GEO EXAM 1

On the average, lithospheric plates are ________ thick. 1000 km 10 km 100 km 1 km

100 km

In which decade was the theory of plate tectonics developed? 1940s 1970s 1990s 1960s

1960s

Today, ________ is in about the same geographic position as during late Paleozoic time. India Antarctica Australia South America

Antarctica

When the continents were assembled and mountain ranges were matched up, mountains in Scandinavia and the British Isles matched up perfectly with which North American mountain range? Olympic Mountains Appalachian Mountains Sierra Nevada Mountains Rocky Mountains

Appalachian Mountains

When considering evidence of glaciation on the southern continents, why did Wegener reject the explanation that the entire planet had experienced a period of extreme cooling? Because the 16O/18O ratios in fossils supported an ice-free period Because the glacial debris was localized to a few small mountain valleys Because he knew the "glacial debris" was actually a misinterpreted landslide Because geologic evidence supported the existence of tropical swamps in the Northern Hemisphere

Because geologic evidence supported the existence of tropical swamps in the Northern Hemisphere

Which layer of the Earth is the thickest? Inner core Crust Outer core Mantle

Mantle

________ is the study of mineral materials. Mineralogy Historical Geology Mineralosophy Lithology

Mineralogy

Deep-oceanic trenches are most abundant around the rim of the ________ ocean basin. Indian Arctic Pacific Atlantic

Pacific

The ________ division of the geologic time scale is an era of the Phanerozoic eon. Paleocene Proterozoic Permian Paleozoic

Paleozoic

The former, late Paleozoic super continent is known as ________. Pangaea Pancakea Pandomonia Panatopia

Pangaea

Another name for a ________ boundary is a destructive boundary. divergent convergent transform

convergent

Deep ocean trenches are surficial evidence for ________. rising of hot asthenosphere from deep in the mantle sinking of oceanic lithosphere into the mantle at a subduction zone transform faulting between an oceanic plate and a continental plate rifting beneath a continental plate and the beginning of continental drift

sinking of oceanic lithosphere into the mantle at a subduction zone

The ion at the center of a silicate tetrahedron is surrounded by ________. 4 oxygen ions 4 sodium ions 6 sodium ions 6 oxygen ions

4 oxygen ions

The currently accepted age of Earth is ________ years. 4.6 billion 6.4 trillion 4.6 thousand 6.4 million

4.6 billion

Which of the following is the definition for a scientific hypothesis? An educated guess A well-tested and widely accepted view that explains observable facts A tentative explanation used to explain observed activities The gathering of data through observations

A tentative explanation used to explain observed activities

A typical rate of seafloor spreading in the Atlantic Ocean is ________. 20 feet per year 0.1 inches per year 2 centimeters per year 2 ft per year

2 centimeters per year

________ is the concept that describes how the Earth was shaped by sudden, violent events over a short period of time. Differentiation Catastrophism Neptunism Uniformitarianism

Catastrophism

What is slab pull? Cold continental lithosphere is pulled below warmer asthenosphere. Cold continental lithosphere is pulled below warmer oceanic lithosphere. Cold oceanic lithosphere is pulled below warmer asthenosphere. Warmer oceanic lithosphere is pulled below colder asthenosphere.

Cold oceanic lithosphere is pulled below warmer asthenosphere.

What is the best method to distinguish between muscovite mica and biotite mica? Color Cleavage Hardness Streak

Color

Along which tectonic boundary is ridge push going to be most important in helping to drive plate motion? Transform boundary Convergent boundary Divergent boundary

Divergent boundary

________ was an important eighteenth-century geologist who developed the concept of Uniformitarianism to explain the slow, steady changes responsible for shaping the Earth. Isaac Newton Charles Darwin Charles Lyell James Hutton

James Hutton

Which of the following is not one of the major tectonic plates on the Earth's surface? North American Plate African Plate Juan de Fuca Plate Pacific Plate

Juan de Fuca Plate

________ most effectively outline the edges of the lithospheric plates. Margins of the continental shelves The locations of deep mantle hot spots Lines of active stratovolcanoes Lines of earthquake epicenters

Lines of earthquake epicenters

In which layer of the Earth does the convection necessary for plate motion occur? Crust Mantle Outer core Inner core

Mantle

Which of the following Earth materials can be used to make interpretations about the nature and composition of the interior of the Earth? Groundwater and vapors in geothermal systems Meteorites, kimberlite pipes, and slivers of crustal and mantle rocks Diamond-bearing kimberlite pipes Slivers of crustal and mantle rocks exposed at the surface Meteorites

Meteorites, kimberlite pipes, and slivers of crustal and mantle rocks

Which type of convergence will result in a continental volcanic arc? Oceanic-oceanic Continental-continental Oceanic-continental

Oceanic-continental

Which type of convergence will result in a volcanic island arc? Continental-continental Oceanic-oceanic Oceanic-continental

Oceanic-oceanic

Which ferromagnesian mineral is believed to constitute up to 50 percent of the mantle? Garnet Amphibole Biotite Olivine

Olivine

Which of the following is not part of the definition of a mineral? Organic Naturally occurring Definite chemical composition Orderly crystalline structure

Organic

What are the two groups of feldspar minerals called? Microcline and orthoclase Sodium and calcium Albite and anorthite Potassium feldspar and plagioclase

Potassium feldspar and plagioclase

Which of the following is correct for isotopes of the same element? The atoms have different numbers of protons and the same number of neutrons. The atoms have different numbers of electrons but the same number of neutrons. The atoms have the same number of electrons and different numbers of protons. The atoms have different numbers of neutrons and the same number of protons.

The atoms have different numbers of neutrons and the same number of protons.

The addition of which of the following will control a mineral's color? Biologic secretions Pigment Trace elements Water

Trace elements

Which of the following plate boundaries is not usually associated with volcanism? Transform Divergent Convergent

Transform

The principle of ________ states that the physical, chemical, and biological processes at work shaping the Earth today have also operated in the geologic past. plate tectonics catastrophism plutonism Uniformitarianism

Uniformitarianism

________ is often paraphrased as "the present is the key to the past." Catastrophism Uniformitarianism Aristotelian logic Biblical prophecy

Uniformitarianism

Which of the following is not a geologic hazard? Climate change leading to sea-level rise Volcanic eruptions sending lava flows toward a city Deforestation on a floodplain increasing the severity of river floods Use of poor construction materials resulting in a cracked foundation

Use of poor construction materials resulting in a cracked foundation

________ is the process by which rocks breakdown in place to produce soils and sediments. Subduction Metamorphism Weathering Lithification

Weathering

Which war was indirectly responsible for the development of the tools that made the theory of plate tectonics possible? World War I Korean War World War II Vietnam War

World War II

A transform plate boundary is characterized by ________. stratovolcanoes on the edge of a plate and shield volcanoes on the adjacent plate two, converging, oceanic plates meeting head-on and piling up into a mid-ocean ridge a deep, vertical fault along which two plates slide past one another in opposite directions a divergent boundary where the continental plate changes to an oceanic plate

a deep, vertical fault along which two plates slide past one another in opposite directions

Deep-focus earthquakes are associated with ________ plate boundaries. lateral transform convergent (subducting) divergent

convergent (subducting)

What mineral is the hardest known substance in nature? muscovite diamond silicate native gold

diamond

Pull-apart, rift zones are generally associated with a ________ plate boundary. all plate boundaries convergent transform

divergent

New oceanic crust and lithosphere are formed at ________. divergent boundaries by submarine eruptions and intrusions of rhyolitic magma divergent boundaries by submarine eruptions and intrusions of basaltic magma convergent boundaries by submarine eruptions and intrusions of rhyolitic magma convergent boundaries by submarine eruptions and intrusions of basaltic magma

divergent boundaries by submarine eruptions and intrusions of basaltic magma

Hornblende and the other amphiboles have what type of silicate structure? metallic double chains 3-D framework sheet

double chains

Which of the following energy sources is thought to drive the lateral motions of Earth's lithospheric plates? gravitational attractive forces of the Sun and Moon electrical and magnetic fields localized in the inner core swirling movements of the molten iron particles in the outer core export of heat from deep in the mantle to the top of the asthenosphere

export of heat from deep in the mantle to the top of the asthenosphere

The lithosphere is broken into ________ major plates and many minor plates. seven fifteen nine twelve

fifteen

Continental crust is mainly composed of ________, whereas oceanic crust is mainly composed of ________. gabbro; granite limestone; gabbro olivine; basalt granite; basalt

granite; basalt

Which of the following minerals is a ferromagnesian silicate? muscovite orthoclase hornblende quartz

hornblende

A very long-lived magma source located deep in the mantle is called a ________. magma welt basalt spout melt well hot spot

hot spot

Crystallization of molten rock will produce ________ rocks. sedimentary metamorphic igneous

igneous

Which of the following minerals is a silicate? hematite muscovite halite calcite

muscovite

Which of the following minerals is in the mineral group known as mica? olivine muscovite orthoclase augite

muscovite

The ________ is an example of an active, continent-continent collision? northern movement of Baja California and a sliver of western California toward the Hawaiian Islands northward movement of India into Eurasia Arabian Peninsula slamming into North Africa under the Red Sea westward movement of the South American plate over the Nazca plate

northward movement of India into Eurasia

The most prominent features on the ocean floor are the ________. lava plateaus oceanic ridges deep-ocean trenches seamounts

oceanic ridges

Which of the following minerals is hard enough to scratch a glass plate (H:5.5)? calcite orthoclase apatite fluorite

orthoclase

The ________ is thought to be a liquid, metallic region in the Earth's interior. mantle lithosphere outer core inner core

outer core

Which mineral is composed of silicon dioxide (Si02)? olivine calcite diamond quartz

quartz

Which of the following minerals does not display a metallic luster? pyrite chalcopyrite galena quartz

quartz

Which of the following minerals does not have a cleavage? muscovite halite quartz hornblende

quartz

The ________ are the mineral class that accounts for more than 90 percent of the Earth's crust. carbonates sulfates sulfides silicates

silicates

All silicate minerals contain which two elements? silicon, oxygen oxygen, carbon silicon, sodium iron, silicon

silicon, oxygen

The composition of the inner core of Earth is thought to be ________. basalt granite peridotite solid iron-nickel alloy

solid iron-nickel alloy

At a ________, an oceanic plate will be forced beneath another plate because of differences in density. transform boundary collision zone continental rift subduction zone

subduction zone

Cooler, older, oceanic lithosphere sink into the mantle at ________. sites of long-lived, hot spot volcanism in the ocean basins subduction zones along convergent plate boundaries rift zones along mid-ocean ridges transform fault zones along divergent plate boundaries

subduction zones along convergent plate boundaries

Which of the following is not considered a mineral? synthetic ruby ice gypsum quartz

synthetic ruby

In the early part of the 20th century, ________ argued forcefully for continental drift. Karl Wagner Bill Kohl Peter Rommel Alfred Wegener

Alfred Wegener

Which scientist developed the idea of continental drift? Isaac Newton Alfred Wegener Albert Einstein Charles Darwin

Alfred Wegener

Which of the following is the definition of a scientific theory? The gathering of data through observations A tentative explanation used to explain observed activities A well-tested and widely accepted view that explains observable facts An educated guess

A well-tested and widely accepted view that explains observable facts

What is a mantle plume? The magma that rises up from the mantle at a divergent plate boundary A form of batholith composed of ferromagnesian materials Material rising up from a subducting plate going through partial melting An upwelling of hot material from the Earth's interior that is cylindrical in shape

An upwelling of hot material from the Earth's interior that is cylindrical in shape

Which of the following mineral identification techniques would most easily identify calcite? Effervescence Streak Taste Magnetism

Effervescence

What is the mineral name for table salt? Halite Gypsum Calcite Dolomite

Halite

________ describes Earth's origins and its development through time. Uniformitarianism Natural hazards Physical geology Historical geology

Historical geology

Which of the following is not one of the three primary ways minerals can form? Crystallization of molten material Hybridization Precipitation Biological Processes

Hybridization

Only eight elements make up the vast majority of rock-forming minerals. Which of the following elements is not one of the eight? Iron Oxygen Hydrogen Potassium

Hydrogen

________ rocks form by crystallization and consolidation of molten magma. Sedimentary Indigenous Primary Igneous

Igneous

Which of the following best defines a mineral and a rock? A rock consists of atoms bonded in a regular, geometrically predictable arrangement; a mineral is a consolidated aggregate of different rock particles. A rock has an orderly, repetitive, geometrical, internal arrangement of minerals; a mineral is a lithified or consolidated aggregate of rocks. A mineral consists of its constituent atoms arranged in a geometrically repetitive structure; in a rock, the atoms are randomly bonded without any geometric pattern. In a mineral the constituent atoms are bonded in a regular, repetitive, internal structure; a rock is a lithified or consolidated aggregate of different mineral grains.

In a mineral the constituent atoms are bonded in a regular, repetitive, internal structure; a rock is a lithified or consolidated aggregate of different mineral grains.

Which of the following materials will form through evaporation? Salt Geodes Feldspars Limestone

Salt

________ is the name of the process by which new seafloor is generated at mid-ocean ridges. Convection Subduction Melting Seafloor spreading

Seafloor spreading

________ rocks always originate at the surface of the solid Earth. Secondary Sedimentary Igneous Metamorphic

Sedimentary

Which one of the following statements is not correct? Sedimentary rocks may weather to igneous rocks. Igneous rocks can undergo metamorphism. Magmas crystallize to form igneous rocks. Metamorphic rocks may melt to magma.

Sedimentary rocks may weather to igneous rocks.

What provides us with the most information about the interior of the Earth? Seismic energy waves Borehole data Erupted materials Satellite imagery

Seismic energy waves

What is the definition of planetary differentiation? Divisions of planets based on constituent materials Categorization based on chemical formulas Separation of materials based on density Mixing of materials to produce a new compound

Separation of materials based on density

Which factor contributes the most toward plate motion at a convergent boundary? Friction Slab pull Ridge push Mantle drag

Slab pull

Lava solidifying during a period of reverse polarity will align the magnetic fields of its iron particles toward the ________ pole. East South North West

South

Which two continents did Wegener cite as having the best evidence of a close coastline fit? India and Asia South America and Africa Europe and Africa North America and Europe

South America and Africa

Which of the following best explains the global distribution of plant species, such as the Glossopteris, during the Mesozoic? The landmasses were joined and the plant had a large geographic extent. Seeds were ingested by animals and later deposited in scat. Seeds were small, so they could be carried by the wind. Oceans that transgressed on the continents carried the seeds to different locations.

The landmasses were joined and the plant had a large geographic extent.

Which of these statements best describes the lithosphere? The lithosphere is the layer in the interior of the Earth that is just below the crust. The lithosphere is composed of the crust and the rigid part of the upper mantle. The lithosphere consists solely of the crust. The lithosphere is a low-density part of the upper mantle.

The lithosphere is composed of the crust and the rigid part of the upper mantle.

If the temperature in the Earth generally increases with depth, how is it possible that the inner core is a solid? Earth's interior does not reach temperatures high enough to melt the material of the inner core. The inner core is shedding the heat so quickly that melting does not have time to occur. Temperatures increase to a certain point before leveling off below the melting point of the core. The pressures in the core are immense and keep it in a solid state in spite of the temperature.

The pressures in the core are immense and keep it in a solid state in spite of the temperature.

What is the definition of lithification? The process by which sediments are made into rock The crystallization of minerals through cooling The breakdown of materials due to exposure to the elements The transportation of sediments from their place of origin

The transportation of sediments from their place of origin

Which one of the following is not true for minerals? They can be identified by characteristic physical properties. They have a specific, internal, crystalline structure. They can be a liquid, solid, or gas. They have a specific, predictable chemical composition.

They can be a liquid, solid, or gas.

The modern-day Red Sea is explained by plate tectonics theory because it is ________. a tiny remnant of a once immense ocean that was closed as Africa moved Asia the site of a transform fault along which Arabia is moving away from Africa a rift zone that may eventually open into a major ocean if Arabia and Africa continue to separate a rare example of a two-continent subduction zone where the African continental plate is sinking under the Arabian continental plate

a rift zone that may eventually open into a major ocean if Arabia and Africa continue to separate

Which carbonate mineral reacts readily with cool, dilute hydrochloric acid to produce visible bubbles of carbon dioxide gas? dolomite plagioclase quartz calcite

calcite

All of the following are evidence supporting the theory of plate tectonics except for ________. ocean floor drilling changes in the Moon's orbit due to shifting plates hot spots measurements of plate motions

changes in the Moon's orbit due to shifting plates hot spots

The strong tendency of certain minerals to break along smooth, parallel planes is known as ________. crystal form streak cracking luster cleavage

cleavage

All of the following provide evidence or clues to the composition of Earth's interior except for ________. slivers of crustal and mantle rocks now exposed at Earth's surface comets meteorites diamond-bearing rocks

comets

A(n) ________ is a silicate structure where no silica tetrahedra share any oxygen ions. framework independent single chain double chain

independent

In correct order from the center outward, Earth includes which units? inner core, outer core, mantle, crust core, inner mantle, outer mantle, crust core, crust, mantle, hydrosphere inner core, crust, mantle, hydrosphere

inner core, outer core, mantle, crust

The ________ forms the relatively cool, brittle plates of plate tectonics. astrosphere eosphere lithosphere asthenosphere

lithosphere

Which of the following describes the light reflecting and transmission characteristics of a mineral? fluorescence luster virtual absorption color streak

luster

Ferromagnesian minerals are those that contain a great deal of ________. potassium and aluminum manganese and iron magnesium and iron calcium and silicon

magnesium and iron