Biology 381 Pollution Biology Department of Biological Sciences University of Alberta Edmonton, Alberta

General Comments.

The first mid-term is normally divided into six parts. One part is true/false, one part is fill in the blank, one part is one word/one sentence answers, and the last three parts are short answer. You are normally required to answer all the true/false, fill in the blank, and one word/one sentence questions, and a total of 3 out of 4 short answer questions.

The number of questions in each category varies from year to year. A typical exam will have 10 true or false questions, 7 multiple chioce, 10 one word /one sentence questions, and 3 essays.  Multiple choice questions often have more than one correct answer.  For essay questions, you will normally have to answer two quesions and choose one out of two for the third question.  You have 80 minutes to finish the exam.

You are invited to submit questions for potential use in upcoming exams.  Potential exam questions must be submitted 1 week in advance of the exam to allow for printing. 

True or False.

1) Because of their understanding of nature, scientists are uniquely qualified to make important decisions concerning man's activities which affect environmental quality.
[     ]  True, or [     ] False.

2) The science of modeling population growth has matured dramatically in recent years. Quantitative information about major processes affecting population growth is now at hand. Thus, it is now possible to forecast world population with high confidence as far as 50 years into the future.
[     ]  True, or [     ] False.

3) Volatile organic compounds are a group of hydrocarbons that are named after their volatility. While the VOC's are known to play a role in the secondary reactions in the atmosphere that give rise to tropospheric ozone, few of these compounds have any direct toxic impact on plants or animals.
[     ]  True, or [     ] False.

4) Even in the absence of acid precipitation, soils can become acidified when plant roots take in ammonium ions (NH₄⁺). This is true because plants excrete H⁺ in order to maintain charge balance during ion acquisition.
[     ]  True, or [     ] False.

5) Acid precipitation promotes leaching of mineral cations from the soil profile, hence, acid soils are frequently nutrient deficient.
[     ]  True, or [     ] False.

1) Destruction of forest cover as a result of mining and smelting activity in the Sudbury region would be expected to ...

[     ] increase the incidence of drought injury in local plant populations.
[     ] eliminate diurnal fluctuations in soil temperature.
[     ] increase rates of heavy metal deposition.
[     ] promote metal detoxification in the soil horizon.
[     ] increase the concentrations of calcium and phosphate in the upper horizons of the soil profile.

2) World agricultural productivity has been increasing over the past several decades, a phenomenon which has been aptly labeled the green revolution. Increases in agricultural productivity have reflected…

[     ] success in controlling the spread of pesticide-resistant pests and pathogens.
[     ] economic reform in former soviet block countries.
[     ] increased use of land for agriculture.
[     ] major improvements in air quality in developing countries such as India.
[     ] development of high yielding crop cultivars.

3) Which of the following have been suggested as direct phytotoxic effects of acid precipitation?

[     ] damage to the leaf cuticle.
[     ] alteration of patterns of nitrogen assimilation.
[     ] increased susceptibility to drought.
[     ] accelerated loading of mineral elements into leaves.

4) Place a check in the appropriate box or boxes to indicate which of the following are secondary products of fossil fuel combustion.

[     ] sulfuric acid.
[     ] peroxyacetyl chlorosulfurons.
[     ] nitrogen tetrahydroxide.
[     ] ozone.
[     ] carbon dioxide.
[     ] particulates.

1) What environmental issue did Garret Hardin feel had "no technical solution", and motivated him to write the "tragedy of the commons"?

2) The rates of oxidation of SO₂ and NO_x in the troposphere are not constant with time. What factor strongly affects the rate of catalytic oxidation?

3) What mineral, which is abundant in many sedimentary soils, is particularly effective in buffering against pH changes induced by acid precipitation?

4) Acid precipitation and subsequent soil acidification can potentially lead to increased solubility of a variety of metals in the soil solution. These metals are potentially toxic to plant roots. Which common metal is the major focus of concern in this context?

5) The term photochemical smog is used to describe pollution episodes that are characterized by a broad range of constituents, including both the primary and secondary products of combustion. However, the term smog was first used to describe….

1) Identify and describe three reasons why you would consider it important to conduct long-term environmental research or ecological monitoring to supplement short-term environmental research under controlled conditions in the field or laboratory. Include examples to support your reasons.

2) Define acid precipitation and discuss the salient features of your definition. Do you believe your definition is an adequate definition of this environmental issue? Why or why not.