Problem: Background: There is a large area of low ozone concentration or "ozone hole" over Antarctica. This hole covers almost the whole continent and was at its largest in September 2008, when the longest lasting hole on record remained until the end of December. The hole was detected by scientists in 1985 and has tended to increase over the years of observation. The ozone hole is attributed to the emission of chlorofluorocarbons or CFCs into the atmosphere, which decompose the ozone into other gases.Some scientific studies suggest that ozone depletion may have a dominant role in governing climatic change in Antarctica (and a wider area of the Southern Hemisphere). Ozone absorbs large amounts of ultraviolet radiation in the stratosphere. Ozone depletion over Antarctica can cause a cooling of around 6 C in the local stratosphere. This cooling has the effect of intensifying the westerly winds which flow around the continent (the polar vortex) and thus prevents outflow of the cold air near the South Pole. As a result, the continental mass of the East Antarctic ice sheet is held at lower temperatures, and the peripheral areas of Antarctica, especially the Antarctic Peninsula, are subject to higher temperatures, which promote accelerated melting. Models also suggest that the ozone depletion/enhanced polar vortex effect also accounts for the recent increase in sea ice just offshore of the continent. Paragraph: Blimpton and Jarmel are two neighboring planets in the Harshlan galaxy. Aliens are currently studying the two planets to see if either of them are suitable for habitation. While studying the planets, they discover that both planets have the same type of atmosphere. However, there is one key difference. The difference is that the current species of animals on Blimpton emit much more chlorofluorocarbons than Jarmel's animals do. The aliens take note of this so they can report back to their bosses on what they have found. Given the paragraph above, please answer correctly the following question: Are the winds on Blimpton more or less intense than on Jarmel?

A: more

Problem: Background: The theory of evolution by natural selection was proposed at about the same time by both Charles Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace, shown in Figure below , and was set out in detail in Darwin's 1859 book On the Origin of Species . Natural selection is a process that causes heritable traits that are helpful for survival and reproduction to become more common, and harmful traits, or traits that are not helpful or advantageous for survival to become more rare in a population of organisms. This occurs because organisms with advantageous traits are more "fit" to survive in a particular environment and have "adapted" to the conditions of that environment. These individuals will have greater reproductive success than organisms less fit for survival in the environment. This will lead to an increase in the number of organisms with the advantageous trait(s) over time. Over many generations, adaptations occur through a combination of successive, small, random changes in traits, and natural selection of those variants best-suited for their environment. Natural selection is one of the cornerstones of modern biology. Paragraph: In sub-Saharan Africa there are two predominant groups of antelope present. The first group of antelope, group A, have long necks and strong teeth. The second group of antelope, group B, have shorter necks and weaker teeth. Because of their longer necks and stronger teeth, the antelope from group A are more easily able to pick fruit and leaves from the tall trees in the region compared to antelope from group B. Given the paragraph above, please answer correctly the following question: Which traits in the antelope will become less common over time, long necks and strong teeth or short necks and weak teeth?

A: short necks and weak teeth

Problem: Background: Through a thickness of 10 meters (33 ft) or more, however, the intrinsic color of water (or ice) is visibly turquoise (greenish blue), as its absorption spectrum has a sharp minimum at the corresponding color of light (1/227 m1 at 418 nm). The color becomes increasingly stronger and darker with increasing thickness. (Practically no sunlight reaches the parts of the oceans below 1,000 meters (3,300 ft) of depth.) Infrared and ultraviolet light, on the other hand, is strongly absorbed by water. Paragraph: David was interested in the coloration of ocean's water. To understand the phenomenon he first observed the color of water at forty feet depth. He noted his observation as point A. Then he observed the color at hundred feet depth. He noted his observation as point B. Then he observed the color at four thousand feet depth. He noted that observation as point C. He now have some ideas how the color of water changes according to its depth. Given the paragraph above, please answer correctly the following question: Would the color be darker or lighter at point A than at point B?

A: lighter

Problem: Background: Another major cause of extinction is global warming , which is also known as global climate change. During the past century, the Earth's average temperature has risen by almost 1C (about 1.3F). You may not think that is significant, but to organisms that live in the wild and are constantly adapting to their environments, any climate change can be hazardous. Recall that burning fossil fuels releases gasses into the atmosphere that warm the Earth. Our increased use of fossil fuels, such as coal and oil, is changing the Earth's climate. Any long-term change in the climate can destroy the habitat of a species. Even a brief change in climate may be too stressful for an organism to survive. For example, if the seas increase in temperature, even briefly, it may be too warm for certain types of fish to reproduce. Paragraph: Douglas is an inventor who creates a miniature engine in his backyard that he uses to power his house. In order to fuel his engine, he has to burn a large amount of fossil fuels every day. His neighbor, Elijah, on the other hand powers his house through wind turbines, and in the process doesn't burn any fossil fuels at all. Given the paragraph above, please answer correctly the following question: Who will contribute more to climate change?

A:
Douglas