Title: Climate And Ecology — LearnCoachAssist

Q: What is environmental science?
A: An interdisciplinary field studying the interactions between humans and the natural environment.

Q: What is ecology?
A: The study of relationships among organisms and between organisms and their environment.

Q: What is an ecosystem?
A: A community of living organisms together with their physical environment.

Q: What is biodiversity?
A: The variety of life at all levels — genetic, species, and ecosystem.

Q: What are the three levels of biodiversity?
A: Genetic, species, and ecosystem diversity.

Q: What is a species?
A: A group of organisms that can interbreed and produce fertile offspring.

Q: What is a population?
A: Members of one species living in a defined area at the same time.

Q: What is a community (ecology)?
A: All populations of different species living together in an area.

Q: What is a habitat?
A: The physical environment where an organism lives.

Q: What is a niche?
A: An organism's role within its ecosystem.

Q: What is a producer?
A: An organism that produces its own food via photosynthesis or chemosynthesis.

Q: What is a consumer?
A: An organism that obtains energy by eating others.

Q: What is a decomposer?
A: An organism that breaks down dead matter, recycling nutrients.

Q: What is a food chain?
A: A linear sequence of organisms each feeding on the previous.

Q: What is a food web?
A: A network of interconnected food chains in an ecosystem.

Q: What is a trophic level?
A: A position in a food chain (producers, primary consumers, etc.).

Q: What is the 10% rule (energy transfer)?
A: Only about 10% of energy passes between trophic levels; the rest is lost as heat.

Q: What is photosynthesis?
A: The process plants use to convert sunlight, CO₂, and water into glucose and oxygen.

Q: What is cellular respiration?
A: The process by which organisms convert glucose and oxygen into energy, CO₂, and water.

Q: What is the carbon cycle?
A: The movement of carbon through atmosphere, oceans, soil, and organisms.

Q: What is the nitrogen cycle?
A: The movement of nitrogen through atmosphere, soil, organisms, and back.

Q: What is the water cycle?
A: The continuous movement of water through evaporation, condensation, precipitation.

Q: What is the phosphorus cycle?
A: The movement of phosphorus through rocks, soil, water, and organisms.

Q: What is greenhouse effect?
A: The warming of Earth's surface by gases trapping heat in the atmosphere.

Q: What are the main greenhouse gases?
A: CO₂, methane (CH₄), nitrous oxide (N₂O), water vapor, fluorinated gases.

Q: What is the global warming potential (GWP)?
A: A measure of how much heat a gas traps relative to CO₂ over time.

Q: What is the GWP of methane vs CO₂?
A: Methane has ~28-36× CO₂ over 100 years.

Q: What is anthropogenic climate change?
A: Climate change caused by human activities, primarily fossil fuel burning.

Q: What is the Paris Agreement?
A: The 2015 treaty aiming to limit warming to well below 2°C, ideally 1.5°C.

Q: What is the IPCC?
A: Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change — the UN body assessing climate science.

Q: What is COP?
A: Conference of the Parties — annual UN climate meetings.

Q: What is mitigation (climate)?
A: Actions to reduce or prevent greenhouse gas emissions.

Q: What is adaptation (climate)?
A: Adjusting to actual or expected climate effects.

Q: What is net zero?
A: Balancing emissions produced with those removed from the atmosphere.

Q: What is carbon neutrality?
A: Achieving net-zero CO₂ emissions, often via offsets.

Q: What is climate sensitivity?
A: How much temperature rises per doubling of CO₂.

Q: What is the difference between weather and climate?
A: Weather is short-term; climate is long-term averages and patterns.

Q: What is the urban heat island effect?
A: Cities being hotter than surrounding rural areas due to materials and activity.

Q: What is ocean acidification?
A: Decreasing ocean pH from absorbing atmospheric CO₂.

Q: What are coral reefs threatened by?
A: Warming, acidification, pollution, overfishing.

Q: What is coral bleaching?
A: When stressed corals expel symbiotic algae, often dying.

Q: What is the cryosphere?
A: Frozen water on Earth: glaciers, sea ice, permafrost, snow.

Q: What is permafrost?
A: Ground frozen for two or more consecutive years.

Q: What is permafrost thaw concern?
A: Releases stored methane and CO₂, accelerating warming.

Q: What is sea level rise?
A: Long-term rise in oceans due to thermal expansion and melting ice.

Q: What is thermohaline circulation?
A: Ocean circulation driven by temperature and salinity, including the Gulf Stream.

Q: What is El Niño?
A: Periodic warming of the central/eastern Pacific affecting global weather.

Q: What is La Niña?
A: The cooling counterpart of El Niño with opposite weather effects.

Q: What is desertification?
A: Land degradation in arid areas, often human-driven.

Q: What is deforestation?
A: The removal of forests, primarily for agriculture and timber.

Q: What are tropical rainforests important for?
A: Biodiversity, carbon storage, oxygen, climate regulation.

Q: What is the Amazon's role?
A: The largest rainforest, critical carbon sink and biodiversity hotspot.

Q: What is reforestation?
A: Replanting trees in deforested areas.

Q: What is afforestation?
A: Planting forests where there were none before.

Q: What is the difference between reforestation and afforestation?
A: Reforestation restores; afforestation creates new forest.

Q: What is the carbon sink?
A: A reservoir absorbing more carbon than it releases.

Q: What are major carbon sinks?
A: Oceans, forests, soil.

Q: What is land-use change?
A: Conversion of land for different purposes, often emitting carbon.

Q: What is sustainable agriculture?
A: Farming meeting present needs without compromising future capacity.

Q: What is regenerative agriculture?
A: Farming that restores soil health and biodiversity.

Q: What is monoculture?
A: Growing a single crop over large areas; reduces biodiversity.

Q: What is crop rotation?
A: Alternating crops to maintain soil health and reduce pests.

Q: What is no-till farming?
A: Growing crops without disturbing soil; reduces erosion and emissions.

Q: What is cover cropping?
A: Growing crops between main crops to protect soil.

Q: What is agroforestry?
A: Integrating trees with crops or livestock.

Q: What is the difference between organic and conventional farming?
A: Organic restricts synthetic inputs; conventional uses them.

Q: What is soil erosion?
A: The removal of soil by wind or water, often accelerated by agriculture.

Q: What is topsoil?
A: The uppermost, most fertile layer of soil.

Q: What is soil degradation?
A: Decline in soil quality and productivity.

Q: What is salinization?
A: Accumulation of salts in soil, harming productivity.

Q: What is eutrophication?
A: Excess nutrients (often from fertilizers) causing algal blooms and oxygen depletion.

Q: What is a dead zone (ocean)?
A: Low-oxygen areas where most marine life can't survive.

Q: What causes dead zones?
A: Eutrophication from runoff, especially fertilizers and sewage.

Q: What is the Great Pacific Garbage Patch?
A: A concentration of marine plastic debris in the North Pacific.

Q: What is microplastic?
A: Plastic fragments smaller than 5mm; widespread in environment and food chains.

Q: What is bioaccumulation?
A: Build-up of substances in organisms over time.

Q: What is biomagnification?
A: Increasing concentration of a substance up the food chain.

Q: What is mercury bioaccumulation example?
A: Concentrates in top predators like tuna and swordfish.

Q: What is acid rain?
A: Rain with high acidity from atmospheric pollutants like SO₂ and NOₓ.

Q: What is the ozone layer?
A: A stratospheric layer of O₃ that absorbs UV radiation.

Q: What caused the ozone hole?
A: Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) released into the atmosphere.

Q: What is the Montreal Protocol?
A: The 1987 treaty phasing out ozone-depleting substances; successful.

Q: What is photochemical smog?
A: Air pollution from sunlight reacting with vehicle emissions.

Q: What is particulate matter (PM)?
A: Tiny particles in air; PM2.5 and PM10 are health threats.

Q: What is the WHO air quality guideline?
A: Specific limits for pollutants like PM2.5 to protect health.

Q: What is the difference between weather pollution and air quality?
A: Weather influences pollution dispersion; quality measures pollutant levels.

Q: What are renewable energy sources?
A: Solar, wind, hydro, geothermal, biomass — naturally replenished.

Q: What are non-renewable energy sources?
A: Coal, oil, natural gas, uranium — finite.

Q: What is solar PV?
A: Photovoltaic technology converting sunlight directly to electricity.

Q: What is solar thermal?
A: Using sunlight to heat water or other fluids.

Q: What is wind power?
A: Generating electricity from wind via turbines.

Q: What is offshore wind?
A: Wind farms at sea, typically stronger and more consistent winds.

Q: What is hydropower?
A: Electricity from moving water, mainly dams.

Q: What is pumped-storage hydropower?
A: Using surplus energy to pump water uphill for later release.

Q: What is geothermal energy?
A: Heat from Earth's interior used for power and heating.

Q: What is biomass energy?
A: Energy from organic materials like wood and crop waste.

Q: What is biofuel?
A: Liquid fuel from plant material (ethanol, biodiesel).

Q: What is the difference between biofuel and fossil fuel?
A: Biofuel's carbon was recently in the atmosphere; fossil carbon was stored for millions of years.

Q: What is nuclear power?
A: Electricity from nuclear fission, low-carbon but with waste challenges.

Q: What is nuclear fusion?
A: Energy from combining light nuclei; not yet commercial.

Q: What is the energy transition?
A: The global shift from fossil fuels to low-carbon sources.

Q: What is grid storage?
A: Batteries and other systems storing energy for later use.

Q: What is a smart grid?
A: An electricity network using digital communication for efficiency.

Q: What is energy efficiency?
A: Doing more with less energy through better technology and design.

Q: What is the rebound effect (energy)?
A: Efficiency gains partly offset by increased usage.

Q: What is the circular economy?
A: An economic system designed to eliminate waste through reuse, repair, recycling.

Q: What is the linear economy?
A: "Take-make-dispose" model causing resource depletion and waste.

Q: What is recycling?
A: Processing used materials into new products.

Q: What is composting?
A: Decomposing organic matter into soil amendment.

Q: What is biodegradable?
A: Material that breaks down naturally by microorganisms.

Q: What is compostable?
A: Material that breaks down in composting conditions into nutrient-rich soil.

Q: What is e-waste?
A: Discarded electronic devices, a growing concern.

Q: What is extended producer responsibility?
A: Making producers responsible for products through end-of-life.

Q: What is greenwashing?
A: Misleading claims about environmental practices or products.

Q: What is life cycle assessment (LCA)?
A: Evaluating environmental impacts across a product's life.

Q: What is carbon footprint?
A: Total greenhouse gases emitted by an activity or entity.

Q: What is a personal carbon footprint?
A: Average ranges from ~4 tons in low-income to ~16+ tons in US per year.

Q: What is the largest source of personal emissions for many?
A: Transportation, food, home energy, consumption.

Q: What is the impact of red meat?
A: Higher emissions than most other foods, especially beef.

Q: What is the role of food waste?
A: Roughly one-third of food is wasted; major emissions source.

Q: What is plant-based eating's climate role?
A: Generally lower emissions than meat-heavy diets.

Q: What is land sparing vs sharing?
A: Concentrating agriculture to leave wild areas vs blending agriculture with habitat.

Q: What is rewilding?
A: Restoring ecosystems to wild states with reintroduced species.

Q: What is biodiversity loss?
A: The reduction of variety of life; current rate is "sixth mass extinction."

Q: What are mass extinctions?
A: Periods when many species died out; five major prior events.

Q: What is endangered species?
A: A species at high risk of extinction.

Q: What is the IUCN Red List?
A: The global list categorizing species' extinction risk.

Q: What is a keystone species?
A: A species with disproportionate impact on its ecosystem.

Q: What is the role of wolves at Yellowstone?
A: A famous keystone species example, shaping the ecosystem.

Q: What is an invasive species?
A: A non-native species causing ecological or economic harm.

Q: What is the impact of invasive species?
A: Major driver of biodiversity loss after habitat destruction.

Q: What is habitat fragmentation?
A: Breaking habitats into smaller pieces; harmful to species.

Q: What is a wildlife corridor?
A: A connection between habitats supporting species movement.

Q: What are protected areas?
A: Designated regions managed for conservation.

Q: What is the 30 by 30 goal?
A: Protecting 30% of land and oceans by 2030.

Q: What is conservation biology?
A: Science aimed at protecting biodiversity.

Q: What is ex-situ conservation?
A: Protecting species outside natural habitats (zoos, seed banks).

Q: What is in-situ conservation?
A: Protecting species in their natural habitats.

Q: What is a seed bank?
A: A repository of seeds for biodiversity preservation.

Q: What is Svalbard Global Seed Vault?
A: A secure seed bank in Arctic Norway storing crop diversity.

Q: What is overfishing?
A: Catching fish faster than populations can replenish.

Q: What is bycatch?
A: Unintended catch of non-target species, often discarded.

Q: What is aquaculture?
A: Farming aquatic organisms; rapidly growing food source.

Q: What is sustainable fisheries?
A: Fishing maintaining fish populations and ecosystems long-term.

Q: What is plastic pollution?
A: Plastic waste accumulating in environments, harming wildlife.

Q: What is single-use plastic?
A: Plastic items used once before disposal.

Q: What is the Anthropocene?
A: A proposed geological epoch defined by human impact on Earth systems.

Q: What is planetary boundaries?
A: A framework of nine processes regulating Earth's stability.

Q: What are the 9 planetary boundaries?
A: Climate, biodiversity, biogeochemical flows, ocean acidification, land use, freshwater, ozone, aerosols, novel entities.

Q: What is the "safe operating space" concept?
A: Living within planetary boundaries to maintain stability.

Q: What is the "tragedy of the commons"?
A: Shared resources overused when individuals act in self-interest.

Q: What is environmental justice?
A: Equitable distribution of environmental benefits and burdens.

Q: What is climate justice?
A: Addressing climate change's unequal impact on vulnerable populations.

Q: What is a just transition?
A: Shifting to a green economy while protecting affected workers and communities.

Q: What is ecosystem services?
A: Benefits humans get from nature (pollination, water, climate regulation).

Q: What are the four types of ecosystem services?
A: Provisioning, regulating, cultural, supporting.

Q: What is natural capital?
A: Stocks of natural resources providing ecosystem services.

Q: What is environmental economics?
A: Economic study of environmental issues.

Q: What is a Pigouvian tax?
A: A tax on activities causing negative externalities (e.g., carbon tax).

Q: What is a carbon tax?
A: A fee on greenhouse gas emissions.

Q: What is cap-and-trade?
A: A market system where total emissions are capped and permits traded.

Q: What is the Green New Deal?
A: A proposed program addressing climate change and inequality.

Q: What is ESG?
A: Environmental, Social, and Governance criteria for investing.

Q: What is sustainable development?
A: Meeting present needs without compromising future generations.

Q: What are the SDGs?
A: UN's Sustainable Development Goals — 17 goals adopted in 2015.

Q: What is the precautionary principle?
A: If an action has uncertain harm, restraint should prevail.

Q: What is the polluter pays principle?
A: Those causing pollution should bear the cleanup costs.

Q: What is intergenerational equity?
A: Fairness between current and future generations.

Q: What is the GINI coefficient (environment)?
A: Inequality measure also applied to emissions across populations.

Q: What is climate vulnerability?
A: Susceptibility to climate impacts; often higher in poorer regions.

Q: What is climate refugee?
A: People displaced by climate-related events; growing concern.

Q: What is environmental literacy?
A: Understanding of environmental concepts and ability to act on them.

Q: What is citizen science?
A: Public participation in scientific research and monitoring.

Q: What is the Keeling curve?
A: A graph of atmospheric CO₂ levels measured since 1958.

Q: What is the current CO₂ concentration (~2024)?
A: About 420+ ppm and rising; pre-industrial was ~280 ppm.

Q: What is the global average temperature anomaly?
A: ~1.1-1.4°C above pre-industrial as of recent years.

Q: What is the 1.5°C target?
A: Paris Agreement aspirational limit to avoid worst impacts.

Q: What is climate feedback?
A: Process amplifying or dampening climate change.

Q: What is a positive feedback example?
A: Melting ice exposing dark water, absorbing more heat.

Q: What is a negative feedback example?
A: Increased CO₂ stimulating plant growth that absorbs CO₂.

Q: What is a tipping point?
A: A threshold beyond which change becomes self-sustaining.

Q: What are major climate tipping points?
A: Amazon dieback, ice sheet collapse, AMOC slowdown, permafrost methane release.

Q: What is AMOC?
A: Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation; a major ocean current system.

Q: What is geoengineering?
A: Large-scale intervention in Earth systems to counter climate change.

Q: What is solar radiation management?
A: Geoengineering technique to reflect sunlight away from Earth.

Q: What is carbon dioxide removal (CDR)?
A: Removing CO₂ directly from atmosphere via natural or technological methods.

Q: What is direct air capture (DAC)?
A: Technology to extract CO₂ directly from ambient air.

Q: What is BECCS?
A: Bioenergy with Carbon Capture and Storage.

Q: What is afforestation as CDR?
A: Planting trees to sequester carbon.

Q: What is ocean alkalinity enhancement?
A: Adding alkaline materials to oceans to absorb more CO₂.

Q: What is the "drawdown" concept?
A: The point when greenhouse gas levels start declining.

Q: What is Project Drawdown?
A: A research effort cataloguing climate solutions.

Q: What is climate communication?
A: Effectively conveying climate science to motivate action.

Q: What is climate anxiety?
A: Distress about climate change; increasingly common.

Q: What is environmental policy?
A: Government actions affecting environmental outcomes.

Q: What is the EPA?
A: US Environmental Protection Agency.

Q: What is NEPA?
A: National Environmental Policy Act, requiring EIAs for federal projects.

Q: What is an EIA?
A: Environmental Impact Assessment of a project's effects.

Q: What is the Endangered Species Act?
A: US law protecting threatened and endangered species.

Q: What is CITES?
A: Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species.

Q: What is RAMSAR?
A: Treaty on wetlands of international importance.

Q: What is the Kyoto Protocol?
A: 1997 climate treaty with binding emission targets for developed countries.

Q: What is the difference between Kyoto and Paris?
A: Kyoto had binding targets for developed only; Paris has voluntary contributions from all.

Q: What is loss and damage (climate)?
A: Costs of climate impacts that can't be adapted to.

Q: What is COP28's outcome?
A: First Global Stocktake; agreement to "transition away from fossil fuels."

Q: What is the difference between mitigation and adaptation?
A: Mitigation prevents emissions; adaptation handles unavoidable impacts.

Q: What are NbS (Nature-based Solutions)?
A: Approaches working with nature to address climate, biodiversity, and other challenges.

Q: What is a "Blue Economy"?
A: Sustainable use of ocean resources.

Q: What is green hydrogen?
A: Hydrogen produced via electrolysis using renewable electricity.

Q: What is the role of green hydrogen?
A: Decarbonizing hard-to-electrify sectors like steel and aviation.

Q: What is the most cost-effective climate action for individuals?
A: Voting and civic engagement, dietary shifts, transport choices, energy use.

Q: What is "carbon offset"?
A: Compensating emissions by funding reductions elsewhere; controversial quality.

Q: What is a high-quality offset?
A: Additional, permanent, verifiable, and not double-counted.

Q: What is the importance of biodiversity beyond climate?
A: Food security, medicine, cultural value, ecosystem resilience.

Q: What is "rewilding success" example?
A: Yellowstone wolves; European bison reintroduction.

Q: What is the takeaway of environmental science?
A: Human well-being is inseparable from ecological health; system-level changes are needed.