1. After attending lecture, attempt to answer as many of the questions as possible.
        Use the textbook as an additional resource.

    2. Note that the goal is to understand the concepts behind the study questions - writing
        down the answers may just be the first step to this understanding.

    3. If a question is particularly difficult for you, think about how other elements in the lecture
        might relate to that concept. For example, when describing the surface winds, you may
        want to think about the vertical circulation cells in the atmosphere and the direction
        that the Coriolis effect deflects winds in each hemisphere.

    4. If you are still having trouble with a concept, ask the instructor.

Intro to Oceanography

1. What are the various branches of oceanography?
2. What scientific issues are the focus of each of these branches?
3. List one or two reasons why each of these branches of oceanography might be important to society.
4. What does "interdisciplinary" mean?
5. Give one or two examples of the types of oceanographic work that might be considered "interdisciplinary".
6. List several ways that humans use the oceans and several ways that human impact the oceans.
7. List a few resources that humans extract from the oceans.
8. Is stewardship of the oceans likely to become more or less important in the coming decades?  Why?

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Oceans: Powering Hurricanes

1. What conditions are required for the development of a hurricane? 

2. Why is the ocean important to the development of hurricanes?
3. Can hurricanes develop on the equator?  Why or why not?
4. Where does a hurricane's energy come from? 

5. About what fraction of a hurricane's energy is converted to wind energy?
6. Why do hurricanes weaken when they move over land or over cold ocean water?
7. Describe how storm surge develops due to a hurricane or other strong storm.
8. How does the geometry of the coastline influence the height of a storm surge?
9. How do scientists forecast storm surge? 

10. Why are forecasts of storm surge important?

 

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Earthquakes and the Structure of the Earth

1. How are earth quakes measured?
2. How are earthquakes located?
3. How are earthquakes ranked in size and by damage?  
4. What is "density" and how is it measured?
5. The layers of the Earth, as classified by chemical composition, are the crust, mantle, and core.  Describe qualitatively (i.e.,

     without using the exact numerical values) how density varies for these layers and where each is located in the Earth.
6. What process leads to separation of materials according to their density?
7. How is continental crust different from oceanic crust and why?
8. Name the layers of the Earth, as classified by their physical properties. 

9. What are the unique features of each of these layers, and how does each layer correspond to the layers defined based on

    chemical composition?
10. What is "isostatic equilibrium"?
11. What happens to the "roots" of large mountain ranges as the mountains erode and why?
12. What are the two types of seismic waves and how do they differ?
13. What is a "shadow zone"?
14. How do shadow zones aid in understanding the structure of the Earth?
15. How do shadow zones aid in identifying the locations of earthquakes?

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Seafloor magnetism, seafloor spreading: Developing the Theory of Plate Tectonics

1.  What was the continental drift hypothesis?
2.  What types of evidence were cited in support of this hypothesis?

3.  Why is the earth's magnetic field relevant to the development of the the theory of plate tectonics?
4.  That the surface of the Earth is divided into "plates" and that these plates move relative to one another is fundamental to the 

     theory of plate tectonics. 

5.  Describe a few lines of evidence that scientists used to develop the theory of plate tectonics.

6.  Are earthquakes randomly distributed?  If not, where are they most common?  Where are they less common?
7.  What do scientists mean by the term "theory"?  How does the scientific usage of the word "theory" differ from the more popular

      usage of the word?

8.  Today, which has more ocean, the northern or southern hemisphere?

9.  If you go to the north pole, will you find land or ocean?  Will you find the same thing at the south pole?

10. How are latitude and longitude used to specify location on Earth?

11. What is the continental drift hypothesis?  What is the evidence for this hypothesis?  Why was this hypothesis rejected by

      scientists?

12. People used to think that the sea was shaped like a bathtub (i.e., shallow at the edges, deep and featureless in the middle).

13. How does this view differ from reality?  How do we know?

14. Measurements of the magnetic properties of rocks in the Atlantic Ocean show a "striped" pattern, which is symmetrical about a

       line that runs from north to south down the center of the basin.  What does this pattern imply about the formation of these rocks?

15. Where is the seafloor youngest?  Oldest?  How does the age of the oldest seafloor compare with the age of the oldest

       continental rocks?

16. What is a "spreading center"?  How does this concept tie together information about the shape of the seafloor, its age, and its 

       magnetic properties?

 

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 Plate Tectonics: The Story of a Dynamic Earth

1. What are lithospheric plates?
2. How do oceanic plates differ from continental plates?
3. What are the two mechanisms that drive plate motion?
4. List a few things about the Earth that are explained by the theory of plate tectonics.

5. What is isostatic equilibrium?  How does this concept explain the steep drop off between the average height of the continents and 6. the average depth of the oceans? 
7. How does isostatic equilibrium result in "roots" of mountain ranges?  What do these roots get shallower as mountains erode?
8. What is the relationship between the locations of (most) earthquakes and plate geometry?  (You may want to compare figs 3.11  

     and 3.14 in the 4th Ed of the text or 3.11 and 3.15 in the 5th Ed of the text).
9. As mentioned in lecture, the locations of (most) earthquakes are explained by the theory of plate tectonics.  What other things   

    about the Earth that are explained by this theory?

10. What are the three types of plate boundaries and what type of motion corresponds to each?
11. At what type of plate boundary is lithosphere created?  Destroyed?
12. What is a rift?
13. What is magma?
14. Describe the sequence of events that lead to the formation of ocean basins (e.g., the opening of the Atlantic basin).
15. At what types of plate boundaries does subduction occur and why?
16. Why do earthquakes occur near subduction zones and how is the depth of earthquakes related to distance from the subduction

     zone?
17. Why do volcanoes form near subduction zones?
18. What is an island arc and how do they form?
19. At what type of plate boundary do large, folded mountain ranges form?
20. How are collisions between continental plates different from collisions between oceanic plates?
21. Why do earthquakes occur along transform plate boundaries?

22. At what type of plate boundary are deep ocean trenches found?
23. At what type of plate boundary are mid-ocean ridges found?

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Plate Tectonics and Ancient Oceans

Note: The online notes include the terminology "Ma" on many of the slides, this means "millions of years ago".
1. Why do strong earthquakes occur along some transform plate boundaries?
2. Define the parts of a continental margin (i.e., shelf, slope, rise).
3. Are continental shelves the same width everywhere?  Why?
4. What's the difference between a passive and an active oceanic margin? Where is an example of each found today? 
5. Climate in the past has sometimes been very different from today. Some of this difference is due to the tectonic changes associated with plate motion.
(a) how can the arrangement of continental land masses alter sea level?
(b) how can the arrangement of continental land masses change ocean circulation?
6. What was Ohio like 356 million years ago? Give two examples of Ohio's present-day geology that originated at about that time.
7. What was Pangea? What was Panthalassa? What happened to both of these features?
8. How did the Atlantic Ocean form?  Is this ocean shrinking or growing today?  Why?
9. What happened when the Indian plate collided with Asia?
10. The mountains of Central America formed via volcanic activity at a convergent plate boundary. What did the formation of these volcanic mountains do to the world ocean?
11. What will probably happen to the Mediterranean Sea within the next 50 million years?
12. What will probably happen to the Hawaiian Islands within the next 60-70 million years?

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1. What is the structure of a hot spot within the interior of the Earth?
2. What is signature of a hot spot on the surface of the Earth?
3. What are some features on Earth that were created by hot spots?
4. Are hot spots "connected" to individual lithospheric plates?  If not, how do hot spots influence plates?
5. How are volcanic island chains formed at hot spots?  Why do these islands take the form of "chains"?
6. Describe the inflation-deflation cycle of hot spot volcanism.
7. Why do earthquakes occur in connection with volcanic activity?
8. What causes explosive eruptions?
9. How can the direction of plate motion be determined from the orientation of island chains created by hot spots?

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Marine Sediments: Memory of the Sea

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Why is the Sea Salty?

           1. What kind of chemical bond holds together the water molecule and how does this bond affect the electrons in the molecule?
           3. Why is water a "polar" molecule?  What is the significance of the polarity
               of the water molecule?
           4. What properties are characteristic of a solid, liquid and gas?
           5. What is heat?  What is temperature?  How do they differ?
           6. What is the difference between latent and sensible heat?
           7. What is the difference between the latent heat of fusion and the latent
               heat of evaporation?  What is the significance of the fact that the latent
               heat of evaporation is greater than the latent heat of fusion for water?
           8. What is heat capacity?
           9. What are some effects of water's high heat capacity on the Earth?
           10. The seven most common ions in seawater are said to be "in constant proportions".
                What does this mean?
           11. How do "salts" enter and leave the sea?
           12. The sea is said to be in "chemical equilibrium" with regard to salts.  What
                  does this mean?

           13. What physical processes influence the amount of salts in the sea?

           14. What biological processes influence the amount of salts in the sea?

           15. What is "Steady State"?

           16. Why is the ocean saltier than river water?

           17. How does the salinity of the ocean influence the organisms that live in it?

           18. What is the Iron Hypothesis?

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Marine Pollution

1. What is pollution? What three characteristics of a pollutant determine its effect on an organism?
2. How are most pollutants delivered to the ocean?
3. What's the difference between a water-soluble, fat soluble and insoluble pollutant?
4. Where does most of the oil in the ocean come from?
5. Why are crude oil spills less harmful, in the long run, than spills of refined oil?  What other type of oil is particularly harmful when spilled?
6. What determines the ecological impact of an oil spill?
7. What is "nutrient pollution" (eutrophication)?
8. How can high levels of nutrients (which are sometimes considered good) be detrimental to animals in an ecosystem?
9. What's the difference between "point source" and "non-point source" pollution.
10. In the experience of our society recently, which has been more straightforward to handle, point-source or non-point source? Why?
11. What is a "dead zone"?  How do they form?  How do "dead zones" affect humans and other animals?
12. How are synthetic organic chemicals used in society?
13. What is "biological amplification"? Why is this a problem for humans?

The Atmosphere: Driving force for the Ocean

1. What are the most common gases in the atmosphere?  Why are some "trace gases" important to humans even though they are less common?
2. What is the relationship between atmospheric pressure and altitude?
3. What happens to the temperature and moistness of air as it rises? As it sinks? Why?
4. For two air masses at the same altitude, which is denser... warm or cold air? ...moist or dry air?
5. Is the heat balance of the Earth the same at every latitude? Why or why not?
6. What is a convection current?
7. Describe the pattern of atmospheric circulation on a non-rotating Earth. How is this pattern driven by variations of temperature

    between the tropics and poles?

8. What factors influence global atmospheric circulation?

9. What is a convection current?  How might a convection current occur on a non-rotating Earth?

 

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Sailing the Seas: The Wind-Driven Circulation

1. What are the differences between the wind-driven and density-driven ocean circulation?
2. When the wind blows over the ocean, which way does the water move in the northern and southern hemispheres? Why is there a difference between the direction the wind blows and the direction the water flows?
3. What two wind systems drive subtropical ocean gyres?
4. Where are eastern and western boundary currents found?
5. List some differences between eastern and western boundary currents.
6. On a map of the oceans, draw the locations (and indicate directions) of the subtropical gyre eastern and western boundary currents.
7. Why is the Antarctic Circumpolar Current unique?
8. How does the biological community within a cold core eddy differ from the biological community in surrounding water?  Why?  What happens to the cold core eddy community over time?
9. What is upwelling? Where and how does it occur?
10. Why are upwelling areas regions of high biological productivity?

11. What causes the Coriolis effect?
12. What does the Coriolis effect do to moving air parcels in the northern and southern hemispheres?
13. What are the three types of circulation cells found in the atmosphere (on the rotating Earth)? Sketch the direction of

    circulation in each cell.
14. Why are there three types of circulation cells, rather than just one?
15. Why are rainforests found at the convergence of the northern and southern hemisphere Hadley cells?
16. Why are deserts found in regions where the Hadley and Ferrel cells meet?

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Sea-Ice and the Density-Driven Circulation

1. Why is polar ice important to climate?  (Your answer should include concepts involving the ice-albedo feedback).
2. How does the polar ice in the Arctic differ from that in the Antarctic?  Which is more susceptible to the effects of climate warming?     Why?
3. What two physical properties determine the density of seawater? How does the density of seawater vary as each of these 

    properties changes?
4. What is density-driven ocean circulation?
5. What drives this circulation? (be more specific than "density")
6. In most locations, is sea water at depth warmer or colder than at the surface? Fresher or saltier? More or less dense?
7. What is a water mass? Why are many water masses layered vertically in the ocean?
8. What happens when two water masses are forced together by the wind?
9. What is "bottom water"? How does it form?
10. How can evaporation lead to the formation of dense water?
11. The basic concept behind the thermohaline circulation is quite similar to the temperature-driven convection currents discussed in

       the lecture on atmospheric circulation. Why is this?
12. What is the pathway of the density-driven (thermohaline) circulation? How does this differ from the pathways of wind-driven

       circulation?
13. If less sea ice were to form each year, how would this affect the density-driven circulation?

14. How does the density of fresh water vary with changes in this physical property?

15.  How does one read a T-S diagram?

16. Is water at depth warmer or colder than at the surface?  Fresher or saltier? More or less dense?
17. Sketch an idealized equator to pole cross section of the ocean indicating the direction of flow in the thermohaline circulation and

       the effect of the atmosphere on ocean temperatures.

18. What happens when two water masses are forced together by the wind in a convergence zone?
19. Sketch a cross-section of the Atlantic basin from Antarctic to the Arctic.
20. Label the main water masses and indicate their direction of flow.

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Sea, Sky, Land, The Climate Connection

1. What is climate?  How is climate different from weather?
2. What is the difference between "external" and "internal" forcing of climate variations?
3. What is an example of a climate change that is caused by "external forcing"?  On what time scales do externally force climate

    changes typically occur?
4. Very different climates can occur for the same amount of solar radiation received at the top of the atmosphere. Why is this?
5. What is heat capacity? How does the difference in heat capacity between water and rocks (e.g., granite) influence how the

    temperatures of these substances change as they are heated or cooled?
6. How does the difference in heat capacity between ocean and land influence climate in coastal and continental regions?
7. Describe how the wind-driven ocean circulation influences climate on the eastern and western sides of an ocean basin.
8. Why do sea and land breezes occur in coastal zones?
9. What is a monsoon?  How and where do they occur?
10. What aspects of society are sensitive to monsoons?
11. What is El Nino? How does it affect societies?

12. What is the "normal" atmospheric circulation pattern in the tropical Pacific?  How does this change in an El Nino year?
13. Scientists can now provide advance warning of a developing El Nino or La Nina.  What information do they use in order to detect

      these climate changes in their early stages?

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Ocean Circulation, Food Webs and Climate

1. What is coastal upwelling? Why, and where, and when does it occur? How does it influence life in the ocean?

2. What is coastal downwelling? Why, and where, and when does it occur? How does it influence life in the ocean?

3. How does equatorial upwelling differ from coastal upwelling?  How does this influence life in the ocean?

4. What climate process causes equatorial upwelling to vary on interannual timescales?

5. How do El Nino conditions differ from La Nina conditions and "normal conditions"

6. What are some of the far field (teleconnection) effects of El Nino Southern Oscillation (ENSO)?

7. What is the thermocline? How is it influenced by changes in ENSO?

8. Can scientists predict when ENSO will occur?

9. How does ENSO affect marine life?

Climate Change and Life in the Greenhouse

1. What is climate?  How does climate differ from weather?
2. Very different climates can occur for the same amount of solar radiation received at the top of the atmosphere. Why is this?
3. How do scientists learn about past climates?
4. What is the greenhouse effect and why is it important to most life on Earth?
5. List some ways that greenhouse gases enter the atmosphere naturally.  List some ways that greenhouse gases enter the 

    atmosphere via human activities.
6. What is the present concentration of CO₂ in the atmosphere (in parts per million)?  How does this compare with the concentration

    of atmospheric CO₂ prior to industrialization?
7. Direct measurements of atmospheric chemistry (in particular carbon dioxide concentrations) have been systematically collected

    for only a few decades. How do scientists know the chemical composition of the atmosphere hundreds or thousands of years

    ago?
8. Many experts believe that unless efforts are made to reduce emissions, atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations will increase

    over the next 100 years to at least double their present value. When was the last time in Earth's history that many scientists think

    atmospheric carbon dioxide levels were this high?
9. Based on the evidence that's accumulated so far, has the Earth really warmed up over the past 100 years? If so, how much (on

     average, globally)?
10. What aspects of climate are expected to change due the increase of greenhouse gases? Have any of these changes already

     been observed?
11. What sectors of society might be affected by climate changes associated with increased concentrations of greenhouse gases?
12. Do scientists fully understand how climate will change in the future? Why or why not?
13. What options are available to societies in the event of significant climate change?

14. Describe how the "ice-albedo" feedback works.
15. What is sea ice?  How is sea ice different from land ice?
16. Why is Arctic sea ice more sensitive to climatological heating than land ice on Antarctica?
17. What aspects of Arctic climate are now changing?  Do scientists expect that these changes will become more dramatic in the

    future?  Why or why not?
18. Describe two ways in which a warming Arctic can influence global sea level.  Are sea level changes anticipated from Arctic

    warming over the next 100 years a concern in areas other than the Arctic? 
19. How might the input of fresh water into the sea in the north polar area influence the thermohaline circulation?
20. Have scientists observed changes in the area of the Arctic covered by sea ice in recent years?  How might changes in sea ice

    cover affect Arctic ecology? 
21. How might anticipated changes in Arctic sea ice cover affect global climate via the "ice-albedo" feedback?

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Ocean Waves

1. What is a wave?
2. Describe how the water particles move as an ocean wave passes by.  How does this compare to how the energy of the wave 

    moves?
3. Draw a sketch of a wave. Label the wave crest, trough, wavelength and wave height.
4. What is a disturbing force? How does it affect a wave's energy?  Give a few examples of disturbing forces for ocean waves.
5. What is a restoring force? How does it affect a wave's energy?  What two restoring forces are important for ocean waves?
6. What determines whether a wave is a "deep water wave" or a "shallow water wave"?  Give an example (or two) of deep and

     shallow water waves.
7. Sketch the particle motion for deep and shallow water waves.  How does the motion of water particles differ for these two wave

    types?
8. What three aspects of wind affect wave development?  Why are the waves of fully developed seas on Lake Erie usually smaller

    than the waves of fully developed seas in the North Atlantic Ocean?
9. What is the difference between free and forced waves?

10. What is dispersion and how does it influence waves created by a storm as they travel away from the region where they were

       formed?
11. What are constructive and destructive interference? 
12. How does interference generate "rogue" waves?  Why are these dangerous to ships?
13. Why do waves break at the shore?
14. What is the difference between a spilling and a plunging breaker (and how is this related to the rate at which the wave loses

      energy)?
15. What conditions produce great surfing?  (Think about local winds versus winds far away and the shape of the beach). 

16. Why do waves refract (bend) when they approach shore from an angle?

 

1. What two forces result in tides?  Do tides result from a balancing (i.e., an equal and opposite match) of these forces or an imbalance between these forces?
2. Which are larger - lunar or solar tides? Why?
3. According to the equilibrium theory of tides, there is a tidal bulge on the side of the Earth facing the tide-generating body (i.e., moon or sun) and a tidal bulge of the side of the Earth facing away from the tide-generating body.  How do each of these tidal bulges arise?
4. At any location on Earth, how many high and low tides are expected in one day according to the equilibrium (i.e., simplest) theory of tides?
5. What causes spring and neap tides?
6. How are spring and neap tides related to the positions of the Earth, moon, and sun and the locations of the lunar and solar tidal bulges? (Sketch this and understand it).
7. What are semidiurnal, diurnal and mixed tides?  Why do these occur?
8. Describe how the distribution of animals and plants in many coastal areas reflects the influence of tides.  Describe some aspects of animal behavior that are linked to tidal cycles.

9. How does the Coriolis effect impact tidal motion within an ocean basin? 

10. Why are tides important to many marine organisms?  Give some examples of behavior that is linked to tidal cycles. 10 . Are tides waves and if so, what kind?
11. What important feature of the Earth is neglected in the equilibrium theory of tides?  (Note that this feature is accounted for by the
       dynamic theory of tides).
12. Why are there more different types of tidal motion in the Pacific basin than in the Atlantic?

 

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Tsunami

1. What generates tsunami?
2. What happens to the energy of a tsunami after it is generated?
3. Why is the term "tidal wave" an inaccurate description of a tsunami?
4. If you are at sea and a tsunami passes under your ship, what would you experience as the tsunami passed?
5. Why does the height of a tsunami increase as the tsunami approaches shore?
6. What determines how destructive a tsunami will be once it reaches shore?
7. Are tsunami more common in the Pacific or the Atlantic? Why?
8. A tsunami warning system has been established in the Pacific. What scientific information does this system use to issue tsunami warnings?
9. Is more advance warning of a tsunami generally available in Hawaii or Alaska? Explain why.

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Real Estate: Waves, Currents, Beaches

1. What four properties are common to all living things?
2. What is a species?
3. Describe the process of evolution by natural selection.
4. What is natural selection?

5. How does natural selection allow species to adapt to changing environments?
6. What is convergent evolution?
7. Describe how energy moves through an ecosystem - is energy recycled or is it used and then lost?
8. Describe how matter moves through an ecosystem - is matter recycled or is it used and then lost?
9. What materials are the inputs and the outputs of photosynthesis and respiration?
10. What types of organisms photosynthesize? What types of organisms respire?
11. How is a food web organized?  Why are food webs more realistic representations of feeding relationships than food chains?
12. What are phytoplankton?  How are they different from zooplankton?
13. Very small marine plants account for up to 95% of the ocean's biological growth. This is very different from the situation on land, where relatively large plants account for a large fraction of the biological growth. What properties of the ocean favor small plants instead of large ones?

14.  What are scientific names and why are the useful?

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Challenges of the Marine Environment

1. What four properties are common to all living things? 
2. What is a species? 
3. Describe the process of evolution by natural selection.  Why is the environment important in natural selection?
4. Are species that exhibit convergent evolution usually closely related?  Why or why not? 
5. List some physical factors that are important in the marine environment. 
6. What happens to light when it enters seawater?
7. What is the euphotic zone? Disphotic zone? Aphotic zone?  In which of these is photosynthesis possible? In which is vision possible?
8. Why is the availability of light in the ocean important to almost *all* marine organisms (even those that don't use light directly)? 
9. Describe how and why eye structures in fish differ depending on the depth where the fish lives. 
10. What is bioluminescence? How can it help an organism thrive? 
11. Why do many marine animals use sound instead of vision to locate prey and mates?
12. What other sensory systems do some marine organisms use (other than vision)? 
13. Why is floatation important to marine plants?. What are some strategies marine plants use to provide floatation? 
14. What are some strategies marine animals use to provide floatation? 
15. What are some strategies marine animals use to reduce the effects of drag?

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Marine Plants and Animals

1. What are the three major classifications of marine mammals. Give examples of animals in each of these classifications.
2. Why are manatees at risk from human activity?
3. Why are there no marine mammals smaller than a sea otter?
4. What functions does a blubber layer perform?
5. List a few strategies marine mammals use to maximize the efficiency of their respiratory system (i.e., breathing)?
6. Which moves more gracefully on land, a seal or sea lion? Why?
7. Why do whales migrate?. How do whales know where to go in their migrations?
8. What feeding strategies are used by baleen and toothed whales? 
9. How does a whale song differ from the sounds used in echolocation?
10. Why do the mouths of right and blue whales (which are both baleen whales) look different?
11. Which have more advanced brains, baleen or toothed whales? Why?
12. What technological advances led to dramatic increases in whale harvests?
13. What is the current status of many whale species that were hunted previously?

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1. Definitions: ecology, habitat, niche, community
2. What determines how successful an organism will be within a community?
3. Population growth can follow either a "J"-shaped or an "S"-shaped curve. What's the difference between these two cases? Which is more commonly found in nature? Under what conditions would the other type be found?
4. What are some biological interactions that can influence the success or distribution of an organism within a community?
5. Describe the feeding strategies discussed in class and the habitats that are well-suited for each strategy.
6. How does biodiversity differ in high, intermediate and low disturbance environments?  Why?
8. What type of food is available in photosynthetic, detrital and chemosynthetic communities?  Where are examples of each of these communities found? 
9. How are seaweeds different from phytoplankton? 
10. What physical and biological factors challenges face organisms that live in rocky intertidal zones?  What opportunities make this environment desirable for many species?
11. What conditions are needed for growth of a healthy kelp forest?  Describe the characteristics of the two kelp species discussed in class - to which environment is each best suited?
12. What is the "understory"?  Are understory plants and kelp plants highly productive at the same time of the year?  Why or why not?
13. Why is the sea otter considered a "keystone predator" in kelp forests?
14. For the three open-ocean environments that we discussed (blue water, mid-depth, deep sea floor), what are the challenges and opportunities available in each environment?  What adaptations are particularly useful in each environment? 

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Hot Vents, Cold Seeps, Life in extreme Environments

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1. What forms of bio-energy are available from the ocean? Are all of these forms renewable?

2. What biological process is the ultimate source of this bio-energy?

3. How do fossil fuels like oil and gas form?

4. What geologic conditions are required to yield an commercially viable oil or gas field?

5. How does the offshore extraction of oil and gas differ from terrestrial application?

6. What factors drive a need for new ways to obtain TAG, a critical component of bio-diesel?

7. What advantages do algae provide in terms of bio-diesel production?

8. How might these algae be grown?

9. What environmental needs do algae have for growth?

10. What environmental problems might the production of biodiesel from algae help to solve?

11. How do these compare with traditional terrestrial crops?

12. Compared with the extraction of mechanical energy from the ocean, is algal bio-diesel a more mature technology or less mature?

13. What are some of the research and development hurdles that must be solved to make this a viable option?

14. What economic or political changes or conditions or decisions are needed to make this a viable option?

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