Name: _________________________________________ School: ____________________________________
DATA TABLES: CARBON CYCLE
Environmental Systems Unit 10 Lesson 3
Lesson 3:
Step 1
Biosphere Gaseous Carbon
To Year
2000
2060
2080
2100
Net Def. Rate
Lesson 3:
Step 2
To Year
Tundra
Melt
Rate
Net
Def.
Rate
1
1
–—
-—
3
6
Soil
Gaseous
Carbon
Atmosphere
Terrestrial Plants
Ocean Water
Ocean
Surface
Deep
Ocean
Fossil Fuels
Oil and
Gas
Coal
Biosphere Gaseous
Carbon
Soil
Terrestrial
Plants
2000
2050
2100
Responses to questions
1. By 2080, how has the terrestrial flora population changed? What is the carbon level in the soil and how does the carbon level
affect the flora populations and species variety? _______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________________________
2. Compare this chart to the first one you made.
1. In 2060, how are soil carbon levels different? In what ways will this difference in soil carbon level manifest itself?
______________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
2.
3.
4.
5.
By 2060, how might the worldwide decomposer populations change? What effects could “business as usual” and the
last rate of deforestation you selected have on human health? _____________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
Have an impact on coastal seaweed populations in 2050? How great an impact? _____________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________________________
Have an impact on atmospheric carbon in 2100 that is similar to another scenario you’ve investigated? What commonalities exist
between these two scenarios? _____________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________________________
What are some viable ways of lessening the effect that increased carbon has on the following?
1. Impact on human life _____________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
2. Destruction of the cycle ___________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
Name: _________________________________________ School: ____________________________________
3.
4.
Global warming _________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
Alteration/destruction of species, biomass _____________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
Notes
DEMOGRAPHICS DATA TABLE
Environmental Systems Unit 10 Lab Lesson 2: Population Momentum
Lesson 2: Step 1
Nigeria
Birth rate
Death rate
Population growth
Default
Prediction
+ 5 years
+15 years
-5 years
Sketch of Nigeria using USA birth and death rates:
Lesson 2: Step 2
Italy
Birth rate
Death rate
Population growth
Prediction
+ 5 years
+15 years
-5 years
Name: _________________________________________ School: ____________________________________
Responses to Questions:
1. How and why does the shape change? _____________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
2. How does an increase or decrease in the average childbearing age group change the population? Why do
"first world" countries tend to have older childbearing women than "third world" countries? __________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
3. Did the pattern of population change match your prediction? If not, why not? Compare the final
population pyramid for Italy to the one you sketched of Nigeria. How do they compare, and why are
they similar or different? _______________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
4. How are Italy's numbers different from Nigeria's? What do you think accounts for the difference? _____
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
5. Many Western European countries are giving monetary incentives to employees who have multiple
children. Why would they do this? How would a baby boom change Italy's demographics? ___________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
Notes:
Name: _________________________________________ School: ____________________________________
DEMOGRAPHICS DATA TABLE
Environmental Systems Unit 10 Lab Lesson 3: Social Impact
Lesson 3: Step 1
Egypt
Birth rate
Death rate
Population Growth
Prediction
Simulated 1
Simulated 2
Simulated 3
0%
0%
Lesson 3: Step 2
Country
Pyramid
Prediction
Pyramid
Simulation
Predicted
Birthrate
Predicted
Death
Rate
Predicted
Population
Growth
Simulated
Birthrate
Simulated
Death Rate
Simulated
Population
Growth
USA
Mexico
Responses to Questions:
1. How close was your prediction to the actual model parameters that gave you a 0% growth rate? What
factors did you use to make your prediction? _______________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
2. What would Egypt have to do in order to reach a zero growth rate? What kinds of challenges might the
Egyptian government face in trying to implement these measures? ______________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
3. How does Egypt's replacement level that would bring it to zero growth compare to that of the United
States and to that of Mexico? What might account for the similarities/differences among the three? ____
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
4. What are the most obvious differences between these two countries? What might account for these
differences? _________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
Name: _________________________________________ School: ____________________________________
5. In this lab, the USA and Mexico are the only countries listed that are physically adjacent. They
experience direct and fairly constant one-way migration, a factor not taken into account by this
simulation. Imagine that a significant percentage of the Mexican population between the ages of 15 and
25 is migrating permanently to the USA. How would this change the shape of the pyramid? What would
Mexico have to do in order to maintain a zero population growth? ______________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
6. Faced with mounting population pressure and the resultant drain on natural resources, many other
growing populations feel this urge to migrate, and other dwindling nations already import labor. Where
are the major sources and destinations of this population growth differential in the world today? ______
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
7. What is the expected result of a nation whose population is outstripping its resources and ability to feed
its people, yet is not allowed to migrate peaceably? __________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
Notes:
DATA TABLE: ECOLOGY
Environmental Systems Unit 10 Lesson 2
Lesson 2:
Step 1
(X, , or )
Prediction
Simulation 1
Simulation 2
Plant A
Herbivore A
Omnivore A
Top Predator
Name: _________________________________________ School: ____________________________________
Lesson 2:
Step 2
(X, , or )
Prediction
Simulation 1
Simulation 2
Modifications
made
Plant
A
Plant
B
Plant
C
Herbivore
A
Herbivore
B
Herbivore
C
Omnivore
A
Omnivore
B
Top
Predator
Responses to questions
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
Was your prediction correct? How did you arrive at your prediction? What differences were there between your prediction and the
simulation? ________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
What would happen to this imaginary ecosystem if the producers were to die out?
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Did any of the species increase in number? What could account for this increase? Which species decreased in number and what
might account for this decrease? ________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Which populations would benefit the most from the presence of decomposers? ___________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Was your prediction correct? How did you arrive at your prediction? What differences were there between your prediction and the
simulation? ________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Were you able to modify the parameters so that each species survived? Explain how you decided what changes to make.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Which way does energy flow and how does eating an organism result in energy transfer?
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
How does a natural ecosystem offer suggestions toward a more economical and eco-friendly human model?
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
How do humans affect the greater food web? In this model, how could humans who do not live in the ecosystem still manage to alter
the flow of energy within the web? _____________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Name: _________________________________________ School: ____________________________________
Notes
DATA TABLE: ENERGY
Environmental Systems Unit 10 Lesson 2
Lesson 2:
Step 1
Prediction
Run 1 2050
Run 2 2050
Run 3 2050
Meet
needs?
% Efficiency
Lesson 2:
Step 2
Prediction
Run 1 2100
Run 2 2100
Run 3 2100
Meet
needs?
Remain under
550 ppm CO 2 ?
Carbon
Recapture
% Efficiency
Problems?
Carbon
Recapture
Problems?
Responses to questions
1. Considering what you read in the text, how realistic was your prediction? What kinds of problems occur
in the simulation? ______________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
2. Thinking about what you now know of resources, demographics, energy needs/demands, the environment,
and your own way of living, which set of parameters would be most realistic and how could they best be
implemented? ________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
3. What combination of parameters did you find for a "best case" scenario this time? Were they close to your
prediction? Why might your prediction have been off? What kinds of problems/issues/factors come into
play this time that weren't present previously? _______________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Name: _________________________________________ School: ____________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
4. Based on this simulation, what would need to be changed in American people's lives in order to meet the
parameters you've designed in this model? __________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
5. Considering what you now know about carbon emission issues (see the Carbon Lab) and energy/fuel
sources, what might humans have to do in order to meet energy demands, maintain low CO 2 emission
levels, and not cause further harm to the environment? What initial steps might we all take? ___________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
6. What kinds of energy–conscious materials are already available, and which might you use in your home?
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
7. Based on your experience with the simulator and what you read/hear in the news, what are some
immediate energy issues, and how might these issues be solved? _________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Notes