Environmental Science Trivia

Environmental Science Trivia

• Environmental ethics is the discipline in philosophy that studies the moral relationship among human beings to the value and moral status of the environment.
• The layer of the Earth's atmosphere that has almost no water vapor and has nearly 1,000 times more ozone is the stratosphere.
• The most popular teratogen is alcohol.
• The Philippine law that aims to protect the country's water bodies from pollution from land-based sources is the Philippine Clean Water Act of 2004.
• The upper part of the stratosphere is warmer because it absorbs all the ultraviolet solar radiation.
• The layer of the Earth's atmosphere that is a region of highly ionized gases, heated by a steady flow of high energy solar and cosmic radiation is the thermosphere.
• The animals of a particular region, habitat, or geological period are collectively called fauna.
• The long-term alteration of temperature and typical weather patterns in a place is climate change.
• Endemic species are those that are restricted to one place and do not occur naturally in any other part of the world.
• The layer of the Earth's atmosphere that is the coldest part of the Earth's atmosphere, with temperatures below 100 degrees Celsius, is the mesosphere.
• The Philippine law that ensures proper segregation, collection, storage, treatment, and disposal of solid waste through the formulation and adaptation of the best eco-waste products is the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000.
• The chemicals that mess up the natural activity of hormones are endocrine disruptors.

Overview of Toxicology and its Sub-disciplines

• Toxicology is a scientific discipline that studies the adverse effects of chemical substances on living organisms and diagnoses and treats exposures to toxins and allergens.
• It overlaps with biology, chemistry, pharmacology, and medicine.
• Different types of toxins include neurotoxins, mutagens, teratogens, carcinogens, and persistent organic pollutants (POPs).
• Acute effects of toxins are severe symptoms that rapidly develop through acute exposure, while chronic effects develop slowly due to prolonged exposure to low concentrations of a hazardous substance.
• Risk assessment and risk management are the combined efforts of identifying and analyzing potential events that can negatively affect individuals, assets, and the environment, followed by coordinated and economical application of resources to control, monitor, and minimize the probability or impact of unfortunate events.
• Pesticides, herbicides, and insecticides are chemical compounds used to eliminate pests, unwanted plants, and insects, respectively.
• The World Health Organization (WHO) defines health as a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being.
• The Global Burden of Disease (GBD) is a comprehensive research program that assesses mortality and disability from major diseases, injuries, and risk factors.
• Emergent diseases are those that were previously unknown or absent for at least 20 years.
• Ecological epidemiology is the study of the ecology of infectious diseases.
• Ecotoxicology is the study of toxins and their effects, particularly on living systems.
• Different types of toxins, such as allergens, immune system depressants, endocrine disruptors, and neurotoxins, have specific effects on living organisms.