Earth Science – GEOL-008 Spring, 2004 › indiv › c › cornwell › earth › test 3.pdfEarth Science – GEOL-008 Spring, 2004 Exam 3A Choose the BEST answer. 1. The Andes Mountains

Earth Science – GEOL-008 Spring, 2004

Exam 3A

Choose the BEST answer.

1. The Andes Mountains in South America reach elevations of almost 20,000 feet above sea level while the largest mountains in the Appalachians are only about 10,000 feet. This suggests that the Andes mountains must be: a) younger than the Appalachian mountains, b) older than the Appalachian mountains, c) about the same age, all mountain ranges were formed about the same time, d) can’t determine the relative ages of mountain ranges by their height.

2. One of the primary factors that determine whether a volcanic eruption will be explosive

or non-explosive is: a) the amount of water in the magma, b) the amount of carbon dioxide in the magma, c) the temperature of the magma, d) the amount of silica in the magma.

3. Compared to the crust under mountain ranges, the craton is: a) less dense and

thinner, b) less dense and thicker, c) more dense and thicker, d) same density but thinner.

4. In a stacked sequence of undeformed horizontal beds of sedimentary rock, we can say

that _________. a) the top layer is the oldest, b) the lowest layer is oldest, c) the third layer from the bottom is older than the second layer from the bottom, d) there is no way of knowing which layer is oldest.

5. Mt. Kilauea in Hawaii is an example of a(n) _________. a) shield volcano, b) cinder

cone, c) composite cone, d) volcanic neck.

6. A continent is experiencing isostatic rebound in that a large mountain range on the continent slowly erodes away. The base, or bottom of the continental crust will _______ in response. a) rise, b) sink, c) not move, d) melt.

7. If the half-life of material X is 5000 years and you found a specimen with equal amounts

of material X (parent material) and material Z (the daughter product) the specimen would be about ________. a) 5000 years old, b) 10000 years old, c) 20000 years old, d) it is not possible to determine from the information given.

8. Volcanoes are related to plate tectonics in that volcanoes: a) are the driving force for

plate tectonics, b) only occur where there are earthquakes, c) occur along some plate boundaries, d) occur where there are no plate boundaries.

9. Desert are defined as areas that have: a) high sand concentrations and high

temperatures (average over 80° F/year), b) high temperatures (average over 80° F/year) and low precipitation rates (less than 10 inches/year), c) high temperatures (average over 80° F/year), d) low precipitation rates (less than 10 inches/year).

10. Deserts such as _____ are examples of rain shadow deserts. a) Great Basin (Utah-

Nevada, USA), b) Sahara (northern Africa), c) Antarctica, d) Great Sandy Desert (Australia).

11. Radiometric dating can be used to date: a) things that were once alive, b) things that

contain carbon, c) things that have radioactive elements in it, d) things that have been buried and protected from sunshine.

12. The law of Faunal Succession suggests that: a) all living things have similar DNA, b)

the natural progression in living things is to grow larger, c) older rocks contain more primitive fossils than do younger rocks, d) each generation of life is better suited to live on Earth than the previous generation.

13. Why does the earth experiences glacial epochs? a) because the earth's orbit through

the solar system subjects it to extremely cold zones in space, b) sunlight reaching the Earth varies over time as a result of sun spots, c) Earth’s orbit occasionally places North America over the northern polar region, d) changes in the concentration of atmospheric gases that trap heat.

14. When an earthquake occurs, energy radiates in all directions from its source below the

ground surface. The source is also referred to as its: a) epicenter, b) focus, c) inertial point, d) seismic center.

15. An earthquake with a magnitude 6.5 on the Richter scale releases about ____ times

more energy than one with a magnitude of 4.5. a) 2, b) 200, c) 10, d) 100.

16. Which of the following did NOT likely contribute to climatic changes related to the Ice Age? A) plate tectonics, b) variations in the Earth’s orbit, c) ocean circulation patterns, d) earthquake activity.

17. Why rocks break and produce earthquakes is best understood under the: a) plastic

deformation theory, b) elastic rebound theory, c) fracture and slippage theory, d) rock deformation theory.

18. Distributions of deserts around the planet are a function of all but: a) the rain shadow

effect, b) distance from large bodies of water, c) availability of nearby sand masses, and d) cold ocean currents.

19. Most earthquakes that occur on Earth are: a) shallow, b) intermediate, c) deep, d) are

fairly equally distributed relative to depth.

20. S-waves ________. a) travel through solids, liquids, and gases, b) are slower than P-waves, c) are the only waves recorded on seismographs, d) are faster than P-waves.

21. Which of the following landscape features are associated with valley glaciers? a)

drumlins, eskers and hanging valleys, b) cirques, u-shaped valleys and aretes, c) hanging valleys, kettle lakes and v-shaped valleys, d) drumlins, hanging valleys and eskers.

22. The Mercalli scales rates earthquake intensity by _________. a) observations of the

amount of damage to structures, b) the maximum motion recorded on seismic instruments, c) the number of faults in a region, d) the heights of seismic waves.

23. Which state has more glaciers in its mountains than the others? a) Alaska, b)

California, c) New Mexico, d) Washington.

24. Tsunami ________. a) are generated by ocean floor earthquakes, b) are also called tidal waves, c) are generated when glacial ice masses fall into the ocean, d) often strike the mainland of Asia, but for unknown reasons do not affect Japan.

25. Dunes whose tips point down wind are ________ dunes. a) barchan dunes, b)

parabolic dunes, c) transverse, d) longitudinal.

26. Most earthquakes on Earth occur in the ____________ region. a) Mediterranean -

Himalaya, b) mainly oceanic ridges, c) Pacific Ocean, d) California. 27. The equilibrium line of a glacier separates: a) the zone of fracture from the zone of flow,

b) the zone of flow from the zone of wastage, c) the zone of wastage from the zone of accumulation, d) the zone of accumulation from the zone of fracture.

28. If the line of equilibrium in a glacier rises over time (goes to higher elevations), what

does this suggest about climate conditions? a) its getting colder, b) its getting wetter, c) its getting warmer, d) its getting warmer and wetter.

29. Most of our knowledge about Earth’s interior comes from _____. a) drill holes, b)

volcanic eruptions, c) examination of deep mine shafts, d) earthquakes. 30. In general, the larger the earthquake, the ______________ it occurs. a) less frequently,

b) more frequently, c) no relationship between earthquake size and frequency, d) data sets are too incomplete to make such a statement.

31. Most of the deserts around the world are located at about 30° north and south latitude

because of: a) proximity (distance) to oceans, b) elevation, c) descending air masses, d) large sand supplies.

32. Humans can cause earthquakes by: a) disposing of waste materials in deep wells, b)

building cities in areas that have faults, c) pumping out too much oil, gas and/or water from sub-surface aquifers, d) humans don’t cause earthquakes.

33. A seismic gap is: a) an area that has no faults in it, b) a fault that has not been active

in historic times, c) a locked section along an active fault zone, d) an earthquake-prone region well away from a plate boundary.

Downwind direction

34. Which of the following has NOT been considered as a possible earthquake precursor

(happens before an earthquake) phenomenon? a) changes in height of tides before an earthquake, b) swelling of the land surface, c) unusual animal behavior, d) increases in the amount of radon gas in well water.

35. What are shadow zones (in the following figure) used for in earthquake studies of the

earth? a) they tell scientists about the formation of the interior of the earth, b) they tell scientists details about where volcanoes are likely to erupt, c) they indicate locked sections along fault planes, d) they help scientists predict earthquakes.

36. The figure above illustrates a cut-away view of planet Earth and further shows the paths

that seismic waves travel as the move through the Earth. The fact that there are areas that don't propagate seismic waves within the Earth tells us what about the interior of the Earth? a) it is comprised of a variety of different rock types, b) a large part of the core is liquid, c) there are voids within the Earth, d) the propagation of seismic waves is sporadic.

37. The earth is a very old place – over 4.6 billion years in age. Which era represents the

largest block of this time? A) Precambrian, b) Paleozoic, c) Mesozoic, d) Cenozoic. 38. Removal of loose and dry sediments as the wind blows across an unprotected surface

is called: a) windification, b) deflation, c) removication, d) desertification. 39. If a high viscosity magma erupts from a volcano, the eruption is likely to be: a) who

knows, we can’t predict eruption styles, b) non-explosive, c) explosive, d) depleted in the element silica.

40. Absolute dating: a) uses radiometric dating techniques to accurately determine age, b)

dates materials according to the assemblage of minerals in rocks, c) dates materials according to the grain-size of minerals, d) dates materials relative to their position to other dated rock masses.