Science 6

Question 1

renewable resource

Answer 1

resource that can be produced or replaced by healthy ecosystem functions

Question 2

nonrenewable resource

Answer 2

resource that cannot be replenished by a natural process within a reasonable amount of time

Question 3

sustainable development

Answer 3

strategy for using natural resources without depleting them and for providing human needs without causing long-term environmental harm

Question 4

desertification

Answer 4

lower land productivity cause by over-farming, overgrazing, seasonal drought, and climate change

Question 5

deforestation

Answer 5

destruction of forests

Question 6

pollutant

Answer 6

harmful material that can enter the biosphere through the land, air, or water

Question 7

biological magnification

Answer 7

increasing concentration of a harmful substance in organisms at higher trophic levels in a food chain or food web

Question 8

smog

Answer 8

gray-brown haze formed by a mixture of chemicals

Question 9

acid rain

Answer 9

rain containing nitric and sulfuric acids

Question 10

biodiversity

Answer 10

total of the variety of organisms in the biosphere; also called biological diversity

Question 11

ecosystem diversity

Answer 11

variety of habitats, communities, and ecological processes in the biosphere

Question 12

species diversity

Answer 12

number of different species that make up a particular area

Question 13

genetic diversity

Answer 13

sum total of all the different forms of genetic information carried by a particular species, or by all organisms on earth

Question 14

habitat fragmentation

Answer 14

splitting of ecosystems into pieces

Question 15

ecological hot spot

Answer 15

small geographic area where significant numbers of habitats and species are in immediate danger of extinction

Question 16

ecological footprint

Answer 16

total amount of functioning ecosystem needed both to provide the resources a human population uses and to absorb the wastes that population generates

Question 17

ozone layer

Answer 17

atmospheric layer in which ozone gas is relatively concentrated; protects life on Earth from harmful ultraviolet rays in sunlight

Question 18

aquaulture

Answer 18

raising of aquatic organisms for human consumption

Question 19

global warming

Answer 19

increase in the average temperatures on Earth

Question 20

monoculture

Answer 20

farming strategy of planting a single, highly productive crop year after year

Question 21

what should sustainable development look like?

Answer 21

it should:

• cause no long-term harm to the soil, water and climate
• consume little energy and material
• be flexible enough to survive environmental stresses like droughts, floods, and heat waves or cold snaps
• take into account human economic systems as well as ecosystem goods and services

Question 22

what are the benefits of biodiversity?

Answer 22

they include

• contributions to medicine and agriculture
• the provision of ecosystem goods and services

Question 23

soil erosion

Answer 23

• the removal of soil by water or wind
• often worse when land is plowed and left barren between plantings
• easily washed away when no roots are left to hold soil in plave

Question 24

what does ozone do?

Answer 24

it absorbs harmful ultraviolet radiation from sunlight

at ground level is a pollutant

Question 25

what are the benefits to society of agriculture?

Answer 25

• a dependable supply of food that cab be stored for later use
• enabled humans to gather in settlements that grew into towns and cities
• settlements encouraged the growth of modern civilization

Question 26

what are the harms to the environment of agriculture?

Answer 26

• impacts natural resources, including fresh water and fertile soil
• fertilizer production and farm machinery also consume large amounts of fossil fuels

Question 27

what may happen if the water becomes polluted?

Answer 27

the quality may fall and cities and towns must pay for chemical treatment to provide safe drinking water

Question 28

how does one calculate ecological footprints?

Answer 28

one must take into account:

• energy
• food
• water
• shelter
• absorb such wastes such as sewage and greenhouse gases