Semester 1 Final

Question 1

A scientist is investigating the effects of salinity on fish development. He places fertilized fish eggs in an aquarium that contains low salinity and observes their development. What factor would improve experimental design the most? (3 points)

Answer 1

Include another aquarium that has normal salinity to compare to the low salinity aquarium

Question 2

Students in a high school Marine Science class are learning about the scientific process. Four students were asked to write a testable prediction about the movement of ocean currents. Their responses are shown in the chart.

Student Response
Lisa - The movement of ocean currents is mostly driven by temperature.
Chris- The movement of ocean currents was slower during prehistoric times.
Mohammed- The movement of ocean currents is an important part of marine science.
Aaliyah-The movement of ocean currents will stop in ten years.

Which student’s prediction is the most testable using the scientific process? (3 points)

Answer 2

Lisa

Question 4

A scientist is investigating the effects of salinity on fish development. He places fertilized fish eggs in an aquarium that contains low salinity and observes their development. What factor would improve experimental design the most? (3 points)

Answer 4

Include another aquarium that has normal salinity to compare to the low salinity aquarium

Question 5

Students in a high school Marine Science class are learning about the scientific process. Four students were asked to write a testable prediction about the movement of ocean currents. Their responses are shown in the chart.

Student Response
Lisa- The movement of ocean currents is mostly driven by temperature.
Chris- The movement of ocean currents was slower during prehistoric times.
Mohammed- The movement of ocean currents is an important part of marine science.
Aaliyah- The movement of ocean currents will stop in ten years.

Which student’s prediction is the most testable using the scientific process? (3 points)

Answer 5

Lisa

Question 6

What does a sound scientific conclusion most likely rely upon? (3 points)

Answer 6

Evidence that is independently verified through a systematic process

Question 7

Cetology is an area of study that examines the physical characteristics and behaviors of some types of marine mammals by using experimentation. How would Cetology best be characterized? (3 points)

Answer 7

Science

Question 8

Shrimp are primary consumers that feed on photosynthetic organisms. Why would these organisms likely be found only in shallow ocean zones? (3 points)

Answer 8

The amount of light in deeper ocean zones is too dim to support photosynthesis.

Question 9

Cyanobacteria are organisms that use the sun’s energy to produce their own food. During a storm, a population of cyanobacteria was carried down into a deeper layer of the ocean. Predict what would happen to this population. (3 points)

Answer 9

It would die, because sunlight is unable to penetrate deep into the ocean.

Question 10

A diver is swimming near the surface of the ocean. What would she most likely observe, in terms of the numbers of photosynthetic organisms and light conditions? (3 points)

Answer 10

Many photosynthetic organisms and large amounts of light

Question 11

A Japanese scientist observes that lobster shells are softer when the animals are exposed to low pH in an aquarium. He asks his colleague in the United States to conduct the same experiment using the same aquarium equipment. Should he expect the results to be similar? (3 points)

Answer 11

Yes, because the same experiment should yield the same results as long as the environmental conditions are the same.

Question 12

A marine scientist in Oregon wants to study the habitat of the giant goby, a fish found in the Mediterranean Sea. How can he best study the habitat of these organisms? (3 points)

Answer 12

Collect water samples from the Mediterranean Sea for analysis in order to understand where they live.

Question 13

Scientists have believed for many years that less oxygen is dissolved in deeper layers of the ocean compared to shallower layers. What experimental method would best test this hypothesis, and why? (3 points)

Answer 13

Send a robot to measure how much oxygen is dissolved in ocean water at various depths, because the amount of oxygen dissolved in water changes with pressure

Question 14

A biologist observes that ocean temperature decreases with increasing depth and concludes that deep sea creatures are superior animals because they can survive in harsher environmental conditions. Why is this an invalid scientific conclusion? (3 points)

Answer 14

Scientific data cannot be used to make judgments of organism superiority.

Question 15

A population of shrimp suddenly starts collapsing. A biologist believes that toxins in the food chain are interfering with larvae development. A climate scientist believes that a change in water temperature is depleting food sources from the water. Why are both of these options valid scientific hypotheses? (3 points)

Answer 15

Scientists with different educational backgrounds can come to different interpretations of the same data.

Question 16

What skill would most likely benefit any scientist who is designing a scientific experiment to test a question? (3 points)

Answer 16

Creativity

Question 17

In order to simulate bathypelagic zone conditions in a model aquarium design, what light and pressure conditions would be required? (3 points)

Answer 17

No light, high pressure

Question 18

The Marianas trench contains Challenger Deep, the deepest point in the ocean floor that we know of today. Challenger Deep is located over 11,000 meters below the ocean surface. What ocean zone would be located just above the floor of Challenger Deep? (3 points)

Answer 18

Hadal zone

Question 19

Which ocean zone has the warmest water temperature? (3 points)

Answer 19

Epipelagic zone

Question 20

Due to the high pressure in this zone, most organisms do not have swim bladders but use other adaptations to maintain neutral buoyancy. In which zone does this occur? (3 points)

Answer 20

Bathypelagic zone

Question 21

If an organism required stable water temperatures and extreme pressure in order to survive, what zones would it most likely be found in, and why? (3 points)

Answer 21

Abyssopelagic and Bathypelagic zones, because they are deeper than 1,000 meters and have stable temperatures near freezing

Question 22

During which phase of the moon do spring tides typically occur? (3 points)

Answer 22

Full moon

Question 23

How can upwelling affect the nutrient and oxygen content of ocean water around coastlines? (3 points)

Answer 23

It brings cold, nutrient-rich water to the ocean surface.

Question 24

What property of water allows fish to survive in a lake that is frozen over? (3 points)

Answer 24

Low density as a solid

Question 25

While heating various liquids in a lab, Sascha notices that many of the liquids boil more quickly than water. What property of water explains this observation? (3 points)

Answer 25

Water has a high boiling point.

Question 26

Water is said to have a high boiling point. How does this property of water allow for life in the oceans? (3 points)

Answer 26

Even when it gets very hot in the summer, the oceans will not dry out.

Question 27

Which best describes subduction? (3 points)

Answer 27

When a crustal plate is forced below another plate

Question 28

The Rocky Mountain system stretching from Canada to New Mexico is a string of mountains running along the western United States. What factors would most likely cause this arrangement of mountains? (3 points)

Answer 28

Subduction of a tectonic plate, which pushed up a neighboring plate into mountains

Question 29

What evidence exists to support the theory of plate tectonics? (3 points)

Answer 29

Fixed points on the Earth's surface move relative to one another.

Question 30

What aspect of mid-ocean ridges provides the mechanism that allows plate tectonics to occur? (3 points)

Answer 30

New rock is formed from magma

Question 31

Wegener's theory of continental drift was formulated at a time when evidence for it was lacking. What new evidence was Harry Hess able to add in support of this theory? (3 points)

Answer 31

Seafloor spreading at the mid-ocean ridge provides the mechanism for tectonic plate movement.

Question 32

Between 3,000 and 6,000 meters below the ocean surface, over 50% of the earth's surface is covered by what kind of formation? (3 points)

Answer 32

Abyssal plains

Question 33

Which idea best describes why the volume of water in Earth's oceans changes? (3 points)

Answer 33

Ocean water is lost to the Earth's atmosphere.

Question 34

What have scientists determined forms and shapes land masses here on Earth? (3 points)

Answer 34

Tectonic plates

Question 35

The outside-in model states that most of Earth's water came from meteorites or comets. What evidence would support this model? (3 points)

Answer 35

Finding multiple comets in our solar system that contain water

Question 36

Scientists have found that Mars has water ice at its poles, even though volcanic activity has never been observed on Mars. Would this prevent the inside-out model from becoming a theory? (3 points)

Answer 36

No, because a single observation is not sufficient to discredit a theory.

Question 37

What term describes water that is deposited on Earth's surface? (3 points)

Answer 37

Precipitation

Question 38

What type of severe weather would most likely decrease coral reef biodiversity by damaging coral skeletons and polyps? (3 points)

Answer 38

Typhoon

Question 39

As global temperatures increase, sea levels rise. Which of the following is a way that rising sea levels negatively impact marine biodiversity? (3 points)

Answer 39

Less oxygen levels at various depths

Question 40

The loss of Arctic sea ice has increased over the last several decades. Which of the following is an impact of decreasing sea ice that would reduce biodiversity the most? (3 points)

Answer 40

The melting ice means less habitat for some marine species.

Question 41

As global warming continues, the oceans absorb more of the Earth's heat. What term describes the ocean as a storage location for this heat? (3 points)

Answer 41

Heat sink

Question 42

How does global climate change most directly impact marine life? (3 points)

Answer 42

Decreased habitat for polar marine animals

Question 43

Which of the following best describes the nitrogen cycle? (3 points)

Answer 43

Cycling of nitrogen that contributes 78% of atmospheric gases and drives food webs

Question 44

Which process of the hydrological cycle is maintained by the ocean's large surface area? (3 points)

Answer 44

Evaporation

Question 45

What is one way atmospheric nitrogen can be changed into ammonia? (3 points)

Answer 45

Lightning

Question 46

A prediction of the theory of Plate Tectonics is that new volcanoes can form at the boundary of two plates as magma seeps between them. To test this hypothesis, a scientist makes a map of existing volcanoes along a tectonic plate and measures the number of new volcanoes that appear over a decade. What would be the expected result of the experiment? How would you interpret the results if the scientist observes no new volcanic activity? (3 points)

Answer 46

I do not predict that the scientist will witness the creation of many volcanos, however, this does not invalidate his theory. A volcano takes thousands of years to form- not ten. If the scientist does not view volcanos forming, this does not reject his prediction or the theory of Plate Tectonics. It just takes a considerable amount of time for a volcano to form, which scientists cannot always readily observe.

Question 47

A hurricane in the southern Atlantic Ocean passes over some of the coral reefs near the Florida coastline. Predict how this hurricane could most likely increase or decrease the biodiversity of the coral reefs. (5 points)

Answer 47

I predict this hurricane has the potential to both decrease and increase the biodiversity of the coral reef. This hurricane will likely destroy certain portions, or the entirety, of the coral reef. This will leave animals without a home and displace multiple species, therefore decreasing biodiversity. A hurricane can also change ocean currents. This could potentially force different species into the coral reef that did not exist in this environment before. As they adapt to their new home, biodiversity could increase.

Question 48

Which is the best example of a pioneer species that would be found where a glacier has retreated? (3 points)

Answer 48

algae

Question 49

North Atlantic right whales spend their winters off of the coast of the southeastern United States. In the spring, they migrate north to the coast of the northeastern United States. What is the most likely reason that these whales migrate to the north in the spring? (3 points)

Answer 49

Food is more plentiful in the northeastern regions during the spring.

Question 50

Scientists have observed that polar bears are moving farther inland and hunting and eating more birds in arctic regions. What is the best explanation that can be made using this information? (3 points)

Answer 50

Shrinking sea ice has forced the polar bears to seek new food sources.

Question 51

An isolated system is best characterized as a system in which: (3 points)

Answer 51

Energy and matter cannot enter or leave.

Question 52

When ocean waves hit the beach, kinetic energy is stopped by the sand and rocks on the beach. The energy is then lost from the ocean. How does this example show the Law of Conservation of Energy? (3 points)

Answer 52

The energy is transformed to vibrational energy in the sand, rocks, and air.

Question 53

A marine biologist measured the amount of heat radiated from an aquarium over the course of an experiment. He concludes that the aquarium cannot be considered an isolated system. What could he do to make the aquarium an isolated system? (3 points)

Answer 53

He could add insulation to the aquarium so that it does not exchange energy with its surroundings.

Question 54

Joe noted that the temperature in his aquarium dropped overnight. He concluded that thermal energy moved from the aquarium to the air around it. Does this validate or invalidate the Law of Conservation of energy? (3 points)

Answer 54

Validate, because an aquarium is an open system that loses and gains energy

Question 55

Phytoplankton use sunlight to gain energy through photosynthesis. As a result of the Law of Conservation of Energy, phytoplankton cannot gain more energy than it consumes. A closed system consisting of an aquarium, phytoplankton, and sunlight is set up. Which of the following methods would best demonstrate the Law of Conservation of Energy? (3 points)

Answer 55

Measure the amount of energy in the phytoplankton and the amount of light entering the aquarium. Then measure the amount of energy in the phytoplankton after exposure to the light and determine the difference.

Question 56

Which waves are electromagnetic and can travel through a vacuum? (3 points)

Answer 56

Light and heat waves

Question 57

A kayaker is moving through the water when a speed boat passes by. The person in the kayak notices that the waves get momentarily bigger. What type of wave interference is the kayaker observing that results in an increase in amplitude? (3 points)

Answer 57

Constructive

Question 58

A marine biologist is working on a research vessel to study whale calls. His recording devices are measuring depths above 1,000 meters. As his vessel travels to cooler waters and begins to measure at greater depths, the marine biologist needs to make adjustments to his monitoring devices. Why is that? (3 points)

Answer 58

From 0 to 1,000 meters, sound travels at a slower speed in cooler water.

Question 59

Estuaries are bodies of saltwater mixed with freshwater. Why do estuaries have an abundance of aquatic organisms? (3 points)

Answer 59

Estuaries provide shelter, nursery grounds, and food sources.

Question 60

How do upwelling currents near the shore affect the abundance of aquatic organisms along the shoreline? (3 points)

Answer 60

They bring nutrients towards the shore, increasing the abundance of organisms.

Question 61

How are temperature and salinity related in a thermohaline circulation pattern? (3 points)

Answer 61

Cold water from the poles sinks, leaving behind higher salinity water.

Question 62

A student is measuring plant growth in an experiment. Using the same species of plant, he places one plant in the dark and one in artificial light. He hypothesizes that, over time, the plant in the artificial light will grow to a greater extent than that in the dark. What is the independent variable in this experiment? (3 points)

Answer 62

Type of light environment

Question 63

Which characteristic of coastal dynamics limits the abundance of aquatic organisms? (3 points)

Answer 63

Varied tidal action

Question 64

Many of the organisms that thrive in the intertidal zone attach to surfaces or hide in crevices. Which oceanic process is most related to the need for these adaptations? (3 points)

Answer 64

The force of waves pulling on the shoreline can carry organisms into the open ocean.

Question 65

To survive, rockweed algae have adapted to form thick mats in coastal areas. Which statement best describes why the algae have most likely evolved the ability to form mats? (3 points)

Answer 65

The mats reduce water loss from evaporation.

Question 66

A group of scientists build a special enclosure in the local bay to separate their experiment from the rest of the ocean. They wish to determine whether their experiment is a closed system by using a colored dye that is placed in the water. What result would best indicate that their experiment is a closed system, and why? (3 points)

Answer 66

In a closed system, energy can enter and leave freely, but matter cannot. The result that would best indicate that this experiment is a closed system is if the color dye remains inside the enclosure and does not disperse into the surrounding ocean water. This would suggest that the matter ( the dyed water) is 'closed' within the system, and cannot leave. Another result would be that no other matter enters the system.