Deck 7: Human Population Change and the Environment

Question 1

Carrying capacity is the largest population a particular environment can support sustainably without environmental degradation.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

Which of the following is a life history characteristic that determines a species biotic potential?

A)Niche width
B)Carrying capacity
C)Disease and predation
D)Age at which reproduction begins

Answer 2

Age at which reproduction begins

Question 3

Which of the following is a factor that limits population growth?

A)Biotic potential.
B)Doubling time.
C)Natural increase.
D)Environmental resistance.

Answer 3

Environmental resistance.

Question 4

The graph below is a record of human population growth over time. What can be interpreted from this graph?

A)Human population is being regulated by environmental resistance factor like disease.
B)Human populations are currently growing exponentially.
C)Humans are the largest population on the planet.
D)Human populations are growing globally during to migration.

Question 5

The accelerating population growth that occurs when optimal conditions allow a constant reproductive rate is known as ________.

Question 6

What can you conclude about the bacterial population shown in the graph?

A)Carrying capacity has been reached.
B)The population is growing at its biotic potential.
C)The population is growing linearly.
D)Reproductive rate exceeds the ability of the environment to sustain it.

Question 7

Immigration is when individuals leave a population and the population decreases in size.

Question 8

What does the growth rate depend upon?

A)Birthrate
B)Death rate
C)Immigration
D)All of these choices

Question 9

What term or phrase do population ecologists use to describe the maximum number of individuals of a given species that a particular environment can support for an indefinite period, assuming there are no changes in the environment?

A)Environmental resistance
B)Intrinsic rate of increase
C)Carrying capacity
D)Sustainability

Question 10

A dieback or population crash often occurs after a species ________ its environmental carrying capacity.

A)meets
B)undershoots
C)overshoots
D)oscillates around

Question 11

The graph below is a record of the population size of reindeer on one of the Pribilof Islands off the coast of Alaska where they were introduced in 1911. If it is known that the availability of winter forage determines the carrying capacity for reindeer, what can be interpreted from this graph?

A)The population crashed due to overgrazing by the reindeer.
B)An environmental resistance factor like disease caused the population to decline somewhat.
C)Some reindeer were lost to predation by wolves
D)Some reindeer emigrated to another island.

Question 12

What do population ecologists study?

A)How animal communities form and interact
B)How groups of animals of the same species respond to their environment
C)The impact of humans on the environment
D)How ecosystems fit into the landscape

Question 13

What term BEST describes the movement of individuals out of a population?

A)Natural increase.
B)Emigration.
C)Immigration.
D)Zero population growth.

Question 14

What does the graph below indicate?

A)The paramecium are dispersing to other habitats
B)The environmental resistance is declining
C)The population is approaching carrying capacity
D)The population has reached its biotic potential.

Question 15

In order for the growth rate to remain constant what must happen to the birth rate?

A)It must equal zero
B)It must decline
C)It needs to be less than emigration
D)It must equal the death rate

Question 16

Who was the first scientist to sound the alarm about the growth of the human population and the ability of the earth to handle a large population of humans?

A)Charles Darwin
B)Paul Ehrlich
C)Thomas Malthus
D)Rachel Carson

Question 17

Which of the following statements about population ecology is TRUE?

A)Population ecology only deals with declining populations that are in need of intervention in order to survive.
B)Population ecology focuses on individuals and their interactions, but not the abiotic environment.
C)Population ecology attempts to explain how and why the number of individuals in a given area changes over time.
D)Population ecology is not important to scientists in applied disciplines, such as wildlife management.

Question 18

The rate of change of a population's size expressed in percentage per year is known as the ___________.

Question 19

Which of the following is an example of environmental resistance?

A)Unlimited resources
B)Predation
C)Ideal conditions
D)High growth rate

Question 20

What is necessary for populations to reach their biotic potential?

A)They must be bacteria
B)Unlimited time
C)Unlimited resources
D)High carrying capacity

Question 21

Which of the following is TRUE about Thomas Malthus? 1 Malthus was the first to point out that human population growth was not always desirable.
2 Malthus warned that the inevitable consequences of population growth would be famine, disease since human population can increase faster than its food supply.
3 Malthus has proven to be incorrect since human populations have increased to over 6 billion people without expanding our niche.

A)1 only
B)2 only
C)3 only
D)1 and 2 are true

Question 22

Which of the following is NOT TRUE of highly developed countries?

A)A list would include Japan, Australia, and Germany.
B)They have high fertility rates.
C)They have very low infant mortality rates.
D)They have longer life expectancies than in less developed countries.

Question 23

The current trends in human population growth suggest: 1. There has been a slight decline in global fertility rates.
2. The growth rate of human populations has increased from 1.2 in the 1960s to 2.2 today despite decreases in the fertility rate.
3. Population experts expect that the human population growth rate will attain zero population growth by the end of the 21^st century.

A)1 only
B)2 only
C)3 only
D)1 and 3

Question 24

Which of the following has/have contributed to the increase in global human population numbers over the last 200 years?

A)Greater food production.
B)Better medical care.
C)Improvements in water quality and sanitation practices
D)All of these choices

Question 25

What do demographers study?

A)The earth's carrying capacity.
B)Population changes and characteristics.
C)Energy resources.
D)Food production.

Question 26

World population is increasing due to an increase in the world birth rate.

Question 27

Which of the following statements about human population growth and the Earth's carrying capacity for humans is TRUE?

A)The Earth's carrying capacity for humans is hard to estimate and depends on assumptions made about standard of living, resource consumption, technological innovations, and waste generation.
B)Most published estimates suggest that the Earth's carrying for humans are unlimited thus human populations can grow indefinitely.
C)Environmental constraints determine the Earth's carrying capacity for humans. Human choices and values need not be factored into the assessment.
D)The higher the standard of living, the more people the Earth can support as people with a high standard of living have more money to spend on green technology that reduces environmental impact.

Question 28

What change in human population growth is predicted by the United Nation's population models?

A)Population will double by 2100.
B)Population will begin to level off by 2100.
C)Population will continue to grow exponentially.
D)Population will level off by 2525.

Question 29

What can be concluded from the population figure below:

A)India and China being the world's two most populated nations appear as global giants.
B)Russia has a very low population density.
C)China's and India's combined populations are larger than the next eight countries combined.
D)All of these choices can be concluded from the figure.

Question 30

The main unknown factor in any human population growth scenario is:

A)emigration rate.
B)death rate.
C)the Earth's carrying capacity.
D)changes in fertility rate as a result condom use.

Question 31

What is the cause of global human population growth over the last 200 years?

A)Higher birth rate
B)Higher fecundity rate
C)Increase in immigration.
D)Lower death rate

Question 32

__________ is the applied branch of sociology that deals with population statistics.

Question 33

What is likely to happen to the population represented by the age structure pyramid labeled C?

A)It will have a very large population of young people soon.
B)It should remain stable in the coming years.
C)It will begin to decline soon.
D)It should grow substantially in the future.

Question 34

What happens to human population during a demographic transition?

A)Population switches from high birth and death rates to low birth and death rates.
B)Population switches from high to low birth rates and low to high death rates.
C)Population switches from low to high birth rates and high to low death rates.
D)Population changes from a majority of young people to a majority of elderly people.

Question 35

The population represented by the age structure pyramid labeled A will: A B C

A)have a large population of old people soon.
B)not grow much in the coming years.
C)soon begin to decline
D)grow substantially in the future.

Question 36

Which of the following factors has the LEAST effect on the death rates of a population?

A)Availability of health care
B)Provision of adequate sanitation systems
C)Age structure of the population
D)Availability of good nutrition

Question 37

If and when the human population reaches zero population growth, which of the following will be TRUE?

A)births + deaths = 0
B)deaths - emigration = 0
C)births + immigration = 0
D)growth rate = 0

Question 38

What country is representative of the age structure pyramid labeled B? A B C

A)United States.
B)Mexico.
C)Uganda.
D)India.

Question 39

The United Nations periodically publishes population projections for the 21^st century. In their most current projection (shown in the graph below), their estimates range from a high estimate ( 10.2 billion in 2050)to a low estimate (9.3 billion in 2050). What is the reason for this range of population numbers?

A)The estimates project what we hope will happen (low estimate)versus what we expect will happen (high estimate).
B)The estimates vary depending on fertility changes, particularly in less developed countries, because that is where almost all of the growth will take place.
C)The estimates are based on how epidemics such as AIDS, SARS, and swine flu progresses affecting future death rates.
D)The estimates vary depending on the population model used.

Question 40

What conclusions can be drawn about the populations shown in the age structure pyramids below?

A)The populations are likely to increase in size in the near future.
B)The elderly people are dying more quickly than in the past.
C)Fertility rates in these countries are high.
D)The populations are in either slow or zero growth and thus quite stable.

Question 41

Which of the following statements about the graph shown is TRUE?

A)Only Nigeria's population growth rate is increasing.
B)China's and Brazil's fertility rate is below replacement level fertility.
C)Only Egypt's fertility rate is above replacement level fertility.
D)Mexico and Brazil are both below replacement level fertility.

Question 42

Replacement level fertility is __________ children?

A)1.7
B)2.1
C)2.6
D)3.5

Question 43

Total fertility rate is the number of children a couple must produce to replace themselves.

Question 44

Why are high fertility rates generally prevalent in developing countries?

A)Children contribute to the family's livelihood.
B)Children must care for aging parents.
C)Male children are culturally more desirable, so families continue to have children until male children are born.
D)All of the choices

Question 45

Population growth momentum can be either positive or negative.

Question 46

What is probably the single most important factor affecting high total fertility rate in human populations?

A)Limited access to family planning services.
B)The low status of women in many societies.
C)The economic status of large families.
D)Cultural traditions.

Question 47

Which of the following factors affects the total fertility rate for human populations today?

A)Availability of family planning services
B)Cultural and religious traditions
C)Governmental policies
D)All of these choices

Question 48

The total fertility rate is the number of children born:

A)to the average woman per year.
B)to the average woman during her lifetime.
C)in the world during a single year.
D)in a population during a single year.

Question 49

The worldwide total fertility rate is currently:

A)1.7
B)2.1
C)2.5
D)3.5

Question 50

The applied branch of sociology that deals with population statistics is:

A)Demography
B)Population ecology
C)Demographic transition
D)Population cartogram

Question 51

What are the 3 most populated countries?

A)China, India, Russia
B)China, India, United States
C)China, Bangladesh, India
D)Pakistan, Indonesia, Japan

Question 52

What happens during the pre-industrial stage of the demographic transition?

A)Birth and death rates are high.
B)The death rate is low.
C)Only very light industrialization.
D)The birth rate is low.

Question 53

The potential for future increases or decreases in a population based on the present age structure is called:

A)intrinsic rate of increase
B)population density
C)population growth momentum
D)total fertility rate

Question 54

How do demographers typically measure mortality (death)rate?

A)deaths per 1000 persons per year.
B)deaths per person per year.
C)the number of children who die per year.
D)the total number of deaths per generation.

Question 55

Why does the death rate usually decline quickly during a demographic transition?

A)improved health care and modern medicines.
B)increased education of women.
C)increased contraceptive use.
D)increased economic productivity.

Question 56

Which factors eventually cause birth rates to decline during a demographic transition?

A)Birth rates decline due to improved health care and modern medicines.
B)Birth rates decline due to increased education of women
C)Birth rates decline due to increased contraceptive use.
D)All of these choices ultimately contribute to declining birth rates

Question 57

What is replacement-level fertility?

A)the number of children born to the average woman per year.
B)the number of children born to the average woman during her lifetime.
C)the number of children a couple must produce to replace themselves.
D)the number of children born in a population during a single year.

Question 58

According to the demographic transition model, an improving economy in a country is generally correlated with which of the following?

A)Increased birth rate and increased population growth rate
B)Increased death rate and decreased population growth rate
C)Decreased birth rate and increased population growth rate
D)Decreased birth rate and decreased population growth rate

Question 59

What happens during the postindustrial stage of a demographic transition?

A)Modest population growth.
B)High death rate.
C)Greater affluence and higher levels of education.
D)High birth rate.

Question 60

During which of the four stages of demographic transition shown below does the population grow the most rapidly?

A)Industrial
B)Preindustrial
C)Postindustrial
D)Transitional

Question 61

What is one way in which urban areas in developing nations differ from urban areas in highly developed nations?

A)Since private automobile ownership rates are lower in developing nations, urban areas there have better air quality than urban areas in highly developed nations where automobile ownership rates are much higher.
B)Urban areas in developing nations are currently growing at a very rapid rate such that the pace of growth has outstripped the limited capacity of cities to provide basic services, whereas in the highly developed nations urban growth that occurred over that last 150 years or so occurred slowly enough to allow important city services such as sewage treatment and housing to keep pace with the influx of people from rural areas.
C)Urban areas in developing nations tend to have more females than males, whereas more males than females live in urban areas in highly developed nations.
D)Brownfield development is a unique phenomenon in the urban areas of developing nations due to the slums and squatter settlements found there, but since there are no slums in the urban areas of highly developed nations, there are also no brownfields.

Question 62

What can be concluded from the graphs below?

A)Countries with the largest potential for future increases in population are in Asia.
B)Countries with the largest aging population are in Oceania.
C)Since lower fertility rates lead to an aging population, it explains why the population of Europe has more elderly than the population of North America.
D)Currently about 8% of the world population is under the age of 15 and about 27% is over the age of 65.

Question 63

Unlike people who live in urban areas, people who live in rural areas:

A)are employed in occupations which involve industrial labor
B)are far more heterogeneous with respect to race
C)are far more heterogeneous with respect to religion
D)are employed in occupations which involve harvesting natural resources

Question 64

What can be interpreted for the following two graphs regarding literacy and fertility rates?

A)In general, there are more illiterate men than women.
B)The total number of children a woman has during her life is affected by her education - the more educated a woman is, the greater the number of children she has.
C)Almost 70% of Bangladeshi women and 50% of Bangladeshi men are able to read and write.
D)Based on the connection between education and fertility rates, one would predict that the fertility rate in Mexico would be lower than the fertility rate in Ethiopia as literacy rates are higher in Mexico.

Question 65

Which of the following statements about urbanization and urban areas is CORRECT?

A)Urbanization refers to the migration of city people to rural areas to enjoy country living.
B)The term urban area describes a geographic location with at least 100,000 individuals.
C)There are far fewer employment opportunities in urban as compared to rural areas.
D)The population of urban areas tends to be younger and more diverse in terms of ethnicity, religion, and socioeconomic status as compared to the surrounding countryside.

Question 66

The young age structure of urban areas can be attributed to:

A)high birth rates in urban areas
B)influx of young people from rural areas
C)high death rates in urban areas
D)the presence of more females than males in urban areas

Question 67

Which of the following statements concerning the problems and challenges of urbanization in the United States is FALSE?

A)Suburban sprawl that surrounds most cities in the United States has encroached into former forest, wetland, desert, or agricultural land destroying or fragmenting wildlife habitat.
B)Most of the large cities in the United States have blocks of brownfields-areas of abandoned, vacant factories, warehouses, and residential sites that may be contaminated from past uses.
C)Due to the well-developed transportation infrastructure, most workers in cities in the United States have to commute only one or two miles from home to work.
D)The high density of automobiles, factories and commercial enterprises in urban areas causes a buildup of airborne emissions and thus the atmosphere in many US cities often contains higher levels of pollutants than are acceptable based on heath standards.

Question 68

What is a microcredit program?

A)A program to lower fertility rates.
B)A low interest credit card program for college students.
C)A small loan program for extremely poor people.
D)An education program designed for poor women in developing countries.

Question 69

Compact development in urban areas benefits the environment in all of the following ways EXCEPT:

A)by reversing the trend towards urbanization.
B)by reducing air pollution.
C)by preserving rural areas.
D)by increasing open space.

Question 70

Increasing educational opportunities especially for women results in a decrease in total fertility because it:

A)decreases the marriage age.
B)delays the age at which women have their first child.
C)decreases access to contraceptives.
D)leads to a greater understanding of traditional and religious beliefs.

Question 71

________ are areas of abandoned, vacant factories, warehouses, and residential sites that could be contaminated from past uses.

Question 72

Many major U.S. cities face similar problems. These include all of the following EXCEPT:

A)traffic congestion
B)suburban sprawl
C)urban renewal forcing the poor out of neighborhoods
D)compact development

Question 73

The process in which people increasingly move from rural areas to densely populated cities is termed:

A)compact development
B)rural redistribution
C)urbanization
D)brownfield reclamation

Question 74

Family planning services affects total fertility rate because where family planning services are available:

A)men and women are able to limit family size
B)safeguards are in place for individual health rights
C)the quality of life for children are improved
D)all of the choices

Question 75

________ programs are small loans given to very poor individuals to help them establish business that can generate income.

Question 76

Which of the following BEST describes an urban brownfield?

A)Vacant house lots that are overgrown with weeds and vegetation.
B)Community gardens established by neighborhood organizations.
C)Meadows that are earmarked for industrial development.
D)Abandoned factories that may be contaminated from past uses.

Question 77

In Sri Lanka, the average age at marriage is 25, and the average number of children born per woman is 2.0. In Bangladesh, the average age at marriage is 17, and the average number of children born per woman is 3.0. Which of the following conclusions is supported by these data?

A)The earlier a woman marries, the more children she is likely to have
B)The more highly educated the woman, the less children she is likely to have
C)The doubling time of the Bangladesh population is 58 years at its current rate of natural increase
D)The earlier a woman marries, the less children she is likely to have

Question 78

Which of the following statements about family planning services are TRUE?

A)Such services are generally more available in developing countries than in developed countries.
B)Such services have resulted in about 70% of married women worldwide using contraceptives.
C)Such services provide information on reproductive physiology and contraceptive methods.
D)Such services force people to limit family size.

Question 79

Urbanization is the process by which people move from cities to rural areas.

Question 80

Cities with more than 10 million inhabitants are known as ________.