Ecosystem dynamics involve two main processes: energy flow and chemical cycling.Energy enters most ecosystems as sunlight, is converted to chemical energy by autotrophs, passed to heterotrophs as food, and dissipated as heat.
Ecology is the scientific study of the interactions between organisms and the environment. These interactions determine both the distribution of organisms and their abundance.
Two major hypothesis for life on Earth. Panspermia: Life from extraterrestrial life. Abiogenesis: Life from non-life. Requires 4 major milestones to occur.
Variants that are well adapted to one environment may not be well adapted to another environment.
Extinction is the loss of a group of organisms, such as a species. Levels of biodiversity are determined by rates of speciation and rates of extinction.
Speciation, the origin of new species, is at the focal point of Darwin’s evolutionary theory. Evolutionary theory must explain how new species originate and how populations evolve.
Phylogeny is the evolutionary history of a species or group of related species. The discipline of systematics classifies organisms and determines their evolutionary relationships.
Evolution has led to new, rapidly spreading diseases, called emerging diseases.
Biogeography provides information about the evolutionary history of organisms, specifically where they originated and how they were able to disperse.
When certain conditions are met, allele and genotype frequencies do not change, a state called the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium. “Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium”: Refers to an idealized, non-evolving population.
