XIV. Give the main points of all the texts of the lesson.

 

Part II

 

 

 

 

Part II

Unit 1.

The Science of Ecology

Ecology is the study of the «homes» of animals and plants. Ecologists are interested in where animals and plants live and how they interact with each other. They answer such questions as «What would happen to all the oak trees a forest if the climate becomes drier?» and «Will there be more greenflies on a tree the ladybirds are all destroyed by a disease?» Today many people are worried about «Global Warming». They try to predict what will happen to the world, and its animals and plants, if the average temperature of the world goes up. The relationship between man and nature has become one of the major problems facing civilization today. Ecology, a vital philosophical issue, stands at thecrossroads of politics, science and economics.

The word «ecology» comes from the Greek words (oikos, «household») and (logos, «study»); therefore «ecology» means the «study of the house-­hold [of nature]».

The word «ecology» is often used as a synonym for the natural environment or environmentalism. Likewise «ecologic» or «ecological» is often taken in the senseof environmentally friendly. The Greek philosopher Theophrastus was one of the first people to discuss the relationship between living things and their environments. German zoologist Ernst Haeckel coined the term oikologie, defined as the relationship of an animal to both its organic and inorganic environ­ment, particularly those plants and animals with which it comes in contact.

Until the early 20th Century, biologists concentrated on descriptive studies и! plants and animals. Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution, for example, developed from his observations while recording the natural history of plants and animals .As human civilization subdued nature, people stopped perceiving it as the enemy. The near extinction of common species like the beaver led to the beginning of the conservation movement. By the 1930s, nature study became part of the curriculum of most schools, but organisms were still viewed in isolation rather than as communities.

Human development degraded the environment because people did not understand their relationship with it; that we have as much impact on our surroundings as they do on us.

No single individual did more to change this than Rachel Carson. Her book, «Silent Spring» (1962), warned how the abuse of chemicals was destroying wildlife while also harming the human environment. This raised massive public interest in nature. By the 1970s ecology, formerly an obscure science became a household word.

The modern definition of ecology is:

The scientific discipline, that is concerned with the relationship between organisms and their past, present and future environments, both living and non-living. Science, of course, represents a body of knowledge about the world and all its parts. It is also a method for finding new information.

Thus Ecology, or ecological science, is the scientific study of the distribution and abundance of living organisms and how the distribution and abundance are affected by interactions between the organisms and their environment. The word environment refers to everything around us: the air, the water and t he land as well as the plants, animals, and microorganisms that inhabit them. The environment of an organism includes both physical properties, which can be described as the sum of local abiotic factors such as solar insolation, climate and geology, as well as the other organisms that share its habitat.

Scope

Ecology is usually considered a branch of biology, the general science that studies living organisms. Organisms can be studied at many different levels, from proteins and nucleic acids (in biochemistry and molecular biology), to cells (in cellular biology), to individuals (in botany, zoology, and other similar disciplines), and finally at the level of populations, communities, and ecosystems, to the biosphere as a whole; these latter strata are the primary subjects of ecological inquiries. Ecology is a multi-disciplinary science. Because of its focus on the higher levels of the organization of life on earth and on the interrelations between organisms and their environment, ecology draws heavily on many other branches of science, especially geology and geography, meteorology, pedology, chemistry, and physics. Thus, ecology is considered by some to be a holistic science, one that over-arches older disciplines such as biology which in this view become sub-­disciplines contributing to ecological knowledge.

Agriculture, fisheries, forestry, medicine and urban development are among human activities that would fall within Krebs’ explanation of his definition of ecology: «where organisms are found, how many occur there, and why».

As a scientific discipline, ecology does not dictate what is «right» or «wrong».

However, ecological knowledge such as the quantification of biodiversity and population dynamics has provided a scientific basis for expressing the aims of environmentalism and evaluating its goals and policies. Additionally, a holistic view of nature is stressed in both ecology and environmentalism.

Consider the ways an ecologist might approach studying the life of honeybees:

· The behavioral relationship between individuals of a species is behavorial ecology — for example, the study of the queen bee, and how she relates to the worker bees and the drones.

· The organized activity of a species is community ecology; for example, the activity of bees assures the pollination of flowering plants. Bee hives additionally produce honey which is consumed by still other species, such as bears.

· The relationship between the environment and a species is environmental ecology — for example, the consequences of environmental change on bee activity. Bees may die out due to environmental changes (pollinator decline). The environment simultaneously affects and is a consequence of this activity and is thu£ intertwined with the survival of the species.

 

EXERCISES

A. Comprehension

I. Answer these questions.

1. What does the word ecology come from?

2. Have people, always understood the importance of their impact on the nature? Prove your opinion.

3. What does the word environment refer to?

4. Is ecology a science? Why?

5. What does ecology study?

6. Which branches of science is ecology connected with?

 

II. Decide whether these statements are true or false (T/F).

1. The Greek philosopher Theophrastus coined the term oikologie, defined as the relationship of an animal to both its organic and inorganic environment.

2. By the 1930s nature science had been part of the curriculum of most schools, and organisms were studied in isolation rather than as communities.

3. Ecology is a branch of biology.

4. The environment of an organism constitutes only the other organisms that share its habitat.

5. As a scientific discipline, ecology does not dictate what is «right» or «wrong».

6. Ecology is the study of how living organisms and their nonliving envi­ronment function together.

7. We have not so much impact on our surroundings as they do on us.

III. Give as many definitions of «ecology» from the text as you can.

IV. Give an example of ecological study.

 

B.Vocabulary

V. Give Russian equivalents of the following expressions:

one of t lie major problems; to subdue nature; to come in contact; nucleic acids; therefore; to define; descriptive studies of plants; to have impact on; observations; abuse of chemicals; to destroy wildlife; cell; to harm the human environment; pedology; to raise public interest in; distribution and abundance of living organisms; to inhabit; abiotic; solar insolation; drones; pollination; to consume; habitat; consequences of environmental change; to intertwine; survival; to be worried about something.

 

VI.Translate these words and word combinations into English:

глобальное потепление ввести термин

физические свойства естественная среда

почвоведение насущный вопрос

освещение лучами солнца (инсоляция) опыление

трутень вид

покорять природу численность организмов

распределение организмов злоупотребление химикатами

последствия изменений цветение

быть обеспокоенным чем-либо принимать за врага

нуклеиновая кислота наблюдение

 

С. Reading and Discussion

VII.Retell the following text in English. Mention the points of differ­ence between the English and Russian texts in the way of defining ecol­ogy, its subject and scope.

 

Содержание, предмет и задачи экологии

 

Термин «экология» (от греч. «oikos» - жилище, место обитания и «logos» - наука) предложил Э.Геккель в 1866 г. для обозначения биологической науки, изучающей взаимоотношения животных с органической и неорганической средами. С того времени представление о со­держании экологии претерпело ряд уточнений, конкретизаций. Однако до сих по нет достаточно чёткого и строгого определения экологии, и все ещё идут споры о том, что такое экология, следует ли её рассматри­вать как единую науку или же экология растений и экология живот­ных — самостоятельные дисциплины. Не решён вопрос, относится ли биоценология к экологии или это обособленная область науки. Не слу­чайно почти одновременно появляются руководства по экологии, на­писанные с принципиально разных позиций. В одних экология трак­туется как современная естественная история, в других — как учение о структуре природы, в котором конкретные виды рассматриваются лишь как средства трансформации вещества и энергии в биосистемах, в-тре­тьих — как учение о популяции и т.д. Нет необходимости останавливаться на всех существующих точках зрения относительно предмета и содержания экологии. Важно лишь отметить, что на современном этапе развития экологических представлений все более чётко вырисовывается её суть. Экология — это наука, исследующая закономерности жизнедея­тельности организмов (в любых её проявлениях, на всех уровнях интег­рации) в их естественной среде обитания с учётом изменений, вносимых в среду деятельностью человека. Из этой формулировки можно сделать вывод, что все исследования, изучающие жизнь животных и растений в естественных условиях, открывающие законы, по которым организмы объединяются в биологические системы, и устанавливающие роль отдельных видов в жизни биосферы, относятся к экологическим.

Предметом исследования экологии являются биологические макро­системы (популяции, биоценозы, экосистемы) и их динамика во време­ни и пространстве. Из содержания и предмета исследований экологии вытекают и её основные задачи, которые могут быть сведены к изучению динамики популяций, к учению о биогеоценозах и их системах. Структура биоценозов, на уровне формирования которых, так было отмечено, происходит освоение среды, способствует наиболее экономичному и полному использованию жизненных ресурсов. Поэтому главная теоретическая и практическая задача экологии заключается в том, чтобы вскрыть законы этих процессов и научиться управлять ими в условиях неизбежной индустриализации и урбанизации нашей планеты.

Сейчас уже не вызывает сомнения тот факт, что в природе имеют место экологические механизмы эволюции, исследование которых воз­можно лишь при совместной работе экологов, генетиков и эволюцио­нистов. На базе экологии развиваются биогеография, молодая наука этология (наука о поведении животных), палеоэкология и т.д. Эколо­гическая трактовка необходима и при решении определенных задач в области физиологии, морфологии, систематики, биогеографии, поскольку любые биологические исследования в той или иной степени изучают жизнь животных и растений в природных условиях. Выясняя характер влияния физических факторов седы на организмы и ответные реакции последних, экология не обходится без таких небиологических наук, как климатология, метеорология, ландшафтоведение (физическая география). Геоморфология и почвоведение также сблизились с эколо­гией, поскольку многие процессы образования и разрушения почв про­исходят под влиянием деятельности сообществ животных и растений.

 

 

biocenology; population; ethology; paleoecolbgy; morphology; systematics; non-biological sciences; climatology; community

 

VIII.Read and translate the text without a dictionary.

The term «ecology» was coined by the German zoologist, Ernst Haeckel, in 1866 to describe the «economies» of living forms. The theoretical practice of ecology consists of the construction of models of the interaction of living systems with their environment (including other living systems). These models are then tested in the laboratory and the field. (Field-work in ecology also consists of data collection that need not be inspired by any theory.)

Theory in ecology consists of principles used to construct models. Unlike evolutionary theory, ecology has no generally accepted global principles. Contemporary ecology consists of a patchwork of sub-disciplines including population ecology, community ecology, conservation ecology, ecosystem ecology, metapopulation ecology, metacommunity ecology, spatial ecology, landscape ecology, physiological ecology, evolutionary ecology, functional ecology, and behavioral ecology. What is common to all these fields is the view that; (i) different biota interact in ways that can be described with sufficient precision and generality |o permit their scientific study; and (ii) ecological interactions set the stage for evolution to occur primarily because they provide the external component of an entity’s fitness. The latter aspect makes ecology a central part of biology. As van Valen once put it: «Evolution is the control of development by ecology». However, the creation of a unified theoretical framework for evolution and ecology remains the task for the future and will be of no further concern in this entry.

IX. Summarize the text.

X. Speak on one of the topics:

1. The definition of the word «ecology» and its origin.

2. The structure of ecology

History of Ecology

Ecology is generally spoken of as a new science, having only become prominent in the second half of the 20th Century. Nonetheless, ecological thinking at some level has been around for a long time, and the principles of ecology have developed gradually, closely intertwined with the development of other biological disciplines. Thus, one of t he first ecologists may have been Aristotle or perhaps his student, Theophrastus, both of whom had interest in many species of animals. Theophrastus described interrelationships between animals and between animals and their environment as early as the 4th century BC.

18th and 19th Century ~ Ecological Murmurs

The Botanical Geography and Alexander von Humboldt

Throughout the 18th and the beginning of the 19th century, the great maritime powers such as Britain, Spain, and Portugal launched many world exploratory expeditions to develop maritime commerce with other countries, and to discover new natural rev и trees, as well as to catalog them. At the beginning of the 18th century, about twenty thousand plant species were known, versus forty thousand at the beginning of the 19th century, and almost 400,000 today.

These expeditions were joined by many scientists, including botanists, such as the German explorer Alexander von Humboldt. Humboldt is often considered a father of ecology. I le was the first to take on the study of the relationship between organisms and their environment. He exposed the existing relationships between observed plant species and climate, and described vegetation zones using latitude and altitude, a discipline now known as geobotany.

In 1804, for example, he reported an impressive number of species, particularly plants, for which he sought to explain their geographic distribution with respect to geological data. One of Humboldt’s famous works was «Idea for a Plant Geography» (1805).

Other important botanists of the time included Aim? Bonpland and Eugenius Warming.

The Notion of Biocoenosis: Charles Darwin and Allred Wallace

Towards 1850 there was a breakthrough in the field with the publishing of the work of Charles Darwin on The Origin of Species: Ecology passed from a repetitive, mechanical model to a biological, organic, and hence evolutionary model.

Alfred Russel Wallace, contemporary and competitor to Darwin, was first to propose a «geography» of animal species. Several authors recognized at the time that species were not independent of each other, and grouped them into plant species, animal species, and Inter into communities of living beings or biocoenosis. This term was coined in 1877 by Karl Mwbius.

Early 20th Century ~ Expansion of Ecological Thought

The biosphere — Eduard Suess, Henry Chandler Cowles, and Vladimir Vernadsky

By the 19th century, ecology blossomed due to new discoveries in chemistry by Lavoisier and de Saussure, notably the nitrogen cycle. After observing the fact that life developed only within strict limits of each compartment that makes up the atmosphere, hydrosphere, and lithosphere, the Austrian geologist Eduard Suess proposed the term biosphere in 1875. Suess proposed the name biosphere for the conditions promoting life, such as those found on Earth, which includes flora, fauna, minerals, matter cycles, et cetera.

In the 1920s Vladimir I. Vernadsky, a Russian geologist who had defected to France, detailed the idea of the biosphere in his work «The biosphere» (1926), and described the fundamental principles of the biogeochemical cycles. He thus redefined the biosphere as the sum of all ecosystems.

First ecological damages were reported in the 18th century, as the multiplication of colonies caused deforestation. Since the 19th century, with the industrial revolution, more and more pressing concerns have grown about the impact of human activity on the environment. The term ecologist has been in use since the end of the 19th century.

The Ecosystem: Arthur Tansley

Over the 19th century, botanical geography and zoogeography combined to form the basis of biogeography. This science, which deals with habitats of species, seeks to explain the reasons for the presence of certain species in a given location.

It was in 1935 that Arthur Tansley, the British ecologist, coined the term ecosystem, the interactive system established between the biocoenosis (the group of living creatures), and their biotope, the environment in which they live. Ecology thus became the science of ecosystems.

Tansley’s concept of the ecosystem was adopted by the energetic and influential biology educator Eugene Odum. Along with his brother, Howard Odum, Eugene P. Odum wrote a textbook which (starting in 1953) educated more than one generation of biologists and ecologists in North America

Ecological Succession Henry Chandler Cowles

At the turn of the 20th century, Henry Chandler Cowles was one of the founders of the emerging study of «dynamic ecology», through his study of ecological succession at the Indiana Dunes, sand dunes at the southern end of Lake Michigan. Here Cowles found evidence of ecological succession in the vegetation and the soil with relation to age. Ecological succession is the process by which a natural community moves from a simpler level of organisation to a more complex community (e.g., from bare sand, to grass growing on the sand, to grass growing on dirt produced from dead grass, to trees growing in the dirt produced by the grass).

Exercises

A.Comprehension

I. Answer these questions.

1. When did ecology as a science become prominent?

2. Was Aristotle one of the first ecologists?

3. Who is often considered a father of ecology? Why?

4. What breakthrough in the field occurred towards 1850?

5 How did ecology develop in the 19th century?

6. What was Suess’s contribution to the development?

7. Who redefined the biosphere as the sum of all ecosystems in the 1920s?

8. When did the first ecological damages take place? Why?

9. Since what century has the term ecologist been in use?

10. When did ecology become the science of ecosystems?

II. Speak on the study of «dynamic ecology»?

III. Match the parts of the sentences.

1) Alexander von Humboldt	a) proposed the name biosphere for the conditions promoting life, such as those found on Earth, which includes flora, fauna, minerals, matter cycles, et cetera.
2) Theophrastus	b) wrote a textbook which educated more than one generation of biologists and ecologists in North America.
3) Vladimir I. Vernadsky	c) was first to propose a «geography» of animal species.
4) Suess	d) exposed the existing relationships between observed plant species and climate, and described vegetation zones using latitude and altitude, a discipline now known as geobotany.
5) Alfred Russel Wallace	e) described the fundamental principles of the biogeochemical cycles.
6) Henry Chandler Cowles	f) was one of the founders of the emerging study of «dynamic ecology», through his study of ecological succession at the Indiana Dunes, sand dunes at the southern end of Lake Michigan.
7) Howard Odum	g) described interrelationships between animals and between animals and their environment as early as the 4th century BC.
8) Arthur Tansley	h) coined the term ecosystem, the interactive system established between the biocoenosis (the group of living creatures), and their biotope, the environment in which they live.

 

 

IV. Summarize the text.

A.Vocabulary

V. Give Russian equivalents of the following words and word combinations:

prominent	to observe	altitude
to blossom	Gradually	to launch
exploratory	to defect	living being
to adopt	Breakthrough	to combine
impressive number	emerging study	competitor
pressing concerns

 

Try to remember the sentences, which these expressions are used in, or make your own sentences with each one.

VI. Find in the text English equivalents of the following words and expressions. Translate the sentences which contain them.

1) переплетаться; 2) морская держава; 3) исследовательская экспе­диция; 4) раскрывать, показывать; 5)искать; 6) высота; 7) революци­онное достижение, переворот; 8) процветать; 9) уехать, бежать за гра­ницу (по политическим мотивам); 10) принимать, признавать; 11) до­казательство.

 

VII. Find synonyms of these expressions among the words and word combinations from previous exercises.

1) to flourish, develop, thrive;

2) rival, opponent, contender;

3) steadily, increasingly, step by step, little by little;

4) to accept, agree to, approve;

5) height, elevation, height above sea level;

6) to watch. study, examine, scrutinize, survey;

7) to start, commence, initiate, depart, begin;

8) advance, revolution, leap forward, invention, innovation;

9) famous, well-known, important, major, outstanding, notorious;

10) to unite, join, merge, mingle, come together;

11) to look for, search for, try to find;

12) to link, knit, intermingle, connect, interlink, interweave;

13) proof, verification, facts, confirmation, substantiation;

14) to depict, represent, interpret.

 

 

Unit 12.

Modern Ecological Theory and Research

Ecology's Influence in the Social Sciences and Humanities Human Ecology

Human ecology began in the 1920s, through the study of changes in vegetation succession in the city of (’Imago. It became a distinct field of study in the 1970s. This marked the first recognition that humans, who had colonized all of the Earth’s continents, were a major ecological factor. Humans greatly modify the environment through the development of the habitat (in particular urban planning), by intensive exploit at ion activities such as logging and fishing, and as side effects of agriculture, mining, and industry. Besides ecology and biology, this discipline involved many other natural and social sciences, such as anthropology and ethnology, economic, demography, architecture and urban planning, medicine and psychology, and many more. The development of human ecology led to the increasing role of ecological science in the design and management of cities.

In recent years human ecology has been a topic that has interested organizational researchers. Hannan and Freeman argue that organizations do not only adapt to an environment. Instead it is also the environment that selects or rejects populations of organizations. I n any given environment (in equilibrium) there will only be one form of organization (isomorphism). Organizational ecology has been a prominent theory in accounting for diversities of organizations and their changing composition over time.