Final answer:
Environmental biology studies ecosystems, focusing on biotic and abiotic factors and their interdependence. Concepts such as population, community, biome, and biosphere are key in understanding how living things interact with their environment and the impact of human activities.
Step-by-step explanation:
The discussion of interconnected living organisms and their environments relates to the study of ecosystems in environmental biology. An ecosystem includes all biotic factors, such as plants, animals, and microorganisms, interacting with the abiotic factors in their environment, including water, sunlight, soil, and more. The concept of interdependence of living things is central to this study, emphasizing how species rely on each other and their physical surroundings for survival, food, and shelter. For instance, crops like rice serve as food for humans and habitat for various animals, impacting both our health and the balance of local wildlife populations.
Organisms living together in a specific area are termed a population, and multiple populations create a community. Collectively, communities and their nonliving environment make up an ecosystem. Biomes are larger areas with similar ecosystems and physical environments, and the biosphere is the global sum of all ecosystems. Human activities, such as agriculture or resource extraction, can modify these natural systems, illustrating the reciprocal relationship between humans and nature.