Environmental Stewardship Final

Which one of the following groups of organisms represents the second trophic level in a food chain?

primary consumers (herbivores)

The average amount of energy that is lost from one trophic level to the next higher trophic level is

 

90%

For a particular food web, it is observed that increasing the primary productivity of plants leads to an increase in the productivity of the other trophic levels.  This would be an example of top-down control of the food web.

False

A top predator requires a larger ecological footprint than an herbivore.

Correct!

True

Which of the following statements about energy and nutrients within an ecosystem is the most correct one?

Energy flows through the ecosystem; nutrients cycle within the ecosystem.

Energy can be measured in calories (cal).  What is a calorie?

It is the amount of heat energy needed to heat 1 g of water 1° C.

In the nitrogen cycle, the process of converting nitrogen gas in the atmosphere into ammonia in the soil is called

nitrogen fixation

All but one of the following environmental factors was discussed in class as a possible limitation to the amount of primary production in an ecosystem.  Which one is NOT a limiting factor to primary production?

wind

The amount of food energy converted into biomass by consumers is called secondary production.

True

An organism that feeds on the remains of dead animal or plant matter is called

 

a detritivore

Biotic potential

 The maximum reproductive capacity of an organism under optimal conditions.

Carrying capacity

The population size that the environment will sustain.

Environmental resistance

Factors that limit growth in populations.

Mortality

The per capita death rate.

Natality

The per capita birth rate.

Which one of the following statements about population growth is the only TRUE statement?

 

If a population is at the carrying capacity of the environment, then the birth rate will more or less equal the death rate (i.e. zero population growth).

Which one of the following statements about the logistic growth model is TRUE?

An S-shaped curve is characteristic of a population exhibiting logistic growth.

The global human population is currently

rapidly increasing in size

According to the demographic transition model of human population growth, the rapid growth of populations in developing nations (those in transitional Stage 2) is primarily the result of

the decrease in the death rate, while the birth rate has remained relatively high.

The global water cycle involves two opposing processes (fluxes): evaporation and precipitation.  Which one of the following statements about these processes is incorrect?

14% of all evaporation comes from the global ocean.

Which one of the following contains the largest percentage of the freshwater found on Earth?

Ice caps and glaciers

In general, which one of the following is the most important to humans as a source of freshwater?

Rivers, Aquifers

Approximately how much of all the water found on Earth occurs in the global ocean?

 

97%

Due to the curvature of the earth, sunlight is not evenly distributed over its surface.  The result is that the surface near the equator tends to be hotter, thus creating large convection currents in the troposphere.  These convection currents are called

 

Hadley cells.

As moist, warm air near the surface of the earth rises into the upper troposphere, what happens?

 

It cools down and loses its moisture as precipitation.

What is thermohaline circulation?

 

The large-scale, long-term movement of water between the surface and deep waters of the ocean, driven by differences in temperature and salinity.

The dry, leeward side of a mountain range (the side away from the prevailing winds) is called

 

a rainshadow.

Seasonal variations in climate vary over the surface of theearth. These variations are usually more pronounced the further away from the equator one travels. What are the primary causes for the seasons we experience? (Make sure to click ALL that apply!)

 

The fact that the earth is tilted 23.5 degrees off of verticle,  

The fact that the earth rotates around the sun.

Which one of the following is NOT a renewable source of energy?

 

natural gas

Which one of the following is NOT a fossil fuel?

biomass

Most power plants use a turbine connected to an electrical generator to produce electricity. Which of the following is NOT used as a force to turn the turbine?

 

all of these ARE used to power a turbine

Which fuel source generates almost half of all the electricity produced in the United States?

coal

What is capacity factor?

 

actual power produced divided by the maximum power output

Which one of the following is NOT a renewable transportation fuel?

gasoline

Which of the following transportation fuels actually has more energy per gallon than gasoline?

diesel

Which nation has the largest proven coal reserves?

 

United States

Which nation has the largest proven conventional oil reserves?

 

Saudi Arabia

The United States is the largest consumer of oil in the world.  What percentage of global oil production is consumed by the USA?

 

25%

Carbon is a non-metallic element.  It is sometimes found in a pure form.  Which of the following is NOT a pure form of carbon?

 

carbon dioxide

Carbon can form bonds with other elements to form molecules. These carbon molecules can be organic (biotic) or inorganic (abiotic). Which one of the following is NOT an organic carbon molecule?

methane

Most organic molecules are composed of just four elements. These four elements constitute about 99% of all living things. Which one of the following is NOT one of the four principle elements found in living things?

phosphorous

Which of the following statements about photosynthesis is incorrect?

 

all of these statements are correct

Which of the following statements about cellular respiration is incorrect?

 

It is performed only by animals

Which one of the following gases is the MOST abundant in Earth s atmosphere?

 

nitrogen gas

Which one is NOT a long-term sink of organic carbon?

 

dissolved carbon in oceans

There is much more carbon stored in the world's oceans than is found in the atmosphere.

True

The largest store (sink) of carbon on Earth today is found in

 

carbonate rocks (limestones)

Carbon dioxide gas (CO₂) naturally cycles up and down over the course of a year. During which month would you expect CO₂ levels to be at their highest?

May