Deck 14: Resources

Question 1

A(n) ________ is anything created through natural processes that people use and value.

A) renewable resource
B) human resource
C) cultural resource
D) natural resource
E) economic resource

Answer 1

D

Question 2

Figure 14.4.2, Production and Reserves of Fossil Fuels
Looking at Figure 14.4.2, at current extraction rates, how long are Canada's oil reserves projected to last?

A) 10
B) 89
C) 12
D) 303
E) 138

Answer 2

E

Question 3

Figure 14.4.2, Production and Reserves of Fossil Fuels
Looking at Figure 14.4.2, at current usage, how many years are the coal reserves of the United States projected to last?

A) 34
B) 240
C) 107
D) 140
E) 188

Answer 3

B

Question 4

In the U.S., government regulators most often make use of ________ in deciding how to manage resources.

A) referenda (referendums)
B) economic principles
C) ultimatums
D) marshall law
E) seisure of private property

Question 5

The ratio of reserves to annual production (R/P) is an indication of:

A) how much oil each OPEC country is allowed to produce
B) how much energy countries are allowed to hold in reserve
C) the price/barrel as determined by the total output around the world
D) the number of years the known reserves will last
E) the effect of non-OPEC countries on total world production

Question 6

Figure 14.4.2, Production and Reserves of Fossil Fuels
Globally, the world's ratio of reserves to annual production for oil, gas, and coal are currently:

A) 51, 57, and 125 years respectively
B) 11, 17, and 75 years respectively
C) 125, 154, and 51 years respectively
D) 51, 125, and 57 years respectively
E) 125, 51, and 57 years respectively

Question 7

Which of the following is true of oil?

A) Oil was not produced in the United States until the middle of the twentieth century
B) Oil was a minor resource until the diffusion of motor vehicles early in the 1900s
C) Oil was discovered by Baron von Drusenberg of Austria in the later eighteenth century
D) Libya has the world's largest proven oil deposits
E) The United States imports about 5 percent of the total annual oil it consumes

Question 8

A resource that is naturally produced at rates similar to our use can be called a(n) ________.

A) renewable resource
B) human resource
C) cultural resource
D) natural resource
E) economic resource

Question 9

Figure 14.4.2, Production and Reserves of Fossil Fuels
Nuclear power supplies about _______ of all electricity in Europe.

A) three-fourths
B) two-thirds
C) one-half
D) one-third
E) one-fifth

Question 10

Figure 14.4.2, Production and Reserves of Fossil Fuels
Looking at Figure 14.4.2, at current extraction rates, how many years are Russia's natural gas reserves projected to last?

A) 78
B) 60
C) 214
D) 16
E) 505

Question 11

If we divide Earth's current proven oil reserves by current annual consumption of about 26 billion barrels, we see that we have about ________ years of oil supply remaining, at present rates of consumption.

A) 15
B) 30
C) 50
D) 80
E) 130

Question 12

Natural resources acquire a monetary value through:

A) exchange in a marketplace
B) the interest rates set by the central bank of a country
C) legislative elections and other political acts
D) longevity in the culture
E) cultural diffusion

Question 13

Figure 14.4.2, Production and Reserves of Fossil Fuels
Nuclear power supplies about ________ of all electricity in the United States.

A) three-fourths
B) two-thirds
C) one-half
D) one-tenth
E) one-fifth

Question 14

What percentage of its energy needs does Japan import each year?

A) over 90 percent
B) about 70 percent
C) about 50 percent
D) about 33 percent
E) about 20 percent

Question 15

What percentage of its energy needs does the United States import each year?

A) more than 90 percent
B) about 70 percent
C) about 50 percent
D) about 33 percent
E) about 20 percent

Question 16

Deposits of a resource that have been identified and are commercially extractable at present prices are called:

A) reserves
B) marketable deposits
C) fossil fuels
D) extractables
E) foreign exchange earners

Question 17

Figure 14.4.2, Production and Reserves of Fossil Fuels
In 1979, a power plant at this nuclear facility experienced a loss of coolant that contributed to a partial meltdown of the reactor core.

A) Fukushima
B) Three Mile Island
C) Darlington Three Island
D) Guangdong-2 (Wangong-2)
E) Chernobyl (Chornobyl)

Question 18

The catastrophe at ________ in March 2011 has once again raised fears surrounding nuclear power.

A) Fukushima
B) Three Mile Island
C) Darlington Three Island
D) Guangdong-2 (Wangong-2)
E) Chernobyl (Chornobyl)

Question 19

The Chicago Climate Exchange, in operation since 2003, has been engaged in which of the following?

A) cap and trade
B) coal mining trade
C) alternative energy production
D) research in clean coal
E) solar panel investment

Question 20

Which of the following helps us identify things as resources for different uses?

A) economic values
B) cultural values
C) natural resources
D) natural culture
E) political systems analysis

Question 21

The term "________" refers to a group of elements called lanthanides and actinides that are not often found in large, commercially valuable quantities.

A) special earths
B) restricted minerals
C) rare earths
D) earth obscures
E) nonelastic minerals

Question 22

Nationwide in the United States, particulates come mostly from ________, but in urban areas they are derived from vehicles and industrial sources.

A) soil erosion
B) smoke from burning forests
C) coal-fired power plants
D) roads and construction sites
E) non-U.S. sources

Question 23

About ________ percent of all the freshwater runoff in the world flows to the sea via the Amazon River, but the Amazon basin's population is less than ________ percent of the world's population.

A) 18; 12.0
B) 50; 9.0
C) 25; 8.0
D) 5; 1.0
E) 18; 0.1

Question 24

The most acute water pollution problems in the world come from ________.

A) runoff
B) floods
C) ocean currents
D) wastewater
E) recycled water

Question 25

________ is the use and management of natural resources such as wildlife, water, air, and minerals to meet human needs, including food, medicine, and recreation.

A) Preservation
B) Conservation
C) Exploitation
D) Management
E) Development

Question 26

Wastewater comprises about ________ percent of the flow of U.S. rivers.

A) 8
B) 25
C) 15
D) 50
E) 33

Question 27

________ is a metal with a wide range of uses; it has received considerable attention in recent years because of its growing importance in batteries used in cell phones, laptop computers, and hybrid and electric-powered vehicles.

A) Lithium
B) Electrolyte
C) Copper
D) Platinum
E) Rarearthium

Question 28

Which of the following is not one of the top four producers of hydroelectric power in the world?

A) China
B) Argentina
C) Brazil
D) Canada
E) United States

Question 29

Many areas now have ________ plantations, in which trees are planted and harvested as crops (much as we do in agriculture), although on cycles of a few decades rather than just a single year.

A) crop rotation
B) harvestable crop
C) sustained yield
D) yield management
E) partial extraction

Question 30

Worldwide, perhaps 15,000 square miles of ________ have been cleared annually in recent years.

A) agricultural fields
B) tropical and temperate forests
C) prime oilfields
D) tropical savanna
E) tropical rain forest

Question 31

Total world reserves of lithium are sufficient to last ________ years at current consumption rates.

A) 12
B) 50
C) 200
D) 2,500
E) 500

Question 32

________ production is a direct conversion of solar energy to electricity.

A) Renewable energy
B) Ethanol energy
C) Fast-acting electric
D) Photovoltaic electric
E) Solar constant

Question 33

Nearly all forests in ________ have been cut at least once during the past 300 years, so very little original (virgin) forest remains.

A) the United States, excluding Alaska,
B) the United States, excluding the western states,
C) Europe
D) Eurasia, excluding India and Pakistan,
E) North America, excluding Canada,

Question 34

Hydroelectricity is an important renewable source for commercial power, producing about ________ percent of global commercial energy.

A) 6
B) 10
C) 18
D) 27
E) 43

Question 35

Although aluminum is one of the most abundant elements on Earth, in 2010, just six countries produced about ________ percent of the world's total aluminum ore (bauxite).

A) 50
B) 67
C) 80
D) 99.5
E) 94

Question 36

China and India together are about ________ percent of world population, but they have less than ________ percent of the world's renewable fresh water.

A) 75; 21
B) 37; 29
C) 37; 9
D) 25; 4
E) 50; 9

Question 37

A(n) ________ is a group of producers that agree to control a particular market by limiting production and/or setting prices.

A) junta
B) cartel
C) production association
D) trade group
E) cabal

Question 38

Since the 1960s, as a result of automobile modifications (as well as other factors), carbon monoxide emissions in the U.S. have declined by more than three-fourths and ________ emissions by more than 95 percent.

A) nitrogen oxide and hydrocarbon
B) nitrogen hydroxide and oxygen
C) nitrogen and oxygenated
D) sulfur dioxide and bicarbonate
E) hydrocarbon and sulfur dioxide

Question 39

In the United States, about 483 billion cubic meters of freshwater, or about ________ percent of the renewable supply, are withdrawn from the ground or from rivers and lakes per year.

A) 16
B) 33
C) 50
D) 67
E) 25

Question 40

According to the United Nations, ________ is "development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs."

A) sustainable development
B) conservation
C) preservation
D) sustainable management
E) conservation development

Question 41

The concentration of mineral resources and production in a few countries favors the establishment of cartels.

Question 42

Water resources are nearly uniform across the Earth's surface.

Question 43

Globally, Chile and Australia each produce about one-third of global lithium output, and China and Argentina are also major producers.

Question 44

The problem with conservation technologies is that they are not diverse and are not readily available.

Question 45

For information transmission, such as in computer networks, using electrons in a copper wire is more efficient than using light in a fiber-optic cable.

Question 46

Globally, gas production has provided fuel for much of the growth in electricity production that has occurred in the last 30 years.

Question 47

In the United States, wetlands, formerly called swamps, used to be seen in negative terms as places with no positive values.

Question 48

Government regulators are often forbidden from taking market principles into account when deciding how to manage resources.

Question 49

Canada is the world's chief producer of rare earth minerals, which are used for a wide variety of purposes including chemical processes and electronics applications.

Question 50

Today, three fossil fuels provide more than 85 percent of the world's energy and more than 90 percent in relatively developed countries.

Question 51

Generally, mineral deposits are uniformly distributed around the world.

Question 52

In 1981, world oil prices rose to more than $265 per barrel, the equivalent of about $590 in 2012 dollars.

Question 53

In the United States, about two-thirds of the water we use is returned to rivers and lakes in liquid (although not pristine) form, while the remaining one-third is evaporated, mostly from irrigated fields.

Question 54

Coal, a fossil fuel created by the remains of plants that grew millions of years ago, served as a substitute for fuel wood during the sixteenth century.

Question 55

Oil became a major resource with the diffusion of motor vehicles early in the 1800s.

Question 56

As a result of inefficient technology, wealthy and industrialized countries typically consume smaller amounts of energy, while poorer countries usually consume much larger quantities.

Question 57

The greatest nuclear catastrophe to date occurred in 1976, in a nuclear power plant at Verkoyansk, in central Siberia, Russia (which was, at that time, part of the Soviet Union).

Question 58

A swamp (wetland) is a good example of how shifting cultural values can reinvision an "unused feature" as a resource.

Question 59

The most recent nuclear power plant disaster occurred in 2011 in Chernobyl, Ukraine, near the border with Belarus.

Question 60

World coal reserves are more abundant than oil or natural gas.

Question 61

Briefly discuss trends in natural gas and coal usage around the world.

Question 62

Since the 1980s, the Brazilian Amazon has been cleared at rates of slightly less than 12 percent per year, an area roughly twice the size of the state of Texas.

Question 63

What are some of the obstacles to the wider use of nuclear energy?

Question 64

What is the global distribution and demand for lithium?

Question 65

Since the year 2000, developing countries have managed to prevent all of their untreated sewage from going directly into rivers that also supply drinking water.

Question 66

Differentiate between point and nonpoint sources of water pollution.

Question 67

Much more original forest remains in the U.S. than in Canada, especially in the north and west.

Question 68

Preservation is the use and management of natural resources such as wildlife, water, air, and mineral resources to meet human needs, including food, medicine, and recreation.

Question 69

Water pollution results when more waste is added than the receiving water can accommodate.

Question 70

Roughly one-third of Earth's land surface, excluding Antarctica, is covered with forest and woodland.

Question 71

Water pollution is said to originate from point and non-point sources.

Question 72

To reduce auto emissions in the United States, modifications to automobile engines have been required since the 1960s.

Question 73

What are the main components of urban air pollution?

Question 74

Briefly discuss the problem of wastewater.

Question 75

Explain the concepts of preservation and conservation.

Question 76

Briefly discuss the global distribution and consumption of energy.

Question 77

What factors define a society's natural resources?

Question 78

Carbon dioxide is caused by the incomplete combustion of fossil fuels, while carbon monoxide is caused by complete combustion.

Question 79

Conservation is the maintenance of resources in their present condition, with as little human impact as possible.

Question 80

What are some of the renewable energy sources used today?