GEOG 110 Final

alfisols

moderately weathered forest soils (Most spatially widespread)

oxisols

tropical soils (Bad soils)

gelisols

tundra climate and mountain highlands (permafrost within 100cm of the soil surface)

Which two gases are primarily responsible for the greenhouse effect because of their ability to absorb infrared energy? A) oxygen and hydrogen B) ozone and dust C) nitrogen and oxygen D) water vapor and carbon dioxide

water vapor and carbon dioxide

What type of feedback maintains stability in a system, i.e., what type of feedback keeps a system functioning properly? A) positive B) negative C) neutral D) open E) closed

Negative

Longitude lines run from Earth's ____ to ____.

North to South Poles (vertical)

When water evaporates from a surface, which of the following occurs? A) Energy is stored within the water. B) Energy is released to the surface. C) The surface is warmed. D) Heat is transferred back and forth between the air and surface

A) Energy is stored within the water.

Milankovitch cycles refer to: A) changes in Earth-Sun distance due to changes in the Earth's orbit around the sun, the Earth's axial rotation, and the Earth's axial tilt. B) cyclical changes in solar irradiance caused by increases and decreases in sunspot activity. C) increases and decreases in atmospheric gases and aerosols, primarily caused by natural activity such as volcanic activity and changes in net primary productivity. D) tectonic changes in continental positions. E) topographic changes from orogeny, erosion, and mass wasting.

A) changes in Earth-Sun distance due to changes in the Earth's orbit around the sun, the Earth's axial rotation, and the Earth's axial tilt.

At which of the following locations is new ocean crust being formed? A) oceanic rift zones B) along collision zones between two continents C) along collision zones between two oceanic plates D) in oceanic trenches

A) oceanic rift zones

Scientists use ______ to study past climates, using ______ to reconstruct climates that extend back further than our present instrumentation allows. A) proxy methods; climate proxies B) direct measurements; historical records C) indirect evidence; conjecture D) computer models; algorithms E) inference; supposition

A) proxy methods; climate proxies

A ________ occurs when convergent motion forces rocks to move upward along the fault plane. A) reverse fault B) lateral fault C) normal fault D) strike-slip fault E) shear fault

A) reverse fault

The tropopause altitude is highest ______ because of the _______. A) at the equator; intense heating from the surface B) at the poles; diffuse solar radiation C) during the summer; increased atmospheric pressure D) during the winter; Sun's direct rays hitting the Tropic of Capricorn

At the equator; intense heating from the surface

Ice cores provide a climate record for the past _____ years. A) 5,000 B) 800,000 C) 2 million D) 10 million E) 70 million

B) 800,000

Which of the following is true of the subsolar point? A) The highest latitude at which it occurs is 60N/S B) It only occurs at lower latitudes, between the tropics (23.5 N/S) C) It occurs at all latitudes at least once throughout the year D) It never occurs beyond a few degrees of the equator.

B) It only occurs at lower latitudes, between the tropics (23.5 N/S)

A lower 18O/16O ratio in ocean sediment cores indicates a(n) ________ climate, whereas a higher 18O/16O ratio indicates a(n) ________ climate. A) cooler; warmer B) warmer; cooler C) cooler; cold D) imbalanced; balanced E) stable; unstable

B) warmer; cooler

Which of the following phase changes of water is incorrectly matched? A) Sublimation - Energy absorbed B) Deposition - Energy Released C) Freezing - Energy absorbed D) Melting - Energy absorbed

C) Freezing - energy absorbed https://previews.123rf.com/images/kawin302/kawin3021511/kawin302151100089/48796158-phase-change-of-water.jpg

The principles of buoyancy and balance, when applied to Earth's crust, helps us to explain fluctuations in Earth's outer crust, a property known as: A) folding B) Moho effect C) Isostasy D) Orogenesis E) faulting

C) Isostasy

Which of the following properly describes the formation of continental crust? A) All continental crust was formed millions of years ago. There is no active continental crust being formed. B) The formation of continental crust is independent of the formation of oceanic crust, involving only volcanism over the land masses. C) The formation of continental crust involves the entire sequence of seafloor spreading, subduction, remelting of oceanic crust, and subsequent rise of the remelted material. D) New continental crust is formed essentially in the same many as oceanic crust - from upwelling at mid-continental ridges. E) Continental crust, unlike oceanic crust, forms along transform plate boundaries where small amounts of magma are able to upwell to the surface, slowly forming new continental crust.

C) The formation of continental crust involves the entire sequence of seafloor spreading, subduction, remelting of oceanic crust, and subsequent rise of the remelted material.

A craton is best described as: A) the product of active folding and faulting. B) the surface accumulation of molten rock. C) the stable remains of ancient tectonic activity. D) a landform undergoing constant tectonic activity.

C) The stable remains of ancient tectonic activity

When the soil is at field capacity, A) a surplus definitely exists. B) no gravity drainage has occurred. C) excess gravitational water has drained. D) the capillary force is not acting. E) water is unavailable to plants.

C) excess gravitational water has drained

The dry adiabatic rate (DAR) is: A) 6 C° per 1000 m (3.3 F° per 1000 ft). B) the rate used for a saturated parcel of air. C) a term that refers to the temperature decrease in the still, calm air that surrounds a moving air parcel. D) 10 C° per 1000 m (5.5 F° per 1000 ft.).

D) 10 C° per 1000 m (5.5 F° per 1000 ft.). [6 degrees celsius per 1000 meters is Wet adiabatic rate

Latitude Lines run from _____ to _____.

East to West (horizontal)

A line connecting all points along the same longitudinal angle is called a: A) meridian. B) parallel. C) prime latitudinal angle. D) great circle.

Meridian

The portion of air pressure exerted by water vapor is the: A) vapor pressure. B) absolute humidity. C) psychrometer. D) dew point.

Vapor Pressure

The thermopause is located: A) between the mesosphere and the thermosphere. B) wherever -90°C (-130°F) is recorded. C) approximately 480 km (300 mi.) above Earth's surface. D) at the bottom of the homosphere.

approximately 480 km (300 mi.) above Earth's surface

aridisols

desert soils (19% of earth's surface land surface, single largest soil order in the world)

soils on south-facing slopes (northern hemisphere) are

drier

Mollisols

grassland soils (highly fertile)

Utisols

highly weathered forest soils (subtropical forests & SE U.S.)

inceptisols

humid regions

spodosols

northern conifer forest soils

endemic species

only found in one place

histosols

organic soils; wetlands

entisols

recent soils of all climates

andisols

soils formed from volcanic activity

vertisols

subtropics and tropics (more than 30% clay and is black)