AICE MARINE SCIENCE TEST BANK
UPDATED QUESTIONS AND VERIFIED
ANSWERS SUCCESS KIT
●● Primary producers in marine ecosystems
Answer: phytoplankton, larger algae such as Sargassum, and flowering
plants such as the sea grasses.
●● Function of sea grasses
Answer: provides food for primary consumers, a habitat for many other
organisms, and shelter for juvenile fish. help to reduce water current
speed and increase sedimentation. their roots and rhizomes stabilize the
substrate, and therefore reduce coastal erosion.
●● Types of phytoplankton
Answer: diatoms, dinoflagellates, cyanobacteria
●● Sargassum
Answer: widely distributed in tropical and temperate oceans. typically
grows in shallow water and coral reefs, but there are also free-floating
planktonic species.
●● Sea grasses
,Answer: grow in shallow, sheltered areas, rooted in a muddy or sandy
substrate.
●● Kelp forests
Answer: occur in cool, clear waters in depths of up to about 40 m.
●● Chemosynthesis
Answer: using energy derived from the oxidation of inorganic
substances such as hydrogen sulfide and ammonia. occurs in the deep
ocean around hydrothermal vents. the total fixation of carbon by
chemosynthesis is small compared with photosynthesis.
●● Chloroplasts
Answer: organelles in which photosynthesis occurs. contain a number of
pigments which absorb light energy and start the process of
photosynthesis.
●● Factors affecting the rate of photosynthesis
Answer: light intensity, light wavelength, concentration of carbon
dioxide, temperature
●● Light intensity
Answer: in the absence of light, no photosynthesis occurs, but
respiration continues. as the light intensity increases, the rate of
, photosynthesis increases. eventually, the rate of photosynthesis levels
out and reaches a plateau.
●● Temperature
Answer: as temperature increases, the rate of photosynthesis increases
up to an optimum. above this temperature, the rate of photosynthesis
declines as the temperature increased. different species of phytoplankton
are adapted to different temperature ranges.
●● Light wavelengths
Answer: the surface layer of the ocean is where there is sufficient light
for photosynthesis and is referred to as the photic zone, reaching 30-150
m from the surface. the longer wavelengths of light, in the red, orange
and yellow part of the spectrum penetrate to about 15-50 m. shorter
wavelengths in the blue or green parts of the spectrum can penetrate to
greater depths, reaching 100 m or lower.
●● Aerobic respiration
Answer: the process by which almost all living organisms obtain the
energy they need, by the oxidation of organic molecules such as glucose.
●● Aerobic respiration formula
Answer: glucose + oxygen ---> carbon dioxide + water
●● Surface area to volume ratio
UPDATED QUESTIONS AND VERIFIED
ANSWERS SUCCESS KIT
●● Primary producers in marine ecosystems
Answer: phytoplankton, larger algae such as Sargassum, and flowering
plants such as the sea grasses.
●● Function of sea grasses
Answer: provides food for primary consumers, a habitat for many other
organisms, and shelter for juvenile fish. help to reduce water current
speed and increase sedimentation. their roots and rhizomes stabilize the
substrate, and therefore reduce coastal erosion.
●● Types of phytoplankton
Answer: diatoms, dinoflagellates, cyanobacteria
●● Sargassum
Answer: widely distributed in tropical and temperate oceans. typically
grows in shallow water and coral reefs, but there are also free-floating
planktonic species.
●● Sea grasses
,Answer: grow in shallow, sheltered areas, rooted in a muddy or sandy
substrate.
●● Kelp forests
Answer: occur in cool, clear waters in depths of up to about 40 m.
●● Chemosynthesis
Answer: using energy derived from the oxidation of inorganic
substances such as hydrogen sulfide and ammonia. occurs in the deep
ocean around hydrothermal vents. the total fixation of carbon by
chemosynthesis is small compared with photosynthesis.
●● Chloroplasts
Answer: organelles in which photosynthesis occurs. contain a number of
pigments which absorb light energy and start the process of
photosynthesis.
●● Factors affecting the rate of photosynthesis
Answer: light intensity, light wavelength, concentration of carbon
dioxide, temperature
●● Light intensity
Answer: in the absence of light, no photosynthesis occurs, but
respiration continues. as the light intensity increases, the rate of
, photosynthesis increases. eventually, the rate of photosynthesis levels
out and reaches a plateau.
●● Temperature
Answer: as temperature increases, the rate of photosynthesis increases
up to an optimum. above this temperature, the rate of photosynthesis
declines as the temperature increased. different species of phytoplankton
are adapted to different temperature ranges.
●● Light wavelengths
Answer: the surface layer of the ocean is where there is sufficient light
for photosynthesis and is referred to as the photic zone, reaching 30-150
m from the surface. the longer wavelengths of light, in the red, orange
and yellow part of the spectrum penetrate to about 15-50 m. shorter
wavelengths in the blue or green parts of the spectrum can penetrate to
greater depths, reaching 100 m or lower.
●● Aerobic respiration
Answer: the process by which almost all living organisms obtain the
energy they need, by the oxidation of organic molecules such as glucose.
●● Aerobic respiration formula
Answer: glucose + oxygen ---> carbon dioxide + water
●● Surface area to volume ratio
