Q: I read this background article the other day: Huge amounts of chemicals, such as fertilizers and pesticides, are applied to farm fields (see Figure below ). Some of the chemicals are picked up by rainwater. Runoff then carries the chemicals to nearby rivers or lakes. Dissolved fertilizer causes too much growth of water plants and algae. This can lead to dead zones where nothing can live in lakes and at the mouths of rivers. Some of the chemicals can infiltrate into groundwater. The contaminated water comes up in water wells. If people drink the polluted water, they may get sick. I am facing a new situation today: Two neighboring towns used different approaches to agriculture. Big town used pesticides and fertilizers, while Small town applied permaculture principles and organic farming methods. Using the knowledge I acquired from the background article, how should I answer correctly the following question regarding my new situation: Which town had less growth of algae because of fertilizer?
A: Small

Q: I read this background article the other day: Almost all earthquakes occur at plate boundaries. All types of plate boundaries have earthquakes. Convection within the Earth causes the plates to move. As the plates move, stresses build. When the stresses build too much, the rocks break. The break releases the energy that was stored in the rocks. The sudden release of energy creates an earthquake. During an earthquake the rocks usually move several centimeters or rarely as much as a few meters. Elastic rebound theory describes how earthquakes occur ( Figure below ). I am facing a new situation today: Two brothers loved geology. Bob studied sedimentary rocks while Dan studied about earthquakes and their location. Using the knowledge I acquired from the background article, how should I answer correctly the following question regarding my new situation: Which brother studied more about rocks breaking as a result of stress buildup?
A: Dan

Q: I read this background article the other day: When you add sugar to a cold drink, you may stir it to help the sugar dissolve. If you don't stir, the sugar may eventually dissolve, but it will take much longer. Stirring is one of several factors that affect how fast a solute dissolves in a solvent. Temperature is another factor. A solid solute dissolves faster at a higher temperature. For example, sugar dissolves faster in hot tea than in ice tea. A third factor that affects the rate of dissolving is the surface area of the solute. For example, if you put granulated sugar in a glass of ice tea, it will dissolve more quickly than the same amount of sugar in a cube. That's because granulated sugar has much more surface area than a cube of sugar. You can see videos of all three factors at these URLs I am facing a new situation today: Justin is conducting a chemical experiment involving sodium hydroxide. A key part of the reaction is ensuring that the sodium hydroxide is dissolved in water before adding the other materials. Justin adds the sodium hydroxide to reaction A, and sets the heat to high. Justin can't use high heat for his second reaction, though, because the electricity supply is too weak to have both burners on high. Because of this, Justin adds the sodium hydroxide to reaction B and sets the heat to low. Using the knowledge I acquired from the background article, how should I answer correctly the following question regarding my new situation: In which reaction will the sodium hydroxide dissolve faster?
A: reaction A

Q: I read this background article the other day: Clouds on Earth are made of water vapor. Venus's clouds are a lot less pleasant. They are made of carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide and large amounts of corrosive sulfuric acid! The atmosphere of Venus is so thick that the pressure on the surface of Venus is very high. In fact, it is 90 times greater than the pressure at Earth's surface! The thick atmosphere causes a strong greenhouse effect. As a result, Venus is the hottest planet. Even though it is farther from the Sun, Venus is much hotter even than Mercury. Temperatures at the surface reach 465C (860F). That's hot enough to melt lead! I am facing a new situation today: In year 2200, David is an astronaut and an avid galaxy hopper from a planet hundred light years away. He ended up in the solar system in search of water. He identified three planets, planet A, planet B and planet C. Little did he know that less than a hundred years ago people used to call planet A as Earth, planet B as Venus, and planet C as Mercury. Using the knowledge I acquired from the background article, how should I answer correctly the following question regarding my new situation: Would planet A have stronger or weaker greenhouse effect than planet B?
A:
weaker