3.  Carbon is the basis for life on Earth.  99.9% of all organisms on the planet to carbon based life.  This means that all of those organisms require carbon to survive

4.  Is there carbon in sugar?  Is there carbon in CO 2 ?

5.  The Earth has only a fixed amount of carbon.  Carbon is the ultimate form of recycling.

6.  How do plants use carbon?  Photosynthesis – ▪ Takes CO 2 from atmosphere and combine with water

7.  Animals are the non-photosynthetic creature  Cannot create their own food  Break down sugar and starches through a process of metabolism  What does an animal get from metabolizing?  Energy  H2O  CO2  CO 2 goes back to the atmosphere to use again.

8.  Decomposers are involved in the carbon cycle  Break down organic materials ▪ Dead plants and animals ▪ Feces  Produces gasses ▪ CO2 and Methane

9. p. 352 Carbon atoms may return to the pool of carbon dioxide in the air and water in three ways. 1. Respiration. 2. Combustion. 3. Erosion.

11. Step 1  PLANTS USE CARBON FROM THE AIR (CO2) & WATER & ENERGY FROM SUNLIGHT

12. STEP 2  ANIMALS EAT PLANTS (sugar for energy) & BREATH IN O2 & breath out CARBON DIOXIDE GAS

13. Step 3  PLANTS USE CARBON DIOXIDE & ANIMALS DIE & DECOMPOSE & nutrients are returned to the soil.

14. Composition of the Atmosphere The atmosphere is primarily composed of Nitrogen (N 2, 78%) Oxygen (O 2, 21%) Argon (Ar, 1%). A myriad of other very influential components are also present which include water (H 2 O, 0 - 7%), "greenhouse" gases or Ozone (O 3, 0 - 0.01%) Carbon Dioxide (CO 2, 0.01-0.1%)

15.  What is Nitrogen?  An element just like carbon  All creatures need Nitrogen to survive  Where is Nitrogen?  There are huge amounts of Nitrogen in the atmosphere!  Most plants and animals cannot use it.  It must be fixed (put in a biologically useful compound)  After its fixed it can be used.

16.  Atmosphere  Most abundant N source  Cannot be used by animals and plants  Soil  nitrates in soil can be used by plants  Can be converted into nitrate compounds by bacteria, algae, & evening lighting.  Once in soil nitrogen becomes biologically accessible.

17.  Plants are the main users of nitrogen in soil.  They take in nitrates through their root systems.  Once in the plant it helps the plant survive.

18.  Once the plants have converted the nitrogen the element can be returned to the soil or be taken in by animals  Herbivores eat plants and convert many of the amino acids into new proteins  Omnivores eat both plants and animals into new proteins.  The nitrogen compounds are only borrowed

19.  Nitrogen atoms are returned to the soil in feces and dead animals  Once in the soil the process happens again!

20. Nitrogen Cycle : Bacteria carry out many of the important steps in the nitrogen cycle, including the conversion of atmospheric nitrogen into a usable form, ammonia. p. 353

21. http://www.nicksnowden.net/images/Nutrient_Cycles/nitrogen_cycle_cartoon.gif