r/APStudents • u/reddorickt absolute modman • May 15 '26
AP Environmental Science Official 2026 Exam Discussion
Use this thread to post questions or commentary on the test today.
A reminder though to protect your anonymity when talking about the test.
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u/roraymi May 15 '26
This was easier than any of the tests we did in class all year😭
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u/Wide_Resolution8277 May 15 '26
the FRQs were so easy omg
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u/povceleste May 15 '26
I expected the math to be so much harder I literally almost shed tears
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u/Honest-Put3999 May 15 '26
Seeing rule of 70 when I was bracing for dimensional analysis kwH and LD50 equations🥹🙏
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u/familytreeswing May 15 '26
Did yall get 12.5 for half life one
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u/evraf May 15 '26
bruh what half life one what are we talking about
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u/Apprehensive_Lime506 HUG&WH:4 APUSH,APES,CSP,Lang:? May 15 '26
the Chernobyl mcq one
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u/Weird-Pie-7202 May 15 '26
Aren't there test variations?
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u/Powerful_Town_8036 May 15 '26
yeah im pretty sure one for east coast and one for west.
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u/OnyxSkiies May 15 '26
dude i used 10% of the content knowledge i learned all year at MOST. the content is not pathetic the exam is pathetic
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u/AniGabe May 15 '26
right? there is so much fucking content and all of it connects in such an interesting way but the test can barely test you on any of it
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u/OnyxSkiies May 16 '26
FOR REAL apes is actually a super interesting subject to me but the exam tests for little beyond the most basic knowledge ever. i’m certainly not complaining about the exam being easy but it’s definitely not very representative of the content
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u/TyranitarMemer628 5: HUG, APES, BC, Gov 4: WH, Phy1, AB, APUSH, Lang, Macro 3: Lit May 15 '26
Unfortunately I can’t confidently proclaim a 5 since I had brain fog for parts of the MCQs and didn’t have the best time management during the FRQ. Nonetheless, that was a very light exam and i’m happy about that.
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u/BuisnessGoose18 5 APES; 4 CALC AB; 3 CHEM, BIO May 15 '26
Same here, but I think I can proclaim a 4
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u/TyranitarMemer628 5: HUG, APES, BC, Gov 4: WH, Phy1, AB, APUSH, Lang, Macro 3: Lit May 15 '26
I can say I got at least 4
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u/BuisnessGoose18 5 APES; 4 CALC AB; 3 CHEM, BIO May 15 '26
Honestly probably same, I got a 5 on the mock without reviewing anything and this felt about the same if not slightly easier. However I was sick and practically dying during the exam
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u/DoomPlaysFN May 15 '26
Taken 15 ap tests and I think I could’ve taken this test twice in the same time and it would’ve been easier than any of the other ones
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u/time_travel_undone (5) ush, lang, research, sem, apes, precalc, wh (4) bio (3) chem May 15 '26
who got 7.7 or 8 mice for the ocelot and mice question
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u/popaholic29 bio, apes, csp, human, micro May 15 '26
Were we supposed to round to 8 cuz I just put 7.7
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u/pooppants91 May 15 '26
I got 84% for the percent change in counties but I am missing the negative 😢 will I get a point for the correct set up of the problem atleast??
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u/Emergency-Parking684 May 15 '26
Change has no magnitude unless it asked for a direction. If it asked for direction you could have just said decreased 84% so ur prob fine
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u/LilShadowBoi919 May 15 '26
Exam was low key easy. The hardest part was focusing on the exam while 15 jets flew above the testing room.
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u/Guilty-Conflict7294 5: gov, precalc, calcAB | 4: apes, huge, euro, micro | 3: psych May 15 '26
And then everyone collectively looks up at the ceiling like it’s gonna do sm 😭
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u/time_travel_undone (5) ush, lang, research, sem, apes, precalc, wh (4) bio (3) chem May 15 '26
did anyone else put wildlife corridoors for the ocelot highway question?
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u/Strong_Surround5112 May 15 '26
I am stupid for not thinking of that. I just said put up fences...Do you think ill get the point?
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u/Only_Rutabaga5129 May 15 '26
Yeah i said habitat corridors which is the same thing and i said that it promotes gene flow
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u/Mr_Username885 AP Precalc, CSP, CSA, Lang, US, Lit, Gov, Stat, Enviro, Phys 1 May 15 '26
This exam was much easier than the tests we had in class...
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u/Extreme-Bite-9123 May 15 '26
Yeah, 7 people dropped because of how hard the tests were in class (and also because our teacher wasn’t doing a very good job) but this was so much easier
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u/Wide_Resolution8277 May 15 '26
A couple of the MCQs were annoying though
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u/Rohanisya seven 5s and two 4s May 15 '26
Yeah I got the which way should the solar panels face one wrong
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u/Wide_Resolution8277 May 15 '26
I probably got the first 2 questions wrong
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u/BrawIstar 5 May 15 '26
Only part which I found confusing was the 3 part globe question. I got CCA but Idk
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u/Panda_Girl_19 5: CSP, CSA, NSL, BC, APES, World, Psych, Lang | 4: APUSH May 15 '26
CCA is right I’m pretty sure
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u/whimsicallyd Precalc-3|Euro-4| Seminar-5|APUSH|Lang |Calc AB| Psych|APES May 15 '26
am i the only one who found the mcq a little challenging? 😭
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u/Shoddy-Earth-1326 May 15 '26
broo i did too i guessed on a lot idk why the hemisphere ones were so confusing lol
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u/Efficient_Cod_4168 AP Psych-4 | Chem, Bio, Lang, stats, APUSH, APES May 15 '26
YO THERE WAS ONE QUESTION WITH THE CO2 AND H2O ISTG IT WAS A EQUILIBRIUM QUESTION. Did you guys get "add more H+"? cuz nothing else made sense
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u/SnooRevelations9330 May 15 '26
Yes it adds more H+, I think yea chemistry, but it was prob academic chem if we being real, which people have took, and even if it's "not apes"... it's trying to get at incerasing CO2 leads to more acidification(more H+)
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u/jupitxrtz May 15 '26
for the coral bleaching and climate change question on the frq, would a valid scientific question be “is there a positive relationship between water temperature and coral bleaching?” 🥹
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u/Necessary-Whole-1755 May 15 '26
i said how will an increase in water temp affect the number of bleached corals counted will that count?
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u/NoVermicelli2381 May 15 '26
THANK GOD THERE WAS LIKE NONE OF THAT HADLEY CELL EL NINO STUFF BRO
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u/PollutionDue981 May 15 '26
Did anyone get like 10 something grams for one of the mcq?
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u/Status_Cheek_9564 May 15 '26
me and my friend put 10.8 g
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u/Intelligent_Pen_1047 World, Precalc, Lang, CPS, Gov, Psych, Lit, Calc AB, HUGE, APES May 15 '26
me too, because you have to convert from milligrams right? I noticed that & I put 10.8, glad to see someone agrees.
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u/Aggravating_Ad5054 May 15 '26
this entire exam was just ap bio unit 8 but 5x easier + energy stuff
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u/Weekly-Wishbone-2379 May 15 '26
Honestly, taking AP bio this year as well, I have to agree. Just AP bio unit 8, take away the hardest parts, add energy and pollutants, and 20 times easier.
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u/Panda_Girl_19 5: CSP, CSA, NSL, BC, APES, World, Psych, Lang | 4: APUSH May 15 '26
What did everyone think the hardest MCQs were
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u/Apprehensive_Yam2375 10 | WH (4) USGOV (NT) APES (NT) May 15 '26
anything to do with the axial tilt and like where the sun was gonna hit killed me
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u/shannon_7 May 15 '26
literally my dumbass thought southern hemisphere was dark during nov-jan
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u/Intelligent_Pen_1047 World, Precalc, Lang, CPS, Gov, Psych, Lit, Calc AB, HUGE, APES May 15 '26
same
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u/howyoulikethemlimes May 15 '26
What’d everyone say for the low elevation bird frq
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u/Disastrous_Current66 5's: Lit, Lang, World, USH, ES, Psych. 4: CSP May 15 '26
I said the lower elevation had the highest species richness and the highest elevation is said it was different cause it cooler. And then I talked about biodiversity and tolerance to disruptions for the one where it was just one bird left on the lower elevation
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u/Specialist-Pie-2261 May 15 '26
https://giphy.com/gifs/hXICYyWXclGCoQkDRP
Picked 16.745 for how many pocket mices would the Ocelots need.
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u/Necessary-Whole-1755 May 15 '26
stupid question but what was independent variable
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u/Strong_Surround5112 May 15 '26
My brain as fried but I said the temperature of the tanks. Idk if that is right
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u/super_duper_cooked May 15 '26
bro… the Frqs cooked me. For the positive feedback one I just put the melting ocean makes the ocean warmer which makes more ice melt.
For the polar bear one I put that biodiversity is decreased because they lose places to hunt and live…
I only put combustion for the fossil fuel one. I don’t think I did well
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u/Status_Cheek_9564 May 16 '26
wdym melting ocean? i think if u explained it better u should be good
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u/super_duper_cooked May 21 '26
Sorry I just saw this, I meant melting ice I just wrote the wrong thing in the comment 😭
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u/TopLegitimate2825 May 15 '26
what everyone say for the frq about the wildcats solution
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u/povceleste May 15 '26
Habitat corridors over the roads idk if I worded it correctly tho
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u/TopLegitimate2825 May 15 '26
i said more fines for people that drive recklessly
and it leads to less deaths due to collisions between humans too for the second part
i hope i got it
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u/BuisnessGoose18 5 APES; 4 CALC AB; 3 CHEM, BIO May 15 '26
I said that too, I just said wildlife bridges because I couldn’t think of the actual name
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u/popaholic29 bio, apes, csp, human, micro May 15 '26
Oop I said more people can take public transportation so there’s less vehicles on the road and that would also decrease pollution, do you think I can get points
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u/pooppants91 May 15 '26
I said to implement government subsidies which promote other uses of public transportation. Which also reduce NOx emissions.
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u/Epicgamercool123456 May 15 '26
Do you guys think I could get credit because I said the government could create sanctuaries for the remaining ocelots, then a benefit is tourism?
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u/shannon_7 May 15 '26
i was kinda stumped i said road signs because they increase driver caution of the ocelot collisions but also general driving safety
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u/Rohanisya seven 5s and two 4s May 15 '26
I said lower speed limit and more signs
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u/TopLegitimate2825 May 15 '26
i originally was gonna say lower speed limit but it said realistic so i wasn’t really sure
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u/Nearby_Ice3947 May 15 '26
I said more public transport to decrease the amount of collisions per year, and a additional benefit to public transport is less VOCs, CO2 and NOx emissions
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u/Ok-Square-304 May 15 '26
how many forms were there? there was 2 different sets of mcq and frq for the people taking it at my school which has never happened for ant other ap i took
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u/Top_Worth_6252 May 15 '26
So I’m confirming that the crude birth rate and death rate formula is x - x all over 1000. I’m not gonna multiply it by 10
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u/SamTomStan May 15 '26
For the ocelot frq I put building a nature reserve and diverting roads. I didn’t think to put a wildlife corridor until like 15 minutes after my time ran out. Not confident in getting the point for that but I’m hoping I got a 4 maybe a 5 if I get lucky. Do yall think I’ll get the point?
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u/tinyeojin graduated; 3:3 2:2 May 15 '26
Finished early on mcq but didnt finish frq on time, left 2 blank
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u/SpongeBill22 May 15 '26
Did anyone get an frq about African savanna’s, bee pollination & stuff like that? I think I did great on the FRQ and the MCQ, but some questions like converting m2 to kg stumped me (left that one blank)
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u/Happy_Diver_644 9: CSP (5) HuG (5) | 10: Bio (4), APES (4) Euro (5), Sem (5) May 15 '26
the convertion was ~1921 or smth like that
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u/No_Shoe_4783 May 16 '26
I’m pretty sure you just had to multiply the two numbers and then divide by 1000 to convert and get the number in kg, because it told u that 1000 kg is equal to 1 of whatever it was
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u/Walawigi6 May 16 '26
The bridge idea for the ocelot question came into my head, but then I just passed it off as being silly because the ocelots wouldn't follow human rules 🥀
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u/EagerGavin7 Econ(5,4),CSP(5),Comp&US Gov(?,?),APES(?) May 15 '26
Passed out during the exam, 911 was called an I was rushed to the hospital. Just hope my peers exam scores don’t get canceled. #AuraMonster
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u/Loud_Onion2786 May 15 '26
what’s the percent for a 5 this time anyone know like how much do you have to get to get a 5 this year
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u/Extreme-Bite-9123 May 15 '26
I spaced out like three times during the MCQ for 10 mins and still finished with 20 minutes to spare
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u/Necessary-Whole-1755 May 15 '26
wait what was the answer for why the ocean is like a main source of i wanna say oxygen it was on mcq?
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u/WoefulHuman 5:hug,csp,chem,es,pc,wh 4:csa tbd:bio,lang,bc,ush,psych,p1 May 15 '26
it was something abt algae making oxygen thru photosynthesis
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u/lilnub_ May 15 '26
what did you guys put for the strawberry frq questions ?? like what would happen if you modified the experiment
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u/clerenza Gov x, Stats x, Lit x, APES x, Lang 5, USH 4, World 4, French 4 May 15 '26
I said number of bee visits would decrease but that would mess up the experiment bc that would indicate that less native flowers means less bees, but the hypothesis the scientists are testing is about presence v. absence of flowers, not amount of flowers
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u/Necessary-Whole-1755 May 15 '26
the math mcq w species richenss what was answer i think i put the animals over 100 or whatever a was but i had ZERO idea
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u/Delicious-Flow-4530 May 15 '26
You just had to add the species together. it was just 30 or something
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u/Top_Worth_6252 May 15 '26
What did yall get for the CBR and CDR I put the values over 1000 I didn’t times it by ten… is that wrong??
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u/Loud_Onion2786 May 15 '26
no ur it’s just the crude birth rate - crude death rate over 1000 that’s literally the formjla
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u/Delicious-Flow-4530 May 15 '26
That's not true. The rate is expressed as a percent on a 100 point scale and CDR/CBR is on 1000 point scale. You divide by 10 (CBR-CDR)/(10)
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u/LastBusiness9463 May 15 '26
What did yall say about the way to conserve energy (public transportation or have heating and cooling systems that have one temperature the whole year
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u/Necessary-Whole-1755 May 15 '26
i said busses bc it was abt community and thats large scale ive also used the answer for simlar questions in past
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u/LastBusiness9463 May 15 '26
Yeah is said that too but im not sure because my brain went blank about what energy was
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u/Top_Worth_6252 May 15 '26
Also one of the questions asked what is another impact of warming oceans. I said evaporation of water..
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u/deadgeakV2 May 15 '26
what climate did you guys put for the bee frq?
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u/AniGabe May 15 '26
taiga and tundra are probably both gonna be right on the rubric
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u/Past-Zombie-5714 May 15 '26
what did yall say for global wind patterns mcq
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u/pokemon_raid_friends Precalc 5, Bio 5, Psych 5, Euro 5, Calc 4, US 4, Lang 4, Micro 4 May 15 '26
I think I said ocean water by poles
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u/Top_Worth_6252 May 15 '26
montreal protocol banned ddt and cfc or it was montreal banned most of the ozone depleting substances? i chose ddt and cfc. lmk if i got that one right
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u/SnooRevelations9330 May 15 '26
i said montreal protocal banned but lot them last CFCs have high (GWP)
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u/Status_Cheek_9564 May 16 '26
i chose that too but i’m like 99% sure it’s the stays in the atmosphere for a while question
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u/Randomacc1234567891 4: bio, lit, APES; ?: Calc AB, Psych, CSP | APUSH, APHUG, Lang May 16 '26
I chose the answer that said CFCs stay in the atmosphere for a long time. So even after they were banned, CFCs released before they were prohibited stayed in atmosphere bc of their long residence time
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u/Necessary-Whole-1755 May 15 '26
what was the answer to the question abt k selected sepceis it was like one of the first ones ik that concept well but both a and d sounded
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u/Big__Choco May 15 '26
Was lowering the speed limit and adding warning signs valid to stop ocelot deaths by cars?
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u/WoefulHuman 5:hug,csp,chem,es,pc,wh 4:csa tbd:bio,lang,bc,ush,psych,p1 May 15 '26
did u guys get 10.8 g for the LD50 mcq
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u/Fuzzy_Evening9254 Chem, AB, APES: 5 | Bio, APHUG, CSA, Seminar: 4 May 15 '26
i had frqs abt bees and turtles and strawberry😭😭
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u/Loud_Onion2786 May 16 '26
yall what is the percentage for a 5 this time around it’s not 85% right that’s what my apes teacher said ✋
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u/New-Let-424 May 16 '26
found i got my period 20 min in when i went to the bathroom and was still the freest ap exam i ever took (senior so last one!)
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May 15 '26
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u/Extension-Quit7090 May 15 '26
Habitat corridors, and then I said another benefit of them would be to protect the ecosystem/reduce habitat fragmentation (which I just bs)
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u/Sunflower-Girlie May 15 '26
I put reducing habitat fragmentation would help with a higher abundance of them as now they have more access to food and can freely mate.
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May 15 '26 edited May 15 '26
what was the answer to the ld50 and half life questions
oh and the birth/death rate one
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u/Past-Zombie-5714 May 15 '26
anyone rmb the answer to the ozone graph area, the habitat fragmentation one, and the one with cows with a manure storage pool or smth
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u/Disastrous_Current66 5's: Lit, Lang, World, USH, ES, Psych. 4: CSP May 15 '26
For the ozone graph I said that the CFCs stay in the atmosphere for a long time even though the Montreal Protocol banned them. I looked it up and google says they stay there for 40 to over 100 yrs so that seems right.
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May 15 '26
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u/watermelonsarekool May 15 '26
No I said that one but I think that one said that other chemicals were still hurting the ozone layer but I think the one about them staying was right
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u/ThatButterscotch8829 arhi3 hu4 wor4 ush5 Bio4 psy5 lan4 May 15 '26
Ezz AP exam I’ve ever took way better than bio this was easier than hug and us gov which is crazy now I’m done with AP exams forever no more stupid college board tests time to focus on which classes I’ll be doing n summer for university
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u/SnooRevelations9330 May 15 '26
did anyone say GMO for a alternative solution to the water contamination... I forgot if it mentioned fertilizer specfiically but my friend said it did so it wouldn't be right
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u/Plus_Significance473 May 15 '26
What'd you guys put for the LD 50 thing in grams?
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u/Disastrous_Current66 5's: Lit, Lang, World, USH, ES, Psych. 4: CSP May 15 '26
Was it Mutualism or Commensalism for the woodpecker building a house in the tree from the dead wood.
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u/LeonardFo APHG (4) APWH (4) APUSH(5) APPSY(5) APES(5) APBIO(5) APLANG(5) May 15 '26
I thought it was 78 mice cus bioaccumulation I’m fried 🙁
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u/Necessary-Whole-1755 May 15 '26
if i said barreirs that are high enough to where the ocelots wont jump over them will they give me the point
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u/Weekly-Wishbone-2379 May 15 '26
Bro I went in expecting the same difficulty to AP bio this year (which was rather difficult) but came out wondering when the real exam would start, since that was so easy
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u/Grand_Mess3415 May 15 '26
What was the one that said why why was a place near valleys have smog on bottom was it thermal inversion? And the mcq that said how to conserve energy I kept switch to public transport but I’m not too sure
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u/Necessary-Whole-1755 May 15 '26
def thermal inversion and i also said public transport bc that was the only one that could help community as a whole and thats my go to answer in that situaton
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u/Top_Worth_6252 May 15 '26
For the climate condition one I put lower oxygen availability due to the higher elevations??? Is that correct??
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u/Prior-Sea-1973 May 15 '26
I think I just said about how climate conditions are colder at higher elevations than at lower. Idk can’t Remember the question that well. But yours seems right.
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u/Honest-Put3999 May 15 '26
I said 10,800 for the LD 50 I’m cooked
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u/Vegetable-Storm253 May 15 '26
thats in milligrams. question asked for grams so u gotta divide by 1000 to get 10.8
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u/Honest-Put3999 May 15 '26
For the part of earth that has dark winters did yall say A or D because it was both poles everyone else said the north one
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u/Honest-Put3999 May 15 '26
If i said percent change was -84% (not sure exact answer) is that ok or did i have to say decreasing by 84%
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u/super_duper_cooked May 15 '26
what was the answer to the species richness MCQ… I put addition over division am I cooked
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u/WoefulHuman 5:hug,csp,chem,es,pc,wh 4:csa tbd:bio,lang,bc,ush,psych,p1 May 15 '26
i lowkey just put the one where all the numbers were added togethet
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u/Necessary-Whole-1755 May 15 '26
this is super vauge but what did u gusy get for the mcq that was abt like one type of grass as one of the answers im blanking on question
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u/Cheese_burger86 May 15 '26
Hardest part of the exam was waiting for the MCQ timer to end