It Has Been Argued That Cutting Old-Growth Forests and Replacing

question 29

Multiple Choice

It has been argued that cutting old-growth forests and replacing them with plantations of young trees would help to alleviate the threat of global greenhouse warming. What important fact does this argument ignore?

• A)Forests play too minor a role in global CO₂ dynamics, which are affected far more by marine algae.
• B)Young trees fix carbon at a lower rate per unit mass than old trees.
• C)Most of the biomass of the cut trees would be added to the atmosphere as CO₂ within a few years.
• D)Most of the young trees would die within a few years.

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Definitions:

Decreasing Rate

A situation or phenomenon characterized by a reduction in quantity, intensity, or frequency over time.

Hung Juries

Jurors that are unable to reach a unanimous or legally required decision, resulting in a trial that does not conclude with a definitive verdict.

Evidence Driven

An approach that bases decisions, conclusions, or actions on empirical data and observed evidence rather than on intuition or opinion.

Crutchfield Situation

A procedure used in social psychology experiments to study conformity, where individuals must make judgments while being exposed to the purported judgments of others.