ENVIRONMENT CLASS DISCUSSION NOTES
1. What is the Atmosphere?
 mostly nitrogen. What would happen if it was mostly or all
oxygen?

2. What is the Hydrosphere?
 all the water on the earth's surface. What does that not include?
 source of drinking water and fish
3. What is the lithosphere?
 the crust (surface) of the earth sitting on top of the mantle
(middle layer)
4. What is the biosphere?
 the area where life exists
 includes part of the atmosphere, the hydrosphere, and a few
metres at the top of the lithosphere
5. What is an ecosystem in geography? (please copy)
 a balanced arrangement of interdependent plants and animals
and their surrounding physical environment.
ENVIRONMENT TEXT NOTES
1. What is the hydrosphere?




includes all water on the surface of the earth.
The surface of the earth is 70% water
The Pacific Ocean takes up 50% of the earth's surface
Fresh water is critical to life on earth. We can desalinate
Ocean water, but it is expensive.
 Fish
2. What is the lithosphere?
 the crust (the surface) of the earth
 about 5km to 50km thick, sitting on the mantle (the middle
layer between crust and core)
 soil for agriculture and metals and non-metallic minerals
come from the lithosphere, as well as oil, coal, and gas
3. What is the biosphere?
 the zone where life exists
 it includes much of the other spheres: lower layers of
atmosphere, all hydrosphere, the top of the lithosphere
4. What is an ecosystem?
 a balanced, organized arrangement of interdependent plants
and animals in a surrounding physicial environment
contains both biotic (living) elements and abiotic (non-living)
elements