Need help with my Ecology homework.

[Dr. Casey]

We have to do worksheets, and they're very poorly made. The questions and answers only have a vague connection with the material in the books. So... can you wonderful people help me out?

 

34. Clean up of contaminated soils is done by...

a) washing it with detergent

b) burning it

c) injecting microorganisms into the soil to "eat" the organisms

d) all of the above

e) none of the above

 

The first two sound ridiculous, and if it's none of those two it can't be D, so I'm leaning towards either E or C. Probably E since none of the other answers are E, but C sounds plausible enough. Not that I'd know since the book doesn't seem to answer this.

 

37. Which of the following is NOT a feature of the process of biomagnification?

a) chemical contaminants

b) low concentrations in the environment

c) the food chain

d) artificial selection or "survival of the fittest"

e) serious consequences to predators

 

I'm fairly certain it's B, but I'll ask anyway just to be safe.

 

39. True or False: A severe thunderstorm could release all the chemical wastes from a surface impoundment into the environment.

 

I went ahead and put True because it sounds like the right answer, but the book doesn't say. :/

 

41. True or False: Currently, the most practical alternative for dealing with wastes appears to be reclaim, recover, and recycle.

 

I think it is. Am I mistaken? The book doesn't seem to say anything about it, but I think the complexity of the question implies that it's not something they made up.

 

44. True or False: It is thought that there is no correlation between bioaccumulation and resistance to disease in affected organisms.

 

I put False, because of all those fishes dying and stuff. Of course, I'm not a Science expert to put it mildly, so just to make sure...

 

45. True or False: Biomagnification is the build-up of toxic organic compounds within the tissues of a single organism.[/b]

 

Okay, I'm a bit confused on this one. Isn't bioaccumulation where something on the bottom of the food chain eats toxic wastes and then gets eaten by something higher on the food chain, and so the predator gets both the prey and the toxic wastes? I'm not sure whether to count that as a single organism or not, since the only animal likely to feel the affects is the one that's still alive and has eaten all the others... even if it's only in the belly of the first creature and... screw it, I'm probably just confusing you all. I went ahead and put False.

 

49. True or False: Technology now exists that makes it possible to purify contaminated water in aquifers.

 

I would think so. It would be just lovely if the book bothered to answer this, but I can't find anything about it. I'm leaning towards it being true.

[Dak]

34. Clean up of contaminated soils is done by...

a) washing it with detergent

b) burning it

c) injecting microorganisms into the soil to "eat" the organisms

d) all of the above

e) none of the above

 

The first two sound ridiculous, and if it's none of those two it can't be D, so I'm leaning towards either E or C. Probably E since none of the other answers are E, but C sounds plausible enough. Not that I'd know since the book doesn't seem to answer this.

detergents disrupt the lipid (ie fat) cell membrane of bacteria, thus distroying them. burning kills bacteria in much the same way that it kills humans. option C is also viable. so basically all three options could work. all three options are used in science to decontaminate septic things. as to wether theyre actually used to decontaminate soil... im not sure, sorry.

[Dak]

45. True or False: Biomagnification is the build-up of toxic organic compounds within the tissues of a single organism.[/b]

 

in the spirit of 'its better to learn how to find the answer your self than to just be given it', here are a few links demonstrating how the answre could be found:

 

the most powerful scientific research tool known to mankind

 

the most powerful scientific research tool known to mankind -- revisited

 

another invaluble scientific resorze

[Dr. Casey]

A bit late, but thanks anyway.

 

This isn't a strict course, in any case. I just copied the answers I didn't have off everyone else the next day. It's a practice we've all done since the beginning of the year; our teacher encourages it. I mean, school work doesn't really matter, anyway. The information isn't useful if you're not in that particular field, and I sharpen my brain enough in my spare time so as to not really benefit from this stuff. I just wanted to be the one with the answers this time. =P

[Dak]

well if you want to cheat, the most effective way that iv found is to do the easy ones, and then compare with your mates, and divvy up the questions that no-one knows between you and share your results. that way, depending on how many people partisipate and how many hard questions there are, you should only ever have to bother finding out the answres to, what, say one or two questions at a time. dont forget to word the answers differently, and make sure your one or two answers are correct (if the whole class gets the same wrong answre the lecturer generally gets sus.)

 

sometimes i think figuring out how to beat the system teaches more valuble lessons than actually doing the work.

 

:ahem: i mean, it is the policy of this website to frown upon your homework-related cheating-ways. <-- consider yourself frowned upon etc

[Dr. Casey]

Well, I don't really have any mates, but there are some people I can ask for the answers. =P But yea, I just go for the questions I already know/know where to find and leave the hard ones for later, unless I just feel like having something to keep me busy. Oh, and it doesn't really matter how we word our answers. He just asks us to hold up the paper from our desks, and he says "That's good" and gives us a 100. We can show him an assignment from earlier in the year or an assignment from a different class. ^^ It's a very... interesting course.

 

Yeah, well, I can bench-press 665 pounds*. If anyone has a problem with my cheating, I'll take them all on.

 

* slight exaggeration

[coquina]

If you cheat, you're only cheating yourself.

 

Bioremediation is going to be extremely important in the future.

 

Suggest you google "chemosynthetic bacteria".

[Ophiolite]

I mean, school work doesn't really matter, anyway.

I'm glad you feel that way. It reduces the competition my children will encounter in the job market.

[Aardvark]

If you cheat' date=' you're only cheating yourself.

[/quote']

 

 

I think that comment is really sweet.

 

For the record my answers would be

 

C, D, True, Wishful thinking (the most practical method of getting rid of waste is probably dumping it in someone elses water supply), False, False, False.

 

Am i right?

[Dr. Casey]

I'm glad you feel that way. It reduces the competition my children will encounter in the job market.

 

Doubtful. My GPA is still going to wind up between a 3.9 and a 4.0 for this year. (And yes, we always have to do our own work in the other five classes.)

[Ophiolite]

No, rest assured, the ability to absorb meaning from trite, low-quality teaching is a hugely valuable skill. You are minimising your chances of acquiring that skill.

An intelligent persons learns from genius. A smart person learns from everyone. (e.g. from your last post I have learned three things - GPA is probably an abbreviation for Grade Point Average; this is an important measure of educational achievement/progress in the system you are in; 3.9 or 4.0 is pretty good - the top 10%, maybe the top 5%)

[Dr. Casey]

Hmm... I see what you mean. (I could probably say more, but I'd rather let this topic die already, heh.)

 

Correct on the first two. Not sure what percentile it's at, though.

[Ophiolite]

I was guessing the percentiles based on my personal preference to keep quiet about anything I'm not in the top 10% for - which is why you'll never see me discussing golf.

But, yes. We'll let this one die. I just wanted to introduce an alternate way of looking at things.

[Dr. Casey]

I played golf once upon a time... missed the ball the first forty or so times, then I got lucky and hit it about three feet (Then it was my friend's turn and he hit it about fifty yards on the first swing, damn him). So you can't be much worse than I am.