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 day-to-day variations in temperature - air pressure - wind - humidity - and precipitation mediated by the atmosphere in a given region.






2. When trees and crops are planted together - creating a mutualistic symbiotic relationship between them.






3. 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






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






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






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






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






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






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






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






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






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






13. The movement of individuals out of a population.






14. The energy of motion.






15. Organisms that consume primary consumers.






16. Bacteria or fungi that absorb nutrients from nonliving organic matter like plant material - the wastes of living organisms - and corpses. They convert these materials into inorganic forms.






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






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






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






20. To convert or change into a vapor.






21. The result of graphing a dose-response analysis.






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






23. Any substance that has an LD50 - of 50 mg or less per kg of body weight.






24. 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.






25. A layer of soil.






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






28. Pollutants that are released directly into the lower atmosphere.






29. Any noise that causes stress or has the potential to damage human health.






30. A group of organisms of the same species that live in the same area.






31. 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






32. When water rights are given to those who have historically used the water in a certain area.






33. 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.






34. A process in which an organism is exposed to a toxin at different concentrations - and the dosage that causes the death of the organism is recorded.






35. 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.






36. 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.






37. The carrier organism through which pathogens can attack.






38. The use of devices - such as solar panels - to collect - focus - transport - or store solar energy.






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






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






41. Organisms that are capable of interbreeding with one another and incapable of breeding with other species.






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






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






44. A symbiotic relationship in which both species benefit.






45. Also known as plantations - these are planted and managed tracts of trees of the same age that are harvested for commercial use.






46. A climate variation that takes place in the tropical Pacific about every three to seven years - for a duration of about one year.






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






48. The process of fusing two nuclei.






49. Fires that typically burn only the forest's underbrush and do little damage to mature trees. Surface fires actually serve to protect the forest from more harmful fires by removing underbrush and dead materials that would burn quickly and at high temp






50. When the size of an organism's natural habitat is reduced - or when development occurs that isolates a habitat.