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






2. The edges of tectonic plates.






3. A succession of organisms in an ecological community that constitutes a continuation of food energy from one organism to another as each consumes a lower member and - in turn - is preyed upon by a higher member.






4. A hydrocarbon deposit - such as petroleum - coal - or natural gas - derived from living matter of a previous geologic time and used for fuel.






5. The value of natural resources.






6. The more or less constant winds blowing in horizontal directions over the Earth's surface - as part of Hadley cells.






7. Any substance than is inhaled - ingested - or absorbed at dosages sufficient to damage a living organism.






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






9. 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.






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






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






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






13. The region draining into river system or other body of water.






14. A place where a large quantity of a resource sits for a long period of time.






15. Refers to when farmers plant seeds without using a plow to turn the soil.






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






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






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






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






20. Graphical representations of populations' ages.






21. Bacteria - virus - or other microorganisms that can cause disease.






22. 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.






23. Organisms that reproduce early in life and often and have a high capacity for reproductive growth.






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






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






26. A symbiotic relationship in which one member is helped by the association and the other is harmed.






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






28. The observed effect of the Coriolis force - especially the deflection of an object moving above the Earth - rightward in the Northern Hemisphere - and leftward in the Southern Hemisphere.






29. The amount of energy that plants pass on to the community of herbivores in an ecosystem.






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






31. 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.






32. The energy of motion.






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






34. When soil becomes water-logged and then dries out - and salt forms a layer on its surface.






35. 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.






36. Refers to resources - such as plants and animals - which can be regenerated if harvested at sustainable yields.






37. 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.






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






39. The place where two plates abut each other.






40. Sunlight.






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






42. A waste product produced by the burning of coal.






43. The fraction of solar energy that is reflected back into space.






44. Energy at rest - or stored energy.






45. Any weathering that's caused by the activities of living organisms.






46. 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.






47. The dark - crumbly - nutrient-rich material that results from the decomposition of organic material.






48. 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).






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






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