Books on Biosphere 2 for Kids to Read
Sim - Bio 2
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A BioQUEST Library VI Module by:
| Investigate Biosphere 2 |
Simulating Biosphere 2
| More than than 4000 species of plants and animals from nearly 40 nations effectually the globe were brought into this 3.15 acre, drinking glass-enclosed habitat. |  |
Biosphere 2 is an enormous, glass-enclosed construction built in the mountains near Tucson, Arizona. 8 people lived in this highly engineered complex for two years (1991-1993) as part of a project designed to assist us better sympathize the ecology of the earth, our "Biosphere 1". Biosphere 2 was built every bit a life scale working model that enabled us to run experiments tracking the interactions among land and h2o ecosystems and the temper in great detail.
Human impact on complex ecosystems and the ways humans tin can manage these ecosystems can also be studied. The development of self-independent life back up systems for living in space stations or traveling long distances is another reason for this experiment. No one knows how large an ecosystem should exist to support a human.
During the experiment Biosphere 2 was essentially closed to materials, but open up to free energy and information substitution. It contained a desert, sea, rainforest, savanna and marsh, forth with an agricultural expanse and a human habitat, Biosphere 2 is truly a microcosm of planet globe. A huge corporeality of technology moderated the environment, kept the air circulating every bit wind inside, varied the temperature and humidity in different areas, and ran the circuitous figurer and advice systems.
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Biosphere 2 Model
Using information from the actual Biosphere 2 experiment, a model of Biosphere 2 was constructed for Sim-Bio 2. You can access this default model (shown below) or assemble it yourself by selecting components from a library of Biosphere variables and then connecting the components. The resulting model tin can so be run to simulate experimental results.
The icons represent inflows of energy from the lord's day, photosynthesis by plants producing oxygen and biomass, buildup of expressionless biomass and then consumed by insects and microbes, consumption of plant biomass and oxygen past people, and recycle of carbon dioxide from all consumers both for use by plants and in storage as carbonates in seawater, carbonate-rich soil, and concrete.
Using data from the actual Biosphere ii experiment, Sim-Bio2 tin be used to construct a model and then "run" every bit a simulation to produce results of interactions over time.
Y'all tin can see how the different components collaborate by following the lines leading from the sources (assuming blackness boxes next to icons) to the sinks (light black boxes next to icons). You will notice that except for the sunlight, there is a closed loop between producers and consumption by soils, institute roots, animals, and humans. Each component drives the others, and if one component is changed all the other components change besides.
In the second year of the Biosphere two experiment, the Biospherians were experiencing difficulties. Oxygen had to exist added and although their diets were supplemented with some stored nutrient, they all lost weight. What was going on?
Nosotros tin use this model to explore some of the unexpected problems the Biospherians encountered.
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Simulation Results for Biosphere 2 Model:
When yous run the model, a graph appears tracing iv quantities: Oxygen, Expressionless biomass, Plants, and Carbon dioxide. Plants and Carbon dioxide are scaled on the left vertical centrality, and % Oxygen and % Life support are scaled on the right vertical axis.
Note the relationships between the variables over time:
- CO2 (ppm on left axis)
cycles at a higher level than expected!- plant biomass (g/m2 on left centrality)
- O2 (% of atmosphere on right axis)
life support (% of total food and O2 necessary to back up humans in Biosphere 2 on right axis)
You can as well look at the data for each variable at multiple points in time by searching a table that is located direct below the graph. Compare the results below:
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Exploring Biosphere 2
"What If?" Modeling
 | Building models is a natural role of the process in nigh scientific endeavors. Shown here is the small test module which was built as a "proof of concept" model earlier the much larger Biosphere 2. |
What models would you similar to build?
Sim-Bio 2 provides "hands on" opportunities for yous to learn more than about the Biosphere 2 experiment through the design and testing of experimental models. The scenarios beneath provide different rationales for revising the Biosphere 2 model by irresolute a single variable. You can work through the post-obit scenarios to practice modeling. Simulation results of each revised model is available for review. You tin compare these graphs to the Biosphere ii simulation graph shown before and evaluate the impacts.
To learn more about what each of the icons represent, become to More on the Model .
To learn more nigh how the biosphere works, go to Biosphere Processes
SCENARIO one: "Room for i more?"
 | No entry was allowed at this air lock to the human habitat in Biosphere2 during the experimental period. One time a week, personal visitors could come to "see" and talk to the Biospherians over the phone. |
New technical skills are required due to a internal maintenance trouble that surfaces on Day two. A dorsum-upwards biospherian is sent in on Mean solar day two. What changes exercise yous expect?
What alter will need to exist made to the model?
How will an actress person bear on the level of life back up?
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SCENARIO 2: "But requite usa more plants!"
| While many of the plants in the Biosphere ii habitats were not grown specifically for human consumption, the ripe bananas in the tropical rainforest habitat are likely to have ended up on the tabular array . |  |
A group of teachers reviewing data on the diminishing % O2 problem found in Biosphere two decided to add more plants- twice equally many as before- to their models. Will this aid?
How could the teachers modify the model to add the plants?
Do you lot wait this volition increase the % O2 level?
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SCENARIO iii: "How long practise we have?"
 | More than Biosphere 2 research labs have been built. On the correct, you can see one of ii spherical "lungs" acting as air handling facilities for the dome. |
Considering that emergencies in infinite might anytime require crew transfer to another ship, a group of NASA scientists decided to utilise the Biosphere 2 model to see how long a rescue ship could support humans if their numbers were all of a sudden doubled. Even with emergency resources, the humans would begin to expire when the transport'south life support level went beneath 25%.
How would the scientists change the model to simulate the rescue ship with actress astronauts?
How long do you remember the crew from the rescue transport will survive?
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SCENARIO 4A: "Double, double... toil and trouble?"
| The view from within... |  |
How much actress support will exist required if the Biosphere 2 experiment was run for six years?
How would y'all change the model?
What practice you await to happen?
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SCENARIO 4B: "Is downward-sizing the answer?"
If you were able to reduce the number of humans to four, would they still demand outside resource to survive a six-year experimental trial?
Building a model to answer this question requires you to make what changes?
Do you think this number of humans will be problematic?
Click to See Results
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More than Modeling and Simulation Ideas
Here are three extended scenarios recently suggested by the authors of SimBio2 which involve understanding the relationships between CO2, Carbonates, and O2.
Author Scenario 1: What if Biosphere 2 was built on forest soil?
 Arizona desert surrounding the Biosphere 2. | The soil used in the structure of Biosphere 2 was heavy organic desert soil. More than respiration than photosynthesis produced excess CO2. O2 levels dropped every bit well as the germination of new CO2 incorporated atmospheric O2. To simulate the use of forest soil with less organics, simply reduce the organic affair by one-half. Monitor the O2 and CO2 levels. What is different? |
Author Scenario ii: What if the floors of Biosphere 2 were sealed?
 The current Biosphere 2 Center. | If the floors in the Biosphere 2 were sealed with concrete, this would effectively cut the carbonates in half.
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Author Scenario three: What if Biosphere 2 utilized exterior air?
| Since the showtime experiment, Biosphere 2 has been open to the atmosphere and air has been recirculated in and out by pumping. You can't simulate this since at that place is no pump icon which can be connected to the O2 and CO2 at this time, simply how might you brainstorm to explore the touch on of this modify on % life back up? How are you using your revised model to explore possible O2 and CO2 changes? |  One of two new air handling stations. |
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Biosphere Processes
The basic processes considered in this model are:
1) production
ii) consumption
3) recycling of materials
Oxygen, organic matter and carbon dioxide are produced, used, and recycled. Gaseous carbon dioxide exchanges with solid carbonates (limestones etc). The goal of Biosphere 2 was to gear up a small-scale similarily balanced system.
Icons represent inflows of energy from the sun, photosynthesis by plants producing oxygen and biomass, buildup of expressionless biomass and so consumed by insects and microbes, consumption of plant biomass and oxygen past people, and recycling of carbon dioxide from all consumers both for utilize by plants and in storage equally carbonates in seawater, carbonate-rich soil, and physical. As the model shows at that place is a closed loop between plant producers and consumption by soils, constitute roots, animals, humans. Each drives the others, and if one is changed all the others change. In the past the earth has maintained a balanced organization.
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More on the Model
Each of the icons in the model is explained.
The mountains of Arizona average about 4000 kilocalories of sunlight falling on a foursquare meter per day. Nether the drinking glass and structure of Biosphere 2 the yearly boilerplate is about 2000 kilocalories per square meter per twenty-four hours.
Sunlight is essential for establish product of nutrient and oxygen. The more sunlight, the more photosynthesis. In the process of photosynthesis, carbon dioxide, water and sunlight combine to make oxygen and organic biomass.
The plants icon represents all the plant producers in Biosphere 2: algae, grasses, crops, shrubs, trees, phytoplankton in the h2o, and crops in the agricultural biome. In their light-green cells they employ sunlight and carbon dioxide to produce oxygen and institute biomass. Only a pocket-size part of this biomass production (about ten%) is edible nutrient for people; much becomes expressionless biomass (litter) and is used as food by the modest consumers (microbes and ants).
This icon represents all the humans in Biosphere ii and simply requires yous to input a number. The default value is viii representing the original full of Biospherians in the 1992-1993 experiment.
Oxygen is well-nigh 21% of the gases in the air. People cannot exist active and comfortable at the altitude of Biosphere 2 (4000 feet) with oxygen less than xvi%.
In the Biosphere 2 experiment oxygen started at nearly 21%; it was used by the microbes and ants every bit they decomposed the dead biomass in the soil and by people in their respiration. Oxygen was produced by photosynthesis of the plants.
At the cease of the 2d winter oxygen had decreased then much it endangered the life support of the people and more was added from a tank truck. Information technology was the use of oxygen in the consumption of dead organic biomass in the soil that reduced its level, not its use by people.
Carbon dioxide is well-nigh 350ppm (parts per 1000000) of the gases in the air. Plants use carbon dioxide in photosynthesis to produce biomass, including food. Microbes, animals and people produce carbon dioxide from their respiration. If the level of carbon dioxide goes downwards, establish production of food goes downward.
Carbonates are chemical compounds establish in Biosphere 2 in rocks, concrete and ocean water. Carbonates tin absorb or release carbon dioxide depending on its concentration. If in that location is an excess of carbon dioxide in the air, carbonates will take it in; if carbon dioxide gets depression, carbonates will allow information technology out. They human activity as a buffer to keep the carbon dioxide at moderate levels.
Fallen leaves and lifeless insects are examples of biomass on the ground or in the soil, set up to exist decomposed. Soil is a mixture of inorganic particles, like sand and clay, and dead organic biomass from the living parts of the system.
Since the soil put into Biosphere 2 was high in organics (dead biomass), its respiration (by microbes and ants) used more oxygen than was produced past the photosynthesis of the plants. This caused the level of oxygen to decrease to levels dangerous to humans.
Consumers on the ground and in the soil, similar soil microbes and ants, use oxygen in the process of consuming this dead biomass for their nutrient. When the soil is rich in organic biomass, the oxygen used in its decomposition tin can exceed the oxygen being produced by plants. This tin reduce the amount of oxygen in the air of an enclosed space similar Biosphere 2, making it too low for human survival. In the consumption process, organic biomass and oxygen combine to brand carbon dioxide and water.
In the program the combination of food and oxygen needed per person is measured in units of "% of life support". In the second yr of Biosphere 2, life support was reduced to 60%. Biospherians were experiencing difficulties. Oxygen was added and their diets were supplemented with some stored nutrient. They all lost weight.
People are also consumers who need adequate oxygen and food to be active in working and thinking. They release carbon dioxide from their consumption processes. If the food and oxygen are below minimum requirements, people lose weight and health. The more than people in the chamber, the less food there is for each. Only a role of the green biomass in the agricultural expanse was edible by humans.
To generate data from your model, you must connect the variables you want to plot to this icon. Notation colors for four different plot lines on the left.
Annotation: Water in Biosphere two was abundant and circulated as needed. It was non a changing factor. Therefore, it was fabricated constant in the sim-Bio2 program.
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Produced by the
BioQUEST Curriculum Consortium
This is an association of bio-science educators, who share the belief that scientific discipline is best learned via the exercise of collaborative, open-ended, in-depth scientific inquiry. This philosophy is the motivation for the 3P's approach:
Didactics and learning via
Problem posing,
Problem solving,
and peer Persuasion
The BioQUEST Library Book V (1999-2000)
Bookish Press-San Diego, CA
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Authors' Notation:
Nosotros acknowledge the encouragement to make this model from John Allen and Marker Nelson, the first managers of Bio2, and the interest of the current managing group from Columbia University.
For more information meet the new book from Elsevier entitled Biosphere 2, Research in Progress edited by B. Marino and H.T. Odum.
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6/xi/00 es
Source: https://bioquest.org/simbio2.html
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