Which Statement About Mass Extinctions Is False

question 55

Multiple Choice

Which statement about mass extinctions is false?

• A) Paleontologists recognize five major mass extinctions.
• B) Dinosaurs were among the casualties of the last major mass extinction.
• C) Major extinctions can promote increases of diversity of some groups by removing their competitors.
• D) After a mass extinction, communities quickly recover and the diversity of life usually rebounds to previous levels within a million years.

---

Definitions:

Public Good

A good that is non-excludable and non-rivalrous, meaning it can be used by everyone and one person's use does not reduce availability to others.

Market Failure

A scenario where the free market fails to allocate resources efficiently, resulting in negative impacts on social welfare.

Pareto Optimality

The scenario in which resources are allocated in a manner that prohibits enhancing one individual's situation without negatively impacting another's.

Lost Surplus

Refers to the reduction in the combined consumer and producer surplus, often caused by inefficiencies in a market, such as taxes, tariffs, or other forms of market intervention.