Environmental Studies Exam #1

Externality

A side effect or consequence of any activity that affects, something else without this effect being reflected in the cost of the goods and services involved.

Model

A simplified representation of some aspect of reality.

Thresholds

A tipping point or boundary which once crossed results in change.

Science

A way of knowing.

According to Christopher Uhl, "a necessary first step to encourage sustainability at Penn State would be to take a _____________ of university operations.

Baseline Measure

The article, "Fostering Sustainable Behavior", provides evidence supporting the economic self-interest approach, which assumes that individuals systematically evaluate choices and then act in accordance with their economic self-interest. T/F

False

The rise in population growth rates over the last half century is the result of rising birth rates. T/F

False

Conservation

People should put natural resources to use but that we have a responsibility to manage them wisely.

The number of women and girls who die worldwide every year from pregnancy and childbirth. 1. 50,000 2. 500 3. 5,000 4. 500,000

4. 500,000

As explained by Ryerson, there are some people that think the major population issue is a "birth dearth", or __________. 1. Access to better childhood medicine. 2. Better sex education. 3. A need for a 2-child policy. 4. A shortage of people

4. A shortage of people

According to the article about the Power of Social Norms, ______________ refers to how prevalent people think a behavior is 1. Injunctive Norms 2. All three types of norms 3. Social Norms 4. Descriptive Norms

4. Descriptive norms

According to Nash, the problem with consumption is overconsumption. T/F

False

According to Ryerson, providing contraceptives is all that is needed to reduce population growth. T/F

False

Enhancing knowledge or altering attitudes will lead to behavior change. T/F

False

The Earth is a completely closed system with nothing coming in or leaving. T/F

False

Preservation

We should protect the natural environment in a pristine unaltered state

Christopher Uhl believes that the research ________ would be as important as any final research paper or report. 1. Methods 2. Funding 3. Process 4. Findings

3. Process

According to the Mind, Society, and Behavior reading, the stresses and strains of poverty impose ______ on cognitive resources. 1. Stimulation 2. Taxes 3. Distractions 4. No Answer Text Provided

2. Taxes

Michael Soule, in his attempt to describe Conservation Biology as a "crisis discipline", compares Conservation Biology to ______ Biology. 1. Ecology 2. Integrative 3. Cancer 4. Reproductive

3. Cancer

According to the Mind, Society, and Behavior reading, social incentives can be _________ as economic ones. 1. As Effective 2. No Answer Text Provided 3. Less Effective 4. More Effective

1. As Effective

The Earth is often compared to a spacecraft, including all of the following characteristics except___. 1. Captained 2. Self-Sufficient 3. Confined 4. Traveling through Space

1. Captained

According to the article about the Power of Social Norms, How many different types of messages were sent out to people? 1. 1 2. 3 3. 2 4. 4

3. 2

According to the article about the Power of Social Norms, ______________ refers to what people approve or disapprove of. 1. Injunctive Norms 2. Descriptive Norms 3. Social Norms 4. All Three Norms

1. Injunctive Norms

What are the steps of the Scientific Method?

1. Make Observations 2. Ask a Question 3. Form a Hypothesis 4. Develop Research Methods 5. Collect and Analyze Data 6. Develop Conclusions and Theories

According to the article about the Power of Social Norms, does the data AGREE or DISAGREE with the following prediction: Third, we expected that providing both descriptive normative information and an injunctive message that other people approve of low-consumption behavior would prevent the undesirable boomerang effect in households consuming less energy than their neighborhood average; that is, we expected these households to continue to consume at low rates. 1. Sometimes Agree, Sometimes Disagree. 2. Agree 3. Disagree 4. Inconclusion

1. Sometimes Agree, Sometimes Disagree

An important general lesson of the sustainability indicator work by Christopher Uhl is that institutions measure only ______________. 1. What is important to them 2. The bottom line 3. Metrics related to student retention 4. What they are legally required to measure.

1. What is important to them

A good scientific experiment tests only one variable, or changeable factor, at a time. The independent variable in an experiment is the factor that is manipulated by the experimenter.A dependent variable is a factor that can change, or respond, if the independent variable is changed. Constants, or controlled variables, are factors that do not change during an experiment. In the following example experiment from the text, which variable is the dependent variable, or the one that depends on the independent variables? Experiment: How do soil and water absorb and release heat? 1. Water 2. Absorb and Release Heat 3. Soil and Water 4. Soil

2. Absorb and Relate Heat

The number of any species that can be sustained by natural resources is known as ___________. 1. Intrinsic rates of increase 2. Carrying Capacity 3. Biodiversity 4. Population

2. Carrying Capacity

Rachel Carson became famous for her research on the chemical _____ and it's devastating effects on ecological food webs. 1. Round-Up (Glyphosate) 2. DDT (dichlorvos-diphentyltrichloroethane) 3. Atrozine 4. Thalydomide

2. DDT (dichlorvos-diphenyltrichloroethane)

Who did most of the initial work at Penn State to develop sustainability indicators? 1. Faculty 2. Students 3. Consultants 4. Staff

2. Students

In class we discussed the term "model", and that models are simplifications of the real world. Considering the difference between food webs and food chains, which model more closely resembles reality? 1. Neither food chains nor food webs 2. Food chain 3. Both food chains and good webs 4. Food Web

4. Food Web

In the process called photosynthesis,water, carbon dioxide, and light energy are used by all autotrophs to produce sugar (chemical energy). Oxygen is released into the atmosphere as a result of this process. Autotrophs, in this case called producers, provide a source of energy in the form of food for consumers, such as herbivores, that are a source of energy for carnivores. Which of the following would be considered a producers? 1. Dogs 2. Parakeets 3. Cats 4. Houseplants 5. Rabbits

4. Houseplants

Christopher Uhl describes sustainability as what type of movement? 1. Political 2. Advocacy 3. Environmental 4. Social Change

4. Social Change

According to the Mind, Society, and Behavior reading, which of the following is NOT one of the three principles of human decision makes? 1. Think automatically 2. Think Socially 3. Thinking with mental models 4. Thinking Critically

4. Thinking Critically

Attitude

An expression or application of beliefs and values (What is good or bad) to a specific situation.

Ecosystem Services

Any positive benefit that wild life or ecosystems provides to people.

According to Michael Soule, the purpose of Conservation Biology is to "reverse history and return the biosphere to its prelapsarian majesty." T/F

False

Precautionary Principle

Generally defines actions on issues considered to be uncertain when an activity rises threats of harm to the environment or human health precautionary measures should be taken even if some cause and affect relationship are not fully established scientifically.

Artificial Selection

Humans select desired characteristics.

Natural Selection

Individuals well adapted to their environment are most fit for that environment.

Conservation Biology

Is a mission oriented discipline that focuses on how to protect and restore biodiversity.

Scientific Method

Is a planned organized approach, to solving a problem or answering a question.

In contrast to natural ecosystems, the flow of materials in human-engineered ecosystems, like universities, is mostly _______.

Linear

Value

Measures of worth or importance

Environmental Studies

Multi Disciplinary Academic field, which systematically studies human interactions with the environment in the interest of solving complex problems.

According to Nash, overpopulation is determined by _______ times ____________.

Numbers Per capita consumption of resources

Dissent with Modification

Principle that each living species has descended with changes from other species overtime

In the section titled "Science and the Environment" of the Introduction to Environment Science, science is described as a method of ___________.

Solving a Problem

Christopher Uhl described the process to encourage sustainability at Penn Sate. Put the following steps in the order that they occurred:

Step 1: Take a baseline measurement of university operations Step 2: Articulate a clear vision for where the university needs to go to become ecologically sustainable. Step 3: Develop strategies to incorporate the envisioned future into an ecological mission for the university. Step 4: Translate the university's newly adopted ecological mission into concrete policies and actions.

Habitat Loss

Sufficient change to a habitat that it can no longer sustain the species.

Sustainability

Sustainable development is the development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

Resilience

The ability to withstand change.

In your own words, explain the "boomerang effect" discussed in the article about the Power of Social Norms.

The boomerang effect is when descriptive norms are established that deviate from the social norm. People upon learning about this deviation from the norm follow suit because they now believe they are either too far above or below the social norm.

Burden of Proof

The burden of proof, lies with the person who makes the claim.

Carrying Capacity

The population (number of individuals) a given space can sustain.

Biodiversity

The variation of life including genetic and population variation. (Within species) species variation and ecosystem variation (Groups and species)

According to the Mind, Society, and Behavior reading, we do not incent new concepts, but rather use mental models drawn from _______ and ________.

Their Societies Their Shared History

Each level of consumption in a good chain is called a ________.

Trophic Level

According to Christopher Uhl, the data for the sustainability indicators already existed, but had never been used to assess sustainability. T/F

True

According to Nash, sustainability forces us to think of our moral responsibilities. T/F

True

According to the article about the Power of Social Norms, social norms can both spur and guide human behavior. T/F

True

Descriptive Norm

What is. A pressure to conform.

Injunctive Norms

What should/ought. A pressure to comply.