Nitrogen Cycle 9.1.4

Nitrogen Cycle, not carbon 9.1.4
Notebook Page 90

By Tara Welsh

Compare and Contrast

​Match them up!

​nitrate


nitrogen cycle


protein


chlorophyll


decompser



nutrient

​an organism that breaks down dead matter


the process that moves nitrogen between living things and the environment

a compound containing nitrogen that plants can use


a pigment in plants that absorbs energy from sunlight


a substance that plants use nitrogen to build

a substance that helps an organism to grow and survive

​Let's Recall:

• ​Plants perform photosynthesis to convert carbon dioxide into glucose.

• Eukaryotes perform cellular respiration, which changes the carbon found in glucose into carbon dioxide.

• Combustion releases carbon dioxide from fossil fuels as they burn.

​The nitrogen cycle is the process that moves nitrogen atoms between living and nonliving parts of an ecosystem. Plants take a form of nitrogen from the soil and use it to build molecules. That nitrogen passes through the food chain as organisms consume the plants.

​Notebook Page 90

​Take Notes!

Multiple Choice

Which gas makes up the majority of Earth's atmosphere?

• Nitrogen
• Oxygen
• Carbon Dioxide
• Helium

​Living things need nitrogen to build proteins, DNA, and chlorophyll. Nitrogen gas, N₂, is the most common gas in Earth's atmosphere.


However, organisms cannot use nitrogen gas. During the nitrogen cycle, chemical reactions rearrange the nitrogen atoms to form nitrate.


Nitrate is a compound containing nitrogen that plants can use.


A protein is a substance that plants use this nitrogen to build, and that is important for living things to survive. 

​Nitrogen Fixation: Video Time!

​Edio page 3

Multiple Choice

What converts nitrogen gas in the atmosphere into a form that living things can use?

• Ozone
• Ammonia
• Nitrogen-fixing bacteria
• Nitrogen dioxide

​Back to Edio page 4

Nitrogen Cycle Interactive!

​https://qsp.myedio.com/interactive-library/preview/c0fccc34-3539-4899-82a7-c257790fd1af

Hotspot

Examine the diagram of the nitrogen cycle below. Which arrows represent decomposition?

Multiple Choice

What components of the nitrogen cycle perform nitrogen fixation?

• Nitrogen-recycling plants
• Nitrogen-fixing bacteria

• Nitrogen-reducing algae
• Nitrogen-absorbing fungi

Multiple Choice

What role do decomposers, such as fungi, play in the nitrogen cycle?

• Decomposers release nitrogen gas into the atmosphere.
• Decomposers convert ammonium into organic nitrogen for plants.
• Decomposers store nitrogen in their bodies for later use.
• Decomposers convert organic nitrogen into ammonium, facilitating its return to the soil for plant uptake.

Multiple Choice

The diagram below shows uptake in the nitrogen cycle. Which of the following events occur during uptake?

• Animals release nitrogen compounds into the soil.
• Bacteria convert nitrogen gas into ammonia.
• Fungi decompose organic matter into nitrogen gas.
• Plants absorb nitrogen compounds from the soil.

Nitrogen cycle Storyboard by 0411b761

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​Wrap it Up!

• ​the nitrogen cycle moves nitrogen between living and nonliving parts of an ecosystem

• nitrogen fixation changes nitrogen into a form that living things can use;

• plants take up nitrate during uptake and use the nitrogen to build proteins; and

• decomposition breaks down dead matter and returns nitrogen to the soil and the atmosphere.