1) Where do dead zones appear to be clustered? What patterns do you see in the distribution of dead zones around the world?

2) Do humans appear to have a correlation with the dead zones? If so, please describe the association.

3) What are the two most likely causes of the dead zones? (please don't use humans as a cause, list specific actions or byproducts of humans)

4) Describe how fertilizers cause hypoxia and consequently dead zones in coastal ecosystems.

step 1 ammonium can be absorbed by plants, but some is converted into nitrates which are better for plants to absorb. this is called nitrification. 2. step 2 the deer eats the plants and uses the nitrogen-containing proteins for cell growth. 3. step 3 bacteria in the soil conduct nitrogen fixation to convert nitrogen gas from the atmosphere into ammonium. 4. step 4 some of the nitrates are absorbed back into plants, but denitrification breaks down the nitrates into nitrogen gas released back into the atmosphere. 5. step 5 nitrogen is found in the urine, which gets broken down into ammonium through the process of ammonification. 6. step 6 plants absorb the ammonium and begin assimilation, the process to add the nitrogen to protein.

it's a.true. i'm kind of smart.