An Analysis of Carbon Dioxide

Carbon dioxide (CO2) influx into the atmosphere have escalated enormous amounts; The main source of this dilemma being humans. We humans, have dramatically altered our planet and disrupted the carbon cycle through our burning of fossil fuels. The conventional belief that our carbon cycle is hindered by our everyday activities is acknowledged, yet remains disregarded at the same time. We, humans are ignorant to our effects on the carbon cycle. In this paper, I will introduce the dilemma between humans and the carbon cycle. We as humans are responsible for the damage done to our Earth; and by educating ourselves, we are capable of reversing the effects made on our planet and improving our environmental stewardship.

Introduction

My focus in this paper will be on ‘Unit 1: The Living World’ in the AP College Board Environmental Science course. I have chosen to focus on this unit because we as humans must recognize the environmental damage done to accommodate for our luxurious lives. We must also embrace sustainability in order for our planet to thrive.

However, the damage has already been done. In these last few decades, humanity had significantly altered the planet beyond repair. There have been numerous reports and studies on the threatening effects of human on natural life stating that there must be immediate action in reducing our negative environmental impact. Human activities threaten wildlife, plant-life, and natural ecosystems. These species had no choice but to adapt to our lifestyle to survive; It’s time that we do the same.

Overview

There are 11 subtopics within ‘Unit 1: The Living World.’ In exploring these topics and examining current research studies, I will introduce this unit as a whole and how they are affected by human activites. I will then reveal how human’s use of carbon permanently affects the carbon cycle.  

‘Unit 1.1: Introduction to Ecosystems’ explores basic fundamental information on ecosystems. This topic covers

the accessibility of resources influences the ecoological connections between species and within one species; These are called symbiotic relationships. Symbiotic relationships appear in five main types: mutualism, commensalism, predation, parastism, and competition. ‘Unit 1.2: Terrestrial Biomes’ concentrates on the eight significant terrestrial biomes: tropical rainforests, savannas, subtropical deserts, chaparral, temperate grasslands, temperate forests, boreal forests, and Arctic tundra. These biomes consists of plants and animals that are adapted to their temperature, precipitation, or latitude. This topic also covers how to display the intensity of temperature and precipitation through climate diagrams or climatographs; As well as human disturbances on these various biomes. ‘Unit 1.3: Aquatic Biomes’ explores on the two main categories that aquatic biomes are divided into; These include freshwater and marine biomes. Freshwater biomes contain low salt concentrations. Examples of freshwater biomes include streams, rivers, ponds, and lakes. Marine biomes on the other hand, have higher salt concentrations and examples of these include oceans, coral reefs, marshland, and estuaries. ‘Unit 1.4: Carbon Cycle’ is a crucial topic in understanding human threat on the Earth.