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Select the best answer for each question.

1. Nitrates exist in which form normally?
a) Negative ions
b) Neutral molecule
c) Neutral atom
d) Positive ions

2. Nitrates are used by which of the following?
a) Plants
b) People
c) Fish
d) All of the above answers are correct

3. Fish excrete nitrates in the form of what compound?
a) Pneumonia
b) Ammonia
c) Hydrogen hydroxide
d) Carbon-dioxide

4. Which answer choice uses nitrates to stimulate growth?
a) Plants
b) Inert elements
c) Atmosphere
d) Sunlight

5. Excess nitrates in the water do NOT cause which of the following?
a) Fish to grow more rapidly
b) Algae to grow unchecked
c) Fish to be stressed and stop feeding
d) Unstable dissolved oxygen levels in the water

6. Assuming that there is an excess of nitrates in a body of water and algae grow unchecked across the surface of the water, what is the major effect that this will have on the water?
a) The algae will make the water clear
b) The algae will turn the water purple
c) The algae will block the sunlight from reaching down into the water
d) The algae will increase the amount of sunlight that reaches the bottom of the water

7. What human actions cause nitrates to get into ground water?
a) Spreading too much commercial fertilizers on farmland
b) Allowing septic tanks to overflow
c) Allowing untreated water from a sewage treatment plant to enter a waterway
d) (a), (b) and (c)

8. Which of the following is NOT a characteristic of nitrates?
a) Soluble (able to dissolve) in water
b) Appears white in water
c) Odorless
d) Colorless

9. What is the name of a disease that babies can get from drinking water containing large amounts of nitrates?
a) Lipid-baby syndrome
b) Blue-baby syndrome
c) Cry-baby syndrome
d) Silver-baby syndrome

10. Generally, the presence of excess nitrates in water is harmful?
a.) to fish
b.) to humans
c.) to algae
d.) a.) and b.)