LS 1 Week 10 Launchpad

For plants, the term hotspot refers to areas where there are a minimum of 1,500 endemic species. TF

F

If all other aspects of their lifestyles were equivalent, a vegetarian would have a smaller ecological footprint than someone who consumes a large amount of meat. TF

T

Which of the following is the direct cause of the dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico?

decomposition of algal blooms by aerobic bacteria

Which of the following groups of biomes is listed in order of greatest to lowest potential evapotranspiration ratio?

desert, deciduous forest, rain forest

An individual's ecological footprint is equivalent to:

the amount of land required to provide all the resources used by that individual.

Which of the following is directly responsible for depleting the supply of oxygen in bottom waters? A. bacterial growth B. algal growth

A. bacterial growth

Your friend insists that any changes in atmospheric CO2 levels or global temperature are nothing to worry about. He claims that these are actually normal fluctuations that have occurred for thousands of years on Earth, and that human activities play no role in these processes. What evidence could you provide to counter this argument? An increase in global temperature can't be the result of normal processes such as volcanic eruptions, as these typically result in a drop in temperature. - Isotopic carbon evidence (especially atmospheric levels of 13C) demonstrates that human processes are in fact contributing to atmospheric CO2 levels. - Current global temperature changes are occurring much faster than would happen under normal circumstances. Correct: All of these choices are correct. - All of these choices are correct.

All of these choices are correct.

How do corridors increase the effectiveness of refuges? They increase the effective area that may be inhabited by a population. They permit migration as global change affects individual refuges. They permit larger populations sizes, increasing chances of survival for a species. All of these choices are correct.

Correct: All of these choices are correct.

Which of the following professionals would provide evidence that the world is changing as a result of human activities? A researcher studying the acidity of seawater. A doctor treating patients with antibiotic-resistant M. tuberculosis. A botanist studying the flowering times of plants. A researcher assessing methane levels in the atmosphere. All of these choices are correct.

Correct: All of these choices are correct.

Which of the following statements about global warming is correct? Higher latitudes have warmed more than equatorial regions. - Overall, Earth's mean surface temperature has increased by only 0.5 degrees. - A comparison of temperature data collected between 1999 and 2008 to temperature data collected between 1940 and 1980 shows that all environments on Earth have experienced an increase in mean annual temperature. - Oceanic environments have warmed more than terrestrial environments. - None of the answer options is correct.

Correct: Higher latitudes have warmed more than equatorial regions.

Which of the following statements about patterns of energy use among countries is false? Individuals in larger countries use more energy than individuals in smaller countries. - Individuals in countries with higher standards of living use more energy than countries with lower standards of living. - Energy use is distributed unevenly among countries. - Individuals in high-latitude countries use more energy than individuals in equatorial countries in part because of the need to heat buildings. - Countries where individuals travel more frequently have higher levels of energy use than countries where individuals travel less frequently.

Correct: Individuals in larger countries use more energy than individuals in smaller countries.

Diversity can be described at many different levels. Which of the following is not a level of diversity considered by conservation biologists? species numbers within a community genetic diversity within an individual

Correct: genetic diversity within an individual

Which of the following does not contribute to the formation of dead zones? ocean acidification fertilizers from agricultural runoff eutrophication decomposition

Correct: ocean acidification

One of the major obstacles to decreasing atmospheric CO2 is that natural processes that sequester carbon occur at much longer time scales than human processes that add CO2 to the atmosphere. TF

Correct: true

Which of the following statements about the concept of an ecological footprint is false? Countries with the largest population sizes have the largest ecological footprints. The total ecological footprint for humanity is greater than the actual surface area of Earth.

Countries with the largest population sizes have the largest ecological footprints.

Decomposers and detritivores play an important role in cycling nutrients through ecosystems. Which of the following statements is a reflection of their role in the ecosystem?

Decomposers and detritivores are important for oxidizing carbon compounds in dead and decaying matter into CO2 for use by primary producers.

Which of the following is false concerning the development of dead zones in coastal waters, for example, the dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico? A. Higher levels of nutrients entering streams and ultimately the oceans lead to overproduction of algae and cyanobacteria. B. When alive, the algae and cyanobacteria photosynthesize and produce oxygen but only during the daylight hours. C. High concentrations of algae and cyanobacteria require oxygen to survive during the dark hours of the day, leading to depletion of oxygen levels. D. When they die, algae and cyanobacteria sink to the bottom of the coastal zones where heterotrophic aerobic bacteria feed on them and deplete the water of oxygen. E. Dead zones in coastal waters of the oceans have been a common occurrence for many thousands of years.

E. Dead zones in coastal waters of the oceans have been a common occurrence for many thousands of years.

If a person wanted to change Earth's climate and came up with a way to add copious amounts of water vapor to the atmosphere, how would the climate be affected?

Earth's temperature would increase and its weather patterns would change.

Consider rising average global temperatures. As warming increases, rates of photosynthesis will also increase and remove excess CO2 from the atmosphere. TF

F

The United States experienced one of the worst droughts in its history in 2012. By itself, this severe drought is strong evidence for climate change. TF

F

The use of antibiotics selects for mutations in bacteria for antibiotic resistance. TF

F

greenhouse gases are toxic, so increasing levels of these gases will cause some plants to go extinct. TF

F

Which of the following statements about agricultural fertilizers is false? Phosphates are obtained exclusively through mining. Global nitrate and phosphate resources are in decline.

Global nitrate and phosphate resources are in decline.

Which of the following statements about the physiological responses of plants to increasing temperatures and carbon dioxide levels is false? The amount of nitrogen in plant tissues declines in response to increased CO2. Many plants devote more resources to reproduction under these conditions.

Many plants devote more resources to reproduction under these conditions.

Which of the following is not an example of a greenhouse gas? methane O2

O2

This example of a trophic pyramid shows that the amount of energy passed on to each trophic level is far less than the total energy contained in the biomass in each trophic level. Why isn't the transfer of energy between trophic levels 100%?

Some of the energy consumed within each trophic level goes to supporting the organisms in that trophic level.

Why would a pharmaceutical company be concerned about species loss, especially in areas where species composition and diversity are not completely characterized?

Species loss could result in the extinction of plants from which medicinal compounds could be derived (consider quinine).

What is the evidence that human activity is causing increased atmospheric CO2 levels?

The isotopic composition of atmospheric CO2 can be measured and shows that CO2 being added to the air now comes from combustion of fossil fuels.

A group of scientists in Alaska notices that not only have atmospheric CO2 levels increased at their sampling site but so too have methane levels. What could account for this increase in methane levels?

The release of methane from thawed permafrost.

Trees in rainforests have high tree species richness, but low density. In deciduous forests the pattern is the opposite. Which of the following is not a plausible explanation for this pattern?

There are fewer species in temperate regions because the number of trees per hectare is lower than in tropical rainforests.

Patterns of primary productivity in marine environments are not delineated in the same way as in terrestrial environments. Why are there regions of high primary productivity at 60 degrees N and S in the oceans, when these are not regions of high productivity on land?

There is higher nutrient availability at these latitudes, supporting more primary producers.

The Mojave Desert lies to the east of the coastal and Sierra Nevada mountains in California. Deserts in Chile lie to the west of the Andes Mountains. Both the California and the Andes mountains run along the west coast of their respective continents. What probably accounts for the fact that one desert is on the east side of its neighboring mountain range, while the other is on the west side of its neighboring mountain range?

Winds move from east to west along the Andes in the southern hemisphere.

What is the source of the elevated nutrients in the water that cause the formation of dead zones in the Gulf of Mexico?

agricultural runoff from much of the central United States

Broad, ecologically uniform areas with stable and distinctive collections of species are called:

biomes.

Which of the following actual (i.e., real) products of biological activity is not likely to be a source of the increases in greenhouse gases observed in recent history? carbon dioxide produced as a result of aerobic cellular respiration in living organisms increases in the amount of water vapor the atmosphere can hold (or relative humidity) at higher global temperatures

carbon dioxide produced as a result of aerobic cellular respiration in living organisms

Where does PO4 ^3- come from that circulates due to upwelling?

dead organisms from marine food web

The results of the coccolithophorid experiment done by Riebesell and colleagues showed that:

increasing CO2 levels lead to incomplete, or poorly formed, calcium carbonate scales of coccolithophorids.

Captive breeding programs in zoos could be important for biodiversity in the wild because:

individuals raised in zoos could be released into the wild in order to reestablish natural populations.

Which of the following is reflected back to the Earth's surface by greenhouse gases?

infrared radiation

Chemoautotrophic bacteria are responsible for which of the following processes?

oxidation of ammonia to nitrate

Which of the following would you expect to observe as you go from the base to the top of a mountain?

the same pattern of climate and biome change one would experience if hiking from low to high latitude