Unit 1-2
A) What is biodiversity?
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B) Why is biodiversity important?
A) The variety of life in an ecosystem.
B) It increases ecosystem stability.
A) What process turns atmospheric nitrogen into usable forms for plants?
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B) Which organisms commonly perform nitrogen fixation?
A) Nitrogen fixation
B) Bacteria
A) What is the main source of energy for Earth’s climate system?
OR
B) What process captures solar energy?
A) The Sun.
B) Photosynthesis.
A) What type of energy uses moving air to generate electricity?
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B) What device captures wind energy?
A) Wind energy.
B) Wind turbine.
A) What international agreement focuses on reducing greenhouse gas emissions?
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B) What is the main greenhouse gas produced by humans?
A) The Paris Agreement
B) Carbon dioxide.
A) What biome is characterized by low rainfall and sparse vegetation?
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B) What adaptation helps desert plants survive?
A) Desert Biome
B) Water storage/reduced leaves.
A) What process releases carbon dioxide back into the atmosphere from organisms?
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B) Which process removes CO₂ from the atmosphere?
A) Cellular Respiration
B) Photosynthesis.
A) What is the term for rain containing sulfuric and nitric acids?
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B) What causes acid rain?
A) Acid Rain.
B) SO₂ and NOx emissions.
A) What fossil fuel emits the most carbon dioxide per unit of energy?
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B) Which fossil fuel burns the cleanest?
A) Coal
B) Natural Gas
A) What is the term for species disappearing permanently from Earth?
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B) What human activity is the leading cause of extinction?
A) Extinction.
B) Habitat destruction
A) What is the difference between a food chain and a food web?
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B) Give an example of a producer.
A) A food chain shows one energy pathway; a food web shows multiple interconnected pathways
B) Plants/algae.
A) What agricultural practice involves growing different crops in the same area during different seasons?
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B) Why is crop rotation beneficial?
A) Crop Rotation
B) Reduces soil depletion/pests.
A) What air pollutant forms when sunlight reacts with vehicle emissions?
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B) What major source contributes to smog?
A) Tropospheric ozone (smog)
B) Vehicle emissions.
A) What renewable energy source uses underground heat from Earth?
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B) In what type of area is geothermal most common?
A) Geothermal energy.
B) Tectonically active regions
A) What term describes the gradual increase in Earth’s average temperature?
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B) What human activity contributes most?
A) Global warming
B) Burning fossil fuels.
A) Why are keystone species important in ecosystems?
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B) Give an example of a keystone species.
A) They have a large effect on ecosystem structure and stability.
B) Sea otter/wolf.
A) What is eutrophication?
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B) What nutrient commonly causes eutrophication?
A) Excess nutrients in water causing algal blooms and oxygen depletion.
B) Nitrogen or phosphorus.
A) What law in the United States regulates air pollutant emissions?
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B) Which agency enforces it?
A) The Clean Air Act.
B) EPA
A) What is the biggest disadvantage of solar energy?
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B) What is one advantage of solar power?
A) It depends on sunlight availability/intermittency.
B) Renewable/no direct emissions.
A) What feedback loop occurs when melting ice reduces Earth’s albedo?
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B) Which surfaces have high albedo?
A) Positive feedback loop.
B) Ice/Snow
A) Explain ecological succession and distinguish between primary and secondary succession.
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B) Which type recovers faster?
A) Succession is ecosystem change over time; primary begins without soil, secondary begins where soil already exists.
B) Secondary succession.
A) How does overirrigation contribute to soil degradation?
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B) What farming method reduces water waste?
A) It can cause salinization and waterlogging.
B) Drip irrigation.
A) Describe biomagnification.
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B) Which organisms are most affected?
A) The increasing concentration of toxins in organisms at higher trophic levels.
B) Top predators
A) Why is nuclear energy considered both beneficial and controversial?
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B) What is a major advantage of nuclear energy?
A) It produces low greenhouse gases but creates radioactive waste and accident risks.
B) Low greenhouse gas emissions
A) Describe one strategy countries can use to mitigate climate change.
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B) What is climate adaptation?
A) Transitioning to renewable energy, reforestation, carbon taxes, improving efficiency, etc.
B) Adjusting to climate impacts.