Test your basic knowledge |

DSST Environment And Humanity

Subjects : dsst, science
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. A principle that states that two species competing for a single resource cannot coexist. One species will inevitably gain an advantage over the other - causing the looser either to migrate or to become extinct.






2. A law designed to locate toxic waste sites - gauge their pollution level - and ensure these sites are taken care of properly.






3. Different species living in close contact with each other.






4. Populations characterized by small size - short lifespan - and lots of offspring.






5. Growing only one crop at a time.






6. Also called that water cycle - this process describes the cycling of water throughout the environment. The stages of this cycle are evaporation - condensation - transportation - precipitation - infiltration and percolation - and run off.






7. All members of a species which live in the same area.






8. A type of farming where the farmer will fell and burn down trees to grow crops. After a few years - he will move on and continue the process.






9. The rapid increase of harmful algae in a body of water.






10. Political organizations not affiliated with the government which try to bring about social change.






11. Precipitation which does not reach the soil but is instead collected by plants.






12. The process by which certain kinds of bacteria convert atmospheric nitrogen gas into ammonia - a form accessible to living creatures.






13. A theory that our current ecological problems are a product of deeper social problems.






14. An American environmentalist who is famous for promoting the ideas of environmental ethics and wildlife management.






15. An act which established and enforced acceptable levels of air pollution.






16. A forest characterized by clearly differentiated seasons - such as the trees loosing leaves in the fall and heavy snowfall in the winter.






17. Organisms which produce their own food.






18. A UN conference held in Rio de Janeiro. The conference decided to protect biodiversity - reduce pollution emissions and greenhouse gasses - and promote sustainable development.






19. Organisms which thrive in low nutrient environments and usually have slow growth rates.






20. A group of similar organisms capable of interbreeding.






21. Condensed water vapor which falls to earth. This comes in many forms - such as rain - snow - ice - and hail.






22. A philosophy that extends ethics to non-humans. Under this system - animals - plants - and other aspects of the environment are seen as being deserving of justice and consideration.






23. Species which serve key roles in an ecosystem. The absence of these important organisms is detrimental to the surrounding area.






24. The position of an organism on the food chain.






25. The process by which pollutants are carried by flowing water - such as a river.






26. Consumers which eat decomposing organic material.






27. A type of symbiosis where one species benefit at the expense of the other.






28. An extinct hominid species with near the same brain capacity as modern man believed to use fire and stone tools - live a hunter/gatherer lifestyle - and speak a language.






29. Organisms which create their own food out of inorganic (abiotic) substances.






30. Species which react quickly to an environmental change and therefore can be used to diagnose a particular ecosystem.






31. A transitional area between two different ecosystems.






32. A type of farming where the farmer will grow crops both to fulfill his family's needs for the next year and to sell on the market.






33. The rate at which producers create organic material.






34. Consumers which eat only other animals.






35. A type of symbiosis where each species will benefit from interacting with the other.






36. The middle atmospheric layer. Meteors burn up after entering this layer.






37. An international protocol designed to stabilize global warming.






38. The oxification of ammonia by certain bacterium into nitrite and later into nitrates - which can then be used by plants.






39. The amount of variation among organisms living in a particular ecosystem. The loss of this key characteristic leads to a reduction in ecosystem efficiency and the ability of species to adapt to new situations.






40. Plants taking in nitrates from the soil.






41. Organisms which consume autotrophs for food.






42. Organisms with a nucleus.






43. A community of similar living organisms largely affected by the area's climate.






44. Modern man.






45. Exceptionally acidic (low pH) rain. This phenomenon is caused mainly by emissions of carbon dioxide - sulfur dioxide - and nitrogen oxide which react with water particles in the air.






46. A bloom of phytoplankton in a body of water caused by an abnormal increase in nutrients. This process depletes the water's oxygen level - killing off other aquatic organisms.






47. Biomes far north in North America - Europe - and Asia which - due to very low temperatures - cannot support tree growth.






48. Grasslands with short - widely spaced trees and no canopy - allowing for an unbroken layer of grasses beneath.






49. The second atmospheric layer. The ozone layer is found here - increasing the temperature with altitude.






50. The process by which a new species is created. This process generally requires geographic isolation to prevent interbreeding between the newly emerging species and the parent species.