[Q]: I read this background article the other day: Tropical forests (rainforests) receive more insolation and rainfall over longer growing seasons than any other environment on earth. With these elevated temperatures, insolation and rainfall, biomass is extremely productive leading to the production of as much as 800 grams of carbon per square meter per year. Higher temperatures and larger amounts of water contribute to higher rates of chemical weathering. Increased rates of decomposition cause smaller amounts of fulvic acid to percolate and leach metals from the zone of active weathering. Thus, in stark contrast to soil in forests, tropical forests have little to no podzolization and therefore do not have marked visual and chemical contrasts with the soil layers. Instead, the mobile metals Mg, Fe and Al are precipitated as oxide minerals giving the soil a rusty red color. I am facing a new situation today: John was studying the characteristics of tropical forests. For that, he chose forests in Laos. To compare the forests in Laos with the temperate zone forests he chose forests in Ireland. He could clearly see that how they differed in important ways. Using the knowledge I acquired from the background article, how should I answer correctly the following question regarding my new situation: Which forests would see higher rates of chemical weathering, Laos or Ireland?
****
[A]: Laos
input: Please answer the following: I read this background article the other day: While the Grants were on the Galapagos, a drought occurred. As a result, fewer seeds were available for finches to eat. Birds with smaller beaks could crack open and eat only the smaller seeds. Birds with bigger beaks could crack and eat seeds of all sizes. As a result, many of the small-beaked birds died in the drought. Birds with bigger beaks survived and reproduced (see Figure below ). Within 2 years, the average beak size in the finch population increased. Evolution by natural selection had occurred. I am facing a new situation today: Two neighboring islands inhabited by thousands of birds each were hit by extreme weather. While Port island experienced wet weather over the past 3 summers, Bank island experienced severe drought, therefore the food supply on the island diminished. Using the knowledge I acquired from the background article, how should I answer correctly the following question regarding my new situation: Which island had fewer seeds available for the birds to eat?
++++++++++
output: Bank
Please answer this: I read this background article the other day: In addition to insects, weeds have also been a menace to farmers - just ask anyone with a garden how much they hate weeds. They can quickly compete for water and nutrients needed by other plants. Sure, farmers can use herbicides to kill weeds, but do these chemicals also harm the crops? Can biotechnology help with this issue? Some crops have also been genetically engineered to acquire tolerance to the herbicides - allowing the crops to grow, but killing the weeds. But the lack of cost effective herbicides with a broad range of activity - that do not harm crops - is a problem in weed management. Multiple applications of numerous herbicides are routinely needed to control the wide range of weeds that are harmful to crops. And at times these herbicides are being used as a preventive measure that is, spraying to prevent weeds from developing rather than spraying after weeds form. So these chemicals are being added to crops. This practice is followed by mechanical and/or hand weeding to control weeds that are not controlled by the chemicals. Crops that are tolerant of herbicides would obviously be a tremendous benefit to farmers ( Figure above ). The introduction of herbicide tolerant crops has the potential to reduce the number of chemicals needed during a growing season, thereby increasing crop yield due to improved weed management and decreased harm to the crops. I am facing a new situation today: Because of the weed and insect menace villagers from North village decided to use herbicide tolerant crops. South village decided to postpone a decision and kept using regular seeds. Using the knowledge I acquired from the background article, how should I answer correctly the following question regarding my new situation: Which village improved their weed management?
++++++++
Answer: North
Problem: I read this background article the other day: Blood vessels help regulate body processes by either constricting (becoming narrower) or dilating (becoming wider). These actions occur in response to signals from the autonomic nervous system or the endocrine system. Constriction occurs when the muscular walls of blood vessels contract. This reduces the amount of blood that can flow through the vessels (see Figure below ). Dilation occurs when the walls relax. This increases blood flows through the vessels. I am facing a new situation today: Greg is a physician working for the city hospital. Today he is seeing two patients, patient A and patient B. He noticed that patient A's blood vessels are constricted, but blood vessels of patient B are dilated. He needs to prescribe medicine according to his observation. Using the knowledge I acquired from the background article, how should I answer correctly the following question regarding my new situation: Which patient would have wider blood vessels, patient A or patient B?

A: patient B
Problem: Given the question: I read this background article the other day: Compared to conventional milk production, organic milk production tends to have lower eutrophication potential per ton of milk or per hectare of farmland, because it potentially reduces leaching of nitrates (NO3) and phosphates (PO4) due to lower fertilizer application rates. Because organic milk production reduces pesticides utilization, it increases land use per ton of milk due to decreased crop yields per hectare. Mainly due to the lower level of concentrates given to cows in organic herds, organic dairy farms generally produce less milk per cow than conventional dairy farms. Because of the increased use of roughage and the, on-average, lower milk production level per cow, some research has connected organic milk production with increases in the emission of methane.Animal welfare issues vary among dairy farms and are not necessarily related to the way of producing milk (organically or conventionally). I am facing a new situation today: Two different countries have different approaches to milk production. Austria produced organic milk, while Hungary produced conventional milk. Using the knowledge I acquired from the background article, how should I answer correctly the following question regarding my new situation: Which country didn't reduce pesticides utilization?
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The answer is:
Hungary
Problem: I read this background article the other day: Wildfire intensity increases during daytime hours. For example, burn rates of smoldering logs are up to five times greater during the day because of lower humidity, increased temperatures, and increased wind speeds. Sunlight warms the ground during the day and causes air currents to travel uphill, and downhill during the night as the land cools. Wildfires are fanned by these winds and often follow the air currents over hills and through valleys. United States wildfire operations revolve around a 24-hour fire day that begins at 10:00 a.m. because of the predictable increase in intensity resulting from the daytime warmth. I am facing a new situation today: Robert was watching the local news when he saw a report about a wildfire. The report stated that there was a brush fire in the southwest part of Texas, where it was currently daytime. When he switched the channel, he saw another report about a different wildfire. This one was a forest fire in the northwest part of Seattle, where it was currently nighttime. Using the knowledge I acquired from the background article, how should I answer correctly the following question regarding my new situation: Which wildfire, the one in Texas or the one in Seattle, will have higher intensity?

A:
the one in Texas