QUESTION 1
What is a carbon footprint?
A record of human migrations across the planet
A measure of the impact of human activities on the environment
A record of human evolution through time
Pollution that is left behind by deceased human settlements
QUESTION 2
The ‘tragedy of the commons' is a reference to:
Loss of biodiversity
Global warming
The misuse of private space
Overuse of publicly accessible resources
QUESTION 3
How does ‘carrying capacity' relate to environmental sociology?
The maximum average human body size over time
The maximum amount of all life forms that can be sustained in a specific environment
The minimum number of humans that live in a specific environment
The relationship between climate and human population migration
QUESTION 4
Cyanobacteria are able to obtain and use (fix) what element from the atmosphere?
Oxygen
Sulfur
Phosphorous
Nitrogen
QUESTION 5
Harmful algal blooms (HABs) are most common in what parts of a lake?
Around islands
In the middle
Near river outflows
Along the bottom
QUESTION 6
Which algae was responsible for the Lake Erie harmful algal bloom (HAB) causing our recent Toledo Water Crisis?
Microcystis
Anabaena
Lyngbya
Aphanizomenon
QUESTION 7
What is the term for a nutrient that is scarce in the environment and consequently controls biological growth?
Limiting nutrient
Micronutrient
Delimiting nutrient
Macronutrient
QUESTION 8
A proposed explanation for an event that can be tested is a:
Scientific Laws
Hypothesis
Scientific method
Scientific Theory
QUESTION 9
A generally accepted, thoroughly tested explanation for a set of observations is a:
Scientific Theory
Hypothesis
Scientific method
Scientific Law
QUESTION 10
A constant relationship that describes how the universe works is a:
Scientific method
Scientific Law
Scientific Theory
Hypothesis
QUESTION 11
What is a particle that has no charge and resides in the nucleus of an atom?
Isotope
Neutron
Electron
Proton
QUESTION 12
Water molecules stick to each other due to what weak form of chemical bond?
Covalent Bond
Hydrogen Bond
Ionic Bond
QUESTION 13
What is the measure of a solution's acidity or alkalinity?
pH
Electrical charge
Dissolved oxygen
Atomic mass
QUESTION 14
What are the 118 substances that cannot be broken down or transformed chemically into other substances?
Molecules
Organisms
Compounds
Elements
QUESTION 15
What sort of energy is stored within an object suspended above the ground?
Magnetic energy
Potential energy
Chemical energy
Kinetic energy
QUESTION 16
Polar molecules:
Are arranged with their component atoms in a ring.
Share protons between their component atoms.
Are cold.
Have a negative charge on one end and positive charge on the other end.
QUESTION 17
What number represents neutral pH?
9.0
5.0
7.0
14.0
QUESTION 18
What are the different forms of the same element with varying numbers of neutrons?
Protons
Electrons
Neutrons
Isotopes
QUESTION 19
What term describes how fast a radioactive element decays?
Radiation
Atomic Number
Half-life
Biogeography
QUESTION 20
What charge will an atom have that has lost an electron?
No charge
Positive
Negative
QUESTION 21
Which biome is a hot, tropical grassland with scattered trees?
Tundra
Desert
Savanna
Boreal forest
QUESTION 22
What element are trees in the Boreal forest adapted to conserve?
Nitrogen
Phosphorus
Magnesium
Carbon
QUESTION 23
Deserts are often located down-wind side of what landscape feature?
Mountain ranges
Canyons
Lakes
Forests
QUESTION 24
What environmental factors are normally used to distinguish between locations of biomes?
Hours of daylight and biodiversity
Soils and topography
Temperature and precipitation
Plants and animals
QUESTION 25
Which of the following is an adaptation to living in a desert?
Shallow root systems
Large, flat leaves
Being active during the day
Seeds that can lie dormant for long periods
QUESTION 26
Which of the following statements is true about biodiversity?
The age of an ecosystem can be an indicator of biodiversity
We know why biodiversity increases at lower latitudes
There are few species left on Earth to discover
Biodiversity is evenly distributed across the planet
QUESTION 27
How long have people been breeding crops from wild ancestors to create varieties with useful characteristics (yield, size, taste)?
This is a recent trend known as GMOs, which began less than 25 years ago
This process began as soon as America was ‘discovered' in the late 1400s
Humans began manipulating their crops as long as 10,000 years ago
This process accelerated during the Industrial Revolution (early 1900s)
QUESTION 28
Toxins produced by plants to deter insect grazers and parasites are often used by humans as:
Fertilizer
Paper
Medicine
Plastics
QUESTION 29
Which of these environmental factors promotes species development?
Temporal stability
Climatic stability
All answers are drivers
Habitat heterogeneity
QUESTION 30
What is an endemic species?
A robust group of organisms that dominate an ecosystem
A broad group of pollinating insects
A species native to only one area
A species dying from an unknown disease
QUESTION 31
What is the cause of recent declines in both amphibians and bats?
Loss of habitat due to urban sprawl
The introduction of exotic pet snakes that ate them
The unintentional introduction of fungal diseases
The intentional introduction of farm animals
QUESTION 32
What percentage of the timber imported by the United States is potentially illegally harvested?
50%
1%
10%
75%
QUESTION 33
Which of the following statements is TRUE about extinction?
Extinction occurs when speciation rates increase rapidly
The only one was 65 million years ago when the dinosaurs died
Plants, but not animals, have been known to recover from extinction
Extinctions of most existing species has occurred roughly five times
QUESTION 34
What percentage of river lengths in the United States have been modified through damming and bank modification?
10%
50%
20%
90%
QUESTION 35
How were zebra mussels originally introduced to the Great Lakes?
Ship ballast water
Intentional release
Hull fouling
Aquarium industry
QUESTION 36
What is the relationship between two species in which one species benefits from the interaction whereas the other species neither benefits nor is harmed?
Commensalism
Parasitism
Mutualism
Advantagism
QUESTION 37
What is a byproduct of photosynthesis?
ATP
Nitrogen
Oxygen
Carbon dioxide
QUESTION 38
What is the relationship between two species in which one onganism feeds off another organism without immediately killing it?
Mutualism
Commensalism
Advantagism
Parasitism
QUESTION 39
What is the relationship between two species in which both species benefit from their interactions?
Advantagism
Commensalism
Mutualism
Parasitism
QUESTION 40
Which of the following are primary consumers?
Phytoplankton
Herbivores
Autotrophs
Carnivores