Science

Question 1

What is Air?

Answer 1

mixture of oxygen and carbon dioxide.

Question 2

What do humans breathe in and out?

Answer 2

Humans breathe in oxygen and out carbon dioxide

Question 3

what do trees absorb and release?

Answer 3

Trees absorb carbon dioxide and release oxygen

Question 4

What do animals release?

Answer 4

Animals like cows will release methane in the form of burping and farting.

Question 5

What happens if we cut down trees and increase animal population? Is this good?

Answer 5

if we cut down a lot of trees we reduce the amount of oxygen being produced. If we then populate the area with a lot of animals we increase the levels of carbon
dioxide and methane. This is bad for the AIR.

Question 6

Trees represent a core part of an ecosystem. If trees were
destroyed what would happen to the environment?

Answer 6

There would be an increased level of carbon dioxide in the air and a decreased level of oxygen in the ocean.

Question 7

What are plants and what do they do?

Answer 7

plants are living organisms. plants are
important for the ecosystem because they are a source of food for animals that eat plants and plants also create oxygen. plants are the first part of the food chain.

Question 8

predators

Answer 8

are always hunting prey.

Question 9

T or F: Trees are part of the AIR balance

Answer 9

True

Question 10

A company wants to develop an area of rainforest for its manufacturing company. If they cut down large areas of the rainforest, what would be the consequence?

Answer 10

There would be an increase in levels of carbon dioxide in the environment.

Question 11

An environmentalist is examining the air in a city in the Southwest that has a hot and dry atmosphere and uses reservoirs for the water supply. The main industries
in the city are factories and industrialized complexes. What would be the main health concern in this area for the residents who live there that the environmentalist
should examine first?

Answer 11

The quality of the air and how it impacts respiratory health especially in the children and the elderly.

Question 12

The environmentalist wants to address the needs of the city in the Southwest. What recommendation would the environmentalist likely make to address the problem with the atmosphere?

Answer 12

To combat air pollution the city should plant many green trees. (“problem with the atmosphere” means pollution. Watch out for science jargon that makes it seem like a more complicated question)

Question 13

How do trees use photosynthesis to process sunlight?

Answer 13

The plants take energy from the sunlight and spreads hydrogen into its parts, helping to create sugar, water, and oxygen.

Question 14

order of a plant life cycle

Answer 14

Seeds, tree, flower, fruit.

Remember that FRUIT comes last. Think of every spring when we get the “Cherry Tree Blossoms.” In the spring the flowers grow and then after the flowers fall off the tree, the fruit grows in the summer. The Cherry Harvest happens in the summer.

Question 15

Nilda Rodriguez has been farming a fruit orchard where she grows a variety of tree species. Her main production of farming in her plant community are apples. These are relatively short trees that grow rapidly and need large amounts of sunshine, water and soil nutrients to thrive. She has also grown shrubs that grown in the shade of the trees and need less sunlight to survive. She is careful
to balance the ecosystem of her farm so that all plants will survive. One of her main concerns is the way animals and birds can transplant the seeds of unknown trees into her orchard. She is mindful because these trees often need less sunlight and nutrients to survive. Why is this such a concern to Nilda?

Answer 15

The trees of the unknown species may need less sunlight and nutrients to survive and can overtake her orchard and prevent the apple trees from obtaining enough water and nutrients which can cause them to die out.

Again this relates to the previous questions with regard to a balance in an ecosystem. The question above seems complicated and scientific. Keep this in mind on the test. They make it sound MUCH MORE COMPLICATED than it really is. This question is about WEEDS. You know what weeds are, right? Even though it says “trees” let’s first
think of it like flowers. If I am trying to grow a garden I want to be careful to watch out for WEEDS. Weeds need less water and less nutrients and they grow quickly. So it’s easy for weeds to ruin a beautiful garden.

Question 16

DEFINITION:
pho·to·syn·the·sis

Answer 16

the process by which green plants and some other organisms use sunlight to synthesize foods from carbon dioxide and water. Photosynthesis in plants generally involves the green pigment chlorophyll and generates oxygen as a byproduct.

Question 17

T or F: DEAD TREES CAN KILL PEOPLE!

Answer 17

True

Question 18

If Nilda Rodriguez were to create a diagram that reflects the nutrient life cycle of her farm, how would she write it?

Answer 18

Nutrients present in
the soil

Nutrients consumed
by tree and shrub

Nutrients released
back into the soil

Soil breaks down
waste.

(If the tree is not able to release the waste back into the soil because it is surrounded by weeds, it will die from the inside out. This is why they must monitor the trees carefully.)

Question 19

Water Issues

Answer 19

The oxygen levels in the water support life and it has a
significant impact on species when oxygen levels drop. In addition, rising sea levels around the world due to global warming are part of what causes such extreme weather like the recent Hurricanes that destroyed Puerto Rico and caused massive flooding and destruction in Texas and Florida. In fact, flooding has become a world-wide problem in recent years. Just think of Hurricane Sandy here in NY (2012). It was the flooding that caused most of the damage, not the winds.

Question 20

T or F: Life isn’t adaptable.

Answer 20

False

Question 21

An environmentalist is examining the way a seashore has changed over the last few years. She notes that although there has been extreme flooding that changed the coastline the animals that lived there have survived the change due the fact that the plant life remained intact. As she examines the caves and
underground tunnels she sees that most of them have also survived the change. What conclusion can be drawn from her study?

Answer 21

Although environments can change, some animals and species can quickly adapt to these changes.

Question 22

What is an example of an adaptation of the Viceroy butterflies?

Answer 22

The Monarch butterfly looks similar to the Viceroy butterfly, Monarch butterflies are poisonous to predators and so the Viceroy butterflies have ADAPTED to look more like the Monarch in order to survive. This type of adaption is something that scientists and environmentalists will study.

Question 23

metamorphosis

Answer 23

(in an insect or amphibian) the process of transformation from an immature form to an adult form in two or more distinct stages. When a caterpillar builds a cocoon and turns into a butterfly, this is metamorphosis.

Question 24

Scientific Study uses four steps, what are they?

Answer 24

remember them this way “Oh heck!”
O.H.E.C.
 Observation
 Hypothesis
 Experiment
 Conclusion

Question 25

How to do safe scientific experimentation?

Answer 25

Goggles should be worn when dealing with
chemicals and gloves should be worn when
dealing with waste or garbage.

Question 26

symbiosis

Answer 26

A mutually beneficial relationship between two different organisms. Another way that animals adapt to the environment. Mutually beneficial relationships.

Question 27

What changed the land?

Answer 27

There are two things that change the land. One is natural phenomenon and the other is human impact like farming, drilling, mining etc.

Question 28

natural phenomenons

Answer 28

Earthquakes, Volcanoes, Tsunamis.
You’ve probably heard a lot about these in the news over the last few years because of the Japanese earthquake that created a Tsunami in 2011 and the Boxing Day Tsunami that happened in the Indian Ocean. Earthquakes happen as a result of TECTONIC PLATES shifting against one another and releasing a huge amount of energy. If this happens under water it pushes the water above it outward creating huge waves that cause mass destruction.

Question 29

Weathering and Erosion

Answer 29

Water and wind erosion will change the surface of rock faces slowly over thousands of years.

*Note that areas that experience drought still experience erosion from the wind.

Question 30

Weathering can be cause also by…?

Answer 30

BACTERIA.
New studies by geologists drilling underground have discovered that this type of bacterial weathering also impacts the land.

Question 31

Topography

Answer 31

the arrangement of the natural and artificial physical features of an area.

Question 32

What are the different types of topography in the US?

Answer 32

Deserts in New Mexico and Arizona, ice tundras in Alaska, and even islands in Hawaii. The Continental US also has many different geographical features.

Question 33

What is the climate in tropical regions?

Answer 33

Tropical regions have climates that are warm and humid and experience heavy rainfall. The Philippines and Indonesia are also tropical regions with this climate.

Question 34

T or F: Agricultural development is one of ways we destroy the environment.

Answer 34

True

Question 35

agriculture

Answer 35

the science or practice of farming, including cultivation of the soil for the growing of crops and the rearing of animals to provide food, wool, and other products.

Question 36

What are the two types of impact of Human Civilization?

Answer 36

agricultural and population growth.

Population: Family, population growth, forming cities.
Agriculture: Nomads settled in the River Valleys, grew crops, formed cities, developed trade.

In the beginning we had smaller farms, but as industrialization improved we began to use large industrialized farms that transported products across the
country. We also import to and from the rest of the world.

Question 37

As industrialized farms and improvements in agriculture occurred, how did this impact the farming community?

Answer 37

The industrialized farms were larger and more productive which reduced the number of smaller local farms. Improvements in transportation and modified farming techniques have allowed Industrialized farms to grow heartier crops and to transport them around the country. As a result of this there has been a decline in smaller local farms. Some people question the responsibility of this and others think it’s necessary to meet the food needs of the world.

Question 38

WHY ARE RAINFORESTS BEING DESTROYED?

Answer 38

Humans are the main cause of rainforest destruction. We are cutting down rainforests for many reasons, including:
 wood for both timber and making fires;
 agriculture for both small and large farms;
 land for poor farmers who don’t have anywhere else to live;
 grazing land for cattle;
 pulp for making paper;

Question 39

Every year 30,000 square miles of South America’s tropical rainforests which are the world’s largest are destroyed by logging and fires, tropical forests are necessary for the stability of the world’s climate and the maintenance of fresh waters supplies. Far beyond the tropics, these forests prevent droughts and floods. The destruction of the rainforest accelerates the warming of the earth’s atmosphere. What does the information in the passage above reflect in considering the issue of environmental concerns?

Answer 39

The way the interdependence of the world impacts the environment.

Question 40

It is important to recognize the connection between different regions of the world. What happens in Mexico City has a direct impact on what happens in Jersey City and vice versa. What human responsibility do we need to keep in mind because of these issues?

Answer 40

The importance of creating a balance between human needs and environmental resources.

Question 41

Does forest destruction impact public health and the farming industry?

Answer 41

These issues impact public health and the farming
industry. This is why you will often see public health
agencies working together with farmers to address
issues related to overpopulation and exhausting our
natural resources.