Worksheet: Logistic growth versus exponential growth | Ecology | AP Biology | Khan Academy

Comprehension worksheet generated from the video "Logistic growth versus exponential growth | Ecology | AP Biology | Khan Academy".

Next Generation Science Standards · High School

HS-LS2-1Use mathematical and/or computational representations to support explanations of factors that affect carrying capacity of ecosystems at different scales.

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Worksheet: Logistic growth versus exponential growth | Ecology | AP Biology | Khan Academy

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Vocabulary

Per capita growth rate ® — The average growth rate per individual in a population.
Maximum per capita growth rate ( $r_{max}$ ) — The per capita growth rate of a population when it is not limited by resources or environmental factors.
Exponential growth — A type of population growth where the rate of change is directly proportional to the current population size, assuming unlimited resources.
Carrying capacity (K) — The maximum population size of a biological species that can be sustained indefinitely by a given environment.
Logistic growth — A type of population growth that accounts for environmental limits and carrying capacity, causing the growth rate to slow down as the population approaches K.

Questions

Watch the video and answer the following questions based on the information presented.

If the per capita growth rate ® for a population is

0.2

, what does this mean for the population’s growth? (Refer to 0:13-0:29)

The video introduces the exponential growth equation as

\frac{dN}{dt} = r_{max} N

. If

r_{max}

0.2

and the population

N

500

, what is the population growth rate (

\frac{dN}{dt}

)? (Refer to 1:30-2:14)

What term is used to describe the maximum number of individuals an environment can support, and what letter represents it in the logistic growth equation? (Refer to 4:10-4:39)

In the logistic growth equation,

\frac{dN}{dt} = r_{max} N \left( \frac{K-N}{K} \right)

, what does the factor

\left( \frac{K-N}{K} \right)

represent? (Refer to 4:50-5:38)

The current population’s birth rate.
The maximum potential growth of the population.
The limiting effect of the carrying capacity on population growth.
The total number of resources available in the environment.

Compare and contrast exponential growth and logistic growth as depicted in the video’s graph (8:50-10:00). Explain why logistic growth is generally considered a more realistic model for most populations.

Worksheet: Logistic growth versus exponential growth | Ecology | AP Biology | Khan Academy

Vocabulary

Questions

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