Question 1

What is the first law of thermodynamics, and why is it important?

Accepted Answer

The answer of What is the first law of thermodynamics,...

Question 2

Use the figure above to answer the following question.
-If the pond above is chemically treated to raise the pH to 7.0 ___________________

Accepted Answer

A)  the concentration of hydrogen ion is now lower than at pH 7.5 
B)  the water of the pond is now slightly alkaline 
C)  the pond is now pH neutral and it has more hydrogen ions than at pH 7.5 
D)  the water of the pond is now slightly acid 
E)  there will be no measurable levels of hydrogen ion in the pond

Question 3

The greatest source of water in the hydrological cycle is ______________

Accepted Answer

A)  groundwater 
B)  soil water 
C)  oceans 
D)  precipitation 
E)  the atmosphere

Question 4

Briefly describe what ecologists mean by an ecosystem.

Accepted Answer

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Question 5

Briefly discuss how human activities have affected the balance of global hydrological and carbon cycles.

Accepted Answer

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Question 6

Choose the item that best matches each item in the following:
-Elements or molecules with a charge

Accepted Answer

A) atoms 
B) electrons 
C) isotopes 
D) ions 
E) molecules
F)protons
G)neutrons

Question 7

Consider the following processes: respiration, combustion, polymerization, nitrification, industrial fixation, and photosynthesis. How many of these result in the release of oxygen into the atmosphere?

Accepted Answer

A)  1 
B)  none 
C)  all 
D)  2 
E)  4

Question 8

When you burn a log in your fireplace you are converting ______________

Accepted Answer

A)  electromagnetic to chemical 
B)  chemical to nuclear energy 
C)  proteins to amino acids 
D)  thermal to electromagnetic energy 
E)  chemical to thermal (heat) energy

Question 9

Read the following scenario and answer the question below.
Glass Lake, located in a valley in low forested mountains, for many decades of the 19th and early 20th centuries was a favorite picnic, recreation, and fishing site for people in surrounding towns and farms. However, in the middle of the 20th century, a trend began in which the privately-owned farms in the Lakeʹs watershed were purchased by large agribusinesses.
The decision was made to grow a profitable crop. The demand for quality farmland resulted in the sale of most of the family-owned establishments and a large increase in the area of land under cultivation. Most of the forests were cut to acquire the land needed for crops. The use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides increased several fold by the end of the century. In addition, the combined population of the lakeside villages quadrupled during the same time. The lake experienced a slow degradation of water quality and biodiversity. Sport fishing declined and the lake became murky while the sediments in the lake increased in depth.
-A task force composed of water quality chemists, environmental landscape experts, townspeople and corn growers meet and share information. They decide that they must focus on in the initial efforts to restore the lake.

Accepted Answer

A)  banning agriculture from the entire region 
B)  reducing fertilizer inputs into the lake by exploring alternative farming techniques, increasing the efficiency of the wastewater plant and using aerators to increase oxygen levels in the areas where streams flow into the lake 
C)  closing the wastewater treatment plant and reducing agriculture by 75% 
D)  restoring biodiversity to the deforested areas and closing the wastewater plant 
E)  reducing the population of the town by 50% and agriculture by 50%

Question 10

Discuss how natural ecosystems provide valuable ecosystem services to humankind.

Accepted Answer

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Question 11

Cellular respiration ______________

Accepted Answer

A)  involves a net consumption of water 
B)  liberates carbon dioxide and water 
C)  results in a net consumption of energy 
D)  requires the green pigment chlorophyll 
E)  represents a decrease in entropy

Question 12

Read the following scenario and answer the question below.
Glass Lake, located in a valley in low forested mountains, for many decades of the 19th and early 20th centuries was a favorite picnic, recreation, and fishing site for people in surrounding towns and farms. However, in the middle of the 20th century, a trend began in which the privately-owned farms in the Lakeʹs watershed were purchased by large agribusinesses.
The decision was made to grow a profitable crop. The demand for quality farmland resulted in the sale of most of the family-owned establishments and a large increase in the area of land under cultivation. Most of the forests were cut to acquire the land needed for crops. The use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides increased several fold by the end of the century. In addition, the combined population of the lakeside villages quadrupled during the same time. The lake experienced a slow degradation of water quality and biodiversity. Sport fishing declined and the lake became murky while the sediments in the lake increased in depth.
-A water quality expert checked the level of dissolved oxygen in lake water and found it .

Accepted Answer

A)  was within normal limits for an unpolluted lake 
B)  very low at the surface and normal near the bottom sediments 
C)  was low-normal on the surface but extremely low near the bottom sediments 
D)  absent entirely 
E)  was much higher than normal

Question 13

Read the following scenario and answer the question below.
Glass Lake, located in a valley in low forested mountains, for many decades of the 19th and early 20th centuries was a favorite picnic, recreation, and fishing site for people in surrounding towns and farms. However, in the middle of the 20th century, a trend began in which the privately-owned farms in the Lakeʹs watershed were purchased by large agribusinesses.
The decision was made to grow a profitable crop. The demand for quality farmland resulted in the sale of most of the family-owned establishments and a large increase in the area of land under cultivation. Most of the forests were cut to acquire the land needed for crops. The use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides increased several fold by the end of the century. In addition, the combined population of the lakeside villages quadrupled during the same time. The lake experienced a slow degradation of water quality and biodiversity. Sport fishing declined and the lake became murky while the sediments in the lake increased in depth.
-The murkiness (turbidity) of the water was analyzed and found to have several major sources, including .

Accepted Answer

A)  algae, increased microscopic animal life, and pesticides 
B)  fertilizer particles, wind-borne atmospheric particles and wastewater discharge 
C)  pesticides, atmospheric deposition and wastewater discharges 
D)  erosion from the deforested hillsides, sediments produced from poorly treated wastewater discharge, and sediments produced from the increased plant biomass of the lake 
E)  erosion from the hillsides, solid nitrogen and phosphorus from agricultural fertilizers and numerous microscopic animals living in bottom sediments

Question 14

All of the following are approaches to reducing eutrophication except ______________

Accepted Answer

A)  planting and maintaining vegetation buffers around ditches and streams that trap nutrient and sediment runoff 
B)  using artificial wetlands to filter stormwater and farm runoff 
C)  upgrading stormwater systems to capture runoff from roads and parking lots 
D)  applying fertilizers to farmland just before heavy rains are predicted 
E)  reducing fertilizer use on farms and lawns

Question 15

Ecological modeling is most useful for studying ______________

Accepted Answer

A)  small isolated microhabitats, where the inputs and outputs are well-studied 
B)  large complex ecosystems that have many interactions 
C)  how individual species interact with one another 
D)  artificial data generated by computers 
E)  the biodiversity in ecosystems

Question 16

How do organic compounds differ from inorganic compounds?

Accepted Answer

A)  Inorganic compounds never contain carbon, whereas organic compounds always contain carbon. 
B)  Inorganic compounds always only consist of two atoms. 
C)  Organic compounds are always acidic, while inorganic compounds are always basic. 
D)  Organic compounds consist of carbon atoms joined by covalent bonds and may contain other elements, such as nitrogen, oxygen, sulfur, and phosphorus. Inorganic compounds lack carbon-carbon bonds. 
E)  A and C are correct.

Question 17

The greatest source of both nitrogen and phosphorus entering Chesapeake Bay is ______________

Accepted Answer

A)  agriculture 
B)  municipal and industrial wastewater 
C)  urban fertilizer runoff 
D)  septic systems 
E)  natural sources

Question 18

Precipitation ______________

Accepted Answer

A)  that is acidic would have a pH lower than pure water 
B)  has become increasingly more basic in the last 100 years, due to industrial air pollution 
C)  that is acidic would have a pH higher than 7 
D)  that measures pH = 4 is twice as acidic as precipitation that measures pH = 5 
E)  that is acidic has a low concentration of hydrogen ions

Question 19

During photosynthesis within plants, ______________

Accepted Answer

A)  entropy increases 
B)  oxygen is consumed 
C)  there is net consumption of water and carbon dioxide 
D)  entropy stays the same 
E)  the high-quality energy of the sun is converted to a lower quality

Question 20

Choose the item that best matches each item in the following:
-The smallest components of elements that still maintain the chemical properties of the element

Accepted Answer