REM 100: Final Exam Study Guide
1) Examining Climate Change
Weather versus climate
a. Weather is the current state of the atmosphere whereas climate is the statistical
description of the weather at a location over longer periods of time
Greenhouse effect
a. Due to natural greenhouse gases found in the atmosphere
b. Ex: average surface temp without atmosphere = -18 C
c. Ex: average surface temp with atmosphere = +15 C
d. Ex: Natural greenhouse effect = +33 C
Natural versus anthropogenic climate forcing
a. Natural climate forcing
i. Ex: variation in Earth’s orbit
b. Anthropogenic climate forcing
i. Leaves trace gases
ii. Infrared radiation
2) Introduction to global environment
System: closed system (e.g., Earth) versus open system (e.g., individual spheres)
a. Closed system
i. Energy is exchanged with the outside environment, while matter is not
b. Open system
i. Both energy and matter are exchanged with the outside environment
Cycle (ex., hydrological cycle, carbon cycle)
a. Hydrological cycles
i. Reservoirs
1. Oceans, groundwater, ice, atmosphere
ii. Fluxes
1. Evaporation, precipitation, runoff
iii. Energy sources
1. Solar, gravity
Steady state ENERGY
a. Also known as equilibrium or cyclical
Reservoir B
FLUX 1
FLUX 2
Reservoir A Reservoir C
, Perturbation and system response
FLUX 3
a. Examples of perturbations
i. Landslide into a creek
ii. Changes of the earth’s orbit around the sun
iii. Pollution of environment
iv. Changes to CO2 concentration
v. Development of agriculture
vi. Changes in economic system
Positive and negative feedbacks
a. Negative feedback loop
i. Process that occurs in a feedback loop in which the response to a small
disturbance on a system includes a decrease in the magnitude of the
perturbation
b. Positive feedback loop
i. Ex: Low arctic sea ice extent
ii. Process that once started must complete itself.
iii. There is no stopping the process once it has begun
Linear versus non-linear response (e.g., episodic, catastrophic, exponential)
a. Linear response
i. Magnitude of the response is proportionate to the perturbation
b. Non-linear response
i. Magnitude of the response is not proportionate to the perturbation
Interactions
a. An event that causes changes to occur in one or more of the Earth’s four
spheres
b. An event that is the effect of changes in one or more of the Earth’s four
spheres
Scales of system response (space and time)
a. Spatial scales
i. Large spatial scales
1. Climate change, ice ages…
ii. Small spatial scales
1. Construction of a dam
iii. Across spatial scales
1. El Nino
b. Temporal scales
i. Long-time scales
1. Ice ages, evolution, ocean circulation
ii. Short time scales
1. Volcanic eruption, seasonal changes
iii. Across time scales
1. CO2 emitted today will stay in atmosphere & affect climate
system for about 100 years
, 3) Natural resources & environmental resource management
Definition of natural resources:
a. A source or supply that occurs in nature without human action and can be
used for the benefit of human society
Stage of development: potential, actual, reserve, stock
a. Actual:
i. Surveyed and currently exploited
b. Reserve:
i. Surveyed and can be exploited in the future
Renewability
a. Non-renewable
i. Forms slowly or does not form naturally
ii. Rate of production is much slower than the rate at which the resource is
consumed
iii. Ex: Fossil fuels, metals
b. Renewable
i. Forms equally fast or faster than they are used
ii. Ex: Soil, water, ecosystems
Exhaustibility
a. Exhaustible
i. Finite
ii. Can deplete if not properly managed
iii. Ex: non-renewables, most renewables
b. Inexhaustible
i. Unaffected by human use
ii. Will not run out in foreseeable future
iii. Ex: Solar radiation, geothermal energy, air
Resource Reserves
a. Available time = Quantity of Reserve / Production Rate
Components of resource cycle
a. Extraction/Harvest
b. Concentration/Purification
c. Production of goods
d. Consumption of goods
e. End of usefulness
f. Reuse/recycle
g. Waste disposal
h. Waste assimilation into environment
1) Examining Climate Change
Weather versus climate
a. Weather is the current state of the atmosphere whereas climate is the statistical
description of the weather at a location over longer periods of time
Greenhouse effect
a. Due to natural greenhouse gases found in the atmosphere
b. Ex: average surface temp without atmosphere = -18 C
c. Ex: average surface temp with atmosphere = +15 C
d. Ex: Natural greenhouse effect = +33 C
Natural versus anthropogenic climate forcing
a. Natural climate forcing
i. Ex: variation in Earth’s orbit
b. Anthropogenic climate forcing
i. Leaves trace gases
ii. Infrared radiation
2) Introduction to global environment
System: closed system (e.g., Earth) versus open system (e.g., individual spheres)
a. Closed system
i. Energy is exchanged with the outside environment, while matter is not
b. Open system
i. Both energy and matter are exchanged with the outside environment
Cycle (ex., hydrological cycle, carbon cycle)
a. Hydrological cycles
i. Reservoirs
1. Oceans, groundwater, ice, atmosphere
ii. Fluxes
1. Evaporation, precipitation, runoff
iii. Energy sources
1. Solar, gravity
Steady state ENERGY
a. Also known as equilibrium or cyclical
Reservoir B
FLUX 1
FLUX 2
Reservoir A Reservoir C
, Perturbation and system response
FLUX 3
a. Examples of perturbations
i. Landslide into a creek
ii. Changes of the earth’s orbit around the sun
iii. Pollution of environment
iv. Changes to CO2 concentration
v. Development of agriculture
vi. Changes in economic system
Positive and negative feedbacks
a. Negative feedback loop
i. Process that occurs in a feedback loop in which the response to a small
disturbance on a system includes a decrease in the magnitude of the
perturbation
b. Positive feedback loop
i. Ex: Low arctic sea ice extent
ii. Process that once started must complete itself.
iii. There is no stopping the process once it has begun
Linear versus non-linear response (e.g., episodic, catastrophic, exponential)
a. Linear response
i. Magnitude of the response is proportionate to the perturbation
b. Non-linear response
i. Magnitude of the response is not proportionate to the perturbation
Interactions
a. An event that causes changes to occur in one or more of the Earth’s four
spheres
b. An event that is the effect of changes in one or more of the Earth’s four
spheres
Scales of system response (space and time)
a. Spatial scales
i. Large spatial scales
1. Climate change, ice ages…
ii. Small spatial scales
1. Construction of a dam
iii. Across spatial scales
1. El Nino
b. Temporal scales
i. Long-time scales
1. Ice ages, evolution, ocean circulation
ii. Short time scales
1. Volcanic eruption, seasonal changes
iii. Across time scales
1. CO2 emitted today will stay in atmosphere & affect climate
system for about 100 years
, 3) Natural resources & environmental resource management
Definition of natural resources:
a. A source or supply that occurs in nature without human action and can be
used for the benefit of human society
Stage of development: potential, actual, reserve, stock
a. Actual:
i. Surveyed and currently exploited
b. Reserve:
i. Surveyed and can be exploited in the future
Renewability
a. Non-renewable
i. Forms slowly or does not form naturally
ii. Rate of production is much slower than the rate at which the resource is
consumed
iii. Ex: Fossil fuels, metals
b. Renewable
i. Forms equally fast or faster than they are used
ii. Ex: Soil, water, ecosystems
Exhaustibility
a. Exhaustible
i. Finite
ii. Can deplete if not properly managed
iii. Ex: non-renewables, most renewables
b. Inexhaustible
i. Unaffected by human use
ii. Will not run out in foreseeable future
iii. Ex: Solar radiation, geothermal energy, air
Resource Reserves
a. Available time = Quantity of Reserve / Production Rate
Components of resource cycle
a. Extraction/Harvest
b. Concentration/Purification
c. Production of goods
d. Consumption of goods
e. End of usefulness
f. Reuse/recycle
g. Waste disposal
h. Waste assimilation into environment
