Week 3- History, Agriculture, & Animal Production

Question 1

economies of scale

Answer 1

the gain in efficiency that comes with doing something on a larger scale, such as mass production or buying in bulk

Question 2

externality

Answer 2

a side effect of providing a product or service that is not reflected in its price (example- the negative effects of raising cattle on the environment

Question 3

feedlot

Answer 3

confined outdoor facilities where cattle and other animals are housed and fed before slaughter
(large feedlots are a type of CAFO)

Question 4

fertilizer

Answer 4

materials spread on soil to increase its capacity to promote plant growth

Question 5

industry concentration

Answer 5

the extent to which a small number of corporations control most of the sales in an industry (the greater concentration, the fewer corporations controlling majority of the sales)

Question 6

industry consolidation

Answer 6

shift toward fewer and larger facilities

Question 7

irrigation

Answer 7

human-made means of delivering freshwater to agricultural fields (includes use of flooding, canals, sprinklers, and drip tape)

Question 8

manure

Answer 8

animal excrement used as fertilizer

Question 9

mechanization

Answer 9

replacement of animal & human labor with machinery

Question 10

monoculture

Answer 10

fields planted with a single crop species over a given season, typically over a very large area

Question 11

plow

Answer 11

tool used by farmers to turn over the top layer of soil- it buries seeds and residues from prior crops, brings nutrients to the surface, and loosens soil for planting

Question 12

soil

Answer 12

top layer of earth’s surface

Question 13

soil erosion

Answer 13

removal of soil from ground by wind, water, and other forces

-contributes to the loss of soil’s fertility

Question 14

vertical integration

Answer 14

extent to which a single company controls multiple successive stages along the supply chain of a product

Question 15

algal bloom

Answer 15

a rapid increase in the population of algae, often the result of excess nutrients in the water
-some algal blooms are toxic to humans and marine life

Question 16

compost

Answer 16

dark, crumbly, soil-like material made from decomposed/decomposing organic matter, such as manure, food waste, leaves, and grass clippings
-is applied to soil as a nutrient-rich fertilizer for plants

Question 17

composting

Answer 17

a form of waste treatment that uses fungi, bacteria, and other microbes to decompose organic matter
-can reduce or eliminate pathogens, harmful chemicals, plant diseases, odors and air pollution

Question 18

dead zone

Answer 18

an area of the ocean where most aquatic life cannot survive because the water is depleted of oxygen

Question 19

dust bowl

Answer 19

period of severe dust storms that caused massive crop failure, hunger, and poverty across the Midwest in the ’30s
-rapid mechanized agriculture pulverized the top layer of soil & stripped the grasses that held it in place, leaving it dry & exposed t being blown away by wind

Question 20

organic matter

Answer 20

anything that was once part of a living organism, such as decaying leaves and animal waste
-is among the most important ingredients of fertile soil

Question 21

rotational grazing

Answer 21

moving animals to new areas of pasture on a regular basis

-helps prevent soil erosion, promotes pasture growth, and spreads manure evenly over land

Question 22

runoff

Answer 22

water from rain, snow, and other natural or human sources that flows over land and washes into waterways
-often carries pollutants it encounters along the way, such as excess nutrients and agriculture chemicals

Question 23

soil food web

Answer 23

interactions between living organisms and nonliving organic matter in the soil

• every organism becomes food for another
• promotes an abundant food supply and human health

Question 24

waste treatment

Answer 24

processes to make water less of a threat to health and the environment by reducing pathogens, toxic chemicals, & other harmful substances

Question 25

aquaculture

Answer 25

the farming of aquatic organisms for food, using tanks, constructed ponds, or enclosures where their living conditions and feeding are controlled

Question 26

grower

Answer 26

people who own the facilities in which hogs and chickens are raised indoors until they are ready for slaughter

Question 27

horizontal integration

Answer 27

expansion of a corporation, through mergers or takeovers, to include other businesses competing in the same type of enterprise

Question 28

integrator

Answer 28

the corporations that typically own the animals, supply specially formulated feed, and specify how animals will be housed and maintained

Question 29

manure lagoon

Answer 29

outdoor pool for storing and treating animal waste

Question 30

open ocean aquaculture (OOA)

Answer 30

raising fish in offshore pens or cages that are free-floating, secured to a structure, anchored to the ocean floor, or towed by a boat

Question 31

recirculating aquaculture system

Answer 31

a closed-loop system of raising fish in indoor tanks

-water flows from the fish tank to a treatment process and then back to the tank