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Environmental ScienceQ&A by dot point
A short Q&A bank for every VIC Environmental Science syllabus dot point. Each question and answer is drawn directly from our worked dot-point page, so you can scan key concepts before opening the long-form answer.
Unit 3: How can biodiversity and development be sustained?
- the classification, taxonomy and naming of organisms, including the use of binomial nomenclature and taxonomic hierarchy, and how classification supports the description and conservation of biodiversity0Q&A pairs
- the four categories of ecosystem services (supporting, provisioning, regulating and cultural) and how each links biodiversity to human wellbeing and development4Q&A pairs
- the concepts of endemism and biodiversity hotspots, why endemic species and hotspots are especially vulnerable, and their significance for setting conservation priorities2Q&A pairs
- the levels of biodiversity (genetic, species and ecosystem) and the value of biodiversity through ecosystem services and human wellbeing2Q&A pairs
- measures of biodiversity including species richness, species evenness and the use of diversity indices to compare ecosystems1Q&A pairs
- the threats to biodiversity including habitat loss and fragmentation, invasive species, overexploitation, pollution and climate change, and the process of extinction8Q&A pairs
- the ecological, economic, social and intrinsic value of biodiversity and the difference between instrumental and intrinsic value in conservation decisions4Q&A pairs
Unit 4: How can climate change and energy use be managed?
- Earth's climate system as the interaction of the atmosphere, hydrosphere, biosphere and lithosphere, and the global energy balance including incoming solar radiation, albedo and outgoing radiation2Q&A pairs
- the lines of evidence for climate change including direct measurements and proxy data such as ice cores, and the environmental and social impacts of climate change3Q&A pairs
- the natural drivers of climate change including Milankovitch cycles, solar variation and volcanic activity, and the role of positive and negative feedback mechanisms in amplifying or dampening change3Q&A pairs
- the carbon cycle including the main carbon stores (reservoirs), the fluxes between them, the role of fast and slow cycling, and how human activities have altered the cycle2Q&A pairs
- the natural greenhouse effect, the main greenhouse gases and their sources, and how the enhanced greenhouse effect from human activity drives global warming0Q&A pairs
Unit 3: How can biodiversity and development be sustained?
- strategies for managing and conserving biodiversity including in-situ conservation (protected areas, wildlife corridors) and ex-situ conservation (captive breeding, seed banks)8Q&A pairs
- the principles of ecological sustainability and how development can be managed using approaches such as the precautionary principle, intergenerational equity and ecologically sustainable development7Q&A pairs
Unit 4: How can climate change and energy use be managed?
- the scientific concepts of energy and power, the units used to measure them (joules and watts), energy conversions and losses, and the meaning of energy efficiency1Q&A pairs
- approaches to managing energy use and reducing greenhouse gas emissions including energy efficiency, mitigation and adaptation strategies, and the transition to a low-carbon economy2Q&A pairs
- the characteristics, advantages and disadvantages of non-renewable energy sources (fossil fuels, nuclear) and renewable energy sources (solar, wind, hydro, geothermal, biomass)9Q&A pairs