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Earth: Portrait of a Planet, 3e

Clicker Questions

Chapter 1: Cosmology and the Birth of Earth

1. A light year represents:

A. a year that has fewer days than a normal year.

B. the time it takes light to orbit the Sun once.

C. the time it takes for light to travel from the Sun to the Earth.

D. the distance that light travels in one year.

2. According to the geocentric model:

A. the Earth lies at the center of the Universe.

B. the Earth orbits the center of the Universe.

C. the Earth and all planets in our solar system orbit the Sun.

D. all objects in the Universe are fixed in position.

3. Because of the Doppler effect:

A. a train whistle has a lower frequency as the train approaches you.

B. a train whistle has a higher frequency as the train moves away.

C. wavelengths of light from galaxies moving away from the Earth shift to red.

D. wavelengths of light from galaxies moving away from the Earth shift to blue.

4. The key evidence that the Universe is expanding is:

Deleted: GeoQuiz

A. the blue shift of light from nearby stars.

B. the red shift of light from nearby stars.

C. the blue shift of light from distant galaxies.

D. the red shift of light from distant galaxies.

5. According to the big bang theory:

A. everything that now comprises the Universe started at a single point about

13.7 billion years ago.

B. our Sun is what remains after the explosion of a much bigger star.

C. the Universe will end in a huge explosion 5 billion years from now.

D. the Universe is rapidly shrinking, and will ultimately collapse to become a

single explosive point.

6. Physicists have concluded which of the following concerning element

formation?

A. All elements now in existence formed during the big bang.

B. Hydrogen and helium formed during the big bang, but heavier elements

formed later, through fusion reactions in stars and the explosions of supernovae.

C. Fission reactions in stars split larger atoms to form smaller ones.

D. Supernova explosions produced most of the new hydrogen that formed long

after the big bang.

7. The carbon atoms that now comprise your body were:

A. formed by chemical reactions on Earth.

B. formed by big bang nucleosynthesis.

C. formed by stellar nucleosynthesis.

D. formed by fusion reactions that occur during volcanic eruptions.

8. Which statement represents the favored geological theory describing the

formation of the Earth?

A. The Earth condensed like a giant ice crystal directly from gases formed during

the big bang, and then it was captured by the gravitational pull of the Sun.

B. The Earth was a moon of Jupiter, knocked into its present orbit by a collision

early in the history of the Solar System.

C. The Earth formed by the coalescence of planetesimals that occurred in a ring

orbiting the Sun.

9. According to the ____________, the Earth consists of

__________________.

A. heliocentric model / gas from the big bang

B. nebula theory / big bang gas and gas from stars that have died

C. Doppler theory / the remains of a supernova

10. Accumulations of dust and ice into masses that are basketball sized to

a few kilometers across are:

A. planetesimals.

B. asteroids.

C. protoplanets.

D. solar wind.

11. Using radiometric dating of _________, geologists conclude that the

Earth is about _________ years old.

A. rocks in central Canada / 3.2 billion

B. rocks from Australia / 542 million

C. fragments of meteorites / 4.57 billion

D. the Moon’s surface / 4.57 million

12. Analysis of rocks on the Earth and on the Moon suggest that:

A. the Moon formed early in the history of the solar system as a result of a

collision between a protoplanet and the Earth.

B. the Moon was a large comet captured by Earth’s gravity.

C. the Moon was pulled out of the Earth, when the Earth was still soft, by

gravitational attraction of a passing large object.

Chapter 1: Answer Key

1. D

2. A

3. C

4. D

5. A

6. B

7. C

8. C

9. B

10. A

11. C

12. A


GeoQuiz Clicker Questions

Chapter 2: Journey to the Center of the Earth

1. The Earth produces a ___________ that shields the planet from

_____________ .

A. radiation sphere / comets

B. magnetic field / solar wind

C. heat plume / asteroids

2. The dominant gas in the atmosphere is ______. The density of the

atmosphere _________ with increasing elevation.

A. oxygen / decreases

B. carbon dioxide / increases

C. nitrogen / decreases

D. oxygen / increases

3. Approximately how much of the Earth’s surface is covered by ocean?

What is the average depth of the ocean?

A. 70% / 4.5 - 5.0 km

B. 30% /30 - 45 km

C. 50% / 12 - 15 km

D. 90% / 100 - 150 km

4. Which of the following statements about the Earth’s density is correct?

A. The density of the Earth is constant throughout.

B. The density decreases with increasing depth.

C. The density increases gradually with depth.

D. Density increases with depth, but the rate of increase is not constant: the

central region is much denser.

5. Do seismic waves travel at the same velocity throughout the Earth?

Why?

A. No. The velocity changes with depth at a constant rate.

B. Yes. The velocity is the same at all depths.

C. No. The velocity changes with depth, and at certain depths the change is

abrupt.

D. Trick question: Geologists have no way of estimating how fast seismic waves

travel inside the Earth.

6. Is the temperature the same everywhere inside the Earth?

A. Yes. The temperature of the Earth is constant throughout.

B. No. The temperature increases with increasing depth.

C. No. The temperature decreases with increasing depth.

D. No. The temperature increases, then decreases, then increases, then

decreases, etc, in a periodic way with increasing depth.

7. Which of the following statements is false?

A. The mantle is composed almost entirely of solid rock.

B. The crust floats on a subterranean “sea” of magma.

C. The mantle is composed of rock, whereas the core is composed of metal.

D. The outer core is liquid and the inner core is solid.

8. What is the basis for defining boundaries between the crust, mantle, and

core? What is the basis for defining boundaries between the lithosphere

and asthenosphere?

A. chemical differences / physical differences

B. physical differences / chemical differences

C. differences in seismic velocity / differences in fossil content

D. differences in fossil content / differences in seismic velocity


1. B

2. C

3. A

4. D

5. C

6. D

7. B

8. A



Chapter 3: Drifting Continents and Spreading Seas

1. According to Wegener’s hypothesis of continental drift, all continents

were once attached to form a single landmass that he called ________. He

thought that this landmass survived until about the middle of the

_________ Era.

A. Rodinia / Paleozoic

B. Pangaea / Mesozoic

C. Baltica / Cenozoic

D. Laurentia / Paleozoic

2. What is the relationship between the coastlines on the east side of the

Atlantic and those on the west side?

A. There is no relationship at all.

B. They are identical.

C. Continents on the east side could fit snugly against those on the west.

D. Their elevations are the same.

3. Which of the following statements about Wegener’s reconstruction of

late Paleozoic Pangaea is true?

A. Areas glaciated during the late Paleozoic were all in the northern hemisphere.

B. Areas that were deserts in the late Paleozoic were all in polar regions.

C. Areas that were coal swamps in the late Paleozoic were all at high (polar)

latitudes at that time.

D. Areas glaciated during the late Paleozoic laid over the south polar region.

4. When Wegener compared rock units now exposed on different

continents bordering the Atlantic Ocean, what did he discover?

A. Fossils of identical land-dwelling species occur on continents that are now

separated from one another by the ocean.

B. There is no relation between mountain belts on the eastern margin and those

on the western margin.

C. Precambrian crustal blocks have not been truncated by oceans.

D. Glossopteris fossils occur only in Africa.

5. Why did most geologists initially oppose Wegener’s hypothesis of

continental drift?

A. Wegener could not explain the distribution of fossils.

B. Wegener could not explain how or why continents move.

C. Wegener could not explain the distribution of climate belts of the past.

D. Trick question: Geologists all over the world immediately accepted Wegener’s

hypothesis.

6. Keeping in mind the shape of magnetic field lines in space around the

Earth, which of the following is true?

A. Averaged over time, magnetic inclination is constant everywhere on the

Earth’s surface.

B. Magnetic inclination is 45° at the magnetic equator and 0° at the magnetic

poles.

C. Magnetic inclination is 90° at the magnetic equator and 45° at a magnetic

latitude of 45°.

D. Magnetic inclination is 0° at the magnetic equator and 90° at the magnetic

poles.

7. Why can samples of basalt exhibit paleomagnetism?

A. The dipoles of tiny magnetite grains in basalt align with the Earth’s field as the

basalt cools, and stay that way once the basalt is cold.

B. Large crystals of magnetite grow in basalt long after the rock cools. These

crystals act like magnets.

C. The Earth’s electrical currents flow through basalt, so it acts like an

electromagnet.

D. As the crystals forming basalt settle out of water they align with the Earth’s

field, and then are cemented into place.

8. Today, what is the favored explanation of apparent polar-wander paths?

A. The Earth’s magnetic poles wander rapidly around the surface, crossing the

equator frequently.

B. The Moon drags the magnetic poles with it as it orbits the Earth.

C. Continents drift with respect to relatively fixed magnetic poles.

D. The paths are an illusion. Deviations of paleopole positions from the present

are caused by lightning strikes.

9. When a magnetometer is towed over a positive marine magnetic

anomaly:

A. the measured magnetic field is weaker than expected.

B. the measured magnetic field is stronger than expected.

C. the sea floor is shallower than expected.

D. the sea floor is deeper than expected.

10. Studies of sea-floor bathymetry demonstrate that:

A. the ocean floor is a vast plain, all at the same depth.

B. mid-ocean ridges, up to 15 km high, divide each ocean basin in half.

C. the axis of a mid-ocean ridge can be drawn as a continuous straight line, with

no interruptions or offsets.

D. deep ocean trenches, the deepest of which have a depth of about 11 km,

border chains of active volcanoes.

11. Where is the heat flow of oceanic crust the greatest?

A. Along the axes of the mid-ocean ridges.

B. At the floors of the deep-ocean trenches.

C. Along the coast of an ocean basin.

D Along the equator.

12. Which of the following statements about Earth’s magnetic field is

correct?

A. The polarity stays constant through time, i.e., north is always north.

B. The position of the dipole wanders around the Earth’s surface, and was at the

equator about 1 million years ago.

C. The polarity of the magnetic field reverses every now and then.

D. The polarity of the magnetic field reverses periodically; reversals occur once

every 700,000 years.


1. B

2. C

3. D

4. A

5. B

6. D

7. A

8. C

9. B

10. D

11. A

12. C



Chapter 4: The Way the Earth Works: Plate Tectonics

1. A lithosphere plate consists of:

A. the crust alone.

B. the lower mantle.

C. the crust and the uppermost part of the mantle.

D. the crust and the entire upper mantle.

2. What defines the location of plate boundaries? (Compare Fig. 4.4 to Fig.

4.5.)

A. The locations of earthquake epicenters.

B. High mountain belts.

C. The coastlines of continents.

D. Trick question: Plate boundaries are simply drawn along lines of latitude.

3. What is the difference between a "passive continental margin" and an

"active continental margin"? (Compare Fig. 4.3 to Fig. 4.15.)

A. Earthquakes happen frequently at passive margins, but not at active ones.

B. Wide continental shelves occur at active margins, but not at passive ones.

C. Crust is much thicker at a passive margin than in the interior of a continent.

D. Passive margins are not plate boundaries, whereas active margins are.

4. In the Atlantic Ocean, where does the youngest oceanic crust occur?

(See Fig. 4.7.)

A. Along the coastlines of the continents.

B. Adjacent to the mid-ocean ridge.

C. There is no set rule: young ocean crust has a nearly random distribution.

5. In which of the following pairs of terms does the second term represent

the type of process that happens at the first term?

A. mid-ocean ridge / sea-floor spreading

B. convergent boundary / plates move apart

C. transform boundary / plates move together

D. mid-ocean ridge / subduction

6. Which of the following processes happen at the axis of a mid-ocean

ridge?

A. Molten rock intrudes on the crust, and lava erupts at the surface.

B. Vents in the sea floor spew out hot, mineral-saturated water.

C. Stretching force (tension) causes the crust to break and slip on faults.

D. None of the above.

E. All of the above.

7. Which of the following statements about a hotspot track is correct?

A. All of the volcanoes making up the track have erupted at roughly the same

time.

B. The track is perpendicular to the direction that the plate on which the

volcanoes form is moving.

C. Hotspot tracks are parallel to deep ocean trenches.

D. The youngest volcano of the track occurs at one end of the track.

8. At a __________, continental crust is being stretched apart; as a

consequence, the crust becomes _______ and volcanoes erupt.

A. trench / shorter

B. trench / longer

C. rift / thinner

D. rift / thicker

9. Why can’t continental crust be subducted?

A. It is too buoyant and can’t sink into the asthenosphere.

B. Continental crust is denser than the asthenosphere.

C. Trick question: Continental crust can be subducted, just like oceanic crust.

10. Which of the following statements concerning the forces that drive

plate motions is correct?

A. Plate movement occurs primarily because of simple convection cells in the

mantle.

B. Movement of oceanic currents causes the underlying plates to move.

C. Ridge-push and slab-pull forces are probably the main forces that drive plate

motion.

D. Plates move in response to centrifugal force caused by the rotation of the

Earth.

11. The motion of a plate in relation to material on an adjacent plate is

called ________ velocity. Values for this velocity are on the order of

______.

A. relative / 1 - 15 km/y

B. absolute / 1 - 15 cm/y

C. relative / 40 - 60 cm/y

D. absolute / 40 - 60 km/y

Answers

1. C

2. A

3. D

4. A

5. A

6. D

7. D

8. C

9. A

10. C

11. A



Chapter 5: Patterns in Nature: Minerals

1. Based on the geologic definition of a mineral, which of the following is a

mineral, or is composed of minerals?

A. A DVD disk.

B. An asphalt shingle on a roof.

C. Sugar crystals in a sugar cube.

D. Molten candle wax.

E. The ice making up a snowflake.

2. When we say that a material is “crystalline” we mean that internally:

A. atoms are distributed in an orderly arrangement.

B. atoms and/or clusters of atoms are arranged randomly.

C. atoms are arranged strictly in microscopic cubes.

D. the material only occurs in crystals with nicely formed crystal faces.

3. Which of the following processes does not lead to the formation of a

mineral?

A. Precipitation from an aqueous solution.

B. Instantaneous freezing of molten rock.

C. Slow cooling of molten rock.

D. Precipitation from concentrated gases.

E. Slow diffusion through a solid.

4. Which of the following definitions is not correct?

A. Anhedral crystal: the crystal does not have well-formed faces.

B. Euhedral crystal: the crystal does have well-formed faces.

C. Geode: a mineral-filled cavity.

D. Symmetric: one part of a mineral crystal bears no geometric relationship with

another part.

E. Polymorph: a mineral that has the same chemical composition, but not the

same crystal structure, as another one.

5. Which of the following minerals has a metallic luster?

A. Pyrite, a mineral that looks like brass.

B. Quartz, a mineral that looks like glass.

C. Feldspar, a mineral that looks like porcelain.

D. Halite, a mineral that looks gray or white, and glassy.

6. The chemical formula of quartz is SiO2. This means that if you analyze a

piece of quartz, you will find that:

A. the piece contains equal parts of sodium and chlorine.

B. the piece contains one silicon atom for every two oxygen atoms.

C. the piece contains a random mixture of silicon and oxygen atoms.

D. the piece contains a great variety of different elements.

7. If a sample has good cleavage in three directions, and each cleavage

plane direction is at right angles to the other two, then:

A. the crystal can be peeled apart into thin sheets.

B. the crystal grows to form cube-shaped crystals.

C. if struck with a hammer, a smooth fracture shaped like a clam shell forms.

D. when crystals break, little cube-shaped or brick-shaped fragments form.

8. Which statement about the specific gravity of minerals is correct?

A. If a mineral has a specific gravity of 2, then a cubic centimeter of the mineral

weighs twice as much as a cubic centimeter of water.

B. Galena (lead ore; PbS) has a smaller specific gravity than halite (table salt;

NaCl).

C. The specific gravity is a measure of how fast an object will fall a distance of 1

m in a vacuum.

D. The specific gravity of a particular mineral specimen depends on the size of

the specimen.

9. The seven principle classes of minerals are distinguished from each

other based on:

A. color.

B. crystal form.

C. chemical composition.

D. hardness.

10. The fundamental unit of the most common mineral class on Earth is:

A. the sodium-chlorine cube.

B. the sulfate (SO4) anionic group.

C. the silicon-oxygen tetrahedron.

D. the carbonate (CO3) anionic group.

E. the silicon-iron pyramid.

11. Which of the following phrases is not a correct characteristic of the

specified mineral?

A. Mica: two-dimensional sheet silicate.

B. Quartz: single-chain silicate.

C. Feldspar: 3-D framework silicate.

D. Olivine: unlinked silicon-oxygen tetrahedra .

E. Calcite: carbonate mineral that reacts strongly with acid.

12. The facets on cut diamonds or other cut gems are generally:

A. natural crystal faces.

B. natural cleavage surfaces.

C. formed by grinding on a lap.

D. formed by carefully dissolving portions of a crystal.

.


1. E

2. A

3. B

4. D

5. A

6. B

7. D

8. A

9. C

10. C

11. B

12. C



Chapter 6: Up from the Inferno: Magma and Igneous Rocks

1. What is the difference between magma and lava?

A. Composition: the former contains more magnesium and iron than the latter.

B. Location: the former is molten rock underground whereas the latter is molten

rock at the Earth’s surface.

C. Temperature: the former is hotter than the latter.

D. Grain size: the former has bigger crystals than the latter.

2. What does pyroclastic debris consist of?

A. Fragments of solidified lava erupted into the air from a volcano.

B. Solid masses of glass.

C. Rivers of lava that flow down the side of a volcano.

D. A type of intrusive igneous rock.

3. In the upper crust of a continent, the geothermal gradient is about:

A. 350° - 400°C per km.

B. 150° - 200°C per km.

C. 20° - 30°C per km.

D. 1° - 5°C per km.

4. Which of the following phenomena will cause melting to produce

magma?

A. The removal of volatiles (H2O or CO2) from the rock.

B. Increasing pressure, while the temperature stays constant.

C. Trick question: the crust floats on a layer of perpetually molten rock, so

magma has always existed; there is no need to melt rock to “produce” magma.

D. A transfer of heat from a hot magma into the surrounding wall rock.

5. Which is the correct order of adjectives defining magma composition?

<— more silica less silica —>

A. felsic / intermediate / ultramafic / mafic

B. ultramafic / mafic / felsic / intermediate

C. intermediate / felsic / mafic / ultramafic

D. felsic / intermediate / mafic / ultramafic

6. A large blob-like or irregularly shaped mass of intrusive igneous rock is

called a:

A. sill.

B. pluton.

C. laccolith.

D. dike.

7. A ________ is a tabular intrusion that cuts across layers, whereas a

_______ is one that intrudes between layers.

A. pluton / laccolith

B. sill / dike

C. dike / sill

D. flow / batholith

8. If you find an outcrop of coarse-grained igneous rock, you are probably

looking at:

A. slowly cooled magma in a large pluton that formed deep in the crust.

B. a frozen lava flow that cooled quickly at the Earth’s surface.

C. a rapidly cooled magma in a very thin dike.

D. a layer of pyroclastic debris.

9. When a gas-rich (“volatile-rich”) magma rises to the Earth’s surface the

gas forms ________ which, if frozen into the lava, become(s) _________.

A. obsidian / pumice

B. bubbles / vesicles

C. tuff / granite

D. gabbro / phenocrysts

10. In which of the following tectonic settings does magma form primarily

as a consequence of addition of volatiles?

A. mid-ocean ridges

B. convergent plate boundaries at volcanic island arcs

C. hotspot volcanoes

D. transform faults

11. In which of the following tectonic settings is magma formation not likely

a consequence of decompression melting?

A. mid-ocean ridge

B. rift

C. convergent plate boundary

D. hot spot

12. Pillow basalts form:

A. by the intrusion of mafic magma at great depth in the crust.

B. by extrusion at high elevations on large volcanoes.

C. by intrusion of felsic magma at shallow depth in the crust.

D. by extrusion under water.


1. A

2. A

3. C

4. D

5. D

6. B

7. C

8. A

9. B

10. B

11. C

12. D



Chapter 7: A Surface Veneer: Sediments, Soils, and Sedimentary Rocks

1. What is the difference between sediment and sedimentary rock?

A. Coherence: sediment consists of loose grains, sedimentary rock consists of a

solid aggregate.

B. Location: sediment occurs at the Earth’s surface, whereas sedimentary rock

only occurs underground.

C. Temperature: the former is hotter than the latter.

D. Grain size: the former has bigger crystals than the latter.

2. Which of the following is not a manifestation of a physical weathering

process?

A. Roots pry a crack open.

B. Rock breaks apart by the formation of joints.

C. Water reacts with minerals and breaks molecules apart.

D. Salt crystals grow between grains and push the grains apart.

3. Which of the following is not a manifestation of chemical weathering?

A. The dissolving of calcite in water to produce Ca2+ and CO32- in solution.

B. The bonding of oxygen to iron ions to produce oxide minerals.

C. The growth of ice crystals in cracks to wedge the cracks open.

D. The absorption of water molecules into the crystal structure of minerals.

4. What is the difference between soil and sediment?

A The former is coarser grained and the latter is finer grained.

B. The former has been modified by leaching or by accumulation of ions and may

contain organic matter, whereas the latter has not.

C. The former has been buried deeply, while the latter has not.

D. The former is wet while the latter is dry.

5. Which is the correct order of soil horizons in a typical soil of a temperate

forest?

<— ground surface deeper in subsurface —>

A. O / A / E / B / C

B. protosoil / evolved soil / deep soil

C. A / B / C / E / O

D. zone of accumulation / zone of leaching / zone of weathering

6. The process of erosion does not include which of the following?

A. Boulders being plucked off a hillside by a glacier

B. Gravity-driven tumbling off a cliff.

C. Removal of debris by wind or running water.

D. Precipitation of cement.

7. Which of the following processes are considered to contribute to

lithification?

A. Compaction and consolidation (removal of water and air between the grains).

B. Cementation by minerals precipitated from groundwater.

C. Formation of joints.

D. Churning by subsurface organisms.

E. both A and B

8. Sedimentary rocks formed by cementing grains derived from preexistent

rocks together are called _______ sedimentary rocks. A very fine-grained

example, which typically splits into thin sheets, is called _________.

A. clastic / shale

B. biochemical / conglomerate

C. chemical / coal

D. clastic / sandstone

9. Imagine a mountain stream whose fast-moving water has carried away

all grains except for well-rounded pebbles, cobbles, and boulders. If such

stream gravel were lithified, it would turn into:

A. shale.

B. siltstone.

C. arkose.

D. breccia.

E. conglomerate.

10. Biochemical limestone can consist of:

A. coral mounds and/or calcite shell fragments.

B. quartz sand grains on a beach.

C. deposits of clay.

D. deposits of plankton shells composed of silica.

11. Evaporites are a type of _______ sedimentary rock. Examples include

______ and ______.

A. organic / coal / black shale

B. biochemical / plankton shells / clay

C. chemical / gypsum / halite

D. clastic / quartz / feldspar

12. In the cross section of cross beds shown above, which direction did the

current flow at the time of deposition?

A. West to east.

B. East to west.

west east

C. Top to bottom.

D. Bottom to top.

13. In the schematic cross section of graded beds shown above, are the

beds right-side-up (i.e., the younger bed is on top) or overturned (i.e., the

younger bed is on the bottom)?

A. Overturned.

B. Right-side-up.

C. Trick question: can’t tell from the data provided.

D. Left to right.

.

14. If you were to find an outcrop that consists of channels of sandstone

surrounded by layers of shale, much of which is reddish in color, you are

probably looking at the deposits of:

A. a beach.

B. a reef environment.

C. the deep water part of a delta.

D. the nearshore part of a delta

clast (diameter indicates size)

bedding

15. A region that undergoes long-term _________, so that relatively thick

deposits of sediment can accumulate, is called a ____________.

A. uplift / channel

B. subsidence / sedimentary basin

C. erosion / slope

D. none of the above

16. If sea level rises so the shoreline migrates inland, we say that a

______________ has occurred.

A. migration

B. regression

C. accumulation

D. transgression


1. A

2. C

3. C

4. B

5. A

6. D

7. E

8. A

9. E

10. A

11. C

12. A

13. B

14. D

15. B

16. D



Chapter 8: Metamorphism: A Process of Change

1. Which of the following phrases correctly completes the following

sentence? During metamorphism, ________.

A. glass changes by first melting and then solidifying

B. rock reacts with air and water at the Earth’s surface

C. sediment undergoes compaction and cementation

D. a protolith undergoes change in the solid state

2. Which phenomenon can cause the mineral assemblage in a protolith to

change into a metamorphic mineral assemblage?

A. A change in pressure.

B. A change in temperature.

C. Sheer stress.

D. Infiltration by supercritical fluids.

E. All of the above.

3. Metamorphism of sandstone produces ________, whereas

metamorphism of limestone produces __________.

A. shale / granite

B. quartzite / marble

C. veins / foliation

D. conglomerate / dolomite

4. Application of _________ during metamorphism causes inequant grains

to align parallel to each other; when this happens, minerals in the rock

develop ____________.

A. pressure / homogeneous texture

B. differential stress / preferred orientation

C. high temperatures / preferred orientation


5. What is the difference between foliated and non-foliated metamorphic

rocks?

A. The former display preferred orientation and/or compositional banding,

whereas the latter do not.

B. The former have bigger grains than the latter.

C. The former are heavier than the latter.

D. The former have a greater variety of minerals than the latter.

6. Which of the following lists distinguishes foliated metamorphic rocks in

the correct sequence?

<— finer coarser —>

A. schist / slate / phyllite

B. phyllite / schist / slate

C. slate / phyllite / schist

D. hornfels / slate / schist

7. When we say that metamorphic rock #1 is “higher grade” than

metamorphic rock #2, we mean that:

A. rock #1 was subjected to higher temperatures than rock #2.

B. rock #1 was subjected to lower temperatures than rock #2.

C. rock #1 has more foliation than rock #2.

D. rock #1 has more dark-colored minerals than rock #2.

8. Imagine traveling from the edge of a collisional orogen (mountain belt)

into its interior. At the beginning of your journey, you probably find

outcrops of ______, whereas at the end of the journey, you probably find

outcrops of _______.

A. slate / gneiss

B. gneiss / slate

C. Trick question: In a given orogen, all metamorphic rocks have the same

grade.

9. Metamorphism due to heat alone, without differential stress, is called:

A. regional metamorphism.

B. dynamic metamorphism.

C. dynamothermal metamorphism.

D. contact metamorphism.

10. Metamorphism at great depth in an accretionary prism produces:

A. greenschist.

B. blueschist.

C. amphibolite.

D. granulite.

11. In a continental _______, you find extensive exposures of ________

metamorphic rock.

A. shelf / Cenozoic

B. platform / Paleozoic

C. shield / Precambrian

D. all of the above


1. D

2. E

3. B

4. B

5. A

6. C

7. A

8. A

9. D

10. B

11. C



Chapter 9: The Wrath of Vulcan: Volcanic Eruptions

1. The character of a lava flow depends on the viscosity of the lava erupted.

_____ lava is less viscous than _____ lava, and thus flows out as a

_________.

A. rhyolitic / basaltic / thin sheet

B. basaltic / rhyolitic / mound or dome

C. rhyolitic / basaltic / mound or dome

D. basaltic / rhyolitic / thin sheet

2. Volcanic ash consists of __________. An avalanche of hot ash flowing

down a volcano is known as a(n) ____________.

A. cobbles of basalt / ash fall

B. tiny shards of glass / pyroclastic flow

C. marble-sized cinders / lahar

D. blocks of rhyolite / debris flow

3. A large, cone-shaped volcano consisting of alternating layers of ash and

lava is a(n) ____________.

A. stratovolcano or composite volcano

B. shield volcano

C. cinder cone

D. ignimbrite

4. If a volcano is erupting a gassy, felsic magma, then it is more likely to be

__________.

A. an “effusive” eruption (i.e., lava flows dominate)

B. an explosive eruption

C. can’t be answered with information provided: eruptive style does not depend

on composition or gas content

5. Most of the deaths resulting from the 1883 explosion of Krakatau were

due to __________.

A. ash fall

B. lava flows

C. tsunami

D. pyroclastic flows

6. What measurable clues may indicate that a particular volcano may erupt

in the near future?

A. The heat flow measured on the surface of the volcano decreases.

B. The volcano changes shape as the magma chamber fills.

C. The number of earthquakes beneath the volcano decreases.

D. Both A and C.

7. Mafic lava erupted at a submarine volcano will produce __________ .

A. an a’a’ flow

B. a cinder cone

C. a pahoehoe flow

D. pillow basalt

Chapter 9: Answer key

1. D

2. B

3. A

4. B

5. C

6. B

7. D



Chapter 10: A Violent Pulse: Earthquakes

1. The point on the surface of the Earth that lies directly above the place

where slip occurs on a fault is the ____.

A. hypocenter

B. focus

C. epicenter

D. all of the above

2. On a _________ fault, the hanging wall block slips down the surface of

the fault, relative to the footwall. If the fault displaces the ground surface, a

_________ develops.

A. reverse / fault trace

B. normal / fault scarp

C. strike slip / fault trace

D. reverse / fault scarp

E. Trick question: faults are always entirely underground and cannot offset the

Earth’s surface.

3. According to the “elastic rebound theory” of earthquake generation:

A. Rock bends elastically before breaking; the sudden break and/or frictional

sliding causes earthquakes.

B. Rock flows slowly underground, like plastic. After it has flowed a specified

distance, an earthquake occurs.

C. Most earthquakes occur when bubbles underground burst, like rubber

balloons.

D. None of the above.

4. Which is the correct sequence of seismic waves that will be recorded at

distance from the epicenter?

<— first to arrive last to arrive —>

A. S-waves / surface waves / P-waves

B. Surface waves / P-waves / S-waves

C. P-waves / S-waves / surface waves

D. Trick question: all seismic waves travel at the same velocity.

5. A mechanical seismograph consists of a pen attached to a suspended

weight, and a drum on which paper roll has been attached. During an

earthquake:

A. The weight stays fixed in space, while the drum and paper move.

B. The drum and paper stay fixed in position, while the weight bounces about.

C. Both the drum and the weight bounce about.

6. To locate the epicenter of an earthquake, what information do you need?

A. The amplitude of the P-waves.

B. The velocity of P-waves recorded at a seismic station.

C. The velocity of surface waves recorded at a seismic station.

D. The difference in the arrival times of the P- and S-waves, as recorded at three

different stations.

E. The amplitude of the S-waves.

7. The “intensity” of an earthquake is:

A. a measure of the amplitude of vibrations recorded by a seismograph.

B. defined by the amount of damage caused by the earthquake.

C. a measure of the elevation change of the ground caused by the earthquake.

D. a constant throughout a continent for a given earthquake.

8. A magnitude 4 earthquake results in ground motion that is ______ the

ground motion that occurs during a magnitude 2 earthquake, and releases

_____ the amount of energy.

A. 2X / 4X

B. 2X / 2X

C. 4X / 100X

D.100X / 1089X

9. Which statement about the distribution of earthquakes on Earth is

correct?

A. Earthquakes are evenly distributed around the globe.

B. Earthquakes occur in discrete belts, along plate boundaries.

C. Earthquakes occur exclusively in the interiors of plates.

D. Earthquakes are randomly distributed around the globe.

10. Which statement about the distribution of earthquakes at convergent

plate boundaries is correct?

A. Hypocenters occur in a Wadati-Benioff zone, down to a depth of about 670

km below the surface.

B. Hypocenters occur only in the downgoing plate.

C. Epicenters occur only on the seaward side of the trench.

D. Hypocenters only occur in the upper 15 km.

11. The concept that actions of people can somehow cause or “induce”

seismicity is only a myth.

A. False: all earthquakes are directly caused by people.

B. False: filling reservoirs or pumping water underground has triggered small

earthquakes.

C. True.

12. Which building would be more likely to survive a large earthquake?

A. One with a foundation built on an exposure of granite bedrock.

B. One built over a reclaimed swamp, so that the foundation lies over layers of

wet clay.

C. One built over recent deposits of wet sand, which were buried in turn by

compacted clay.

13. Tsunamis can be caused by:

A. Earthquakes in continental rifts that occur inland.

B. Earthquakes along convergent plate boundaries.

C. Large hurricanes.

14. With existing technology, it is possible to predict earthquakes to within

a few days.

A. True.

B. False.

15. When we say that the “recurrence interval” of magnitude 8 earthquakes

along a given fault segment is 100 years, we mean:

A. magnitude 8 earthquakes happen every 100 years, so if one just happened,

the location will be safe for another 100 years.

B. the probability that an earthquake can happen in a given year is 50%.

C. the time between any two magnitude 8 earthquakes may vary substantially,

but the average time between earthquakes is 100 years.


1. C

2. B

3. A

4. C

5. A

6. D

7. B

8. D

9. B

10. A

11. C

12. A

13. B

14. B

15. C



Chapter 11: Crags, Cracks, and Crumples: Crustal Deformation and Mountain

Building

1. Above, we see a cross section of a cube that undergoes ______ in the

horizontal direction to become a brick shape.

A. shortening

B. stretching

C. contraction

D. shear

2. When you snap a stick between your hands so it separates into two

pieces, you have caused ________ deformation.

A. elastic

B. brittle

C. ductile

B. all of the above

before after

3. In the context of geology, a “joint” refers to:

A. a broad bend or curve defined by the shape of a rock layer.

B. a fracture on which there has been sliding.

C. a natural crack, on which there has been no sliding, in rock.

D. a surface on which two rock layers are cemented together.

4. Both normal faults and reverse faults are considered to be _____ faults.

The hanging wall block of a normal fault slides ______ the surface of the

fault.

A. strike-slip / laterally on

B. oblique-slip / diagonally

C. dip-slip / up

D. dip-slip / down

5. The fault shown in the above diagram is a vertical surface, and the slip

lineations on it are horizontal. What type of fault is it?

A. strike-slip

B. thrust

C. normal

D. oblique-slip

6. The diagram above depicts a _________. The red line represents the

_________.

A. syncline / limb

B. anticline / hinge

C. anticline / limb

D. syncline / hinge

7. If a succession of strata are folded so that they have the shape of an

overturned bowl, the fold is a _______.

A. monocline

B. dome

C. basin

D. anticline

8. Which of the following statements pertaining to the uplift of the surface

of the Earth is not correct?

A. The crust beneath collisional mountain belts can become twice as thick as the

crust beneath normal crust.

B. The lithosphere floats on the asthenosphere, so phenomena that cause it to

float higher lead to uplift.

C. Where there is isostasy, or isostatic equilibrium, the buoyancy force pushing

the lithosphere up is the same as the gravitational force pulling the lithosphere

down.

D. Uplift of the Earth’s surface during mountain building does not affect the depth

of the Moho beneath the surface.

9. Exotic terranes attach (“accrete”) to the margins of a continent during

_______, and cause the area of the host continent to _______.

A. convergent orogeny / decrease

B. convergent orogeny / increase

C. rifting / decrease

D. rifting / increase

10. In a collisional orogen, the fold-thrust belts occur:

A. along the margins of the orogen, where rocks undergo thrusting above a

detachment.

B. in the internal part where rocks have been squeezed up from great depth.

C. in the grabens.

D. in the horsts.

11. The shield area of a continent refers to:

A. regions where shield volcanoes have formed by repeated eruption.

B. the portion of the continent where Precambrian rock has been buried by

Paleozoic strata.

C. the portion of the continent where extensive areas of Precambrian rock are

exposed.

D. the youngest portion of the continental crust in existence.

12. According to geologic studies of the Appalachians, it is clear that there

was never an ocean east of what is now the United States until the opening

of the modern Atlantic.

A. True.

B. False.

C. The answer is not known; more observations are needed until it can be

justified.


1. B

2. B

3. C

4. D

5. A

6. D

7. B

8. D

9. B

10. A

11. C

12. B



Chapter 12: Deep Time: How Old Is Old?

1. When we say that the ruins of the Roman forum are older than the towers

of Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, we are giving a specification of:

A. numerical age.

B. relative age.

C. uniform age.

D. absolute age.

2. According to the Principle of Uniformitarianism:

A. the future is the key to the present.

B. there was once a uniform layer of sediment covering the entire Earth.

C. physical processes that can be observed today also happened in the past, at

comparable rates, and are responsible for the geologic features that we see.

D. all rock layers start out with roughly the same orientation.

3. According to the principle of cross-cutting relations, which of the

following features in the above cross section is the oldest?

A. the pluton

B. the dike

C. sedimentary layer A

D. sedimentary layer F

4. According to the principle of cross-cutting relations, which of the

following features in the above cross section is the youngest?

ABC

DEF

pluton dike

ABC

DEF

pluton dike

A. the pluton

B. the dike

C. sedimentary layer A

D. sedimentary layer F

5. A geologist plots the lowest (oldest) and highest (youngest) appearance

of fossil specimens on a stratigraphic chart. According to the Principle of

Fossil Succession:

A. strata containing X are always younger than those containing Z.

B. strata containing Y are always older than those containing Z.

C. strata containing Y are always younger than those containing Z.

D. fossil Z might occur in Unit G. (Note: Assume that the highest appearance of a

species shown on the chart represents the extinction of the species.)

A

DC

E

F

B

fossil X

fossil Y

fossil Z

Note: Oldest strata are on the bottom!

G

6. The boundary between stratigraphic units A and B is called a(n):

A. intrusive contact.

B. fault contact.

C. unconformity.

D. conformable contact.

7. When we say that the Redwall Limestone, exposed in the Grand Canyon,

correlates with the Monte Cristo Limestone exposed near Las Vegas, we

mean:

A. both units have exactly the same rock type, but different fossils.

B. both units were deposited at approximately the same time.

C. the Redwall was deposited on top of the Monte Cristo.

D. the Monte Cristo was deposited on top of the Redwall.

ABC

DEF

pluton dike

8. The complete geologic column is represented by the stratigraphic

succession exposed in the immense walls of the Grand Canyon. (Hint:

Geologists have identified several unconformities in the Grand Canyon.)

A. true

B. false

C. possibly

D. insufficient data

9. Which interval of time is the longest?

A. eon

B. epoch

C. era

D. period

10. In which of the following do we present the correct sequence of Eras?

<— oldest youngest —>

A. Paleozoic / Mesozoic / Cenozoic

B. Mesozoic / Paleozoic / Cenozoic

C. Cenozoic / Mesozoic / Paleozoic

D. Mesozoic / Cenozoic / Paleozoic

11. The half-life of a given radioactive isotope is 100 million years. A

mineral specimen contains four atoms of parent for every twelve atoms of

daughter. Assuming no escape of parent or daughter during decay, how

old is the specimen?

A. 800 million years

B. 400 million years

C. 200 million years

D. 100 million years

12. If we obtain a radiometric age of 215 ± 2 Ma on a sample of amphibolite-

facies metamorphosed basalt, the date is telling us:

A. when the basalt cooled from lava, and thus the age of eruption.

B. the time of the rock just beneath the basalt flow.

C. the time when the rock was eroded and exposed at the Earth’s surface.

D. the time when the rock cooled from amphibolite facies conditions.

13. The feldspar grains in an arkose yield an age of 310 ± 3 Ma. This means

that:

A. the arkose was deposited about 310 Ma.

B. the arkose underwent lithification about 310 Ma.

C. the granite from which the feldspar grains were eroded solidified from magma

and cooled to low temperature about 310 Ma.

D. erosion of granite to provide feldspar grains occurred about 310 Ma.


1. B

2. C

3. D

4. C

5. A

6. C

7. B

8. B

9. A

10. A

11. C

12. D

13. C



Chapter 13: A Biography of Earth

1. On what basis do geologists conclude that the Earth formed about 4.57

Ga?

A. Radiometric ages of the oldest rocks found on continents.

B. Radiometric ages of certain types of meteorites.

C. The age of clasts in the oldest known sedimentary rocks on Earth.

D. Measurement of the spectra of the Sun.

2. Which of the following statements about the early history of the Earth is

correct?

A. The Earth accreted in stages, with the iron core forming first, and the rocky

mantle forming later.

B. Soon after the Earth formed, it captured a large planetesimal. This

planetesimal began to orbit the Earth as the Moon.

C. The Earth was fairly homogeneous early in its history, but soon underwent

differentiation. Iron sank to the center to form the core.

D. The Earth’s Moon did not form until Paleozoic time.

3. The fossil record indicates that the first living organisms appeared on

Earth during the:

A. Hadean Eon.

B. Archean.

C. Proterozoic Eon.

D. Phanerozoic Eon.

4. The first continents, or “protocontinents,” appeared in the Archean. They

consisted of:

A. sutured volcanic arcs and hotspot volcanoes.

B. thick accumulations of marine sediment.

C. masses of bacteria.

D. none of the above.

5. Based on the geologic record, which statement about the oxygen

content in the atmosphere is correct?

A. The atmosphere has always had approximately the same amount of oxygen.

B. Oxygen is the principal gas released by volcanoes.

C. The oxygen content in the very early atmosphere was much higher than it is

today. About 2.5 Ga, it dropped significantly.

D. The early Archean atmosphere had very little oxygen. Oxygen content began

to increase when photosynthetic organisms evolved in the Archean, and more so

during the Proterozoic and Phanerozoic eons.

6. The fossil record indicates that complex, multicellular organisms (e.g.,

worms and jellyfish) appeared:

A. at the end of the Archean (about 2.5 Ga).

B. near the end of the Proterozoic (about 670 Ma).

C. at the Precambrian/Cambrian boundary (at 542 Ma).

D. at the beginning of the Archean (about 3.9 Ga).

7. The fossil record shows that during the early Cambrian:

A. the first stromatolites (mounds of bacteria or archaea) appeared.

B. the dinosaurs went extinct.

C. there was an “explosion” of life, in that a great diversity of species, many with

shells, appeared.

D. the first land plants appeared.

8. At the end of the Precambrian, a ________ formed. This has been given

the name _________.

A. microcontinent / Rodinia

B. supercontinent / Pangaea

C. supercontinent / Rodinia

D. microcontinent / Pangaea

9. Huge coal swamps covered inland areas of continents during the

_______.

A. Proterozoic Eon

B. Cambrian Period

C. Devonian Period

D. Carboniferous Period

10. At the end of the _______, during the _______ orogeny, Africa collided

with the east coast of North America, and the supercontinent ________

formed.

A. Proterozoic / Taconic / Rodinia

B. Paleozoic / Alleghanian / Pangaea

C. Cenozoic / Laramide / Pannotia

D. Mesozoic / Trans-Hudson / Gondwana

11. The stratigraphic record from the interior of North America indicates

that:

A. several times during the Phanerozoic, volcanic activity occurred throughout

the continent.

B. shallow seas submerged large areas of the continent several times during the

Phanerozoic.

C. there were never shallow seas in the interior—the region has always been the

site of non-marine deposition.

D. the region was underlain by oceanic crust until Mesozoic time.

12. During much of the Mesozoic, the western margin of North America was

a:

A. rift.

B. transform fault.

C. divergent plate boundary.

D. convergent plate boundary.

E. passive margin.

13. The most popular hypothesis to explain the mass extinction of life at

the Cretaceous-Tertiary boundary is that:

A. an intense ice age occurred, freezing most of the Earth. Geologists refer to

this condition as “snowball Earth.”

B. huge rifts developed on most continents, and the rift-related volcanoes emitted

vast amounts of deadly gases.

C. a large meteorite collided with Earth at the site of what is now Yucatán.

D. so much orogeny (mountain building) occurred that there were steep slopes

nearly everywhere.


1. B

2. C

3. B

4. A

5. D

6. B

7. C

8. A

9. D

10. B

11. B

12. D

13. C



Chapter 14: Squeezing Power from a Stone: Energy Resources

1. World usage of energy increased dramatically during the time interval of

___________. Today, ______ provides over 80% of the world’s energy

production.

A. 1870–1900 / hydroelectric power

B. 1870–1900 / fossil fuel

C. 1940–1970 / fossil fuel

D. 1940–1970 / hydroelectric power

2. The chemicals that make up oil and natural gas are derived from:

A. the bodies of dead plankton and algae.

B. accumulations of woody plants and mosses.

C. the bodies of land animals (mainly dinosaurs).

D. accumulations of shells.

3. To produce oil from kerogen:

A. the rock must be saturated with salt.

B. the rock must be completely dry.

C. the temperature must be greater than 400°C, and at a depth of greater than

25 km.

D. the temperature must be between about 90° and 150°C.

4. Oil and natural gas rise into oil traps because:

A. they boil under the conditions found in the source region, and therefore are

forced upwards.

B. they flow in all directions once formed, and some happens to end up in the

trap.

C. hydrocarbons are less dense than water, so they are relatively buoyant and

float above water.

D. Trick question: oil and gas stay within the source rock, so that to pump them

out drillers must penetrate the source rock.

5. In order for a rock to be a good reservoir rock from which oil can be

pumped it must have:

A. high porosity.

B. low permeability.

C. high permeability.

D. both A and C.

6. Drilling mud is important during drilling for oil because:

A. the weight of the mud prevents gushers.

B. the mud helps pull the oil up and out of the hole.

C. it keeps the drill bit from getting too cold, so the bit can continue to melt its

way into rock.

D. all of the above.

7. Natural gas is _____ volatile than oil, and consists of _____ hydrocarbon

molecules.

A. less / longer

B. less / shorter

C. more / longer

D. more / shorter

8. Coal forms from ______ that accumulates in a(n) ______ depositional

environment.

A. plant material / reducing

B. plankton bodies / oxidizing

C. plant material / oxidizing

D. plankton bodies / reducing

9. What is the correct order of coal types, listed in order from low rank to

high rank?

<— low rank high rank —>

A. lignite / bituminous / anthracite

B. bituminous / lignite / anthracite

C. anthracite / bituminous / lignite

D. bituminous / anthracite / lignite

10. As the rank of coal increases, the proportion of carbon in it ________.

A. decreases

B. stays the same

C. increases

D. Trick question: rank refers to the proportion of silica in the coal.

11. The basic reaction that takes place in a nuclear power plant is

________. If the fuel rods get too hot, they can cause a _________.

A. fusion / meltdown

B. fission / nuclear explosion

C. fission / meltdown

D. fusion / nuclear explosion

12. According to current estimates of reserves, oil will remain our main

source of energy for roughly the next _____ years.

A. 10

B. 100

C. 1,000

D. 10,000


1. C

2. A

3. D

4. C

5. D

6. A

7. D

8. A

9. A

10. C

11. C

12. B



Chapter 15: Riches in Rock: Mineral Resources

1. Why isn’t a typical outcrop of granite considered to be an ore deposit?

A. It does not contain a sufficiently high concentration of valuable metals.

B. It only contains four major minerals–Ore deposits have a greater variety.

C. It doesn’t have a uniform color.

D. Granite is an intrusive rock, so all exposures of granite are underground. Ore

deposits occur only in exposed outcrops.

E. Grain size: the former has bigger crystals than the latter.

2. All ores consist of native metals distributed in a matrix of the host rock.

A. true

B. false

3. An ore deposit that forms when hot fluids containing dissolved ore

minerals circulate through rock is called:

A. a magmatic deposit.

B. a secondary enrichment deposit.

C. a hydrothermal deposit.

D. a residual mineral deposit.

4. The ’49ers started by mining placer ores. They did this by:

A. drilling wide holes.

B. tunneling deep underground.

C. using picks and shovels to dig out ore-bearing veins in open-pit mines.

D. panning the gravel in streams.

5. The stone that is used for countertops, walls, or curbs is called _______.

One way to obtain it is by __________.

A. quarry stone / blasting

B. dimension stone / a wireline saw

C. flagstone / blasting

D. brick-a-brack / cutting jet

6. Why is the runoff water that comes from mines commonly acidic?

A. Most rain is acidic, so the runoff from mines is acidic. This is no different than

the runoff from other areas.

B. Many ore minerals are carbonates, and when crushed to a powder during

mining, produce acid.

C. Ores are mostly precipitated in limestone, and limestone reacts with acid.

D. Many kinds of ore minerals are sulfides, and these react with water to form

dilute sulfuric acid.


1, A

2. B

3. C

4. D

5. B

6. D



Chapter 16: Unsafe Grounds: Landslides and Other Mass Movements

1. Geologists distinguish among different kinds of downslope movement

based, in part, on ___________.

A. location

B. thickness

C. rate of movement

D. elevation

2. The gradual downslope movement of regolith in a temperate climate is

called ________. If such movement occurs in the tundra, where there is

permafrost, it is _______.

A. avalanche / mudslide

B. slumping / rock fall

C. creep / solifluction

D. debris slide / lahar

3. In the field, you may be able to recognize a slope down which

avalanches are frequent by the presence of:

A. a path along which there are no tall trees.

B. a slope that is notably steeper than nearby slopes.

C. hummocky ground.

D. abundant springs.

4. If the water table beneath a slope rises, either because of heavy rain or

the impounding of a reservoir:

A. adjacent slopes become more unstable (because detachment surfaces

become weaker).

B. adjacent slopes become more stable (because the water causes grains to

stick together).

C. nothing much happens: water has very little effect on slope stability.

5. A submarine avalanche is also known as a ________. The deposits

accumulate in a ________.

A. debris flow / talus

B. turbidity current / submarine fan

C. olistostrome / talus

D. both A and B

6. Downslope movement can be triggered when:

A. downslope force exceeds resistance force.

B. the angle of repose becomes greater than the slope angle.

C. a clay-rich regolith dries out.

7. In a typical slump, the glide surface (slip surface) is _______, and at the

uphill end, a(n) ________ forms.

A. planar / exfoliation surface

B. planar / head scarp

C. curving (spoon-shaped) / talus

D. curving (spoon-shaped) / head scarp

8. Which of the following will increase the potential for mass movement on

a slope?

A. A drought.

B. Removing riprap at the base.

C. Draining a reservoir.

D. Deforestation.


1. C

2. C

3. A

4. A

5. B

6. A

7. D



Chapter 17: Streams and Floods: The Geology of Running Water

1. When you observe water flowing in a permanent stream, where does the

water come from?

A. Surface runoff.

B. Water temporarily trapped in soil.

C. Groundwater rising from springs.

D. All of the above.

2. During the process of headward erosion, the distance from the mouth to

the source of the stream:

A. increases.

B. decreases.

C. stays the same.

A B C D

3. Which of the above map patterns represents a dendritic drainage

network?

A. A

B. B

C. C

D. D

4. The so-called “continental divide” of North America separates:

A. rivers that drain into the Atlantic from the Mississippi drainage network.

B. rivers that drain into Hudson Bay from those that drain into the Atlantic.

C. rivers that drain into the Great Basin of Utah and Nevada from those that drain

into the Pacific.

D. rivers that drain into the Atlantic from those that drain into the Pacific.

5. Why do the courses of rivers in some locations cut across resistant rock

ridges rather than find a path around them?

A. Rivers are able to erode resistant (hard) rock layers faster than they can erode

soft rock layers.

B. Some rivers are ephemeral, and thus can cut through anything.

C. The stream course was established when the stream flowed over a uniform

substrate, and it was superposed on the non-uniform substrate below.

D. Trick question: Rivers always develop courses that avoid resistant obstacles.

6. The longitudinal profile of a stream is typically _______. The lowest

elevation below which a stream cannot cut is called its ______, and occurs

at the stream’s ________ .

A. convex-up / water table / source

B. convex-up / base level / mouth

C. concave-up / base level / mouth

D. concave-up / tributary / source

7. The velocity of water flow in a stream:

A. is constant everywhere in a stream.

B. tends to be fastest at shallow depths near the stream’s center.

C. is fastest along the bed of the stream.

D. is fastest along the walls of the stream’s channel.

8. The portion of a stream’s sediment load that consists of tiny solid grains

carried along with the water, but not bouncing off the stream bed is a

stream’s ________.

A. suspended load

B. dissolved load

C. bed load


9. Which of the following changes in the landscape is likely if the ultimate

base level of a stream drops significantly?

A. The stream downcuts to form a canyon.

B. Alluvium fills up the stream’s valley.

C. Nothing much, because the longitudinal profile is constant.

D. The stream starts cutting a canyon below sea level.

10. Alluvial fans form when:

A. the gradient of a stream increases, and the water becomes more turbulent.

B. a stream goes over a waterfall.

C. an ephemeral stream emerges from the mouth of a canyon and spreads over

a broad plain.

D. a stream undercuts a cliff, which collapses and spreads sediment out in a fan-

shaped area.

11. Which of the following statements about the location of meanders along

a meandering stream is correct?

A. The location is constant through time.

B. Meanders change as they cut away on the inner curve and deposit on the

outer curve.

C. The location of meanders only changes if the base level of the stream

changes.

D. Meanders change as they cut away on the outer curve and deposit on the

inner curve.

12. Deltas form because ________. The finest sediment typically

accumulates _________ from (to) shore.

A. water slows at the mouth of the stream / closest

B. water speeds up at the mouth of the stream / farthest

C. water slows at the mouth of the stream / farthest

D. water speeds up at the mouth of the stream / closest

13. If geologists calculate that the recurrence interval of a flood of a certain

size is 100 years, then:

A. such a flood happens every 100 years.

B. the probability that such a flood will happen next year is 1%.

C. if such a flood happened last year, another is less likely to occur than if it

happened twenty years ago.

D. it is possible for even larger floods to have a shorter recurrence interval.

.

14. As an area becomes urbanized, and large areas of open land are

covered by pavement, the lag time between peak rainfall and peak

discharge ______.

A. increases

B. decreases

C. stays the same


1. D

2. A

3. B

4. D

5. C

6. C

7. B

8. A

9. A

10. C

11. D

12. C

13. B

14. B



Chapter 18: Restless Realm: Oceans and Coasts

1. How does oceanic crust differ from continental crust?

A. Ocean crust is about 7 - 10 km thick, whereas continental crust is about 35 -

70 km thick.

B. Ocean crust is composed almost entirely of basalt and gabbro, whereas

continental crust includes many kinds of igneous and metamorphic rocks.

C. The oldest oceanic crust is less than about 200 Ma old, whereas continental

crust ranges up to almost 4 Ga old.


2. How deep are the abyssal plains of the ocean? How high is the highest

mountain on land (i.e., Mt. Everest)?

A. Abyssal plains range from 30 to 50 km deep / Mt. Everest is 4.4 km high.

B. Abyssal plains range from 3 to 5 km deep / Mt. Everest is 8.8 km high.

C. Abyssal plains range from 10 to 20 km deep / Mt. Everest is 5.2 km.

D. Abyssal plains range from 8 to 15 km deep / Mt. Everest is 6.8 km high.

3. What underlies the broad continental shelves that border some

shorelines?

A. Continental shelves are underlain by very thick piles of basalt, erupted at a

hotspot volcano.

B. Continental shelves are underlain by normal continental crust that happens to

be pulled below sea level by the weight of the attached oceanic crust.

C. Continental shelves are underlain by continental crust that was stretched

during rifting, has subsided, and has been buried by sediment.

D. Continental shelves are underlain by very thick continental crust.

4. The deepest places in the ocean are ________, where water depths reach

_________.

A. mid-ocean ridges / 2.0 km

B. transform faults / 3.0 km

C. abyssal plains / 4.5 km

D. trenches / 11 km

5. What does ocean water consist of?

A. Pure H2O.

B. A solution of halite (NaCl) in water.

C. A solution containing various ions, mostly Na+ and Cl-, but also SO42-, Mg2+,

Ca2+, and K+.

D. A mixture of water and suspended crystals of various salts.

6. Which of the following statements about ocean currents is correct?

A. Currents always transport warm water.

B. Currents only affect surface water; deep water is always stationary.

C. The flow of surface currents is driven primarily by the wind.

D. The flow in currents is laminar (i.e., they are not turbulent).

7. Because of the Coriolis effect, a current that flows north will be deflected

to the _______ in the Northern Hemisphere.

A. east

B. south

C. west

D. Trick question: The Coriolis effect does not influence current flow.

8. Thermohaline circulation in the oceans is driven by _______. It is

responsible for ________.

A. density differences caused by contrasts in salinity and temperature / mixing

deep and shallow water

B. wind / transporting surface water from polar regions toward the equator

C. upwelling and downwelling along coasts / plankton productivity

D. momentum of Earth’s rotation / the sinking of warm water at equatorial

latitudes

9. Which of the following statements about the tides is correct?

A. Tides are entirely a consequence of the gravitational pull of the Moon.

B. Tides are entirely a consequence of the combined gravitational pull of the

Moon and the Sun.

C. Centrifugal force caused by the spin of the Earth on its axis contributes to the

tide-generating force.

D. Tides are caused by the tide-generating force, which is partly due to

gravitational pull of the Moon and Sun, and partly due to forces cause by motion

of the Earth-Moon system around its center of mass.

10. Which statement concerning the movement of water in waves on the

open ocean is correct?

A. Water particles move with the wave, and thus can migrate tens to hundreds of

kilometers as the wave moves.

B. Water molecules go up and down, along a vertical straight line, as the wave

passes.

C. Water molecules follow a circular path, as the wave passes.

D. The motion of water molecules at the ocean’s surface is the same as that at

the floor of the ocean, as a wave passes.

11. Longshore drift of sand on a beach occurs when:

A. waves approach the shore at an angle.

B. there are particularly large tides.

C. a river enters the sea, and the river water flows along the coast.

B. wave fronts are parallel to the beach.

12. Along a rocky coast, the sequence of landform development follows

which sequence?

<—first last—>

A. rocky headland —> sea arch —> sea stack

B. sea arch —> rocky headland —> sea stack

C. sea stack —> rocky headland —> sea arch

D. sea stack —> sea arch —> rocky headland

13. A(n) ______ is a drowned glacial valley, whereas a(n) _______ is a

drowned river valley. The former has _____, whereas the latter has a

________.

A. estuary / fjord / steep walls / very irregular shoreline

B. fjord / estuary / very irregular shoreline / steep walls

C. estuary / fjord / very irregular shoreline / steep walls

D. fjord / estuary / steep walls / very irregular shoreline

.

14. Which of the following statements about coral reefs is correct?

A. More reefs are developing as the oceans get warmer.

B. Large areas of existing reefs have been dying due to bleaching and various

coral diseases.

C. As time passes, seamounts emerge from the sea, and atolls become fringing

reefs.

D. The coral-making reefs are a species of algae that secretes a siliceous shell.


1. D

2. B

3. C

4. D

5. C

6. C

7. A

8. A

9. D

10. C

11. A

12. A

13. D

14. B



Chapter 19: A Hidden Reserve: Groundwater

1. If we say that a rock has high porosity, but low permeability, we mean

that:

A. the rock contains very little open space (e.g., cracks or pores), but the

openings that do exist are interconnected, so that water can pass through the

rock fairly easily.

B. the rock contains abundant open space (e.g., cracks or pores), but the spaces

are isolated from one another so that water cannot pass through the rock easily.

C. the rock can contain abundant groundwater that can flow quite easily.

2. Unconsolidated gravel containing abundant pores that are well

connected to one another, would make a good ______, because it could

hold _________, accessible water.

A. aquitard / abundant

B. aquifer / abundant

C. aquitard / very little

D. aquifer / very little

3. The water table is ________ beneath hills than beneath valleys in humid

climate. This is because the water table sinks ______ after it rains.

A. higher / very quickly

B. lower / very slowly

C. higher / very slowly

D. lower / very quickly

4. What drives the natural flow of groundwater?

A. pressure and gravity

B. heat

C. gravity alone

D. the weight of overlying rock

5. Groundwater flow typically occurs at rates on the order of _______.

According to Darcy’s law, what happens to the rate of groundwater flow if

the permeability increases?

A.1 km/day / flow rate increases

B.10 km/day / flow rate decreases

C. 5 cm/day / flow rate increases

D. 5 cm/century / flow rate stays the same

6. If you pump water out of the ground at a well faster than it can be

replenished by groundwater flow or by infiltration, what happens to the

water table?

A. The water table stays horizontal, but rises.

B. The water table rises to a peak around the well.

C. Nothing: the water table always stays constant in depth.

D. The water table sinks in a cone-shaped area around the well.

7. Which statement is correct, in reference to a flowing artesian well?

A. The water flows out of the well on its own, and the potentiometric surface is

below the ground.

B. The water flows up the well, but not out to the surface, because the

potentiometric surface is below the ground.

C. The potentiometric surface in the region of the well lies above the ground

surface.

D. The potentiometric surface in the region of the well lies below the water table.

8. You are driving down the highway in a desert just after it rained very

heavily, and see some small lakes in the low areas bordering the highway.

Can you estimate the depth to the water table from this observation?

A. Yes.

B. No.

9. How can you tell where a perched water table intersects the face of a

hill?

A. The land surface is particularly dry.

B. The material making up the ground is not consolidated.

C. A spring flows.

10. What happens as a consequence of pore collapse due to groundwater

depletion?

A. land subsidence

B. saline intrusion

C. contamination

D. flow reversal

11. A plume of contamination will:

A. move in the same direction as groundwater flow.

B. move in the opposite direction to groundwater flow.

C. sink vertically down beneath the source.

D. gradually rise directly beneath the source.

12. Which of the following statements about the formation of speleothems

is correct?

A. They form by algal growth deep below the water table.

B. The calcite forming them precipitates because of CO2 loss from dripping

water.

C. They are a consequence of erosion by flowing groundwater.

D. They only form in hot springs.

13. A __________ hangs from the top of a cave, whereas a __________

grows up from the floor of a cave.

A. stalactite / stalagmite

B. snotite / spelunker

C. stalagmite / stalactite

.

14. You can recognize a karst terrane by:

A. abundant sandstone bedrock.

B. dendritic river networks.

C. convoluted shorelines.

D. the presence of sinkholes and disappearing streams.


1. B

2. B

3. C

4. A

5. C

6. D

7. C

8. B

9. C

10. A

11. A

12. B

13. A

14. D



Chapter 20: An Envelope of Gas: Earth’s Atmosphere and Climate

1. Which of the following statements about the Earth’s atmosphere is

correct?

A. The aerosols in the atmosphere consist only of gas molecules.

B. The composition of the atmosphere has been the same throughout Earth’s

history.

C. Air consists of 21% nitrogen, 78% oxygen, and 1% other gases.

D. Greenhouse gases, such as CO2, comprise only a tiny fraction of the

atmosphere.

2. Which of the following statements about air pressure in the atmosphere

is correct?

A. Air pressure is constant in the lower 5 km of the atmosphere, and then

decreases abruptly above that.

B. Air pressure is constant, regardless of elevation.

C. Air pressure decreases gradually with elevation; in fact, more than 50% of the

atmosphere lies below an elevation of 6 km.

D. Air pressure increases with increasing elevation, whereas density of the air

decreases with increasing elevation.

3. Moist air _________ as it rises. This causes the air to become _______ so

that water in it condenses and clouds form.

A. cools / saturated

B. warms / unsaturated

C. cools / unsaturated

D. warms / saturated

4. Which list gives the correct order of the layers in the atmosphere, from

lowest elevation to highest?

<— lowest elevation highest elevation —>

A. thermosphere / stratosphere / troposphere / mesosphere

B. mesosphere / troposphere / thermosphere / stratosphere

C. troposphere / stratosphere / mesosphere / thermosphere

D. trophosphere / thermosphere / mesosphere / stratosphere

5. Which of the following statements concerning the "pauses" between

layers of atmosphere is correct?

A. At a pause, the electrical charge of the atmosphere changes.

B. At a pause, the atmosphere stops moving.

C. At a pause, the composition of the atmosphere abruptly changes.

D. At a pause, the temperature starts increasing or starts decreasing (depending

on which pause we’re talking about).

6. The wind always blows:

A. from regions of higher pressure to regions of lower pressure.

B. in the direction that the Earth rotates.

C. from lower latitudes to higher latitudes.

D. in directions that are parallel to isobars.

7. Global-scale air circulation is due to _______ in the atmosphere. The flow

breaks into three cells because of _______.

A. precipitation / gravity

B. convection / the Coriolis effect

C. conduction / variations in insolation

D. divergence / the existence of continents

8. The __________ are prevailing winds that tend to blow generally toward

the west; the ones of the northern hemisphere converge with those of the

southern at the equator.

A. doldrums

B. surface westerlies

C. trade winds

D. polar easterlies

9. When a cold front enters a region, warm air ______ the cold air and

_________.

A. sinks beneath / the air dries and clouds disappear

B. rises above / large clouds develop

C. rises above / the air dries and clouds disappear

D. sinks beneath / large clouds develop

10. In the Northern Hemisphere, air moves _____ a high-pressure air mass

and, because of the Coriolis effect, forms a(n) __________.

A. out of / anticyclone

B. into / anticyclone

C. around / occluded front

D. Trick question: Air is trapped within high-pressure masses and can't move at

all.

11. Which of the following typically causes clouds to form above a low (i.e.,

not hilly) island in the ocean?

A. orographic lifting

B. divergence sinking

C. orographic sinking

D. convective lifting

12. When it begins to rain in a thunderstorm, _______.

A. the storm increases in energy, and its clouds rise even higher

B. the storm begins to dissipate

C. lightning ceases to occur

D. hot downdrafts begin to occur

13. Why does condensation in clouds contribute to the development of a

hurricane?

A. Condensation releases latent heat and this causes even more lifting.

B. Condensation absorbs heat, cooling the hurricane, and causing the air in the

eye wall to sink.

C. It cools the ocean and thus decreases the amount of evaporation.

.

14. Tornados develop when:

A. the wind direction at high elevations is the same as the wind direction at low

elevations.

B. the wind direction at high elevations is not the same as the wind direction at

low elevations, so shear occurs.

C. a thunderstorm moves over a lake.

D. the electrical charge in a thunderstorm becomes particularly large.

15. Rainy, tropical climates typically occur along the equator because:

A. the land elevation at equatorial latitudes is higher, overall, than at other

latitudes.

B. sinking air causes high-pressure zones.

C. there is more land at equatorial latitudes than at high latitudes.

D. convergence and high insolation causes air to rise and cool, causing

condensation of clouds.


1. D

2. C

3. A

4. C

5. D

6. A

7. B

8. C

9. B

10. A

11. D

12. B

13. A

14. B

15. D



Chapter 21: Dry Regions: The Geology of Deserts

1. Deserts are particularly _____ regions, where vegetation covers no more

than about ______ of the land surface.

A. humid / 50%

B. temperate / 80%

C. arid / 15%

D. cold / 30%

2. "Rain shadow deserts" form because:

A. when moist air from the ocean undergoes orographic lifting due to a coastal

mountain range, it rains out its moisture. Thus the air on the lee side of the range

is very dry.

B. cold currents along a coast cool the air and cause heavy rains right along the

coast, in the ”shadow” of the sea.

C. regions that are in the shadow of mountain ranges during the morning tend

get full sunlight in the afternoon. The heat causes deserts to form.

3. The Gobi Desert lies far from the shore at a latitude of about 40°N,

whereas the Sahara Desert lies along the shore at a latitude of about 20°S.

Both are deserts. Why?

A. Both are deserts for the same reason: they both receive a great amount of

insolation all year.

B. The Gobi lies in a rain shadow, whereas the Sahara borders a cold oceanic

current.

C. The Gobi is a continental-interior desert. Wind reaching it has already lost

most of its moisture. In contrast, the Sahara occurs in the subtropical latitude

divergence zone of sinking air that becomes warmer, producing reduced relative

humidity.

4. The soils in deserts are generally very similar to the soils of temperate

forests.

A. true

B. false

5. Which of the following causes most of the erosion in deserts?

A. heavy rainfall

B. wind

C. ice

D. Trick question: Because of the climate, no erosion takes place in deserts.

6. Ventifacts form:

A. from abrasion due to sand and silt that is undergoing saltation or is suspended

in the wind.

B. from freezing and thawing, due to the large temperature contrasts between

day and night in deserts.

C. from deflation, caused when wind erodes a basin-shaped depression in the

land.

D. from preferential erosion of weak strata by the wind.

7. Alluvial fans form because:

A. permanent streams flowing through deserts enter lakes or reservoirs and drop

their loads.

B. joint-bounded blocks tumble off a cliff and collect in piles at its base.

C. sediment-laden ephemeral streams emerge from the mouth of a canyon and

spread out over a broad plain; as a consequence the water slows and drops its

sediment load.

8. Why are salt lakes in deserts typically very salty?

A. The lakes form over land surfaces where evaporite (salt) deposits in the

stratigraphic sequence are exposed.

B. The lake has no outlet, so evaporation causes dissolved ions to become

concentrated.

C. The lakes are fed by streams that flow through ancient salt deposits which

bring in saltwater.

9. When erosion carves a bedrock platform around a(n) ____, a _______

forms.

A. dune / loess

B. playa / alluvial fan

C. talus / desert pavement

D. inselberg / pediment

10. Very long sand dunes that trend parallel to a strong prevailing wind are

called:

A. barchan dunes.

B. star dunes.

C. longitudinal or seif dunes.

D. parabolic dunes.

11. Which of the following processes can lead to desertification?

A. Too much grazing and agriculture.

B. Climate change.

C. Diversion of rivers.



1. C

2. A

3. C

4. B

5. A

6. A

7. C

8. B

9. D

10. C

11. D



Chapter 22: Amazing Ice: Glaciers and Ice Ages

1. The key observation that led Louis Agassiz to the proposal that an ice

age occurred in the past is:

A. glacial erratics occur throughout the farmlands of Europe.

B. people drilling for water in central Europe discovered that a layer of ice still lies

below the soil.

C. the glaciers of the Alps are clearly much larger today than they were in the

past.

D. studies of fossils in the sediments of bogs show that Europe had a tropical

climate in prehistoric time.

2. Which of the following statements about the flow of ice in glaciers is

correct?

A. Even in the coldest glacier, liquid water occurs between ice grains so the ice

grains can slide past each other.

B. Glaciers flow for a variety of reasons: in some cases, ice grains are able to

change shape plastically, in some cases glaciers slide on a wet substrate, and in

some cases ice grains slip past each other on water films.

C. All of the ice in a specific glacier flows at the same rate.

3. Large cracks in glaciers are called ________. They tend to form in the

_________ part of a glacier, where the ice is ______.

A. surges / lower / plastic

B. lobes / upper / plastic

C. crevasses / lower / plastic

D. crevasses / upper / brittle

4. What factor determines the direction in which ice flows?

A. The surface slope of the ice.

B. The slope of the substrate beneath the ice.

C. The Coriolis effect.

D. The direction that water streams beneath the ice flow.

5. What processes happen in the zone of ablation?

A. Snow accumulates.

B. The rate of snow accumulation is balanced by the rate of snow sublimation.

C. Ice gradually is lost, due to a combination of melting, sublimation, and

calving.

D. Glacial ice follows a flow trajectory that takes it down to greater depths.

6. Which of the following processes occurs during glacial retreat?

A. Ice flows back toward the origin of the glacier.

B. The position of the glacier’s toe (terminus) moves back toward the origin of the

glacier, even though ice continues to flow toward the toe.

C. The rate of accumulation exceeds the rate of sublimation.

D. The ice stops flowing and simply melts away.

7. How can you tell the direction that ice flowed in a region that was

covered by ice during the last ice age?

A. Flow direction is parallel to the direction of glacial striations.

B. Flow direction is perpendicular to the direction of glacial striations.

C. Flow direction is always down the slope of the land surface in an area.

D. Trick question: Once the glacier has melted, it is impossible to tell which way it

flowed.

8. Which of the following statements about glacially carved valleys is

correct?

A. They are V-shaped.

B. They are U-shaped.

C. Side valleys intersect the trunk valley at the same elevation.

D. Glacial valleys tend to have gentle slopes near the top, but have steep slopes

near the bottom.

9. Which of the following is a characteristic of glacial till?

A. Layers of well-sorted sediment.

B. The presence of very fine, laminated shale.

C. Very sticky silt.

D. Very poor sorting, with large clasts suspended in a fine-grained matrix.

10. A(n) ______ forms at the end of a glacier. The sediment comprising it

___________.

A. lateral moraine / was deposited in under-ice tunnels

B. kame / fell from mountain ridges onto the side of the glacier

C. lateral moraine / was pushed into place by the bulldozer effect of moving ice

D. end moraine / was carried by the ice in conveyor-belt fashion

11. Knob and kettle topography forms when:

A. blocks of ice get buried by till, and then melt.

B. the glacier flows over sediment and molds it into streamlined hills.

C. ice plucks chunks off of bedrock and leaves an indentation.

D. rocks embedded in the base of the glacier gouge out deep depressions into

bedrock.

12. When a large continental glacier builds on the surface of the

lithosphere, it causes ________. This can happen because:

A. rebound / the underlying asthenosphere is elastic.

B. subsidence / the underlying asthenosphere is plastic.

C. rebound / the lithosphere can flow out of the way.

D. subsidence / the lithosphere can flow out of the way.

13. During the last ice age, the climate in the desert southwest of the United

States was _________; as a consequence, _________ formed.

A. drier / large dune fields

B. permafrost / vast areas of patterned ground

C. wetter / pluvial lakes

D. substantially below freezing / continental glaciers

.

14. Which of the following is not considered to be a "long-term" cause of

an ice age?

A. Continental drift.

B. Changes in the regional configuration of oceanic currents.

C. The Milankovitch cycle.

D. Evolution of certain life forms.

15. The record of marine sedimentation suggests that there were on the

order of ___ glaciations and interglacials during the Pleistocene.

A. 4

B. 3

C. 20

D. 600


1. A

2. B

3. D

4. A

5. C

6. B

7. A

8. B

9. D

10. D

11. A

12. B

13. C

14. C

15. C



Chapter 23: Global Change in the Earth System

1. Which of the following is an example of unidirectional change on Earth?

A. the carbon cycle

B. the rock cycle

C. the hydrologic cycle

D. the evolution of life

2. Geologic dating methods indicate that the oldest rock on Earth is about

_____, whereas the earliest life had appeared by at least _____.

A. 3.9 Ga / 542 Ma

B. 3.5 Ga / 4.0 Ga

C. 4.0 Ga / 3.8 Ga

D. 4.5 Ga / 800 Ma

3. Which of the following statements about sea level on Earth is correct?

A. The present sea level is the highest it has ever been.

B. The present sea level is the lowest it has ever been.

C. Major sea level changes periodically, about every million years.

D. Sedimentary sequences in the interiors of continents record times of relatively

high sea level.

4. What can the study of fossil pollen tell us about global climate change

during the past 100,000 years?

A. The latitudes at which temperate forests exist migrate through time, in

response to temperature changes.

B. Not much: pollen is so delicate that it is not well preserved in the geologic

record.

C. Not much: pollen grains all look much the same.

D. Average surface air temperatures have been constant to within 1°C.

5. What do changes in the ratio of 18O to 16O in the shells of plankton, as a

function of time, tell us?

A. The atmosphere has undergone unidirectional change over long periods of

time.

B. Sea water temperature changes with time, because the ratio of isotopes

incorporated into shells depends on temperature.

C. Plankton species have evolved in ways that make them preferentially

incorporate one isotope instead of the other.

D. Plankton shells lose one isotope faster than they lose the other.

6. How can dendrochronologists determine the record of climate from tree

rings for times before the currently oldest tree was alive?

A. Correlating tree-ring patterns in living trees with patterns in trees that began

life before living trees, but died after living trees began.

B. Making Uranium-Lead dates of long-dead trees.

C. Measuring oxygen isotopes in tree rings.

D. Trick question: The use of tree rings for paleoclimate studies only applies to

living trees.

7. The record of short-term climate change during the past 20,000 years

suggests that:

A. the climate has warmed continuously during this time.

B. the climate has cooled continuously during this time.

C. it was warmer during the medieval warm period, and colder during the little ice

age than it is today.

D. during a time called the Younger Dryas, temperatures were exceedingly

warm.

8. The record of CO2 concentration shows clearly that:

A. the concentration of this gas does not vary with the seasons.

B. the concentration of this gas has steadily increased since accurate

measurements began.

C. the concentration of this gas has decreased steadily since accurate

measurements began.

D. the concentration of this gas was constant until 1960, at which time it has

started to increase.

9. Which of the following statements about sea level measurements during

the past century is correct?

A. Sea level goes up and down within a narrow range, but basically has been

constant.

B. Sea level goes up and down a bit, but overall has steadily risen by about 10 -

12 cm since 1910.

C. There is no way to accurately measure sea level change.

10. Astronomers suggest that the end of the Earth will occur in about

_____, when the Sun becomes a ___________.

A. one billion years / supernova

B. two billion years / neutron star

C. five billion years / red giant

D. thirty billion years / dark cinder


1. D

2. C

3. D

4. A

5. B

6. A

7. C

8. B

9. B

10. C

Clicker Questions Earth3 - California State University ...dbaron/questions.pdf · D. wavelengths of...

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