ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE

EXAM REVIEW

WHAT IS THE TRAGEDY OF THE COMMONS?

PEOPLE WILL ALWAYS OPT FOR THE IMMEDIATE BENEFITWE WILL ALWAYS ADD ONE TOO MANY SHEEP TO THE FIELD, DESTROYING THE COMMONSCOMMON RESOURCES ARE NEVER SHARED FAIRLY AND EQUITABLY

WHAT IS THE FIRST LAW OF THERMODYNAMICS?

• ENERGY CANNOT BE CREATED OR DESTROYED, ONLY CONVERTED FROM ONE FORM TO ANOTHER

WHAT IS DEMOGRAPHY?

• STUDY OF HUMAN POPULATION

WHAT IS NATURAL SELECTION?

• INDIVIDUALS WHOSE VARIATION GIVES THEM AN ADVANTAGE IN STAYING ALIVE LONG ENOUGH TO REPRODUCE ARE MORE LIKELY TO PASS ON THEIR TRAITS TO THE NEXT GENERATION

WHO IS CHARLES DARWIN?

• GALAPAGOS• HMS BEAGLE• NATURAL SELECTION

WHAT IS DDT?

• IS FAT SOLUBLE• BIOACCUMULATES• BIOMAGNIFICATION• DAMAGED BIRDS’ IMMUNE SYSTEMS AND

WEAKENED THE EGG SHELLS

WHAT IS PRIMARY SUCCESSION?

• LICHEN→MOSSES → GRASSES → SHRUBS → TREES• OCCURS SLOWLY

WHAT IS WATER?

• HIGH HEAT CAPACITY• TAKES A LONG TIME TO HEAT UP AND A LONG

TIME TO COOL DOWN• AFFECTS CLIMATE• EXPLAINS WHY TOWNS NEAR BEACHES ARE

WARMER IN THE WINTER AND COOLER IN THE SUMMER

WHAT ARE ESTUARIES?

• CONTAINS PLANTS AND ANIMALS THAT ARE ADAPTED TO VARYING SALINITIES

• ARE NURSERY/BREEDING GROUNDS FOR MANY SPECIES

• AQUATIC ECOSYSTEMS WHERE FRESH AND SALT WATER MEET

• BAYS, HARBORS, LAGOONS, SOUNDS

WHAT IS HOW OLD IS THE EARTH?

• 4.5 BILLION YEARS OLD

WHAT IS THE EQUATOR?

• AIR RISES• RAINS OFTEN• RECEIVES MOST DIRECT SUNLIGHT• DOLDRUMS• 0 ⁰ LATITUDE

WHAT IS THE EARTH’S TILT?

•23.5⁰•RESPONSIBLE FOR THE

SEASONS

WHAT ARE BEHAVIORAL ADAPTATIONS?

• FLYING SOUTH• HIBERNATING• GROWLING• A SQUID SQUIRTING INK

WHAT IS THE RAINFOREST?

• LOTS OF TREES• FEW NUTRIENTS IN THE SOIL• LOTS OF RAIN• HOT AND HUMID

WHAT IS SUSTAINABILITY?

• ABILITY OF EARTH’S SYSTEMS TO SURVIVE AND ADAPT TO CHANGING ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS

• SOCIETY THAT MANAGES ITS ECONOMY AND POPULATION SIZE WITHOUT DOING IRREPARABLE DAMAGE TO THE ENVIRONMENT

WHAT ARE RENEWABLE RESOURCES?

• WIND• HYDROELECTRIC• TIDAL• SOLAR• BIOMASS• HYDROGEN

WHAT RELEASES CO2 WHEN BURNED?

NATURAL GASCOALBIOMASSOILOIL SHALETAR SANDSGEOTHERMAL

WHAT ARE WETLANDS?

• Provide habitats for plants, insects and birds• Are one of most productive ecosystems• Are spawning zones for fish, nesting areas for

birds• Trap carbon (vegetation)• Filter pollutants and fertilizers before they

reach the water table• Control flooding• Produce food such as cranberries, blueberries

WHAT ARE FOSSIL FUELS?

• PRODUCES LOTS OF ENERGY PER UNIT• RELEASES CO2 GASES

• COAL, OIL AND NATURAL GAS• HARMFUL TO THE ENVIRONMENT• Supplies 85% of world’s electric needs

WHAT ARE DISADVANTAGES OF WIND POWER?

• THE WINDS IN MOST REGIONS ARE NOT STRONG/CONSISTENT ENOUGH

• BIRDS CAN FLY INTO BLADES• NOT ALWAYS ATTRACTIVE TO VIEW

WHAT IS COMMENSALISM?

• RELATION BETWEEN 2 DIFFERENT SPECIES WHERE ONE BENEFITS AND THE OTHER IS UNHARMED

• SHARK AND REMORA

WHAT ARE BENTHIC ORGANISMS?

• OYSTERS• CLAMS• STARFISH• LOBSTER• SPONGES

WHAT IS GEOTHERMAL ENERGY?

• CONSIDERED A RENEWABLE ENERGY SOURCE• AVAILABLE IN ONLY A FEW LOCATIONS• INDIVIDUAL SOURCES CAN BE DEPLETED

QUICKLY• HEAT FROM THE EARTH

WHAT IS CLIMATE?

• TEMPERATURE AND PRECIPITATION

WHAT IS BIOMASS?

• MAIN ENERGY SOURCE IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES

• ORGANIC MATTER• USED TO PROVIDE HEAT FOR COOKING AND

HEATING

WHAT ARE STRUCTURAL ADAPTATIONS?

• WINGS• WEBBED FEET• LONG NECK• CLAWS

WHAT ARE DENSITY-DEPENDENT FACTORS?

• PREDATION• DISEASE• COMPETITION• PARASITISM

WHAT ARE THE MOST POPULATED COUNTRIES?

• UNITED STATES• CHINA• INDIA

WHAT IS THE BIOSPHERE?

• AREA ON EARTH WHERE ALL LIFE EXISTS

WHAT ARE REASONS FOR THE DECLINE OF THE WOLVES ON

ISLE ROYALE?• LACK OF GENETIC DIVERSITY• VIRUS• LOW POPULATION NUMBERS

WHAT IS, WHERE IS THE GREATEST POPULATION

GROWTH?

• DEVELOPING NATIONS• AFRICA

WHAT IS THE RAINSHADOW EFFECT?

• MOUNTAINS• MORE RAIN ON THE WINDWARD SIDE• CREATES DESERTS ON THE LEEWARD SIDE OF

MOUNTAINS

WHAT ARE INVASIVE SPECIES?

• DISPLACE NATIVE SPECIES• DECREASE BIODIVERSITY• HAVE NO NATURAL PREDATORS• ARE GENERALISTS• KUDZU• CANE TOAD, ASIAN CARP

WHAT IS PHOTOSYNTHESIS?

• CO2 + 6H20 + SUNLIGHT → C6H12O6 + 6O2

WHAT IS, WHY THE WORLD’S POPULATION INCREASES?

• INCREASED SANITATION• INCREASED EDUCATION• DECREASED DEATH RATE• BETTER MEDICAL CARE

WHAT IS AN AGE STRUCTURE DIAGRAM/PYRAMID/HISTOGRAM?

• SHOWS THE % OF MALES AND FEMALES AT CERTAIN AGES

• CAN PREDICT WHERE A POPULATION AGE WILL GROW

WHAT IS CARRYING CAPACITY?

• THE MAXIMUM NUMBER OF ORGANISMS OF A PARTICULAR SPECIES THAT CAN BE SUPPORTED BY THE ENVIRONMENT

WHAT IS COMMUNITY?

• GROUPS OF DIFFERENT SPECIES THAT LIVE TOGETHER

WHAT ARE ABIOTIC FACTORS IN AN ECOSYSTEM?

• AIR• NUTRIENTS• ROCKS• WATER• TEMPERATURE• RAINFALL• WIND

WHAT IS A NICHE?

• THE ROLE OR JOB AN ORGANISM PLAYS IN THE ENVIRONMENT

WHAT ARE REASONS WOMEN HAVE LESS CHILDREN?

• MORE EDUCATION• JOBS• BETTER MEDICAL/SANITARY CONDITIONS• BIRTH CONTROL AVAILABLE• LOWER INFANT MORTALITY RATE

WHAT IS PARASITISM?

• RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN 2 SPECIES IN WHICH ONE BENEFITS AND THE OTHER IS HARMED

• MISTLETOE AND TREE• TAPEWORM AND DOG• TICK AND DEER

WHAT IS HOW NITROGEN ENTERS THE ATOMOSPHERE?

• FROM PLANT FERTILIZERS• RELEASED FROM BURNING FOSSIL FUELS• DECOMPOSERS BREAK DOWN WASTES

WHAT IS THE PYRAMID OF NUMBERS?

• PRODUCERS ON THE BOTTOM• FEWER CONSUMERS THAN PRODUCERS• BIOMASS DECREASES AS YOU GO UP

WHAT IS SECONDARY SUCCESSION?

• SOIL IS ALREADY PRESENT• ABANDONED FARMS• FOREST FIRES• FLOODS

WHAT IS THE AMOUNT OF ENERGY TRANSFERRED FROM ONE ENERGY

LEVEL TO THE NEXT?

• 10%• RULE OF 10

WHAT IS THE PEPPERED MOTH?

• A CHANGE IN THE ENVIRONMENT CAN AFFECT EVOLUTION

• COLORS CHANGED FROM WHITE TO BLACK• NATURAL SELECTION• LICHEN• INDUSTRY

WHAT IS THE SUN?

• ENERGY SOURCE FOR THE FOOD CHAIN• GETS ITS ENERGY BY FUSION

WHAT IS COEVOLUTION?

• THE CARIBBEAN SNAIL AND CRAB • THE BAT AND MOTH

WHAT IS A POPULATION?

• A GROUP OF THE SAME SPECIES LIVING TOGETHER

• A PRIDE OF LIONS• A SCHOOL OF FISH• A FIELD OF DAISIES

WHAT IS SOLAR ENERGY?

• RENEWABLE ENERGY• PASSIVE AND ACTIVE• HOUSES FACE SOUTH• HAS MUCH POTENTIAL BUT MANY

LIMITATIONS

WHAT IS AN LED LIGHT?

• ENERGY SAVING LIGHT BULB• RUNS COOL• LASTS A LONG TIME

WHAT IS USES THE MOST ENERGY IN OUR KITCHEN?

• REFRIGERATOR

WHAT IS, WHAT DO WE USE MOST OF OUR HOME ENERGY

FOR?

• HEATING AND COOLING

WHAT ARE PRAIRIES?

• TEMPERATE GRASSLANDS• WINDY• RAPID EVAPORATION• FIRES IN SUMMER AND FALL• TREE GROWTH HINDERED

WHAT IS HYDROGEN ENERGY?

• PRODUCES WATER AS A BYPRODUCT• CLEAN ENERGY• NOT A PRACTICAL SOURCE OF ENERGY YET• RUNS BUSES IN ICELAND

WHAT IS HYDROELECTRIC POWER?

• DAMS• EXPENSIVE TO BUILD• DESTROYS THE ECOSYSTEM• CREATES RESERVOIRS• CREATE ELECTRICITY

WHAT IS HOW GEORGIANS GET THEIR ELECTRICITY?

• FOSSIL FUELS• HYDROELECTRIC• NUCLEAR

WHAT IS CARBON?

• RELEASED FROM THE BURNING OF FOSSIL FUELS

• STORED IN ALL LIVING TISSUE• FORMS CARBON DIOXIDE WHICH IS A

GREENHOUSE GAS• LEVEL IS INCREASING IN THE ATMOSPHERE

WHAT IS NUCLEAR ENERGY?

• EXPENSIVE• A NONRENABLE RESOURCE• PRODUCES LOTS OF ENERGY• CONTROLLED CHAIN REACTION• VERY HAZARDOUS WASTE WITH NO WHERE

TO STORE• DOES NO RELEASE CO2 GAS

WHAT IS A CFL?(COMPACT FLUORESCENT

LIGHT)• ENERGY EFFICIENT LIGHT• LASTS LONGER THAN STANDARD LIGHT BULBS• A 75 WATT STANDARD BULB EQUALS THIS 20

WATT BULB• MORE EXPENSIVE• CONTAINS MERCURY

WHAT IS A GENERATOR?

• CONVERTS MECHANICAL ENERGY INTO ELECTRICITY

WHAT IS LICHEN?

• AN ALGAE AND A FUNGUS• A MUTALISTIC RELATIONSHIP

WHAT IS EUTROPHIC?

• A LAKE WITH LOTS OF NUTRIENTS• HAPPENS NATURALLY • PROCESS CAN BE SPED UP BY MAN DUMPING

NITRATES AND PHOSPHATES INTO THE WATER

• CAN CAUSE ALGAL BLOOMS

WHAT ARE LIMITING FACTORS?

• FACTORS THAT LIMIT THE GROWTH, ABUNDANCE OR DISTRIBUTION A POPULATION

• ABIOTIC FACTORS• NUTRIENTS, SUNLIGHT, SPACE, WATER,

RESOURCES

WHAT IS THE DECIDUOUS FOREST?

• VERY DIVERSE COMMUNITY OF ORGANISMS• TREES SHED LEAVES IN THE WINTER• LOCATED IN MODERATE CLIMATES• BIOME WHERE WE LIVE

WHAT ARE DESERTS?

• LITTLE RAIN• ADAPTATIONS TO SAVE WATER• VERY FRAGILE ECOSYSTEM• SLOW PLANT GROWTH• LOW SPECIES DIVERSITY• SLOW NUTRIENT CYCLING (LITTLE BACTERIA

IN THE SOIL)• SOILS TAKE HUNDREDS OF YEARS TO

RECOVER

WHAT ARE WAYS HUMANS AFFECT THE ENVIRONMENT?

• DEFORESTATION• POPULATION GROWTH• URBANIZATION• POLLUTION

WHAT IS EXPONENTIAL GROWTH?

• ESTARTS SLOWLY, THEN RAPIDLY INCREASES• OCCURS WHEN ALL RESOURCES ARE

AVAILABLE• IS NOT SUSTAINABLE• THE J CURVE

WHAT IS MUTUALISM?

• 2 DIFFERENT SPECIES HELP EACH OTHER OUT• ALGAE AND FUNGUS• POLYPS AND BACTERIA• OXPECKER AND RHINO