Science 2200

Unit 1: Life Science

How ecosystems sustain themselves — biodiversity and the biosphere, the balance of populations, the cycling of matter and flow of energy, and the ways human activity and other external factors stress ecosystems and threaten their resilience.

• Biodiversity and sustainability of the biosphere
• Biodiversity loss from human activity
• How biodiversity sustains an ecosystem
• Earth: closed for matter, open for energy
• Population equilibrium and resource limits
• Trophic levels and classification

• Cycling of matter through an ecosystem
• Change of matter and the cycling concept
• Energy flow and the pyramid of energy
• Human alteration of the carbon and nitrogen cycles
• Changes to terrestrial systems

• Bioaccumulation from pesticide use
• Impact of fertilizer overuse
• Analyzing the impact of external factors
• Similar ecosystems in different locations
• Soil composition and fertility
• Short-term stress and long-term change
• Human impact on biome distribution
• WHMIS and safe handling of lab materials

Unit 2: Earth and Space Science

The science of weather and climate — the heat transfers that drive the atmosphere and oceans, the forces behind seasons and storms, how meteorologists forecast, and how ocean and air currents shape the climate of Newfoundland and Labrador.

• Heat transfer in the atmosphere and hydrosphere
• Heat transfer in the water cycle
• Heat transfer and air and water currents
• Currents, latitude, and Newfoundland's climate

• Factors behind seasonal weather
• Collecting and analyzing weather data
• Forecasting terms and methods
• Heat transfer and weather systems
• The atmosphere and human activities
• Causes and effects of extreme weather
• Seasonal weather events and flooding