Biol 1055 Exam #1 Questions with correct answers
When it's hot people are more likely to believe in... - ✔✔climate change
climate - ✔✔the conditions in the atmosphere over relatively long periods of time
(usually refers to conditions across large regions or the entire Earth)
weather - ✔✔the conditions of the atmosphere over relatively short periods of
time (usually refers to conditions at a specific site)
global warming - ✔✔warming of the planet, based on average temperature
climate change - ✔✔changes in climate characteristics: temperature,
precipitation, humidity, storm frequency and intensity
global weirding (climate destabilization) - ✔✔observations of unusual weather
patterns
Berkeley Earth's concern - ✔✔that data collected about the temperature is not
accurate because of cell tower, MMTS shelter, air conditioning units exhaust fans,
and asphalt parking lot (skewing the data to be warmer than actual)
actual measurements - ✔✔thermometers, satellites- take ocean and air
temperatures at many locations all over the planet
proxies - ✔✔don't give actual measurements, but give data that can be
extrapolated to temperature estimates
,proxy examples - ✔✔coral reef layers, borehole temperatures, tree rings, isotope
ratios
stable isotopes - ✔✔two forms of an element that has the same number of
protons, but different number of neutrons
atoms weight - ✔✔sum of protons and neutrons
heavy isotopes - ✔✔condense more easily than light isotopes
heavy isotopes condense over the ocean, travel near the poles and then... -
✔✔snows onto the poles and melts back into the ocean
ice core thickness - ✔✔thickness of one year varies by how deep
water is more likely to evaporate when... - ✔✔one of the H's or one of the O's is a
heavy isotope
more energy is released into the atmosphere when... - ✔✔the earth is relatively
cool
lower than average heavy/light isotope ratio in the ice cores means... - ✔✔that
the year that ice was deposited was likely cooler than average
, during cold global temperatures... - ✔✔polar ice caps are big, ice caps are
enriched for light isotopes and ocean is enriched for heavy isotopes therefore the
heavy/light isotope ratio in marine sediments is high
during warm global temperatures - ✔✔polar ice caps are small, ocean is less
enriched for heavy isotopes, and the heavy/light ratio in marine sediments is
lower
What could be causing the recent (200 years) warming? - ✔✔end of last ice age
(entering period of warming- not supported by rate of temp change), solar flares
(variability in the sun's output- not supported by data), and increase in
greenhouse gases
ice age causes - ✔✔milankovitch cycles, positive feedbacks (atmospheric
composition change)
eccentricity - ✔✔orbit around the sun
obliquity - ✔✔tilt (axial tilt)
precession - ✔✔wobble of Earth's axis
energy - ✔✔calories (1 M&M = 3 food calories; 3000 calories), 1 food calorie =
4184 joules
watt = - ✔✔joule/second
When it's hot people are more likely to believe in... - ✔✔climate change
climate - ✔✔the conditions in the atmosphere over relatively long periods of time
(usually refers to conditions across large regions or the entire Earth)
weather - ✔✔the conditions of the atmosphere over relatively short periods of
time (usually refers to conditions at a specific site)
global warming - ✔✔warming of the planet, based on average temperature
climate change - ✔✔changes in climate characteristics: temperature,
precipitation, humidity, storm frequency and intensity
global weirding (climate destabilization) - ✔✔observations of unusual weather
patterns
Berkeley Earth's concern - ✔✔that data collected about the temperature is not
accurate because of cell tower, MMTS shelter, air conditioning units exhaust fans,
and asphalt parking lot (skewing the data to be warmer than actual)
actual measurements - ✔✔thermometers, satellites- take ocean and air
temperatures at many locations all over the planet
proxies - ✔✔don't give actual measurements, but give data that can be
extrapolated to temperature estimates
,proxy examples - ✔✔coral reef layers, borehole temperatures, tree rings, isotope
ratios
stable isotopes - ✔✔two forms of an element that has the same number of
protons, but different number of neutrons
atoms weight - ✔✔sum of protons and neutrons
heavy isotopes - ✔✔condense more easily than light isotopes
heavy isotopes condense over the ocean, travel near the poles and then... -
✔✔snows onto the poles and melts back into the ocean
ice core thickness - ✔✔thickness of one year varies by how deep
water is more likely to evaporate when... - ✔✔one of the H's or one of the O's is a
heavy isotope
more energy is released into the atmosphere when... - ✔✔the earth is relatively
cool
lower than average heavy/light isotope ratio in the ice cores means... - ✔✔that
the year that ice was deposited was likely cooler than average
, during cold global temperatures... - ✔✔polar ice caps are big, ice caps are
enriched for light isotopes and ocean is enriched for heavy isotopes therefore the
heavy/light isotope ratio in marine sediments is high
during warm global temperatures - ✔✔polar ice caps are small, ocean is less
enriched for heavy isotopes, and the heavy/light ratio in marine sediments is
lower
What could be causing the recent (200 years) warming? - ✔✔end of last ice age
(entering period of warming- not supported by rate of temp change), solar flares
(variability in the sun's output- not supported by data), and increase in
greenhouse gases
ice age causes - ✔✔milankovitch cycles, positive feedbacks (atmospheric
composition change)
eccentricity - ✔✔orbit around the sun
obliquity - ✔✔tilt (axial tilt)
precession - ✔✔wobble of Earth's axis
energy - ✔✔calories (1 M&M = 3 food calories; 3000 calories), 1 food calorie =
4184 joules
watt = - ✔✔joule/second
