questions with correct answers
Is soil science also studied in other academic settings? - ANS ✔✔Art
Where did Donnie Smith work? - ANS ✔✔CEO of Tyson
What/where is Mesoamerica? - ANS ✔✔-a cultural region, the Maya and Aztec empires
-Central Mexico into Central America (Honduras)
Know what tools he used to get where he is today (Donnie Smith) - ANS ✔✔-communication
skills
-being able to work w people
-having desire to see others succeed
When was the peak of the Maya civilization? - ANS ✔✔800 AD
What soil order is commonly the site of most disaster cleanups related to water? - ANS
✔✔entisols
Soils have many uses which are sometimes conflicting. Explain 2 conflicting land uses? - ANS
✔✔farming
housing
Are your chickens happy? - ANS ✔✔-huge animal welfare advocate
-it is important animal needs are met
,-steadily have gotten more productive the last 4-5 years
-no animals are productive with abuse
-can't tell if they're happy but can measure stress hormones
How does deforestation and erosion = Climate change? - ANS ✔✔-deforestation takes away soil
protection which leads to erosion which leads to climate change
-when the trees are cut/burned CO2 is released which leads to global warming (trees are cut
because of the increasing population)
wars between competing tribes mean
-less food grown
-differences not resolved
-trade stopped
What are the two most common soil orders found in TN? What are soil forming factors critical
to their development? - ANS ✔✔alfisols (younger, more productive) and utisols (older, less
productive)
time and biota
How has shift towards organic affected production as a whole? - ANS ✔✔-5% is organic out of
total food
-compared to average growth only 2% of growth for food production is organic
How does deforestation impact climate? - ANS ✔✔-carbon is released and raises atmospheric
temperature
,-less humidity means a weaker ozone layer and more radiation penetrates the Earth causing
rising temperatures which melt ice and raise water levels
What is albedo? Explain how albedo changes with deforestation? - ANS ✔✔-albedo= proportion
of the incident light or radiation that is reflected by a surface typically that of a planet or moon
(reflectants)
-changes the way heat reflects off a surface
What soil order is the most productive in the world? - ANS ✔✔mollisols
Major changes in meat industry? - ANS ✔✔-everything is computerized/controlled
-quality/knowledge has increased
-no antibiotics
What is the youngest soil order? - ANS ✔✔entisols
Thoughts on lab grown meat? (Beyond meat) - ANS ✔✔-meat substitutes and lab grown meat is
what a lot of people bank on these technologies and approaches
-Beyond Meat opened to market 9 months ago and already has a market value of 14 billion
dollars
The South had more water supply problems but they had higher annual rainfall. Why? - ANS
✔✔-water table too deep because of topography changes with more mountains and greater
population
-surface elevation increase going South and allows them to reach water tables
, -they dug holes or reshaped natural depressions
What caused the shrinking of the Aral Sea? What crop caused it? Any analogus situations in the
US? Why is the subsidence post significant? - ANS ✔✔-irrigation
-cotton
-subsidence post in FL
-organic soils have been drained; soil gradually settles and lowers resulting in the top soil
becoming even with the soil surface
Can genetically modified organisms potentially lead to another famine with the right presence
of disease? How does this pertain to food security? - ANS ✔✔- GMO's: tech has been developed
over 25 years and there has been no proof to suggest that it has come to harm people
-Donnie is pro-GMO
-must be careful with technology but there are few/no alternatives to feed the population
without them
What is Karst topography? - ANS ✔✔-porous limestone that has dissolved forming sink holes
and caves
-formed from acid rainfall
What is one hypothesized reason for the downfall of the Maya? What evidence supports this
hypothesis? - ANS ✔✔-from cutting down trees to heat limestone
1. exhausted their environment and resources due to over population
2. constant warfare among competing city states
For antibiotics, what methods are being used to reduce their use and dangers? - ANS ✔✔-
science is incomplete regarding their total usage