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 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






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






3. A severe tropical cyclone originating in the equatorial regions of the Atlantic Ocean or Caribbean Sea or eastern regions of the Pacific Ocean - traveling north - northwest - or northeast from its point of origin - and usually involving heavy rains.






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






5. 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.






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






7. Organisms that consume primary consumers.






8. The process of burning.






9. When one species feeds on another.






10. Radioactive wastes that produce low levels of ionizing radiation.






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






12. Any waste that poses a danger to human health; it must be dealt with in a different way from other types of waste.






13. The degree to which a substance is biologically harmful.






14. The maximum population size that can be supported by the available resources in a region.






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






16. The place where two plates abut each other.






17. The removal of select trees in an area; this leaves the majority of the habitat in place and has less of an impact on the ecosystem.






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






19. The number of children an average woman will bear during her lifetime; this information is based on an analysis of data from preceding years in the population in question.






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






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






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






23. Transition in species composition of a biological community - often following ecological disturbance of the community; the establishment of a biological community in any area virtually barren of life.






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






25. The process in which soil bacteria convert ammonium (NH4+) to a form that can be used by plants; nitrate - or NO3.






26. The process of fusing two nuclei.






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






28. When materials - such as plastic or aluminum - are used to rebuild the same product. An example of this is the use of the aluminum from aluminum cans to produce more aluminum cans.






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






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






31. 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. ...






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






33. Urban areas that heat up more quickly and retain heat more than do nonurban areas.






34. The part of the Earth and its atmosphere in which living organisms exist or that is capable of supporting life.






35. Organisms that consume both producers and primary consumers.






36. The capacity to do work.






37. The layer of the Earth between the crust and the core.






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






39. The biological treatment of wastewater in order to continue to remove biodegradable waste.






40. The removal of all of the trees in an area.






41. 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.






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






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






44. Non-moving sources of pollution - such as factories.






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






46. The cleanest-burning coal; almost pure carbon.






47. The energy of motion.






48. The A layer of soil is often referred to as topsoil and is most important for plant growth.






49. Drilling a hole in the ground that's below the water table to hold waste.






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