Environmental
Science Practice Test
1)Political boundaries do not always match
environmental boundaries. What does this
mean for environmental protection in each country?
2)The local physical properties of the
troposphere result in ________.
3)When excessive nutrient concentrations give
rise to population explosions of toxic algae, a harmful ________ may
occur.
4)How did the
5)What is the value of biodiversity to
humanity?
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word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
6)Rule or guideline that directs individual,
organizational, or societal behavior
Page Ref:
A)
B)
National
Environmental Policy Act
policy
7)Define the term greenhouse gas. List four
greenhouse gases that are anthropogenically produced
and contribute to climate change.
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word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
8)An individual layer of soil A) horizon
Page Ref:
B)O-horizon
9)When the TFR drops below 2.1, the size of the
population will shrink, in the absence of immigration.
10)All of the land from which water drains into the river is
called a ________.
11)Maintaining large herds of cattle can contribute to climate
change.
12)Define and give examples of potential energy and kinetic
energy.
13)Ants are K-strategists.
14)Human activity has affected every aspect of the nitrogen
cycle. List the ways that humans have
altered nitrogen starting with where nitrogen comes from, where it goes, and
what it affects.
15)The innate reproductive capacity of a species is its
________.
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word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
16)The study of how we decide to use resources to provide
goods and services in the face of demand for them A)
B)
economics
centrally planned economies
Page Ref:
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
17)Flow of cold deep water toward the surface A) downwelling
Page Ref: B)
upwelling
18)Define water pollution, point source, and non-point source
pollution. Which of the two (point
source or non-point source) is easier to identify? Which is easier to
legislate? Which currently poses the
greatest threat to freshwater?
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word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
19)Information expressed with numbers A) quantitative data
Page Ref:
B)qualitative data
20)A(n) ________ is a fundamental type of matter, a chemical
substance with a given set of properties, which cannot be broken down into
substances with other properties.
21)The
22)What components does E.O. Wilson include in his definition
of biodiversity?
23)Paleontologists estimate that roughly 99% of all species
that have ever lived are already extinct.
24)Acute exposure to chemical agents is more difficult to
detect than chronic exposure.
25)________ informs consumers which brands use processes
believed to be environmentally beneficial and which brands do not.
26)How is the precautionary principle used in environmental
health?
27)Using the environmental properties discussed in this
chapter (atmosphere, ocean currents, pollutants), give specific examples of why
protecting the environment often requires international legislation.
28)Define the term tragedy of the commons.
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word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
29)The lower layer of the atmosphere directly above the planet
A) troposphere
Page Ref: B) tropopause
30)Deserts are not always hot; temperatures can vary widely
across days and across seasons of the year.
31)Describe four ways that neoclassical economics contributes
to environmental problems.
32)To date, no scientific studies have been conducted on the
environmental and health effects of GM crops.
33)Describe the sixth mass extinction event, when it occurred,
and the specific causes.
34)How did we increase food production during the 1960s?
35)Why is too much plant growth because of eutrophication
in a freshwater system a problem?
36)The process by which new species are generated is
________.
37)Why is variety in crop plants important for "food
security"? How is this threatened
by GM food crops?
38)Differentiate between primary and secondary pollutants.
Give examples of each.
39)Airborne transport of pesticides, ________ ________, can
cause long distance transport of pesticides if pesticides are applied on windy
days.
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word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
40)The connections that human beings subconsciously seek with
the rest of life
Page Ref:
A)
B)
biocentric
biophilia
41)Differentiate between the first and second laws of
thermodynamics. What does the second law
mean for living organisms?
42)Briefly, what was the lesson of the farmers featured in the
central case, "No-till Agriculture in
43)Any solid or liquid particles small enough to be carried
aloft are pollutants grouped as
________.
44)Define the term environmental problem. Give an example of an environmental
problem. Why does the perception of what
is an environmental problem differ from time to time and country to
country? Give an example of how the
perception of an environmental problem may have changed.
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word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
45)The variable that is manipulated A) independent variable
Page Ref:
B)dependent variable
46)Endemic species face relatively high risks of
extinction.
47)Why is it important to understand our interactions with the
environment? What will studying environmental science enable you to do?
48)The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency defines ________
as the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people with respect to
the development, implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws,
regulations, and policies.
49)What is the role of an environmental impact statement
(EIS), who is required to prepare it, and what agency is in charge of the
document?
50)Write the equation used to determine the growth rate or net
change in a population size.
51)Toxicants, such as organic compounds, may build up within
an animal, in a process termed ________.
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word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
52)Circular air current with warm air rising to be replaced by
cold air descending
Page Ref:
A)
B)
water vapor
convection current
53)Most ecosystems are limited by nitrogen as phosphorus is
weathered from rock at relatively high rates.
54)What was the lesson of
55)Historically, the
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word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
56)All photosynthetic organisms are ________. A) transpiration
Page Ref: B) heterotrophs
57)The process by which water moves from lakes or ponds to the
atmosphere C) evaporation
Page Ref: D) autotrophs
58)The impact of humans on the environment differs among
countries. Define ecological footprint,
and differentiate between the ecological footprint of a developing country and
the
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word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
59)A pocket of relatively cold air occurring near the ground
with warmer air above it
Page Ref:
A)
B)
stratosphere
thermal inversion
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word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
60)A positively charged particle A) electron
Page Ref:
B)proton
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word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
61)Specific environment in which an organism lives A) habitat
Page Ref: B)
niche
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word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
62)An area that supports an especially great diversity of
species A) hotspot
Page Ref: B) ecocentric
63)Climax communities are transient, constantly relocating
regardless of the stability of an environment.
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word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
64)Differences in DNA composition among individuals within a
given species
Page Ref:
A)
B)
genetic diversity
keystone species
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word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
65)Predominant greenhouse gas produced by fossil fuels A)
nitrogen dioxide
Page Ref: B) carbon dioxide
66)The field of ________ involves the study of good and bad,
of right and wrong.
67)A concept called ________ has been used to manage fish by
allowing maximal harvests of particular populations while keeping fish
available for the future
68)There is no relationship between population growth rate and
per-capita national income.
69)________ is the complex plant-supporting system consisting
of disintegrated rock, organic matter, air, water, nutrients, and
microorganisms.
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word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
70)The process by which one plant fertilizes another one of
its own species
Page Ref:
A)
B)
pollination
deposition
71)What does it mean that we are "fishing down the food
chain"?
72)Discuss the steps of environmental policy and give examples
of how each is achieved.
73)Briefly, what is the cause of the sixth mass extinction
event, and why is it a cause for concern?
74)Briefly describe speciation. How does allopatric
speciation occur?
75)Discuss the three major eras of environmental law in the
76)What is the value of genetic diversity for species?
77)Citizens that are involved with trying to change an elected
official's mind are engaged in ________.
78)Coal use in the
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word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
79)Highly-prized and protected top predator species, such as
tigers, that incidentally provide other animals, plants, and fungi with
protected habitats A)
B)
species
umbrella species
Page Ref:
80)The process of science, called the ________, is used to
develop new information in scientific fields.
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word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
81)Ranks in a feeding hierarchy are ________. A) energy steps
Page Ref: B)
tropic levels
82)List the properties that determine the rate of degradation
of toxicants.
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word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
83)Numerical expression of the likelihood that a conclusion is
true A) correlation
Page Ref: B)
probability
84)What is a marine protected area?
85)Mutations are always detrimental to the survival of an
organism.
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word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
86)The loss of species from the planet A) extinction
Page Ref:
B)extirpation
87)Originally economists believed, as Adam Smith suggested, that
the marketplace would behave as if guided by an invisible hand that ensured
their actions would benefit society as a whole.
88)The majority of outdoor pollution comes from natural
sources.
89)List the three most important factors determining
climate. Briefly describe the role of
each.
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word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
90)The total fertility rate that keeps the size of a
population stable A) replacement fertility
Page Ref: B)
age structure
91)What is a demographic transition? What are its four
stages? State why each stage is
important and what the consequence is for population growth. Do all countries go through the demographic
transition?
92)International law known as ________ arises from conventions
or treaties that nations agree to enter into.
93)Explain the relationship between the size of the human
population and carrying capacity. How
does the carrying capacity as it applies to humans differ from its application
to organisms that exist in natural ecosystems?
94)Most species extinction preceding the appearance of humans
occurred one by one, at a rate that paleontologists refer to as the
________.
95)Data collected in an experiment can be used to support but
not prove a hypothesis.
96)Define succession.
97)Rachel Carson's 1962 book Silent Spring brought the
pesticide ________ to the attention of the public.
98)Discuss the role of the Energy Star Program in energy
conservation.
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word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
99)An atom that gains or looses and electron A) precipitation
Page Ref: B)
organelles
100)Water returns to Earth's surface as ________. C) ion
Page Ref: D) prokaryotes
101)What is genetic engineering? Why has the use of genetically engineered
crops become a major focus of scientific research and political debate?
Describe the arguments on each side of the scientific and political debates.
102)What are ecosystem goods and ecosystem services? Give several examples of each. What are nonmarket
values? Discuss how economists go about calculating these values.
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word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
103)The degree of harm a substance can inflict A) toxicity
Page Ref: B)
chronic
104)Explain how dose-response curves are developed and used to
evaluate the effects of toxicants on human populations.
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word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
105)Movement of individuals into a population A) emigration
Page Ref: B)
immigration
106)Nutrients move though the environment in cycles called
nutrient cycles, or ________ cycles.
107)Describe the contribution of Aldo Leopold to our
understanding of humankind's link to the environment.
108)________ have been nicknamed the fourth branch of the
government.
109)What factors determine whether a population of humans
grows, shrinks, or remains stable?
110)Soils that are not inverted by plowing for agriculture are
said to be ________ farming systems.
111)What three factors contribute to the "dead zone"
in the waters off the
112)Increases in species diversity result from the process of
________ and decreases through ________.
113)The term ________ refers to the capture of animals not
meant to be caught.
114)The artificial provision of water to support agriculture is
known as ________.
115)All of the valuable processes that intact ecosystems
provide for us free of charge are known as ________.
116)Globally, the rate of population growth is still
increasing.
117)How have declines in fisheries been masked in recent
years?
118)Humans have generated significant quantities of ________,
harmful materials added to the atmosphere that can affect climate and/or damage
organisms.
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word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
119)The world's largest aquifer is the A) Okabogee
aquifer
Page Ref:
B)Ogallala aquifer
120)Less than 25% of the world's people live on less than $2.00
per day.
121)Differentiate between exponential and logistic growth
curves. Give examples of the conditions
under which each would occur.
122)Ignoring human alterations to the landscape, what causes
floods and what is their value ecologically?
123)What are external costs? Give examples.
124)Discuss the objectives and success of the Montreal Protocol.
125)Environmentalism is a scientific approach to understanding
environmental problems.
126)What is biological diversity? Does it include specifically just
organisms?
127)The process of nutrient enrichment, increased production of
organic matter, and subsequent ecosystem degradation is known as ________.
128)The cross-section of soil as a whole, from the surface to
the bedrock, is known as a ________.
129)Describe the use of biological control for battling
pests.
130)The sum total of our surroundings, the ________ is impacted
by living and nonliving things.
131)What are the basic concepts identified by the equilibrium
theory of island biogeography? How do they apply to terrestrial
ecosystems?
132)List the three major trophic
levels in a food web. What types of organisms are found in each level? Where are the autotrophs
and heterotrophs found? List the three levels in terms of importance
in an ecosystem and why.
133)What is habitat selection, and how does it differ for
different organisms?
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word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
134)A group of populations of organisms that live in the same
place at the same time
Page Ref:
A)
B)
community
weight pyramid
135)Into the mid-20th century it was common for coastal cities
in the
136)Differentiate between heterotroph
and autotroph.
Give an example of each.
137)Parasites that live outside their hosts are called
________.
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word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
138)Number of individuals within a population per unit area A)
population density
Page Ref: B) population size
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word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
139)Any obstruction placed in a river or stream to block flow
A) dam
Page Ref: B)
benthic
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word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
140)Maximum population size that a given environment can
sustain A) carrying capacity
Page Ref: B)
pre-industrial stage
141)An increase in Earth's average surface temperature is
referred to as ________.
142)How can agricultural irrigation practices be altered to
decrease loss of freshwater?
143)In developing countries, access to contraception decreases
reproductive rates.
144)Automatic dishwashers use more water than washing dishes by
hand.
145)Briefly, what is the consequence of unequal distribution of
human populations?
146)Today almost 800 million people in developing countries do
not have enough to eat.
147)Fossil fuels actually represent fossil organisms.
148)What are endocrine disruptors? What event led the scientific community and
public to first appreciate that endocrine disruption could be altering the
hormones of animals? What roles do
hormones play and why is the interruption of hormones by endocrine disruption a
problem for humans and other organisms?
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word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
149)A measure of the density of suspended particles in a water
supply A) hard water
Page Ref: B)
turbidity
150)The stratospheric ozone layer is important for reducing the
amount of UV radiation hitting the surface of the planet.
151)What two events caused human population size to
increase? Describe each, briefly
explaining the contributions that each made to human population growth
including pros and cons of each.
152)What was the cause of the distortion in the sex ratio in
153)In economics how are future effects discounted and what
danger is associated with this idea?
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word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
154)A social system that converts resources into goods A)
capitalist market economy
Page Ref: B)
economy
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word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
155)Average number of children born per female member of
population over her lifetime.
Page Ref:
A)
B)
total fertility rate
mortality rate
156)List the steps of the scientific method and describe each
briefly. Which steps are important to
repeat? Why is this method important?
157)What was the green revolution? What practices were involved? What impact did
it have on yield of food crops in developing countries? Discuss the impact of
the green revolution on the environment.
158)The EPA reported that only 6% of Americans lived in
counties where any one of the major pollutantscarbon
monoxide, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, ozone, particulate matter, and leadreached unhealthy levels.
159)The systematic process for learning about the world and
testing our understanding of it is called ________.
160)Prior to the 1960's environmental problems were handled
with lawsuits rather than legislation.
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word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
161)Average number of years that a person can expect to live
from birth A) population density
Page Ref: B)
life expectancy
162)Explain how biomagnification
occurs.
163)Total fertility rate drops have been most noticeable in
countries where women have gained access to ________ and ________.
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word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
164)Smallest components of an element that maintain the
chemical properties of that element
Page Ref:
A)
B)
atoms
isotopes
165)The best-known technological approach to increasing water
supply by generating freshwater is ________, the removal of salt from
seawater.
166)What are limiting factors and how do they determine the
carrying capacity of a species? Is a carrying capacity a fixed entity?
167)Discuss the impacts that humans are having on the ocean
ecosystems.
168)What remedies can be found for indoor pollution? Compare solutions for developed and
developing countries.
169)Environmental problems were first discussed in the first
century.
170)Discuss the difference between a manipulative experiment
and a natural experiment.
171)The basic unit of organization in living organisms is the
________.
172)What determines which biome covers any particular portion
of the planet?
173)The
174)The study and practice of ________assesses environmental
factors that influence human health and quality of life.
175)How does indoor pollution in developing countries differ
from indoor pollution in developed countries?
176)A branching diagram or ________ can be used to illustrate a
scientists' hypothesis as to how speciation took place.
177)Only 25% of the people on our planet use biological
resources directly in traditional medicine.
178)Does environmental protection positively or negatively
affect economics? How is the economist's
view of the environment changing?
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word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
179)Green house gas produced within the digestive tract of
cattle A) relative humidity
Page Ref: B)
methane
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word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
180)Chemicals that cause harm to unborn young inside a mother's
body are called
Page Ref:
A)
B)
teratogens
mutagens
181)Some threats to human health are unavoidable because they
are wholly natural and part of the natural environment.
182)What is the relationship between correlation and causation
in scientific experimentation?
183)Marketable
emissions permits can be bought, sold, and traded among polluters allowing
industry to manage who is allowed to pollute.
184)Define the terms pest and weed. Why are these definitions
subjective?
185)One in 10 people in the developing world is infected with
intestinal worms, a waterborne pathogen.
186)What is the Endangered Species Act? Describe two of its successes and explain
some of the current controversies surrounding it.
187)What is a subsidy?
Describe the role of subsidies in natural resource management.
188)What lesson can be learned from the case of the Siberian
Tiger in
189)The number of people facing water scarcity is expected to
grow to at least 2.4 billion by 2025.
190)Environmental scientists attempting to estimate human
carrying capacity have arrived at wildly differing numbers. What are these estimates, and why are they so
dramatically different describe the factors that influenced
these estimates.
191)Diversity generally increases as one approaches the
equator. This pattern of variation is referred to as a ________.
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word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
192)An organism that transfers a pathogen to a host A) vector
Page Ref: B) tumerous
193)An ecocentrist would view
economics as the most important determinant in making environmental
legislation.
194)What is the basic concept of sustainable agriculture?
195)List the six pollutants that are closely tracked by the
U.S. EPA.
196)What are epidemiological studies, and what is their
value?
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word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
197)Water with high concentrations of calcium and magnesium
irons A) soft water
Page Ref: B)
hard water
198)What steps are involved with assessing risk for a chemical
substance?
199)What is the lesson learned from the Monteverde
rain forest?
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200)Stage of declining death rates due to high food production
and medical care
Page Ref:
A)
B)
post-industrial stage
transitional stage
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201)A human-centered view of our relationship with the
environment A) ecocentric
Page Ref: B)
anthropocentric
202)List three methods currently used by scientists to study
climate change.
203)Sixty-one percent of
204)What is the origin of energy for most living organisms, and
what is the process by which organisms, such as plants, get it?
205)What is
206)Give a brief overview of the carbon cycle. Include the source of carbon that enters
ecosystems, how it moves through ecosystems, and where it is ultimately
deposited. What part of this cycle is
believed to contribute to global warming?
207)________ are the periodic rising and falling of the ocean's
height at a given location due to the gravitational pull of the moon.
208)When water is used for agricultural irrigation and is not
returned to the aquifer or surface water body that it was drawn on, this is
________ use.
209)Compare and contrast feedback loops. Give an example of each and how common each
is in natural systems.
210)Food-growing practices that use no synthetic fertilizers,
insecticides, fungicides, or herbicides but instead rely on biological
approaches, such as composting and biocontrol, are
termed ________.
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word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
211)Toxicants
that cause cancer A) carcinogens
Page Ref:
B)antigens
212)International efforts to restrict CFC production finally
bore fruit in 1987 with the ________, a treaty signed by over 180 nations.
213)Describe two ways that salt can be removed from
seawater.
214)A ________ is a widely accepted, well-tested explanation of
one or more cause-and-effect relationship that has been rigorously tested.
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215)Specific rules based on more broadly written law passed by
Congress A) treaties
Page Ref: B)
regulation
216)The environmental impact of an individual or of a
population can be expressed in terms of a(n) ________.
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word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
217)An organism that contains DNA from another species A)
profile
Page Ref: B)
transgenic
218)The process in which material is removed from one place and
transported to another by wind and water. C)
D)
waterlogging
erosion
Page Ref:
219)What is an adaptive trait?
220)How have artificially produced chemicals played a role in
giving us the standard of living we enjoy today?
221)Feeding the world's population under the constraints of
current land-use patterns means that we must increase the efficiency with which
we produce food rather than the amount of land we farm.
222)What is the spatial relationship between the distribution
of water and people?
223)Briefly describe the processes of photosynthesis and
cellular respiration. Which of these
processes are performed by autotrophs and which by heterotrophs?
224)Using the
Three Gorges Dam on China's Yangtze River as an example, what are the benefits
and costs associated with building dams?
225)Radon is a highly toxic radioactive gas that is introduced
into homes by use of electrical power generated by nuclear power plants.
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word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
226)Porous, spongelike layers of
rock, sand, or gravel that are capable of holding water
Page Ref:
A)
B)
aqueduct
aquifer
227)Describe the
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word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
228)High exposure to a chemical over a short period of time A)
acute
Page Ref: B)
degree
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229)Stabilizes a population at its carrying capacity A)
environmental resistance
Page Ref: B)
exponential growth
230)Extinction is a relatively new phenomenon as it only
results from impacts of humans on natural species.
231)Synthetic pesticides have been found in high concentrations
in uninhabited polar regions.
232)What is risk assessment?
What is the role of federal agencies in assessing risk? Explain how risk management combines science
and other social factors.
233)The application of population ecology principles to the
study of statistical change in human populations is the focus of the social
science of ________ .
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word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
234)The generation of new species A) species diversity
Page Ref:
B)speciation
235)Today,
policymakers face the challenge of producing an adequate, reliable, and
available food supply to all people at all times. This is a goal of ________.
236)The departure of individuals from a population is called
________.
237)How did contaminants impact reproduction in alligators in
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238)Alternating bands of different types of vegetation planted
across a slope A) strip-cropping
Page Ref: B)
aquaculture
239)How are the fields of ecology and economics related in
their origin?
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word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
240)Specific statements that can be directly and unequivocally
tested A) prediction
Page Ref: B)
hypothesis
241)Describe the formula that is used to represent the total
impact of humans on the environment. The
model in question results from the interaction of three factors. What are the three factors? Which of the three factors increase
environmental impact and which decrease environmental impact by humans? What is
the fourth factor that could be added to this formula?
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on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
242)The oldest type of survival economy A) subsistence economy
Page Ref:
B)steady-state economy
243)What specific population characteristics do demographers
study?
244)A(n)
________ occurs when an ancestral species gives rise to many species that fill
empty niches, and each species adapts to its niche by natural selection.
245)There are only 50 naturally occurring elements.
246)What factors result in the biome-like patterns of specific
aquatic systems?
247)Differentiate between renewable and nonrenewable natural
resources. Give examples of each.
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word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
248)Early environmental laws that gave federal government the
right to manage
Page Ref:
A)
B)
General Land
Ordinances
Western Merit
Law
249)Differentiate between the approaches of Pinchot
and Muir in protection of the environment.
Which is more practical considering the population growth of the last
century?
250)Is extinction natural?
Briefly, how has the extinction rate changed over the history of
Earth? Why are extinction rates today
different from in the past?
251)Relationships between organisms that live in close physical
contract with one another are called ________.
252)The World Commission on Water in 1999 concluded that over
half of the world's major rivers are depleted and polluted.
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
253)Lands used for grazing livestock A) shelterbelts
Page Ref:
B)rangeland
254)________
is a scientific discipline devoted to understanding the factors, forces, and
processes that influence the loss, protection, and restoration of biological
diversity within and among ecosystems.
255)One of the landmark environmental events of the 1960s was
the publication of ________ by Rachel Carson.
256)The extremely low dissolved oxygen concentrations in the
"dead zone" represent a condition called ________.
257)Provide several reasons why our estimates of species
numbers are incomplete.
258)Why is environmental science an interdisciplinary
field?
259)Discuss the practices used by farmers to reduce the impacts
of conventional cultivation on soils.
260)The major causes of species loss spell
"HIPPO." What does each of
these letters represent?
261)A(n) ________ is an activity designed to test the validity
of a hypothesis; it involves manipulating ________ or conditions that can
change.
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
262)Marine habitats that occur between the ocean's surface and
floor A) littoral
Page Ref: B)
pelagic
263)Paleontologists calculate that the average time a species
spends on earth is
264)The largest source of anthropogenic greenhouse gas
production in the
265)The
266)The majority of the oil polluting our oceans is from large
spills.
267)What area does the field of environmental health cover?
Differentiate between indoor and outdoor environmental health issues. Give examples of each.
268)List the four types of macromolecules essential to
life. Briefly describe the structures of
each and give two roles.
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
269)The cumulative total of living things on Earth and the
areas living things inhabit
Page Ref:
A)
B)
population
biosphere
270)What concept has traditional fisheries management been
based on? What approach do scientists
think would improve current management techniques?
271)Differentiate between environmental science and
environmentalism. Define each term and
explain how they are similar and how they differ.
272)The practice of planting vast areas with a single type of
crop is known as ________ .
273)The term ________ describes a specific spot, such as a
factory's smokestacks, where large quantities of pollution are discharged.
274)The science that examines the effects of chemicals on
humans and wildlife, ________, has become increasingly important during the
past century.
1)Countries are often dependent on each other for
solving environmental problems, as in the case of pollution. Pollution that is a cause of concern for one
country may have originated in another country.
In such cases, international cooperation is required to correct the
problem.
2)weather
3)algal bloom or red tide
4)The federal water pollution acts of the
sixties and seventies was the first time that legislation was passed. Prior to that environmental problems had been
addressed with lawsuits. Problems that
came to national attention such as the burning of the Cuyahoga indicated that
such legislation was needed. The environmental
legislation passed at this time because there was evidence of environmental
problems, people could visualize policies to deal with the problems, and the
political climate was ripe for addressing problems and creating policy.
5)Students should include and expand on some of the
following concepts. Biodiversity provides valuable ecosystem services free of
charge. Biodiversity enhances food
security. Biodiversity provides traditional medicines and high-tech
pharmaceutical products. Biodiversity provides economic benefits through
tourism and recreation. People value and seek out connections with nature.
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
6)Rule or guideline that directs individual,
organizational, or societal behavior
Page Ref:
A)
B)
National
Environmental Policy Act
policy
7)Greenhouse gases effectively absorb infrared
radiation released by Earth's surface and later warm that surface by emitting
energy. Examples include carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide, methane, ozone,
etc.
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
8)An individual layer of soil A) horizon
Page Ref:
B)O-horizon
9)TRUE
10)watershed
11)TRUE
12)Potential energy is the energy of position, and kinetic
energy is the energy of motion. Water
behind a dam is potential energy that becomes kinetic energy when the dam
breaks and water is released.
13)FALSE
14)Students should discuss some of the following:
Historically, nitrogen fixation was a bottleneck, a step that limited the flow
of nitrogen through the environment.
But, the development of synthetic nitrogen-based fertilizers has allowed
us to fix nitrogen on a massive scale and accelerate its movement into other
reservoirs within the cycle. When we
burn forests and fields, we force nitrogen from the soil into the
atmosphere. Humans have spent a great
deal of money on producing and distributing nitrogen; doubled the amount of
nitrogen available for use by plants; and increased the amount of nitrogen that
makes its way into waterways, resulting in alterations to terrestrial community
composition and causing eutrophication in water
systems. We have also increased the
distribution of nitrogen into systems through pollution in the atmosphere that
comes down as rain.
15)biotic potential
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
16)The study of how we decide to use resources to provide
goods and services in the face of demand for them A)
B)
economics
centrally planned economies
Page Ref:
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
17)Flow of cold deep water toward the surface A) downwelling
Page Ref: B)
upwelling
18)The term "pollution" describes any matter or
energy released into the environment, whether from human activity or from
natural sources, that causes undesirable impacts on the health and well-being
of humans or other organisms. Water pollution can be emitted from point-sources
single locations such as a pipe from a
factory or can consist of non-point source
pollution, arising from multiple cumulative inputs over larger areas, such as
farms, city streets, and residential neighborhoods. Point sources are easy to
identify but sometimes difficult to regulate, especially if owners or
supporters of industrial plants lobby politicians to pressure agencies not to
enforce regulations. Non-point source pollution is difficult to pinpoint in
terms of source and presents a different type of societal challenge, requiring
public education and the willingness of citizens to change certain behaviors.
It is non-point source pollution that poses the greatest threat to water
quality in the
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
19)Information expressed with numbers A) quantitative data
Page Ref:
B)qualitative data
20)element
21)TRUE
22)E.O.
23)TRUE
24)FALSE
25)Ecolabeling
26)Substances, such as potential toxic substances, are assumed
to be harmful until shown to be harmless.
27)Global circulation patterns in atmosphere and ocean mean
that chemicals released into air or water are the problem of all nations, not
just those releasing the chemicals. Global treaties are necessary to solve
problems such as movement of carbon dioxide, CFCs, and acid rain across borders
of adjacent countries.
28)The idea that unregulated environments that offer limited
resources freely to the public are prone to degradation and resource
depletion.
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
29)The lower layer of the atmosphere directly above the planet
A) troposphere
Page Ref: B) tropopause
30)TRUE
31)There are four ways that neoclassical economics contributes
to environmental problems. First, the
idea that resources are infinite is a problem.
There is a belief that if we deplete a resource, it can be replenished
by something else. This is not always
the case. Second, long-term effects are
discounted. Only short-term effects are
estimated in costs, and long-term damage is less important, so the immediate
harvest and use of resources often looks more profitable. Third, the idea that costs and benefits are
internal to business transactions is not correct. There are externalities that affect the
environment and ultimately human health.
Lastly, neoclassical economies contribute to environmental problems by
promoting growth as good. The
traditional belief that growth is necessary for high employment and is key to maintaining social order is not good for the
environment but more importantly may not be good for economics either.
32)FALSE
33)Most biologists believe that the Earth is currently in the
throes of its sixth mass extinction event and we humans are the cause. The changes to Earth's environment by human
population growth, resource use, and development have greatly altered
conditions for many species, have driven many to extinction already, and are
threatening countless more. The
alteration and outright destruction of natural habitats, the hunting and
harvesting of species, and the introduction of
invasive species from one place to another have contributed to the threat to
Earth's biodiversity.
34)We
increased food production by devoting more energy to agriculture; planting and
harvesting more frequently; increasing the use of irrigation, fertilizer, and
pesticides; increasing the amount of agricultural land; and developing more
productive varieties.
35)Algae that grow too rapidly can cover the water's surface,
harming the deeper-water plants that depend on sunlight for survival.
36)speciation
37)Varieties contain genes that, through conventional
breeding, might confer resistance to disease, pests, inbreeding, and other
pressures that challenge modern agriculture.
Monocultures of industrial agriculture place all our eggs in one basket,
so that any single catastrophe could potentially wipe out multiple crops. Wild relatives contain genetic diversity that
may have ready-made solutions to unforeseen problems. There is concern that accidental
interbreeding of widespread commercial GM crops with local native crop
varieties could eliminate local variants.
38)Primary pollutants, such as soot and carbon monoxide, are
emitted into the troposphere in a form that is directly harmful to organisms
and the environment. Secondary
pollutants, such as photochemical smog and tropospheric
ozone, are hazardous substances that are produced through a reaction of
substances added to the atmosphere with chemicals normally found in the
atmosphere.
39)pesticide drift
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
40)The connections that human beings subconsciously seek with
the rest of life
Page Ref:
A)
B)
biocentric
biophilia
41)The first law of thermodynamics states that energy can
change from one form to another; it cannot be created or lost. The total energy in the universe remains
constant. The second law of
thermodynamics states that the nature of energy will change from a more ordered
state to a less ordered state. This
means that organisms must consume energy to maintain structure and keep entropy
at bay.
42)Eliminating plowing through zero-till farming reduces
erosion and allows the soil to better support crop production.
43)particulate matter
44)An environmental problem is an undesirable change in the
environment. An example would be decreased air quality caused by pollution in
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
45)The variable that is manipulated A) independent variable
Page Ref:
B)dependent variable
46)TRUE
47)We depend on the environment for air, water, food, shelter,
and everything else. We are capable of
modifying the environment whether we intend to or not. Understanding our
interactions with and impacts on the environment is the essential first step
towards devising solutions to environmental problems. Studying environmental science will give you
the tools to evaluate information on environmental changes and think critically
and creatively about possible actions to take in responding to those
changes.
48)environmental justice
49)An environmental impact statement is required for any major
federal action. It is a report of
results from detailed studies that assess potential effects on the environment
that would likely result from a development project or other action undertaken
by the government. The Council on
Environmental Quality is in charge of these documents.
50)Growth rate = (crude birth rate + immigration rate) -
(crude death rate+ emigration rate).
51)bioaccumulation
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
52)Circular air current with warm air rising to be replaced by
cold air descending
Page Ref:
A)
B)
water vapor
convection current
53)FALSE
54)Civilizations can crumble when population pressure
overwhelms resource availability.
55)TRUE
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
56)All photosynthetic organisms are ________. A) transpiration
Page Ref: B) heterotrophs
57)The process by which water moves from lakes or ponds to the
atmosphere C) evaporation
Page Ref: D) autotrophs
58)An ecological footprint is the cumulative amount of land
and water required to provide the raw materials the person or population
consumes and to dispose of or recycle the waste that is produced. The
ecological footprint of an average
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
59)A pocket of relatively cold air occurring near the ground
with warmer air above it
Page Ref:
A)
B)
stratosphere
thermal inversion
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
60)A positively charged particle A) electron
Page Ref:
B)proton
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
61)Specific environment in which an organism lives A) habitat
Page Ref: B)
niche
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
62)An area that supports an especially great diversity of
species A) hotspot
Page Ref: B) ecocentric
63)FALSE
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
64)Differences in DNA composition among individuals within a
given species
Page Ref:
A)
B)
genetic diversity
keystone species
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
65)Predominant greenhouse gas produced by fossil fuels A)
nitrogen dioxide
Page Ref: B) carbon dioxide
66)ethics
67)maximum sustainable yield
68)FALSE
69)soil
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
70)The process by which one plant fertilizes another one of
its own species
Page Ref:
A)
B)
pollination
deposition
71)It means that the size of fish declines with higher rates
of fishing and we are shifting from large, desirable species to smaller, less
desirable ones.
72)a. Identify problemcuriosity, observation, record
keeping, and awareness of our relationship with environment
b. Identify causefind
source of problem
c. Envision solutionwhat
changes might be required to eliminate problem
d. Get organizedorganizations
are better able to achieve law
e. Gain access to political processlobbying, campaign contributions and
revolving door all offer opportunities
f. Make lawprepare
the bill and introduce and pass through the House of Representatives and the
Senate
73)The sixth mass extinction event has been caused by human
alterations to landscapes. It is a cause
for concern because the current global extinction rate is more than 1,000 times
greater than it would have been without human destruction of habitat.
74)When
mutations occur in one population that are not passed to another population,
speciation can occur if gene flow becomes restricted permanently between the
two populations (i.e., they can no longer mate and produce fertile
offspring). If a physical boundary such
as a stream divides the two populations, restricting gene flow between them,
and a speciation event occurs, this is termed allopatric
speciation.
75)The first major era addressed public land management and
encouraged western expansion. The
Environmental policy reflected the public perception that western lands were
practically infinite, uninhabited, and their natural resources
inexhaustible.
The second era resulted from a change in the
perception and government policy towards natural resources as population
increases led to exploitation of natural resources. The end of this era saw the development of
the national park system aimed at earmarking pieces of land for public use.
The third era was a response to address
environmental pollution. Pollution
policy was driven by new evidence, such as that revealed in Rachel Carson's
Silent Spring and the burning of the
76)Species with more genetic diversity have better chances of
surviving, because their built-in variation better enables them to cope with
environmental change. Species with
little genetic diversity are vulnerable to environmental change for which they
are not genetically prepared. Species with depressed genetic diversity may also
be more vulnerable to disease, and may suffer the effects of inbreeding, which
occurs when parents that are too genetically similar mate and produce weak or
defective offspring.
77)lobbying
78)FALSE
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
79)Highly-prized and protected top predator species, such as
tigers, that incidentally provide other animals, plants, and fungi with
protected habitats A)
B)
species
umbrella species
Page Ref:
80)scientific method
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
81)Ranks in a feeding hierarchy are ________. A) energy steps
Page Ref: B)
tropic levels
82)Temperature, moisture, sun exposure, and chemistry of
toxicant
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
83)Numerical expression of the likelihood that a conclusion is
true A) correlation
Page Ref: B)
probability
84)It is a term to describe any portion of the ocean that is
protected from some human activities but may be open to others.
85)FALSE
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
86)The loss of species from the planet A) extinction
Page Ref:
B)extirpation
87)TRUE
88)TRUE
89)Sun creates light and warmth; atmosphere insulates the
planet; and oceans store and transport heat and moisture.
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
90)The total fertility rate that keeps the size of a
population stable A) replacement fertility
Page Ref: B)
age structure
91)A demographic transition is a theoretic model of economic
and cultural change proposed in the 1940s and 1950s to explain the declining
death rates and birth rates that occurred in Western nations as they
experienced industrialization.
The first stage is a stable pre-industrial
stage of high birth and death rates.
The second stage is a transitional stage
characterized by declining death rates due to increased food production and
improved medical care. Birth rates are
still high as citizens have not yet grown used to the new economic and social
conditions so there is a surge in population growth.
The third stage is the industrial stage. Widespread industrialization creates
opportunities for employment outside the home.
Children become less valuable.
Birth rates begin to fall.
The last stage is a stable post-industrial
stage of low birth and death rates.
All countries do not go through the
demographic transition. Transition may
be different in developing countries as they industrialize or in countries that
place greater value on childbirth or grant women fewer freedoms. Resources may also limit the ability to
attain an equal standard of living in all countries.
92)Conventional Law
93)Organisms in ecosystems are limited by carrying capacity,
which is the maximum population size that a given environment can sustain. Some believe that the idea of carrying capacity
doesn't apply to the human world because humans aren't passive with respect to
their environment. Human beings create
resources, find potential stuff, and human intelligence turns it into
resources. Environmental scientists
argue that not all resources are replaceable by others when depleted. The problem with human population growth is
that higher population sizes will decrease the quality of life.
94)background rate of extinction
95)TRUE
96)Succession is the regular, predictable, and quantifiable
changes in community composition over time.
97)DDT
98)The Energy Star Program promoting energy conservation was
started by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The program rates appliances for energy
efficiency, allowing consumers to buy more energy-efficient appliances.
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
99)An atom that gains or looses and electron A) precipitation
Page Ref: B)
organelles
100)Water returns to Earth's surface as ________. C) ion
Page Ref: D) prokaryotes
101)Genetic engineering is any process whereby scientists
directly manipulate genetic material in the lab by adding, deleting, or
changing segments of its DNA. The
proponents of GM crops stress that we have been influencing the genetic makeup
of our livestock and crop plants for thousands of years through artificial
selection. However, critics point out
that the new techniques differ from traditional breeding techniques because
they mix species, create species in the lab not the field, and deal with novel
gene combinations not possible in nature.
The political debate involves labeling and the individual's right to
know what is in the food they consume.
Industry has a large financial stake in seeing the continued use of GM
foods. Critics argue that we should
adopt the precautionary principle with GM foods.
102)Ecosystem goods are goods produced by ecosystems and
harvested by human populations including items such as wood and fur. Services are functions such as CO2 production
and water purification performed by the environment that keep humans
alive. Nonmarket
values are values that are not usually included in the price of a good or
service. They are an assessment of the
true costs and benefits of natural systems and reflect the ecosystem goods and
services that are not included in the price of an item. Nonmarket
values can be calculated by surveying people and asking them how much,
monetarily, a particular natural resource, or an ecosystem good or service, is
worth to them. Critics, however, find
that such surveying results in overestimation of the value of natural resources
to human populations, as the prices assigned to natural resource are often not
what individuals would be willing to pay.
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
103)The degree of harm a substance can inflict A) toxicity
Page Ref: B)
chronic
104)Dose-response
curves are produced by giving toxicants to lab animals or other human model
systems and measuring how much effect they produce at different doses. The data are plotted on a graph. Once data are plotted, scientists extrapolate
downward to estimate the effects of lower doses on a large population of animals. The numbers are then extrapolated to estimate
the effect on humans.
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
105)Movement of individuals into a population A) emigration
Page Ref: B) immigration
106)biogeochemical
107)Leopold enlarged the idea of community to include "the
land," encompassing soils, waters, plants, and animals.
108)Administrative agencies
109)Rates of birth, death, immigration, and emigration.
110)zero-till, no-till, zero-tillage
111)Invention of synthetic ammonia; modern Midwestern farm
practices; global nitrogen cycle thrown out of balance
112)speciation; extinction
113)by-catch
114)
irrigation
115)ecosystem services
116)FALSE
117)Fishermen have been traveling farther and fishing longer to
obtain the same number of fish.
Technological advances have also improved fishing efficiency.
118)air pollution
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
119)The world's largest aquifer is the A) Okabogee
aquifer
Page Ref:
B)Ogallala aquifer
120)FALSE
121)Exponential growth is growth when there are no
constraints. This occurs when a
population is small and environmental conditions are ideal for the organism in
question. Mold on a piece of bread or
bacteria colonizing a dead animal are examples.
Logistic growth rises sharply at first, and then begins to level off as
the effects of limiting factors become stronger. A population introduced into a new
environment where there are other organisms will reach limitations quickly, and
these limitations will limit the population growth.
122)Flooding
is a normal natural process during times of high water due to snowmelt or heavy
rain, and floodwaters carry nutritive sediments and spread them over large
areas of the floodplain.
123)External
costs involve the negative effects of economic activities, such as pollution
and human health problems, that are borne by people other than the buyer or
seller.
124)The
objectives of the Montreal Protocol were to alter use of CFCs as they were
contributing to a growing ozone hole that would increase the probabilities of
getting skin cancer. The world community
came together in 1987 to craft the Montreal Protocol, which has now been signed
by over 180 nations. In this convention, nations agreed to cut CFC production
in half. Today the production and use of ozone-depleting compounds has fallen
95% since the late 1980s, and scientists can discern the beginnings of
long-term recovery of the ozone layer.
For these reasons, the Montreal Protocol and its follow up amendments
are widely considered the most spectacular success story so far in addressing
any global environmental problem.
125)FALSE
126)It is the
sum total of all organisms in an area, taking into account the diversity of
species, their genes, their populations, and their communities.
127)eutrophication
128)soil profile
129)This strategy uses the natural enemies of crop pests rather
than chemicals to control pest densities.
An organism that eats a crop pest is released into a crop; the organism
then eats the crop pest, thereby decreasing the density of the crop pest
without chemicals.
130)environment
131)This theory was initially applied to oceanic islands to
explain how species come to be distributed among them. Since then, researchers
have increasingly applied the theory's tenets to other types of islands,
including terrestrial habitat islands.
Several patterns are apparent from the theory of island biogeography and
the real-life study of species on islands. One is that the number of species
increases with the size of the island. Larger islands possess more species in
part because more space allows for larger populations, and larger populations
are less vulnerable to extirpation and thus have longer expected species
survival times. Larger islands also present fatter targets for organisms to
encounter if they are wandering lost. Finally, larger islands also may possess
more habitats than smaller islands. The distance between an island and the
nearest continent also affects species number on the island. These patterns
hold up for terrestrial habitat islands, such as forests fragmented by logging
and road building. Small islands of forest lose their diversity fastest,
starting with those large species that were few in number to begin with. In a
landscape of fragmented habitat, species requiring the habitat will gradually
disappear from the landscape, winking out from one island after another over
time.
132)The three major trophic levels
are producer, consumer, and decomposer.
Producers include green plants and chemo- and photosynthetic
bacteria. All organisms in this level are
autotrophs.
The next level, consumers, includes herbivores as primary consumers and
carnivores as secondary and tertiary consumers.
All organisms at this level are heterotrophs. The final level includes the decomposers,
specifically all detritivores, and decomposing
bacteria, and fungi. These are all heterotrophs.
Producers are the most important as they provide the basis for
consumption of all other levels; the decomposers are next as they recycle
nutrients to the producers. The consumers
are the least important but do play an important role in speeding recycling to
the producers.
133)Habitat selection is when an organism selects a habitat to
live in from among the range of options they encounter. Criteria differ among organisms. For soil organisms, for example, chemistry
may be important, for a squirrel, tree density might be important.
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
134)A group of populations of organisms that live in the same
place at the same time
Page Ref:
A)
B)
community
weight pyramid
135)TRUE
136)Autotrophs are primary producers
that can produce their own source of energy (food). Heterotrophs are
organisms that consume other organisms to obtain their energy. Autotrophs include
plants and cyanobacteria. Heterotrophs
include fungi and animals.
137)ectoparasites
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
138)Number of individuals within a population per unit area A)
population density
Page Ref: B) population size
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
139)Any obstruction placed in a river or stream to block flow
A) dam
Page Ref: B)
benthic
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
140)Maximum population size that a given environment can
sustain A) carrying capacity
Page Ref: B)
pre-industrial stage
141)global warming
142)Students
should discuss some of the following: Farmers can use technology to improve
efficiency in a number of ways, including lining irrigation canals to prevent
leaks and leveling fields to minimize runoff. Furthermore, some methods of
applying irrigation water are more efficient than others. We can increase
irrigation efficiency by using low-pressure spray irrigation that sprays water
downward toward plants and by using drip irrigation systems that target
individual plants and introduce water directly onto the soil. Both methods
reduce the amount of water lost to evaporation and surface runoff. In addition,
choosing crops to match the land and climate in which they are being farmed can
save huge amounts of water. Presently, crops that require a great deal of water,
such as cotton, rice, and alfalfa, are often planted in hot and arid areas
where irrigation is government subsidized so that the true cost of water is not
part of the costs of growing the crop. Eliminating subsidies and growing crops
in climates that provide adequate rainfall could greatly reduce water use in
many parts of the world. In addition, the genetic modification of crops is
resulting in some varieties that require less water.
143)TRUE
144)FALSE
145)Certain areas bear far more environmental impact than
others.
146)TRUE
147)TRUE
148)Endocrine disruptors are toxicants that interfere with the
endocrine system. The 1996 publication
of the book Our Stolen Future first highlighted the impact of synthetic
chemicals on the hormones in animals.
Hormones are chemical messengers that travel through the body and
stimulate growth development sexual maturity, and regulate brain function,
appetite, sexual drive, and many other aspects of physiology and behavior. Hormone-disrupting toxicants can affect an
animal's system in various ways, including blocking the action of hormones or
accelerating their breakdown. The result
is change in growth or sexual function.
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
149)A measure of the density of suspended particles in a water
supply A) hard water
Page Ref: B)
turbidity
150)TRUE
151)Neolithic revolutiontransition
from hunter gatherer lifestyle to agricultural lifestyle.
Industrial revolutionshifts from rural life, animal-powered
agriculture, and manufacture by craftsmen to an urban society powered by fossil
fuels like coal and oil.
Students
should describe the benefits and problems associated with each revolution.
152)Many pregnant women were selectively aborting female
fetuses because of the value placed on male children.
153)In discounting, short-term costs and benefits are granted
more importance than long-term costs and benefits causing policy to play down
long-term consequences of decisions we make today.
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
154)A social system that converts resources into goods A)
capitalist market economy
Page Ref: B)
economy
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
155)Average number of children born per female member of
population over her lifetime.
Page Ref:
A)
B)
total fertility rate
mortality rate
156)Make
Observations Ask questions Develop hypotheses Make predictions Test predictions
Analyze and interpret results Students should offer a one-sentence descriptions
of these tasks. All steps are important to repeat. The scientific method is a
systematic approach to gathering information about and testing our
understanding of the world.
157)The green revolution was an intensification of the changes
brought by the industrialization of agriculture, a change in agricultural
practices that dramatically increased the crops per acre of farmland between
1950 and the 21st century. New practices
involved devoting large areas of identical crops specially bred for high yields
and rapid growth; heavy use of pesticides, fertilizers, and irrigation water;
and sowing and harvesting on the same piece of land more than once per year or
once per season. In developing
countries, this greatly increased agricultural production. Environmentally, this was positive because it
decreased the need for new areas for cultivation and reduced rates of
deforestation. Unfortunately, it also
increased the use of water, chemical fertilizers, pesticides, and fossil fuels,
increasing pollution, salinization, and
desertification.
158)FALSE
159)science
160)TRUE
Match the word
on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
161)Average number of years that a person can expect to live
from birth A) population density
Page Ref: B)
life expectancy
162)When one organism ingests a toxicant, the toxicant becomes
concentrated within its tissues. When
the next organism feeds, it eats multiple organisms at the lower trophic level, consuming quantities of toxin with each
feeding. Thus with every step up the
food chain from primary producer to top predator, concentrations of toxicant
increase.
163)contraceptives, education or education and family
planning
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
164)Smallest components of an element that maintain the
chemical properties of that element
Page Ref:
A)
B)
atoms
isotopes
165)desalinization
166)Limiting factors are physical chemical and biological
characteristics of the environment that restrain population growth. The interaction of all the limiting factors
determines the carrying capacity, or maximum population size for a given
species that a given environment can sustain.
Because limiting factors can be numerous, and because environments are complex
and ever-changing, carrying capacities can change.
167)Students should discuss some of the following: Oceans have
long been made a sink for human wastes. Even into the mid-20th century, it was
common for coastal cities in the
168)Students should discuss some of the following: Use of
low-toxicity material and adequate ventilation are key to alleviating indoor
air pollution in almost any situation. Using materials that are nontoxic and
making sure the indoor environment minimizes exposure to trapped air are
crucial. In the developed world, limiting use of plastics and treated wood
where possible, and limiting exposure to certain products by keeping
pesticides, cleaning fluids, and other known toxicants in a garage or outdoor
shed rather than in the house are important. Other solutions include getting
homes and offices tested for radon and keeping indoor spaces as well ventilated
as possible so that concentrations of chronic contaminants can be
minimized. Remedies for fuelwood pollution in the developing world include drying
wood before burning (which reduces the amount of smoke produced), shifting to
less-polluting fuels (such as from biomass fuels to fossil fuels like natural
gas), and replacing inefficient fires with cleaner stoves that burn fuel more
efficiently. Increasing ventilation by installing hoods, chimneys, or cooking
windows can also be accomplished inexpensively and can alleviate the majority
of indoor smoke pollution.
169)TRUE
170)The manipulative experiment is one in which the researcher
chooses and manipulates the independent variable, and a natural experiment is
one in which the researcher records data from variables that have not been
manipulated, such as weights of all organisms currently on an island.
171)cell
172)A variety of abiotic factors including temperature,
precipitation, atmospheric circulation, and soil characteristics, of which
temperature and precipitation exert the greatest influence on biomes.
173)Environmental problems, by their nature, often are not
limited to the bounds of particular countries.
International law is an important part of solving such transboundary problems.
Creative agreements hammered out after a lot of hard work and diplomacy
will work better for solving environmental problems. The United Nations, the
World Bank, and a wide variety of nongovernmental organizations are key to international law.
Conventional law arises from conventions or treaties that nations agree
to enter into. Customary law arises from
long-standing practices or customs.
174)environmental health
175)In developing countries, wood or charcoal is burned in
residences with little or no ventilation. In contrast, in developed countries a
large amount of indoor pollution comes from synthetic chemicals used for
cleaning or pesticides or in manufacturing of furniture or electronics.
176)phylogenetic tree
177)FALSE
178)Environmental protection is good for economics. Environment and economy are intricately
linked through the resources that the environment provides. The old school made the environment a subset
of human economy. The new school views
the economy as coupled to the nonhuman environment.
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
179)Green house gas produced within the digestive tract of cattle
A) relative humidity
Page Ref: B)
methane
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
180)Chemicals that cause harm to unborn young inside a mother's
body are called
Page Ref:
A)
B)
teratogens
mutagens
181)TRUE
182)A correlation is a relationship between two variables, and
causation is when there is demonstration that one variable causes another to
change. Causation is stronger evidence
to support a hypothesis.
183)TRUE
184)A pest is any organism that damages crops that are valuable
to us. A weed is any organism that
competes with our crops. The definitions
are subjective because they are defined by our economic interest.
185)TRUE
186)The Endangered Species Act is the primary legislation for
protecting biodiversity in the
187)A subsidy is a government giveaway of publicly owned
resources, a give away of cash, or tax break, intended to encourage certain
activities while discouraging others.
Subsidies can be used to promote sustainable activities, although more
often they are not used that way.
188)Tigers were originally part of the cultural fabric of the
indigenous people of the Russian Far East.
When the Russians invaded, they had no cultural traditions and hunted
tigers to near extinction. The
involvement of conservation groups may alter population dynamics of the
tiger. The lesson is that humans must
value biodiversity, or it will be lost.
189)TRUE
190)The most
rigorous human carrying capacity estimates range from 12 billion people living prosperously in a
healthy environment to 33 billion living in poverty in an environment fully in
intensive cultivation without natural areas.
191)latitudinal gradient
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
192)An organism that transfers a pathogen to a host A) vector
Page Ref: B) tumerous
193)FALSE
194)Sustainable agriculture is agriculture that does not
deplete soils faster than they form. It is farming and ranching that does not
reduce the amount of healthy soil, clean water, and genetic diversity essential
to long-term crop and livestock production.
195)Carbon monoxide, lead, nitrogen dioxide, ozone, sulfur
dioxide, particulate matter
196)They involve large-scale comparisons among groups of
people, usually contrasting a group known to have been exposed to a toxicant
with a group that has not. When a group
exposed to an agent shows a significantly greater degree of harm, it suggests
that the agent may be responsible.
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
197)Water with high concentrations of calcium and magnesium
irons A) soft water
Page Ref: B)
hard water
198)There are two main steps.
The first is determining whether a substance has toxic effects and measuring
dose-response effects of toxicant exposure.
The second step is assessing the likely exposure that an individual will
have to the toxicant including frequency, concentration, and time of
exposure.
199)Extinction is a common consequence of human disturbance to
natural ecosystems. The chance find of
the golden toad just before it disappeared suggests many species go extinct
before we notice them.
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
200)Stage of declining death rates due to high food production
and medical care
Page Ref:
A)
B)
post-industrial stage
transitional stage
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
201)A human-centered view of our relationship with the
environment A) ecocentric
Page Ref: B)
anthropocentric
202)Modeling, ice cores, and direct measurement of greenhouse
gases are ways of studying climate change.
203)TRUE
204)The origin of energy for living organisms is the sun, and
plants get their energy through photosynthesis.
205)
206)Plants take up carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and then
incorporate the carbon into their tissue.
Animals then eat plants and gain carbon.
When animals and plants die, the tissues are eaten by decomposers and
are then deposited into soils. At each
stage along the way, carbon is released back to the atmosphere as carbon
dioxide. The use of fossil fuels (previously undecomposed
organic materials) causes stored carbon dioxide to be released to the
atmosphere. This is occurring at very
high rates and is believed to contribute to global warming.
207)tides
208)consumptive
209)A system's output can serve as input to that same system, a
circular process described as a feedback loop.
In a negative feedback loop, output of one type acts as input that moves
the system in the other direction. The
output and input essentially neutralize one another, stabilizing the
system. An example would be the
regulation of our body temperature.
Negative feedback loops are relatively common in nature. In a positive feedback loop, inputs don't
stabilize a system but drive them further toward one extreme or another. An example of this process in natural systems
is erosion. Positive feedback loops are
relatively rare in nature but are common in natural systems altered by human
actions.
210)organic agriculture
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
211)Toxicants
that cause cancer A) carcinogens
Page Ref:
B)antigens
212)
213)The first
is by mimicking the hydrologic cycle, by containing ocean water, hastening
evaporation with heat and then condensing the vapor, in essence distilling for
fresh water. Another method involves forcing water through membranes to filter
out salts, the most common process of which is reverse osmosis.
214)
theory
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
215)Specific rules based on more broadly written law passed by
Congress A) treaties
Page Ref: B)
regulation
216)ecological footprint
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
217)An organism that contains DNA from another species A)
profile
Page Ref: B)
transgenic
218)The process in which material is removed from one place and
transported to another by wind and water. C)
D)
waterlogging
erosion
Page Ref:
219)An adaptive trait is a characteristic that leads to
increasing success for an organism in a given environment.
220)Without these chemicals, we would not have the industrial
agriculture that produces our food, many of the medical advances that protect
our health and prolong our lives, and modern materials and conveniences.
221)TRUE
222)People
are not distributed across the globe in accordance with water availability, and
areas that are dense with people are often water-poor, leading to inequalities
in per-capita water resources among and within nations.
223)Light energy is converted into chemical energy, or glucose,
through the process called photosynthesis.
In cellular respiration, chemical energy is released as kinetic energy
to fuel organisms. Autotrophs
do both cellular respiration and photosynthesis, and heterotrophs
do only cellular respiration.
224)Students should discuss some of the following: The
reservoir will hold over 10 trillion gallons of water. It will generate
hydroelectric power, enable boats and barges to travel farther upstream, and
provide flood control. The power generation may be enough to replace dozens of
large coal or nuclear plants. One of the costs of the Three Gorges Dam, aside
from its $25 billion construction price tag, is that its reservoir will flood
22 cities and the homes of 1.13 million people, requiring the largest-ever
resettlement project. The reservoir behind the dam will also inundate
archaeological sites 10,000 years old and will submerge productive farmlands
and wildlife habitat. In addition, critics hold, the reservoir will slow the
flow of the river so much that suspended sediment will settle and begin to fill
the reservoir as soon as it is completed. Other scientists worry about water
quality, saying that the Yangtze's many pollutants will be trapped in the reservoir,
making the water even more undrinkable than it is already. Indeed, high levels
of bacteria were found in the water as it began building up behind the dam, but
the government plans to sink $5 billion into building hundreds of sewage
treatment and waste disposal facilities.
225)FALSE
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
226)Porous, spongelike layers of
rock, sand, or gravel that are capable of holding water
Page Ref:
A)
B)
aqueduct
aquifer
227)Homesteaders cultivated the native prairies of the
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
228)High exposure to a chemical over a short period of time A)
acute
Page Ref: B)
degree
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
229)Stabilizes a population at its carrying capacity A)
environmental resistance
Page Ref: B)
exponential growth
230)FALSE
231)TRUE
232)The quantitative measurement of risk and the comparison of
risks involved in different activities or substances is termed risk
assessment. Accurate risk assessment
consists of decisions and strategies to minimize risk. Federal agencies are charged with accessing
risk and considering findings in light of economic, social, and political needs
and values. The costs and benefits of
addressing risk in various ways are addressed with regard to both scientific
and nonscientific concerns. While
economic benefits are generally known, easily quantified, and of a definite and
stable amount, health risks are hard-to-measure probabilities that impact a
small percentage of people that will suffer greatly.
233)demography
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
234)The generation of new species A) species diversity
Page Ref:
B)speciation
235)food security
236)emigration
237)Environmental contaminants mimic hormones and interfere
with the functioning of the animal endocrine (hormone) systems. The alligator endocrine systems were
disrupted during development in the egg.
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
238)Alternating bands of different types of vegetation planted
across a slope A) strip-cropping
Page Ref: B)
aquaculture
239)Ecology and economics come from the same Greek root oikos, meaning household and in its broadest context, the
human household, Earth itself.
Economists study the household of human society, and ecologists study
the broader household of all life.
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
240)Specific statements that can be directly and unequivocally
tested A) prediction
Page Ref: B)
hypothesis
241)The full equation is I= Px A ×
T. The terms are as follows: I= total
impact on the environment by humans; P= population; A= Affluence; T= technology. Population and affluence increase
environmental impact, technology may either reduce or exacerbate overall
impact, depending on what technologies we develop and how we employ them. The fourth factor that could be added is S
for sensitivity, to denote how sensitive a given environment is to these
pressures.
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
242)The oldest type of survival economy A) subsistence economy
Page Ref:
B)steady-state economy
243)They study population size, density, distribution, age
structure, sex ratio, and rates of birth, death, immigration, and emigration of
humans.
244)adaptive radiation
245)FALSE
246)Water temperature, salinity, dissolved nutrients, wave
action, currents, depth, and type of substrate (sandy, muddy, rocky bottom,
etc.).
247)Renewable resources are virtually unlimited (sunlight) or
are replenished over relatively short periods of time (plants). Nonrenewable
natural resources (crude oil, natural gas, and coal) are in limited supply and
are not replenished or are formed much more slowly than we use them.
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
248)Early environmental laws that gave federal government the
right to manage
Page Ref:
A)
B)
General Land
Ordinances
Western Merit
Law
249)Pinchot was instrumental in the
development of the conservation ethic.
This ethic suggested that natural resources not only be put to use but
put to use wisely. The best use of
resources would provide the greatest good to the greatest number of people for
the longest time. In contrast, Muir
espoused the "preservation ethic" that required preservation of natural
environment in a pristine, unaltered state.
The preservation ethic, however, is not as practical as the conservation
ethic, especially in the face of globalization.
250)Students should discuss some of the following. Extinction
is a natural process. Extinction rates have risen higher than the background
extinction rate during several mass extinction events during Earth's history.
Since 440 million years ago, there have been five major episodes of mass
extinction. If current trends continue, the modern era may see the extinction
of more than half of all species. While similar in scale to previous mass
extinctions, today's ongoing mass extinction is different in two primary
respects. First, humans are causing it.
Second, humans will suffer as a result of it.
251)symbioses
252)TRUE
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
253)Lands used for grazing livestock A) shelterbelts
Page Ref:
B)rangeland
254)conservation biology.
255)Silent Spring
256)hypoxia
257)One reason is that some areas of Earth remain little
explored. Another is that many species
are tiny and easily overlooked. In addition, many organisms are difficult to
identify
258)Environmental science is an interdisciplinary field because
it involves techniques from numerous, more traditional fields of study.
259)There are numerous practices used by farmers to protect
their soils. Crop rotation, which is
alternating the kind of crop grown in an area, can return nutrients to the soil
and represents an alternative to letting fields lie
fallow, which can expose soils to erosion. Contour farming protects soils
against erosion by shaping agricultural fields in a manner that decreases the
water running down a hillside. Intercropping is the planting of two types of
vegetation in the same field either overlapping or in alternating rows. It provides a more complete land cover by
decreasing bare areas between rows. Shelterbelts provide windbreaks that slow
ground wind speed across a field.
No-till or conservation tillage decreases the plowing of soil and
provides less exposure of soils to wind and water for erosion.
260)Habitat alteration, Invasive species, Pollution,
Population, and Overexploitation
261)experiment; variables
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
262)Marine habitats that occur between the ocean's surface and
floor A) littoral
Page Ref: B)
pelagic
263)TRUE
264)Electricity generation; transportation
265)TRUE
266)FALSE
267)Environmental
health assesses environmental factors that influence human health and quality
of life and seeks to prevent adverse
effects on human health and on ecological systems essential to environmental
quality and long-term human well-being.
Outdoor health issues include pollutants, pesticides, and any variety of
other toxic chemical that are found outdoors.
Radon, asbestos, and lead paint are all examples of indoor environmental
health hazards.
268)Carbohydrates are made of carbon and hydrogen
molecules. They are used as energy
molecules and to build cell walls. Proteins are made of chains of amino acids.
They are enzymes and produce tissues and provide structural support. Nucleic
acids are made of chains of nucleotides (phosphate groups, sugars, and a
nitrogenous base). They are the genetic
material that passes traits from generation to generation. Lipids are molecules classed together
because they do not dissolve in water.
They include molecules such as waxes used for structure, fats and oils
used for energy storage, membranes used to delimit cells, and steroids for
hormone production.
Match the
word on the right to the phrase on the left. Each term may be used only once.
269)The cumulative total of living things on Earth and the
areas living things inhabit
Page Ref:
A)
B)
population
biosphere
270)For decades, fisheries management has been based on
scientific assessments and has sought to ensure sustainable harvests.
Historically, fisheries managers have studied fish population biology and used
that knowledge to regulate the timing of harvests, the techniques used to catch
fish, and the scale of the harvest. The goal was to allow for maximal harvests of
particular populations while keeping fish available for the future, a concept
called maximum sustainable yield. If data indicated that current yields looked
unsustainable, managers might limit the number or total mass of that fish
species that could be harvested, or might restrict the type of gear fishermen
can use. Numerous marine scientists and
some managers now suggest a shift away from management of individual fish
species and toward viewing marine resources as elements of larger ecological
systems. This means considering the effects of fishing practices on habitat
quality, on interspecific interactions, and on other
ecological factors that may have indirect or long-term effects on
populations.
271)Environmental
science is the pursuit of knowledge about the workings of the environment and
our interactions with it, while environmentalism is a social movement dedicated
to protecting the natural environment and, by extension, humans, from
undesirable changes to the environment brought about by certain human choices
and actions. Environmental scientists
and environmentalists study the same issues, but environmental scientists use
an objective scientific approach to understanding environmental problems,
whereas environmentalists attempt to alter the political and social
understanding of environmental problems.
272)monoculture
273)point source
274)toxicology