Exam Practice Questions For Exam II

A. Populations

1. Basic Definitions: demographics, population dynamics, demographic processes, J curve, S curve, carrying capacity, net reproductive rate, biotic potential, environmental resistance, density dependence, density independence.

2. What are the demographic process that influence population growth in any population?

3. Give examples of density dependent and density independent factors that can influence population growth.

4. Do populations always grow smoothly toward K and level off? What else might happen and why?

B. Human Populations

1. Basic Definitions: crude death rate, crude birth rate, total fertility rate (TFR), replacement fertility, ZPG, infant mortality, demographic transition, population momentum, demographic trap, population age structure, population age structure diagram, cultural carrying capacity.

2. What is the current world annual population growth rate?

3. What percentage of the world's population live in China and India combined?

4. What are the principle economic and social factors that affect birth and fertility rates?

5. What demographic statistic is a good overall measure of the health in an area and why?

6. How can you use a population age structure diagram to predict future population growth?

7. What happens to death and birth rates as countries develop from pre to post industrial societies and why?

8. What are the principle social and economic factors that influence death rates?

9. Is there anything unusual about the infant mortality rate in the U.S? What? Why?

10. How do the world's peoples live, i.e.; how many are starving? how many have sufficient fuel for heating? what proportion of the world's population has indoor toilets?


C. Urbanization and Land Use

1. Basic Definitions:, urban heat island, land use planning, ecological land use planning, urban dust domes, urban sprawl

2. What is the general picture of the impact cities on local climate? How are wind speed, rainfall levels, temperature, and fogginess affected and why?

3. How do cities affect surface water runoff and what are the consequences of these effects for streams and rivers that pass through urbanized areas?

4. How do cities affect the groundwater beneath them?

5. What are the impacts of urban water consumption on surrounding areas? How do city residents consume water?

6. How does urbanization affect the land? What happens to land prices? What happens to wetlands? What happens when land is paved?

7. Are there energy, education, and health care benefits for city dwellers? What are they? Are there any possible environmental benefits from urbanization?

8. How are the numbers of people that live in cities worldwide changing and why?

9. What have the major trends been in urban migrations within the United States?

10. What were the recommendations of the Brundtland Commision and how did they seek to maximize the benefits of urbanization while minimizing the harmful effects?

D. Hazards, Risks, and Toxicology

1. Basic Definitions: hazard, risk, risk assessment, risk management, risk space, "dreadfulness axis", "observability axis", cultural hazards, chemical hazards, physical hazards, biological hazards, bioaccumulation, biomagnification, LD50 dose-response curve

2. How well do people generally do at ranking the relative destructiveness of well known hazards?

3. How well do people generally do at ranking relative risk? What causes people to over or underestimate risks?

4. Explain the social consequences that can result from a skewed perception of risk.

5. How does the concept of "availability" explain skewed risk perception?

6. What kind of evidence is the worst at allowing us to make judgements about environmental risks and hazards?

7. What are some problems of epidemiological evidence?

8. What are some problems of laboratory toxicology studies?


E. Economics and Policy Aspects of Pollution Prevention and Control:

1. Basic Definitions: Full cost pricing, tradable emissions rights, pollution bonds, optimal pollution level, green taxes and user fees, carrot and stick approach.

2. What is the chief regulatory instrument for control of water pollution in the U. S.?

3. What are some problems with regulatory solutions to water pollution?

4. What is the general idea behind all economic/market based approaches to pollution control?

5. What are some advantages and disadvantages to the use of subsidies, tradable pollution rights, green taxes and user fees, pollution bonds?

6. Who are the groups that object to user fees? Who support them?

F. Water Pollution and Resources:

1. Basic Definitions: point sources, non-point sources, coliform bacteria, O. D., genetic pollution, eutrophication, cultural eutrophication, oxygen sag curve, confined aquifers, unconfined aquifers, primary sewage treatment, secondary sewage treatment, tertiary (advanced) sewage treatment.

2. Why are lakes and ponds more vulnerable to water pollution than rivers and streams?

3. Why is groundwater extremely vulnerable to water pollution?

4. What are some sources of O.D. (oxygen demand) in freshwater?

5. Why is pollution cleanup a poor solution for control of water pollution?

6. What are some pollution control tactics (technological solutions) for rivers and streams?