Deck 1: Natural Disasters and the Human Population

Question 1

During the last half of the 20^th century,earthquakes,tsunami,and ______________ account for the majority of deaths from natural disasters.

A)volcanic eruptions
B)floods
C)landslides
D)hurricanes
E)tornadoes

Answer 1

D

Question 2

At present,the world population of humans is growing at a rate of ________% per year.

A)0.02
B)0.12
C)1.2
D)12
E)22

Answer 2

C

Question 3

At present,after subtracting deaths from births,world population increases 1.3 percent per year for a doubling time of ________________.

A)58 years
B)14 years
C)140 years
D)70 years
E)280 years

Answer 3

A

Question 4

The rapid increase in human population during the past several centuries is an example of ________________ growth.

A)linear
B)algebraic
C)parabolic
D)logarithmic
E)exponential

Question 5

The growth rate of the world population equals ______________.

A)the birth rate plus the death rate
B)the birth rate minus the death rate
C)the death rate minus the birth rate
D)None of these are correct.

Question 6

Which of the following disasters has the highest probability of causing a "10-fatality event" each year?

A)an earthquake
B)a volcanic eruption
C)a hurricane
D)a tornado
E)a flood

Question 7

Based on data for the period from 1970 to 2012,the continent of _______________ experienced the greatest loss of life from natural disasters.

A)North America
B)South America
C)Europe
D)Asia
E)Africa

Question 8

In the last 50 years of the 20^th century,world population grew from ______ billion to over 6 billion.

A)5
B)4
C)3.5
D)3
E)2.5

Question 9

Most of the more-developed countries have _________________.

A)low death rates and low birth rates
B)low death rates and high birth rates
C)high death rates and low birth rates
D)high death rates and high birth rates

Question 10

Which of the following disasters has the highest probability of causing a "1,000-fatality event" each year?

A)an earthquake
B)a volcanic eruption
C)a flood
D)a tornado
E)a hurricane

Question 11

Based on insurance industry records of economic loss from natural disasters,32 of the 40 most expensive disasters between 1970 and 2012 were __________________ and floods.

A)storms
B)volcanic eruptions
C)earthquakes
D)landslides
E)fires

Question 12

Using the rule of 70,a population growth rate of 2% annually will result in doubling a population in __________ years.

A)70
B)35
C)10
D)7
E)2

Question 13

The growth of human population worldwide over the past 1000 years has been _______________.

A)essentially zero
B)exponential,with a constant growth rate
C)exponential,with a generally increasing growth rate
D)on a straight linear increase with time
E)logarithmic

Question 14

The greatest insurance dollar losses as a result of natural disasters in the last three decades of the 20^th century occurred in ________________.

A)Mexico
B)China
C)the United States
D)Pakistan
E)India

Question 15

The present human population of the world is a little more than ____________.

A)500 million
B)6 billion
C)60 billion
D)100 billion
E)one trillion

Question 16

The return period of a disaster is the average number of years ________________.

A)before survivors return to their homes
B)before the economy returns to pre-disaster levels
C)to exponentially decay to zero
D)between same-sized events
E)between events of the same type,regardless of size

Question 17

In the last two or three centuries ___________________.

A)birth rates have changed little,while death rates have plunged
B)both birth rates and death rates have plunged
C)both birth rates and death rates have skyrocketed
D)birth rates have skyrocketed,while death rates have plunged
E)birth rates and death rates remained flat

Question 18

The _________ century saw many of the intellectual advances that set the stage for the present phase of cultural change,with the causes of many diseases being recognized,and the principles of public health being established.

A)eighteenth
B)sixteenth
C)fifteenth
D)seventeenth
E)fourteenth

Question 19

Using the rule of 70,money invested at 7% annual interest will double in __________ years.

A)70
B)35
C)10
D)7
E)2

Question 20

At present,the world population of humans grows by over ______ million per year.

A)0.08
B)0.8
C)8
D)80
E)800

Question 21

The likelihood,over 20 years,of a hurricane that kills 1000 people is greater than that of an earthquake that kills 1000 people.

Question 22

Before the time of initial settlement by Polynesians,Easter Island had all but which of the following?

A)high temperatures and humidity
B)no permanent streams
C)poorly drained and marginal soils
D)about 30 native plant species
E)several species of native terrestrial mammals

Question 23

In general,there is an inverse correlation between the frequency and the magnitude of a disaster process.

Question 24

Today,the world growth rate for human population is rapidly declining.

Question 25

The locations of the worst dollar-loss disasters for the insurance industry present a very different picture than the list of worst locations for fatalities in the last three decades of the twentieth century.

Question 26

Most of the 40 deadliest disasters between 1970 and 2012 occurred in a belt running from China and Bangladesh through India and Iran to Turkey.This area was particularly vulnerable because __________________.

A)it has a high population density
B)most of the world's earthquakes and volcanic eruptions occur here
C)precipitation rates are very high in this region,producing frequent,large,and sudden floods
D)lightening producing thunderstorms are more common in these regions
E)fires are more common in these regions

Question 27

In the period between 1970 and 2005,26 of the 40 worst disasters occurred in a belt running from Bangladesh through India and Iran to Turkey.

Question 28

About 1550C.E. ,the human population of Easter Island was about 7,000;when the first European contact came from the crew of a Dutch ship on Easter Sunday,5 April 1722,the population of Easter Island __________________.

A)was about the same as it was in 1550
B)had dropped to zero
C)had ballooned to nearly 50,000
D)had dropped to about 2000

Question 29

The famous statues on Easter Island were carved out of _______________.

A)volcanic rock
B)limestone
C)coral
D)marble
E)Some of all of these are correct.

Question 30

In general,the larger and more energetic the disaster event,the shorter the return period between such events.

Question 31

The population of Easter Island was limited by all but which of the following?

A)war between rival clans
B)environmental degradation from the use of resources required to move statues
C)cannibalism
D)lack of trees to build canoes to catch more fish
E)the Ebola virus

Question 32

Today,the less-developed countries have ____________.

A)low death rates and high birth rates
B)low death rates and low birth rates
C)high death rates and low birth rates
D)high death rates and high birth rates

Question 33

During prosperous times,the Easter Islanders' diet was based on _______________.

A)chickens and yams
B)potatoes
C)fish and turtles
D)nuts,figs,and Easter eggs
E)nuts,fish,and bananas

Question 34

Asia dominates the list of the 40 worst killing disasters of the last three decades of the 20^th century,with almost 86 percent of the fatalities occurring in these regions.

Question 35

In 2005,over 98,000 people lost their lives to natural disasters.

Question 36

Easter Island is _________________.

A)located in the eastern Mediterranean Sea near Israel and Palestine
B)a volcanic island that is one of many in a chain of islands
C)an isolated volcanic island located in the Atlantic Ocean
D)an isolated volcanic island located in the Pacific Ocean
E)part of the Hawaiian Islands

Question 37

Of the 40 worst disasters between 1970 and 2012,the most frequent mega-killers were earthquakes.

Question 38

The annual likelihood of a tornado that kills 10 people is less than that of an earthquake killing the same number of people.

Question 39

After initial settlement about 1500 years ago,the population of Easter Island _____________.

A)grew steadily from initial settlement until the Dutch arrived in 1722
B)had all died by the time the Dutch visited the Island in 1722
C)reached a peak and then declined before the Dutch arrived in 1722
D)all died from a smallpox epidemic brought by the Dutch in 1722
E)grew steadily from initial settlement until the Dutch arrived in 1722and all died from a smallpox epidemic brought by the Dutch in 1722 are correct

Question 40

If a particular disaster has a high frequency of occurrence,then it also has a large return period (recurrence interval).

Question 41

Using the rule of 70,a population growth rate of 2% annually will result in doubling a population in 35 years.

Question 42

World population growth presently varies greatly from one region to another.

Question 43

The locations of the worst dollar-loss disasters for the insurance industry present a very different picture than the list of worst locations for fatalities in the last three decades of the twentieth century.

Question 44

A very slow exponential growth rate of population can continue indefinitely on an Earth of finite size and resources.

Question 45

The famous statues on Easter Island were carved out of volcanic rock using seashells as tools.

Question 46

Beginning in the eighteenth century,discoveries in science,medicine,and public health caused death rates to drop dramatically.

Question 47

The rate of world population growth has increased from 1.8 percent in 1990 to 4.4 percent in 2000.

Question 48

In 2005,over 98,000 people lost their lives to natural disasters.

Question 49

The Easter Island statues were more than 200 feet high,weighed about 1500 tons apiece,and were erected upon ceremonial platforms.

Question 50

By the year 2000B.C.E. ,the world's total population was over 6 billion.

Question 51

When carrying capacity decreases,populations collapse in mass die-offs.

Question 52

Before the time of settlement by Polynesians,Easter Island had several terrestrial mammals.

Question 53

Disasters occur where the Earth unleashes its concentrated energy.

Question 54

If a 1.2 percent annual rate of human population increase were to continue without change into the future,the volume of human flesh would about equal the volume of the Earth in less than 2,000 years from now.

Question 55

The age distribution of a population (relative proportions of people of different ages)is not important when considering the growth rate of that population.

Question 56

In the last 50 years of the 20^th century,the world population of humans grew from 2.5 billion to over 6 billion.

Question 57

If 6 billion people stood shoulder-to-shoulder with each person having his or her own 3-ft by 1-ft space,the entire world population would fit inside a square fence about 42 kilometers (26 miles)on a side.

Question 58

The difference between a world population in the year 2150 of 3.6 billion or 27 billion rests on a difference of only 1 child per woman.

Question 59

At present,the world population is growing at about 1.2 percent per year for a doubling time of 58 years.