BIOLOGY 180 LATEST 2026 EXAM QUESTIONS AND
ANSWERS RATED A+
✔✔Explain why the monsoons put an end to the spring climbing season on Mt. Everest.
- ✔✔As the monsoon winds climb the southern side of the Himalaya, the air expands
and cools. This causes water vapor in the air to condense, resulting in rain at lower
elevations, and snow at higher elevations. The heavy snows on Mt. Everest make it
impossible to climb.
✔✔Explain why the Tibetan Plateau and the Taklamakan Desert have a dry climate. -
✔✔Air moving from the Himalaya onto the Tibetan plateau and the Taklamakan Desert
is falling and getting warmer, increasing its capacity to hold water. The result is low
precipitation—that is, a rain shadow.
✔✔What is the difference between global warming versus global climate change? -
✔✔Warming describes increasing average temperature; climate change describes all
alterations in weather patterns that result from warming.
✔✔Extensive and unusual cold snaps have occurred here recently. Is this evidence that
global warming is lessening or not occurring? - ✔✔No—although the long-term trend is
for warming, short-term weather patterns can still be variable.
✔✔Why is "fossil fuels" an appropriate term? - ✔✔They are derived from fossilized
organisms.
✔✔Are humans causing increased CO2 concentrations? - ✔✔Yes, because fossil-fuel
burning and forest destruction release CO2.
✔✔Why is "greenhouse gas" an accurate way to describe CO2's behavior in the
atmosphere? - ✔✔It absorbs (i.e. "traps") energy from infrared radiation reflected from
the Earth's surface.
✔✔Why is the U.S. considered a particularly important country in terms of lowering CO2
emissions? - ✔✔It combines large population size with large per capita emissions.
✔✔What is phenology? - ✔✔timing of seasonal events
✔✔With respect to climate change, what is the difference between positive feedback
and negative feedback? - ✔✔Positive feedback increases CO2 levels in the atmosphere
and ocean; negative feedback reduces CO2 levels in the atmosphere and ocean.
✔✔In response to recent climate change, how is overall (global) NPP changing? -
✔✔Decreasing on land; decreasing in the oceans.
, ✔✔In the US, Mexico, Brazil, Europe, Southern Africa, and Australia: - ✔✔Climate
change is predicted to cause reductions in soil moisture.
✔✔Which of the following experimental plots would identify species that would be good
candidates for companion planting (being planted together) in a commercial situation?
The goal is to maximize the yield of each species planted, and increase overall yield
compared with single-species plantings. - ✔✔Combinations where grams/individual is
higher than it is in each monoculture.
✔✔You've done a large series of experiments, growing different combinations of crop
plants together. Which of the following plots would identify species that are particularly
strong in terms of interspecific competition? - ✔✔Grams/individual is higher than in
monoculture, no matter what other species are growing in combination.
✔✔In the context of conservation biology, what does genetic diversity mean? -
✔✔number and relative frequency of alleles in a population, species, or lineage.
✔✔What is a biodiversity "hotspot?" - ✔✔An area where species richness is extremely
high.
✔✔Which of these animal taxa has the highest proportion of species threatened with
extinction? - ✔✔Amphibians
✔✔What's the difference between an endemic species and an exotic species? -
✔✔Endemics are confined to a local area; exotics are not native to an area.
✔✔What is habitat fragmentation? - ✔✔division of a large, contiguous habitat into many
small pockets or fragments
✔✔why does habitat quality deteriorates when fragmentation occurs? - ✔✔increased
exposure to weeds or other invasive plants from nearby developed areas
plants are more exposed to wind/storm damage
areas along edges dry out and plants die
increased exposure to domesticated livestock, hunting by humans, pollution, or other
threats
✔✔Stochastic processes are random and/or unpredictable. Which of the following
represents a stochastic process that can have a disproportionately large impact on
small populations? - ✔✔catastrophic storms or disease/pest outbreaks
✔✔What does a species-area equation and graph predict? - ✔✔How many species will
be found in a habitat of a particular size.
ANSWERS RATED A+
✔✔Explain why the monsoons put an end to the spring climbing season on Mt. Everest.
- ✔✔As the monsoon winds climb the southern side of the Himalaya, the air expands
and cools. This causes water vapor in the air to condense, resulting in rain at lower
elevations, and snow at higher elevations. The heavy snows on Mt. Everest make it
impossible to climb.
✔✔Explain why the Tibetan Plateau and the Taklamakan Desert have a dry climate. -
✔✔Air moving from the Himalaya onto the Tibetan plateau and the Taklamakan Desert
is falling and getting warmer, increasing its capacity to hold water. The result is low
precipitation—that is, a rain shadow.
✔✔What is the difference between global warming versus global climate change? -
✔✔Warming describes increasing average temperature; climate change describes all
alterations in weather patterns that result from warming.
✔✔Extensive and unusual cold snaps have occurred here recently. Is this evidence that
global warming is lessening or not occurring? - ✔✔No—although the long-term trend is
for warming, short-term weather patterns can still be variable.
✔✔Why is "fossil fuels" an appropriate term? - ✔✔They are derived from fossilized
organisms.
✔✔Are humans causing increased CO2 concentrations? - ✔✔Yes, because fossil-fuel
burning and forest destruction release CO2.
✔✔Why is "greenhouse gas" an accurate way to describe CO2's behavior in the
atmosphere? - ✔✔It absorbs (i.e. "traps") energy from infrared radiation reflected from
the Earth's surface.
✔✔Why is the U.S. considered a particularly important country in terms of lowering CO2
emissions? - ✔✔It combines large population size with large per capita emissions.
✔✔What is phenology? - ✔✔timing of seasonal events
✔✔With respect to climate change, what is the difference between positive feedback
and negative feedback? - ✔✔Positive feedback increases CO2 levels in the atmosphere
and ocean; negative feedback reduces CO2 levels in the atmosphere and ocean.
✔✔In response to recent climate change, how is overall (global) NPP changing? -
✔✔Decreasing on land; decreasing in the oceans.
, ✔✔In the US, Mexico, Brazil, Europe, Southern Africa, and Australia: - ✔✔Climate
change is predicted to cause reductions in soil moisture.
✔✔Which of the following experimental plots would identify species that would be good
candidates for companion planting (being planted together) in a commercial situation?
The goal is to maximize the yield of each species planted, and increase overall yield
compared with single-species plantings. - ✔✔Combinations where grams/individual is
higher than it is in each monoculture.
✔✔You've done a large series of experiments, growing different combinations of crop
plants together. Which of the following plots would identify species that are particularly
strong in terms of interspecific competition? - ✔✔Grams/individual is higher than in
monoculture, no matter what other species are growing in combination.
✔✔In the context of conservation biology, what does genetic diversity mean? -
✔✔number and relative frequency of alleles in a population, species, or lineage.
✔✔What is a biodiversity "hotspot?" - ✔✔An area where species richness is extremely
high.
✔✔Which of these animal taxa has the highest proportion of species threatened with
extinction? - ✔✔Amphibians
✔✔What's the difference between an endemic species and an exotic species? -
✔✔Endemics are confined to a local area; exotics are not native to an area.
✔✔What is habitat fragmentation? - ✔✔division of a large, contiguous habitat into many
small pockets or fragments
✔✔why does habitat quality deteriorates when fragmentation occurs? - ✔✔increased
exposure to weeds or other invasive plants from nearby developed areas
plants are more exposed to wind/storm damage
areas along edges dry out and plants die
increased exposure to domesticated livestock, hunting by humans, pollution, or other
threats
✔✔Stochastic processes are random and/or unpredictable. Which of the following
represents a stochastic process that can have a disproportionately large impact on
small populations? - ✔✔catastrophic storms or disease/pest outbreaks
✔✔What does a species-area equation and graph predict? - ✔✔How many species will
be found in a habitat of a particular size.
