Which has become the most important source for
environmental change on Earth?
a. climate
b. energy
c. human activity
d. conservation biology
Land is a resource that provides
a. space for cities and suburbs.
b. raw materials for industry.
c. soil for growing crops.
d. all of the above
Why are fossil fuels nonrenewable?
a. They require hundreds of millions of years to
form.
b. Their ecosystems change forever when they
are burned.
c. They are converted to carbon dioxide when
they are burned.
d. They exist in a very small supply.
The wearing away of surface soil by water and wind
is known as
a. deforestation.
b. desertification.
c. overgrazing.
d. soil erosion.
Which is a way to limit deforestation?
a. use more wood products
b. plant and harvest trees on tree farms
c. increase carbon dioxide levels
d. fertilize the soil
The sulfur and nitrogen compounds in smog
combine with water to form
a. ozone.
b. ammonia.
c. acid rain.
d. chlorofluorocarbons.
When erosion and other factors cause soil to lose its
ability to hold water and other nutrients and to
support plant life, it is called
a. desertification.
b. depletion.
c. deforestation.
d. monoculture.
Using renewable resources while ensuring that they
are not depleted is a practice called
a. sustainable use.
b. monoculture.
c. biological magnification.
d. renewable resource.
An example of a sustainable-use practice is the use
of beneficial insects like ladybugs to
a. harm natural resources.
b. pollinate plants.
c. control unwanted pests.
d. eat unwanted plants.
The number of different species in the biosphere is
called
a. biodiversity.
b. ecosystem diversity.
c. genetic diversity.
d. species diversity.
Biodiversity is important to human society because it
a. is a natural resource.
b. provides food and goods.
c. provides medicines.
d. all of the above
The sum total of the genetically-based variety of
living organisms in the biosphere is called
a. species diversity.
b. sustainable use.
c. biodiversity.
d. conservation biology.
What is meant by “a library of genetic information” in
reference to biodiversity?
a. The biodiversity of plants and animals is
interesting to read about.
b. Biodiversity contains genetic information upon
which humans can draw for future use.
c. Species provide humans with many useful
products to enhance our lives.
d. We have much to admire in the many forms of
life that surround us.
Human well-being is tied to biodiversity because
a. humans love to look at beautiful things.
b. humans are part of the food webs and energy
cycles that a great variety of organisms share.
c. less biodiversity makes humans vulnerable to
extinction.
d. humans need a wide variety of animal species
for hunting and wildlife products.
An endangered species is
a. a diseased animal.
b. a dangerous predator.
c. a group of organisms near extinction.
d. all organisms at the top of a food chain.
DDT was used to
a. fertilize soil.
b. kill insects.
c. form ozone.
d. feed animals.
One property that makes DDT hazardous over the
long run is that DDT is
a. an insecticide.
b. a perfect pesticide.
c. nonbiodegradable.
d. deadly to herbivores.
The first, and perhaps the best known, case of
biological magnification involved the pesticide
a. CFC.
b. UV.
c. CITES.
d. DDT.
One of the greatest threats today to biological
diversity is
a. old-growth forests.
b. ozone depletion.
c. habitat destruction.
d. monoculture.
As DDT moves up the trophic levels in food chains,
or food webs, its concentration
a. stays the same.
b. increases.
c. decreases.
d. is eliminated.
A major factor that negatively affects biodiversity is
a. biological magnification.
b. habitat fragmentation.
c. the green revolution.
d. nonrenewable energy.
One of the goals of conservation biology is to
a. enforce environmental laws.
b. protect habitats.
c. manage natural resources.
d. all of the above
An ecological “hot spot” is an area where
a. habitats and species are healthy.
b. hunting is encouraged.
c. habitats and species are in the most danger of
extinction.
d. species diversity is too high.
An increase in Earth’s average temperature from the
buildup of carbon dioxide and other gases in the
atmosphere is called
a. the greenhouse effect.
b. ozone depletion.
c. global warming.
d. particulate dispersal.
Some scientists think that global warming is
a. a natural variation in climate.
b. difficult to predict.
c. melting the polar ice caps.
d. all of the above
