Environmental science, technology (p.8)

1. There are four traditional "spheres" of the environment: the hydrosphere (water), the atmosphere (air), the geosphere (earth) and the biosphere (life).And there is a fifth sphere which is called the anthrosphere.It deals with human activities and technology.All five environmental spheres are investigated by environmental science.The atmosphere is the thin layer of gases that covers Earth's surface.The hydrosphere contains Earth's water.Over 97% of the Earth's water is in oceans, and most of the fresh water is in the form of ice.The geosphere consists of solid earth including soil.All living entities on Earth compose the biosphere.The societies must learn to live in harmony with the environment and with technology.

Ecology (p.13)

1. Ecology deals with the relationships between living organisms with their physical environment and with each other.The environment in which a particular organisms lives is called its habitat.The environment is divided into four broad categories.The terrestrial environment is based on land and consists of biomes.The freshwater environment is subdivided between standing-water habitats (lakes, reservoirs) and running water-habitats (streams, rivers)The oceanic marine environment is characterized by saltwater.It may be divided into the shallow waters of the continental shelf and the deeper waters of the ocean.An environment in which two or more kinds of organisms exist together to their mutual benefit is called as a symbiotic environment.There are two major subdivisions of modem ecology: an ecosystem ecology and population ecology.

Anthrospheric ecosystems (p.19)

1. The biosphere where life exists includes soil, atmosphere and varies bodies of water.Living organisms are constituted of one or billions of cells.All living organisms process matter and energy through metabolic processes.The ability of an organism to process matter and energy is called metabolism.A dynamic balance between living and their surrounding is called homeostasis.A natural ecosystem is a self-organizing self-balancing system.The driving force of natural ecosystem is solar energy.Organisms in an ecosystem utilize the by-products and waste products of other organisms.

In anthropogenic system humans, their industries and infrastructures are integrated into an industrial or anthrospheric ecosystem.Anthrospheric ecosystems are driven by either an energy source or sources in the forms of fossil fuels and fissionable uranium.

Distribution of water: the hydrologic cycle (p.31)

2. The quality and quantity of water have been vital factors in humans' well-being.The world's water supply is found in the five parts of the hydrologic cycle.The total amount of water on Earth is 1,4 billion cubic kilometers.Most of the water is present as salt water in the oceans.Oceans serve as the source of the most water vapor in the hydrologic cycle.About 87% is contained in the solid state as ice, snowpacks, glaciers, and the polar snow caps.And another 12% is located in aquifers underground as ground water.Just slightly over 1% of all Earth's fresh water is distributed among surface water, atmospheric water, and biospheric water.Surface water includes water in lakes, ponds, rivers and streams.Atmospheric water is of utmost importance in the movement of water from oceans in the hydrologic cycle.