Practice AP Environmental Science Unit 4 questions on plate tectonics, soils, watersheds, solar radiation, seasons, El Niño, and La Niña.
Plate-tectonic theory states that the Earth's lithosphere is broken into very slowly moving pieces or plates. Plate movements over vast stretches of time have led to the current orientation of our continents and oceans. Individual events along plate boundaries, such as earthquakes and volcanic eruptions, pose periodic threats to human activity and ecosystems. The "Ring of Fire" is a term that describes the location of increased seismic and volcanic activity around the margins of the Pacific Ocean basin. On the map above, each dot represents a volcano or an earthquake.
Japan, Indonesia, and the Philippines are examples of volcanic island chains that have formed along subduction zones between plates in the western Pacific.
Describe what happens when two tectonic plates collide along a subduction zone.
Explain how subduction leads to volcanic activity.
Although the landscape following a volcanic eruption may appear unable to support ecological communities, over time the area can be transformed through succession.
Explain how primary succession can lead to soil formation on a newly formed volcanic landscape.
In addition to volcanic activity, highly destructive tsunamis are generated along Pacific Plate subduction zones.
Explain how a tsunami is generated along a subduction zone.
Southern California experiences periodic devastating earthquakes along the San Andreas Fault, which is a transform boundary located along the eastern edge of the Pacific Plate.
Describe what happens to the tectonic plates along a transform boundary at the moment when an earthquake occurs.
Describe what happens to the tectonic plates along a transform boundary during the time between earthquakes.
The following diagram shows how an area changed over time. The dominant vegetation in each stage is labeled in the diagram. Each roman numeral represents a stage in the ecological process.
Describe how soil forms from stage II to stage III.
Two restoration methods designed to reclaim the overburden piles removed from open pit coal mines in temperate forests of eastern Europe were studied over several years. The first method was spontaneous restoration, where the soil and rock were dumped in noncompacted, random piles and not replanted with vegetation. The second method was technical restoration, where the land was leveled by heavy machinery, organic material was added, and eight plant species were added. Technical restoration started 5 years after the piles were formed, so no bar is included in the 1-5 year range in the graph.
Number of Plant Species in Spontaneous and Technically Restored Overburden Piles over Time
Identify the scientific question for the investigation.
Identify a dependent variable in the experiment.
Explain how the results of the experiment would likely have been altered if the soil had contained a higher percentage of sand, which has the largest particle size of the components of loam.
Runoff from mining waste can also affect water quality.
What gas would make up the majority of layer A?
Oxygen
Carbon dioxide
Nitrogen
Phosphorus