APES End of Year Exam
Based on the laws of thermodynamics, which of the following is the applied mathematical routine used to estimate the biomass of the mice in the pyramid?
18,705 kg x 0.10 x 0.10
Given the mortality curve in the figure for a 0.5-kg rate, what would be the safe dosage of caffeine for a rat?
20mg
Based on the data in the graph, by approximately what percent did the sea ice decrease from 1980-2005?
30%
Which of the following best describes the process of electricity generation at a nuclear power plant?
Nuclear power is generated through fission, which releases a large amount of heat. The heat is used to generate steam, which turns a turbine that powers a generator.
What would be the safe dosage of caffeine for a human?
0.2
If a population of 100 birds increases to 120 birds in a year, what is its rate of growth?
0.20
A forest has a GPP of 3.8 kg C/m2/year and the rate of cellular respiration is 2.4 kg c/m2/year. What is the NPP?
1.4
A soil sample near Chernobyl was found to contain 187/kBq/m2 of cesium-137. If the half life of cesium-137 is approximately 30 years, how much cesium-137 will remain in the sample after 90 years?
6.23 kBq/m2
Using the rule of 70, a population growing at 10 percent would double in
7 years.
Which of the following describes a component of a modern sanitary landfill?
A bottom liner of plastic or clay to prevent groundwater contamination
Populations with an age structure diagram that is narrower at the bottom than at the top have
A declining population.
Which of the following phenomenon is not likely o be a potential consequence of habitat fragmentation?
A decrease in the proportion of edge habitat
When leaf litter inputs to the stream decrease, the amount of fish and insect biomass leaving the downstream section decreases by a similar amount. This represents
A negative feedback loop
Which of the following best describes a country in stage 2 of the demographic transition, based on the model shown below?
Birth rates are high and death rates are declining, an the population is increasing rapidly
The table below shows volcano and earthquake data for four countries that are approximately equal in size. Based on the data in the table, which of the countries is most likely located at a subduction zone between an oceanic tectonic plate and a continental tectonic plate?
Country D
Which of the following best describes the differences between the cation exchange capacity (CEC) and base saturation of a soil?
CEC is the ability of a soil to adsorb and release nutrients; base saturation if the proportion of soil bases to soil acids
To remediate an oil spill in the ocean, the use of dispersants
Can prevent oil from reaching the shorelines
The upward movement of water through soil is an example of
Capillary action
Which of the following is a nonanthropogenic source of carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere?
Cellular respiration
CERCLA is referred to "superfund" because it
Collects taxes from chemical and petroleum industries to fund the cleanup of abandoned waste sites where responsible parties cannot be established
Which of the following is the most likely consequence of the trend for the change in sea ice shown in the graph, creating a positive feedback loop in the Arctic?
Decreasing albedo and increasing absorption of the heat by the ocean
Which is not a factor that determines population growth under the theory of demographic transition?
Density independent factors slow economic growth
Massive forest fires that burn large areas and destroy forest canopy are most likely to benefit
Early succession species seeking to fill a niche.
Which of the following consequences of water impoundment for hydroelectric energy production is most likely to release greenhouse gases?
Flooding of forest and grasslands
Which of the following is a disadvantage associated with the genetic modification of crops?
Genetic modifications can decrease the genetic diversity of crop species
Based on the diagram, which group of organisms would be considered herbivores?
Grasshoppers
Why is integrated pest management (IPM) especially successful in developing countries?
High-input industrial farming is not feasible because farmers lack financial resources.
Many scientists argue that worldwide fisheries are declining, yet the worldwide number of fish harvested continues to increase. What best explains this discrepancy?
Improvements in technology is increasing the catch despite declining populations.
Which of the following is not likely to increase the efficiency of energy use and production in the united states?
Increasing the production of batteries
Which of the following is not likely to reduce the risk of sick building syndrome?
Installing energy efficient windows
Black soot causes global warming by
Lowering the albedo of snow
Which of the following groups consists entirely of secondary pollutants?
NO3-, O3, SO4 ^2-
A cone of depression may develop?
Near a deep well from which a great deal of water is rapidly pumped.
i + O2 --> O3 + UV-C --> O + ii and ii + 2O + O2 --> iv The Roman numerals refer to which compounds?
O, O2, UV-C, O + O3
Which list contains terms for lake classification, from systems with the lowest primary productivity to systems with the the highest primary productivity?
Oligotrophic, mesotrophic, eutrophic
Which measure of biodiversity takes into account the number of species present and the relative abundance of the species present?
Shannon's index
The Chernobyl nuclear disaster led to the release of massive radiation, specifically iodine-131 and cesium-137, which has been connected to a variety of environmental problems in the 30 years following the disaster. A meltdown in which of the following structures at a nuclear power plant, such as Chernobyl, would most likely lead to the accidental release of radiation?
Reactor core
What would be one method to reduce the rate of urban blight in a city?
Reduce funding for highway construction
The owner of a rural home poured several liters of concentrated bleach into a sink drain connected to a buried septic system. Which of the following is the owner most likely to notice after a few weeks?
Sludge has started to accumulate faster in the septic tank
Scientists analyze the ____ of foraminifera in ocean sediments to detect past changes in _____
Species composition/water temp
Which of the following best describes the U.S. justification for not signing the Kyoto Protocol after it was modified in 2001?
The agreement did not require sufficient reduction in the carbon emissions of china and India despite their large population sizes
Based on the theory of island biogeography, which of the following best explains how the scientists' calculation of the average number of species would change with the inclusion of this new island in their study?
The average would decrease because fewer species would have migrated directly to the farther island
Which of the following areas is likely to have soil with the greatest accumulation of minerals available for plant growth?
The bottom of an old lake bed
Scientists are interested in determining the impact of the construction of a hydroelectric dam on a population of salmon that live downstream of a populated area. They measure the health of the salmon population in its current state, several years after the dam was constructed. Which of the following would be the best to use as a control in this study?
The health of the salmon population prior to any dam construction
During an El Nino event, warm surface water movies from the western equatorial pacific ocean to the eastern equatorial region, which of the following best describes how the warm water will affect upwelling off the coast of equatorial south America?
The warm surface water will decrease upwelling because of the density difference between the warm surface water and the cold deep water.
Which is an example of sympatric speciation?
Two fish species in a single lake evolve from a single ancestor that once live in the lake
Sulfur dioxide emissions can be reduced by
Using electrostatic precipitators
