July 16, 2016

DR. EUGENIA L. LAGMAY

NU SE Professional Lecturer 4