Geography Final Questions
The original theory of continental drift was revived and expanded in which decade?
1960s
When approximately did the Pleistocene Epoch begin?
2 million years ago
If you live in an area that experienced a 100-year flood last year, what can you conclude?
Another flood of that magnitude could happen again this year.
Which of the following accurately defines the relationship between watershed size and location along a stream?
As you move upstream, the watershed gets smaller.
Suppose you are a water molecule in a raindrop that just fell into a stream east of the Rocky Mountain continental divide in Colorado. Which of the following drainages will you flow into?
Gulf/Atlantic drainage
In which of the following locations would you find a rift zone (divergent boundary) on land?
Iceland
Which of the following statements regarding topography is true?
It refers to the undulating form of earth's surface.
What will happen to continental crust if a massive ice sheet develops on its surface?
It will sink into the asthenosphere.
Which mass movement process is both the slowest and wettest?
Solifucation
Continental crust is less dense than the asthenosphere.
True
Karst features are produced principally through chemical weathering.
True
The average elevation of earth's total surface is below sea level.
True
What is spheroidal weathering?
When physical weathering processes tend to smooth out rocks by removing points and weaker materials
Which of the following volcanic intrusions is usually the largest?
a batholith
Crater Lake, Oregon is an example of
a caldera.
Mount St. Helens is an example of which of the following features?
a composite volcano
Which of the following volcanic features usually involves the most explosive eruptions?
a composite volcano
What type of boundary is created where two tectonic plates collide?
a convergent boundary
Which of the following plate boundary types produces earthquakes and builds mountains, but have very little, if any, volcanic activity?
a convergent boundary between continental crust and continental crust
The Appalachian Mountains in the eastern United States are an example of which of the following features?
a folded mountain range
Which plate tectonic feature is responsible for the formation of the Hawaiian Islands?
a hot spot
Which of the following is an erosional landform?
a meander cutoff
Which of the following is a depositional landform produced during a flood?
a natural levee
Which of the following is a fluvial depositional landform?
a natural levee, a point bar, a delta
The interaction between weathering and rock surface area is an example of
a positive feedback.
What is competence?
a stream's ability to move particles of a specific size
If you climb Mt Everest, you have experienced
a third order of relief.
Which of the following would suggest the presence of soil creep?
a tilted retaining wall
In which of the following tectonic settings would you be least likely to find volcanic activity?
a transform boundary
What type of plate boundary is created when two plates slide past each other?
a transform boundary
Which of the following are incorrectly matched?
abrasion — NOT a hydraulic squeeze-and-release action
Which of the following is necessary for the formation of well-developed karst landscapes?
an aerated zone above the water table, the presence of joints in the rock, a high proportion of calcium carbonate in the rock
Which of the following would likely be found near a convergent boundary between continental and oceanic crust?
an inland volcanic mountain range, a subduction zone, earthquakes
Which of the following contributed to the massive 1959 Madison River landslide in Montana?
an oversteepened slope, an earthquake, heavily-weathered material
What is the term for a fault that forces a block over and on top of an adjacent block?
an overthrust fault
Which of the following is true regarding anticlines and synclines?
both anticlines and synclines can form ridges or valleys
What is the term for the combination of water with another substance to produce a new compound?
hydrolysis
In the rock cycle, what is the term for rock that is completely melted and then cooled and solidified again?
igneous
Suppose the rock making up a volcano is eroded and the rock particles are incorporated into new rock on the ocean floor. Which of the following rock cycle transformations is represented by this example?
igneous to sedimentary
Which rock type is usually the hardest and most resistant to weathering and erosion?
metamorphic
Which mass movement process is both the fastest and wettest?
mudflow
In which of the following locations would deposition be the dominant fluvial process?
near base level
Which of the following is a chemical weathering process?
oxidation
What drainage pattern would be most likely on a steep slope with moderate topographic variation across the slope?
parallel
What is saltation?
particles bounced along a stream bed
Which of the following weathering processes does not involve water?
pressure-release jointing
Which physical weathering process produces rock features that are most similar to those due to spheroidal weathering?
pressure-release jointing (dome rocks, sheeting sloughing off)
Which of the following is a physical weathering process?
pressure-release jointing, freeze-thaw action, salt crystal growth
Which drainage pattern would you most likely find on a single peak or dome structure, such as a volcano?
radial
Which mass movement process is both the fastest and driest?
rockfall
Which weathering process is particularly common in arid climates?
salt crystal growth
What is the term for the process of stream transportation in which particles jump or bounce along the stream bed?
saltation
If sand particles are compacted and cemented into rock, what is the name for the resulting rock type?
sedimentary
Which of the following forces would produce a strike-slip fault? Select all that apply.
shear
The solution of limestone can create circular depressions on the landscape known as:
sinkholes
Which of the following is a common surface feature in limestone regions with little relief like Florida?
sinkholes
Which mass movement process is the slowest and driest?
soil creep
Which mass movement type is the slowest?
soil creep
Which of the following karst features is produced by precipitation, not solution?
stalactites
Today's continents were connected together as Pangaea during which of the following geologic time periods?
the Mesozoic Era
What is the name of the sharp change in rock characteristics between the crust and the uppermost mantle?
the Mohorovičić discontinuity
The portion of the earth's profile that is plastic in the sense that it is relatively easily bent and shaped is known as
the asthenosphere
Which of the earth's interior layers lies just under the lithosphere?
the asthenosphere
What is the term for the area on the earth's surface directly above the point where seismic waves are initiated in an earthquake?
the epicenter
Which part of the earth's interior is comprised of molten, liquid metal?
the outer core
What are components of the lithosphere?
the rigid, uppermost mantle and the crust
Which of the following are components of the lithosphere? Select all that apply.
the rigid, uppermost mantle and the crust
What is included in the geologic cycle?
the rock cycle, the hydrologic cycle, endogenic processes, exogenic processes
Which of the following accurately defines angle of repose?
the slope steepness at which driving and resisting forces are balanced
Which of the following accurately describes the difference between a shield volcano and a composite volcano?
A composite volcano is usually more explosive than a shield volcano. A composite volcano usually has steeper slopes than a shield volcano. A composite volcano usually produces more pyroclastics than a shield volcano. Magma in composite volcanoes tends to be thicker than in shield volcanoes.
What is the difference between a sill and a dike?
A sill is horizontal; a dike is vertical.
All faults are also plate boundaries.
False
Humans rarely influence mass movement.
False
If you have a strong fear of sinkholes, you should move to Florida.
False
The pre-construction geologic analysis of the site for the Vajont Canyon, Italy reservoir suggested that the canyon walls were solid and would not be susceptible to mass movement.
False
There are no plate boundaries that cross land surfaces in the United States.
False
The 1993 Mississippi River Floods were the result of a few days of very intense storms.
False (long buildup of high rain)
Which of the following is the best example of a first order of relief?
North America
Which of the following is the dominant weathering process involved in the development of karst topography?
carbonation
Which of the following karst features is produced by carbonation and solution, not precipitation?
caves
Which of the following tectonic processes formed the Himalayas?
collision between continental crust and continental crust
Which type of plate boundary is most common around the edges of the Pacific Ocean?
convergent
Which of the following is an erosional landform?
cutbank (under-cut riverbank, created on the outside? of curves)
What is the most familiar and common drainage pattern, forming treelike structures?
dendritic
What finally led scientists to accept the theory of plate tectonics?
determination of the age and magnetic characteristics of the ocean floor
Which of the following karst features is produced by solution, not precipitation?
disappearing streams, caverns, sinkholes
What is suspended load?
fine particles physically held aloft in a stream
If a mass movement event involves large quantities of water, what class does it belong to?
flow
Which of the following describes the correct order that material would be deposited by a stream as it reaches base level?
gravel, sand, silt, clay
The Basin and Range province of the Western United States is an example of which of the following features?
horst and graben
Which of the following is a chemical weathering process?
hydration
What is capacity?
the total possible load that a stream can transport
Which drainage pattern would you most likely find in an area with folded topography producing alternating ridges and valleys, as in the Appalachian Mountain region?
trellis
The principle that the earth processes seen today occurred in the same way and at the same rate in the past is known as
uniformitarianism
The term relief refers to
vertical elevation differences in the landscape.
Which of the following forms of moving water would produce the greatest erosion?
water in channels
Which of the following geomorphic processes must happen before a mass movement event can take place?
weathering
Which of the following are denudation processes?
weathering, erosion, mass movement
Which of the following lists of processes is in the correct sequence as they occur in nature?
weathering, erosion, transportation, deposition
What is the dominant direction of movement of the North American tectonic plate?
west