quiz #4

Question 1

what’s environmental racism and what are some examples?

Answer 1

waste sites and other industries occur in poor, nonwhite areas

ex: conversion of rainforests into palm oil plantations

Question 2

define globalization and give an example

Answer 2

the increasing interconnectedness of human activities, ideas and cultures

ex: food/commercial products are available at all times from all around the world

Question 3

define ecology

Answer 3

the study of all processes influencing the distribution and abundance of organisms and the interactions between living things and the environment

Question 4

define species

Answer 4

a group of individuals that share certain characteristics but are distinct from other groups.. all members of a species can interbreed and produce fertile offspring

Question 5

define populations and biotic communities

Answer 5

populations: individuals that make up an interbreeding, reproducing group
biotic community (biota): the grouping of populations in an area. determined by abiotic factors like water climate, salinity and soil

Question 6

define ecosystem and ecotone

Answer 6

ecosystem: interactive complex of communities and the abiotic factors affecting them
ecotone: transitional region between ecosystems

Question 7

define landscape, biome and biosphere

Answer 7

landscape: cluster of interacting ecosystems
biome: large area with the same climate and vegetation
biosphere: the huge system formed by all living things

Question 8

how would you create a model to show environmental change?

Answer 8

go into an area and mark certain abiotic data (i.e., temperature, soil and moisture), attribute to different regions (i.e., forest, shrub, tundra), then look for commonalities

Question 9

Based on the discussion in class explain how we could generate a model to show ecosystem and biome extent today and into the future. To answer this question, explain what the dependent variable would be in this model as well as outlining the independent variable(s) and how you use them. How can these variables be used to explore potential changes in biome extent? (10 Marks)

Answer 9

first you would need to determine what ecosystems/biomes you were looking to examine. the dependent variable would be the extent of the biomes. then, you would look at independent variables such as: temperature, soil and moisture. Then, by looking at commonalities over the data series, you could link these commonalities to specific biomes/ecosystems. We could then create the models ( with the help of historical records as well via climate reanalysis) to show the extent of the biomes – which would be an accurate depiction of how the biomes look today. If you wanted to explore how potential changes affect the biome extent, you would just need to adjust certain independent variables (T, soil, moisture) and see how the model shifts.