Quiz: Engineer It • Maintaining Biodiversity

Which of these support the statement that we must protect diversity because it affects the amount of resources we can use sustainably?

• Diversity decreases ecosystem productivity because different species use resources in different ways.

• A greater number of only a few species increases ecosystem resiliency and an ecosystem's ability to resist disturbance.

• A variety of many different species increases ecosystem health by concentrating human-made toxins and poisons in water.

• Diversity maintains ecosystem health by recycling and storing nutrients, maintaining water quality, and stabilizing climate vaccinated to prevent rabies

Scientists have been studying the growth of a city and the changes that impact its natural resources, which humans depend on. Specifically, they have collected data that show that human changes to an ecosystem can decrease the capacity of the environment to support certain life forms. What kind of data could the scientists use to support this finding and convince politicians to design solutions for protecting their city's resources?

• data that show how fish populations increased as dissolved oxygen in streams decreased

• data that show how forest size and diversity increased as the pH level of precipitation decreased

• data that show how trees became more afflicted by disease as levels of acid precipitation increased

• data that show how the population of humans in the city increased as industrial emissions in the atmosphere increased

A politician is trying to remove a dam on a local river. Some people oppose the removal, saying the dam removal will cost too much money. What is one argument the politician could use to get people to support the project in spite of its costs?

• Removing the dam will help form a new reservoir.

• Removing the dam will force the river to follow a controlled path.

• Removing the dam will help the water in the river flow at a more constant rate.

• Removing the dam will allow fish to reach their natural breeding grounds upstream of the dam site.

Based on the table, which ecosystem is most likely to recover from a disturbance?

• Ecosystem 1

• Ecosystem 2

• Ecosystem 3

• Ecosystem 4

When designing technology to solve environmental problems, environmental engineers must consider factors that limit the design. What are these factors called?

• trade-offs

• constraints

• prototypes

• methodical thinking

According to the map, where would conservation groups want to concentrate their efforts by talking to boaters during the winter?

• Georgia and Florida

• Alabama and Florida

• Georgia and Alabama

• South Carolina and Florida

Which of these describes an example of a keystone species that scientists should make efforts to protect?

• more than 1,000 newly hatched wood frog eggs in a forest ecosystem

• a gopher tortoise that provides a home to more than 300 different species of animals in its burrow

• a nonnative population of lionfish living on a coral reef in Florida that have no natural predators

• a population of mistletoe plants that are parasitic because they depend on other trees and plants in the ecosystem in order to get what they need to survive

One benefit of using a computer simulation to study how pollution affects organisms in an ocean ecosystem is that it:

• allows scientists to test scenarios without harming real organisms

• always gives perfectly accurate results

• removes all pollution from the ocean

• is the only way to study ocean ecosystems

One limitation of using a computer simulation to study how pollution affects organisms in an ocean ecosystem is that:

• it may not accurately represent all real-world variables.

• it always provides exact results.

• it eliminates the need for real-world data.

• it can only be used for land ecosystems.

Ecologists might gather evidence to support the theory that periodic fires benefit a forest ecosystem and should be allowed to burn by:

• Observing increased biodiversity after fires

• Preventing all fires and monitoring tree growth

• Introducing non-native species to the forest

• Measuring air pollution levels far from the forest