Question 1

What best explains the low productivity of the open ocean?

Accepted Answer

A)  The open ocean lacks insufficient light to support photosynthesis. 
B)  Nutrients rapidly sink to depths that sunlight can not reach. 
C)  The open ocean is actually very productive but its primary producers are consumed as quickly as they grow. 
D)  These regions are typically too cool to support significant primary production. 
A)  The open ocean lacks insufficient light to support photosynthesis. 
B)  Nutrients rapidly sink to depths that sunlight can not reach. 
C)  The open ocean is actually very productive but its primary producers are consumed as quickly as they grow. 
D)  These regions are typically too cool to support significant primary production.

Question 2

Biosphere II demonstrated that

Accepted Answer

A)  living without the contribution of natural ecosystems is less complex than originally thought. 
B)  building a self-sustaining model of a biosphere is not yet possible. 
C)  the environmental factors are much less significant than the social and psychological factors when human are confined. 
D)  a self-sustaining moon colony will probably exist within two generations. 
A)  living without the contribution of natural ecosystems is less complex than originally thought. 
B)  building a self-sustaining model of a biosphere is not yet possible. 
C)  the environmental factors are much less significant than the social and psychological factors when human are confined. 
D)  a self-sustaining moon colony will probably exist within two generations.

Question 3

Cutting a forest to produce paper bags that are quickly discarded could be considered shortsighted; with the majority of its trees removed the forest will

Accepted Answer

A)  experience a significant loss of nutrients as they leech through the soil and into nearby waterways. 
B)  not be unable to recover and will eventually be replace with a desert. 
C)  no longer be able to recycle the energy it captures during photosynthesis. 
D)  all of the above 
A)  experience a significant loss of nutrients as they leech through the soil and into nearby waterways. 
B)  not be unable to recover and will eventually be replace with a desert. 
C)  no longer be able to recycle the energy it captures during photosynthesis. 
D)  all of the above

Question 4

In the absence of _____, nutrient recycling within the ecosystem would completely stop.

Accepted Answer

A)  rocks 
B)  secondary consumers 
C)  decomposers 
D)  predators 
A)  rocks 
B)  secondary consumers 
C)  decomposers 
D)  predators

Question 5

Which of the following groups of organisms would not be considered to be consumers?

Accepted Answer

A)  herbivores 
B)  predators 
C)  photosynthesizers 
D)  decomposers 
A)  herbivores 
B)  predators 
C)  photosynthesizers 
D)  decomposers

Question 6

With respect to the following values, rain with a pH of _____ would be the most acidic.

Accepted Answer

A)  7 
B)  3 
C)  8 
D)  5 
A)  7 
B)  3 
C)  8 
D)  5

Question 7

In the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest in New Hampshire, a portion of the forest was first clear-cut, then sprayed with herbicides for 3 years to prevent growth. A second portion of the forest was not clear-cut or sprayed and served as a control plot. The graph below shows that nitrate, a form of nitrogen that is important to plants, was lost from the ecosystem in streams at a much higher rate in the clear-cut portion of the forest than in the control portion.  
What best explains the small releases of nitrogen from the control portion of the forest at the Hubbarb Brook Experimental Forest?

Accepted Answer

A)  Its nitrogen was sequestered in the forest biomass and temporarily unavailable. 
B)  With intact vegetation to intercept the acid rain that falls in the area it failed to reach the soil and chemically react to release the nitrogen. 
C)  With intact vegetation, rainwater washed little soil and nitrogen from the forest floor. 
D)  All of the above contributed to the small amount of nitrogen loss. 
A)  Its nitrogen was sequestered in the forest biomass and temporarily unavailable. 
B)  With intact vegetation to intercept the acid rain that falls in the area it failed to reach the soil and chemically react to release the nitrogen. 
C)  With intact vegetation, rainwater washed little soil and nitrogen from the forest floor. 
D)  All of the above contributed to the small amount of nitrogen loss.

Question 8

Essential elements required by producers are called nutrients.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 9

Rainfall with a low pH is called _______.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Rainfall with a low pH is called...

Question 10

Coral reefs and swamps are among Earth's most productive ecosystems.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 11

Which of the following describes the ultimate disposition of most energy in an ecosystem?

Accepted Answer

A)  It is used to construct the bodies of decomposers. 
B)  It is trapped as fossil fuels when producers die and become fossilized. 
C)  It is continuously recycled back into the ecosystem. 
D)  It eventually returns to space in the form of heat. 
A)  It is used to construct the bodies of decomposers. 
B)  It is trapped as fossil fuels when producers die and become fossilized. 
C)  It is continuously recycled back into the ecosystem. 
D)  It eventually returns to space in the form of heat.

Question 12

The rate of new biomass production by consumers is called

Accepted Answer

A)  primary productivity. 
B)  a biomass flow chain. 
C)  an energy pyramid. 
D)  secondary productivity. 
A)  primary productivity. 
B)  a biomass flow chain. 
C)  an energy pyramid. 
D)  secondary productivity.

Question 13

Biologists use the term _______ to refer to the weight of organisms per unit area.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Biologists use the term _______ to refer...

Question 14

Eventually, all biomass produced by any organism is consumed by _______.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Eventually, all biomass produced by any organism...

Question 15

What best explains this observation: consumers directly use approximately 20 percent of a forest's net primary productivity (NPP) while decomposers directly use approximately 80?

Accepted Answer

A)  Decomposers are more efficient at obtaining energy than consumers. 
B)  Forest ecosystems do not have a very high NPP, so they cannot support as many consumers as other ecosystems can. 
C)  Consumers eat only certain parts of organisms, such as fruits or muscle tissue, while decomposers obtain energy from the entire body of the food organism. 
D)  Secondary consumers eat the primary consumers more quickly than the primary consumers can eat the producers, thus leaving most of the NPP available to the decomposers. 
A)  Decomposers are more efficient at obtaining energy than consumers. 
B)  Forest ecosystems do not have a very high NPP, so they cannot support as many consumers as other ecosystems can. 
C)  Consumers eat only certain parts of organisms, such as fruits or muscle tissue, while decomposers obtain energy from the entire body of the food organism. 
D)  Secondary consumers eat the primary consumers more quickly than the primary consumers can eat the producers, thus leaving most of the NPP available to the decomposers.

Question 16

Within the ecosystem, nutrients

Accepted Answer

A)  move in a one-way path from producers toward consumers. 
B)  regularly cycle between organisms and the nonliving environment. 
C)  are consumed by their use and thus not available for recycling. 
D)  are rarely limiting because they are constantly replenished as the Earth's crust is eroded. 
A)  move in a one-way path from producers toward consumers. 
B)  regularly cycle between organisms and the nonliving environment. 
C)  are consumed by their use and thus not available for recycling. 
D)  are rarely limiting because they are constantly replenished as the Earth's crust is eroded.

Question 17

The impacts of acid rain

Accepted Answer

A)  are quickly reversed by most soils. 
B)  can last for long periods of time. 
C)  are almost entirely confined to terrestrial ecosystems. 
D)  presently are experienced only in the United States. 
A)  are quickly reversed by most soils. 
B)  can last for long periods of time. 
C)  are almost entirely confined to terrestrial ecosystems. 
D)  presently are experienced only in the United States.

Question 18

Which of the following would most likely take longest to replace if lost from a terrestrial ecosystem?

Accepted Answer

A)  sulfur 
B)  carbon 
C)  oxygen 
D)  phosphorous 
A)  sulfur 
B)  carbon 
C)  oxygen 
D)  phosphorous

Question 19

The primary contribution of decomposers to an ecosystem occurs when they

Accepted Answer

A)  capture solar energy. 
B)  recycle nutrients sequestered in organisms back to the physical environment. 
C)  regulate the number of producers. 
D)  prevent consumers overpopulation. 
A)  capture solar energy. 
B)  recycle nutrients sequestered in organisms back to the physical environment. 
C)  regulate the number of producers. 
D)  prevent consumers overpopulation.

Question 20

Nutrients that have an atmospheric cycle

Accepted Answer

A)  include carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus. 
B)  may be affected by events that occur in distant parts of the globe. 
C)  may become trapped in ocean sediments until tectonic processes elevate the ocean floor. 
D)  can quickly become locally depleted and limit NPP. 
A)  include carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus. 
B)  may be affected by events that occur in distant parts of the globe. 
C)  may become trapped in ocean sediments until tectonic processes elevate the ocean floor. 
D)  can quickly become locally depleted and limit NPP.

Exam 37: Ecosystems

What best explains the low productivity of the open ocean?

Biosphere II demonstrated that

Cutting a forest to produce paper bags that are quickly discarded could be considered shortsighted; with the majority of its trees removed the forest will

In the absence of _____, nutrient recycling within the ecosystem would completely stop.

Which of the following groups of organisms would not be considered to be consumers?

With respect to the following values, rain with a pH of _____ would be the most acidic.

Essential elements required by producers are called nutrients.

Rainfall with a low pH is called _______.

Coral reefs and swamps are among Earth's most productive ecosystems.

Which of the following describes the ultimate disposition of most energy in an ecosystem?

The rate of new biomass production by consumers is called

Biologists use the term _______ to refer to the weight of organisms per unit area.

Eventually, all biomass produced by any organism is consumed by _______.

What best explains this observation: consumers directly use approximately 20 percent of a forest's net primary productivity (NPP) while decomposers directly use approximately 80?

Within the ecosystem, nutrients

The impacts of acid rain

Which of the following would most likely take longest to replace if lost from a terrestrial ecosystem?

The primary contribution of decomposers to an ecosystem occurs when they

Nutrients that have an atmospheric cycle

The Nature of Science and the Characteristics of Life

Organizing the Diversity of Life

Major Groups of Living Organisms

Chemical Building Blocks

Cell Structure and Internal Compartments

Cell Membranes, Transport, and Communication

Energy and Enzymes

Photosynthesis and Cellular Respiration

Cell Division

Patterns of Inheritance

Chromosomes and Human Genetics

DNA

From Gene to Protein

Control of Gene Expression

DNA Technology

How Evolution Works

Evolution of Populations

Adaptation and Speciation

The Evolutionary History of Life

Maintaining the Internal Environment

Animal Nutrition and Digestion

Gas Exchange

The Circulatory System

Animal Hormones

The Nervous System

Sensing the Environment

Skeletons, Muscles, and Movement

Defenses against Disease

Reproduction and Development

Animal Behavior

Plant Structure, Nutrition, and Transport

Plant Growth and Reproduction

The Biosphere

Growth of Populations

Interactions among Organisms

Communities of Organisms

Global Change

Biodiversity and People

Cancer: Cell Division Out of Control

Harnessing the Human Genome

Humans and Evolution

Smoking--Beyond Lung Cancer

Feeding a Hungry Planet

Building a Sustainable Society

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