Summary

Environmental science is coming into its own as a popular and important field of research while it maintains close links to fields such as biology, Earth science, weather science, and others. The Facts On File Dictionary of Ecology and the Environment covers the terms and concepts that are used in the high school AP course in environmental science.

Like the subject—which is interdisciplinary and involves ideas from a number of fields of study—this volume deals with the science behind interrelationships of the natural world as well as with natural and human environmental problems. In terms high school and undergraduate students will understand, it explains the underlying principle of environmental science—which holds that the earth is a single interconnected system that can be altered by human activity and that cultural, social, and economic factors are vital to the development of environmental solutions. The dictionary defines more than 2,000 terms, issues, and ideas that constitute the fundamental elements of the science. Appendixes include classification of plants and animals and a list of websites.

Coverage includes:

• Acid rain
• Biodiversity
• Carbon sink
• Deforestation
• Endangered species
• Food web
• Industrial melanism
• Kyoto Protocol
• Montreal Protocol
• Nuclear energy
• Pyramid of biomass
• Smog
• Terrestrial ecosystems
• Waste disposal
• and more.

Specifications

eBook