| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| ethics | a guiding philosophy, or a discipline of dealing with what is good and bad; a moral obligation of sorts or principles on how to conduct ones self |
| biosphere | contains all of the life in, on, and around the earth |
| lithosphere | contains the land and rocks on earth |
| hydrosphere | contains the water on earth and in the atmosphere |
| atmosphere | contains all of the gases around the earth |
| conserve | to protect or keep safe |
| soil | the top layer of the surface of the Earth in which plants can grow, made over thousands of years from weathered rocks, minerals, and decaying organic materials |
| weathering | when rocks and minerals crumble and wear away |
| humus | decayed plant and animal matter that supplies soil with nutrients |
| horizons | distinct layers of soil with different characteristics |
| soil profile | a vertical view of the soil and all of its horizons |
| O horizon | layer of decomposed organic material; sometimes referred to as topsoil |
| A horizon | dark upper horizon that contains substantial humus as well as some inorganic components, like rock and mineral particles; sometimes referred to as topsoil |
| B horizon | usually lighter in color than the A horizon; characterized by accumulation of clay that gets washed down from the soil above it |
| C horizon | loose material recently weathered from the parent material |
| R horizon | the parent material rock beneath the soil |
| erosion | when soil and rocks are worn by wind, water, glaciers, etc. and carried away or lost |
| Deforestation | the cutting down of trees in large numbers, such that large areas of land are left without forest cover |
| Overgrazing | allowing animals to eat all of the vegetation in an area until the soil and plants are no longer able to stay healthy |
| desertification | when the arable land suffers so badly that it becomes desert |
| salinization | Soil that has an accumulation of salts in it |
| Contour plowing | plowing across the slope of a hill so that the tiny ridges are formed to help prevent the soil from washing down the hill |
| Compost | waste plant material that has been placed in piles to decompose; used to help restore nutrients to the soil |
| No-till farming | a procedure in which the seeds of the next crop are planted in slits cut into the soil through the remains of the previous crop;uses less energy and saves time; |
| Low-input farming | farming without using a great deal of energy, pesticides, fertilizer, and water |
| Organic farming | a type of low-input farming; a method of growing plants without any synthetic pesticides or inorganic fertilizers; keeps the soil planted at all times to avoid erosion and alternate different crops to control pests |
| de-extinction | is a process that brings back to life extinct organisms from death through the use of genetic information and new technologies |
