Environmental Science Exam Solutions
Course Introduction
Environmental Science is an interdisciplinary field that explores the complex interactions between the physical, chemical, and biological components of the environment. This course examines key topics such as ecosystem dynamics, energy flow, resource management, pollution, and environmental policy. Students will develop an understanding of how human activities impact natural systems and learn about strategies for mitigating environmental issues, promoting sustainability, and fostering environmental stewardship. Through scientific inquiry, case studies, and practical applications, learners will be equipped with the knowledge and skills necessary to address current and future environmental challenges.
Recommended Textbook
Geosystems An Introduction to Physical Geography 9th Edition by Robert W. Christopherson
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20 Chapters
3026 Verified Questions
3026 Flashcards
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Page 2
Chapter 1: Essentials of Geography
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185 Verified Questions
185 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) A geographic information system is unable to create maps with a three-dimensional perspective.
A)True
B)False
Answer: False
Q2) If it is 10:00 A.M. in Miami, Florida (Eastern time zone), what time is it in Los Angeles, California, located 3 time zones to the west in the Pacific Time zone?
A) 7 A.M.
B) 8 A.M.
C) 1 P.M.
D) 2 P.M.
Answer: A
Q3) Latitude is
A) the angular distance measured north or south of the equator.
B) the angular distance measured east or west of a prime meridian.
C) the basis for establishing meridians.
D) portrayed on a globe as lines that cross the equator at right angles.
Answer: A
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3
Chapter 2: Solar Energy to Earth and the Seasons
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Sample Questions
Q1) The Milky Way galaxy contains approximately 300 billion stars, of which the Sun is an average.sized star.
A)True
B)False
Answer: True
Q2) Astronauts deployed a solar wind measuring experiment on the Moon because
A) the lunar surface is protected by an atmosphere.
B) there is no electromagnetic energy arriving there.
C) the solar wind does not reach the Earth's surface.
D) no one else had attempted the experiment before and they wanted to be the first. Answer: C
Q3) The subsolar point's maximum latitude is 47° N/S.
A)True
B)False
Answer: False
Q4) While seasonality can affect humans, humans cannot affect seasonality.
A)True
B)False Answer: False
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Chapter 3: Earths Modern Atmosphere
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168 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which of the following is true of the mesosphere?
A) It contains clouds that are visible at night.
B) Temperatures are uniform through the zone.
C) It is the warmest layer of the atmosphere.
D) It has the greatest vertical extent of all atmospheric layers.
Answer: A
Q2) The Clean Air Act
A) is no longer in effect.
B) did not result in significant reductions of any major air pollutants.
C) was made stronger during the Reagan administration.
D) has saved the country several trillion dollars.
Answer: D
Q3) The top of the Earth's atmosphere is approximately
A) 3,200 km (1,988 mi) above the Earth's surface.
B) 480 km (300 mi) above the Earth's surface.
C) 2,000 km (1,243 mi) above the Earth's surface.
D) 1,000 km (621 mi) above the Earth's surface.
Answer: B
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Chapter 4: Atmosphere and Surface Energy Balances
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130 Verified Questions
130 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which of the following related to the promise of solar energy is incorrect?
A) The Earth receives 100,000 terawatts of solar energy per hour.
B) The energy produced by fossil fuels in the U.S. in a year is equivalent to 35 minutes of insolation.
C) The technology for solar energy is not yet available for widespread use.
D) Periods of cloudiness and night are current drawbacks to available solar technology.
Q2) What is the "greenhouse effect" as applied to Earth's atmosphere? How is Earth similar and different than a greenhouse?
Q3) Describe and analyze the various methods of tapping solar energy and explain why they do not enjoy more widespread use.
Q4) The principle of Rayleigh scatter states that atmospheric particles larger than the wavelength of light account for the differential scattering of shorter wavelengths of light.
A)True
B)False
Q5) Earth's blue sky is a result of diffuse reflection called scattering.
A)True
B)False
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Page 6
Chapter 5: Global Temperatures
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135 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) Compare, contrast, and explain maritime and continental conditions.
Q2) The temperature control that includes the heat capacity of a substance is A) movement.
B) evaporation.
C) cloud cover.
D) specific heat.
Q3) The thermal equator
A) corresponds with the geographic equator.
B) trends into the interior of landmasses.
C) is highest over ocean basins.
D) remains in the same location throughout the year.
Q4) Snow line elevation increases with increasing latitude.
A)True
B)False
Q5) If you went for a walk on a hot beach, you could cool your feet off substantially by digging them into the sand.
A)True
B)False
Q6) How do ocean currents affect both water and air temperatures? Use the Humboldt Current and Gulf Stream as examples.
Page 7
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Chapter 6: Atmospheric and Oceanic Circulations
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Sample Questions
Q1) Zones of windless, hot, dry desert air bear 25° N and 25° S latitude are named
A) Hadley cells.
B) the doldrums.
C) the horse latitudes.
D) westerlies.
Q2) Upwelling brings cool, nutrient rich water to the surface.
A)True
B)False
Q3) During the day, mountain valleys heat more rapidly than mountain slopes.
A)True
B)False
Q4) The intertropical convergence zone is characterized by A) convergence and uplift of warm surface air.
B) convergence and subsidence of cold surface air.
C) divergence and uplift of warm surface air.
D) divergence and subsidence of cold surface air.
Q5) Sketch out a general model of the Earth's circulation patterns. Include the intertropical convergence zone, subtropical highs, subpolar lows, polar highs, the trade winds, the westerlies, the polar easterlies, and Hadley cells.
Page 8
Q6) Explain the occurrence of land and sea breezes and mountain and valley breezes.
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Chapter 7: Water and Atmospheric Moisture
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145 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) The bulk of the evaporation on Earth occurs over the continents.
A)True
B)False
Q2) Cooling of a surface overnight that chills the air layer directly above that surface may form
A) an advection fog.
B) an upslope fog.
C) an evaporation fog.
D) a radiation fog.
Q3) Clouds that have vertical development and produce thunderstorms are called A) stratocumulus.
B) cumulonimbus.
C) nimbostratus.
D) cumulus.
Q4) The phase changes of water provide a significant amount of the energy that powers the general circulation of the atmosphere.
A)True
B)False
Q5) List several of water's unique properties.
Q6) Describe water's phase changes and the latent energy associated with each.
Page 9
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Chapter 8: Weather
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157 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) A rainshadow is a zone of dark clouds and heavy rainfall.
A)True
B)False
Q2) Write an essay that discusses the formation of mesocyclones and tornadoes, and also examines how scientists rank the intensity of tornadoes.
Q3) The severity of storm activity along a warm front is ________ than that along most cold fronts because the rate of uplift is ________ along a warm front.
A) less; slower
B) less; faster
C) greater; slower
D) greater; faster
Q4) The Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale includes estimates from related storm surges, flooding, and tornadoes.
A)True
B)False
Q5) Yearly weather-related damage costs have risen 500% since 1975.
A)True
B)False
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Chapter 9: Water Resources
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176 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) Approximately ________ countries are currently experiencing water shortages.
A) 5
B) 10
C) 80
D) 165
Q2) The California Water Project is
A) a proposed dam of the Colorado River between the Parker and Palo Verde Dam.
B) a multi-year plan designed to harvest rainwater for agricultural purposes.
C) a water conveyance system to distribute water resources throughout the state.
D) an ambition goal to build a hydroelectric power station larger than China's Three Gorges.
Q3) Transpiration refers to the release of water to the atmosphere from the Earth's crust.
A)True
B)False
Q4) Which of the following is true regarding the hydrologic cycle?
A) The bulk of the precipitation occurs over land.
B) Very little moisture is evaporated from the sea to the land.
C) Twenty-two percent of Earth's precipitation falls over the oceans.
D) Seventy-eight percent of all precipitation falls on the oceans.
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Chapter 10: Global Climate Systems
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149 Verified Questions
149 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) Dengue fever, an infectious tropical disease carried by mosquitos, has
A) been nearly wiped out because of climate change related shifts in subtropical high pressure cells.
B) spread previously unaffected areas due to changes in climatic conditions.
C) never been reported in the U.S., but scientists fear it may arrive due to expansion of Aedes aegypti mosquitoes.
D) shifted equatorward due to desertification in the subtropics.
Q2) A genetic classification system can be based on, among other factors,
A) the interaction of air masses.
B) statistics or other data used to determine general categories.
C) mean annual temperature.
D) mean annual precipitation.
Q3) Mediterranean dry-summer climates
A) experience dry conditions in summer due to the subtropical high overhead.
B) experience wet conditions in winter due to the ITCZ overhead.
C) are bordered poleward by steppe climates.
D) experience wet conditions in summer due to the ITCZ overhead.
Q4) The condition of the atmosphere at any given time and place is called climate.
A)True
B)False
Page 12
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Chapter 11: Climate Change
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141 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) The________ is the most recent epoch of repeated glaciation on the Earth.
A) Holocene
B) Pleistocene
C) Pliocene
D) Miocene
Q2) Scientists attribute the recent rise in atmospheric concentrations of nitrous oxide (N O) primarily to
A) automobile combustion.
B) agricultural activity.
C) wastewater management.
D) industrial practices.
Q3) Speleothems, like trees, have growth rings whose size and property reflect the conditions under which they formed.
A)True
B)False
Q4) Increased atmospheric CO may lead to plants in some regions of the world producing more leaves.
A)True
B)False
Q5) What are some examples of positive and negative climate feedback loops?
Page 13
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Chapter 12: The Dynamic Planet
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184 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) If you were driving down the highway and saw mountains composed of layered strata, you could be confident that you were looking at
A) sedimentary rocks.
B) extrusive igneous rock.
C) a shield volcano.
D) batholiths or laccoliths.
Q2) The average length of a period during which a given magnetic field polarity exists is about
A) 10,000 years.
B) 100,000 years.
C) 500,000 years.
D) 1,000,000 years.
Q3) An intrusive igenous rock has finer crystal grains than an extrusive igeneous rock.
A)True
B)False
Q4) Earth's magnetic field has reversed nine times in the last four million years.
A)True
B)False
Q5) Describe the important aspects of the formation and breakup of Pangaea.
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Chapter 13: Tectonics, Earthquakes, and Volcanism
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169 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) Discuss the seismic hazards in your area. Are these tectonically driven or induced seismicity.
Q2) Terranes refer to
A) the topography of a tract of land.
B) subducted oceanic crust that is melted and later reaches the surface in volcanic eruptions or cools in the subsurface as an intrusive body.
C) fragmented crustal material from one plate and accreted to another plate.
D) a large region where a craton is exposed at the surface.
Q3) When rock strata are strained beyond their ability to remain an intact unit, displacement occurs in a process known as
A) folding.
B) faulting.
C) broad warping.
D) stressing.
Q4) Effusive eruptions are not related to which of the following?
A) magma rich in iron and magnesium
B) low-viscosity magma
C) magma with a 50-75 percent silica content, high in aluminum
D) the volcanic activity in Hawaii
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Chapter 14: Weathering, Karst Landscapes, and Mass Movement
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125 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) Solution sinkholes develop rapidly, typically over periods of hours or a few days.
A)True
B)False
Q2) Which of the following is not necessary for well-developed karst to develop?
A) high proportion of calcium carbonate in the rock
B) joints in rock of otherwise low permeability
C) vegetation
D) arid conditions
Q3) When pressure is removed from overlying rock, the pressure of deep burial is relieved, initiating pressure-release jointing. The joints then separate into curved slabs. This is known as
A) exfoliation.
B) frost wedging.
C) salt crystal growth.
D) spheroidal weathering.
Q4) The driving force of mass movement is gravity.
A)True
B)False
Q5) Describe the processes of denudation.
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Chapter 15: River Systems and Landforms
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154 Verified Questions
154 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) Give the equation for stream discharge. What happens to stream velocity if discharge and depth remain the same, but width increases?
Q2) Which of the following is correct of floodplains?
A) They rarely occur in a fluvial landscape created by an "old" river.
B) They are erosional landforms.
C) They often evolve after a stream has ceased downcutting at a significant rate.
D) They are the areas of a stream where terraces are present.
Q3) As they migrate, meandering streams erode their out outside banks, often forming a narrow neck of land that eventually erodes through and forms a ________ and the stream becomes ________.
A) meander scar; narrower
B) cutoff; straighter
C) cutback; more sinuous
D) point bar; wider
Q4) A flood recurrence interval of 100 years means that floods of that size will occur only once every 100 years.
A)True
B)False
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Chapter 16: The Oceans, Coastal Processes, and Wind
Processes
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159 Verified Questions
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Sample Questions
Q1) In which of the following region would you expect to have the highest levels of seawater sality?
A) equatorial oceans
B) subtropical oceans
C) polar oceans.
D) midlatitude oceans.
Q2) Elongated, streamlined ridges aligned parallel to the most effective wind direction are called
A) ventifacts.
B) yardangs.
C) desert pavements.
D) alluvial rock structures.
Q3) An extensive area of sand and sand dunes is known as a(n)
A) reg desert.
B) erg desert, or sand sea.
C) lag desert.
D) desert pavement.
Q4) The highest salinity values are found in equatorial oceans.
A)True
B)False
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Chapter 17: Glacial and Periglacial Processes and Landforms
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Sample Questions
Q1) During the height of the Pleistocene ice age, the glaciers extended as far south as the Ohio and Missouri river systems.
A)True
B)False
Q2) Which of the following has not been sited as a possible cause of ice sheet darkening?
A) ice melt has exposed darker land surface, water, and vegetation
B) black carbon accumulation from wildfires
C) sunspot activity
D) snow metamorphism
Q3) Which of the following is not an adaptation to living in periglacial regions?
A) buildings placed directly on frozen, hard surfaces
B) enclosed water and sewage lines
C) raised oil pipelines above the frozen ground
D) careful maintenance of rail tracks and roadbeds in the summer
Q4) A glacier is an open system with inputs of snow and outputs of ice, meltwater, and water vapor.
A)True
B)False
Q5) Describe the process by which snow becomes glacial ice.
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Chapter 18: The Geography of Soils
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Sample Questions
Q1) The horizon in which water moves fine particles downward in a process called eluviation is the ________ horizon.
A) A
B) O
C) E
D) B
E) C
Q2) What is the predominant soil order in the area in which you live? Describe the activities that occur on these soils that reflect the characteristics thereof.
Q3) Salinization is often associated with Aridisols.
A)True
B)False
Q4) The organic rich horizon found at the top of the soil profile is the ________ horizon.
A) A
B) O
C) E
D) B
E) C
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Page 20
Chapter 19: Ecosystem Essentials
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Sample Questions
Q1) A study of the spatial distribution of the coast redwood (Sequoia sempervirens) and the environmental factors that control that distribution would be an example of a topic studied in
A) biogeography.
B) ecology.
C) pedology.
D) plant biology.
Q2) Most of the Earth's organisms have been identified and classified.
A)True
B)False
Q3) Autotrophs that dwell in dark caves, in wells, or on the ocean floor often depend on which of the following biogeochemical processes?
A) chemosynthesis
B) photosynthesis
C) nutrient leaching
D) nitrogen fixing
Q4) Consider the ecology of the region in which you live. Which organisms are the primary producers, the primary consumers, the secondary consumers, and tertiary consumers.
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Chapter 20: Terrestrial Biomes
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which of the following is a topic of research in conservation biogeography?
A) The distribution and effects of invasive species.
B) The effects of climate change on biodiversity.
C) Conservation planning and the establishment of protected areas.
D) Invasive species, climate change, and conservation planning are all topics of research in conservation biology.
Q2) New Zealand and Australia have remarkably similar fauna indicating the two were likely once directly connected as a single land mass or via a land bridge during critical evolutionary times.
A)True
B)False
Q3) Which biome occurs at high elevations above the treeline, even at lower latitudes?
A) temperate rain forest
B) arctic and alpine tundra
C) boreal and montane forest
D) midlatitude broadleaf and mixed forest
Q4) Rain forests only occur in equatorial areas.
A)True
B)False
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