I. Multiple choice. Two points each. Mark on scantron.

1. Which of the following is not an abiotic factor?

a. rock        b. wood      c. wind       d. water  e. all of the above are abiotic factors

2. Which of these IS NOT one of the three ecosystem types with the highest NPP? 

a. temperate deciduous forest

b. tropical rainforest

c. freshwater swamps and marshes

d. coral reefs and algal beds 

e. c and d.

3. A centrally planned economy is

a. a survival economy.

b. a state socialist economy.

c. one in which buyers and sellers control the market.

d. the hybrid system of most European countries.

e. b and c. 

4. The idea that future effects are discounted in economics means that

a. products manufactured with natural resources should not be discounted at a market.

b. money is put away to pay for future improvements to the environment.

c. short-term costs and benefits are granted more importance than long-term costs and benefits.

d. b and c

e. all of the above

5. Ecosystem services include

a. the intellectual abilities of people.

b. functions that the environment performs that support economies.

c. essential services including items such as water purification and carbon dioxide production.

d. items produced from natural resources through the application of human and financial resources.

e. b and c

6. The role of green taxes is to

a. create national parks.

b. educate children about recycling.

c. penalize environmentally harmful activities.

d. pave roads in national forests.

e. create greenbelts for movement of organisms between preserves.

7.  Permit trading for air pollution

a. will never be allowed in this country.

b. allows industry to reduce pollution by the most efficient means at the lowest cost.

c. gives corporations the right to pollute without regulation.

d. is a new creation resulting from the current effort to curb global warming.

e. b and c

8. To achieve control on pollution, industry has been given limits and threatened with punishment if these limits are violated.  This approach is called

a. end of alley.

b. bad behavior legislation.

c. command-and-control.

d. limit and manage.

e. eliminate and prosecute.

9. The pH scale was devised to quantify the __________ of a solution.

a. salinity     b. acidity     c. plasticity     d. hardness     e. toxicity

10. Molecules that consist of carbon and generally hydrogen atoms joined by covalent bonds with or without other elements are

a. salts      b. a consequence of abiotic processes    c. inorganic    d. organic    e. phosphates

11. A network of relationships among a group of parts, elements, or components, that interact with and influence one another through exchange of matter and/or information is referred to as

a. an interchange

b. a system

c. an ecosystem

d. an environmental collaboration

e. an intersystem

12.Which list includes biomes in the correct order of highest to lowest rainfall

a. tropical rainforest, temperate deciduous forest, grassland, desert

b. grassland, tropical rainforest, desert, temperate deciduous forest

c. grassland, desert, tropical rainforest, temperate deciduous forest

d. tropical rainforest, grassland, temperate deciduous forest, desert

e. tropical rainforest, desert, temperate deciduous forest, grassland

13. Which biome is likely to have mild wet winters, warm dry summers with oceanic influences, and is often termed “Mediterranean”?

a. taiga    b. tundra    c. rain forest    d. chaparral     e. tropical dry forest

14. The origin of phosphorus in biological tissues is

a. volcanic activities

b. atmospheric phosphorus gas

c. phosphorus weathered from rock

d. b and c

e. all of the above

15. Extinction is

a. a natural process.

b. caused by human disturbance.

c. the loss of an entire species from the planet.

d. b and c

e. all of the above

16.Accidental alterations during DNA replication that give rise to variations in organisms are

a. adaptive traits.

b. mutations.

c. symbioses.

d. limiting factors.

e. random distributions. 

17. A  population is 

a. a group of individuals of multiple, interacting species that live in a particular area.

b. a group of multiple, interacting species that inhabit various ecosystems.

c. a group of individuals of a single species inhabiting a particular area.

d. the number of species that live in a particular area.

e. (crude birth rate + immigration rate) – (crude death rate – emigration rate).  

18.The functional role of a species in its community is its

a. habitat.  b. trophic level.  c. selection.   d. niche.   e. carrying capacity.

19. High population density can

a .make it easier for organisms to find mates.

b .lead to competition.

c. result in high levels of disease transmission.

d. b and c

e. all of the above  

20. Unregulated populations tend to increase by

a. linear growth.

b. exponential growth.

c. uniform distribution.

d. emigration.

e. immigration.  

21. The carrying capacity is the

a. maximum population size that a given environment can sustain.

b. greatest number of niches possible in a given area.

c. potential number of species in a given area.

d. limitation on species number for an ecosystem.

e. average number of viable offspring produced within a population.

22. Density-dependent factors

a. include temperature extremes.

b. increase the growth rate of a population.

c. cause decreases in the number of species in an ecosystem.

d. have a greater impact the higher the population density.

e. cannot be identified for populations but only for ecosystems.  

23. Energy flow in an ecosystem is diagrammed as

a. logistic curves.

b. trophic levels.

c. food chains.

d. b and c

e. all of the above

24. Detritivores and decomposers 

a. recycle many of the mineral nutrients in an ecosystem.

b. can include bacteria.

c. can include fungi.

d. are consumers of dead bodies.

e. all of the above

25 An organism that has important impacts on community structure despite having a relatively small population size is

a. relatively rare.

b. always a top consumer.

c. a keystone species.

d. responsible for population-independent dynamics.

e. always a dominant species.

26. Exponential growth

a. levels off after a period of time

b. increases by a fixed percentage per unit time

c. is only found in plant species

d. is never seen in human population growth

e. all of the above

27. The age structure of a population

a. includes relative sizes of age groups in a population

b. can be used to predict future dynamics of a population

c. allows development of appropriate social programs

d. can be used to calculate population growth rate

e. all of the above

28. A decrease in the infant mortality rate

a. has had no impact on population growth rates

b. has increased population growth rates as it is safer to have children

c. has decreased total fertility rates in many countries

d. has not occurred

e. none of the above

29.HIV/AIDS has impacted the demographic transition in southern Africa by

a. removing the youngest and most productive members of society

b. removing teachers

c. undermining the ability to transition to modern technologies

d. a, b, and c

e. HIV/AIDS has not impacted demographic transition in southern Africa. 

30. Increases in the number of opportunities for employment outside the home and decreases in the economic value of children are characteristic of the

a. industrial stage

b. post-industrial stage

c. transitional stage

d. demographic stage

e. none of the above

II. True/False One point each.  Mark on scantron.

1. Secondary succession shows us that ecosystems will recover, no matter what Humans do to them.

2. Data collected in an experiment can be used to support but not prove a hypothesis.

3. A theory is a widely accepted, well-tested explanation of one or more cause-and-effect relationship that has been rigorously tested.

4. An experiment is an activity designed to test the validity of a hypothesis.

5. In developing countries, access to contraception decreases reproductive rates.  

6. The taiga or boreal forest is a highly productive conifer forest located in the Pacific Northwest (CA, OR, WA).

7. Fossil fuels are actually derived from fossil organisms.

8. The field of economics involves the study of good and bad, of right and wrong.

9. All of the land from which water drains into the river is called a watershed.

10. The innate reproductive capacity of a species is its biotic potential. 

11. The process of nutrient enrichment, increased production of organic matter, and subsequent ecosystem degradation is known as eutrophication.

12. Most ecosystems are limited by nitrogen as phosphorus is weathered from rock at relatively high rates. 

13. Globally, the rate of population growth is still increasing.

Short Answer: Variable points.  Write in the space provided. (You will have adequate space on the actual exam.)

1. Write the equation used to determine the growth rate or net change in a population size.

2. What was the lesson from Easter Island?

3. What are external costs? Give examples. 

4.List four ways that neoclassical economics contributes to environmental problems.

5. List 4 ecosystem services. 

6. What are the two effects of predation on a community?

7. Give a brief overview of the carbon cycle.  Include the source of carbon that enters ecosystems, how it moves through ecosystems, and where it is ultimately deposited.  What part of this cycle is believed to contribute to global warming?

8. What does the IPAT equation stand for? Explain the terms.

9.Differentiate between renewable and nonrenewable natural resources.  Give examples of each.

10. What is the “dead zone” in the waters off the Gulf of Mexico?  What factors contribute to the “dead zone?”

11. What is the origin of energy for most living organisms, and what is the process by which organisms, such as plants, get it?

12. Define  a mutualistic relationship. Give two examples.

Note: a typical exam has 30-35 multiple choice questions (60-70 points), 10 –15 true/false questions (10-15 points), and 6-8 short answer questions (15-20 points).