Deck 12: Earth History, Earth Interior

Question 1

Today Mars has no more oceans, but it still has a thick and warm atmosphere.

Answer 1

False

Question 2

The Anthropocene is a new geologic epoch that began approximately in 1800 with the Industrial Revolution.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

Uniformitarianism is the principle that changes in Earth's physical systems are rapid and perceivable on human time scales.

Answer 3

False

Question 4

Compass needles point to true north.

Question 5

Mars once had huge liquid oceans and a thick atmosphere.

Question 6

The Moho is the transition between the outer core and the mantle.

Question 7

All planets in the solar system orbit around Earth.

Question 8

Scientists have evidence that life once existed on Mars.

Question 9

The mantle is liquid molten rock that slowly flows.

Question 10

Basalt is a dark volcanic rock found mostly in oceanic crust.

Question 11

The mantle includes the asthenosphere and the lowest portion of the lithosphere.

Question 12

Catastrophic events sometimes play an important role in the history of Earth's physical systems.

Question 13

When melted, basalt rock flows easily downslope.

Question 14

The asthenosphere is the weakest layer of Earth's solid interior and easily deforms, causing the lithosphere above it to move.

Question 15

Earth's human population is currently just over 7 billion.

Question 16

The earliest fossils are about 3.5 billion years old.

Question 17

The geothermal gradient refers to the increasing temperature of Earth's atmosphere.

Question 18

Earth is the warmest planet in the solar system.

Question 19

The oldest rocks on Earth are dated using radiocarbon dating.

Question 20

True north and magnetic north are at the same location.

Question 21

Earth is the closest planet to the Sun.

Question 22

The superposition principle assumes that younger layers of rock lie above older layers below.

Question 23

Scientists believe that most of Earth's water resides in the Earth's interior rather than on the surface.

Question 24

Most of Earth's biological history consists of single-celled bacteria.

Question 25

Radiocarbon dating is a form of radiometric dating.

Question 26

Earth's earliest life was plants.

Question 27

Nearly 40% of Earth's land surface is used to grow food for people.

Question 28

The core, the mantle, and the lithosphere are the three major layers of Earth's interior.

Question 29

Our solar system is found in the Milky Way galaxy.

Question 30

The Moon is thought to have formed after a large object named Theia collided with Earth early in the history of the solar system.

Question 31

Earth is the second smallest planet in the solar system.

Question 32

Absolute age compares the age of one object or event to the age of another without specifying how old either is.

Question 33

The inner core of Earth is made of solid iron and nickel.

Question 34

The Anthropocene marks the beginning of farming.

Question 35

By 2050 there could be as many as 14 billion people on Earth.

Question 36

The absolute age of an object indicates how old it is in years.

Question 37

About 10% of all mammal biomass is people and domesticated animals.

Question 38

As seismic waves travel through Earth's interior, they bend and refract as a result of different densities of material they pass through.

Question 39

Oceanic crust is composed of basalt.

Question 40

Distances in space are usually given in light years, the distance light travels as measured in years.

Question 41

Oceanic crust is lighter than continental crust.

Question 42

The magnetosphere protects Earth's surface from the harmful effects of the solar wind.

Question 43

Which is the leading theory used to explain why Mars lost its atmosphere and oceans?

A)It lost its magnetic field that protected it from the solar wind.
B)It lost its atmosphere and the oceans evaporated to space.
C)Mars drifted too far away from the Sun to support an atmosphere and oceans.
D)The planet became too small to support an atmosphere and oceans.

Question 44

How did Earth's oceans form?

A)from volcanic gases
B)from early plants
C)from rocky asteroids
D)from chemical reactions

Question 45

Which sequence puts the solar system formation in the correct order?

A)protoplanetary disk-star development-solar system formation
B)solar system formation-star development-protoplanetary disk
C)star development-protoplanetary disk-solar system formation
D)star development-solar system formation-protoplanetary disk

Question 46

On California's San Andreas Fault, the Pacific plate is moving north and the North American plate is moving south.

Question 47

The crust is the outermost portion of Earth's layers.

Question 48

Earth is __________ billion years old.

A)3.5
B)4.6
C)8
D)13.5

Question 49

The crust is composed of both continental crust and oceanic crust.

Question 50

The magnetosphere shields Earth from __________.

A)ultraviolet radiation
B)X-rays
C)gamma rays
D)the solar wind

Question 51

Which statement can be arrived at by examining this figure?

A)The depth of the Moho is constant.
B)The depth of the Moho is greatest beneath oceans.
C)The depth of the Moho is greatest beneath mountains.
D)The depth of the Moho is greatest where the crust is thinned.

Question 52

Earth's earliest fossils are as old as __________ billion years old.

A)2
B)3.2
C)3.5
D)4.3

Question 53

Most of the heat loss from Earth's interior occurs where?

A)beneath the continents
B)beneath mountains
C)beneath valleys
D)at plate boundaries

Question 54

The average density of the rocks near the surface is about __________ grams per cubic centimeter.

A)2
B)2.9
C)3.4
D)4

Question 55

At 40 kilometers depth the temperature is about __________ degrees Celsius.

A)200
B)300
C)400
D)500

Question 56

What have scientists concluded about Earth based on the average density of Earth and the average density of the crust?

A)that the crust must be made of heavy metals in order to account for the missing density
B)that the core must be made of heavy metals in order to account for the missing density
C)that the center and the core are the same density
D)that their understanding of what lies at the center of Earth is faulty

Question 57

Which geologic time period are we currently not in?

A)the Cenozoic
B)the Quaternary
C)the Mesozoic
D)the Holocene

Question 58

The earliest mammal fossils are about __________ million years old.

A)100
B)200
C)300
D)400

Question 59

Which layer in the figure has the lowest density?

A)the lithosphere
B)the lower mantle
C)the outer core
D)the inner core

Question 60

The Milky Way is __________ light years across.

A)10,000
B)65,000
C)120,000
D)210,000

Question 61

Today the average temperature of Mars at midlatitudes is about __________ degrees Celsius.

A)50
B)25
C)0
D)-45

Question 62

Which layer in the figure is rigid and brittle?

A)the lithosphere
B)the lower mantle
C)the outer core
D)the inner core

Question 63

The __________ is the layer of heated and slowly deforming solid rock that occurs between the base of the crust and the outer core.

A)lithosphere
B)asthenosphere
C)mantle
D)outer core

Question 64

The core lies at a depth of __________ kilometers.

A)1,500 to 6,371
B)2,000 to 6,371
C)2,900 to 6,371
D)5,155 to 6,371

Question 65

Which statement does not describe the Willamette meteorite that was found in Oregon?

A)It is the largest meteorite ever found in the United States.
B)It is composed mostly of iron.
C)It is over a billion years old.
D)It weighs 300 tons

Question 66

The __________ is the outermost layer of Earth.

A)crust
B)asthenosphere
C)mantle
D)outer core

Question 67

Which statement is not correct regarding the composition of the crust?

A)Continental crust is made of granite.
B)Oceanic crust is made of basalt.
C)Continental crust is heavier than oceanic crust.
D)Granite is a silica-rich rock.

Question 68

There are __________ major lithospheric plates.

A)10
B)12
C)14
D)18

Question 69

Earth's internal heat keeps the atmosphere warm by __________.

A)radiating heat to the atmosphere
B)driving plate motion, creating volcanoes that emit carbon dioxide that warms the atmosphere
C)trapping greenhouse gas molecules in the atmosphere
D)warming the oceans, which warm the atmosphere

Question 70

__________ is melted rock that is not on the crust's surface.

A)Lava
B)Magma
C)Granite
D)Basalt

Question 71

There are about __________ stars in the Milky Way.

A)10,000 to 100,000
B)1 million to 5 million
C)50 billion to 100 billion
D)100 billion to 400 billion

Question 72

The thickness of the crust is __________ percent of the radius of the planet.

A)0.01 to 1
B)1 to 2
C)2 to 5
D)5 to 10

Question 73

Which layer in the figure shown is liquid?

A)the lithosphere
B)the lower mantle
C)the outer core
D)the inner core

Question 74

The average density of Earth is about __________ grams per cubic centimeter.

A)4
B)4.5
C)5
D)5.5

Question 75

The earliest modern human fossils are about __________ years old.

A)100,000
B)150,000
C)200,000
D)250,000

Question 76

Which statement describes the premise of radiometric dating used to date rocks?

A)Dates are based on the constant rate of decay of unstable elements in a material.
B)Dates are based on the composition of minerals in a rock.
C)Dates are based on the degree of solar energy that has been absorbed by an object.
D)Dates are based on the known ages of other materials.

Question 77

Most of the material from space that enters Earth's atmosphere is the size of __________.

A)sand
B)gravel
C)rocks
D)large boulders

Question 78

__________ are waves of energy released by earthquakes that travel through Earth's interior.

A)Seismic waves
B)Raleigh waves
C)Continental waves
D)Magma waves

Question 79

Which sequence puts the geologic time intervals in the correct order, from oldest to most recent?

A)Cenozoic-Quaternary-Holocene
B)Holocene-Quaternary-Cenozoic
C)Cenozoic-Holocene-Quaternary
D)Quaternary-Cenozoic-Holocene

Question 80

After the Great Oxidation Event, __________ formed.

A)terrestrial life
B)the ozonosphere
C)the oceans
D)the atmosphere