01:119:115 Lecture Notes - Lecture 26: Detritivore, Nitrogen Fixation, Nissan L Engine
13 Mar 2016
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Document Summary
Energy flows through ecosystems, while matter cycles w/i ecosystems: energy flow. Law of thermodynamics: energy cannot be created nor destroyed, only transformed, every exchange of energy increases the entropy of the universe (some is always lost, matter. Law of conservation of mass: matter cannot be created nor destroyed: biogeochemical cycles- chemical elements are continually recycled w/i b. ecosystems, must be recycled. In a forest ecosystem, most nutrients enter as dust/ solutes in rain & are carried away in water. Consumers that derive their e from detritus break down organic molecules & release simple inorganics (co2) Decomposition connects all trophic levels: trophic levels, primary producers- autotrophs, consumers- obtain energy from plants/animals, omnivores- eat both plants & animals, detrivores- decomposers. Primary production amount of light e converted to chemical e by autotrophs: gross and net production. Gross primary production (gpp)- total primary production: gpp is measured as the conversion of chemical e from photosynthesis per unit time.
