APES Test Unit 7

Which of the different components of smog depicted in the graph are most likely released from automobile exhaust?

A and B

In addition to a nearby mountain range, which of the following environmental conditions would be required for the process in the diagram to occur?

A cool sea breeze and a high pressure system

Which of the following would be the best control group to evaluate the treated wastewater from the paper company?

A sample of water upstream from the same river

Which of the curves on the graph depicts the concentration of ozone, which requires sunlight to form?

C

The data that were used to create this graph were collected in the winter. Which of the following best describes how the graph would be different if the data were collected in the middle of the summer?

Concentrations for component CC would be higher throughout the graph.

In the figure above, the letters AA, BB, and CC represent the different thermal layers present in an inversion. Which of the following shows the correct sequence of thermal layers as one moves vertically upwards from the surface of Earth?

Cool sea breeze → Warm → Cool

Which of the following devices is correctly paired to the air pollutant it would be used to measure?

Gas sensor, CO2

Which of the following would be the best location to obtain a water sample from to determine if the paper plant is affecting the acidity of the river?

Immediately downstream from the paper plant

Which of the following claims is best supported by the data shown in the table?

Isoprene's contribution to ozone levels in Berlin was greatest in July of both years.

The graph shows the average distance traveled by individuals in a population in an urban area in the southwestern United States. Based on the data, which of the following months most likely experiences the highest levels of photochemical smog?

July

Based on the data in the graph, which of the following insulation options is ineffective at insulating a home and greatly contributes to indoor air pollution?

Mineral fiber batt

Which of the following methods would best identify changes from acid deposition in an area over time?

Monitoring the long-term chemical and biological parameters of an ecosystem

Which of the following best describes the relationship between variables in the data table?

Ozone maximum is correlated to average and maximum temperature.

Which of the following points on the graph best illustrates the location where pollutants are most likely to accumulate as a result of a thermal inversion?

Point D

Which of the following is the most likely reason for the trend shown in the graph of fluctuating indoor radon levels over the course of a year?

Radon levels tend to increase in the colder months because of the difference in temperature inside and outside the home, which creates a vacuum pulling radon into the home at a higher rate.

Which of the following best describes the impact of modifying the slurry by increasing the amount of limestone?

The amount of sulfur dioxide released will decrease.

Which of the following best describes how their choice of control group could affect the results of their experiment?

The coal-burning power plant would not appear to have a large impact because the pH levels of the two lakes would be similar.

A student is setting up a model to study the carbon cycle and natural sources of carbon dioxide. They create a microenvironment that contains soil, leaf debris, an earthworm, heterotrophic bacteria, and a sun lamp. What natural source of carbon dioxide and major metabolic process was left out of the model?

There is no representation of photosynthesis in the model environment.

Which of the following best explains the cause of the trend shown in the graph for lead emissions in the United States from 1970 to 2011 ?

Unleaded gasoline was first introduced in 1974, and amendments to the Clean Air Act required cars with the model year 1975 or later to use only unleaded gasoline.

Which of the following activities would most likely account for the levels of indoor air pollution in India and sub-Saharan Africa, as shown in the graph?

Use of biomass fuel sources such as wood and charcoal for cooking

Based on the data in the graph, which of the following methods would be most effective at removing the greatest amount of particulate matter from coal-burning power plant emissions?

Wet scrubbers using a flow rate of 450L/min are best suited to remove large particles.

A researcher wants to determine if ponds and lakes downwind of a coal-burning power plant are affected by the plant's emissions. Which of the following would be the best parameter from the water in the ponds and lakes to measure in order to determine the effect of the plant's emissions on the aquatic ecosystems?

pH

Which of the following conclusions can be drawn from the data presented in the graph?

In moderately developed regions such as China and Latin America, an individual's health is more or as likely to be affected by urban outdoor pollution than by indoor pollution.

Over a three-year period, a city's environmental protection department measured the particulate matter (PM2.5PM2.5) in a ten-square-mile area around one of the city's coal-fired power plants. The annual mean level of PM2.5PM2.5 measured was 20.0μgm320.0�gm3 over the three-year study period. The National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQSNAAQS) for PM2.5PM2.5 is an annual mean level of 12.0μgm312.0�gm3, averaged over three years. The city instructs the manager of the power plant to propose a plan to aid the city in meeting the NAAQSNAAQS for PM2.5PM2.5 in the area around the power plant over the next ten years. Which of the following would be the most effective plan for the manager to propose to the city?

Install electrostatic precipitators at the plant.

Which of the following conclusions can best be drawn from the data in the graph?

Location A has the greatest need for remediation because the radon levels in the building are the highest and exceed the EPA action level.

Which of the following best describes why the authors claim that reducing noise exposure is currently more of a public policy problem than a scientific problem?

Most public health impacts of noise were already identified in the 1960s.

Based on the layers in the diagram, which of the following best explains why a thermal inversion tends to concentrate pollutants in the air layer closest to the Earth's surface?

The air layer closest to the Earth's surface is denser than the layer above it.

If the air layers in the diagram were relabeled to illustrate normal atmospheric conditions, the correct labeling from the air layer closest to the Earth's surface to the one farthest from the Earth's surface would be

warm air, cool air, cooler air

Which of the following is most responsible for the change in the emissions of volatile organic compounds ( VOC ) from 1970 to 2020 as shown in the graph?

An increase in air emission standards that began in 1970 that regulated corporate average fuel economy ( CAFE ) standards.

Which of the following best describes why the authors claim that noise exposure will be a major health problem in the twenty-first century?

Noise exposure is on the increase in both industrialized nations and in developing regions.

Based on the author's claim in the article, which of the following statements best describes the effect of noise pollution on wildlife?

Noise pollution has a negative effect on wildlife activities such as mating, establishing territories, and predator-prey interactions.

Scientists have been monitoring CO2CO2 in the atmosphere from Mauna Loa in Hawaii since 1958. Which of the following units is used by scientists to measure CO2CO2 in the atmosphere?

Parts per million

What is one potential impact of increased noise pollution in national parks that is supported by the article?

Prey populations are likely to increase in national parks because predators have a decreased ability to hear prey sounds.

Scientists have been collecting atmospheric CO2 data for many years to monitor changes over time. Which of the following best describes why an island location, such as the Mauna Loa Observatory in Hawaii, is an ideal location to measure global CO2 concentrations?

The location is far from any continent, providing atmospheric air samples that are less likely to be affected by industry and transportation.

Air pollution from a power plant is being monitored for levels of nitrogen dioxide and ground-level ozone. The levels are measured daily at the same time. Which of the following best predicts the impact of a dark and cloudy day on the readings for the levels of air pollutants measured?

There will be an increase in the level of nitrogen dioxide and a decrease in the level of ground-level ozone.

An air pollution expert set up a monitoring program to determine the amount of particulate matter (PMPM) leaving a farmer's field after crops were harvested and the soil was bare. She set up high-volume air samplers 10 meters from each edge of the square field and collected samples weekly for two months. When she looked at her data, she was surprised by how much the PMPM levels varied, both from site to site on a given date and over time at each site. Which of the following parameters would have been best to measure to help explain the variation in her results?

Wind direction and speed

Which of the following water quality indicators should be measured to best determine if the wastewater is increasing the acidity of the river?

The amount of hydrogen ions

Which of the following is most likely responsible for the indoor air pollutant shown in the graph?

Cracks in the basement foundation

Which of the following best describes the efficiency of dry scrubbers at removing particles that are less than 2 micrometers in diameter?

Dry scrubbers are less than 10% efficient at removing particles less than 1μm1�m in size.

Which of the following claims is best supported by the evidence provided by the article?

Frog populations may decrease in size as a result of males changing the pitch of their calls.

Which of the following best describes the process shown in the diagram above?

Less-dense, warm air creates a temperature inversion between more-dense layers, trapping pollutants near the ground.

Canada has proposed an action plan to address climate change and air pollution. The action plan will reduce the impact of greenhouse gases and pollutants on the environment and human health. Which of the following claims about the Canadian action plan is best supported by the data in the graph?

The plan supports phasing out traditional coal power plants and transitioning to sources like hydroelectricity, wind, and solar power.

Which of the following sources should be examined in a study to determine the impact of a geologic source on levels of CO2CO2 in the atmosphere?

Volcanoes

Which of the following best describes how a scientist could accurately study the effects of soil buffering on plant growth in a region that is affected by acid deposition downwind of a coal-burning power plant?

Measure the changes in plant height over a year in two different groups of trees the same distance from the power plant; one group is in topsoil and one group is in topsoil with limestone added.

Which of the following best describes why the authors do not claim that noise exposure induces birth defects in humans?

There is insufficient evidence to support that noise exposure induces birth defects in humans.