The Delicate Balance, Part 1: Technology is Not Always the Answer
The Biosphere 2 experiment attempted to create a human engineered self sustaining environmental system. The experiment served to illustrate how little is understood about the workings of our natural ecosystems services.
Ecology: Biosphere 2: The Mechanics of a Closed System
Biosphere 2 was built as a living laboratory to help explain how humans interact with the earth's systems and gauge their impact on the environment. The structure, located in the Arizona desert, relies on huge inputs of energy, sophisticated electro...
Ecology: Biosphere 2: A Laboratory for Studying the Future
While Biosphere 2's efforts to duplicate earth's complex ecological systems were unattainable, this scaled-down model is ideal for studying the effects of man on ecosystems. It is possible, for instance, to elevate carbon dioxide to the levels predi...
Ecology: Biosphere 2: Studying Extinction First-hand
The accidental introduction of a common greenhouse ant into Biosphere 2 resulted in the loss of their pollinators. The impact of the loss was felt immediately in the miniature biosphere. The size of the earth and the redundancies that exist in the s...
Ecology: Biosphere 2: The Effects of El Nino
When an El Niño event occurred during the two year Biosphere experiment, it created surprising and unforeseen problems with food production. The unusually cloudy and rainy conditions resulted in drastically reduced crop yields. Many scientists beli...
Ecology: Biosphere 2: Elevated Carbon Dioxide Levels
By overstocking the soil with organics, an excess of carbon dioxide production was created in Biosphere 2. The elevated levels of carbon dioxide affected the pH of the ocean water and the growth and productivity rates of plants. The greenhouse gases...
Biosphere II
Paul Ehrlich, best known for his work on population growth, talks about Biosphere II and efforts to use technology to substitute for natural ecosystems (which he says are the most important part of our environment).