Task

Research 1 example each of a local ecosystem, a biome and the Gaia hypothesis. Include relevant diagrams or pictures to describe how these are systems. Identify where you can the inputs, outputs, storages, processes and feedback mechanisms. In completing this task you will be demonstrating your understanding of the systems approach.

Do you get it?

Mangrove ecosystems are an example of a system
Snails, crabs, worms etc (consumers)

Mangroves (producers)

Inorganic nutrient pool in soil Bacteria, worms, fungi etc (decomposers)

Fish, reptiles, birds etc (consumers)

Do you get it?

Tropical rainforests (Biome) are an example of a system:
Insects, birds, small mammals, small reptiles (primary consumers)

Tropical vegetation (producers)

Inorganic nutrient pool in soil Bacteria, worms, fungi etc (decomposers)

Fish, reptiles, birds, mammals etc (consumers)

Did you get it?

Gaia how does our Earth represent a system? A system is a group of interacting, interrelated, or interdependent elements forming a complex whole. Our Earth is comprised of both living and non-living factors that interact and affect each other. This system is comprised of smaller systems that interact. These smaller systems include ecosystems and biomes, the water cycle and other nutrient cycles, the rock cycle. Matter is cycled and energy flows through the system. The original energy sources are the sun, radioactive sources, gravitational potential energy and internal energy generated within the Earth itself.

Gaia

The three main components of the Earth are the atmosphere, its gaseous envelope, the hydrosphere, the surface coating of water, and of course, the solid earth. All three are subdivided into subsystems. The atmosphere and hydrosphere get their energy mostly from the Sun, and the solid earth gets its energy from internal heat, some of which is produced by radioactive decay and some is left over from the formation of the earth. A tiny amount of energy also comes from gravitational interactions between the Earth, the Moon, and the Sun.

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The atmosphere is driven by unequal solar heating: unequal heating of land and water, unequal heating between day and night, and unequal seasonal heating. The hydrosphere is partly driven by winds, which drive ocean currents, but the hydrosphere is also the earth's principal heat storage system. Evaporation of water from the hydrosphere, its transport by the atmosphere, its eventual condensation as rain or snow, and its eventual return to the oceans make up the hydrologic cycle.

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The earth's internal heat causes hot material to rise and cool material to sink in the earth's interior, and this movement causes large slabs of the outer rigid crust of the earth to move around.

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The hydrologic cycle modifies the surface of the earth. Water breaks rocks down chemically and mechanically, a process called weathering. Water flowing on the surface carries loose material with it, a process called erosion.

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Plate tectonics drives geologic processes like mountain building, earthquakes, and volcanism. It also contributes to heating and melting of rocks.

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Crustal movements uplift or lower the crust. Meanwhile weathering and erosion wear down mountains and transport the debris to lower areas. Between the two sets of processes, the earth's landscapes are created - and destroyed. Today's landscape is the modified remains of yesterday's landscapes, and landscapes of millions of years ago are lost beyond recovery.

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The destruction of rocks by surface processes and their modification by subterranean heat and pressure results in a constant recycling of rocks called the rock cycle. Igneous rocks, the result of melting, are eventually exposed on the surface by uplift and erosion. They are broken down by weathering, and the debris transported and deposited to make sedimentary rocks. These in turn can be buried, changed by heat and pressure, and become metamorphic rocks. Some can even be heated to the point of melting and creating a new generation of igneous rocks.

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Finally, extraterrestrial disturbances can disrupt earth systems. Large impacts create dramatic geologic effects near the impact, but also can cause global climatic and environmental effects. If a star within a few light years of the earth were to go supernova, the radiation effects on earth's life could be dramatic. Close approaches of other stars to the Sun can cause distant comets to drop into the inner solar system, possibly increasing the risk of impacts on Earth.