EES 1080 Lecture Notes - Lecture 15: Endocrine Disruptor, Ecosystem Diversity, Lead Poisoning
Document Summary
Determined by 4 factors: births (within the population, deaths (within the population, immigration (individuals arriving from outside the population, emigration (individuals departing from the population) Agricultural revolution and medicine were 2 factors in causing the population spike in growth in the human population. Tfr: average number of children born per female during her lifetime. For humans, a tfr of ~2. 1 keeps the population stable (replacement fertility) Toxic agents are called toxicants: carcinogens- cancer causing, mutagens- cause mutations of dna, teratogens- affect development of human embryos, allergens- affect the immune system, neurotoxins- affect the nervous system, endocrine disruptors- interfere with the endocrine system. Lead poisoning- lead in air (very little of it now- used to be led in gasoline but this is now banned), water, around homes. Food webs can be plagued by the process of bioaccumulation and biomagnification. Lead in the environment that plagues eagles: shotgun shells and bullets. Invasive species: habitat alteration, pollution, overharvesting, climate change.