Unit 2: The Living World and Biodiversity

General Outline

The Living World centers around the organisms than inhabit the Earth. In this unit we will study a variety of different topics regarding how living things interact with themselves and their environment. This unit draws heavily from biology, especially ecological and evolutionary concepts.

Energy and Matter Concepts

Ecosystems
Photosynthesis and Cellular Respiration
Environmental Niches
Food Webs and Trophic Levels
Gross and Net Primary Productivity
Biogeochemical Cycles

Ecological Concepts

Ecological Disturbances
Resilience and Resistance
Intermediate Disturbance Hypothesis
Terrestrial Biomes
Aquatic Biomes
Species Richness and Evenness

Evolution Major Concepts

Macro vs. Microevolution
Reproductive vs. Geographic Isolation
Gene Flow
Speciation
Founder Effect vs. Bottleneck Effect
Genetically Modified Organisms

Chapter 3

Module 6: The Movement of Energy

Module 7: The Movement of Matter

Module 8: Response to Disturbance

Chapter 4

Module 9: The Unequal Heating of Earth

Module 10: Air Currents

Module 11: Ocean Currents

Module 12: Terrestrial Biomes

Module 13: Aquatic Biomes

Chapter 5

Module 14: The Biodiversity of Earth

Module 15: How Evolution Creates Biodiversity

Module 16: Speciation and the Pace of Evolution

Module 17: Evolution of Niches and Species Distribution

Chapter 18

Module 59: The Sixth Mass Extinction

Module 60: Causes of Declining Biodiversity

Module 61: The Conservation of Biodiversity

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