¶ … Energy
Conversion of energy within the ecosystem
Within the ecosystem, there are laws of thermodynamics that guide the circulation and conversion of the energy in the ecosystem. There are basically two laws that govern this cycle of energy. It is worth knowing that Thermodynamics is the study of energy.
First law of thermodynamics; this law states that energy cannot be created nor destroyed but can be transformed from one form to another with an aim to accomplish some work. It also indicates that the total amount of energy in the universe basically remains the same and constant, the only thing that happens is that it changes from one form to another. It further indicates that energy is always conserved since it cannot be created or destroyed. This happens in the farm where we eat fruits and meat fro the animals that we slaughter and then we conserve this energy in the form of potential energy.
The second law of thermodynamic indicates that in an energy cycle, assuming that no energy gets into or departs from that closed cycle of energy system, then the potential energy of the state will always be lesser that that of the initial or original state, an occurrence referred to as entropy. One classic example to illustrate this is when a car runs out of gas, it will not run until the owner walks to the gas station and comes back with fuel to refill, this whole process involving conversion of energy. Here, once the potential energy that is locked in the carbohydrates is converted into the kinetic energy when the driver is walking, there will be no more energy until he inputs again by eating. It is worth noting that in the process of this conversion within the driver, some of the heat will be dissipated as heat (M.J. Farabee, 2001).
It is the flow of energy that maintains order and life otherwise when entropy overcomes the flow, then an organism dies since it ceases to take in energy.
Within the ecosystem that I live in, there is a full cycle of energy flow with various conversions taking place....
Bibliography Ecological Preservation at the Hart of Dynamic Boca de Iguanas Development (2008) St. Michael Strategies (SMS) Press Release. PR.com online available at http://www.pr.com/press-release/35513 Jeffrey Chow, Raymond J. Kopp, Paul R. Portney. (2003). Energy resources and global development. Science, 302(5650), 1528-31. Retrieved September 5, 2008, from Research Library database. (Document ID: 490116241). Mattson, K.M., and Angermeier, P.L. (2007) Integrating Human Impacts and Ecological Integrity into a Risk-Based Protocol for Conservation Planning Journal of
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