What does the word ecology mean? It was 1 by Ernst Haeckel, a German biologist. He joined two Greek words: oikos, meaning "house," and logie, meaning "the study of". Together they mean "the study of the house." The "house" Haeckel had in mind is our 2, Earth. Earth is home for all living things—humans, animals, plants, and even tiny microbes.
To study a house is to learn how its residents (居民)use it. An ecologist is a scientist who studies the 3 between organisms (生物) and their environment. The environment is an organism's surroundings. It may 4 water, gases, rocks, and temperature.
Ecologists also study the balance of using the environment while protecting it.
An ecologist once asked a boy 5 he thought it meant to protect the environment.
The boy said, "You go into the forest and look for somebody who wants to cut down a tree. You take away his axe. You tell him about how 6 trees are. You say they are good for natural beauty, saving soil, and giving shelter to birds and other animals. "
"Good answer," said the ecologist, "7 it may not be easy to find a woodcutter to talk to. Also, remember that sometimes it's 8 to cut down a tree. If we cut down too many trees, the forest will disappear. If we don't cut down any trees, we won't get any resources from the forest. We have to find the right 9. "
"I get it," the boy said. "We need the forest's 10 for wood and paper or we might not have desks or notebooks for school."
"Exactly—and school is a good place to learn about ecology," added the ecologist. "Then you will know how to protect the natural environment."
