Microenvironment
Encyclopedia
Microenvironment carries different meanings depending on the context.
- Medical: a small or relatively small usually distinctly specialized and effectively isolated habitatHabitat* Habitat , a place where a species lives and grows*Human habitat, a place where humans live, work or play** Space habitat, a space station intended as a permanent settlement...
or environmentEnvironment (biophysical)The biophysical environment is the combined modeling of the physical environment and the biological life forms within the environment, and includes all variables, parameters as well as conditions and modes inside the Earth's biosphere. The biophysical environment can be divided into two categories:...
(as of a nerve cell) - Science: The environment of a very small, specific area, distinguished from its immediate surroundings by such factors as the amount of incident light, the degree of moistureMoistureHumidity is the amount of moisture the air can hold before it rains. Moisture refers to the presence of a liquid, especially water, often in trace amounts...
, and the range of temperatureTemperatureTemperature is a physical property of matter that quantitatively expresses the common notions of hot and cold. Objects of low temperature are cold, while various degrees of higher temperatures are referred to as warm or hot...
s. The side of a tree that is shaded from sunlight is a microenvironment that typically supports a somewhat different community of organismOrganismIn biology, an organism is any contiguous living system . In at least some form, all organisms are capable of response to stimuli, reproduction, growth and development, and maintenance of homoeostasis as a stable whole.An organism may either be unicellular or, as in the case of humans, comprise...
s than is found on the side that receives regular light. Also called microhabitat. - Business: Factors or elements in an organization's immediate area of operations that affect its performance and decision makingDecision makingDecision making can be regarded as the mental processes resulting in the selection of a course of action among several alternative scenarios. Every decision making process produces a final choice. The output can be an action or an opinion of choice.- Overview :Human performance in decision terms...
freedom. These factors include competitors, customerCustomerA customer is usually used to refer to a current or potential buyer or user of the products of an individual or organization, called the supplier, seller, or vendor. This is typically through purchasing or renting goods or services...
s, distribution channels, suppliers, and the general public.