Term
| The subject of this course is: |
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Definition
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Term
| The concept of "carrying capacity" refers to: |
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Definition
| Maximum number of individuals of a single species that can be sustained by an environment without reducing the environment's ability to sustain the same number of individuals in the future. |
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Term
| In reference to ecological succession, the term facilitation refers to: |
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Definition
| one species making the environment more suitable for another species |
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Term
| Growth rate is defined as: |
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Definition
| the difference between birth rates and death rates |
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Term
| In forestry, which of the following is one of the alternatives to clear-cutting that leaves some trees in the stand? |
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Definition
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Term
| What allows alders to grow along the edges of glaciers? |
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Definition
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Term
| The term ombrotrophic refers to a water system that is fed mainly by: |
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Definition
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Term
| Indirect deforestation is defined as: |
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Definition
| the death of trees due to pollution or disease |
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Term
| What is an adaptation of late-successional species? |
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Definition
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Term
| Nearly all of the carbon stored in the _______ exists as sedimentary rocks. Most of this is in the form of carbonates, such as limestone. |
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Definition
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Term
| When two populations of the same species become geographically isolated from each other for a long time, the two populations may change so much genetically that they can no longer reproduce together, even when they are brought back into contact. This is known as ________. |
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Definition
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Term
| Birth rates have ________ faster in countries that have a ________ standard of living than in countries with a _______ standard of living. |
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Definition
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Term
| In developed countries ______ % of the people live in urban areas while _______ % of the people live in rural areas. |
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Definition
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Term
| What is the BEST underlying cause of environmental issues? |
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Definition
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Term
| Generally, interference refers to ________ successional species preventing the establishment of ________ successional species. |
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Definition
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Term
| What is an example of a system sink and flux? |
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Definition
| Sink: forests of the world, Flux: amount of carbon transferred from atmosphere to forest |
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Term
| In the study of adaptive radiation of honeycreepers in Hawaii, the varying beak size and shape: |
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Definition
| arose due to differing food type and availability |
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Term
| What allowed the population of water buffalo to explode in Australia? |
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Definition
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Term
| The myth of the "balance of nature" states that: |
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Definition
| The natural environment will reach an equilibrium state when not influenced by human activity |
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Term
| The process of one tectonic plate being pulled underneath another is called: |
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Definition
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Term
| What was the downfall of America's bison? |
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Definition
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Term
| Acorn abundance is tied to Lyme disease through mice, ticks, deer and humans. This is an example of: |
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Definition
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Term
| How long did it take for the radiation of Chernobyl to travel around the world? |
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Definition
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Term
| What is the approximate current human population? |
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Definition
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Term
| Scientifically, __________ is expressed as the number of species in an area. |
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Definition
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Term
| The _________ approach estimates how many people can be put onto our planet, without taking into account Earth's ability to supply their needs, such as the need for food. |
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Definition
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Term
| All individuals capable of interbreeding and producing fertile young are defined as a(n): |
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Definition
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Term
| The organisms that are classified as primary consumers are the ___________. |
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Definition
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Term
| Four processes lead to evolution; they are: |
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Definition
| Mutation, Natural Selection, Migration, and Genetic Drift |
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Term
| Ruminants, such as elk, have four-chambered stomachs teeming with billions of microbes. The bacteria digest woody tissue that the elk cannot fully digest on their own. The bacteria also convert nitrogen into organic compounds and give off fatty acids that benefit the elk. In return, the elk provide an environment that allows the bacteria to survive. In this case, both bacteria and elk are ______________. |
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Definition
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Term
| What defines "population"? |
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Definition
| A group of individuals of the same species living in the same area and sharing genetic information. |
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Term
| The first country to adopt an official population policy was? |
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Definition
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Term
| How fast do tectonic plates move? |
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Definition
| Between 0 to 1 foot a year |
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Term
| What is not an affect of deforestation in the tropical rainforest? |
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Definition
| Reduction in elephant population |
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Term
| Doubling time is defined as: |
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Definition
| The time it takes for what is growing to double in size or number |
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Term
| In the theory of Island Biogeography, the closer an island is to the mainland: |
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Definition
| the more immigration and emigration can occur between the land masses |
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Term
| the profession of growing trees is known as: |
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Definition
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Term
| What an organism does for a living (its profession) is its ___________. |
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Definition
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Term
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Definition
| the initial establishment and development of an ecosystem where one did not exist before. |
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Term
| The largest phosphorous stores on Earth are in the ____________: |
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Definition
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Term
| Douglas fir regeneration responds well to: |
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Definition
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Term
| Who was the man behind the term "preservation" in environmental science? |
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Definition
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Term
| An organism's ecological niche is: |
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Definition
| the set of environmental conditions within which a species is able to persist |
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Term
| What is the main alcohol found in biofuel? |
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Definition
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Term
| Positive feedback occurs when: |
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Definition
| an increase in output leads to a further increase in the output |
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Term
| In developed countries, what percentage of people live in urban areas? |
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Definition
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Term
| In ___________ a single species that is isolated on different islands can be separated into multiple distinct species. Each group responds and adapts to its own environment. For instance, on an island with large fruit seeds, a small beaked finch may not do well, however a large beaked finch has just the right apparatus to break the seed; therefore its genes have the opportunity to move to the next generation. |
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Definition
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Term
| The first plants to appear after a disturbance are called: |
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Definition
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Term
| Late-successional species grow well in ________ and have seeds that can survive for a _________ period of time. |
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Definition
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Term
| A species such as the sea otter that has a large effect on its community or ecosystem is called a: |
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Definition
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Term
| Maximum potential lifetime (longevity) is determined by ________: |
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Definition
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Term
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Definition
| An area of land where rainfall flows out through the same stream. |
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Term
| Approximately how old is the planet Earth? |
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Definition
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Term
| Photosynthesis generally: |
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Definition
| Yields glucose and oxygen gas |
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Term
| __________ cutting method removes all but a few mature trees with good genetic characteristics and high seed production to promote the regeneration of the forest. |
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Definition
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Term
| What is true about autotrophs? |
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Definition
| They can live without heterotrophs |
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Term
| Carbon forms two of the most important greenhouse gases: Carbon Dioxide and: |
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Definition
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Term
| What elements are considered the fundamental building blocks of life? |
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Definition
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Term
| About ______ of the atmosphere is nitrogen gas. |
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Definition
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Term
| To restore the fox population in the Channel Islands, ________________ are to be removed and ________________ are to be reintroduced. |
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Definition
| Golden Eagles, Bald Eagles |
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Term
| ____________ are communities of organisms, including the community's local nonliving environment, in which matter (i.e. chemical elements) cycles and energy flows. |
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Definition
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Term
| The founder of the Yale School of Forestry and the first head of the US Forest Service was ______________, also generally considered to be the father of modern professional forestry. |
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Definition
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Term
| Chronic patchiness is found in which ecosystem? |
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Definition
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Term
| The first major increase in human population occurred during the ______________. |
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Definition
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Term
| According to Cranfield University's study of the effects of vegetarianism on the environment, vegetarianism may: |
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Definition
| lead to more deforestation |
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Term
| Estimates of how many people the planet can support range from 2.5 billion to 40 billion. What factor doesn't play an important role in this estimate? |
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Definition
| Dropping birth rates in developing countries |
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Term
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Definition
| Each provides what the other need and neither could survive without the other. |
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Term
| Sea Otters feed on sea urchins. Sea Urchins then feed on kelp. If there are fewer sea otters, there will be _____ kelp. |
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Definition
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Term
| What is a message to be learned from whooping cranes? |
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Definition
| Not all rare species are in danger of extinction. |
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Term
| The establishment of a community following a disturbance that doesn't remove the soil is: |
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Definition
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Term
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Definition
| Ensures that Earth's resources will remain adequate to support future generations. |
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Term
| In reference to ecological succession, the term facilitation refers to: |
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Definition
| One species making the environment more suitable for another species |
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Term
| How many species of birds native to the United States have been infected with the West Nile virus? |
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Definition
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Term
| _________ is one of the "Big Six" elements necessary as the building blocks of life. |
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Definition
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Term
| What makes an ecological island different from other areas? |
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Definition
| It is biologically isolated, so species living there cannot mix with other populations of the same species |
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Term
| What does "biota" refer to? |
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Definition
| All living things within a given area |
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Term
| A lava flow is an example of what kind of succession? |
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Definition
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Term
| Two species that compete for the same life resources and have exactly the same requirements ____________. |
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Definition
| Cannot coexist in exactly the same habitat |
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Term
| Generally, interference refers to ___________ successional species preventing the establishment of ________ successional species. |
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Definition
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Term
| A country with a high growth rate will display a __________ shape when graphed, indicating a large number of individuals in the younger ages. |
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Definition
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Term
| In the last year of the 20th Century the human population increased from 2.5 billion to over __ billion. |
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Definition
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Term
| "Biota" is a general term used to describe: |
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Definition
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Term
| The idea of biological evolution was proposed by: |
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Definition
| Charles Darwin in the 19th Century |
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Term
| Patterns of speciation and extinction are least likely to be affected by: |
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Definition
| local changes in the weather |
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Term
| Most primary production takes place through: |
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Definition
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Term
| In exponential growth, a population _________. |
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Definition
| Increases at a constant percentage over time. |
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Term
| Smaller islands have higher rates of ___________ than larger islands. |
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Definition
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Term
| What are the "three simple facts" proposed by Thomas Malthus about human population problems? |
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Definition
| 1) Food is necessary for people to survive. 2) Passion between the sexes is necessary and will remain nearly in its present state. 3) The power of population growth is greater than the power of Earth to produce subsistence. |
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Term
| Soils have ________ quantities of chemical elements, but elements in living tissues are ________________ to other organisms. |
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Definition
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Term
| The most abundant species in a system is know as the: |
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Definition
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Term
| In the annual calcium cycle, the highest flux rates are in ______________. |
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Definition
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Term
| John Muir was considered a _______________ because of his belief that nature was more important, for its own intrinsic value, than growth and economic development. |
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Definition
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Term
| Two basic kinds of processes must occur in an ecosystem: |
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Definition
| Cycling of chemical elements and a flow of energy |
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Term
| Scientists have learned from observation that two species that compete for the same life resources and have exactly the same requirements cannot coexist in exactly the same habitat; one will always go extinct. This is know as the: |
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Definition
| Competitive Exclusion Principle |
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Term
| The geologic cycle consists of the: |
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Definition
| Tectonic, Hydrologic, Rock, and Biogeochemical cycles |
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Term
| Primary succession takes place where? |
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Definition
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Term
| At Fort Valley Experiment Forest, why was the Ponderosa pine forest in trouble? |
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Definition
| The forest was prevented from ever having a fire disturbance as part of its growth process. |
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Term
| What does the principle of "environmental unity" say? |
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Definition
| Everything affects everything else. |
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Term
| In the theory of Island Biogeography, the closer an island is to the mainland: |
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Definition
| The more immigration and emigration can occur between the land masses; the more resources can be obtained from the mainland to support the islanders. |
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Term
| Which definition describes entropy? |
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Definition
| Energy always changes from a more useful, more highly organized form to a less useful, disorganized form. |
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Term
| Species richness is defined as: |
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Definition
| The total number of species |
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Term
| What is the Earth's human carrying capacity? |
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Definition
| It has not been determined because it depends in part on how we want to live, and how we want those who follow us to be able to live. |
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Term
| The idea of the balance of nature states that ____________. |
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Definition
| That nature is unchanging and constant |
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Term
| The concept of ________________ leads to __________________ and __________________. |
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Definition
| Sustainable Society, Sustainable Economy, Sustainable Development |
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Term
| According to the GoPost discussion titled, "Ocean Fisheries Sustainability," which of the following is NOT a possible solution to overfishing? |
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Definition
| Allow the ocean and its resources to go on as a "commons" |
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Term
| The different types of habitats in a given unit area is a measure of _______________. |
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Definition
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Term
| The capture of usable energy from the environment to produce organic compounds in which that energy is stored defines ______________. |
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Definition
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Term
| When dune grass prepares the ground for other species to grow, it is an example of ________________. |
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Definition
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Term
| Metamorphic rock can form from: |
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Definition
| Sedimentary rocks exposed to heat, pressure or chemically active fluids. |
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Term
| What can cause a population to continue to increase after a crash in resources and subsequent reduced fertilization rate? |
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Definition
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Term
| Biological evolution _____________: |
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Definition
| Can result in new species |
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Term
| Migration of species over the land bridge between Siberia and Alaska during the last ice age was stopped when the land bridge was covered by rising sea levels, and new species evolved. This is an example of: |
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Definition
| Geographic Isolation and Divergent Evolution |
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Term
| According to the GoPost discussion titled "Pesticide Use", which of the following is NOT a benefit of pesticide use? |
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Definition
| Increase in additives and surfactants in our water systems. |
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Term
| What is the planet's current population growth rate? |
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Definition
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Term
| Free nitrogen (N2) makes up about __________ of the earth's atmosphere. |
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Definition
| 50%,90% (Actual answer is about 80%) |
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Term
| The relative abundance of different species in a particular area is known as the _____________. |
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Definition
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Term
| ________________ in the earth's mantle cause the movement of tectonic plates. |
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Definition
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Term
| What is the "e" in e-waste? |
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Definition
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Term
| Thomas Malthus, an English economist and demographer, claims that if we don't stop human population growth: |
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Definition
| War, Epidemics, and Famine will take over the planet. |
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Term
| How many species of birds native to the US have been infected with the West Nile virus? |
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Definition
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Term
| After which event would a secondary succession occur? |
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Definition
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Term
| When one species affects another species that, in turn, affects a third species, it is called: |
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Definition
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