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schuyler-fishman
Solar energy provides every ecosystem with its energy supply, and as it moves through the trophic pyramid from producer to herbivore to carnivore and then to decomposers, this solar energy becomes chemical. Photosynthesis occurs when light is taken in by plants and converted into oxygen and food. Energy is stored in the glucose molecule which, through the chemical reactions of cellular respiration, is transformed again into thermal energy and a new form of chemical energy (ATP) used by the cells.
Nothing in the universe is perfect and energy transferrence is not entirely efficient. Since energy, like matter, cannot be created or destroyed, the energy is not “lost,” but instead changes into a less organized form. This means that ecosystems do not directly use all the energy provided, but rather lose it to dysfunction or assorted environmental processes. These laws are important in ecology because they explain the distribution and variety of biotic and abiotic factors in ecosystems.
This is the law of conservation of energy. The law states that, in a closed system, energy cannot be created or destroyed, it can only be transformed from one form to another. Like the image below, 100kcal of ice cream should get you 100kcal of kinetic energy. So why doesn’t it work that way?
🎥 To learn more about trophic levels and the flow of energy, watch this stream.
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schuyler-fishman
schuyler-fishman
Solar energy provides every ecosystem with its energy supply, and as it moves through the trophic pyramid from producer to herbivore to carnivore and then to decomposers, this solar energy becomes chemical. Photosynthesis occurs when light is taken in by plants and converted into oxygen and food. Energy is stored in the glucose molecule which, through the chemical reactions of cellular respiration, is transformed again into thermal energy and a new form of chemical energy (ATP) used by the cells.
Nothing in the universe is perfect and energy transferrence is not entirely efficient. Since energy, like matter, cannot be created or destroyed, the energy is not “lost,” but instead changes into a less organized form. This means that ecosystems do not directly use all the energy provided, but rather lose it to dysfunction or assorted environmental processes. These laws are important in ecology because they explain the distribution and variety of biotic and abiotic factors in ecosystems.
This is the law of conservation of energy. The law states that, in a closed system, energy cannot be created or destroyed, it can only be transformed from one form to another. Like the image below, 100kcal of ice cream should get you 100kcal of kinetic energy. So why doesn’t it work that way?
🎥 To learn more about trophic levels and the flow of energy, watch this stream.
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