📌 Key Concept: Ecosystems are like a bustling marketplace where living things and their surroundings come together to exchange energy and resources. Imagine it's like a giant supermarket, but instead of humans and groceries, it's plants, animals, and their environment!

• What? Ecosystem = Living things + Abiotic environment
• Example: Think of a forest 🌲. The trees, birds, insects, and the sunlight, rainfall, and soil they interact with form its ecosystem.

• They're social creatures! 🐢+🌱=🤗
• Need to interact with others for
  • Energy (like food)
  • Chemical resources (building blocks for life)

Example: A lion 🦁 might hunt a zebra 🦓 for food (energy) and to get nutrients (chemical resources).

• System: Set of parts working together (like a car engine or your smartphone!)
• Two Main Types
  • Open Systems
    • Can exchange energy AND matter with surroundings.
    • Example: Think of a coffee shop ☕ with a constant stream of people coming in and out, bringing energy (money) and taking away coffee (matter).
  • Closed Systems
    • Only energy is exchanged; matter stays inside.
    • Example: Imagine a solar-powered calculator 🌞🔢. It uses energy from the sun but doesn't give away or take in any material.