San Diego State University Oceanography Questions

Each assignment will contain 4 essay questions. You are required to answer all essay questions. These questions can address any material covered in the module or in the required reading. These questions will require you to apply critical thinking skills and your knowledge of the subject matter in order to answer them completely and thoroughly. Some questions may only require anywhere from 5-8 sentences to fully answer, while some may require 2-3 paragraphs. The key here is to make sure you answer all parts of the question and discuss all possible details.

Concept Check

• You are provided four questions. Answer all questions.
• You can answer each question separately, do not merge them all into one single essay.
• There is no length requirement, just be sure to provide enough to answer the question thoroughly. This usually will require anywhere from 1-3 complete paragraphs.
• You should only need the textbook and the module pages to answer these questions. Some questions do specify that you will need to find an external source to dive deeper into the subject. Be sure to pay attention to directions.Yes, the textbook and module pages should be included in a reference list, along with any other references/resources you use. Make sure these are reliable resources, Wikipedia is NOT a reliable source.You may format your reference list/bibliography in either MLA or APA.You will need in-text citations and a reference listDirect quotes should be kept at a minimum and indirect quotes are strongly encouraged. An indirect quote is when you take someone else’s information and summarize it in your own word. Changing one word or a few words around is not “rephrasing”. You must still cite references using in-text citations, even when you use your own words.Click here for a helpful web page for formatting in APA (Links to an external site.)Click here for a helpful web page for formatting in MLA (Links to an external site.)

Create a document with your answers to the following questions:

• What are the two major variables that regulate the primary productivity of an ecosystem? How does regional productivity vary in the tropical regions? Be sure to address both major variables and how they affect primary productivity in each of the three regions and how that primary productivity might change throughout the calendar year.
• There are four major types of estuarine mixing. Choose 2 of these types and…Describe what the halocline looks like.Explain why the haloclines look the way that they do.Provide a real life example (an actual estuary that has this type of mixing).If you use any external references to determine this part of your answer, be sure to include an in-text citation and add it to your reference list.
• Choose one source/type of pollution we discussed in class (Ocean pollution) and answer the following questions:Why is this type of pollution an issue?How does this type of pollution effect the environment?Are there any laws put in place to regulate this pollution?Is there anything we have done to remediate this type of pollution?What is thing you can do to help remediate issues related to this specific type of pollution?This question could require some additional research. Be sure to include in-text citations and a reference list in either MLA or APA format.

Choose a marine organism that you find fascinating. This could be any marine animal you would like. State where in the world this marine organism lives. Then, explain all the different adaptations that organism has to survive in it’s environment.You will, most likely, have to do a little extra research on your organism to fully answer this question. Be sure to include any references on a reference list at the end of your assignment, formatted using either APA or MLA. For full points, make sure you directly reference the information on marine life adaptations discussed in Module:5c.

Required Textbook: Trujillo, A.P & H.V. Thurman. Essentials of Oceanography, 13th edition, 2020. ISBN-13: 978-0134891521, ISBN-10: 013489152X. – The 13th edition is the only edition that is acceptable.