Sandbox

An open system exchanges matter and energy with its surroundings (for example, an ecosystem). A closed system exchanges energy but not matter; the “Biosphere II” experiment was an attempt to model this. Strictly, closed systems do not occur naturally on Earth, but all the global cycles of matter, for example, the water and nitrogen cycles, approximate to closed systems. An isolated system exchanges neither matter nor energy. No such systems exist (with the possible exception of the entire cosmos).||
 * 1.1.1||Outline the concept and characteristics of systems.||The emphasis will be on ecosystems but some mention should be made of economic, social and value systems.||
 * 1.1.2||Apply the systems concept on range of scales.||The range must include a small-scale local ecosystem, a large ecosystem such as a biome, and Gaia as an example of a global ecosystem.||
 * 1.1.3||Define the terms open system, closed system and isolated system.||These terms should be applied when characterizing real systems.