Exam 1

Question 1

____ describes the amount of energy that remains available for plant growth after subtracting the fraction that plants use for respiration

Answer 1

Net Primary Productivity

Question 2

An interaction where one specie benefits and the other is not affected is termed_____.

Answer 2

Commensalism

Question 3

An interaction where one species benefits and one is harmed is termed______.

Answer 3

Predation or Parasitism

Question 4

This tropic level is responsible for processing organic material and returning nutrients to the ecosystem.

Answer 4

Decomposers

Question 5

What percent of net energy production at one trophic level is passed on to the next level?

Answer 5

10%

Question 6

Toxins an contaminants can move up the food web and organisms at higher trophic level last can be threatened, even if the pollutant is introduced to the environment in very small quantities through a process know as_______.

Answer 6

Bioaccumulation

Question 7

An interaction where both species benefit but the relationship may not be essential for either is termed_____.

Answer 7

Mutualism

Question 8

The most important biogeochemical cycles affecting ecosystem health are the _______.

Answer 8

Nitrogen, carbon, phosphorus, and water cycle

Question 9

When organisms of different species compete for the same resources in the same habitat, one species will commonly be more successful in this competition and exclude the second from the habitat. This is referred to as the ______.

Answer 9

Competitive Exclusion Principal

Question 10

Because water is virtually incompressable, under water pressure increases in a ______ manner, unlike in the atmosphere where pressure changes in a ______ manner.

Answer 10

Linear/ exponential

Question 11

_______ are microscopic animals that live in the water column of oceans, seas, and bodies of fresh water.

Answer 11

Zooplankton

Question 12

_____ are microscopic plants that live on the water column of oceans, seas, and bodies of fresh water and are the foundation of the marine food chain.

Answer 12

Phytoplankton

Question 13

Anthropogenic climate change is defined as:

Answer 13

Climate change due to the increase of greenhouse gas concentrations from human activities

Question 14

How does the earths natural greenhouse effect work?

Answer 14

Insulating the planet by trapping heat and preventing it from leaving the atmosphere

Question 15

Beginning in the 1950s, American industrial producers decided to shift towards making products that were designed to only be used for a short time and to be replaced soon after purchase. Which of the following describes this kind of production and use?

Answer 15

Planned Obsolescence

Question 16

In contrast to planned obsolescence, what is perceived obsolescence?

Answer 16

Marketing: the goods are not designed to fail, but consumers are encouraged to throw things away because they seem old or outdated

Question 17

What is biomagnification?

Answer 17

When compounds resist microbial decomposition, are passed along the food chain and increase in concentration towards the top

Question 18

Why are BFRs so toxic to the ecosystem?

Answer 18

They are resistant to biodegradation and accumulate up the food chain

Question 19

The water table is:

Answer 19

An underground area located at the top of the saturated zone of ground water

Question 20

True or False: Saltwater intrusion due to groundwater over withdrawal in coastal areas is the only mechanism that causes salination of freshwater.

Answer 20

False

Question 21

What can happen if groundwater well pumping in coastal areas reduces the water table to below sea level?

Answer 21

Salt water can flow into the aquifer

Question 22

What is the basic geologic spatial unit that scientists focus on to characterize an area’s water supply and water quality?

Answer 22

Watershed

Question 23

What is the difference between a point source and a nonpoint source of water pollution?

Answer 23

A point source has a distinct temporal and spatial origin; a nonpoint source is diffuse and has no clear single origin.

Question 24

True or false: All ecosystems will be harmed by climate change.

Answer 24

False- Some ecosystems could benefit from climate change, at the same time that many are harmed