ENVS 260: Water and Food
GraphIt!: Ocean Acidification Part A: The following graph shows the average pH of the ocean over the last 20 million years of Earth's history. What can be concluded from the graph? Select all that apply.
-In the last 20 million years of Earth's history, the average pH has never gone below 8.0. -Average ocean pH has fluctuated over the millennia from just over 8.0 to about 8.3.
GraphIt!: Water Availability, Access, and Demand Part A: Disparities related to water access extend beyond physical water scarcity (for example, arid climates) and economic water scarcity (for example, lack of adequate infrastructure). Another disparity exists in terms of how access to water has differential effects based on gender. A 2012 analysis of data from 25 countries in sub-Saharan Africa, representing 48% of the region's population, reveals the following regarding the distribution of water collection burden based on age and gender. How could this data be best represented graphically?
Pie chart
Everyday Environmental Science: America's Water Usage Part D: Which of the following statements is/are true?
The volume of water in Lake Mead is down by more than 50% since 1998
Everyday Environmental Science: Genetically Modified Fruit Part C: How did scientists obtain a gene that can make papaya plants resistant to a new papaya root fungus?
They found a root-fungus-resistant gene in grapes.
Everyday Environmental Science: Fresh Water Resources Part A: As a result of humans' increased use of the water in the Colorado River, __________.
humans' increased use of the water in the Colorado River, __________. fisheries in the upper Gulf of California have been hurt
GeoScience: Sediment Transport by Wind Part A: A grain of what size would be most likely to cause surrounding grains to become airborne?
0.2 mm
Video Field Trip: Saltwater Intrusion Part C: Which of the following represents the correct sequence of stages in the treatment of city water in Cedar Key, Florida?
1) removal of dissolved organic substances, 2) removal of iron and fine particles, then 3) removal of salt
Concept Review: Sources of Groundwater Can you identify sources of groundwater? drag and label to the correct location on the diagram.
FROM LEFT TO RIGHT Artesian well Water table Groundwater Unconfined aquifer Confined aquifer Recharge zone
GraphIt!: Ocean Acidification Part C: The following graphs represent the future projections from Part B. Drag the labels to their appropriate locations on the graphs.
Graph 1: Atmospheric CO2 (ppm) Orange: Optimistic Purple: Middle Ground Red: Pessimistic Graph 2: Oceanic pH (y-axis) Year (x-axis)
GraphIt!: Water Availability, Access, and Demand Part B: The pie chart represents the data from Part A. Drag the labels to their appropriate slices of the pie chart.
Green: Women 62% Purple: Men 23% Yellow: Girls 9% Red: Boys 6%
Video Field Trip: Saltwater Intrusion Part A: In Cedar Key Florida, the freshwater aquifer used for the city water supply is continuous with the seawater surrounding the island. In which of the following situations is saltwater intrusion most likely to occur?
Increased use of city water and unusually low rainfall throughout the year
Evaluating Science in the Media: Genetically Modified Organisms Part D: How can you know if the information is based on scientifically collected data and if it's corroborated by other sources? Look more closely around the web page. Click the "serious risks" link in the fourth paragraph; then click the "scientific review" link in the sixth paragraph. What do you find when you click these two links?
One links to another page on the CFS web site, and one links to a paper in a peer-reviewed journal.
Evaluating Science in the Media: Genetically Modified Organisms Part B: How can you know if the person or organization providing the information has the credentials and knowledge to speak on this topic? One clue is the type of web site it is--the domain name ".org" tells you that this site is run by a nonprofit organization. Now scan the post to find the name and credentials of the person who wrote it. What is the affiliation of the writer?
She is on staff at the Center for Food Safety (CFS).
Video Field Trip: Saltwater Intrusion Part D: In which of the following situations is it most appropriate to use the process of reverse osmosis?
To remove salt from drinking water
Interpreting Graphs and Data: Input of Nitrogen to Earth's Ecosystems Part D: In 1960, what was the total amount of nitrogen released by human activities?
about 50 teragrams
Everyday Environmental Science: Genetically Modified Fruit Part B: The current problem with the genetically modified Hawaiian papaya plants that were first created in the 1980s is that they __________.
are not resistant to a root fungus
Interpreting Graphs and Data: Agriculture and the Food We Eat Part C: In 1960 the ratio of food production to N fertilizer use was 40:15 or 2.7:1. By 2000 the ratio was 1:1. The efficiency of N use in agriculture _____.
decreased—over time we have produced less food with the same amount of N fertilizer
Everyday Environmental Science: Genetically Modified Fruit Part A: Genetically modified papayas have been created to __________.
increase resistance to disease
Everyday Environmental Science: Population and Agriculture Part B: As the global human population continues to rise, increased food production will most likely come from __________.
increased productivity of the land already used for agriculture
Interpreting Graphs and Data: Input of Nitrogen to Earth's Ecosystems Part C: What does the red graph line represent?
input of nitrogen from all human activities
Everyday Environmental Science: Fresh Water Resources Part C: Most water taken out of the natural world is used for __________.
irrigation
Everyday Environmental Science: America's Water Usage Part C: The people living in Arizona __________.
rely on underground water supplies to meet their water needs
GeoScience: Sediment Transport by Wind Part B: Which of the following correctly shows the order for grains that would blow the least distance to grains that would blow the greatest distance?
rolling grains, bouncing grains, suspended grains
GeoScience: Sediment Transport by Wind Part C: Which of the following particles made up the dust that gave the Dustbowl its name?
suspended grains
Process of Science: Discovering Flint's Water Crisis Part C: In the United States, the Safe Drinking Water Act of 1974 required the EPA to set standards for allowable quantities of chemicals in water. It also authorized local governments to monitor and maintain these standards. Local governments also have the authority to set more stringent standards than those required by federal law. Suppose you work for a municipal water department for a city with 200,000 people, and your job is to design a program that ensures people have safe drinking water with low lead levels. Build your monitoring program below. Note that "action level" refers to the threshold level of lead in the water above which a sample is considered high. For each of the categories, select the option that is most likely to keep the public safe.
1. Every year 2. 0.002% 3. High-and low-risk areas 4. 10 ppb 5. 8% 6. Always publish water test results
Interpreting Graphs and Data: Input of Nitrogen to Earth's Ecosystems Part E: During which period did the total amount of nitrogen released by human activities increase most rapidly?
1960-1980
Evaluating Science in the Media: Genetically Modified Organisms Part A: Open the site in your browser and skim the article. Think about whether you believe the information presented or whether you have doubts about some of it. On a scale of 0 to 6, where 6 is the most trustworthy, how would you rate this site? (Note that all responses will be marked as "correct" at this point.)
2-4 (somewhat trustworthy; want to check some things)
Video Field Trip: Saltwater Intrusion Part B: Why do city water departments first remove dissolved organic substances before disinfecting with chlorine?
Carcinogens may be created by reactions between chlorine and dissolved organic substances.
Interpreting Graphs and Data: Input of Nitrogen to Earth's Ecosystems Part B: What is the natural rate of nitrogen fixation in Earth's ecosystems?
100 teragrams of nitrogen per year
Evaluating Science in the Media: Genetically Modified Organisms Part E: Now, search for information on GMOs on at least two other web sites, including the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA.gov) and the World Health Organization (WHO.int). Is the information provided by these sites consistent with what you found on the CFS web site?
Other sites discuss both the risks and benefits associated with GMOs.
Interpreting Graphs and Data: Agriculture and the Food We Eat Part D: Calculate the ratio of the agricultural land index to the population index for 1960 and compare it to the ratio for 2000. The ratios suggest that _____.
the per capita demand on agricultural land has increased over time
Video Field Trip: Saltwater Intrusion Part E: Which of the following environmental problems is most closely associated with saltwater intrusion?
widespread use of fossil fuels
Interpreting Graphs and Data: Agriculture and the Food We Eat Part A: Compare the world population index for 1960 to the world population index for 2000. Then express the world population in 2000 as a percentage of world population in 1960.
200%
Everyday Environmental Science: Population and Agriculture Part D: Despite increased agricultural production by developed countries about 100 years ago, less developed countries continued to use traditional agricultural practices. Then, in the 1960s, the research of Dr. Norman Borlaug increased crop production by nearly 500% in Mexico and India by using __________.
All of the above responses are correct. 1.Modern farm equipment 2.High yielding crops 3.Disease resistant crops
Interpreting Graphs and Data: Agriculture and the Food We Eat Part E: Demographers predict that global population will continue to increase. As population increases, which of the following statements represents future agricultural changes for maintaining an adequate food supply?
Higher food production per unit of agricultural land
Concept Review: Soil Profile Characteristics
Organic (litter layer) this layer consists of plant residue atop the soil surface. On a forest floor, it may be leaves and twigs. In a field, it may be crop residue left after harvest. Topsoil this layer consists of organic matter, humus, and inorganic minerals. It facilitates plant rooting, has high nutrient content, and holds water. Eluviated (leaching layer) this layer loses minerals and organic matter to the layer beneath it. Subsoil this layer accumulates minerals and organic matter leached from upper soil layers. Rock (parent material) this layer forms the base geologic material in a particular location; it is sometimes called bedrock.
Interpreting Graphs and Data: Input of Nitrogen to Earth's Ecosystems Part F: Which factor was the major contributor to the rapid increase in the total human input of nitrogen between 1960 and 2000?
a rapid increase in fertilizer use and industrial processes
Everyday Environmental Science: Genetically Modified Fruit Part D: Once the root-fungus-resistant gene was inserted into the papaya plants, the genetically modified papaya plants were __________.
tested to be sure that they were substantially equivalent to non-engineered fruit
Everyday Environmental Science: Fresh Water Resources Part D: Which of the following is a promising way to reduce global water consumption?
avoiding waste and mismanagement
Everyday Environmental Science: America's Water Usage Part A: In general, we can conclude that with increasing economic development and wealth, a country tends to use __________ water per person.
more
Everyday Environmental Science: Fresh Water Resources Part B: In the past 50 years, the global hydrological environment has experienced great change due to __________.
the construction of more than 40,000 new dams
Everyday Environmental Science: Population and Agriculture Part C: About 100 years ago, agricultural production in the United States tripled due to __________.
the invention of fertilizers and use of more modern machinery
Interpreting Graphs and Data: Input of Nitrogen to Earth's Ecosystems Part G: Is the following statement supported or not supported by the data shown in the graph? In the year 2000, the total human input of nitrogen into Earth's ecosystems was almost twice the natural rate of nitrogen fixation.
supported
Interpreting Graphs and Data: Input of Nitrogen to Earth's Ecosystems Part A: What information is presented on the y-axis of the graph?
the amount of nitrogen added to Earth's ecosystems each year
Everyday Environmental Science: America's Water Usage Part B: The average person in the United States uses more water than __________.
All of the listed choices are correct. 1.Three people in the United Kingdom 2.Six people in China 3.10 people in Kenya
Evaluating Science in the Media: Genetically Modified Organisms Part C: Next, can you identify what the source is trying to accomplish by providing this information? As you read the post, think about what the writer's agenda might be with regard to GMOs. What seems to be the main purpose of the blog post?
to convince the public that genetic engineering is not the solution to citrus greening
GraphIt!: Carbon Footprint of Food Consumption Part B: The graph below represents the data from Part A. Use the data from Part A to correctly label the graph. Drag the labels to their appropriate locations on the graph.
y-axis (0-4.5): energy per year (quads) bars on x-axis (tallest to shortest): - household storage and preparation - food retail and commercial food service - processing industry - agricultural production - packaging material - transportation
Global Connection: Food Security Part A: A region's food security is closely linked to its carrying capacity. Carrying capacity is the capacity of a region to support a species. The higher the carrying capacity, the greater the number of individuals that can live in that region. Several factors determine a region's carrying capacity for humans, including space, access to fresh water, agricultural production, and infrastructure for food distribution. For instance, the number of humans that can live in a location depends on the amount of food that can be supplied to the people in that location. If a population is far below its carrying capacity, there is typically abundant food. If a population is above its carrying capacity, there is typically not enough food to feed everyone. The graphs below represent human populations in four different regions. Can you infer each region's food security situation based on the graphs? Drag the best description to each graph.
1.People are well fed, and this region may even be exporting food 2.People are staring in this region 3.The region has enough food, but some people may be starving because of uneven food distribution. 4.The carrying capacity of this region was increased with good aid
Everyday Environmental Science: Population and Agriculture Part A: Using the most reliable information available, how much of the Earth's land surface is used for agriculture today?
30 to 40%, according to satellite imagery
GraphIt!: Carbon Footprint of Food Consumption Part D: The following table shows the change in U.S. food system energy consumption by component between 2009 and 2016. Drag "True" or "False" to the end of each statement.
False:Energy use in agricultural production and transportation increased from 2009 to 2016. True:Though energy used in household storage and preparation increased by 0.7 quads from 2009 to 2016, the percentage of the total energy consumption represented by household storage and preparation declined. True:Energy used in food retail and commercial food service increased from 1.05 quads in 2009 to 3.9 quads in 2016. False:Total energy consumed by the U.S. food system decreased by 3.6 quads from 2009 to 2016. True:Between 2009 and 2016, energy use in the processing industry changed much more substantially than energy use in packaging materials changed during the same period. True:As the food energy available increased from 1.4 quads to 1.75 quads between 2009 and 2016, the ratio of energy consumed by the food system per unit of available food energy also increased.
GraphIt!: Ocean Acidification Part B: The oceans play an important role in regulating the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere by absorbing atmospheric CO2. Atmospheric CO2 reacts with seawater to produce carbonic acid, resulting in increased oceanic acidity (measured by lower pH values). In 2016, Earth's atmosphere broke a record that had stood for approximately 16 million years: atmospheric CO2 levels measured at or above 400 ppm for the entire year. This increase in CO2 from a pre-industrial level of 280 ppm has already had an impact on oceanic pH, which has declined from pH 8.2 to pH 8.1 over the same time period -- a 30% increase in acidity. Scientists are studying how atmospheric CO2 concentrations and oceanic pH may change in the future. In work supported by the U.S. Department of Energy, researchers Denis Pierrot, Ernie Lewis, and Douglas Wallace developed a model to show how atmospheric CO2 levels and oceanic pH may change under three different carbon emission scenarios: An optimistic scenario A middle ground scenario A pessimistic scenario For more information about each of these scenarios, see Hint 1. The following data reflect predictions from Pierrot, Lewis, and Wallace's model. How could this data be best represented graphically?
Line graph
GraphIt!: Water Availability, Access, and Demand Part E: As you have seen, it is important to look beyond global averages to unmask disparities based on development status. But even this level of analysis masks some other types of disparities, such as between urban and rural areas. The graph here shows how access to safe drinking water and access to basic sanitation improved in urban areas versus rural areas on a global basis between 1990 and 2015. What conclusions can you draw from this graph? Select the three conclusions you can draw from the graph.
-In 1990, only 39% of the global rural population had access to basic sanitation, but by 2015, that had jumped almost 20 percentage points. -For both drinking water and sanitation, rural populations experienced more improvement between 1990 and 2015 than urban populations did. -By 2015, over 90% of the global urban population had access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation.
Global Connection: Food Security Part B: Now you will examine specific contributing factors to food security in five nations. As you learned in Part A, a nation may have a problem feeding its people if its population exceeds its carrying capacity. One measurement that can indicate how close a population is to its carrying capacity is physiological density. Physiological density is the number of people per square kilometer of land that is being farmed. Everything else being equal, a nation with low physiological density will have greater food security than a nation with high physiological density. The table below lists the five nations you will analyze. Each nation's level of food security is indicated in the table. You will analyze data presented on world maps to build an understanding of why that nation is or is not food secure.
1.High 2.Low 3.High 4.Medium 5.Very High
GraphIt!: Carbon Footprint of Food Consumption Part A: According to a life cycle analysis of the U.S. food system conducted by the University of Michigan, the U.S. consumes 13.9 quads of mostly fossil fuel energy to produce 1.75 quads of food energy annually. A quad is a unit of energy equal to 1 quadrillion (1015) British thermal units (BTUs). One quad is equal to the energy of 183 million barrels of petroleum. Here is how energy consumption breaks down by component in the U.S. food system: How could these data be best represented graphically?
bar graph
GraphIt!: Ocean Acidification Part D: The graphs from Part C are shown here. Can you interpret them? Drag the terms on the left to the appropriate blanks on the right to complete the sentences.
1. In 2016, atmospheric CO2 was at 400 ppm, and oceanic pH was at 8.1. 2. Under the Optimistic scenario, CO2 concentrations in the atmosphere will increase but will remain under 600 ppm through 2090. 3. Under the Middle Ground scenario, CO2 concentrations in the atmosphere will get close to, but are not projected to exceed 700 ppm by 2090. 4. Under the Pessimistic scenario, CO2 concentrations in the atmosphere are projected to exceed 800 ppm by 2090. 5. Across all three scenarios, ocean pH falls below 8.0 by 2090. 6. From the information in the graphs, you can conclude that oceanic pH and atmospheric CO2 concentration are negatively (or inversely) correlated. 7. Although not reflected in this graph, you can infer that as atmospheric carbon dioxide increases, oceanic carbon dioxide concentrations also increase, suggesting that the two variables are positively (or directly) correlated.
Process of Science: Discovering Flint's Water Crisis Part A: The Lead and Copper Rule of the Safe Drinking Water Act states that if more than 10% of homes test above 15 ppb (parts per billion) for lead, a city is legally required to take corrective action and warn residents about lead in their water. The DEQ reported that less than 10% of homes in Flint had high lead levels, and therefore no action was taken. Many people in Flint didn't trust the DEQ results given other problems with the water and the symptoms they were experiencing. One resident contacted an expert on lead in municipal water, and the expert questioned if the sample size in the DEQ study was large enough. Sample size refers to the number of samples collected and tested in a particular study. With the expert's help, the community initiated a lead testing project they called the Flint Water Study (FWS). They sampled many more locations than the DEQ did, and they arrived at a far different conclusion. This table shows the FWS results compared to the DEQ results. (Flint is divided into 9 areas called wards, and water samples were taken from each ward.) Drag the numbers and terms on the left to answer the questions on the right. Not all terms will be used.
1. The DEQ study had a sample size of 69 and the FWS had a sample size of 270. 2. The FWS had a sample size that was about 4 times larger than the DEQ study. 3. While the FWS found all 9 wards to have 10% or more of the homes with high lead levels, the DEQ found only 2 wards to have 10% or more of the homes with high lead levels. 4. Overall, the DEQ study found about 9% of the houses sampled had high lead levels; the FWS found about 19% had high lead levels. 5. Based on the difference in their samples sizes, the results from the FWS are more reliable than the results from the DEQ.
GraphIt!: Carbon Footprint of Food Consumption Part C: The following graph shows the same data from the graph you just labeled, but in a slightly different way and with one addition. The energy consumption bars are now stacked into a single bar to make energy consumption in the system easier to compare to the energy output of the system. Can you interpret the graph of energy flow in the U.S. food system? Drag the terms on the left to the appropriate blanks on the right to complete the sentences. Terms may be used once, more than once, or not at all.
1. The largest portion of energy in the food system is consumed by household storage and preparation. 2. Food processing and packaging together account for a little over 25% or 3.5 quads of the energy consumed in the food system annually. 3. Purchasing organically grown food would save energy involved with agricultural production as it would reduce the energy that goes into producing chemical fertilizers and pesticides. 4. Consolidation in the food system means that there are fewer food processing operations, which increases energy used in transportation by increasing the distance between food sources and consumers. 5. Purchasing locally grown produce would reduce energy used in transportation. 6. Eating less meat would reduce energy used in agricultural production. 7. Buying frozen convenience food in bulk could increase energy used in household storage and preparation. 8. The U.S. food system is rather inefficient as it consumes almost 8 times as much energy in producing, processing, packaging, and transporting food than it makes available as food energy output.
GraphIt!: Water Availability, Access, and Demand Part D: In September 2000, the adoption of the UN Millennium Declaration signaled the beginning of a global partnership to reduce extreme poverty. As part of this partnership, eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) were developed that established a series of targets with a deadline of 2015. One of the targets was to cut in half the proportion of people without sustainable access to safe drinking water. In the GraphIt! activity, you explored the global trends related to improving access to safe drinking water. The graph here digs a little deeper into that data and shows progress toward the MDF safe drinking water targets, broken down by region and development status. Drag the terms on the left to the appropriate blanks on the right to complete the sentences. Terms may be used once, more than once, or not at all.
1. The world (all nations considered together) met the target for safe drinking water. 2. Five out of nine developing regions met the target for safe drinking water. 3. Of the developing regions shown on the graph, Eastern Asia showed the greatest percentage increase in access to an improved drinking water source between 1990 and 2015. 4. Of the developing regions shown on the graph, Caucasus and Central Asia showed the least improvement between 1990 and 2015. 5. The least developed nations did not meet the target for safe drinking water. 6. Even so, the least developed nations showed about a 20% improvement in access to safe drinking water since 1990.
GraphIt!: Water Availability, Access, and Demand Part C: In the GraphIt! activity, you worked with a graph of global water use by sector (domestic, industrial, and agricultural) and how this water use differs between high-income and low-middle-income countries. The graph below is a plot of the relationship between access to water and access to food for low-middle-income countries. Notice that access to water is measured as a Water Index, which is a value that incorporates measures of water resource availability, access, and quality. The higher the Water Index number, the better the access to adequate and clean water. A term that describes access to food is food security. Food security is a situation that exists when all people, at all times, have physical, social, and economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food that meets their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life. People without such access to food experience food insecurity. Can you interpret the graph? Drag the terms on the left to the appropriate blanks on the right to complete the sentences. Not all terms will be used.
1. This type of graph is called a scatter plot. 2. The Water Index is plotted on the x-axis. 3. The percentage of people with access to food is plotted on the y-axis. 4. The red trend line in the graph is sometimes called a best-fit line. 5. From the graph, you can see that as Water Index goes up, so does the percentage of people with access to food. In other words, Water Index and food access are positively correlated. 6. An international aid agency is trying to decide whether to invest in small-scale irrigation projects as a way to combat food insecurity. Extending the information presented in this graph, providing irrigation should increase food security.
GraphIt!: Carbon Footprint of Food Consumption Part E: Notice in the table that the energy consumed by the food retail and commercial food service component almost quadrupled from 1.05 quads in 2009 to 3.9 quads in 2016. What might be the reason(s) for this increase? Select all that apply.
1.Consumers are purchasing more processed and ready-to-eat foods, thus outsourcing much of the food prep to retail and wholesale grocery stores. 2.Consumers are eating out more at food establishments that serve fast food but with a focus on fresh and healthy ingredients.
Global Connection: Food Security Part E: Here is the table you completed in the previous parts. Drag the terms on the left to complete the statements about each nation on the right.
1.Even though Madagascar has an agriculture-friendly climate, it has low food security due to low development and high physiological density. 2. Even though Sudan has low physiological density, it has low food security due to an agriculture-unfriendly climate and low development that makes efficient use of agriclutural lands and food distribution difficult. 3. Even though India has an agriculture-friendly climate and medium development, it has only medium food security because of high physiological density. 4. Brazil has high food security due to an agriculture-friendly climate, high development, and medium physiological density. 5. Even though Egypt has an agriculture-unfriendly climate and very high physiological density, it has high food security due to its medium level of development that allows it to import food from other countries.
Global Connection: Food Security Part D: Development plays a role in determining a nation's carrying capacity and thus its food security. A nation's level of development can be defined using the human development index (HDI). The HDI takes into account several factors, including a nation's healthcare, economics, and education. Everything else being equal, nations with high development will tend to have higher carrying capacities and greater food security than nations with low development, which may have problems feeding their populations for several reasons: Poverty: When people are poor, they may not have the ability to purchase food or even purchase seeds to grow crops. Lack of investment in agriculture: A nation that is less developed may lack the resources and/or technology to get the most out their agriculture lands. They may also lack the infrastructure to support agriculture, e.g., roads, warehouses, and farming equipment. Political instability: Less developed nations tend to have food security issues related to political instability, such as war or displacement. They may also lack the ability to deal with fluctuating prices in food markets. Use the map to indicate each nation's level of development.
1.Low 2.Low 3.Medium 4.High 5.Medium
Global Connection: Food Security Part C: The climate of a region determines how well food crops grow in that region. Everything else being equal, a nation with more rainfall will have a higher carrying capacity and greater food security than a nation with a drier climate. One of the most common ways to grow crops is with rainfed agriculture. The map shows average annual precipitation around the world. Indicate whether each country has a climate conducive to agriculture. Assume that an agriculture-friendly climate includes 50 cm or more of precipitation per year.
1.Yes 2.No 3.Yes 4.Yes 5.No
Evaluating Science in the Media: Genetically Modified Organisms Part F: Finally, how can you use your assessment of the authority, motivation, and reliability of the information to evaluate this web site relative to other sources? Use the scales below to assign a numerical score to this source.
2 to 4
Interpreting Graphs and Data: Agriculture and the Food We Eat Part B: Now compare fertilizer use in 1960 to fertilizer use in 2000. Express the year 2000 N fertilizer use as a percentage of N fertilizer use in 1960.
667%
Process of Science: Discovering Flint's Water Crisis Part B: Just because there are high levels of lead in the water does not mean that it is necessarily having a negative effect on people. While the Flint Water Study was conducting their water testing, local pediatrician Dr. Mona Hanna-Attisha investigated blood lead levels in children. Hanna-Attisha predicted that if lead levels in water had increased, she would see higher lead levels in children. She was able to gain access to city medical records from the past several years. With these data, she could investigate if lead levels had increased after the water source switch. Furthermore, she could investigate if wards with the highest amounts of lead in their water also had children with the highest amounts of lead in their blood. Which 3 of the following 6 graphs would best support the hypothesis that lead in the water was causing elevated lead levels in children? Drag a check mark to the three graphs that best support the hypothesis. Drag an X to the three that do not support the hypothesis. (WLL stands for water lead level, and BLL stands for blood lead level.)
A.Yes B.No C.Yes D.No E.Yes F.No
GraphIt!: Ocean Acidification Part E: As explained in the GraphIt! activity, the way ocean acidification works is that atmospheric carbon dioxide reacts with seawater to produce carbonic acid, resulting in increased acidity (measured by lower pH values). The change in pH is due to the H+ ions released as the carbonic acid molecule dissociates, forming bicarbonate ions and H+ ions. Furthermore, the H+ ions combine with carbonate ions present in ocean water, forming more bicarbonate ions. In summary, excess carbon dioxide leads not only to lower pH, but also to lower carbonate levels and higher bicarbonate levels. The decrease in carbonate levels affects calcification rates for organisms that build their shells from calcium carbonate (CaCO3); less carbonate means less calcium carbonate can be formed. The following graph depicts the relationship between atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations and calcification rates in corals. Drag "True" or "False" to the end of each statement.
TRUE: Although not reflected in the graph, based on how ocean acidification works...can be predicted to be positively (or directly) correlated. TRUE: Coral reef calcification rates are projected to steadily decline as atmospheric CO2 concentrations increase. TRUE: As atmospheric CO2 concentrations reach 560 ppm... preindustrial level. FALSE: As atmospheric CO2 concentrations reach 840 ppm, or three times the preindustrial level, the calcification rate will be reduced to 30 mmol/m2/day. FALSE: The data in this graph could also be plotted as a pie chart. FALSE: Declining coral calcification rates suggests a decrease in the level of bicarbonates and an increase in the level of carbonates in seawater.