BIOL 350 Final Exam 2026
Exam All Answers and
Illustrations Given
1) The current state of civilization can be described in terms of problems
of 'input' or problems of 'output'. Describe the main current concerns
associated with 'forests' as a problem of 'input', and describe the main
reasons why forests have important value in terms of providing
ecosystem services for humans. - ANSWER ✔✔Problems of input:
-Deforestation; clearing forests for agriculture, urban expansion, mining,
over-harvesting for timber and paper production
-increased frequency of fire, drought, insect outbreaks
-clearing forests out faster than we can replace them
,-world forest area shrunk by 80% per capita in past century
Value:
-"earth's lungs"; source of oxygen
-Earth's major source of water circulation; about 50% of the water that
ends up in the clouds for rain has been transpired by forests
-forests build and protect top soil; without forests we lose soil and
minerals through erosion
-major carbon sinks; capture, store, and decrease greenhouse carbon
dioxide levels (about 25% of carbon emitted by burning fossil fuels each
year are absorbed by forests)
-home to Earth's treasury of biodiversity
(2) World food production now appears to have peaked and prices are
rising. Describe the main reasons for this crisis that we discussed in
BIOL350. - ANSWER ✔✔Today's food shortages result from 4 critical
long-term trends:
1) Rapid pop'n growth
-leads to over-plowing and over-grazing resulting in a loss of top soil
-increased demand for energy therefore increasing energy from fossil
fuels which contributes to global warming
,-higher demand for food...causing food shortages
2)Loss of top soil
-because of deforestation, global warming, over-plowing...etc
3)Spreading water shortages
4)Rising temperatures and Global warming
-leads to rising sea level causing coastal flooding, which leads to loss of
top soil
-higher temps also reduce crop yield
OTHER REASONS:
-arable land has peaked
-lost irrigation water from melting/dried up glaciers resulting from global
warming
-rising energy prices
-more land being used to grow bio-fuels instead of crops
-falling pollinator (bee) pop'ns from pesticide use and pollution
-over exploitation of fish
3
COPYRIGHT©JOSHCLAY 2025/2026. YEAR PUBLISHED 2026. COMPANY REGISTRATION NUMBER: 619652435. TERMS OF USE. PRIVACY
STATEMENT. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
, (3) The current state of civilization can be described in terms of problems
of 'input' or problems of 'output'. Describe the main current concerns
associated with 'fossil fuels' as a problem of 'input'. - ANSWER
✔✔problems of input:
-problem of supply and demand
-oil discoveries peaked in the 60s and since the 80s we have used more
oil yearly than we are discovering
-most things that we use require oil/natural gas to make (includes
everything plastic)
-rely on fossil fuels for transportation
-since the Great acceleration 5x more energy use (especially fossil fuels)
-turn to renewable resources like solar and wind energy but forget that a
lot of these alternate solutions depend on petro chemicals/fossil fuels to
keep them running; not durable, reliable, or completely safe
-2x more oil consumption in last 4 decades
-fossil fuels=non-renewable=definite supply
-contributes to global warming/climate change
4) The current state of civilization can be described in terms of problems
of 'input' or problems of 'output'. Describe the main current concerns
Exam All Answers and
Illustrations Given
1) The current state of civilization can be described in terms of problems
of 'input' or problems of 'output'. Describe the main current concerns
associated with 'forests' as a problem of 'input', and describe the main
reasons why forests have important value in terms of providing
ecosystem services for humans. - ANSWER ✔✔Problems of input:
-Deforestation; clearing forests for agriculture, urban expansion, mining,
over-harvesting for timber and paper production
-increased frequency of fire, drought, insect outbreaks
-clearing forests out faster than we can replace them
,-world forest area shrunk by 80% per capita in past century
Value:
-"earth's lungs"; source of oxygen
-Earth's major source of water circulation; about 50% of the water that
ends up in the clouds for rain has been transpired by forests
-forests build and protect top soil; without forests we lose soil and
minerals through erosion
-major carbon sinks; capture, store, and decrease greenhouse carbon
dioxide levels (about 25% of carbon emitted by burning fossil fuels each
year are absorbed by forests)
-home to Earth's treasury of biodiversity
(2) World food production now appears to have peaked and prices are
rising. Describe the main reasons for this crisis that we discussed in
BIOL350. - ANSWER ✔✔Today's food shortages result from 4 critical
long-term trends:
1) Rapid pop'n growth
-leads to over-plowing and over-grazing resulting in a loss of top soil
-increased demand for energy therefore increasing energy from fossil
fuels which contributes to global warming
,-higher demand for food...causing food shortages
2)Loss of top soil
-because of deforestation, global warming, over-plowing...etc
3)Spreading water shortages
4)Rising temperatures and Global warming
-leads to rising sea level causing coastal flooding, which leads to loss of
top soil
-higher temps also reduce crop yield
OTHER REASONS:
-arable land has peaked
-lost irrigation water from melting/dried up glaciers resulting from global
warming
-rising energy prices
-more land being used to grow bio-fuels instead of crops
-falling pollinator (bee) pop'ns from pesticide use and pollution
-over exploitation of fish
3
COPYRIGHT©JOSHCLAY 2025/2026. YEAR PUBLISHED 2026. COMPANY REGISTRATION NUMBER: 619652435. TERMS OF USE. PRIVACY
STATEMENT. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
, (3) The current state of civilization can be described in terms of problems
of 'input' or problems of 'output'. Describe the main current concerns
associated with 'fossil fuels' as a problem of 'input'. - ANSWER
✔✔problems of input:
-problem of supply and demand
-oil discoveries peaked in the 60s and since the 80s we have used more
oil yearly than we are discovering
-most things that we use require oil/natural gas to make (includes
everything plastic)
-rely on fossil fuels for transportation
-since the Great acceleration 5x more energy use (especially fossil fuels)
-turn to renewable resources like solar and wind energy but forget that a
lot of these alternate solutions depend on petro chemicals/fossil fuels to
keep them running; not durable, reliable, or completely safe
-2x more oil consumption in last 4 decades
-fossil fuels=non-renewable=definite supply
-contributes to global warming/climate change
4) The current state of civilization can be described in terms of problems
of 'input' or problems of 'output'. Describe the main current concerns
