Quiz 1: Introducing Geology, the Essentials of Plate Tectonics, and Other Important Concepts

We depend on geologists for the raw materials we need for survival.

Most deaths associated with volcanic eruptions are due to burns of lava flows.

A tsunami has a small wave height, travels rapidly, and is not noticed by people in boats.

While the reserves of petroleum hydrocarbons within the United States are limited, other geologic resources (iron, aluminum, copper, and tin) are available in great abundance.

Geology uses the scientific method to explain natural aspects of the Earth.

Deeply buried rock that is hot and under pressure can deform like taffy or putty.

Ocean - ocean plate convergence formed major mountain belts such as the Andes and Cascades.

The mantle is the most voluminous of Earth's three major concentric zones.

Earth's lithosphere is made up of the uppermost part of the mantle and crust.

Understanding geology can help us lessen or prevent damage to the environment.

Most convergent plate boundaries coincide with the crests of submarine mountain ranges called mid-oceanic ridges.

Plate tectonics regards the lithosphere as divided into segments (plates) that are in horizontal motion.

A transform plate boundary occurs where two plates converge.

Convergent boundaries, due to their geometry, are the sites of the largest earthquakes on Earth.

After the opening of the North Slope in Alaska the U.S. stopped importing petroleum.

The North American Plate is all on one plate.

Rocks formed at high temperatures and under high pressure deep within the Earth and pushed upward by tectonic force are stable in their new environment.

Rocks brought to the earth's surface by internal processes are worn down, and eroded by surficial processes.

The Earth is about 4.6 billion years old.

The Earth can be considered as interrelated systems or spheres.

The Earth's system that includes the oceans, rivers, lakes, and glaciers of the world is called the _______. A) biosphere B) hydrosphere C) atmosphere D) geosphere E) solid Earth

The _____ and the Alpine Fault of New Zealand are examples of transform plate boundaries. A) New Madrid Fault of Arkansas B) Choctaw Fault of Oklahoma C) San Andreas Fault of California D) East African Rift E) Rio Grande Rift

A ______ is a huge ocean wave usually caused by a displacement of the sea floor and commonly associated with massive earthquakes. A) S-wave B) tidal wave C) tsunami D) seiche E) breaker

A ___ is a hot, turbulent mixture of expanding gases and volcanic ash that flows rapidly down the side of a volcano. A) pyroclastic cloud B) mud flow C) lava flow D) pyroclastic flow E) hyaloclastic flow

Eruptive activity at the summit of the Nevada del Ruiz volcano in Colombia in 1985 caused snow and ice to melt, generating a ___ that killed 23,000 people in the village of Armero. A) gas cloud B) mud flow C) lava flow D) pyroclastic flow E) hyaloclastic flow

To understand geology one must understand how the solid Earth interacts with water, air, and living organisms. For this reason, it is useful to think of Earth as being part of a ____. A) hydrosphere B) system C) trend D) group E) formation

Among other things, geologists are employed as __. A) petroleum geologists B) environmental geologists C) marine geologists D) hydrogeologists E) All of the answers are correct.

Rock deep within the Earth is _____ and ______. A) hot; heat flows inward toward Earth's center. B) cool; heat flows in toward Earth's center C) hot; heat flows out toward Earth's surface D) the same temperature throughout the earth; heat flow is not an important consideration E) unknown; we can only guess about conditions there

Earth's external heat engine is driven by __. A) solar power B) residual cosmic radiation from the Big Bang C) the decay of radioactive isotopes D) tides E) meteor impacts

___ refer(s) to the scientific study of Earth. A) Hydrology B) Geology C) Spheres

The Earth's interior heat engine works because hot buoyant material deep within the Earth _______ while cold denser material _______. A) moves upward; moves downward B) contracts and sinks; expands and rises C) contracts and rises; expands and sinks D) expand and sinks; contract and rises

The _______ is the most voluminous of the Earth's three major concentric zones. A) core B) mantle C) lithosphere D) asthenosphere E) crust

Listed from Earth's center outward, the three concentric zones of Earth are the __. A) crust, mantle, core B) mantle, crust, core C) core, crust, mantle D) mantle, core, crust E) core, mantle, crust

A _____ is a scientific concept that has been tested and is in all likelihood true. A) concept B) hypothesis C) theory D) scenario E) belief

_______ are geological forces generated inside the Earth. A) Surficial forces B) Electrochemical forces C) Tectonic forces D) Inertial E) Celestial

Earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, landslides, floods, and tsunamis are all examples of: A) earth-altering processes. B) earth hazards. C) geologic resources. D) geospheric processes. E) geologic hazards

The _______ collectively make up the lithosphere. A) the crust and the whole mantle B) the crust and the uppermost part of the mantle C) the crust and asthenosphere D) the upper and lower mantle E) the asthenosphere and the upper mantle

The ____ is soft and therefore flows more readily than the underlying mantle. A) crust B) asthenosphere C) lithosphere D) core E) plate

A hypothesis that passes repeated tests ultimately becomes __. A) a guess B) an observation of a phenomenon C) a first, tentative idea to explain a phenomenon D) a theory E) a proven law of nature

After data have been analyzed, tentative explanations or solutions called _____ may be proposed. A) a guess B) an observation of a phenomenon C) hypotheses D) a concept that has been tested reproducibly and is likely to be true E) a proven law of nature

Plate tectonics is a unifying idea that helps explain where and why there are ___ on Earth. A) earthquakes B) volcanoes C) mountain belts D) oceanic ridges and trenches E) All of the answers are correct.

The two major types of crust are oceanic crust and __. A) continental crust B) lithosphere C) convergent crust D) thin crust

Earth can be visualized as a giant machine driven by which of the following engines? A) solar and internal B) regional and local C) expanding and condensing D) surficial and heat E) buried and exposed

The concept of plate tectonics regards the earth's ___ as broken into a number of ___ that are in motion relative to each other. A) crust; plates B) mantle; plates C) asthenosphere; plates D) lithosphere; plates E) plates; lithosphere

A _____, by scientists definition, is something that has been overwhelmingly verified. A) hypothesis B) guess C) prediction D) theory

Plates are known to be moving away from each other __. A) across mountain ranges like the Himalayan Mountains B) across subduction zones C) across mid-ocean ridges D) across the stable interior of continents E) along transform faults

A _______ boundary occurs where plates move towards one another. A) convergent B) concurrent C) rift D) abutting E) transform

The _____ of old seafloor takes place at convergent boundaries. A) destruction B) creation C) production D) erosion E) extinction

The North American plate is moving ____. A) north B) south C) west D) east E) nowhere, it's fixed

Where a subducting plate slides beneath the lithosphere, melting takes place and a(n) ____ is created. A) plate B) ocean trench C) seamount D) sedimentary rock E) coral reef

Sedimentary rock that becomes deeply buried may be transformed by heat and pressure into _______ rock. A) soil B) igneous C) granite D) metamorphic E) All of the answers are correct.

The product of the breakdown of surface rocks by weathering and erosion is __. A) lava B) magma C) sediment D) quartz E) ash

With the cementation of loose particles sediment becomes ______. A) molten B) metamorphic C) lithified D) igneous E) basalt

_______ takes place where moving water, ice, and wind loosen and remove material on the continents. A) Burial B) Metamorphism C) Melting D) Subsidence E) Erosion

Disintegration of rock at Earth's surface may be facilitated by water __. A) flowing on the surface in streams and as runoff B) frozen in a glacier that is flowing over the surface C) moving through near-surface pores and fractures D) present as vapor in the atmosphere E) All of the answers are correct.

A(n) ___ may eventually be formed as layers of sediment are buried by subsequent layers of sediment. A) igneous rock B) metamorphic rock C) sedentary rock D) sedimentary rock E) foliated rock

The best geologic data currently available indicates that Earth is approximately ___ years old. A) 4,550 B) 4,550,000 C) 4,550,000,000 D) 4,550,000,000,000 E) 4,550,000,000,000,000

Which of the following lifeforms appeared first in the geologic record? A) dinosaurs B) mammals C) plants D) fishes E) reptiles

Fossil evidence indicates that complex life forms, capable of generating easily fossilized hard parts like shells or bones, have existed in abundance on Earth since approximately ___ years ago. A) 5,440 B) 544 thousand C) 544 million D) 5,440,000,000 E) 544,000,000,000

Fossil evidence indicates that dinosaurs became extinct approximately ___ years ago. A) 65 thousand B) 650 thousand C) 6,500,000 D) 65 million E) 650,000,000