TCAP Study Guide

1. TCAP Study Guide Cameron Montgomery

2. Life Science • Producer -  Producers are organisms that use the Sun's energy to make their own food. Green plants are producers. They make their own food using energy from the Sun in a process called photosynthesis. Other producers include algae and some kinds of bacteria and protists

3. Life science • Consumer -  Consumers are organisms that gain energy by eating producers and/or other consumers. Primary consumers are organisms that feed off of producers. Herbivores are primary consumers. For example, a deer that eats grass is a primary consumer. Secondary consumers are organisms that eat primary consumers. Carnivores are secondary consumers. A wolf that kills and eats a deer is a secondary consumer. Next come tertiary consumers, then quaternary consumers, and so forth until the top carnivore is reached. Omnivores can be both primary and secondary consumers because they are animals that eat both plants and other animals. A raccoon is an example of an omnivore because its diet includes fruit, nuts, insects, and fish.

4. Universe: Moon Phases • New Moon - The phase that results when the Moon is on the same side of the Earth as the Sun. During New Moon, the entire lighted surface of the Moon is facing away from the Earth. Therefore, the Moon is invisible from the Earth. • Crescent Moon - A Crescent Moon looks less than half full, but not completely dark.

5. Moon Phases • Quarter Moon - A quarter Moon is when half of the side of the Moon facing Earth is lighted and the other half is dark. There are two quarter moon phases in a cycle. Gibbous Moon - A gibbous Moon looks more than half full, but not completely full.

6. Moon Phases • Full Moon - The phase that results when the Moon is on the opposite side of the Earth as the Sun. During the Full Moon, the entire lighted surface of the Moon is facing the Earth. Therefore, the Moon appears brightest on Earth during this phase.

7. Eclipses • There are two types of eclipses involving the Sun and Moon: solar eclipses and lunar eclipses. A lunar eclipse occurs at full moon, when the Moon moves through the Earth's shadow. A solar eclipse occurs at new moon, when the Moon moves directly between the Earth and the Sun.

8. Eclipses • A lunar eclipse occurs at full moon, when the Moon moves through the Earth's shadow. A solar eclipse occurs at new moon, when the Moon moves directly between the Earth and the Sun. • During a lunar eclipse, light from the Sun is kept from reaching the Moon because it is blocked by the Earth.

9. Atmosphere and Climate : Water Cycle • The water cycle is the process by which water moves from the Earth’s surface into the air, and back down to the Earth again. The cycle’s steps reflect water’s transformation among the solid, liquid, and gas forms. The steps of the water cycle are evaporation, transpiration, condensation, precipitation, infiltration (soaking into the ground), and surface runoff.

10. Water Cycle • The Sun's heat provides energy to convert water from a liquid into a gas. This step is called evaporation. Water evaporates from the Earth's surface (oceans, lakes, etc.) and enters the atmosphere. Plants also lose water to the air (this is called transpiration).

11. Water Cycle • The gas form of water is sometimes called water vapor. Water vapor in the atmosphere eventually cools and once again becomes liquid. In this step, called condensation, tiny water droplets are formed inside clouds. The water droplets grow until they become too large and heavy to be contained by the clouds. The heavy droplets then fall to Earth as liquid precipitation—such as rain—or solid, frozen precipitation—such as sleet, snow, or hail.

12. Water Cycle • Some of the precipitated water soaks into the ground. This water may become trapped between rock or clay layers; this is called groundwater. However, most of the water flows downhill as runoff, eventually returning to the ocean.

13. Climate • Weather and climate are both ways of looking at weather conditions. Weather looks at short-term conditions and describes conditions in a certain place at a certain time. Climate, on the other hand, looks at long-term weather patterns and describes the weather that is usual for a certain area. For example, saying that today was warm and sunny is describing the weather. Saying that conditions in summer are normally warm and sunny is describing the climate.

14. Climate • The climate of an area is defined based on the weather patterns of the area. Some of the major types of climate and their weather patterns are listed below. • •Polar climates have cold temperatures and snow throughout the year. • •Desert climates have very little rainfall throughout the year. • •Temperate climates have moderate rainfall and moderate temperatures, and both remain about the same throughout the year. • •Tropical climates have moderate to high temperatures throughout the year. Tropical climates also have a wet season and a dry season.

15. Climate • A polar climate has continually cold temperatures and usually a lot of snow and ice. Species that can survive for long periods without water, such as cacti, are well-suited for the desert climate. Seattle, Washington has a temperate climate with moderate temperatures and rain year-round. A tropical climate will have a yearly wet season.

16. Forms of Energy • Energy is the ability to do work. Energy comes in many different forms, including: • •chemical energy • •heat energy • •light energy

17. ChemicalEnergy • Chemical energy is the energy of a compound that changes as its atoms are rearranged to form a new compound. It is a type of potential energy, or stored energy. Chemical energy is present in several situations of energy transfer, such as: chemical energy in fuels (coal, wood) is converted to heat and light energy when the fuel is burned

18. Chemical Energy • chemical energy in batteries is converted to electrical energy to power various objects, such as a flashlight. chemical energy in food is converted to several forms of energy (heat, etc.) when digested by an organismchemical energy in food is converted to several forms of energy (heat, etc.) when digested by an organism..

19. Heat Energy • Heat energy is thermal energy that is transferred from warmer objects to colder objects. Heat energy can be produced from matter that undergoes a chemical change or from another form of energy. • Examples of heat energy include:

20. Heat Energy • when wood or other fuels are burned to produce heat • when electric energy is converted to heat in appliances • hair dryer • toaster Geothermal energy is energy that is produced by heat stored in the Earth, or the combination of absorbed heat from underground, the atmosphere, and the oceans.

21. Light Energy • Light energy is a type of wave energy, which is transferred and produced by other types of energy. Light energy can also come from the Sun, which is referred to as solar energy. • Light energy can be changed from (and to) other energy types, such as:

22. Light Energy when electrical energy causes a lightbulb to light up when light energy is absorbed by plants and transformed into chemical energy (food)

23. Sources of Heat and Light Energy • Sources of light are often also producers of heat. For instance, light bulbs are made to produce light. But when they are switched on, they become very hot. This is why it is important not to touch a light bulb that has recently been lit. The Sun is Earth's main source of light. But it also produces most of the heat on Earth's surface and in the atmosphere. You can feel the Sun's heat on your skin when the light strikes you.

24. Sources of Heat and Light Energy • Fire also produces both light and heat. In fact, fire is commonly used to produce both. We use it for light when we burn candles. We use it for heat when we make fires in the fireplace.

25. Light Travels in Straight Lines • Light is a form of energy. Light travels in waves. Light waves travel in straight lines away from the light source until they strike something. Then, the light waves can be absorbed, reflected, or refracted.

26. Light • Reflection • Reflection occurs when the light waves bounce off an object. In reflection, the light waves will bounce off a flat surface at the same angle as they struck. A mirror is an example of a surface that reflects light.

27. Light • Refraction • Refraction is often referred to as the bending of light where two different materials touch. We most often see this property as light moves between air and water. The light is traveling at a certain speed, but when it makes contact with the water, the light waves are forced to slow down. This causes the object that the light is hitting, like a flower stem in water, to appear to be bent or broken.

28. Light • Absorption occurs when the light is not reflected. The color black is a great example of something that absorbs light. Black does not reflect any colors of light; it absorbs them all. The colors that our eyes are able to see result from objects' reflection and absorption of light.

29. Light • Objects can be classified as opaque, transparent, or translucent. Opaque objects, like a wood door, absorb or reflect all light, so you cannot see through them. ◦Translucent materials, like a frosted glass window, diffuse light, allowing only some light to pass through making image details unclear.

30. Light • ◦Transparent objects, including car windshields, allow light to clearly pass through, so you can see the details of objects on the other side.