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Test your basic knowledge |
AP Environmental Science
Start Test
Study First
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. 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
water-scarce
greenhouse effect
Immigration
photovoltaic cell (PV cell)
2. The coarsest soil - with particles 0.05 -2.0 mm in diameter.
LD50
sand
pioneer species
tree farms
3. A group of organisms of the same species that live in the same area.
tailings
Half-life
population
dose-response analysis
4. 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.
terracing
evolution
greenbelt
radiant energy
5. Formed from populations of different species occupying the same geographic area.
sludge
community
water-scarce
abiotic
6. A plate boundary where two plates are moving toward each other.
energy pyramid
age-structure pyramids
emigration
convergent boundary
7. Also known as transform faults - boundaries at which plates are moving past each other - sideways.
fault
transform boundary
wastewater
underground mining
8. A hydrocarbon deposit - such as petroleum - coal - or natural gas - derived from living matter of a previous geologic time and used for fuel.
primary pollutants
fossil fuel
hazardous waste
mantle
9. The outermost shell of the atmosphere - between the mesosphere and outer space - where temperatures increase steadily with altitude.
thermosphere
acute effect
barrier island
fly ash
10. The process by which specialized bacteria (mostly anaerobic bacteria) convert ammonia to NOy NO2 - and N2 and release it back to the atmosphere.
weather
denitrification
food chain
secondary consumers
11. When a species occupies a smaller niche than it would in the absence of competition.
convection currents
realized niche
salinization
fishery
12. The place where two plates abut each other.
point source pollution
estuary
fault
natural resources
13. Says that the entropy (disorder) of the universe is increasing. One corollary of the Second Law of thermodynamics is the concept that - in most energy transformations - a significant fraction of energy is lost to the universe as heat.
alkaline
R horizon
pathogens
Second Law of Thermodynamics
14. A waste product produced by the burning of coal.
fishery
Green Revolution
aquifer
fly ash
15. 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.
primary treatment
Immigration
monoculture
biological weathering
16. Pollutants that are formed by the combination of primary pollutants in the atmosphere.
secondary pollutants
stationary sources
trophic level
earthquake
17. The practice of alternating the crops grown on a piece of land - for example - corn one year - legumes for two years - and then back to corn.
dose-response curve
B layer
primary pollutants
crop rotation
18. When each family in a community grows crops for themselves and rely on animal and human labor to plant and harvest crops.
bottom trawling
ozone holes
traditional subsistence agriculture
overburden
19. The act or process of transpiring - or releasing water vapor - especially through the stomata of plant tissue or the pores of the skin.
transpiration
lignite
dose-response curve
green tax
20. The edges of tectonic plates.
plate boundaries
realized niche
dose-response analysis
albedo
21. 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
carnivore
denitrification
natural selection
topsoil
22. The accumulation of a substance - such as a toxic chemical - in various tissues of a living organism.
land degradation
bioaccumulation
overburden
clay
23. The layer of the Earth between the crust and the core.
reservoir
photovoltaic cell (PV cell)
mantle
proven reserve
24. A group of modern windmills.
wind farm
sludge
noise pollution
terracing
25. Any compound that releases hydrogen ions when dissolved in water. Also - a water solution that contains a surplus of hydrogen ions.
acid
silviculture
renewable resources
deforestation
26. Pertaining to factors or things that are separate and independent from living things; nonliving.
composting
reservoir
abiotic
tropospheric ozone
27. 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.
dose-response curve
genetic drift
underground mining
by-catch
28. The amount of the Earth's surface that's necessary to supply the needs of - and dispose of the waste from a particular population.
proven reserve
biosphere
ecological footprint
prior appropriation
29. The right - as to fishing or to the use of a riverbed - of one who owns riparian land (the land adjacent to a river or stream).
point source pollution
detritivore
salinization
riparian right
30. 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
sludge
fission
trade winds
clay
31. An intensification of the Greenhouse Effect due to the increased presence of heat-trapping gases in the atmosphere.
U.S. Noise Control Act
proven reserve
heat islands
global warming
32. A soil horizon; B receives the minerals and organic materials that are leached out of the A horizon.
realized niche
heat islands
photovoltaic cell (PV cell)
B layer
33. Any water that has been used by humans. This includes human sewage - water drained from showers - tubs - sinks - dishwashers - washing machines - water from industrial processes - and storm water runoff.
bioaccumulation
clay
wastewater
combustion
34. Is equal to the number of deaths per 1 -000 members of the population in a year.
symbiotic relationships
death rate (crude death rate)
Headwaters
primary consumers
35. Living or derived from living things.
invasive species
wastewater
biotic
proven reserve
36. The cultivation of a single crop on a farm or in a region or country; a single - homogeneous culture without diversity or dissension.
monoculture
bituminous
ozone holes
active collection
37. A bloom of dinoflagellates that causes reddish discoloration of coastal ocean waters. Certain dinoflagellates of the genus Gonyamfox produce toxins that kill fish and contaminate shellfish.
Infection
red tide
green tax
realized niche
38. Graphical representations of populations' ages.
anthracite
age-structure pyramids
hazardous waste
habitat fragmentation
39. The dosage level of a toxin at which a negative effect occurs.
tailings
risk management
edge effect
threshold dose
40. When soil becomes water-logged and then dries out - and salt forms a layer on its surface.
fault
mantle
natural resources
land degradation
41. Any weathering that's caused by the activities of living organisms.
biological weathering
petroleum
death rate (crude death rate)
nonrenewable resources
42. Organisms that reproduce later in life - produce fewer offspring - and devote significant time and energy to the nurturing of their offspring.
k-selected
El Nino
intercropping (also called strip cropping)
renewable resources
43. An erosion-resistant marine ridge or mound consisting chiefly of compacted coral together with algal material and biochemically deposited magnesium and calcium carbonates.
Southern Oscillation
coral reef
loamy
watershed
44. 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.
hurricane (typhoon - cyclone)
Hubbert peak (peak oil)
habitat fragmentation
sludge
45. The energy of motion.
biotic
combustion
lithosphere
kinetic energy
46. Smog resulting from emissions from industry and other sources of gases produced by the burning of fossil fuels - especially coal.
indigenous species
barrels
gray smog (industrial smog)
high-level radioactive waste
47. Organisms that derive energy from consuming nonliving organic matter.
thermosphere
biotic
weathering
detritivore
48. Ozone that exists in the trophosphere.
tropospheric ozone
indigenous species
physical (mechanical) weathering
greenbelt
49. 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).
risk management
petroleum
weather
watershed
50. A soil horizon; the layer below the O layer is called the A layer. The A layer is formed of weathered rock - with some organic material; often referred to as topsoil.
secondary treatment
traditional subsistence agriculture
alkaline
A layer