Term
| Who is the greatest threat to nature? |
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Definition
| humans (and their effects) |
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Term
| Which species is more likely to disappear sooner, an endangered or a threatened one? |
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Definition
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Term
| Why is an endemic species (one confined to a smaller area) more likely to become extinct than a species that thrives in a much smaller space? |
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Definition
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Term
| What causes desertification? |
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Definition
| when plowing and grazing removes plants & so exposes topsoil to wind erosion |
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Term
| When can anything become a pollutant? |
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Definition
| substances released into soil, air, or water in greater than normal amounts |
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Term
| When can soft, life-giving rain become acid rain? What are its side effects? |
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Definition
| pollutants combine w/water and fall as acidic precipitations; kills and affects aquatic organisms, alters soil composition burns leaves |
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Term
| The ozone layer over the Earth filters out what type of radiation? |
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Definition
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Term
| What man-made chemicals have caused the ozone layer to become thinner? |
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Definition
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Term
| What are some of the possible effects of a thinning ozone layer? |
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Definition
| Slowed photosynthesis and production of oxygen in atmosphere |
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Term
| What are some of the possible consequences of global climate change? |
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Definition
| raising sea levels, biological effects, temperatures (global warming) |
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Term
| name several effects of deforestation |
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Definition
| Flooding, landslides, nutrient-poor |
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