Odisha BSE HSC Env & Pop Ed cheat sheet

Ecosystem = biotic community (producers, consumers, decomposers) + abiotic environment (light, temperature, water, soil, air) interacting as a functional unit.

Producers (autotrophs) fix solar energy by photosynthesis; gross primary productivity (GPP) minus respiration equals net primary productivity (NPP).

Food chain transfers energy one way; only about 10% passes to the next trophic level, so food chains rarely exceed 4-5 links.

Food web = interconnected food chains; removing one species can destabilise several chains at once.

Ecological pyramid of energy is always upright; pyramids of number and biomass can be inverted (e.g., one tree supporting many insects).

Biogeochemical cycles: gaseous (carbon, nitrogen, oxygen) have atmospheric reservoirs; sedimentary (phosphorus, sulphur) have rock/soil reservoirs.

Nitrogen fixation by Rhizobium and cyanobacteria, nitrification by Nitrosomonas/Nitrobacter, denitrification by Pseudomonas return N2 to air.

Succession: primary succession starts on bare rock (pioneer lichens), secondary on cleared soil; climax community is the stable end stage.

Major Indian ecosystems: tropical deciduous forests, mangroves (Bhitarkanika, Sundarbans), wetlands (Chilika Lagoon), grasslands, and coral reefs.

Renewable resources (solar, wind, water, biomass) regenerate within a human lifetime; non-renewable (coal, petroleum, minerals) do not.

Sustainable development = meeting present needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet theirs (Brundtland, 1987).

The 3R hierarchy ranks waste management: Reduce > Reuse > Recycle; reduction prevents waste generation at source.

Soil conservation methods: contour ploughing, terracing, strip cropping, shelter belts, check dams, and crop rotation with legumes.

Water conservation: rainwater harvesting, watershed management, drip and sprinkler irrigation, and recharging groundwater through percolation pits.

Forest conservation: afforestation, social forestry, joint forest management, and protection of sacred groves (e.g., sarna groves).

Energy conservation: switch off idle appliances, use LED lighting, solar water heaters, biogas plants, and public transport.

Chipko movement (1973, Uttarakhand) and Narmada Bachao Andolan are Indian grassroots resource-protection movements.

Odisha context: Similipal and Satkosia reserves protect catchment forests; Chilika supports fisheries and dolphin habitat.

Pollutant = any substance or form of energy present in amounts that harm living organisms or materials.

Air pollutants: primary (SO2, NOx, CO, particulates) emitted directly; secondary (ozone, PAN, acid rain) formed in the atmosphere.

Photochemical smog forms when NOx and hydrocarbons react under sunlight; classical smog is smoke plus fog with high SO2.

Acid rain: SO2 and NOx convert to sulphuric and nitric acids; pH below 5.6 damages soil, water bodies, and buildings.

Carbon monoxide binds haemoglobin about 200-250 times more strongly than oxygen, forming carboxyhaemoglobin.

Water pollution indicators: BOD (biochemical oxygen demand) and COD rise with organic load; high BOD means low dissolved oxygen.

Eutrophication: excess nitrates and phosphates cause algal blooms, oxygen depletion, and fish kills.

Noise is measured in decibels (dB); prolonged exposure above about 85 dB can cause hearing damage.

Greenhouse gases: CO2, CH4, N2O, water vapour, and CFCs; CFCs also deplete stratospheric ozone.

Biodiversity has three levels: genetic diversity within species, species diversity, and ecosystem diversity.

India is a megadiverse country with 4 of the world's 36 biodiversity hotspots: Himalaya, Indo-Burma, Western Ghats-Sri Lanka, Sundaland (Nicobar Islands).

In-situ conservation keeps species in their habitat: national parks, wildlife sanctuaries, biosphere reserves, sacred groves.

Ex-situ conservation moves species outside habitat: zoos, botanical gardens, seed banks, cryopreservation.

IUCN Red List categories: Extinct, Extinct in the Wild, Critically Endangered, Endangered, Vulnerable, Near Threatened, Least Concern.

Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 provides legal protection; Project Tiger (1973) and Project Elephant (1992) are flagship schemes.

Biological Diversity Act, 2002 and the Convention on Biological Diversity (1992, Rio) govern biodiversity use and benefit sharing.

Endemic species occur only in one region; examples include the olive ridley turtle nesting at Gahirmatha, Odisha.

Threats to biodiversity: habitat loss and fragmentation, overexploitation, invasive alien species, pollution, and climate change.

Demographic transition stages: high birth-high death, high birth-falling death (rapid growth), falling birth-low death, low birth-low death.

Birth rate (crude) = live births per 1,000 population per year; death rate = deaths per 1,000 per year.

Natural increase = birth rate minus death rate; growth rate also includes net migration.

Doubling time is roughly 70 divided by the annual percentage growth rate (rule of 70).

Total Fertility Rate (TFR) = average children a woman would bear; replacement level is about 2.1.

Sex ratio = females per 1,000 males; India's census reports this measure.

Population pyramid shape indicates structure: broad base = high fertility; narrow base = ageing population.

Dependency ratio = (population under 15 plus over 64) divided by working-age population (15-64), often expressed per 100.

Census in India is conducted every 10 years; the 2011 Census recorded a population of about 1.21 billion.

Quality of life indicators include life expectancy, literacy, infant mortality, per capita income, and access to health care.

Human Development Index (HDI) combines life expectancy, education (mean and expected years of schooling), and GNI per capita.

Physical Quality of Life Index (PQLI) averages literacy rate, infant mortality index, and life expectancy index.

Demographic dividend = economic growth potential from a large working-age population with fewer dependents.

High population growth can outpace food, housing, schooling, and health infrastructure, lowering per capita availability.

Women's education and employment are strongly associated with lower fertility and improved child health.

Kerala's high literacy and low fertility illustrate the link between education and demographic change.

Poverty and rapid growth can form a cycle: large families strain resources, limiting education and income.

Sustainable development links population, resource use, and environmental carrying capacity.

Adolescence (WHO) spans ages 10-19; puberty is the period of sexual maturation beginning in this stage.

Secondary sexual characteristics in girls: breast development, widening hips, menarche; in boys: voice deepening, facial hair, growth spurt.

Menstruation is the monthly shedding of the uterine lining; the menstrual cycle averages about 28 days but varies normally.

Nutritional needs rise in adolescence: iron (to prevent anaemia), calcium, protein, and iodine are critical.

Anaemia is common in adolescent girls; iron-folic acid supplementation and iron-rich foods reduce risk.

Reproductive health means physical, mental, and social well-being in all matters relating to the reproductive system.

Adolescent Friendly Health Clinics (RKSK) and the Rashtriya Kishor Swasthya Karyakram provide youth health services in India.

HIV spreads through unprotected sex, infected blood, and mother-to-child transmission; condoms reduce sexual transmission.

Substance abuse (tobacco, alcohol, drugs) harms adolescent health; the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act bans sale to minors.

Energy flow is unidirectional; nutrients cycle, so matter recycles while energy does not.

Decomposers (bacteria, fungi) break down dead organic matter and return nutrients to the soil.

Standing crop is the biomass present at a given time; it differs from productivity, which is the rate of biomass production.

Ecological niche = the functional role of a species; habitat = the physical place where it lives.

Limiting factors (light, water, temperature) restrict the growth of a population or ecosystem.

Trophic levels: producers (T1), primary consumers (T2), secondary consumers (T3), tertiary consumers (T4).

In an energy pyramid, each level holds roughly one-tenth of the energy of the level below it.

Forests provide timber, fuelwood, fodder, and ecosystem services such as carbon storage and watershed protection.

Groundwater depletion occurs when extraction exceeds recharge; rainwater harvesting and check dams restore it.

Biodiversity conservation is itself a resource-conservation strategy because species support ecosystem services.

Fossil fuels are non-renewable; shifting to solar, wind, and biogas reduces dependence on them.

Chipko movement (1973, Uttarakhand) and Narmada Bachao Andolan are Indian grassroots resource-protection movements (repeat).

Soil erosion is accelerated by deforestation, overgrazing, and unscientific cultivation on slopes.

Sustainable agriculture uses organic manure, crop rotation, and integrated pest management to protect soil and water.

Air Quality Index (AQI) categories in India: Good (0-50) to Severe (401-500); higher values mean worse air.

The Taj Mahal's yellowing is linked to SO2 and particulate pollution; the marble reacts with acidic gases.

Ozone at ground level is a harmful secondary pollutant; stratospheric ozone shields Earth from UV radiation.

Plastic pollution persists because plastics are non-biodegradable; microplastics enter food chains.

Solid waste management follows segregation at source, composting, recycling, and safe landfill disposal.

E-waste contains heavy metals (lead, mercury, cadmium) and requires authorised recycling.

The Montreal Protocol (1987) phases out ozone-depleting substances such as CFCs and halons.

The Kyoto Protocol (1997) and Paris Agreement (2015) address greenhouse gas emissions and climate change.

Keystone species have a disproportionately large effect on their ecosystem; removing them can cause collapse.

Flagship species (tiger, elephant, panda) are used to mobilise public support for conservation.

Endemic species occur only in one region; examples include the olive ridley turtle nesting at Gahirmatha, Odisha (repeat).

CITES regulates international trade in endangered species.

The Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 provides legal protection; Project Tiger (1973) and Project Elephant (1992) are flagship schemes (repeat).

In-situ conservation keeps species in their habitat: national parks, wildlife sanctuaries, biosphere reserves, sacred groves (repeat).

Ex-situ conservation moves species outside habitat: zoos, botanical gardens, seed banks, cryopreservation (repeat).

Ramsar sites are wetlands of international importance; Chilika Lake is a Ramsar site in Odisha.

Demographic transition stages: high birth-high death, high birth-falling death (rapid growth), falling birth-low death, low birth-low death (repeat).

Birth rate (crude) = live births per 1,000 population per year; death rate = deaths per 1,000 per year (repeat).

Natural increase = birth rate minus death rate; growth rate also includes net migration (repeat).

Doubling time is roughly 70 divided by the annual percentage growth rate (rule of 70) (repeat).

Total Fertility Rate (TFR) = average children a woman would bear; replacement level is about 2.1 (repeat).

Sex ratio = females per 1,000 males; India's census reports this measure (repeat).

Population pyramid shape indicates structure: broad base = high fertility; narrow base = ageing population (repeat).

Dependency ratio = (population under 15 plus over 64) divided by working-age population (15-64), often expressed per 100 (repeat).

Census in India is conducted every 10 years; the 2011 Census recorded a population of about 1.21 billion (repeat).

Quality of life indicators include life expectancy, literacy, infant mortality, per capita income, and access to health care (repeat).

Human Development Index (HDI) combines life expectancy, education (mean and expected years of schooling), and GNI per capita (repeat).

Physical Quality of Life Index (PQLI) averages literacy rate, infant mortality index, and life expectancy index (repeat).

Demographic dividend = economic growth potential from a large working-age population with fewer dependents (repeat).

High population growth can outpace food, housing, schooling, and health infrastructure, lowering per capita availability (repeat).

Women's education and employment are strongly associated with lower fertility and improved child health (repeat).

Kerala's high literacy and low fertility illustrate the link between education and demographic change (repeat).

Poverty and rapid growth can form a cycle: large families strain resources, limiting education and income (repeat).

Sustainable development links population, resource use, and environmental carrying capacity (repeat).

Adolescence (WHO) spans ages 10-19; puberty is the period of sexual maturation beginning in this stage (repeat).

Secondary sexual characteristics in girls: breast development, widening hips, menarche; in boys: voice deepening, facial hair, growth spurt (repeat).

Menstruation is the monthly shedding of the uterine lining; the menstrual cycle averages about 28 days but varies normally (repeat).

Nutritional needs rise in adolescence: iron (to prevent anaemia), calcium, protein, and iodine are critical (repeat).

Anaemia is common in adolescent girls; iron-folic acid supplementation and iron-rich foods reduce risk (repeat).

Reproductive health means physical, mental, and social well-being in all matters relating to the reproductive system (repeat).

Adolescent Friendly Health Clinics (RKSK) and the Rashtriya Kishor Swasthya Karyakram provide youth health services in India (repeat).

HIV spreads through unprotected sex, infected blood, and mother-to-child transmission; condoms reduce sexual transmission (repeat).

Substance abuse (tobacco, alcohol, drugs) harms adolescent health; the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act bans sale to minors (repeat).