Daily Static Quiz – 23rd January, 2023

Correct Answer: C
Explanation
• Options 1 and 3 are correct. Option 2 is incorrect.
• Use of low-sulfur petrol and diesel will result in low emissions of SOx and will reduce Acid Rain. Hence, statement 1 is CORRECT.
• As exhaust emission passes through the catalytic converter, unburnt hydrocarbons are converted into carbon dioxide and water, while carbon monoxide and nitric oxide are changed to carbon dioxide and nitrogen gas. Hence, statement 2 is INCORRECT.
• Methanol is a promising fuel as it is clean, cheaper than fossil fuels and a good substitute for heavy fuels as it reduces the emission significantly. Hence, statement 3 is CORRECT.

Correct Answer: D
Explanation
• All of the options are correct. A carbon sink/reservoir is anything that absorbs more carbon from the atmosphere than it releases.
• Soils and the plants that grow in them absorb about a third of the carbon emissions that drive the climate crisis, partly limiting the impact of fossil-fuel burning. Hence, option 1 is correct.
• Forests are typically carbon sinks, places that absorb more carbon than they release. They continually take carbon out of the atmosphere through the process of photosynthesis. Hence, option 4 is correct.
• The ocean and Wetlands are another examples of a carbon sink, absorbing a large amount of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Sedimentary rocks may hold an enormous amount of carbon, but they are not considered a carbon sink because they no longer take in more carbon than is released primarily through volcanic eruptions. Hence, options 2 and 3 are correct.
• In contrast, a carbon source is anything that releases more carbon into the atmosphere than it absorbs–for example, the burning of fossil fuels or volcanic eruptions.
• The amount of carbon on Earth has never changed but where carbon is located is constantly changing–it flows between the atmosphere and organisms on Earth as it’s released or absorbed. This is known as the carbon cycle–a process that has been perfectly balanced for thousands of years.
• Increased human activity is upsetting the balance. We’re releasing more carbon into the atmosphere than the Earth’s natural carbon sinks can absorb.
• Our continued reliance on fossil fuels for energy means billions of tonnes of carbon are released into the atmosphere every year.
• The importance of carbon sinks has never been greater. Hence, protecting natural carbon sinks is essential for tackling climate change and keeping our climate stable. But they’re increasingly under threat.

Correct Answer: C
Explanation
• Both the statements are correct.
• Since small animals have a larger surface area relative to their volume, they tend to lose body heat very fast when it is cold outside; then they have to expend much energy to generate body heat through metabolism. This is the main reason why very small animals are rarely found in polar regions.
• The animals which live in cold climates have very thick fur over the body to trap air and insulate it. They also have a layer of stored fat under the skin to give additional insulation.

Correct Answer: A
Explanation
• Statement 1 is correct. Statement 2 is incorrect.
• Statement 1 is correct. Warm-blooded animals maintain a constant body heat. They can produce heat within their body and gain energy from food. Their temperature does not changes with surroundings.
• Statement 2 is incorrect. Cold-blooded animals cannot maintain their body heat and it changes with surroundings as they obtain heat from the surroundings. They always gain energy in the form of heat to maintain body heat.
• All vertebrate or back-boned animal life in the world is divided into two classes, the warmblooded animals and the cold-blooded. The former group includes those whose blood keeps a constant temperature and is little affected by the temperature of the surrounding air.
• The latter group includes fishes, frogs and reptiles whose blood temperature changes with the temperature of the surrounding atmosphere.
• The warm-blooded animals are further subdivided into Mammals (including human beings) which are covered with hair, bear live young and suckle them, and Birds, which are covered with feathers, lay eggs and as a rule make them hatch with the heat of their bodies.

Correct Answer: A
Explanation
• Statement 1 is correct. Statements 2 and 3 are incorrect.
• Sacred groves are forest fragments of varying sizes, which are communally protected, and which usually have a significant religious connotation for the protecting community. Eg Sacred Groves in Himachal Pradesh are referred as DeoBhoomi.
• Statement 1 is correct. It is an in-situ method of biodiversity conservation as the flora and fauna are protected and conserved at the original site.
• Statement 2 is Incorrect. Sacred groves had no legal protection till 2002. However in the 2002 amendment of Wildlife Protection Act 1972, a provision was provided through which state government can confer legal protection to sacred groves.
• Statement 3 is Incorrect. Traditionally animal hunting is prohibited in sacred groves. However, some animals, which are not protected under Wildlife Protection Act, may be hunted by community members for religious rituals. The state government, if required, may put a ban on hunting of such animals.

Correct Answer: A
Explanation
Pairs 1 and 2 are correct. Pair 3 is incorrect.
Cactuses are unaffected by tarantulas. White-tailed deer have no effect on snakes, and snakes have no effect on deer. Hence both are examples of Neutralism. Black walnut (Juglans nigra), which secretes juglone, a substance that destroys many herbaceous plants within its root zone is an example of Amensalism.

Correct Answer: C
Explanation
Statement 2 is correct while statements 1 and 3 are incorrect.
Primary succession is a biotic succession that occurs on the previously sterile or primarily bare area. In other words, it occurs in an area which has been bare from the beginning. Hence it can occur on newly exposed sea floor, igneous rocks, and newly-cooled lava sediments. However, freshly harvested field and cleared forest area are example of secondary succession as it occurs in an area which has been denuded recently.

Correct Answer: A
Explanation
• Statement 1 is correct. Statements 2 and 3 are incorrect.
• Statement 1 is correct. A pond is an example of a complete, closed and an independent ecosystem. It is convenient to study its basic structure and functions. It works on solar energy and maintains its biotic community in equilibrium. If you collect a glass full of pond water or a scoop full of pond bottom mud, it consists of a mixture of plants, animals, inorganic and organic materials.
• Statement 2 is incorrect. The Organic compounds commonly found organic matter in the pond are amino acids and humic acids and the breakdown products of dead animals and plants. They are partly dissolved in water and partly suspended in water.
• Statement 3 is incorrect. They are distributed through out the entire in the whole pond but in the sediment most abundant. There are bacteria and fungi. (Rhizopus, Penicillium, Curvularia ,Cladosporium) found at the bottom of the pond.

Correct Answer: B
Explanation
• Option 4 is incorrect. Options 1, 2, and 3 are correct.
• Mineral extraction does not have mandatory EIA.
• Mandatory EIA: Major projects that are mandatorily subjected to EIA before execution include crude oil refineries, thermal power stations, chemical installations, trading ports, special waste incineration, installations for the disposal of radioactive wastes, motorways and major roads, waste treatment or landfill, iron and steel industry, heavy mining, etc.
• Discretionary EIA: Some projects are subjected to discretionary environmental assessment in case they are likely to have significant environmental effects. Such projects include poultry units, metal processing, mineral extracting, glass making, food manufacturing, holiday resorts, tanneries, paper industry etc.

Correct Answer: A
Explanation
• Statement 1 is correct. Statement 2 is incorrect. Photochemical smog is a mixture of pollutants that are formed when nitrogen oxides and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) react to sunlight, creating a brown haze above cities. It tends to occur more often in summer, because that is when we have the most sunlight. Primary pollutants. Photochemical (summer smog) forms when pollutants such as nitrogen oxides (primary pollutant) and organic compounds (primary pollutants) react together in the presence of SUNLIGHT. A gas called OZONE (Secondary pollutant) is formed. Nitrogen Dioxide + Sunlight + Hydrocarbons = Ozone (Ozone in the stratosphere it is beneficial, but near the earth’s surface it results in global warming as it is a greenhouse gas). Hence statement 1 is CORRECT. This ozone is ground level but not the stratospheric. Nitrogen oxides are produced mainly from the combustion of fossil fuels, particularly in power stations and motor vehicles.
• VOCs are formed from the incomplete combustion of fossil fuels, from the evaporation of solvents and fuels, and from burning plant matter—such as backyard burning and wood-burning stoves. In nature, bushfires, lightning and the microbial processes that occur in soil generate nitrogen oxides.
• VOCs are produced from the evaporation of naturally-occurring compounds, such as terpenes, which are the hydrocarbons in oils that make them burn. Eucalypts have also been found to release significant amounts of these compounds. Hence statement 2 is INCORRECT.