ENVR 1401 Ch. 14 HW LAB – Flashcards
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Living on a fault line that is prone to earthquakes is an example of a _____ hazard.
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physical
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Cigarette smoke and radon are two of the most common _____ hazards.
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indoor
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The leading cause of death in the world today is _________.
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disease
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Which of the following is an example of a cultural hazard?
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smoking cigarettes
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Which of the following statements is true regarding toxins?
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Toxic exposures can be natural or because of exposure to synthetic chemicals.
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A child enters the pediatrician's office with symptoms that include *anemia, hearing loss, kidney, and stomach problems.* The family has just recently moved into a 50-year-old home and is doing renovations. What might be the problem with this child?
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lead poisoning
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Which of the following types of hazards spread quickly worldwide because of human mobility?
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biological hazards
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Which important environmental book exposed the hazards of using the insecticide DDT?
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Silent Spring
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Which term describes a type of toxicant that can cause cancer?
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carcinogen
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Why are insecticides (such as DDT) used in developing countries despite being banned in many developed countries?
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They are used because the benefits to human health are believed to outweigh the environmental costs.
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In many waterways around the United States, poly-chlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) have contaminated the sediments and wildlife. Given that most of the PCBs in the environment were released before 1980 and are *still present* in these ecosystems, which best describes this phenomenon?
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long persistence
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How do endocrine disruptors affect human health at very low doses?
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They mimic or block hormones that direct reproductive and developmental processes.
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An infant can receive _________.
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toxins from its mother while in the womb
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Nicotine and alcohol have been shown to be harmful to a fetus in the womb in that they can lead to birth defects. Nicotine and alcohol are therefore potential __________.
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teratogens
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BPA and phthalates are known _________.
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endocrine disruptors
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Why are pristine areas, undisturbed by humans, contaminated with human-generated toxicants?
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The toxicants are carried by the wind.
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Which of the following describes the process of biomagnification?
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It is the increase in toxicant concentration as it moves up to the top trophic levels in the food chain.
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The____ is the adverse effects an organism exp. when exposed to a toxic substance
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response
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The amount of toxic substance to which an organism is exposed is the ____.
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Dose
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Some toxic substances elicit effects only when they overwhelm the body's defenses above a(n)____ dose.
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threshold
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One example of a(n)_____ would be the quantity of a toxic substance that causes 50% of lab rates to show reduced appetite after exposure.
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ED50
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The____ is the quantity of a toxic substance needed to *kill* half of the study organisms.
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LD50
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_____ studies are comparisons that *track the rate of large groups of people* for long periods of time in order to help answer an environmental question.
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Epidemiological
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A _____ LD50 indicates low toxicity while a _____ LD50 indicates high toxicity.
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high; low
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Which types of experiments are needed to establish that a certain toxicant actually causes a particular disease?
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manipulative
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Dose-response curves are developed by _______.
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graphing the response of model systems or organisms to specific doses of toxicants
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Exposure to low amounts of a chemical over long periods of time is _______.
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chronic exposure
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Which areas have the highest concentrations of pesticides in streams that are harmful to aquatic life?
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urban
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A low LD50 indicates _______.
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a high toxicity
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Epidemiology is important for understanding human toxicology because _______.
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following individuals with exposure to toxicants or mutagens allows for the calculation of the rates at which health problems are likely to develop.
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Which determines whether groups of people that have been exposed to a chemical have experienced a statistically greater degree of harm as opposed to a group that was not exposed?
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epidemiological studies
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Scientists are interested in the effects of environmental hazards on wildlife because _________.
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animals can serve as an early warning to the damage of environmental toxins
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Which term quantitatively describes the likelihood that you would have an effect from exposure to an environmental toxin?
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probability
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Risk _____ includes *decisions and strategies* that will minimize risk.
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management
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Environmental health advocates criticize the process of risk management, saying that it gives too much weight to _______.
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economic interests
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Risk is determined using the statistical description called _____, which helps us to determine the likelihood of a certain even occurring.
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probability
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Which role has the international community taken regarding toxins?
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Its actions have resulted in the proposal of conventions for toxicant regulation.
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The "precautionary principle approach" to chemical testing ______________.
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prevents products from entering the marketplace until well tested
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If an evaluating committee places the burden of proof of the safety of a new chemical on the manufacturer of the chemical, then the committee is using the _________.
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precautionary principle
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Which of the following statements about the United States and Europe are true regarding toxins?
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European nations tend to use the precautionary principle, whereas the United States follows the innocent-until-proven-guilty approach.
