Deck 1: The Environment and Sustainability

Question 1

Sustainability is the capacity of the earth's natural system and human cultural systems to survive, flourish, and adapt to changing environmental conditions in the long-term future.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

The "tragedy of the commons" refers to a situation in which the cumulative effect of large numbers of people trying to exploit a widely available or shared resource can degrade it and eventually exhaust or ruin it.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

In nature, chemicals are recycled rather than becoming waste.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

Resource use per person is higher in the United States than it is in middle-income countries like China.

Question 5

Exponential growth occurs when a quantity such as the human population increases at a fixed percentage per unit of time, such as 0.5% or 2% per year.

Question 6

Biodiversity is defined as the variety of genes, organisms, species, and ecosystems and plays an important role in the long-term sustainability of life on Earth.

Question 7

A shift to restore natural capital and reduce its degradation and depletion requires using technology, not lessons from nature.

Question 8

Natural resources are considered natural capital, whereas ecosystem services are not.

Question 9

Government subsidies can actually encourage companies to conduct business in ways that result in environmental degradation.

Question 10

There was a backlash against environmental laws and regulations in the 1980s that was led by some who argued that environmental laws were hindering economic growth.

Question 11

Natural capital degradation is a consequence of living unsustainably.

Question 12

Ecology is an important component of environmental science.

Question 13

Affluence always has negative environmental effects.

Question 14

The book Silent Spring, by Rachel Carson, described progress in reducing pollution and showed that pesticides like DDT were no longer a concern due to effective environmental programs.

Question 15

The "tragedy of the commons" is a phenomenon that occurs only when the number of users of a resource is small.

Question 16

The per capita ecological footprint is the total ecological footprint for a given country or area.

Question 17

In contrast to the life-centered worldview, the human-centered environmental worldview considers all species as having value as participating members of the biosphere regardless of their potential or actual use to humans.

Question 18

Species interactions help prevent any one population from becoming too large.

Question 19

One social science principle of sustainability is that we should leave the planet's life-support systems in at least as good a condition as that which we now enjoy, if not better, for future generations.

Question 20

Inexhaustible resources exist in a fixed quantity, or stock, in the earth's crust.

Question 21

One of the three additional principles of sustainability mentioned in the textbook describes the use of _____ to give consumers more information about the harmful environmental impact of products.

A) biodiversifying
B) hidden appraisals
C) subsidizing
D) full-cost pricing
E) external valuations

Question 22

Which term describes the capacity of the earth's natural systems to sustain life and the ability of human economic systems to survive or adapt indefinitely as environmental conditions change?

A) Appropriate use of resources
B) Ecological management
C) Sustainability
D) Preservationism
E) Environmentalism

Question 23

Middle-income countries such as India and China may have low ____, but they have a high ____.

A) population size; population growth rate
B) overall environmental impact; population growth rate
C) population size; resource use per person
D) overall environmental impact; resource use per person
E) resource use per person; overall environmental impact

Question 24

According to the ____, all species have value as participating members of the biosphere, regardless of their potential or actual use to humans.

A) human-centered environmental worldview
B) earth-centered environmental worldview
C) life-centered environmental worldview
D) sun-centered environmental worldview
E) geo-centered environmental worldview

Question 25

Which of the following terms encompasses all of the others listed?

A) Natural capital
B) Natural resources
C) Ecosystem services
D) Renewable resources
E) Nonrenewable resources

Question 26

Why is there such little waste in nature?

A) The sun is an inexhaustible resource.
B) Organisms naturally avoid activities that create unnecessary waste.
C) The wastes and decayed bodies of any organism become nutrients or raw materials for other organisms.
D) The earth is so vast that natural waste is not easily identified.
E) Waste is chemically unstable.

Question 27

One reason biodiversity is such an important aspect of sustainability is that it ____.

A) maintains a ready supply of new materials for water, soil, and food
B) is the ultimate source of energy for plants
C) provides vital ecosystem services through the interactions among species and keeps any population from growing too large
D) makes life less susceptible to constant adaptation and changing environmental conditions
E) increases ecotourism in less developed countries

Question 28

Which resource is nonrenewable?

A) Geothermal energy
B) Solar energy
C) Freshwater
D) Copper
E) trees

Question 29

Which of the following is a natural resource, not an ecosystem service?

A) Water purification
B) Food production
C) Land
D) Waste treatment
E) Soil renewal

Question 30

Your text refers to the dependence on solar energy, biodiversity, and chemical cycling as three major ____.

A) resource guidelines
B) ecological footprints
C) environmental tenets
D) scientific principles of sustainability
E) preservationist goals

Question 31

Which of the following is the term for the social movement dedicated to sustaining the earth's life-support system for all forms of life?

A) Ecology
B) Environmental science
C) Environmentalism
D) Biodiversity management
E) Sustainability

Question 32

The field of environmental science is considered interdisciplinary because it ____.

A) involves rigorous study of the environment
B) includes topics that are not explored in other disciplines
C) often assigns responsibility to those who cause environmental degradation
D) is rapidly evolving over time into a different form of science
E) incorporates work fromthe fields of biology, chemistry, geology, social sciences, and the humanities

Question 33

Which of the following is a branch of biology that focuses on interactions between living organisms and both the living and nonliving components of their environments?

A) Ecology
B) Sustainability research
C) Environmentalism
D) Engineering
E) Geography

Question 34

What is one of the three goals of environmental science, as proposed by your text?

A) Reduce affluence
B) Understand how we interact with the environment
C) Acquire a life-centered environmental worldview
D) Enhance environmental degradation
E) Reduce the use of technology

Question 35

About 83% of the world's human population lives in ____.

A) nations with high average income per person
B) the United States, Japan, Australia, and Germany
C) more-developed countries
D) less-developed countries
E) environmentally-sustainable societies

Question 36

Which of the following is a resource that is both nonrenewable and nonmetallic?

A) Copper
B) Solar energy
C) Sand
D) Trees
E) Clean air

Question 37

You are installing solar collectors on the roof of your home to reduce your use of propane gas, which you use to heat both your hot water tank and the living spaces in your home. In doing so, you are using a(n) ____ resource rather than a(n) ____ resource.

A) renewable; nonrenewable
B) inexhaustible; renewable
C) renewable; inexhaustible
D) nonrenewable; renewable
E) inexhaustible; nonrenewable

Question 38

Which process best illustrates an ecosystem service?

A) Natural gas fracking
B) Pollution cleanup
C) Water purification
D) Oil mining
E) Soil erosion

Question 39

Oil is a(n) ____.

A) nonrenewable resource because it cannot be formed on human time scales
B) renewable resource because it can be renewed through human processes
C) inexhaustible resource because it is a form of stored solar energy
D) ecosystem service because oil is a valuable commodity
E) renewable resource because it can be used to make fertilizers that restore soil fertility

Question 40

Which term best describes the overall processes provided by healthy ecosystems that support life and human economies at no monetary cost to us?

A) Biodiversity
B) Chemical nutrient cycling
C) Sustainable principles
D) Natural resources
E) Ecosystem services

Question 41

In many parts of the world, renewable forests are shrinking and topsoil is eroding. This fact is evidence that ____.

A) all forms of technology increase environmental impacts
B) affluence has no impact on the health of the environment
C) point sources of pollution are easy to identify
D) the market prices of goods include the harmful environmental costs of producing them
E) we are living unsustainably

Question 42

The term for the ability of an area's ecosystems to regenerate renewable resources of a given region within a given time and to absorb related pollution and wastes is ____.

A) sustainability
B) ecosystem management
C) biocapacity
D) natural capital
E) Responsibility of the commons

Question 43

Of the choices below, which is the best example of an open-access resource?

A) An individual home
B) Resources with shared ownership, such as aquifers
C) National parks
D) Fish in the open ocean
E) farmland

Question 44

What is one environmental benefit of affluence?

A) Increasing wealth allows for an increased capacity for resource consumption.
B) Increased wealth provides resources to apply toward the creation of environmentally beneficial technologies.
C) Increasing affluence often leads to a desire to travel widely and frequently in order to see the world.
D) Increasing affluence in developed nations leads to increased affluence in less-developed countries.
E) Increasing affluence results in less consumption in all countries.

Question 45

About 900 million people live in extreme poverty, struggling to live on the equivalent of less than ____ a day.

A) $1.90
B) $5.00
C) $7.50
D) $10.00
E) $25.00

Question 46

Which of the following resources is nonrenewable?

A) Groundwater
B) Trees in a forest
C) Solar energy
D) Oil
E) Fish populations

Question 47

A country's ecological footprint is larger than its biological capacity to replenish its renewable resources and absorb the resulting waste and pollution. What can be said about this country?

A) It has an ecological deficit.
B) It must not have any natural capital.
C) It is a sustainable society.
D) It is most likely a developing country.
E) It can be described as preservationist.

Question 48

Which of the following is the best definition of an ecological deficit?

A) The number of open-access resources is lower than needed for a specific area
B) The total ecological footprint of an area is greater than its biocapacity
C) The per capita ecological footprint is greater than the ecosystem services
D) The population of an area is growing without improving sustainability
E) The ecological services in an area are lower than the natural capital available

Question 49

Which activity is an example of environmental degradation?

A) Using solar power at a rapid rate
B) Growing crops for food
C) Cutting trees for wood products faster than the trees can regrow
D) Harvesting fish at a sustainable rate
E) Using groundwater at the same rate it is replenished

Question 50

The "tragedy of the commons" refers to the ____.

A) overuse of privately held resources
B) degradation of shared common resources
C) human deaths resulting polluted shared resources such as air or water
D) government over-regulation of fresh water use
E) use of nonrenewable resources

Question 51

What term refers to the average ecological footprint of an individual in a given country or area?

A) Ecosystem service
B) Natural capital
C) Unsustainable yield
D) Mean of the commons
E) Per capita ecological footprint

Question 52

Which of the following describes worrying changes occurring in the environment worldwide?

A) Lowering sea levels and increased rainfall
B) Increases in ice cover
C) Increasing ocean alkalinity
D) Increases in permafrost cover
E) More intense droughts, and rivers that are running dry

Question 53

The IPAT model calculates the environmental impact of human activities based on ____.

A) policy, adaptation, and cultural traditions
B) pollution, adaptation, and trade practices
C) pollution, agriculture, and technology
D) population size, agriculture, and trade practices
E) population size, affluence, and technology

Question 54

Which of the following contributes most to sustainability?

A) Abundant use of resources
B) Distribution of poverty
C) Rapid population growth
D) Inclusion of environmental and health costs in market prices
E) Natural capital degradation

Question 55

Which factor is a major contributor to the degradation of natural capital associated with the pricing of consumable goods?

A) Consumable goods are priced in such a way that they do not reflect the environmental damage caused by their production.
B) Consumable goods are priced in such a way as to allow even those in poverty in developing nations to acquire them.
C) Consumable goods are priced in such a way as to offset harmful environmental and health costs.
D) Consumers are typically aware of the kinds of environmental damage resulting from the production of the item.
E) Consumers in some local cultures purchase items that are expensive because of the social status it brings.

Question 56

Which of the following affects about 83% of the earth's surface, excluding Antarctica?

A) The presence of cities
B) Human activities in general
C) Agricultural use
D) Landfills and waste disposal
E) Occupation by power plants

Question 57

The term "ecological footprint" can best be described as the ____.

A) average size of the lot on which a family home is built
B) number of acres necessary to grow enough food to support a family
C) geographic area in which a person travels during the course of their average daily activities
D) amount of land and water needed to supply a population or an area with renewable resources and to absorb and recycle the wastes and pollution produced by such resource use
E) amount of tillable agricultural land necessary to supply the food requirements of a nation

Question 58

Sustainable yield is the highest rate at which we can use a(n) ____ indefinitely without reducing its available supply.

A) renewable resource
B) fossil fuel
C) solar energy
D) mineral resource
E) nonrenewable resource

Question 59

On human time scales, nonrenewable resources ____.

A) may be considered inexhaustible
B) can never be recycled
C) are replenished by natural processes within hours
D) are used without ever becoming depleted
E) can be depleted much faster than nature can form them

Question 60

Which worldview proposes that we can and should manage the earth for our own benefit, but that we have an ethical responsibility to be caring and responsible managers of the earth?

A) Planetary management worldview
B) Stewardship worldview
C) Environmental wisdom worldview
D) Earth-centered worldview
E) Life-centered worldview

Question 61

Win-____ solutions are based on compromise in light of our interdependence, and they benefit both people and the environment.

Question 62

Which of the following describes an example of living sustainably?

A) A city lives at its biocapacity and consumes natural capital without replenishment.
B) A city lives off of its natural income and preserves and replenishes natural capital.
C) A city relies heavily on fossil fuels.
D) A city has a substantial recycling program even though it generates far more waste than it recycles.
E) A city uses natural capital and renewable resources with a rapidly growing ecological footprint.

Question 63

Freshwater is an example of a(n) ____________________ resource.

Question 64

Major causes of the environmental problems we face are ____________________, wasteful and unsustainable resource use, poverty, failure to include the harmful environmental and health costs of goods and services in their market prices, and increasing isolation from nature.

Question 65

A resource that cannot be diminished by overuse and does not need to be replenished, such as solar energy, is called a(n) ____________________.

Question 66

Ecological footprint models have been used since the ____ .

A) 2000s
B) 1990s
C) 1970s
D) 1800s
E) 1500s

Question 67

____________________ energy is heat from the earth.

Question 68

The average ecological footprint of an individual in a given country or area is the ____________________ ecological footprint.

Question 69

A(n ) ____________________ is a set of organisms within a defined area of land or volume of water that interact with one another and with their environment of nonliving matter and energy.

Question 70

Between 1930 and 2011, the global human population has increased from ____ to ____.

A) 100 million; 250 million
B) 500 million; 1 billion
C) 1.5 billion; 3 billion
D) 2 billion; 7 billion
E) 7 billion; 16 billion

Question 71

____________________ is the biological science that studies how living things interact with one another and with their environment.

Question 72

____________________ resources exist in a fixed quantity, or stock, in the earth's crust.

Question 73

Renewal of topsoil is an example of a key ____________________.

Question 74

Which school of thought argued that public lands should be managed wisely and scientifically, primarily to provide resources for people?

A) Preservationist school
B) Earth-centered school
C) Traditional school
D) Conservationist school
E) Commons school

Question 75

As of 2014, the world population is about ____.

A) 3.0 billion people
B) 5.0 billion people
C) 7.0 billion people
D) 9.0 million people
E) 10.0 billion people

Question 76

The three scientific principles of sustainability are chemical cycling, use of solar energy, and ____________________.

Question 77

____________________ are processes provided by healthy ecosystems that support life and human economies at no monetary cost to us.

Question 78

____________________ energy is provided by the sun.

Question 79

____________________ includes the natural resources and ecosystem services that keep us and other species alive and support human economies.

Question 80

____________________ refers to the circulation of chemicals through organisms and back to the environment.