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. The low-rainfall region that exists on the leeward (downwind) side of a mountain range. This rain shadow is the result of the mountain range's causing precipitation on the windward side.






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






3. A soil horizon - horizon C is made up of larger pieces of rock that have not undergone much weathering.






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






5. A program funded by the federal government and a trust that's funded by taxes on chemicals; identifies pollutants and cleans up hazardous waste sites.






6. The place where two plates abut each other.






7. The outer part of the Earth - consisting of the crust and upper mantle - approximately 100 km (62 miles) thick.






8. 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






9. A plate boundary where two plates are moving toward each other.






10. The amount of time it takes for half of a radioactive sample to disappear.






11. The process by which the concentration of toxic substances increases in each successive link in the food chain.






12. The amount of sugar that the plants produce in photosynthesis and subtracting from it the amount of energy the plants need for growth maintenance - repair - and reproduction.






13. A symbiotic relationship in which both species benefit.






14. The result of chemical interaction with the bedrock that is typical of the action of both water and atmospheric gases.






15. 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.






16. The rocks and Earth that is removed when mining for a commercially valuable mineral resource.






17. The atmospheric pressure conditions corresponding to the periodic warming of El Nino and cooling of La Nina.






18. Soil composed of a mixture of sand - clay - silt - and organic matter.






19. The process in which soil becomes saltier and saltier until - finally - the salt prevents the growth of plants. Salinization is caused by irrigation because salts brought in with the water remain in the soil as water evaporates.






20. A long - relatively narrow island running parallel to the mainland-built up by the action of waves and currents and serving to protect the coast from erosion by surf and tidal surges.






21. The third purest form of coal.






22. A soil horizon; B receives the minerals and organic materials that are leached out of the A horizon.






23. 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.






24. 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.






25. The cultivation of a single crop on a farm or in a region or country; a single - homogeneous culture without diversity or dissension.






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






27. 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.






28. A region of the ocean near the equator - characterized by calms - light winds - or squalls.






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






30. The unit used to describe the volume of fossil fuels.






31. The condition in which - at ecosystem boundaries - there is greater species diversity and biological density than there is in the heart of ecological communities.






32. Countries that have a renewable annual water supply of about 1 -000 -2 -000 m3 per person.






33. Any process that breaks rock down into smaller pieces without changing the chemistry of the rock; typically wind and water.






34. An intensification of the Greenhouse Effect due to the increased presence of heat-trapping gases in the atmosphere.






35. The energy of motion.






36. Also known as transform faults - boundaries at which plates are moving past each other - sideways.






37. The movement of individuals out of a population.






38. The least pure coal.






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






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






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






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






43. 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.






44. A species whose very presence contributes to an ecosystem's diversity and whose extinction would consequently lead to the extinction of other forms of life.






45. 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.






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






47. A semiconductor device that converts the energy of sunlight into electric energy.






48. 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






49. A cyclonic storm having winds ranging from approximately 48 to 121 km (30 to 75 miles) per hour.






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