Nutrient Cycles -Academic

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• Nutrient Cycles -Academic
• Water Cycle (pg.)
• 1. The movement of water between the oceans,
  atmosphere, land and living things is the water
  cycle.
• 2. Evaporation is the process by which molecules
  of liquid water (vapor) absorb heat energy and
  change to a gas.
• 3. Liquid water evaporates from oceans, lakes
  and other wet surfaces on the Earth.
• The energy for evaporation comes from the heat of
  the sun.
• Transpiration is the process of plants releasing
  water vapor from their leaves.
• Condensation is the process by which a gas
  changes to a liquid. (water vapor cools as it
  rises)

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• 7. Precipitation is water that falls from the
  atmosphere to the land and oceans. Examples are
  rain, snow, sleet or hail.
• Runoff is precipitation that falls on land and
  flows into streams and rivers.
• 9. Groundwater is precipitation that seeps into
  the ground and is stored underground in spaces
  between or within rocks.
• 10. Most precipitation falls back into oceans
  and lakes. Some may fall on land and either
  soak into the soil to become ground water or run
  off into rivers and oceans.

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Oxygen Carbon Cycles (pg.) 1. Carbon is an
important building block in the bodies of
organisms. All living things are made of carbon!
Carbon is found in sugars which store the
chemical energy organisms need to live. 2. 20
of our atmosphere is oxygen. 3. Carbon can be
found in living things, the atmosphere (as
CO2), in water, rocks soils and fossil
fuels. 4. Producers release oxygen gas as
product of photosynthesis. 5. Combustion is the
burning of materials such as wood and fossil
fuels. 6. Human activity (like burning) releases
carbon dioxide, water, heat and other materials
into the environment. It may also produce
pollution.
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1. Producers take in carbon dioxide from the air
   (making it cleaner)and release oxygen back into
   the air for other organisms to use (for
   breathing!)

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• Nitrogen Cycle
• Organisms need Nitrogen to build proteins and DNA
  for new cells.
• 2. 78 of our atmosphere is Nitrogen gas (free
  Nitrogen) Nitrogen that is not combined with
  other elements is Free nitrogen.
• 3. Most organisms cant use free N.
• Nitrogen fixation is the process of changing free
  Nitrogen into a useable form.
• Most free nitrogen is fixed by certain kinds of
  bacteria in the soil. The Nitrogen is then used
  by plants.
• 6. Some nitrogen fixing bacteria live in the
  soil, some in the water, while others grow on
  special structures (nodule) on the roots of
  legumes. These plants include beans, clover,
  alfalfa, peas and peanuts)

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• 7. Consumers get the nitrogen they need by
  eating plants or other organisms.
• Decomposition releases a form of Nitrogen into
  the soil that plants can use.
• Certain bacteria in the soil convert (change)
  Nitrogen back to a gas which is returned to the
  atmosphere.
• Nitrogen gas is converted into useable Nitrogen
  by bacteria and lightning. Plants take in the
  useable nitrogen. Consumers get the nitrogen
  they need from the organisms they eat.