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. Smog resulting from emissions from industry and other sources of gases produced by the burning of fossil fuels.






2. The outermost shell of the atmosphere - between the mesosphere and outer space - where temperatures increase steadily with altitude.






3. When grass is consumed by animals at a faster rate than it can regrow.






4. The process in green plants and certain other organisms by which carbohydrates are synthesized from carbon dioxide and water using light as an energy source. Most forms of photosynthesis release oxygen as a byproduct.






5. Pollutants that are formed by the combination of primary pollutants in the atmosphere.






6. A model that's used to predict population trends based on the birth and death rates as well as economic status of a population.






7. The least pure coal.






8. A usually triangular alluvial deposit at the mouth of a river.






9. 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).






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. Living or derived from living things.






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






13. A layer in a large body of water - such as a lake - that sharply separates regions differing in temperature - so that the temperature gradient across the layer is abrupt.






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






15. To convert or change into a vapor.






16. When photochemical smog - NOx compounds - VOCs - and ozone combine to form smog with a brownish hue.






17. An influential theory that concerns the long - term rate of conventional oil (and other fossil fuel) extraction and depletion. It predicts that future world oil production will soon reach a peak and then rapidly decline.






18. Countries that have a renewable annual water supply of less than 1 -000 m3 per person.






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






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






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






22. Organisms that derive energy from consuming nonliving organic matter.






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






24. A method of supplying irrigation water through tubes that literally drip water onto the soil at the base of each plant.






25. An underground layer of porous rock - sand - or other material that allows the movement of water between layers of nonporous rock or clay. Aquifers are frequently tapped for wells.






26. 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.






27. Formed from populations of different species occupying the same geographic area.






28. The uppermost horizon of soil. It is primarily made up of organic material - including waste from organisms - the bodies of decomposing organisms - and live organisms.






29. The removal of trees for agricultural purposes or purposes of exportation.






30. When physically treated sewage water is passed into a settling tank - where suspended solids settle out as sludge; chemically treated polymers may be added to help the suspended solids separate and settle out.






31. An erosion-resistant marine ridge or mound consisting chiefly of compacted coral together with algal material and biochemically deposited magnesium and calcium carbonates.






32. 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.






33. 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






34. Is the practice of planting bands of different crops across a hillside.






35. 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






36. Acid rain - acid hail - acid snow; all of which occur as a result of pollution in the atmosphere.






37. Open or forested areas built at the outer edge of a city.






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






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






40. Pollution that does not have a specific point of release - open -loop recycling -when materials are reused to form new products.






41. The thinning of the ozone layer over Antarctica (and to some extent - over the Arctic).






42. An organism that must obtain food energy from secondary sources - for example - by eating plant or animal matter.






43. The gradual breakdown of rock into smaller and smaller particles - caused by natural chemical - physical - and biological factors.






44. One that has never been cut; these forests have not been seriously disturbed for several hundred years.






45. Radioactive wastes that produce high levels of ionizing radiation.






46. When companies are allowed to buy permits that allow them a certain amount of discharge of substances into certain environmental outlets. If they can reduce their amount of discharge - they are allowed to sell the remaining portion of their permit to






47. When the signs and symptoms of an illness can be attributed to a specific infectious organism that resides in the building.






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






49. In a sewage treatment plant - the initial filtration that is done to remove debris such as stones - sticks - rags - toys - and other objects that were flushed down the toilet.






50. Areas where cutting has occurred and a new - younger forest has arisen.