The Polluters Trivia Quiz

Answer: Donora, Pennsylvania

In 1949, few people knew or cared much about air pollution or its effects. It was mostly in the realm of politicians, conservationists and industrialists. Due to a combination of topography and weather conditions, polluted air from local industry got trapped in the valley where Donora, 30 miles out of Pittsburgh, was situated. Twenty people died during this disaster, 50 more in the weeks following (including Lukas Musial, father of baseball great, Stan Musial) while many others suffered for a long time after from the effects of that week.

Some call this event one of the most pivotal in raising public awareness to the dangers of air polltuion.

Answer: EPA

All of these are in fact govenment agencies:

EPA - Environmental Protection Agency - established in 1970 during the Nixon presidency.
PMB -Office of Policy, Management and Budget
FDA - Food and Drug Administraion
GPO - Government Printing Office

Answer: Earth Day

The idea, first documented during the Kennedy administration, took a while to gather some steam. By the end of the decade though, it was already recognized in the UN and was celebrated in 1970 in many locales across the U.S. - notably in San Francisco where Saint Francis (San Francisco) was recognized as the patron saint of the environment.
By 1990, 141 countries were observing Earth Day.

Answer: Pollution Degree

It measures the amount of pollution, usually from an electrical appliance with the amount of moisture in the air that can conduct electricity. For instance, Degree 1 means that there is little or no pollution and the air contains only dry air or non-conductive pollution.

It has no effect on the environment. An example of this would be a clean room environment or sealed electrical components. The higher the degree, the more dangerous it will be.

Answer: Acid rain

Acid rain is created when pollutants in the atmosphere bond with atmospheric water and reaches the surface in the next rainfall. It has been implicated in water pollution, health concerns and its effects on inanimate objects as well - it's not called 'acid' rain for nothing.

Answer: False

The 'greenhouse effect' simply describes the atmosphere's way of keeping heat inside the atmosphere. Due to this, the earth stays warm at night even when the sun is not shining on it. The problems start when there are too many gasses in the atmosphere or too few.

In our generation, mostly due to technological advances and industry that relies mostly on fossil fuels, the level of gasses in the atmosphere rises. These gasses retain the heat coming from the sun and this causes global warming.

Answer: True

Light pollution is used to describe the effect caused due to the use of electric lighting outdoors. The effects of this kind of pollution prevent proper star-gazing not only in cities but for miles around as well. It can have negative effects as well on certain ecosystems which rely on diurnal patterns.

To view the Perseid meteor shower in Israel for example, it is necessary to have local cooperation among the villages in the desert area (where, due to the lack of water particles in the air, the visibility is greatest) to turn off non-essential street lights in order to more easily be able to view this natural wonder.
The sun actually overpowers stars in a similar phenomenon during the day but it would not be called 'pollution' as it is a natural, not man-made, source of light.

Answer: All of these

The most fascinating of these for me was always the eating of the oil by naturally occurring microbes or bacteria which then in turn produce oxygen.

It reminds me of silicon-based life forms from Star Trek TOS. Soaking it up was done with different kinds of materials based on the company from which they were acquired. Controlled fires were used, though sparingly, so as not to add global warming to the list of negative environmental effects caused by the spill.

Answer: Hydrofluorocarbons

Hydrofluorocarbons which replaced a harmful chemical (appears in next question) as refrigerants are actually a double-edged sword. Though they have been shown not to be as destructive to the ozone layer as their predecessors were, they cause the greenhouse effect to intensify leading to global warming. Scientists are searching for a better solution. We are simply not willing to give up our propellants and refrigerants.

Answer: Chlorofluorocarbons

Chlorofluorocarbons, or CFCs for short were very effective for years as a major gas used for propellants. Their negative impact on the ozone layer was later discovered. Though they were eventually replaced by hydrofluorocarbons, their effect on the ozone layer will continue for many years.

Answer: Silent Spring

Ms. Carson who had written previous books had a 'breakout' with "Silent Spring". The motivation behind this book was provided after she read a newspaper report of a flock of birds who died after having encountered a DDT cloud.

Answer: 85 decibel/8 hours

295 decibels is actually off the charts.
140 is the level of a jet plane from 100 feet away.
85 is busy city traffic.
60 is about the level for typical human speech while 10 is near the low end of human hearing.
0 decibels is actually the lowest level of human hearing.

Answer: An intense desire to play funtrivia

An intense desire to play funtrivia is actually quite beneficial to cognitive functions.* Noise pollution has also been linked to birth defects, high blood pressure and other physical symptoms. Yet it seems sooooo harmless. It has become popular to wear earplugs at a wedding or other events with loud music to prevent damage.

*This has not yet been proven scientifically though I am sure that Terry is, at this very moment, gathering statistics to prove its validity.

Answer: 100

Theoretically, all that goes into landfills is recyclable. We simply have not made it a priority yet.

Answer: "Bridge Over Troubled Water" by Simon and Garfunkel

Big Yellow Taxi - "They took all the trees,
Put 'em in a tree museum;
And they charged the people
A dollar and a half just to see 'em."

Pollution - "If you visit American city,
You will find it very pretty.
Just two things of which you must beware:
Don't drink the water and don't breathe the air."

In the year - "In the year 9595,
I'm kind a wond'rin' if man is gonna be alive -
He's taken everything this old earth can give
And he ain't put back nothin' . . ."

"Bridge" talks about friendship being offered to one who has been going thru some tough times.