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Environmental Science > Chapter 12 and 13 > Flashcards

Chapter 12 and 13 Flashcards

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1
Q

When harmful substances build up in the air to unhealthy levels, the result is _______ .

A

air pollution

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2
Q

Most air pollution is the result of _______ activities, but pollution can also come from natural sources.

A

human

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3
Q

A pollutant that is put directly into the air by human activity is called a _______ pollutant.

A

primary

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4
Q

_______ pollutants form when primary pollutants react with other primary pollutants, or with naturally occurring substances such as water vapor.

A

secondary

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5
Q

Ground level _______ is an example of a secondary pollutant.

A

ozone

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6
Q

Primary air pollutants include _______ , _______ , _______ dioxide , volatile _______ compounds , and _______ matter.

A 
carbon monoxide
nitrogen oxide
sulfur dioxide
volatile organic compounds
particulate matter
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7
Q

Air pollution is _______ a new phenomena.

A

not

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8
Q

The world air-quality problem is much worse today because modern industrial societies burn a large amount of _______ fuels.

A

fossil

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9
Q

Almost _______ of air pollution comes from gasoline burned by vehicles.

A

one third

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10
Q

The EPA estimates that cars and trucks today burn fuel _______ % more efficiently and with _______ % fewer emissions than they did 30 years ago.

A

35

95

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11
Q

ZEVs have _______ tailpipe emissions.

A

no

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12
Q

_______ powered vehicles are the only ZEVs at this time.

A

battery-

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13
Q

Hybrid and methanol fuel cell vehicles are the only _______ ZEVs at this time.

A

partial

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14
Q

_______ stands for volatile organic compounds.

A

VOC

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15
Q

A _______ is a machine that moves gases through a spray of water that dissolves many pollutants.

A

scrubber

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16
Q

Electrostatic precipitators are machines that remove _______ particles from smokestacks.

A

dust

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17
Q

_______ can be defined as smoke mixing with fog.

A

smog

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18
Q

Sometimes, pollution is trapped near the ground due to a temperature _______ .

A

inversion

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19
Q

A temperature inversion occurs when the air higher up in the atmosphere is _______ than the air at or near the surface of the Earth.

A

warmer

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20
Q

There are both _______ term and _______ term effects of air pollution.

A

short-

long-

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21
Q

Air pollution can also occur _______ of buildings.

A

inside

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22
Q

Buildings that have very poor air quality are said to have a condition known as _______ -_______ syndrome.

A

sick-building

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23
Q

_______ gas and _______ are carcinogens that may be present in some buildings.

A

Radon

asbestos

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24
Q

Unwanted sound is _______ pollution, and can damage our hearing by destroying cells in our ears.

A

noise

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25
Q

The intensity of sound is measured in _______ , which is abbreviated dB.

A

decibels

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26
Q

What are 3 sources of light pollution in a city? _______ , _______ , and _______ .

A

billboards/ other signs lit from below
the lighting of building exteriors
poor-quality street lights

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27
Q

_______ precipitation is precipitation such as rain, sleet, or snow that contains a high concentration of acids.

A

acid

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28
Q

When fossil fuels are burned, they release oxides of _______ and _______ . When the oxides combine with water in the atmosphere, they form sulfuric acid and
nitric acid, which fall as acid precipitation.

A

sulfur

nitrogen

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29
Q

Acid precipitation can _______ living things, and can result in the decline or loss of some local animal and plant populations.

A

kill

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30
Q

A pH (power of hydrogen) number is a measure of how _______ or _______ a substance is.

A

acidic

basic

31
Q

The lower the pH number is, the more _______ a substance is; the higher a pH number is, the more _______ a substance is.

A

acidic

basic

32
Q

Pure water has a pH of 7_______ . Normal precipitation is slightly acidic, because atmospheric carbon dioxide dissolves into the precipitation and forms carbonic acid.

A

7.0

33
Q

Acid precipitation can cause a drop in the pH of soil and water. This increase in the concentration of acid is called _______ . Increased acidity causes aluminum and other toxic metals to be released and possibly absorbed by the roots of plants.

A

acidification

34
Q

Aquatic animals are _______ to live in an environment with a particular pH range.

A

adapted

35
Q

Some of the world’s most important monuments are being dissolved by acid precipitation. These monuments include the _______ in Greece, the _______ in India, ancient temples and pyramids in _______ and in the rain forests of _______ America, and the _______ Memorial in Washington, DC.

A 
Acropolis
Taj Mahal
Egypt
Central America
Lincoln
36
Q

One problem in controlling acid precipitation is that pollutants may be released in one area and fall to the ground _______ of kilometers away.

A

hundreds

37
Q

Almost half of the acid precipitation that falls in southeastern Canada results from pollution produced in the northeastern _______ .

A

United States

38
Q

Acid precipitation is an _______ problem.

A

international

39
Q

_______ is the state of the atmosphere at a particular place at a particular moment.

A

weather

40
Q

_______ is the long-term prevailing weather conditions at a particular place based upon records taken.

A

climate

41
Q

Climate is determined by a variety of factors. These factors include _______ , _______ , _______ , the local geography of an area, solar activity, and _______ activity.

A

latitude
atmospheric circulation patterns
oceanic circulation patterns
volcanic

42
Q

The most important of these factors is _______ from the _______ .

A

distance

equator

43
Q

Latitude influences climate because the amount of _______ energy an area of Earth receives depends on its latitude.

A

solar

44
Q

More solar energy falls on areas that are near the equator than on areas that are _______ .

A

closer to the poles

45
Q

Three important properties of air illustrate how air circulation affects climate. First, _______ air sinks because it is denser than _______ air. As cold air sinks, it _______ and _______ . Second, warm air _______ . It _______ and _______ at it rises. Third, warm air can hold more _______ than cold air can. Therefore, when warm air cools, the water vapor it contains may condense into liquid water to form rain, snow, or fog.

A 
cold
warm
compresses
warms
rises
expands
cools
water vapor
46
Q

Winds that blow predominantly in one direction throughout the year are called _______ winds.

A

prevailing

47
Q

These winds are deflected to the right in the _______ Hemisphere. They are deflected to the left in the _______ Hemisphere.

A

Northern

Southern

48
Q

Belts of prevailing winds blow most of the time in both hemispheres between 30° north and south latitudes and the equator. These belts of wind are called the _______ winds.

A

trade

49
Q

Prevailing winds known as the _______ are produced between 30° and 60° north latitudes and 30°and 60° south latitudes.

A

westerlies

50
Q

Ocean currents have a great effect on climate because water holds large amounts of _______ .

A

heat

51
Q

El Niño is the name given to the short-term (generally 6- to 18-month), periodic change in the location of _______ and _______ water masses in the Pacific Ocean.

A

warm

cold

52
Q

During an _______ , winds in the western Pacific Ocean, which are usually weak, strengthen and push warm water eastward. Rainfall follows this warm water eastward and produces increased rainfall in the southern half of the United States and in equatorial South America. El Niño causes drought in Indonesia and Australia.

A

El Niño

53
Q

During _______ , on the other hand, the water in the eastern Pacific Ocean is cooler than usual.

A

La Niña

54
Q

El Niño and La Niña are _______ phases of the El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) cycle. El Niño is the warm phase of the cycle, and La Niña is the cold phase.

A

opposite

55
Q

The Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO) is a long-term, _______ - to _______ - year change in the location of warm and cold water masses in the Pacific Ocean. PDO influences the climate in the northern Pacific Ocean and North America. It affects ocean surface temperatures, air temperatures, and precipitation patterns.

A

20

30

56
Q

_______ and _______ ranges also influence the distribution of precipitation.

A

mountains

mountain

57
Q

Both the _______ and _______ influence Earth’s climate. At a solar maximum, shown in Figure 8, the sun emits an increased amount of ultraviolet (UV) radiation. UV radiation produces more ozone, warming the stratosphere. The increased radiation can also warm the lower atmosphere and surface of the Earth a little.

A

sun

volcanic eruptions

58
Q

In large-scale volcanic eruptions, _______ dioxide gas can reach the upper atmosphere. The sulfur dioxide gas reacts with smaller amounts of water vapor and dust in the stratosphere. This reaction forms a bright layer of haze that reflects enough sunlight to cause the global temperature to decrease.

A

sulfur

59
Q

The seasons result from the tilt of Earth’s axis (about _______ ° relative to the plane of its orbit).

A

23.5

60
Q

Because of this tilt, the angle at which the sun’s rays strike the Earth _______ as the Earth moves around the sun.

A

changes

61
Q

The ozone layer is an area in the _______ where ozone is highly concentrated.

A

stratosphere

62
Q

Ozone is a molecule made of _______ oxygen atoms.

A

three

63
Q

At the Earth’s surface, _______ are chemically stable.

A

CFCs

64
Q

CFC molecules break apart high in the stratosphere, where UV radiation, a powerful energy source, is absorbed. Once CFC molecules break apart, parts of the CFC molecules _______ protective ozone.

A

destroy

65
Q

Scientists have estimated that a single chlorine atom from CFC can destroy _______ ozone molecules.

A

100,000

66
Q

As the amount of ozone in the stratosphere decreases, _______ ultraviolet light is able to pass through the atmosphere and reach Earth’s surface.

A

more

67
Q

Many scientists think that because greenhouse gases trap heat near the Earth’s surface, more greenhouse gases in the atmosphere will result in an _______ in global temperature.

A

increase

68
Q

The average temperature at Earth’s surface _______ during the twentieth century. Because the temperature is rising at a similar rate to the increase in greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, many scientists have hypothesized that the increase in greenhouse gases has caused the increase in temperature.

A

increased

69
Q

_______ of experiments and computer models support this hypothesis.

A

thousands

70
Q

It is not possible to rule out _______ climatic variability. For example, we know that fluctuations in temperatures on Earth occur naturally over the centuries.

A

natural

71
Q

In 1997, representatives from 160 countries met and set timetables for reducing emissions of greenhouse gases. These timetables will go into effect when a treaty called the _______ Protocol is ratified by 55 percent of the attending nations.

A

Kyoto

72
Q

The Kyoto Protocol requires developed countries to decrease emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases by an average of 5 percent below their 1990 levels by 2012. In March of 2001, the United States decided _______ to ratify the Kyoto Protocol. Most developed nations are going ahead with the treaty.

A

not

73
Q

The attempt to slow global warming is made difficult by the _______ , _______ , and _______ factors faced by different countries. _______ has already arisen between developed and developing countries over future CO2 emissions.

A

economic
political
social
conflict

Environmental Science (10 decks)

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