envs practice test 1

Current rates of extinction of species are estimated to be roughly rates of extinction prior to the Anthropocene a. 1-10 b. 10-100 c. 100-1000 d. 1000-10000

100-1000

Pangaea began to break up about 225 million years ago. If the Atlantic Ocean is now about 4500 kilometers wide, how fast has the width of the Atlantic Ocean been increasing during the last 225 million years a. 2 millimeters per year b. 2 centimeters per year c. 20 centimeters per year d. 2 meters per year

2 centimeters per year

In hypothetical country A, everyone dies when they reach the age of 60. In hypothetical country B, which has a better health care system, everyone dies when they reach the age of 75. If the total population of both countries is stable, what percentage of the total population would you expect to be in the age group 32-46 years inclusive? a. 20% in country A and 25% in country B b. 25% in country A and 20% in country B c. 39% in both countries d. 15% in both countries

25% in country A and 20% in country B

The ecological efficiency in a food chain is 10%. Toxic substance X is transferred between trophic levels within an efficiency of 20%mango if the concentration of X on trophic level 3 is 12 parts per million (ppm), what is the concentration of X on trophic level 1? a. 1 ppm b. 2 ppm c. 3 ppm d. 6 ppm

3 ppm

Student Stephanie is planning to grow some flowers in her backyard. She learns that the flowers use nitrogen and phosphorus in a ratio of 62 atoms of nitrogen for every 7 atoms of phosphorus. Stephanie decides to buy some fertilizer to help her flowers grow. The located garden store has four kinds of fertilizer that contain nitrogen and phosphorus as follows: a. 62% nitrogen and 7% phosphorus by weight b. 31% nitrogen and 14% phosphorus by weight c. 40% nitrogen and 10% phosphorus by weight d. 20% nitrogen and 10% phosphorus by weight The atomic masses of nitrogen and phosphorus are 14 and 31. Which fertilizer should Stephanie buy?

40% nitrogen and 10% phosphorus by weight

Which one of the following is the definition of a landscape? a. An interactive complex of communities and the abiotic environment affecting them within a particular are b. A large area of Earth's surface that shares climate and has similar vegetation c. The individuals of a certain species that live within a given area d. A cluster of interacting ecosystems like forests, open meadows, and rivers together

A cluster of interacting ecosystems like forests, open meadows, and rivers together

Which one of the following is the definition of a biome? a. An interactive complex of communities and the abiotic environment affecting them within a particular area b. A large area of Earth's surface that shares climate and has similar vegetation c. The individuals of a certain species that live within a given area d. A cluster of interacting ecosystems like forests, open meadows, and rivers together

A large area of Earth's surface that shares climate and has similar vegetation

The greatest decreases of forest area between 1990 and 2010 occurred in a. North America and China b. China and Africa c. Africa and South America d. South America and North America

Africa and South America

During a period of one year, at what time of the year would you expect the concentrations of CO2 to be highest? a. In the middle of summer b. At the end of summer c. In the middle of winter d. At the end of winter

At the end of winter

Animals and plants that are not native to North America and whose presences has had serious negative impacts on some native species do not include which one of the following? a. Kuduz b. Nutria c. Fire ants d. Beavers

Beavers

The Neolithic Revolution a. Begin in Africa about 12,000 years ago b. Begin in Europe about 40,000 years ago c. Begin in the Middle East about 12,000 years ago d. Began in China about 40,000 years

Begin in the Middle East about 12,000 years ago

A bag of fertilizer is labeled 12-18-20. What is the percentage of organic matter in the fertilizer? a. 12 b. 18 c. 20 d. Cannot tell

Cannot tell

Which one of the following is not an example of mutualism? a. Cattle egrets and water buffalo b. Bees and flowering plants c. Lichens d. Plants and fungi that grow on their roots

Cattle and egrets and water buffalo

Which of the following areas experienced a net gain of forest area between 2000 and 2010? a. China and Europe b. Europe and North America c. North America and South America d. South America and China

China and Europe

Overfishing for which one of the following fish on the Grand Banks and Georges Bank resulted in the collapse of the fisheries during the period from 1980 to 2000? a. Cod b. Tuna c. Herring d. Anchovies

Cod

Which of the following countries have centrally planned economies? a. North Korea and China b. China and Russia c. Russia and Cuba d. Cuba and North Korea

Cuba and North Korea

Which one of the following explains why the global fish harvest almost doubled from 1985 to 2010? a. Dramatic increase in aquaculture production b. Restrictions on bottom trawling, which had previously destroyed benthic habitats c. Implementation of total allowable catch (TAC) quotes in important fisheries d. Warmer water temperatures at high latitudes due to climate change

Dramatic increase in aquaculture production

Which one of the following is not involved in maintaining population equilibrium? a. Predation b. Food supply c. Drought d. Disease

Drought

Which one of the following is not an example of a mechanism to escape predation? a. Thorns on a plant b. Speed of rabbit c. Bad smell of skunk d. Exotic plumage of peacock

Exotic plumage of peacock

Which one of the following is not one of the three major components of a nation's capital that determines its wealth a. Natural capital b. Produced capital c. Financial capital d. Intangible capital

Financial captial

Consider the following statements: I. In any energy conversion, some of the usable energy is always lost II. Energy is neither created nor destroyed, but it may be converted from one form to another III. Systems will go spontaneously in one direction only-- toward increasing entropy Which of the above are statements of the second law of thermodynamics?

I and III

Which of the following explanations account for the fact that ecological efficiencies tend to be higher in aquatic ecosystems than in terrestrial ecosystems? I. Most aquatic organisms are cold-blooded II. The oxygen concentration is much lower in water than in air III. Temperatures vary much less in aquatic systems than in terrestrial systems IV. It takes less energy to support body weight in water than on land or in the air

IV and I

Which one of the following problems is not attributable to habitat destruction? a. In Texas, fire ants are estimated to kill 20% of songbird babies before they leave the nest b. Telecommunication towers kill an estimated 5-50 million birds each year in the U.S. c. More than a million animals per day become roadkill in the U.S. d. Between 100 million and 1 billion birds die each year by crashing into glass windows

In Texas, fire ants are estimated to kill 20% of songbird babies before they leave the nest

Which of the following is an example of primary succession? a. After a forest fire, pine trees grow from seeds that were protected beneath pine needles b. Grasses emerge from the soil after saltwater from a tsunami kills all above-ground vegetation in a meadow c. Trees reappear on the slopes of Mount St. Helens after the fallout of volcanic ash kills all the above-ground vegetation d. Lichens appear on basalt rock 50 years after a volcanic eruption on the Big Island of Hawaii

Lichens appear on basalt rock 50 years after a volcanic eruption on the Big Island of Hawaii

Which one of the following is not an example of resource partioning? a. Several different bird species feed in different parts of the same trees b. Male songbirds sing to defend their territory during the nesting season c. Bats eat insects at night, and swallows eat insects during the day d. Wildflowers in temperate forests sprout in the early spring before the trees grow leaves to avoid competition with the trees for light

Male songbirds sing to defend their territory during the nesting season

In regions where various types of vegetation coexist and compete, periodic fires do not tip the balance in favor of a. Oak trees b. Grasses c. Redwood trees d. Pine trees

Oak trees

With of the following kinds of property rights are associated with the Tragedy of the Commons? a. Private ownership b. Communal ownership c. Open access d. State ownership

Open access

Rocks are the major source of which of the following essential nutrients? a. Phosphorus and sulfur b. Sulfur and carbon c. Carbon and nitrogen d. Nitrogen and phosphorus

Phosphorus and sulfur

Which of the following are autotrophic organisms? a. Herbivores and omnivores b. Omnivores and plants c. Plants and chemosynthetic bacteria d. Chemosynthetic bacteria and herbivores

Plants and chemosynthetic bacteria

The fertility rate in Burkino Faso has exceeded the replacement rate for many years and is currently about 5.9. if the fertility rate were to suddenly drop to the replacement rate, why would the population of Burkino Faso continue to increase? a. Recent dramatic improvements in health care b. Immigration froterm-48m neighboring countries c. Improved nutrition from genetically modified crops d. Population momentum

Population momentum

Which one of the following statements is true? a. R-strategists have low biotic potential and poor recruitment most of the time b. R-strategists have low biotic potential and good recruitment most of the time c. R-strategists have high biotic potential and poor recruitment most of the time d. R-strategists have high biotic potential and good recruitment most of the time

R-strategists have high biotic potential and poor recruitment most of the time

Climate moderation is an example of which one of the following kinds of ecosystem services? a. Provisioning b. Regulating c. Cultural d. Supporting

Regulation

The three crops that account for about 50% of global food demands are a. Wheat, corn, and soybeans b. Corn, soybeans, and rice c. Soybeans, rich and wheat d. Rice, wheat, and corn

Rice, wheat, and corn

Which one of the following plants has been a source of two natural products used to treat childhood leukemia and Hodgkin's disease? a. Yew tree b. Rosy periwinkle c. Opium poppy d. Willow trees

Rosy periwinkle

Which one of the following is an example of an ecotone? a. Salt marsh b. Lake Erie c. Grassland d. Deciduous forest

Salt marsh

Which one of the following is not one of the vital concepts that move societies toward a sustainable future? a. Security b. Sound Science c. Sustainability d. Stewardship

Security

Which of the following is the environmentally preferred form of silviculture? a. Clear-cutting and shelter-wood cutting b. Shelter-wood cutting and selective cutting c. Selective cutting and even-aged management d. Even-aged management and clear-cutting

Shelter-wood cutting and selective cutting

Which one of the following statements is not true? a. Since 1960, the percentage of people living in high-income countries has increased b. Since 1960, life expectancy has increased c. Since 1960, infant mortality has decreased d. Since 1960, average income per capita has increased

Since 1960, the percentage of people living in high-income countries has increased

Amensalism is an example of a. Commensalism b. Symbiosis c. Predation d. Competition

Symbiosis

Which one of the following is not an example of an external lost? a. The City of Baton Rouge uses tax revenues to upgrade its wastewater treatment plants from secondary to tertiary treatment b. An oil refinery discharges pollutants into the air that adversely affect the health of people living downwind from the refinery c. Clearcutting a forest results in an increase in the runoff of nutrients from the land that causes algal blooms in the waters that receive the runoff d. A company that makes dyes from coal tar allows its wastewater to seep into the ground, where it contaminates the water supple of a nearby city with carcinogenic organic compounds

The City of Baton Rouge uses tase revenues to upgrade its wastewater treatment plants from secondary to tertiary treatment

In a population whose dynamics are characterized by exponential growth a. The doubling time is constant b. The maximum rate of population growth occurs halfway to carrying capacity c. The graph of the size of the population versus time is S-shaped d. The population increases exponentially near the carrying capacity

The doubling time is constant

Which one of the following statements is true? a. The demographic transition has preceded the epidemiologic transition b. The fertility transition has preceded the epidemiologic transition c. The epidemiologic transition has preceded the fertility transition d. The fertility transition has preceded the demographic transition

The epidemiologic transition has preceded the fertility transition

Over the past 40 years, human well-being has been steadily improving, while natural ecosystems, from which we derive many goods and service, have been declining. Which one of the following does not help to explain this so-called environmentalist's paradox? a. Food production, a crucial ecosystem service that has been enhanced, outweighs the effects of declines in other ecosystem services b. Human technology, such as irrigation and synthetic fertilizers, make us less dependent on ecosystem services c. The measurements of human well-being have bene flawed; it is actually declining d. There is a time lag between ecosystems decline and human well-being; the worst is yet to come

The measurements of human well-being have been flawed; it is actually declining

Which one of the following reasons accounts for the fact that timber sales from national forests in the United States declines by about 80% during the 1990s? a. The biomass of trees had seriously declined during previous decades because the trees had because the trees had been harvested at a rate that was not sustainable b. The First Service made no effort to extinguish fires started by lightning in national forests on the assumption that fires, although temporarily c. Outbreaks of gypsy moths and tussock moths caused widespread defoliation of trees before an effective biological control was identified d. The strategy of managing the forests changed: trees are now harvested at 350-year intervals instead of 60-80 year intervals

The strategy of managing the forests changed: trees are now harvested at 350-year intervals instead of 60-80 year intervals

Which one of the following statements is not one of the four basic assumptions of the scientific method a. The total entropy of an isolated system can never decrease over time b. Every result has a cause, and every even in turn will cause other events c. What we perceive which our five senses represents an objective reality, not some kind of dream or mirage d. Through our powers of observation, manipulation, and reason, we can discover and understand the basic principles and natural laws by which the universe functions

The total entropy of an isolated system can never decrease over time

Mangroves are much more abundant near Port Fourchon today than they were 30 years ago because a. There has not been a hard freeze since 1989 b. The salinity in the area is lower now as a result of diversions of the Mississippi River to restore wetlands c. Rising sea levels has flooded areas that were formerly too dry to support the growth of mangroves d. Temperatures during the summer have become more favorable to the growth of mangroves as a result of global warming

There has not been a hard freeze since 1989

Which one of the following countries currently has the highest fertility rate? a. Japan b. Italy c. China d. United States

United States

Which one of the following countries has the lowest life expectancy? a. United States b. Japan c. Sweden d. United Kingdom

United States

Which one of the following gases accounts for the greatest percentage of the greenhouse effect? a. Water vapor b. Methane c. Ozone d. Carbon dioxide

Water vapor

The fact that the number of California condors has increased from fewer than 50 individuals in 1985 to more than 400 today is an example of a. adaptation b. acclimation c. speciation d. none of the above

none of the above