Test your basic knowledge |

AP Environmental Science

Subjects : science, ap
Instructions:
  • Answer 50 questions in 15 minutes.
  • If you are not ready to take this test, you can study here.
  • Match each statement with the correct term.
  • Don't refresh. All questions and answers are randomly picked and ordered every time you load a test.

This is a study tool. The 3 wrong answers for each question are randomly chosen from answers to other questions. So, you might find at times the answers obvious, but you will see it re-enforces your understanding as you take the test each time.
1. An area in which a particular mineral is concentrated - mining -the excavation of the Earth for the purpose of extracting ore or minerals.






2. The carrier organism through which pathogens can attack.






3. The random fluctuations in the frequency of the appearance of a gene in a small isolated population - presumably owing to chance - rather than natural selection.






4. When a species occupies a smaller niche than it would in the absence of competition.






5. The management or regulation of a resource so that its use does not exceed the capacity of the resource to regenerate itself.






6. The result of a pathogen invading a body.






7. The amount of the Earth's surface that's necessary to supply the needs of - and dispose of the waste from a particular population.






8. The maintenance of a species or ecosystem in order to ensure their perpetuation - with no concern as to their potential monetary value






9. The liquid that percolates to the bottom of a landfill.






10. The process by which specialized bacteria (mostly anaerobic bacteria) convert ammonia to NOy NO2 - and N2 and release it back to the atmosphere.






11. The vertical movement of a mass of matter due to heating and cooling; this can happen in both the atmosphere and Earth's mantle.






12. The number of live births per 1 -000 members of the population in a year.






13. The part of the mantle that lies just below the lithosphere.






14. A system of vertical and horizontal air circulation predominating in tropical and subtropical regions and creating major weather patterns.






15. Organisms that reproduce later in life - produce fewer offspring - and devote significant time and energy to the nurturing of their offspring.






16. A nuclear reaction in which an atomic nucleus - especially a heavy nucleus such as an isotope of uranium - splits into fragments - usually two fragments of comparable mass - releasing from 100 million to several hundred million electron volts of ener






17. The phenomenon whereby the Earth's atmosphere traps solar radiation - caused by the presence in the atmosphere of gases such as carbon dioxide - water vapor - and methane that allow incoming sunlight to pass through - but absorb heat radiated back fr






18. Resources that are often formed by very slow geologic processes - so we consider them incapable of being regenerated within the realm of human existence.






19. A lowland area - such as a marsh or swamp - that is saturated with moisture - especially when regarded as the natural habitat of wildlife.






20. The water from which a river rises; a source.






21. A stable - mature community in a successive series that has reached equilibrium after having evolved through stages and adapted to its environment.






22. The raising of fish and other aquatic species in captivity for harvest.






23. When trees and crops are planted together - creating a mutualistic symbiotic relationship between them.






24. A group of organisms of the same species that live in the same area.






25. A high-speed - meandering wind current - generally moving from a westerly direction at speeds often exceeding 400 km (250 miles) per hour at altitudes of 15 to 25 km (10 to 15 miles).






26. Using strategies to reduce the amount of risk (the degree of likelihood that a person will become ill upon exposure to a toxin or pathogen).






27. The industry or occupation devoted to the catching - processing - or selling of fish - shellfish - or other aquatic animals.






28. The finest soil - made up of particles that are less than 0.002 mm in diameter.






29. The capacity to do work.






30. The process by which - according to Darwin's theory of evolution - only the organisms best adapted to their environment tend to survive and transmit their genetic characteristics in increasing numbers to succeeding generations - while those less adap






31. The energy of motion.






32. The point at which 50 percent of the test organisms show a negative effect from a toxin.






33. A fishing technique in which the ocean floor is literally scraped by heavy nets that smash everything in their path.






34. An organism such as a bacterium or protozoan - that obtains its nourishment through the oxidation of inorganic chemical compounds - as opposed to photosynthesis.






35. A process in which rows of crops are plowed across the hillside; this prevents the erosion that can occur when rows are cut up and down on a slope. ...






36. A process that allows the organic material in solid waste to be decomposed and reintroduced into the soil - often as fertilizer.






37. The number of children a couple must have in order to replace themselves in a population.






38. In tectonic plates - the site at which an oceanic plate is sliding under a continental plate.






39. The conversion of atmospheric nitrogen into compounds - such as ammonia - by natural agencies or various industrial processes.






40. The structure obtained if we organize the amount of energy contained in producers and consumers in an ecosystem by kilocalories per square meter - from largest to smallest.






41. The form petroleum takes when in the ground.






42. The total sum of a species' use of the biotic and abiotic resources in its environment.






43. Change in the genetic composition of a population during successive generations as a result of natural selection acting on the genetic variation among individuals and resulting in the development of new species.






44. When one species feeds on another.






45. The solids that remain after the secondary treatment of sewage.






46. The part of the wide lower course of a river where its current is met by the tides.






47. The result of vibrations (often due to plate movements) deep in the Earth that release energy. They often occur as two plates slide past one another at a transform boundary.






48. A layer of soil.






49. The molten core of the Earth.






50. The effect caused by a short exposure to a high level of toxin.