9th Circle of Hell
Seismic waves experience greater attenuation (loss of strength) when traveling through rigid bedrock than through soft sediments. T/F
False
The presence of mud cracks in a shale bed would indicate an arid (dry) depositional environment. T/F
False
The primary basis for distinguishing among detrital sedimentary rocks is composition. T/F
False
Meandering stream floodplain
Continental
Evaporites have a clastic texture. T/F
False
The greatest loss of life is attributed to which earthquake?
1556 Shensi, China earthquake
What is the largest magnitude earthquake on record?
1960 Chilean Earthquake
Approximately how many people live in the vicinity of an active volcano?
500 million
What percentage of energy consumed in the United States today comes from fossil fuels?
81%
Of the descriptions given, which rock type and environment has the highest concentration of rare elements?
A pegmatite crystallized from a water-rich, highly differentiated residual magma
An aphanitic rock containing about 50 percent plagioclase feldspar, 35 percent amphibole, 10 percent pyroxene, and minor amounts of other light-colored silicates.
Andesite
Which of the following statements about diagenesis are true? (check all that apply)
Aragonite recrystallizing to calcite is a diagenetic process. Diagenesis is a collective term for all the chemical, physical, and biological changes that take place after sediments are deposited and during and after lithification of a sedimentary rock (but prior to metamorphism). When sediment is lithified, the volume of pore space is reduced. Compaction is a more significant part of the lithification process for fine-grained sedimentary rocks than for coarse-grained sedimentary rocks.
An aphanitic rock containing about 30 percent calcium-rich plagioclase feldspar, 55 percent pyroxene, and 15 percent olivine
Basalt
What is likely the single most important, original, depositional feature in sedimentary rocks?
Bedding or stratification
Loosely coherent and composed of broken fragments that formed along a fault zone
Breccia
Most likely to occur in a subsiding basin as a result of increased confining pressure and temperature.
Burial
Effervesces when in contact with hydrochloric acid.
Calcite
Would a limestone made of shell fragments be detrital or chemical? Would its texture be clastic or crystalline?
Chemical; clastic
Small, steep-sided volcano composed of vesicular pyroclastic material that was mainly produced by a single, short-lived eruptive event
Cinder come
Large, nearly symmetrical volcano with gently sloping flanks and a steep summit; composed of alternating layers of pyroclastic material and lava flows of andesitic composition.
Composite
Occurs where pressure is fairly low, the rock is in the upper crust, and heat is supplied by an intruding body of magma
Contact
Aleutian Islands
Convergent Plate
Mount St. Helens (Cascade Range)
Convergent Plate
refers to the removal and isolation of early-formed mineral grains that can cause the composition of the remaining magma to change
Crystal setting
A vertical wall-like feature a few meters wide and hundreds of meters long.
Dike
Iceland
Divergent
Mount Kilimanjaro (East African Rift Zone)
Divergent Plate
Which of the following statements about metamorphism are true?
During metamorphism, the rock remains essentially solid. Metamorphic rocks have a parent rock, meaning they are produced from preexisting rocks. Metamorphism can change the texture, minerology and sometimes chemical composition of the parent rock.
are sets of sediments that deposit adjacent to each other at the same time but different characteristics that reflect the condition in a particular environment.
Facies
A poorly sorted sandstone containing angular grains of ferromagnesian minerals was probably deposited far from the source area of the particles. T/F
False
During recrystallization, the mineralogy of the rock always changes. T/F
False
Felsic magmas are less viscous than mafic magmas. T/F
False
In a hot, wet region where both granite and basalt are exposed at the surface, granite will weather more rapidly because Non ferromagnesian silicates are less resistant to chemical weathering.
False
Metamorphic rocks cannot contain fossils. T/F
False
Most of our knowledge about Earth's interior comes from drill holes. T/F
False
On the Richter scale, the intensity of ground shaking for a magnitude 5 earthquake is 32 times greater than that produced by a magnitude 4 earthquake. T/F
False
Only when a volcano is erupting is it a threat to human life. T/F
False
Partial melting of felsic rocks tend to yield basaltic magmas. T/F
False
Rank the four major compositional groups of igneous rocks from highest silica content to lowest silica content
Felsic Intermediate Mafic Ultramafic
Which of the following statements is false?
Felsic (rhyolitic) magmas have the lowest gas content.
Composed of alternating bands of light and dark silicate minerals
Gneiss
A phaneritic rock containing about 20 percent quartz, 40 percent potassium feldspar, 20 percent sodium-rich plagioclase feldspar, a few percent muscovite, and the remainder dark-colored silicate
Granite
The average composition of continental crust approximates
Granite
Which of the following statements are true?
Hematite and limonite result from oxidation of ferro magnesian minerals. Feldspars weather to form clay minerals which make up a high percentage of the inorganic materials in soils.
Sillimanite
High grade
Nonfoliated rock generated when shale is intruded by a hot magma body
Hornsfel
Most common at Mid-ocean ridges resulting in serpentinite and soapstone
Hydrothermal
In which area would weathering by frost wedging be most effective?
In moist, temperate climates
Biotite
Intermediate
Columbia Plateau
Intraplatevolcanism
Hawaiian Islands
Intraplatevolcanism
The composition of the core is mostly
Iron
Produces a red or orange tint.
Iron Oxide
Which of the following statements concerning mechanical weathering is NOT true?
It involves a major change in the mineral composition of the weathered material.
A dome-shaped mountainous structure flanked by upturned layers of sedimentary rock
Laccolith
Which of the following terms does not fit with the others?
Lapilli
Which of the following statements about limestone is false?
Limestones of inorganic origin are the most common.
_______________ refers to the tendency for a foundation material to lose its internal cohesion and fail mechanically during earthquake shaking.
Liquefication
Chlorite
Low grade
Calcite-rich and nonfoliated
Marble
Deep sea fan
Marine
A __________________ is a type of reverse fault associated with subduction of oceanic lithosphere.
Mega-thrust Fault
Contains features that are transitional between metamorphic and igneous due to partial melting
Migmatite
Forms along fault zones at great depths
Mylonite
Fastest seismic waves and can travel through solids, liquids and gases. Medium is alternately compressed and stretched in the direction of energy propagation.
P Wave
A phaneritic rock made mainly of olivine and pyroxene, with lesser amounts of calcium-rich plagioclase feldspar
Peridotite
The dominant rock type in the uppermost mantle is
Peridotite
Represents a grade of metamorphism between slate and schist
Phyllite
Which mineral gives some granites a pinkish color?
Potassium Feldspar
Hard and nonfoliated, often produced by contact metamorphism of sandstone
Quartzite
Occurs at great depths where two continents are colliding and creating mountain ranges
Regional
Seismic body waves not transmitted by fluids. Shake medium perpendicularly to the direction of energy propagation.
S-Wave
Foliated and composed predominantly of platy minerals
Schist
Which detrital rock type would you expect to result from deposition in a lagoon?
Shale
What type of weathering is the result of unloading of a pluton?
Sheeting
Very broad, slightly dome-shaped volcano with gently sloping flanks; composed mainly of basaltic lava flows.
Shield
Produces the hardest sedimentary rocks.
Silica
relatively thin layer of basalt sandwiched between horizontal layers of sedimentary rocks exposed along the walls of a river valley
Sill
Composed of tiny chlorite and mica grains and displaying excellent rock cleavage
Slate
Place the following rock types in order from the lowest grade to the highest grade of metamorphism.
Slate Phyllite Schist Gneiss
huge expanse of granitic rock forming a mountainous terrain tens of kilometers wide.
Stock
What is differential stress?
Stress placed on a rock by unequal forces, which squeeze a rock greater in one direction than in others.
Causes the most destruction and have the largest amplitudes. Causes vertical and lateral movement
Surface Wave
How does the plate tectonic theory explain the Ring of Fire around the Pacific Ocean Basin?
The Pacific plate is subducting underneath other lithospheric plates at convergent plate boundaries producing volcanic island arcs and continental volcanic arcs
Considering it comes from the accumulation and burial of plant remains, what is the ultimate source of energy in coal?
The Sun
What portion of an angular, fracture-bounded granitic block shows the highest rate of weathering?
The edges and corners
Under similar warm, moist climatic conditions, why would basalt and gabbro generally have higher chemical weathering rates than rhyolite and granite?
The ferromagnesian minerals in the gabbro and basalt are subject to oxidation and chemical breakdown.
During metamorphism, what is the major effect of chemically active fluids?
They aid in the movement of dissolved silicate constituents and facilitate growth of the mineral grains.
Which of the following is true about sedimentary rocks?
They contain much of the basic information needed to reconstruct Earth's history.
The Mississippi River delta
Transitional
A porphyritic texture suggests two stages of cooling. An early stage of slow cooling and a subsequent stage of faster cooling. T/F
True
Currently, no reliable method exists for making short-range earthquake predictions. T/F
True
During the transition from shale to slate, atoms are rearranged into new crystalline structures that are more stable in the new environment. T/F
True
Each unit increase on both the moment magnitude and Richter scales correspond to a roughly 32-fold increase in the energy released. T/F
True
Most bedded cherts are thought to be derived from diatoms and radiolarians which produce hard parts from silica. T/F
True
Ninety percent of the lava erupted on Earth is of basaltic composition. T/F
True
Oscillation ripple marks are the result of back-and-forth movement of waves in a near-shore environment. T/F
True
Peridotite is the main constituent of the upper mantle? T/F
True
Soft sediments generally amplify the vibrations from an earthquake more than solid bedrock. T/F
True
The greatest threat to human life in the vicinity of an active volcano are pyroclastic flows. T/F
True
The presence of coral fossils in sedimentary rock would indicate a depositional environment of a warm, shallow sea. T/F
True
The primary constituents of detrital sedimentary rocks are quartz and clay minerals. T/F
True
The two basic characteristics used to classify igneous rocks are texture and mineral composition. T/F
True
Which of the following statements about tsunamis is false?
Tsunamis advance across the ocean slowly.
In what type of environment is the rate of chemical weathering the highest?
Warm, moist environment
The following processes are involved in the formation of sedimentary rock. Place them in order of occurrence.
Weathering Erosion and Transportation Deposition Lithification
The Columbia Plateau in Washington and Oregon is
a flood basalt plateau
The greater the carbon content, the greater the coal's energy ranking as a fuel. Based on this statement, which of the following has the highest energy ranking?
anthracite coal
The oceanic crust is composed of
basalt and gabbro
Granite is exposed at the surface in a hot, wet region. Which type of weathering will predominate?
chemical
a rusty nail
chemical weathering
Pockets of magma can be formed by the melting of deep continental crust heated by the intrusion of other magmas. Which of the following correctly describes this process?
intrusion of basaltic magma causes deep crustal rocks to melt, producing andestic or rhyolitic magmas
a ruptured water pipe
mechanical weathering
a shattered window
mechanical weathering
What is the "melt" of a magma composed of?
mobile, silicon, oxygen, aluminum, potassium, calcium, sodium, iron, and magnesium ions
The layer of rock and mineral fragments produced by weathering that cover most of Earth's land surface is called
regolith
What factors influence the amount of damage to human structures from an earthquake?
the intensity of the vibrations the nature of building materials and constructions practices in the region the duration of the vibrations all the above influence the amount of damage the nature of the material upon which structures rest