Unit 1 Quiz Study Guide –Concepts

  • Tragedy of the Commons (textbook pages 262-264)
  • What is environmental science and how is it different from environmentalism?
  • Environmental Indicators (know the 5 main ones)
  • Growth Trends: Linear growth vs. exponential growth
  • Rule of 70
  • What is the scientific method and why do we use it?
  • What’s the difference between accuracy and precision?
  • Ecological Footprint – what is it?
  • Howcan environmental scientists determine if a country is “living sustainably”? (Use the termsbiocapacity& ecological footprint in your answer)
  • Perpetual vs. renewable vs. nonrenewable vs. potentially renewable resources
  • What’s the difference between GDP and per capita GDP?
  • Developed vs. less-developed countries – what trends/patterns do we see?
  • What’s an “ecological tipping point”?
  • Distinguish between an open system and a closed system. Compare the flow of matter and the flow of energy through the biosphere.
  • What is the difference between low and high quality matter? Give examples
  • Energy doesn't recycle, but does matter?
  • How does energy efficiency relate to the 2ndlaw of thermodynamics?
  • What is system analysis?Why does the scale of the system matter? Why are system boundaries important?
  • What’s a synergistic interaction?
  • Explain the differences and similarities between positive and negative feedback loops. Give an environmental example of each.
  • Know all the biogeochemical cycles – use the additional review resources to study them! (at least one third of the quiz will be on biogeochemical cycles)

Vocabulary List

resource(s)

“commons”

consumption
overexploited

environmental Indicators

hypothesis

null hypothesis

accuracy

precision

uncertainty

theory

natural law

control group

independent variable

dependent variable

Controlled variables (constants)

sample size/replication

Ecosystem/environment/ecology

Rule of 70

biodiversity (Genetic, Species, Ecological)

per capita

anthropogenic
sustainability

ecological footprint

global hectare

biologically productive land and water

biological capacity (biocapacity)

hectare

nutrient (chemical) cycling

Kinetic Energy

Potential Energy

1stlaw of thermodynamics

2ndlaw of thermodynamics

Open system v closed system

Inputs & outputs

Positive Feedback Loop

Negative Feedback Loop