Environmental Science

Question 1

What is an environment?

Answer 1

All Living Matter
All Non living matter (rocks, wind, sunlight, etc)
Essentially, an environment is the sum of our surroundings
Human Interactions
Social Institutions and Business

Question 2

Environmental Science vs Environmental Studies/Systems

Answer 2

Environmental Science is the actual study of the environment and environmental studies and systems is the study which includes but is not limited to protesting for or against a certain environmentally affecting activity.

Question 3

Environmental Science is what kind of field?

Answer 3

an Interdisciplinary field. Environmental Science is a balance of how humans affect the environment and how in return the environment affects us.

Question 4

Natural Resources

Answer 4

Those things that are essential for human survival and growth. Human based Environmental Science is about Natural Resources.

Question 5

Renewable Resources

Answer 5

Resources that can be replenished or are always present ex: Sunlight, Timber, Water

Question 6

Non Renewable Resources

Answer 6

Resources that either cannot be replenished or take a very long time to renew. Ex: Oil, Coal, Minerals

Question 7

Tragedy of the Commons

Answer 7

Unregulated use of resources leads to resource depletion

Question 8

What civilizations have called due to environmental decline?

Answer 8

Easter Island, Greenland Norse, Anasazi of North America, Mayan, Modern Russia

Question 9

What is an Environmental Disaster?

Answer 9

Subjective based upon societal views and opinions. But some examples are DDT, MSMA, and Toxic Dumping

Question 10

How do we solve environmental problems?

Answer 10

We use Science to sort fact from fiction. A systematic process of checks and balances that uses a wide body of knowledge to explain the world around us.

Question 11

What are the two types of Scientific Designs/Experiments?

Answer 11

Manipulative Experiments and Natural Experiments

Question 12

Manipulative Experiments

Answer 12

Experiments performed in ‘lab’ settings. They yield the most results, but aren’t always indicative of what happens in the real world.

Question 13

Natural Experiments

Answer 13

Experiments performed outside/the field. Great design for what happens in nature, but results are not always pretty.

Question 14

With enough applications, a hypothesis can become a _______.

Answer 14

Theory. A theory is a widely accepted explanation. However, theories can change.

Question 15

Paradigm Shift

Answer 15

change in thinking

Question 16

What are the major paradigm shifts?

Answer 16

The Agricultural Revolution and The Industrial Revolution

Question 17

The Agricultural Revolution

Answer 17

Began about 10,000 years ago. People stopped gathering and began moving into a more agricultural life. Domesticated animals, farms, crops and villages begin during this period.

Question 18

The Industrial Revolution

Answer 18

Began in the mid-1700s. People start moving away from the agricultural way of life and begin moving into urban areas. Mass production, fossil fuels and cities are born from this era. Along with them come fertilizers, pollution and pesticides.

Question 19

What is the greatest barrier of Science?

Answer 19

The Assumption of Knowledge

Question 20

What problems do we currently face?

Answer 20

Population vs. resource consumption.Our population growth is out of control and our rate of resource consumption is higher than our population growth. Humans are the biggest problem to the environment.

Question 21

Thomas Mathus (1766-1834)

Answer 21

British Economist who wrote a paper stating that unless population growth is controlled with laws. people will outgrow food supply until starvation, war, and famine returns it to balance.

Question 22

Paul Ehrlich (1932- )

Answer 22

American biologist whose 1968 book The Population Bomb. predicted that the world’s population explosion would lead to disaster by the end of the 20th century.

Question 23

Ecological Footprint

Answer 23

The impact a person or population makes on the environment. Takes in consideration the amount of productive land it takes to support your resource addiction. Can be country based.

Question 24

Agriculture

Answer 24

Since the Agricultural Revolution, we have witnessed the rise of pesticides and synthetic fertilizers, land erosion and pollution that we have seen a shift in our food production and the way we eat. Resulting in Fat Americans

Question 25

Pollution

Answer 25

Water, Soil, and Air are all affected by pollution and there are few places on our planet that are pollution free.

Question 26

The World Health Association estimates that a _______ people die every year of pollution effects.

Answer 26

MILLION

Question 27

Why is there a lack of biodiversity?

Answer 27

Human actions have driven a numerous amount of species to go extinct. We are currently in a mass extinction period where we are losing species of critter everyday.

Question 28

Cornucopians

Answer 28

Hopeful. They think that the current status of the environment is getting better due to human intervention . Humans can fix anything

Question 29

Cassandras

Answer 29

There is no hope. They think that we have reached a point of no return and predict disaster.

Question 30

Sustainability

Answer 30

No net loss of resources. We should try to keep the environment just like we found it and avoid compromising future availability.

Question 31

Triple Bottom Line

Answer 31

Our solutions must meet environmental, economic, and social goals at the same time.