Environmental Science Assignment

Topics: Food and Hunger, Biodiversity, and Restoration Ecology

1. Food security has to do with
A. A country's dependence on cash crop exports
B. Preventing wars over diminishing food supplies
C. The ability of a population to obtain food on a day-to-day basis
D. The total volume of food a country imports
E. The total volume of aid a country receives

2. Undernourished parents often raise children who are undernourished because the parents
A. Transfer genetic deficiencies to their children
B. Do not know any better
C. Cannot afford to feed their children properly
D. Do not have access to the information about nutrition
E. All of these are reasons for the vicious cycle

3. Famines are most often serious when there is
A. A very serious drought
B. No room to expand agriculture
C. Steady population growth
D. Armed conflict and political oppression
E. An attempt by indigenous people to return to old traditions and lands

4. What are two common diseases that result from protein deficiencies?
A. Dysentery and diarrhea
B. Dysentery and scurvy
C. Scurvy and pellagra
D. Goiter and cretinism
E. Marasmus and kwashiorkor

5. The three crops that humans rely on for the majority of nutrients and calories are
A. Potatoes, wheat and oats
B. Wheat, rice and maize (corn)
C. Barley, oats and rye
D. Maize (corn), oats and rice
E. Oats, beans and barley

6. Most of the livestock grown in North America are
A. Confined in CAFOs
B. Held in pasture year-round
C. Kept in pastures during the day and barns at night
D. Kept in pastures during the summer and barns during the winter
E. Exported to Europe after slaughter

7. Which of the following does not describe the status of the world's wild fisheries?
A. Overharvesting threatens the fisheries
B. Subsidies are necessary to make the fisheries profitable
C. Fish farming has allowed wild fish to recover worldwide
D. Habitat destruction threatens the fisheries
E. All of these describe the status of wild fisheries

8. High responder crops of the green revolution produce tremendous yields
A. Even in severe drought conditions
B. With primitive farming techniques and no chemical use
C. In response to fertilizers, pesticides and irrigation
D. In all conditions where standard crops fail
E. Even in severe drought conditions and with primitive farming techniques and no chemical use

9. Fifty years ago, there were several hundred varieties of wheat grown in the Middle East. Now a few of the more modern high responder varieties have replaced the indigenous species. What are the implications of this change?
A. The productivity of wheat should continue to rise and increase the availability of food per person
B. Genetic resources are diminished and an epidemic of wheat disease is highly likely due to the reliance on few species
C. The high responder varieties will need specialized harvesting methods because they are so productive
D. The biodiversity of wheat species has increased because of the introduction of few hybrid species
E. All of these are correct

10. ____ percent of adult Americans are overweight.
A. 23
B. 40
C. 80
D. 64
E. 90

11. Biodiversity consists of the following component(s):
A. Genetic diversity
B. Ecosystem diversity
C. Species diversity
D. All of the above

12. How do people benefit from biodiversity?
A. Insurance
B. Genetic knowledge
C. Environmental services and ecosystem function
D. All of the above

13. ________ is the single greatest threat to loss of biodiversity.

A) Habitat loss
B) Poaching and hunting
C) Introduction of alien species
D) Changes in biogeochemical cycles

14. An area with an especially large number of species is called a
A. Speciation
B. Species evenness
C. Hot spot
D. Allopatric speciation

15. What are some policies to save biodiversity?
A. Implementation of national and international laws that protect species
B. Efforts to preserve natural ecosystems
C. Market-based mechanisms that try to have users pays for the benefits of biodiversity
D. All of the above.

16. The common way that a species is defined in biology (the way it is defined in Chapter 3) is in terms of reproductive isolation. This means that all organisms that are similar enough to
A. Produce fertile offspring in nature
B. Look alike
C. Fill the same niche
D. Occupy the same community
E. Live together

Use the following scenario for questions 17 and 18:

There are three ecological communities, each with differing species, but all of them have 100 individual plants and animals.
Community A has 21 species. Of the 110 individuals, there are 50 individuals of one species and 3 each of the other 20 species.
Community B has 11 species. Of the 110 individuals, there are 90 individuals of one species and 2 each of the other 10 species.
Community C has 11 species. Of the 110 individuals, there are 10 individuals of each species.

17. In this scenario, which community has the highest species richness?
A. Community A
B. Community B
C. Community C
D. Community A and C are the same
E. Community A and B are the same

18. In this scenario, which communities have the same species evenness?
A. Community A and C
B. Community B and A
C. Community C and B
D. All three communities have the same species evenness
E. None of the communities has the same species evenness

19. Approximately how many species have been identified on Earth?
A. About 500,000
B. A little less than 1 million
C. A little more than 1.5 million
D. A little more than 3 million
E. About 30 million

20. Most of the species that are yet undiscovered are probably
A. Mammals and reptiles
B. Birds and fish
C. Vertebrates
D. Invertebrates
E. Multicellular plants

21. Which of the following is not a benefit of biodiversity for humans?
A. Aesthetics
B. Ecological services
C. Food
D. Drugs and medicines
E. All of these are benefits of biodiversity

22. Soil formation and water purification are examples of _________ based on the biodiversity that benefit humans.
A. Aesthetic benefits
B. Geological cycles
C. Availability of food
D. Health benefits
E. Ecological services

23. Extinction is the term used when all members of a species
A. Disappear in a locality
B. Die
C. Live in zoos
D. Are threatened with imminent habitat loss
E. Are in danger of disappearing in a locality

24. Introduced (exotic) species tend to __________ the balance of ecosystems and ______ biodiversity.
A. Increase; decrease
B. Increase; enhance
C. Maintain; enhance
D. Upset; decrease
E. Upset; increase

25. Restoring coastal marshes has become a priority in protecting coastal cities from
A. Hurricanes
B. Flooding
C. Invasive species
D. Both hurricanes and flooding
E. All of these

26. Efforts to repair or reconstruct ecosystems are known as
A. Land stewardship
B. Conservation reserve programs
C. Landscape ecology
D. Restoration ecology
E. Mitigation

27. The word "mitigation" has come to mean to
A. Let nature heal itself
B. Partially restore an ecosystem
C. Restore or create an ecosystem in exchange for a similar damaged one
D. Move to a new environment when one has been damaged
E. Use natural processes to treat sewage water

28. ________________ uses chemical, physical or biological methods to remove pollution.
A. Remediation
B. Reclamation
C. Mitigation
D. Restoration
E. Rehabilitation

29. Some of the advantages of planting trees in cities include
A. Acting as noise barriers
B. Providing shade
C. Improving air quality
D. Improving the aesthetics
E. All of these are correct

30. Problems encountered in the Florida Everglades due to modification of the natural flow of water include
A. Loss of 90 percent of wading bird populations in Everglades National Park
B. Water shortages in many cities during the dry season
C. Increased numbers of hurricanes
D. Loss of 90 percent of wading bird populations in Everglades National Park and water shortages in many cities during the dry season
E. All of these are correct

31. Radioactive materials have been successfully removed from the soil near the nuclear power plant using
A. Sunflowers
B. Poplar trees
C. Expensive soil removal and extraction methods
D. Mustard greens
E. None of these, there is no way to remove radioactive materials safely from soil

32. "Brown fields" is another name for
A. Tall grass prairies
B. Degraded wetlands
C. Prairies converted into croplands
D. Abandoned contaminated industrial sites
E. Abandoned, contaminated surface mines.