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UNIVERSAL COLLEGES OF PARANAQUE, INC

8273 Dr. A Santos Ave., Sucat Road, Parañaque City

PRELIM EXAMINATION
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING
1st SEMESTER 2019-2020

Name: __________________________________ Score:_________

Section: _________________________________ Date: _________

Read and analyze each item. Shade the letter of the correct answer.

1. Which of the following does not represent an aspect of an environmentally sustainable society?
a. protecting biodiversity c. solar power
b. recycling d. soil erosion
2. Which of the following is considered a nonrenewable resource?
a. biological diversity c. fresh air
b. solar energy d. metallic minerals
3. The tragedy of the commons refers to the overuse of
a. common-property or free-access resources.
b. solar capital.
c. governmental regulation.
d. synthetic chemicals.
4. Nonrenewable resources
a. can be exhausted within dozens or hundreds of years.
b. exist in a fixed quantity.
c. are renewable, but only over millions or billions of years.
d. all of the choices.
5. Nonpoint pollution sources
a. are identified more easily and cheaply than point sources.
b. come from sources that are impossible to locate.
c. are dispersed and difficult to identify.
d. may come from a smokestack or a drainpipe.
6. Which of the following is not one of the five basic causes of environmental problems?
a. public policy c. poverty
b. population growth d. unsustainable resource use
7. Which of the following characterized the frontier environmental worldview?
a. A high level of federal regulation
b. Moving as needed to find food for survival
c. Alarm at the squandering of resources and wilderness
d. Vast resources available for human use
8. An example of environmentally sustainable economic development is
a. pollution prevention. c. population growth.
b. increased use of resources. d. burying waste.
9. Which of the following is an example of a population?
a. bass in a lake
b. an ocean
c. a patch of woods
d. predator and prey in a grassland

10. The biosphere

a. is the portion of the earth in which living organisms exist.
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b. includes none of the hydrosphere.

c. includes all of the lithosphere.
d. includes some of the mantle.
11. Which of the following is not a component of biodiversity?
a. chemical diversity c. ecological diversity
b. genetic diversity d. species diversity
12. Phytoplankton in an open water ecosystem are
a. secondary consumers. c. producers.
b. primary consumers. d. tertiary consumers.
13. A decomposer is a type of
a. primary consumer. c. producer.
b. secondary consumer. d. detritivore.
14. Soil
a. filters and cleans water.
b. provides most of the nutrients plants need.
c. is renewable only over a very long period of time.
d. all of the choices.
e. Applied field research
15. Which of the following is not an evolutionary trait that helped humans to survive and flourish?
a. opposable thumbs c. complex brains
b. exceptional sensory powers d. the ability to walk upright
16. Most of what we know of the earth's life history comes from
a. fossils. c. ice cores.
b. DNA analysis. d. chemical analysis.
17. Evolution refers to
a. changes in an individual's traits over time.
b. the survival of the fittest.
c. changes in a population's genetic makeup through successive generations.
d. extinction of species that can no longer compete.
18. ______ is the term used to describe the small genetic changes that occur in a population.
a. The theory of evolution c. Chemical evolution
b. Macroevolution d. Microevolution
19. Genetic variability in a population arises through
a. mutation. c. gene flow.
b. genetic drift. d. natural selection.
20. In order for natural selection to occur
a. the trait must not be heritable.
b. there must be uniformity for a trait in a population.
c. the trait must lead to differential reproduction.
d. offspring must be larger than their parents.
21. Traditional artificial selection is
a. the process of cross-breeding species.
b. now possible because of genetic engineering.
c. the process of breeding to change the genetic characteristics of a population.
d. the same as cloning.
22. What are the two main factors determining climate?
a. average temperature and amount of cloud cover
b. proximity to a body of water and average temperature
c. the jet stream and average amount of precipitation
d. average temperature and average precipitation

23. A(n) ________ is a terrestrial region consisting of communities of organisms that are adapted to
the region.
a. biome c. climate
b. ecosystem d. latitude
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24. The Mojave is a

a. temperate grassland. c. tropical desert.
b. cold desert. d. temperate desert.
25. Deserts take a long time to recover from disturbance because of their
a. slow plant growth. c. fast nutrient cycling.
b. high species diversity. d. permafrost.
26. Most grasslands are found
a. in the interiors of continents. c. in North America.
b. along the coast of continents. d. in areas where trees will not grow.
27. Permafrost underlies regions of
a. tropical grasslands. c. temperate grasslands.
b. arctic tundra. d. chaparral.
28. Which type of forest contains the largest diversity of plant species?
a. boreal forest c. tropical rain forest
b. temperate forest d. chaparral
29. Boreal forests are also called
a. evergreen coniferous forests. c. tropical rain forests.
b. temperate deciduous forests. d. temperate rain forests.
30. Mountains are ecologically important because they
a. release water into streams.
b. contain the majority of the earth's forests.
c. reflect solar radiation back into space.
d. all of the choices.
31. Which of the following is a type of tropical grassland often dotted with widely scattered clumps
of trees?
a. temperate grassland c. tundra
b. taiga d. savanna
32. Temperate shrublands, or chaparral, are often located near what geographic feature?
a. arctic regions
b. interior plateaus with high precipitation
c. coastal areas that border deserts
d. tropical forests
33. Temperate deciduous forests are characterized by having
a. moderate average temperatures that change with the season.
b. abundant precipitation spread evenly through the year.
c. broadleaf trees that lose their leaves and become dormant in winter.
d. All choices are true.
34. Which of the following is not a type of natural capital degradation to grassland biomes?
a. conversion to tree plantations c. conversion to cropland
b. overgrazing by livestock d. oil production in artic tundra
35. Which of the following is not an identified form of plankton?
a. photoplankton c. phytoplankton
b. ultraplankton d. zooplankton
36. An example of nekton is a
a. plankton. c. sea worms.
b. barnacle. d. sea turtle.
37. Where does photosynthesis occur in aquatic life zones?
a. benthic zone c. bottom zone
b. euphotic zone d. middle layer

38. Which of the following covers the greatest percentage of the earth's surface?
a. ocean c. tropical forest
b. desert d. grassland
39. Where are estuaries found?
a. in the abyssal zone
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b. on the continental slope

c. where rivers and streams flow into the ocean
d. along rocky shores
40. The three vertical zones of the ocean are the:
a. euphotic, bathyal, and abyssal zones.
b. benthic, nektic, and euphotic zones.
c. benthos, nekton, and plankton zones.
d. coastal, reef, and deep ocean zones.
41. Which of the following lake zones is comparable to the coastal zone of the ocean?
a. the profundal zone c. the littoral zone
b. the limnetic zone d. the benthic zone
42. Which of the following is not considered a wetland habitat?
a. arctic tundra in summer c. swamp
b. prairie pothole d. barrier island dune
43. Which part of a river would have the least sediment load and coldest water?
a. source zone c. the flood plain zone
b. transition zone d. the wetland zone
44. The best way to protect a stream or river system is to
a. manage and direct its flow.
b. protect the land around it.
c. implement pollution cleanup measures.
d. limit recreational use.
45. Which of the following factors most affects terrestrial species diversity?
a. latitude c. elevation
b. longitude d. depth
46. Skimmers, flamingos, diving duck, and heron can coexist in a coastal wetland as a result of
a. exploitation competition. c. interference competition.
b. symbiosis. d. resource-partitioning.
47. Parasitism occurs when
a. both of these choices.
b. one species feeds on part of another organism.
c. the parasite benefits and the host is harmed.
d. neither of these choices.
48. Which of the following represents a mutualistic species interaction?
a. ferns growing on a tree branch c. bees pollinating flowers
b. fleas on a dog d. lions eating a dead gazelle
49. Which of the following is a pioneer species?
a. redwood tree c. holly shrub
b. oak tree d. lichen
50. A population ______ follows a period of ______ in a population.
a. scarcity, dieback
b. logistic growth, exponential growth
c. dieback, overshoot
d. increase, scarcity
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Prepared by: Engr. Irene R. Billones

Subject Professor