Terms Chapter 1

Question 1

Acid Rain

Answer 1

Rain that is acidic; composed of nitric and sulfuric acids that are formed with water vapor in the air

Question 2

Best-First Principle*

Answer 2

Humans use the highest quality resources before the lower quality resources (ex.) fishing)

Question 3

Biodiversity

Answer 3

Biological variation found in a specific spatial area

Question 4

Carbon Dioxide

Answer 4

Compound CO2; greenhouse gas which has rising levels due to industrialization and land use management

Question 5

Carbon Monoxide

Answer 5

CO; a highly poisonous and flammable gas

Question 6

Climate Change*

Answer 6

a statistically significant variation in either the average state of the climate or in its variability, persisting for an extended period, typically decades or longer.

Question 7

Ecological Footprint

Answer 7

a measure of how much land and water area a human population requires to produce the resource it consumes and to absorb its carbon dioxide emissions, using prevailing technology.

Question 8

Environmental Performance Bond

Answer 8

cash or securities deposited before permitting an activity that is likely to have an environmental impact. (ex. clean-up liability insurance)

Question 9

Environmental Services

Answer 9

a wide range of conditions and processes through which natural ecosystems, and the species that are part of them, help sustain and fulfill human life.

Question 10

Externalities*

Answer 10

extraneous cost related to a commercial or industrial activity that is not reflected in the overall cost of the good or service

Question 11

Global Warming

Answer 11

any general increase in the earth’s surface temperatures over an extended period of time.

Question 12

Greenhouse Gas

Answer 12

any of the gaseous constituents of the atmosphere which results in the greenhouse effect.

Question 13

Gross Domestic Product (GDP)

Answer 13

the monetary value of all the finished goods and services produced within a country’s borders in a specific time period, usually on an annual basis.

Question 14

Gross National Product (GNP)

Answer 14

value of all the goods and services produced in an economy, plus the value of the goods and services imported, less the goods and services exported.

Question 15

Human Development

Answer 15

the process of enlarging the range people’s choices by increasing their opportunities for education, health care, a clean environment, income, employment, and political freedom; related to the third principle of sustainability.

Question 16

Hydrocarbon

Answer 16

any organic compound containing only carbon and hydrogen.

Question 17

Moai (will not need to know this)

Answer 17

monolithic human figures carved from rock on the Polynesian island of Easter Island, a special territory of Chile, between AD 1100 and 1680

Question 18

Natural Resource*

Answer 18

any form of energy or material ocurring in nature that is extracted and used by humans; related to the first principle of sustainability

Question 19

Nitrogen Oxide

Answer 19

NOx; generic term for highly reactive gases

Question 20

Pollution

Answer 20

the introduction into the air, water or ground of toxic substances that are damaging to human health and to natural systems

Question 21

Quintile (will not need to know this)

Answer 21

statistical value of a data set that represents 20% of a given population. The first quartile represents the lowest fifth of the data (1-20%); the second quartile represents the second fifth (21% - 40%) etc.

Question 22

Resource Depletion*

Answer 22

the consumption of a natural resource at a rate faster than it is replaced; relates to a violation of the first principle of sustainability

Question 23

Subsidy

Answer 23

benefit given by the government

Question 24

Sustainability

Answer 24

conditions under which the quality of human life is improved while living within the carrying capacity of supporting natural systems, thus meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs

Question 25

System*

Answer 25

A collection of parts, which are known as storages and flows, that interact with each other to generate regular or predictable patterns or behaviors.

Question 26

Waste Assimilation*

Answer 26

the ability of the environment to absorb, detoxify, and disperse wastes in a way that makes them less harmful.