Geosci 10

If central Pennsylvania had a really dry year, and received only on-third of our usual rainfall, we would be just dry enough to be called a desert if such dry years stayed for a long time. How much rainfall per year would we be receiving per year then? (in an average year, Pennsylvania gets about the same amount of precipitation as the average for the world) 10 feet 0.01 feet 1 foot 0.1 feet 0.001 feet

1 foot

In the photo above, the letters A and B are in bowl-shaped features in east Greenland. If you were to walk along the ridge just below the yellow line, you would be balanced on a knife-edged ridge between the two bowls. That ridge is called: A cirque, a bowl gnawed into a mountain the head of one glacier A arete, left between the bowls formed by two glaciers that gnawed into the mountain from either side A moraine bulldozed up by the glaciers the hollowed out the bowls A block field formed by freeze thaw processes, which would cause you to twist you ankle if you walked along it

A arete, left between the bowls formed by two glaciers that gnawed into the mountain from either side

The above picture shows: A glacier, which has quit flowing and is wasting away in response to global warming A glacier which is generally flowing toward you, carrying rocks picked up from the ridges, the yellow arrow points up one of the stripes of rock, and you can follow the stripe to the ridge where the rocks started A permafrost soil-creep lobe which is generally coming toward you, moving in the opposite direction indicated by the arrow A permafrost soil-creep lobe which is generally moving away from you, moving in the direction indicated by the arrow

A glacier which is generally flowing toward you, carrying rocks picked up from the ridges, the yellow arrow points up one of the stripes of rock, and you can follow the stripe to the ridge where the rocks started

The ridge left behind by a glacier that outlines where the glacier had been is called: A cirque composed of till(which is sorted) and outwash(which is unsorted) A moraine, composed of till(which is unsorted) and outwash(which is sorted) A horn, composed of till(which is unsorted) and outwash(which is sorted) An arete, composed of till(which is unsorted) and outwash(which is sorted) A moraine composed of till (which is sorted) and outwash (which is unsorted)

A moraine, composed of till(which is unsorted) and outwash(which is sorted)

You are a geologist. While walking in the fog one day, you bang into a cliff. After rubbing your sore nose, you inspect the cliff, and see what is shown in the picture, in a one-foot square area. You recognize that this cliff is made of "fossil sand dunes', with wind-blown sand that was later glued together by hard-water deposits. You are accompanied by a student who is carrying your tea and crumpets for you. You sketch four arrows on the cliff, label them as shown, and ask the student which of the arrows was pointing up when the loose sand was deposited. Your student is brilliant, and correctly tells you the answer. The arrow that was pointing up when the loose sand was deposited is that arrow that is closest to: A B C D

B

Soil is produced by weathering of rocks in the natural state of affairs, on a hillside covered by soil: The soil thickness never changes over time, a perfect balance is achieved between soil production and removal so no matter how long you wait or when you measure, the thickness will be the same The soil layer gets thicker and thicker over time as weathering breaks down more rocks The soil thickness tends to a non changing value as production is balanced by removal, but you may have to watch for awhile, as sometimes production may go faster and sometimes removal may go faster The soil is mostly produced by human pets

The soil thickness tends to a non changing value as production is balanced by removal, but you may have to watch for awhile, as sometimes production may go faster and sometimes removal may go faster

Both of the above pictures are along the Colorado River. [See image: UNIT 6.14] The clear water of picture 1 and the muddy water of picture 2 appear quite different. What's going on? 1 is upstream of the Glen Canyon Dam, and 2 is downstream. 1 is 7-UP, and 2 is Yoo-Hoo. 2 is downstream of the Glen Canyon Dam, and 1 is also downstream of the dam. 2 is upstream of the Glen Canyon Dam, and 1 is downstream of the dam. 1 is upstream of the Glen Canyon Dam, and 2 is also upstream of the dam.

2 is upstream of the Glen Canyon Dam, and 1 is downstream of the dam.

You start with 800 parent atoms of a particular radioactive type, which decays to give stable offspring. You what just long enough for two half lives to pass. You should expect to have how many parent atoms remaining(on average): 400 50 200 100 25

200

The great extinction at the end of the Paleozoic Era that changed the living types on earth and made way for the origin of dinosaurs during the Mesozoic era occurred about: 22,500 years ago 225,000 years ago 225,000,000 years ago 22,500,000 years ago 2,250,000 years ago

225,000,000 years ago

Acadia National Park has a long, rich, and varied geologic history. The large island marked "I" in the middle of the above picture is composed of resistant granite from the long-ago closure of the protons-Atlantic. However, the shape of the island was formed by ,such more geologically recent processes (within the last 100,000 years or so). what is primarily responsible for the beautiful shape of the island: Huge storms pounded the island from the right breaking the rocks to make the bluff facing the sea strong winds blowing from left to right shaped the rocks Sculpting of the rocks bfs stone masons hired by the Rockefellers, followed by donation of the sculpture to the people of Maine A glacier flowed over the island, moving from left to right smoothing the rocks encountered first and plucking rocks free from the other side. A glacier flowed over the island moving from right to left, grinding off the rock first encountered and smoothing the long tail

A glacier flowed over the island, moving from left to right smoothing the rocks encountered first and plucking rocks free from the other side.

Two yellow lines have been drawn on the picture by the instructional team. These lines follow and interesting surface, which separate flat-lying sedimentary rocks, on top, from slanting sedimentary rocks beneath. This surface is: A great fault where push-together action showed the upper rocks over the lower ones A great unconformity, with sedimentary rocks above resting on igneous and metamorphic rocks below A great unconformity, with sedimentary rocks above resting on younger sedimentary rocks below A great unconformity with sedimentary rocks above resting on older sedimentary rocks below

A great unconformity with sedimentary rocks above resting on older sedimentary rocks below

Scientists often speak of consensus—the scientific community agrees that a particular theory is better than the competitors. What is such scientific consensus based on? A single experiment had an outcome that was predicted accurately by the favored theory and not by the competitors. The decision of the Nobel prize committee to give the inventor of the idea a lot of money. A number of different experiments by different people that all had outcomes that were predicted accurately by the favored theory and not by the competitors. Statements in the old textbooks that the scientists studied when they were in school. The insistence of a single scientist that he or she is correct.

A number of different experiments by different people that all had outcomes that were predicted accurately by the favored theory and not by the competitors

The picture above shows: A right-side-up dinosaur track A sideways dinosaur track; the picture should be rotated ninety degrees clockwise to the right-side-up Mud cracks A sideways dinosaur track; the picture should be rotated ninety-degrees counterclockwise to be right-side-up An upside-down dinosaur tracks

A right-side-up dinosaur track

When we speak of the Mississippi Delta, most people mean some interesting region in Louisiana with good music and seafood. Geologically, however, the Mississippi Delta is: A river-built deposit that is almost a mile thick at its thickest point, and extends from near Baton Rouge, Louisiana to the Gulf of Mexico. A river-built deposit that is several miles thick at its thickest point, and extends from near St. Louis, Missouri to the Gulf of Mexico. A great trench eroded by the Mississippi River from near St. Louis, Missouri to the Gulf of Mexico, causing earthquakes to occur at the tip of this trench near St. Louis, Missouri. A small trench eroded by the Mississippi River from near Baton Rouge, Louisiana to the Gulf of Mexico. A giant pile of spit-up Yoo Hoo.

A river-built deposit that is several miles thick at its thickest point, and extends from near St. Louis, Missouri to the Gulf of Mexico.

an uncomformity is: An igneous rock intrusion cutting a sedimentary rock, showing that the igneous rock is younger than the sedimentary rock A time gap in a sequence of sedimentary rocks caused by a period of erosion or nondeposition The principle that younger fossils look more like living types than do older fossils The principle that younger sedimentary rocks normally occur on top of older rocks, unless they are turned upside-down by mountain building A class of some other older rock in a sedimentary rock, showing that the class is older than the sedimentary rock

A time gap in a sequence of sedimentary rocks caused by a period of erosion or nondeposition

Look at the picture above which shows a region just less than a foot across of a stream deposit from the base of the same pile of rocks that show up in Bryce Canyon. This picture was taken in the face of a cliff in Red Canyon, just west of Bryce Canyon National Park. A indicates a piece of limestone that has been rounded off in a stream; B indicates a mass of sand glued together by hard-water deposits; and C indicates another such mass of sand glued together by hard-water deposits. In order of time of formation, they are: C was glued together by hard-water deposits, then A was formed, then B was glued together by hard-water deposits B was glued together by hard-water deposits, then A was formed, then C was glued together by hard-water deposits B was glued together by hard-water deposits, then C was glued together by hard water deposits, then A was formed A was formed first, then B was glued together by hard-water deposits, then C was glued together by hard-water deposits

A was formed first, then B was glued together by hard-water deposits, then C was glued together by hard-water deposits

Among fossil fuels: A) Coal is made by heating of woody plant material, and oil is made by heating of algae. B) Oil is made by heating of woody plant material, and coal is made by heating of algae. C) Coal is made by heating of plant material deposited on land, and oil is made by heating of plant material deposited in water. D) Oil is made by heating of plant material deposited on land, and coal is made by heating of plant material deposited in water. E) Oil is made by spraying WD-40 on duct tape, and coal is made by being bad so Santa delivers it to your stocking.

A) Coal is made by heating of woody plant material, and oil is made by heating of algae.

There are many greenhouse gases, including carbon dioxide, methane, and vaporized water. These and other greenhouse gases warm the Earth primarily by: Raising the atmospheric pressure, because squeezing air warms it, as we saw at the Redwoods Absorbing some of the infrared radiation emitted form the Earth Making more clouds, because the clouds block the radiations from the planet, which is why cold, frosty nights are rare during cloudy weather

Absorbing some of the infrared radiation emitted form the Earth

Dr. Alley is pointing to a brownish zone expose in the low bluff along Coast Guard Beach, Cape Cod National Seashore. The brown zone is rounded on the Botton, flat on the top, rests on sand and gravel, and has sand dunes on top. In the lower picture, Dr. Alley is showing that the brown zone contains twigs and other organic material. What is the brown zone doing here? The brown zone is mostly the carcass of a dead whale, which washed up on the beach and was buried. An ice block from the glacier was buried in sand and gravel, then melted to make a lake that filled with organic material A sinkhole opened here, forming a lake that was then filled with organic material Humans damaged a nearby river, forming a lake that then filled with organic material The brown zone is mostly the carcas of a dead whale, which was propelled here when highway department workers dynamited to get it off the beach

An ice block from the glacier was buried in sand and gravel, then melted to make a lake that filled with organic material

A widely accepted scientific idea usually is based on: Diet Pepsi ads Results of one experiment or observation that refuted old ideas and supported the correctness of the new ida Socially conditioned ideas of scientists without reference to observations or experiments Received wisdom from sacred books An interlocking web of important experimental results or observations that support the correctness of the idea

An interlocking web of important experimental results or observations that support the correctness of the idea

National Parks are: an invention of the United States, which has been routinely ignored by the rest of the world because they really don't like us a US government program to provide roller-coaster rides for disadvantaged grandparents An invention of the US that has spread around much of the world as a way of protecting some of the finest parts of the world an inventions of the Romans to overcome the "tragedy of the commons" that caused them to invade the food service buildings of the neighboring Greeks an invention of the Greenlandic people who set aside the northeastern part of the island as the worlds first national park

An invention of the US that has spread around much of the world as a way of protecting some of the finest parts of the world

The picture above shows a beautiful specimen of Araucarioxylon arizonicum, a fossil tree from the Mesozoic rocks of Petrified Forest National Park. Based on the discussions of evolution in the class materials, it is likely that: Araucarioxylon arizonicum is related to, but recognizably different from, trees still alive today Araucarioxylon arizonicum is completely unrelated to trees still alive today Araucarioxylon arizonicum is essentially identical to trees still alive today

Araucarioxylon arizonicum is related to, but recognizably different from, trees still alive today

Tsunamis: Are like tornadoes; they can be predicted with some accuracy seconds to hours before they strike in most cases, allowing quick warnings to save many lives. Are completely unpredictable on all time scales. Are like the weather; they can be predicted fairly accurately days in advance, allowing wise planning. Are like the seasons; they can be predicted accurately months in advance, allowing wise planning. Always are huge and destructive

Are like tornadoes; they can be predicted with some accuracy seconds to hours before they strike in most cases, allowing quick warnings to save many lives.

Weathering attacks a granite in Pennsylvania or Washington, DC, or a similarly rainy place. The Quartz grains in the granite primarily: Dissolve and wash away quickly, helping grow shells in the ocean Are loosened from the rock but don't change much, staying in the soil as quartz sand Dissolve and wash away quickly to react with sea-floor rocks in the ocean Are loosened from the rock but don't change much making clay in the soil are loosened from the rock but don't change much making rust in the soil

Are loosened from the rock but don't change much, staying in the soil as quartz sand

Air moves in from the Pacific over the Sierra Nevada and down towards Death Valley. What happens? As the air rises up the Sierra, the air is compressed making rain and snow and warming by 5 degrees F per thousand feet upward As the air rises up the Sierra the air expands, making rain and snow and cooling by 3 degrees F per thousand feet upward As the air rises up the Sierra, the air expands making rain and snow and cooling by 5 degrees F per thousand feet upward As the air rises up the Sierra the air is compressed evaporating clouds and warming by 5 degrees per thousand feet upward

As the air rises up the Sierra the air expands, making rain and snow and cooling by 3 degrees F per thousand feet upward

Regions with mountain glaciers that experience much surface melting in the summer typically are eroded: At a faster rate than regions with streams but no glaciers. At the same rate as regions with streams but no glaciers. At a slower rate than regions with streams but no glaciers. At the same rate that natural rainfall dissolves granite. Not at all; no erosion occurs in typical regions with melting glaciers.

At a faster rate than regions with streams but no glaciers.

The recent changed in the amount of ice on earth over time occurred: At regular and repeating times, controlled by redistribution of sunlight on the surface of the Earth in response to features of Earth's orbit, even though total sunshine received by the planet didn't change much At regular and repeating times, controlled by the very large changed in total sunshine received by the Earth in response to features of Earths orbit At random times in response to very large changes in the total sunshine received by the earth in response to features of Earth's orbit at random time, controlled by redistribution of sunlight on the surface of the Earth in response to features of Earth's orbit even though total sunshine received by the planet didn't change much

At regular and repeating times, controlled by redistribution of sunlight on the surface of the Earth in response to features of Earth's orbit, even though total sunshine received by the planet didn't change much

In a glacier, the ice moves fastest: At the upper surface, where ice meets air At the bed, where ice meets rock When trying to escape from Pepsi commercials Halfway between the bed and the surface At the bed on some glaciers halfway between the bed and the surface on other glaciers, and at the surface on still other glaciers

At the upper surface, where ice meets air

You are still a geologist, still wandering around in a fog with a tea-and-crumpets-toting-student, and you walk into another cliff. This one turns out to be a hardened lava flow. Again, you look at a one-foot-square-region, sketch pink arrows with A,B,C,D on that region, and ask the student which of the pink arrows was pointing up just after the lava flow hardened. To help the student, you draw four additional arrows on the cliff; these are light blue(turquoise) arrows, pointing at bubbles. (if you are not able to distinguish pink from light blue, the four pink arrows are very close to the four letters A,B,C, and D, and the four light-blue arrows are not close to the letters.) You suggest that the student consider the behavior of bubbles in a liquid. These bubbles are within the lava flow, and not in the crust on top of the flow that was chilled very rapidly by the air. Your student is brilliant, and correctly tells you the answer. The pink arrow(close to a letter) that was pointing up when the lava flowed in and slowly cooled is the arrow closest to: A B C D

B

look at the picture above, which shows a small section of a "fossil" sand dune(a sand dune in which the grains have been "glued" together by hard-water deposits) When the dune was first deposited, which was up? A B C D

B

You are the chief biodiversity officer for the National Park Service in the eastern US, responsible for maintaining as much diversity as possible, and your boss has told you to focus on maintaining biodiversity of things big enough to see with the naked eye (so you don't need to worry about microorganisms). You have two parks, and enough money to buy 10,000 acres of land. You may add the 10,000 acres to one of the parks, add 5,000 acres to each park while leaving them as isolated parks, or buy a 10,000-acre corridor connecting the two parks. All of the land for sale is now wilderness, but the land you do not buy is going to be paved for a super-mega-mall. You would be wise to: A) Don't worry, the key is how much area you have in wilderness, so each of the plans is equally valuable. B) Buy the corridor connecting the two parks; this keeps one big "island" rather than two smaller ones, and so keeps more species. C) Enlarge one park a good bit; bigger islands have more species, so you want to make a big "island". D) Enlarge both parks some; each park has some diversity, and you want to enhance both. E) Don't worry; malls are highly biodiverse, so you'll succeed no matter what you do.

B) Buy the corridor connecting the two parks; this keeps one big "island" rather than two smaller ones, and so keeps more species.

Which is the correct age progression, from younger(first) to older(last)? D,E,F,B,C C,D,E,F,B B,C,D,E,F B,F,E,D,C E,F,B,C,D

B,F,E,D,C

If you were looking for different types of coal, you likely would find: No coal in Pennsylvania Lignite in the metamorphic rocks of eastern Pennsylvania, and anthracite in the sedimentary rocks of western Pennsylvania Bituminous in the metamorphic rocks of eastern Pennsylvania, and lignite in the sedimentary rocks of western Pennsylvania Lignite in the metamorphic rocks of eastern Pennsylvania, and more lignite in the sedimentary rocks of western Pennsylvania Bituminous in the sedimentary rocks of western Pennsylvania, and anthracite in the metamorphic rocks of eastern Pennsylvania

Bituminous in the sedimentary rocks of western Pennsylvania, and anthracite in the metamorphic rocks of eastern Pennsylvania

Some natural resources are renewable-nature produces them fast enough that humans can obtain valuable and useful supplies of a resource without depleting it. Other natural resources are nonrenewable- if we use the resources at a rate fast enough to matter to our economy, the resource will run out because use is much faster than natural production. What do we know about oil and coal?

Both oil and coal are nonrenewable resources, and at current usage rates and prices similar to today, oil will run out in about a century and coal will run out in a few centuries

The idea that human activities will cause global warming is well over a century old now. The United Nations has been sponsoring studies of this idea for almost two decades. The assembled scientists have concluded, with high confidence, that: Human activities have lowered methane levels in the atmosphere, causing cows to become flatulent to achieve balance CO2 levels in the atmosphere have been rising, warming the planet a small fraction of a degree, and if we burn all the remaining fossil fuels, we may raise the temperature another small fraction of a degree CO2 levels in the atmosphere have been rising because of natural causes, and this has been the primary cause of the ozone hole. CO2 levels in the atmosphere have been rising, with no effect on the climate CO2 levels in the atmosphere have been rising, warming the planet a degree or so, and burning all the remaining fossil fuels likely will raise the Earth's temperature many degrees or more.

CO2 levels in the atmosphere have been rising, warming the planet a degree or so, and burning all the remaining fossil fuels likely will raise the Earth's temperature many degrees or more.

Which formula most closely describes the process by which plants make more of themselves:

CO2+ H2O + energy -> CH2O + O2

Sediment is changed to sedimentary rock by: Cementation by oil Chemical weathering of mineral surfaces Cementation by hard-water deposits, intergrowth of new materials, and squeezing under the weight of additional sediment Compaction under the weight of addition sediments only Cementation by hard-water deposits only

Cementation by hard-water deposits, intergrowth of new materials, and squeezing under the weight of additional sediment

During the most recent ice age; We have no idea what central Pennsylvania was like Central Pennsylvania was overrun by ice from Canada Central Pennsylvania was overrun by ice from the south Central Pennsylvania was far from the nearest ice Central Pennsylvania was just beyond the edge of the Canadian ice

Central Pennsylvania was just beyond the edge of the Canadian ice

Regarding global warming, most scientists (including those who have advised the United Nations through the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) agree that if we continue to burn fossil fuels at an accelerating rate: Climate changes will help everyone Climate changes will hurt everyone, equally Climate changes will primarily hurt wealthy people in cold places Climate changes will primarily hurt poor people who live in warm places and who are the major contributors to climate change through cutting of tropical rain forests and other activities Climate change will primarily hurt poor people in warm places, but the climate changes are primarily being caused by wealthier people in colder places.

Climate change will primarily hurt poor people in warm places, but the climate changes are primarily being caused by wealthier people in colder places.

What cause probably was not important in contributing to extinction of most species on Earth, including the dinosaurs, in a very short interval of time at the end of the Mesozoic Era? Wildfires cause by great heat from rocks warmed by atmospheric friction while falling back to Earth after being blasted high in the atmosphere by the impact Cold from the change in Earth's orbit caused when the meteorite shoved the planet farther from the sun "impact winter" caused when tiny pieces of dust or other materials, which were put in the air by meteorite impact, blocked incoming sunshine for months or years, after larger pieces had fallen back to Earth Acid rain from sulfuric acid from the meteorite hitting sulfur-bearing rocks, and nitric acid from the heat of the meteorite burning the air

Cold from the change in Earth's orbit caused when the meteorite shoved the planet farther from the sun

Air can be heated in many different ways. At night, if air moves up one side of a mountain range such as the Sierra Nevada, raining or snowing on the way, and then down the other side, the air is hotter after moving over than it was before. What is the main reason, as discussed in the class materials? Moonlight is so bright that it heats the air a lot. Moving air is always heated a lot by friction with the trees beneath. Condensation of water vapor to form clouds and rain releases heat that was stored when the water evaporated. The Earth's rotation turns air into tornadoes and hurricanes by the Coriolis effect, and this turning makes the air warmer. Forest fires that are always burning in the Sierra make the air a whole lot hotter.

Condensation of water vapor to form clouds and rain releases heat that was stored when the water evaporated.

Considering long-term averages, and assuming that we don't deploy space-based defenses against incoming meteorites, a reasonable estimate of the chance of an average U.S. citizen being killed by the effects of a meteorite or comet impact is that this risk is about the same as the chance of being killed by: Choking on a Diet Pepsi can The various diseases that come from smoking, overeating, and under-exercising for a long time Crash of a commercial airplane Crash of a car

Crash of a commercial airplane

The North Pole sticks up out of Dr. Alley's bald spot, and the equator crosses his nose and cheeks. The sun shines on this odd globe, and on the real globe, the most likely thing that would happen here is: Dr. Alley may get a sunburned nose, and the equator is hotter than the pole on the real Earth, primarily because the equator is so much closer to the sun than the pole is. Dr. Alley may get a sunburned nose, and the equator is hotter than the pole on the real Earth, primarily because the sun hits the equator directly but the sun hits the pole a glancing blow. Dr. Alley may get a sunburned nose, and the equator is hotter than the pole on the real Earth, primarily because the wind heats the surface as it rotates by, just as Dr. Alley can turn his head rapidly and cause heat by friction. Dr. Alley may get a sunburned nose, and the equator is hotter than the pole on the real Earth, primarily because most volcanoes are located near the equator, forced there by the centrifugal force of Earth's rotation, and Dr. Alley exhales hot air from his equatorial nose. Dr. Alley is undoubtedly the sexiest human being on Earth.

Dr. Alley may get a sunburned nose, and the equator is hotter than the pole on the real Earth, primarily because the sun hits the equator directly but the sun hits the pole a glancing blow.

The volcanoes of the island of Hawaii eventually will: Blow up as powerfully as the main 1980 eruption of Mt. St. Helens Rise out of the ocean as they cool and sink, and are eroded Blow up as powerful as the main eruptions of Yellowstone 1000 times bigger than Mt. St. Helens Last forever while nothing happens to them except for development of a protective layer of condominiums Drift off the hot spot and cease to erupt, while a new volcano grows to their southeast

Drift off the hot spot and cease to erupt, while a new volcano grows to their southeast

the picture shows some rocks on the beach at Olympic National Park. The pocket knife is about 3 inches or (8cm) long. What is the story of these rocks? Earthquakes knocked loose undersea muds that raced down the slope into the subduction zone to make these layered rocks, which were scraped off the downgoing slab, part of the process by which continents shrink as the scraped-off material is added to their edge as subduction zones Earthquakes knocked loose undersea muds that raced down the slope into the subduction zone to make these layered rocks, which were scraped off from downgoing slab, part of the process by which continents grow as the scraped-off material is added to their edges as subduction zones

Earthquakes knocked loose undersea muds that raced down the slope into the subduction zone to make these layered rocks, which were scraped off from downgoing slab, part of the process by which continents grow as the scraped-off material is added to their edges as subduction zones

You are asked to assign as accurate a numerical age as possible(how many years old) to a sedimentary deposit. You would be wide to use: Either counting of annual layers or radiometric techniques if the deposit is young(less than about 100,000 years) and radiometric techniques if the deposit is old (more than about 100,000 years) Uniformitarian techniques if the deposit is young (less than 100,000 years) and counting of annual layers if the deposit is old (more than 100,000 years) Uniformitarian techniques for very old( billions of years) or young (less than 100,000 years) deposits, and radiometric techniques for ages in-between 100,000 years and a few billion years

Either counting of annual layers or radiometric techniques if the deposit is young(less than about 100,000 years) and radiometric techniques if the deposit is old (more than about 100,000 years)

Evolution produces new types, and extinction gets rid of them. The scientific evidence summarized in the text and in class shows that: Evolution and extinction are usually more-or-less in balance, but occasional mass extinctions reduce biodiversity, and subsequent evolution faster than extinction increases biodiversity until a new balance is reached. Over short and over long times extinction and evolution are in balance so that biodiversity remains constant Over a typical interval of a few tens of millions of years, evolution exceeds extinction so that biodiversity increase with time. Over a typical interval of a few tens of millions of years, extinction exceeds evolution so that biodiversity decreases with time

Evolution and extinction are usually more-or-less in balance, but occasional mass extinctions reduce biodiversity, and subsequent evolution faster than extinction increases biodiversity until a new balance is reached.

Which of the following is not a part of the modern theory of evolution? A "successful experiment" during reproduction is one that increases the ability of an individual to have children who survive to have children Evolution proceeds in the direction desired by members of a generation Children are more similar to their parents than to other individuals from their parents generation If a reproductive "experiment" is successful, it will be passed to more and more children in successive generations until all members of a population have it Diversity exists within a species and "experiments" that tend to promote diversity sometimes occur during reproduction

Evolution proceeds in the direction desired by members of a generation

Scientists promote the teaching of evolutionary theory, in part to raise new scientists to help use evolutionary theory. How are scientists using evolutionary theory in efforts that can help people? There is no way that knowledge of evolutionary theory can possibly help anyone Evolutionary theory is being used to guide thinking in computer science, but in no other way Evolutionary theory is being used to understand, and help fight, the emergence of antibiotic resistant diseases and other new diseases, and even to guide thinking in computer science Evolutionary theory is being used to understand, and help fight, the m=emergence of antibiotic resistant diseases but in no other way

Evolutionary theory is being used to understand, and help fight, the emergence of antibiotic resistant diseases and other new diseases, and even to guide thinking in computer science

Religion and science always disagree: True False

False

If you are drilling a well to reach water, you usually will have to drill: Farther into the ground to make a deeper well on a ridge than in a valley To a random and unpredictable depth unrelated to where you are drilling Farther into the ground to make a steeper well in a... To the same depth wherever you were Into a cave, because only caves contain water underground

Farther into the ground to make a deeper well on a ridge than in a valley

Which is younger: intrusion G Fault I Fault J Fault H Uncomformity K

Fault H

If humans change the composition of the atmosphere in a way that would warm the world by one degree if everything else in the Earth system remained unchanged, most studies indicate that over the next years to decades: Feedback processes will opposed this warming a lot and cause the world to cool Feedback processes will oppose this warming a little and cause the total warming of the world to be less than a degree No feedback processes will act and the total warming of the world will be one degree Feedback process will enhance this warming a little, causing the total warming to be a few degrees

Feedback process will enhance this warming a little, causing the total warming to be a few degrees

In the picture above, the ice that modified the rock moved: From bottom to top; ice often is forced uphill, as seen here Directly from the rock towards the camera From right to left, smashing the front of the rock and then sandpapering the back of the rock smooth From left to right striating the surfaces the ice reached first and plucking blocks loose from the far sides of bumps

From left to right striating the surfaces the ice reached first and plucking blocks loose from the far sides of bumps

A glacier almost always flows: From where the glacier's upper surface is high to where the glacier's upper surface is low From north to south Up a mountain From where bedrock is high to where bedrock is low From south to north

From where the glacier's upper surface is high to where the glacier's upper surface is low

As rain falls through air, the water typically: Loses carbon dioxide (CO2) to the air, becoming a strong base Gains carbon dioxide (CO2) from the air, becoming a weak acid Neither gains nor loses carbon dioxide (CO2) Gains humic compounds from the air, becoming a strong base None of the options

Gains carbon dioxide (CO2) from the air, becoming a weak acid

Most U.S. beaches are shrinking or encroaching on the land rather than growing or moving seaward, so the land of the U.S. is getting smaller, not bigger. Causes include: Dams on rivers have increased sediment delivery to the beaches Local regions are rising as fluid injection wells used for waste disposal bulge up the land in many places Global sea level fell as the ice-age ice sheets grew, exposing sand to the attack of large waves during winter storms, so beaches are now being removed Global sea level is rising, covering more land Global sea level fell as the ice age ice sheets grew, and this caused rivers to deliver much sediment to the coast

Global sea level is rising, covering more land

Which of the following is part of the evidence that the odd layer marking the extinction of the dinosaurs was caused by a large meteorite impact? High concentrations of silica found in the layer High concentrations of argon-40 found in the layer High concentrations of iridium found in the layer High concentration of potassium-40 found in the layer

High concentrations of iridium found in the layer

The pictures labeled I and II show fossils from a sediment core collected from the floor of the Atlantic Ocean, east of South Carolina. The sediment has not been disturbed by landslides or mountain building or other processes. The pictures were taken by Brian Huber, of the Smithsonian institution, using a scanning electron microscope. The two samples in the sediment core were separated by the unique layer marking the extinction that killed the dinosaurs. Which is correct? II is younger than the unique layer, and thus sat below the unique layer in the sediment on the sea floor. I is younger than the unique layer, and thus sat above the unique layer in the sediment on the sea floor II is younger than the unique layer, an thus sat above the unique layer in the sediment on the sea floor

II is younger than the unique layer, an thus sat above the unique layer in the sediment on the sea floor

A University of Michigan student visiting Penn State's University Park campus drinks too much Diet Pepsi, wanders out in a pouring rainstorm and takes a leak in a sinkhole behind the nearby Nittany Mall. The trout in the stream to which the sinkhole drains will notice the dastardly deed: Never, because all sinkholes drain to Michigan In a few hours to days In a few centuries In a few thousand years

In a few hours to days

Given the materials presented in this class about the formation of caves, it is likely that most large caves are formed: In limestone in moist climates. In limestone in dry climates. In sandstone in moist climates. In sandstone in dry climates. In granites under Diet Pepsi.

In limestone in moist climates.

Which is accurate about the history of the Grand Canyon: In the deepest part of the canyon, the river cuts through rocks formed by metamorphic of older sedimentary rocks in the heart of a mountain range The rock record of the canyon contains exactly one uncomformity The oldest rocks are on top, the younger ones beneath, as shown by all of the footprints being upside-down in the rocks of the canyon walls The kabob limestone that form the upper rim of the canyon is the youngest rock layer known from Arizona and surrounding states The canyon is wider at the top and narrower at the bottom because the river was wider when the region was wetter, and has narrowed as deserts spread recently

In the deepest part of the canyon, the river cuts through rocks formed by metamorphic of older sedimentary rocks in the heart of a mountain range

If you watched a sand grain moved by waves on a beach on the US east coast, you would usually see that most of its motion: Is to the north Is from the shore to the sea in the summer, and from the sea to the shore in the winter. Is to the south Is alternatively toward and away from the shore, causing little net charge Is to the north in the winter and to the south in the summer

Is alternatively toward and away from the shore, causing little net charge

Using only uniformitarian calculations from the thickness of known sedimentary rocks, likely rates at which those rocks accumulated and features in and under those sedimentary rocks, geologists working two to three hundred years ago estimated that the Earth: Is less than about one-hundred-million years old Has been here forever Is about one-hundred-million years old Is more than about one-hundred-million years old Is 4.6 billion years old

Is more than about one-hundred-million years ol

Using only uniformatitarian calculations from the thickness of known sedimentary rocks, likely rates at which those rocks accumulated, and features in and under those sedimentary rocks, geologists working two or three hundred years ago estimated that the Earth: Is 4.6 billion years old Is more than about one-hundred-million years old Is about one-hundred-million years old Has been here forever Is less than about one-hundred-million years old

Is more than about one-hundred-million years old

The gas from Marcellus shale:

Is produced by "fracking", which uses high-pressure water and chemicals to make new "fractures" in the shale that allow the gas to escape the wells

Silica released by chemical weathering is transported by streams to the ocean, where much of it: Is used by sea creatures to make their shells Builds up in the water, making the ocean saltier Reacts with hot sea-floor rocks to make different minerals there Is subducted back into the mantle at the mid-ocean ridges Is extracted from the water by marine dairy cows to add to milk

Is used by sea creatures to make their shell

Geological evidence based on several radiometric techniques has provided a scientifically well-accepted age for the Earth. Represent that age of the Earth as the 100-yard length of a football field, and any time interval can be represented as some distance on the field. (So something that tasted one-tenth of the age of the Earth would be ten yards, and something that last one-half of the age of the Earth would be ten yards, and something that lasted one-half of the age of the Earth would be fifty yards) on this scale, how long is written history? Just over the thickness of a sheet of paper 50 yards 1 yard just over 10 yards 1 inch

Just over the thickness of a sheet of paper

These two pictures are from Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, on the flanks of Kilauea Volcano. How are pictures I and II related? Lava flows chill on tops and sides while the uncoiled central part continues flowing as show in II and if more late is not supplied to keep the tubes filled the tubes may drain to leave caves, such as the one shown in I Subduction processes open tubes such as shown in I, and then later when volcanic eruptions happen the lava uses those tubes as shortcut to the sea as shown in II Lava flows chill on top and sides while the uncoiled central part continues flowing as shown in II, and later after the central part chills too it is dissolved more easily by acidic groundwaters because it froze later, leaving caves such as the one shown in I

Lava flows chill on tops and sides while the uncoiled central part continues flowing as show in II and if more late is not supplied to keep the tubes filled the tubes may drain to leave caves, such as the one shown in I

A grand piano in a house one of the lowest-elevation regions of New Orleans protected by the human-made levee is: Higher in elevation than a kayaker on the river during a flood guaranteed to be purple, because only purple grand pianos are allowed in New Orleans The same elevation as a kayaker in the river during a flood Lower in elevation than a kayaker on the river during a flood, but higher than the kayaker when the river is carrying the average water flow Lower in elevation than a kayaker on the river when the river is carrying its average water flow

Lower in elevation than a kayaker on the river when the river is carrying its average water flow

You are told that a region has no glaciers. What does the lack of glaciers tell you about the climate of that region? Snowfall is very rare or absent The average temperature is far above freezing Melting removes all of the snowfall The land is rising The land is sinking

Melting removes all of the snowfall

What sort of rock is pictured above? Marmot #2 Metamorphic; the rock separated into layers as it was cooked and squeezed deep in a mountain range igneous. the layers were caused by flow processes during the eruption that released this sediment that isn't rock yet. The layers are alternating silt and sand from deposition form landslides off the Olympic Peninsula into the trench offshore Sedimentary; the layering was caused by changes in the flow velocity of the river that deposited the material

Metamorphic; the rock separated into layers as it was cooked and squeezed deep in a mountain range

The cartoon above illustrates a specific geologic process. Which of the additional geologic images. Does Not feature this same process at work?

Mountain range with snow

Major difference between Mt. St. Helens and Hawaiian volcanoes include: Mt. St. Helens is a volcano but Hawaii doesn't have any volcanoes and never has Mt. St. Helens is a low-silica, explosively erupting stratovolcano, and Hawaii has medium-to-high-silica quietly erupting volcanoes Mt.St. Helens is a low-silica quietly erupting shield volcano and Hawaii has medium-to-high-silica explosively erupting stratovolcanoes Mt. St. Helens is a medium-to-high-silica quietly erupting shield volcano and Hawaii has low-silica, explosively erupting stratovolcanoes Mt.St. Helens is a medium-to-high-silica explosively erupting stratovolcano and Hawaii has low-silica quietly erupting shield volcanoes

Mt.St. Helens is a medium-to-high-silica explosively erupting stratovolcano and Hawaii has low-silica quietly erupting shield volcanoes

Dr. Alley has helped drill many holes in ice sheets. Special tools can be lowered down the holes on cables, and tracked to learn the shapes of the holes. Initially, the holes are straight up and down. Years later, the holes are bent, because the ice in the ice sheet is flowing. What does it mean to say that the ice is flowing? Much like rocks in the mantle or iron heated by a blacksmith, the ice is almost hot enough to melt and deforms as gravity pulls on it, without breaking into loose chunks The ice is enjoying the summer, relaxing, hangout with its friends just you know going with the flow The ice is so far below its melting point that it is dense enough to sink into the rocks beneath it bending the holes as it does The drill used to make the hole has shaken the ice so that it broken into chunk, which rolled downhill The drill used to make the hole has melted the whole ice sheet, the water flowed for a while, and then froze when the drilling stopped

Much like rocks in the mantle or iron heated by a blacksmith, the ice is almost hot enough to melt and deforms as gravity pulls on it, without breaking into loose chunks

In the photograph above, a portion of cliff about 30 feet high is shown. From what location in the Grand Canyon did Dr. Alley take this image? Near the bottom, where the river has cut through rocks that were cooked, squeezed, and partially melted deep in an old mountain range Near the top, in sedimentary rocks that slumped downhill when they were soft, folding the rocks About halfway between the top and the river, where a large fault has dragged the rocks and caused the fold Near the west end, where lava that came up pull-apart faults folded while flowing before hardening fully

Near the bottom, where the river has cut through rocks that were cooked, squeezed, and partially melted deep in an old mountain rang

In the photograph above, a portion of cliff about 30 feet high is shown. From what location in the Grand Canyon did Dr. Alley take this image? In the gift shop, where artists have painted the cliff to look like red rocks Near the bottom, where the river has cut through rocks that were cooked, squeezed, and partially melted deep in an old mountain range Near the top, in sedimentary rocks that slumped downhill when they were soft, folding the rocks

Near the bottom, where the river has cut through rocks that were cooked, squeezed, and partially melted deep in an old mountain range

Newton's ideas on physics "won" and Aristotle's ideas were kicked out of science and over into history. Why? newtons ideas were more elegant, and so were intellectually favored Newton won the Nobel prize Newtons ideas appealed to dead white European makes, whereas Aristotle's didn't because Aristotle wore a toga all the time Newton's ideas did a better job of predicting how nature would behave Newton's ideas appealed to dead white European males, whereas Aristotle's didn't

Newton's ideas did a better job of predicting how nature would behave

Extinction of existing species: A) Is an unconformity. B) Occurred at a low level throughout geologic history. C) Is a process that happened in the past but cannot happen today. D) Occurred only at times of catastrophic mass extinctions. E) Occurred at a low level throughout geologic history, punctuated by mass extinctions when many types were killed over very short times.

Occurred at a low level throughout geologic history, punctuated by mass extinctions when many types were killed over very short times.

At current rates of use, and at prices not greatly higher than those of today: Coal will run out in a century or so, and oil will run out in a century of so Coal will run out in a century or so, and oil will run out in a few centures Oil and coal will last much longer than a few centuries Oil will run out in a century of so, and coal will run out in a few centuries

Oil will run out in a century of so, and coal will run out in a few centuries

Rocks in continents are on average much older than sea-floor rocks. The likely explanation is: For a long time the Earth had continents but no sea floor; only recently, Death-Valley-type spreading has split continents to make sea floor. So much undersea mining has been conducted to get valuable metals from old sea-floor rocks that all of the old ones have been ground up by people. Techniques used to estimate the age of the rocks all yield perfect ages for continental rocks but wild errors for sea-floor rocks, and sea-floor rocks are really as old as the continents. Old sea floor is recycled back into the deep mantle at subduction zones at the same rate that new sea floor is produced, but continents are not taken into the mantle and so remain on the surface for a long time. For a long time the Earth had continents but no sea floor; only recently, continents sank and allowed lakes to grow into oceans.

Old sea floor is recycled back into the deep mantle at subduction zones at the same rate that new sea floor is produced, but continents are not taken into the mantle and so remain on the surface for a long time.

In the map above, blue shows the Mississippi River, and the Gulf of Mexico, around the Birdfoot Delta of the river. The USGS image uses different colors to indicate changes in the delta. Orange and red both indicate change in one direction, whereas yellow and green indicate change in the other direction. Based on the material presented in this class: Orange and red indicate loss of wetlands over time, whereas yellow and green indicate gain of wetlands over time. Orange and red indicate gain of wetlands over time, whereas yellow and green indicate loss of wetlands over time.

Orange and red indicate loss of wetlands over time, whereas yellow and green indicate gain of wetlands over time.

Suppose that the sun suddenly became a little brighter, which would warm the world a little. Over the next few hundred years, what would you expect to happen? Nothing else would change in the Earths system, so the Earth would end up a little warmer than before the sun changed Other things would change in the Earth system, and these feedbacks would oppose the warming from the sun and cause the Earth to end up so much cooler than before the sun changed that a new ice age would start Other things would change in the Earth system, and these feedbacks would oppose the warming from the sun and cause the Earth to end up at the same temperature as before the sun changed Other things would change in the Earth system, and these feedbacks would amplify the warming from the sun little and cause the Earth to end up somewhat warmer than before the sun changed

Other things would change in the Earth system, and these feedbacks would amplify the warming from the sun little and cause the Earth to end up somewhat warmer than before the sun changed

Heating of some materials produces coal. With increasing temperature and time, one observes: Anthracite, bituminous, peat, lignite Peat, lignite, anthracite, bituminous Peat, anthracite, lignite, bituminous Peat, lignite, bituminous, antracite

Peat, lignite, bituminous, antracite

Many plants are hard to get along with. Imagine crashing pell-mell through a thicket of devil's club(pictured above), in coastal Alaska, to get away from a charging brown bear. The native people use devil's club for medicinal purposes. We now know that: The thorns shown here, and guard hairs and such, provide the primary protections for plants Thorns, such as shown here, help protect plants, but plants also gain protection by making chemicals that are poisonous to many things that would eat the plants; those chemicals are always harmful to humans(poison ivy for example) Plants protection by thorns is supplemented by chemicals that are poisonous to many things that would eat the plants; those chemicals are sometimes harmful to humans (poison ivy, for example) but sometimes beneficial to humans, and have given us many of our medicines

Plants protection by thorns is supplemented by chemicals that are poisonous to many things that would eat the plants; those chemicals are sometimes harmful to humans (poison ivy, for example) but sometimes beneficial to humans, and have given us many of our medicines

Extinctions have occurred through Earth's History. What is accurate about the history of extinctions? Prehistoric humans greatly accelerated extinction rates, but modern humans have almost completely stopped extinctions for now and in the future Prehistoric humans almost completely stopped extinctions, but modern humans are greatly accelerating the rate of extinction Because of prehistoric and modern human activities, we are sure that by the time you are old and gray, the only things alive on Earth will be humans Prehistoric humans cause extinctions faster than is typically naturally, and modern humans are also causing extinctions

Prehistoric humans cause extinctions faster than is typically naturally, and modern humans are also causing extinctions

Serious scientists are studying the effects of volcanoes on climate. A single large, explosive volcanic eruption affects climate by: Putting so much DuffBeer into the stratosphere that it puts alcohol vendors out of business Changing the rotation of the Earth a little bit, which changes the weather, stopping El Nino Putting enough particles up to block enough sunlight to cool the climate a degree or two for a year or two Putting so much carbon dioxide into the atmosphere that the climate warms greatly Making such loud "Noises" (shock waves) that the atmospheric circulation is affected for the next years, stopping El Nino

Putting enough particles up to block enough sunlight to cool the climate a degree or two for a year or two

In age dating, geologists use: Cross-cutting relationships for absolute ages, and uniformitarianism for relative ages Radiometric techniques and layer-counting for absolute dating of events that happened in the last 100,000 years, and other radiometric techniques for absolute dating of much older events Radiometric techniques and layer-counting for relative dating of events that happened n the last 100,000 years, and other radiometric techniques for relative dating of much older events

Radiometric techniques and layer-counting for absolute dating of events that happened in the last 100,000 years, and other radiometric techniques for absolute dating of much older event

What is accurate about the scientific results learned by counting tree rings and other annual layers? No known records have more than 6000 layers Records in tress, lakes, and ice all go back 12,429 years, but non of them are longer than that, so that must be the age of the Earth The longest record of annual layers goes back 12,429 years, but there is no way to check this because there are no records that long No know records have more than 5000 layers Records in tree rings, lakes, and ice all reach beyond 12,000 years, and some of them reach beyond 40,000 years

Records in tree rings, lakes, and ice all reach beyond 12,000 years, and some of them reach beyond 40,000 years

What happened in the picture above? A certain financially ailing that flies to Cincinnati and then Atlanta built this from thrown-out beverage cups as an advertisement Divers have built the mud piles to slow down the river water and protect endangered clams that live along the coast Rivers have delivered sediment to the sea, forming deltas that built up as they built out so that they still slope slightly downhill toward the sea Rivers have delivered sediment to the sea forming flat-topped deposits called deltas

Rivers have delivered sediment to the sea, forming delays that built up as they built out so that they still slope slightly downhill toward the sea

The two pictures above, I and II, shows fossils in rocks from the Grand Canyon. Each is "typical"; the rocks near the sample I contain fossils similar to those shown in sample I and the rocks near sample II contain fossils similar to those shown in sample II. It is likely that: sample I is from the north shore of lake Winna-Bango, and sample II is from the south shore, where there is plenty of moose moss to munch Sample I is from near the river and sample II is also from near the river Sample I is from high in the cliffs of the Canyon and sample II is also from high in the cliffs of the Canyon Sample I is from high in the cliffs of the Grand Canyon, and sample II is from much lower, near the river

Sample I is from high in the cliffs of the Grand Canyon, and sample II is from much lower, near the river

If you went swimming in one of the channels of the river pictured above, and grabbed a sample of the river bank, what would you likely come up with? Cave formations Sand or gravel, that collapses to plug channels a mixture of clay, sand, and boulders called till Sand that always makes really steep slopes such as are seen in sand castles Lava flows, of the type that eroded all the major rivers of the world

Sand or gravel, that collapses to plug channels

Years may pass with no major damage to the US mainland from hurricanes, but other years bring huge damages. A terrible event happened in 2005, when levees around New Orleans failed in the rising water of Hurricane Katrina. More than 1400 people died, and the damages were in the neighborhood of $300 for each person in the US, or about $100 billion. as discussed in the text, history shows that Planners always respond fully to scientific warnings, so you never need to worry about dangers from weather events again Scientists and serious planners had warned about such an event for decades, based on the known size of hurricanes and the sinking of the Mississippi Delta and much of New Orleans The disaster happened only because humans had been pumping oil into the ground, raising the Mississippi Delta above sea level so that the waves from the storm could use the Delta as a ramp and jump easily into the city No one could have foreseen the huge disaster in New Orleans; acts of nature just happen sometimes

Scientists and serious planners had warned about such an event for decades, based on the known size of hurricanes and the sinking of the Mississippi Delta and much of New Orleans

Most U.S. beaches are shrinking or encroaching on the land rather than growing or moving seaward, so the land of the U.S. is getting smaller, not bigger. Which of the following is a likely cause for loss of at least some of our beaches: Dams on rivers have increased sediment delivery to the beaches Global sea level fell as the ice-age ice sheets grew exposing sand to the attack of large waves during winter storms, so beaches are now being removed Sea level rise as the last ice age ended flooded river valleys to form bays, and sediment now is deposited in these bays rather than being delivered to beaches Global sea level fell as the ice-age ice sheets grew and this caused rivers to deliver much sediment to the coast

Sea level rise as the last ice age ended flooded river valleys to form bays, and sediment now is deposited in these bays rather than being delivered to beaches

Think about Pennsylvania, or other places in the eastern US. What is accurate? Sediment is accumulating in a few places, with erosion in most places, and this has been the pattern for a long time, so the geologic record in any township or similar-sized area is notably incomplete, and you need to combine observations from many places to get a reasonably complete geologic record Sediment is accumulating in most places, and has been for a long time, with just a little erosion, so in any township or similar-sized area you can find a relatively complete record of all geologic history Sediment is accumulating everywhere, and has been for a long time, so in any township or similar-sized area you can find a complete record of all of geologic history

Sediment is accumulating in a few places, with erosion in most places, and this has been the pattern for a long time, so the geologic record in any township or similar-sized area is notably incomplete, and you need to combine observations from many places to get a reasonably complete geologic record

In the picture above, the yellow arrow points at a jetty, a sort of sea wall or groin or dam, that was constructed along the coast of Washington A likely interpretation of what you see here is: Sediment transport is typically directly from the ocean to the land, piling up sediment on both sides of the jetty Sediment transport is typically from the right, causing deposition to the right of the jetty but no change to the left Sediment transport is typically from the upper left, and the sediment falls into the lee of the jetty on the right and piles up, while erosion happens on the left Sediment transport is typically from the right, causing deposition to the right of the jetty but erosion to the left

Sediment transport is typically from the right, causing deposition to the right of the jetty but erosion to the lef

A dam is built on a river, forming a reservoir. Over time, this likely will cause: Rapid erosion of sand both upstream of the reservoir, and downstream of the dam Nothing to happen, dams don't matter to upstream or downstream conditions Sedimentation to bury farmers fields upstream of the reservoir and erosion of sand downstream of the dam Sedimentation to bury farmer's fields upstream of the reservoir and sedimentation of sand downstream of the dam

Sedimentation to bury farmers fields upstream of the reservoir and erosion of sand downstream of the dam

There are many large mammals on Earth today. This is because: The very large mammals that were alive on Earth with the dinosaurs have gotten smaller over time because the mammals don't have to be big to compete with the dinosaurs any more. Small mammals were not able to outcompete the dinosaurs for big-animal jobs, but after the dinosaurs were killed, some large mammals evolved from small mammals to fill large-animal jobs. Dinosaurs in hibernation were killed by acid rain, which didn't hurt things that could run away The warm blood of the many large mammals that lived before the meteorite impact allowed them to survive the cold from the meteorite impact that killed the dinosaurs

Small mammals were not able to outcompete the dinosaurs for big-animal jobs, but after the dinosaurs were killed, some large mammals evolved from small mammals to fill large-animal jobs.

The stiff basaltic rocks of the sea floor are bent as they enter subduction zones. This means that: subduction zones produce Death Valley type down faulted spreading valleys which form the deepest parts of the ocean erosion of continents by rivers near subduction zones produces deep troughs that include the deepest water in the ocean bending of sea-floor rocks near the subduction zone of Oregon and Washington produced a deep trench, which has been filled with discarded Microsoft Windows CDs, thrown away by people sick of all the viruses Bending of sea-floor rocks at subduction zones produces high ridges, such as the coast ranges of California Subduction zones produce sea floor trenches which may be filled with water or with sediment washed from nearby land

Subduction zones produce sea floor trenches which may be filled with water or with sediment washed from nearby land

Hardy souls who visit beaches in the winter are often surprised by how different summer and winter beaches really are. A typical change is (note: a breaking wave curls over and the top falls down, making spectacular movie footage if a surfer is in the way; a surging wave hangs together and the top doesn't fall over): Surging waves bring sand in during summer, and breaking waves take sand out during winter, so summer beaches are small and rocky while winter beaches are large and sandy Surging waves bring sand in during summer, and breaking waves take sand out during winter, so summer beaches are large and sandy while winter beaches are small and rocky Cape Cod beaches are taken over by nudists in winter Surging waves bring sand in during winter, and breaking waves take sand out during summer, so summer beaches are large and sandy while winter beaches are small and rocky

Surging waves bring sand in during summer, and breaking waves take sand out during winter, so summer beaches are large and sandy while winter beaches are small and rocky

The earth has fascinating history which the class has just begun to explore. Which is more nearly correct, according to the scientific interpretation presented in the text? The Earth formed about 4.6 billion years ago, well after the Big Bang, as materials made in stars fell together to form the planet The earth formed in the Big Bang about 4.6 million years ago the earth has been here forever the earth formed in the great cappuccino flood, when the secret-private reservoirs of Congress burst and flooded the east The earth formed in the Big Bang about 6,000 years ago

The Earth formed about 4.6 billion years ago, well after the Big Bang, as materials made in stars fell together to form the planet

The earth is layered. Most geologists believe that this layering originated primarily because: The Earth partially or completely melted soon after it formed, and the denser materials fell to the center the nine supreme court justices decreed that it separate, so afraid of breaking the law, it did the denser material fell together from space first, and then the less dense material fell later the Moon fell out of the Earth after a great collision with a Mars-sized body, causing the Earth to spin faster and separate the Earth has been separating bit-by-bit for billions of years as the cold oceanic slabs sink all the way to center and pile up

The Earth partially or completely melted soon after it formed, and the denser materials fell to the center

If we could artificially double the CO2 content of the atmosphere and then gold the CO2 content at that level for a thousand years, the most likely effect would be: The Earth would cool a little, and then the temperature would stabilize at the new, cooler level The Earth would warm a few degrees, and then the temperature would stabilize was that new, warmer level. The Earth would warm many tens of degrees The Earth would cool until a new ice age occurred Nothing would happen to the Earth's temperature

The Earth would warm a few degrees, and then the temperature would stabilize was that new, warmer level.

In the picture above when Dr. Alley slices his finger through the sand he is recreating on a smaller scale what type of geological process? The action of earthworms burrowing in loose soil The action of Chuck Norris karate chopping someone The action of an earthquake tearing apart continents The action of waves making a beach in Hawaii The action of mass wasting as soil and rock collapses off a newly steep canyon walls initially carved out by the water

The action of mass wasting as soil and rock collapses off a newly steep canyon walls initially carved out by the water

The size of a typical sandy beach, averaged over a few decades, is usually controlled by: The balance between sand supply from glaciers and sand loss to the wind The balance between sand supply from rivers or from coastal erosion, and sand loss to deep water The balance between loss of sand blown away to make sand dunes, and gain of quartz sand from weathering of the granite bluffs just behind the beach

The balance between sand supply from rivers or from coastal erosion, and sand loss to deep water

People sometimes take machines out into deep water to "mine" sand, and bring it back to beaches. Dumping a lot of new sand one a beach usually causes: The beach to grow for decades, as the new sand traps even more sand The beach to lose the new sand over the next year or years as waves and currents move the sand back to deeper water The beach to sink under the weight of the new sand, causing tidal waves to wipe out the boardwalks The beach to grow for centuries or millennia, as the new sand traps even more sand The beach to lose the new sand, but only after centuries or millennia, far to long to care about

The beach to lose the new sand over the next year or years as waves and currents move the sand back to deeper water

Which is not accurate about the Grand Canyon, in Arizona? A great thickness of sedimentary rocks exists in Death-Valley-type faulted basins, which can be seen deep in the canyon in many places The rock record of the canyon contains many uncomformities The canyon is protected in a popular National Park The youngest rock layer at the canyon slants downward to the north beneath still-younger rocks of Zion, Bryce, etc. The canyon is wider at the top and narrower at the bottom because the river was wider when the region was wetter, and has narrowed as deserts spread recently

The canyon is wider at the top and narrower at the bottom because the river was wider when the region was wetter, and has narrowed as deserts spread recently

The picture above shows a glacier in eastern Greenland, in the worlds largest national park, flowing from mountains at the top of Jameson Land(at the top of the picture) toward the lowlands of Kong Oskar Fjord (just out of the picture at the bottom). Based on what the picture shows, what has happened over the last century or so? The glacier has become shorter, because of a decrease in snowfall to the ablation zone(A) or an increase in melting of the accumulation zone (B). The glacier has become longer, because of a decrease in snowfall to the ablation zone (A) or an increase in melting of the accumulation zone (B) The glacier has become shorter because of a decrease in snowfall to the accumulation zone (A) or an increase in melting of the ablation zone (B) The glacier has not changed The glacier has become longer because of a decrease in snowfall to the accumulation zone (A) or an increase in melting of the ablation zone (B)

The glacier has become shorter because of a decrease in snowfall to the accumulation zone (A) or an increase in melting of the ablation zone (B)

In the photo above, Sam Ascah is standing on sand and gravel in a pothole, where a stream swirls during the short but intense thunderstorms of Zion National Park, and next to that stream, the other picture shows the sandstone and the hang-on-so-you-dont-fall-over-the-cliff chain along the trail. A likely interpretation of these features is : The park service carefully cut little grooves behind the chain before they hung it so that it would look cute and slide well, and they cut the potholes so that hikers would have something to look at The grooves behind the chain have been cut over decades by motion of the chain as hikers grabbed it, and the potholes were cut by water swirling rocks around the rare floods over much longer times The stream swirled rocks around and cut the potholes and even bounced up the cliff to cut the notches behind the chain

The grooves behind the chain have been cut over decades by motion of the chain as hikers grabbed it, and the potholes were cut by water swirling rocks around the rare floods over much longer times

Often, landowners along eroding beaches will build groins, which are walls or dams sticking out into the ocean or lake from the beach. Why are these built, and what happens? A) The landowners are trying to catch sediment from the longshore drift to add to the beach; this almost always works well. B) The landowners are trying to catch sediment from the longshore drift to add to the beach; this can work, but often erosion on the "downstream" side of the groin makes the neighbors mad. C) The landowners are trying to block the energy of the waves, which usually turn to move almost parallel to the beach; this almost always works well. D) The landowners are trying to block the energy of the waves, which usually turn to move almost parallel to the beach; this can work, but often increases energy on the "upstream" side of the groin and makes the neighbors mad. E) The landowners are trying to make a nice photographic platform from which to take pictures of their houses falling apart during the next storm.

The landowners are trying to catch sediment from the longshore drift to add to the beach; this can work, but often erosion on the "downstream" side of the groin makes the neighbors mad.

The big W is in ocean water, while the little w is in water in a bay cut off from the ocean by the bar indicated by the pink dashed arrow. A stream flows toward the bay along the blue arrow, and coastal bluffs are indicated by the dashed yellow arrow. What probably happened here? The low bluffs show that the land is being raised by tectonic processes, which has allowed the ocean to flood over the bar and make the bay The low bluffs show that erosion has been occurring as waves hammer the shore, and the bar shows that longshore transport is moving the sediment from the erosion along the shore

The low bluffs show that erosion has been occurring as waves hammer the shore, and the bar shows that longshore transport is moving the sediment from the erosion along the shore

It is most always interesting to ask whether most of the "action" comes from the few rare events, or the many common events. For earthquakes, we saw that most of the energy is release by the few big events. For mass movement averaged over the land surface and over thousands of years, which moves the most material: The many, small events(often lumped together as soil creep) move the most material Landslides move material downhill but soil creep moves the material back uphill, so that nothing is accomplished No material is moved downhill by mass movement, which actually refers to the process by which marmot #2 is produced, and may happen uphill or downhill The rare large events (such as Gros Ventre slide in the Tetons or the Hebgen Lake slide just outside of Yellowstone) move the most material

The many, small events(often lumped together as soil creep) move the most material

The picture above shows a hill slope in Greenland that is about 1/2 mile across. The hill slope towards you, so the lowest part of the hill is at the bottom of the picture, and the highest part is at the top of the picture. What is likely to be true? The materials on the hillside are not moving, but moved toward you at a few miles per year during the ice age when such motion was common The materials on the hillside are moving toward you at an inch or so per year The materials on the hillside are moving toward you at many miles per hour The materials on the hillside have never moved

The materials on the hillside are moving toward you at an inch or so per year

You are a famous scientist, renowned for the well-accepted idea you developed over the last 15 years. A new idea suddenly appears from some upstart junior scientist. For the new idea to overthrow your well-accepted idea and gain widespread scientific acceptance, what must happen? The new idea must be more consistent with the teachings of the world's religions than is your old idea The new upstart scientist must be sexier than you are The new idea must do a better job than your old idea at predicting the outcome of one experiment that you conducted The new idea must explain the things that your old idea explained, and do a better job than your old idea in predicting the outcomes of many new experiments designed by various people to test the ideas The new ideas must do a better job than your old idea at predicting the outcome of one experiment that the new upstart junior scientist conducted

The new idea must explain the things that your old idea explained, and do a better job than your old idea in predicting the outcomes of many new experiments designed by various people to test the ideas

At Cade's Cove in the Great Smoky Mountain National Park there is an unusual arrangement of rocks where older rocks are sitting on top of younger rocks, though neither layer has been overturned. this is because: The older layer was thrust over the younger layer by the forces of obduction the younger layer subjected under the older layer the younger layer was injected as molten material under the older rock and then solidified

The older layer was thrust over the younger layer by the forces of obduction

The Landsat above image from NASA shows Cape Cod, Massachusetts The short yellow arrow indicates sand deposits at Monomoy island, a great place for bird-watching. The long pink arrow indicates underwater sand deposits. The dotted blue arrow points to the great Outer Beach of the Cape. Based on material presented in the class, what is going on? The outer beach(dotted blue) is losing sand to Monomoy(short yellow), which is growing from this extra sand and from sand brought up by storms from the underwater bars (long pink), as the Cape grows overall. All of the arrows actually indicate piles of peripherals lost by wintertime nudists sunbathing on the Cape's beaches The outer beach(dotted blue) is losing sand to deep water to the east, while Monomoy(short yellow) is growing as sand is brought up by storms from the underwater bars(long pink), as the Cape overall maintains the same size The outer beach(dotted blue) is losing sand to Monomoy(short yellow) which is losing sand to the undersea bars(long pink), which are losing sand to deeper water as the cape slowly shrinks

The outer beach(dotted blue) is losing sand to Monomoy(short yellow) which is losing sand to the undersea bars(long pink), which are losing sand to deeper water as the cape slowly shrinks

What is indicated by the arrows? The yellow arrows point to the original beach, but this is Greenland, and most of the beach moved to the pink arrows by soil-creep processes The yellow arrows point to a coral reef, and the pink arrows point to a former coral reef that has been killed by global warming The pink arrows point to a barrier beach or outer beach piled up by waves, and the yellow arrows point to a "wash over" where a storm broke through the outer beach and moved sediment inland The yellow arrows point to the original beach, which was overwhelmed by a flood that carried the sand out to the pink arrows The yellow arrows point to bars in the river, and the pink arrows point to a beach

The pink arrows point to a barrier beach or outer beach piled up by waves, and the yellow arrows point to a "wash over" where a storm broke through the outer beach and moved sediment inland

Dr. Alley once helped a Grand Canyon ranger answer a tourist's question: "Why is the Canyon wider at the top than at the bottom?" The tourist had their own favorite theory. Based on the materials that have been presented to you've in this class, what geologically accepted answer would Dr. Alley and the ranger have given the tourist? The river used to be much wider because it was not steep, and water spreads out when running slowly (a little tap feeds a big bathtub...); then, as the Rockies were raised, the river steepened and narrowed, so it used to cut a wide canyon and now cuts a narrow one. The canyon is really the same width at the top as at the bottom, but the well-known "optical illusion" of distant things appearing smaller causes it to look as if the canyon is narrowing downward. The bulldozer that made the canyon was wearing out its blade as it dug down. The river cuts down, and that steepens the walls of the canyon, which fall, topple, slump, creep or flow into the river to be washed away, thus widening the canyon above the river. The river used to be much wider before the desert formed, and so cut a wide canyon, but the river has narrowed as the drying occurred, and now cuts only a narrow canyon.

The river cuts down, and that steepens the walls of the canyon, which fall, topple, slump, creep or flow into the river to be washed away, thus widening the canyon above the river.

The picture above shows a very hard piece of rock about six inches across; in the Grand Canyon. The surface of the rock looks rather different from the surfaces of many other rocks. What made this odd-looking surface? The river which blasted the rock with sand and silt laden water during floods; this shows that even hard rocks can be eroded by rivers A fault which dropped old rocks so that they were preserved in Death Valley-type valleys and so were not eroded away

The river which blasted the rock with sand and silt laden water during floods; this shows that even hard rocks can be eroded by rivers

Shown above is Great Rock, Cape Cod National Seashore, with some of Dr. Alley's relatives for scale. The rock is metamorphic. The picture includes most but not all of the above-ground portion; the rock goes about as far below ground as above. What is the rock doing here in the middle of Cape Cod? The rock was thrown here by the giant meteorite impact that hollowed out Hudson Bay The rock rose up through the sand during a giant earthquake, the way large rocks are "floated" up in permafrost regions The rock was carried here by glacier ice and left when the ice melted Tsunami waves washed It here, when huge landslide occurred from a volcanic island in the Atlantic Ocean The rock was used as ballast on the Mayflower, and left at First Encounter Beach as a present to the native Americans because the Mayflower no longer needed ballast in the near-coastal waters

The rock was carried here by glacier ice and left when the ice melted

What is the accurate description of the job of a scientist? The scientist invents new ideas and goes on to show that some of those ideas are false The scientist invents new ideas and goes on to show that some of those ideas are true the scientist does only things that require high-tech equipment the scientist does only things that show how sexy being a scientist really is causing down-trodden non-scientists to lose control of themselves with carnal lust for the scientist The scientist learns the truth through careful application of the scientific method

The scientist invents new ideas and goes on to show that some of those ideas are false

One practical radioactive system used to date lava flows involves: The solid potassium-40, which decays to the gas argon-40 The solid potassium-40, which decays to the solid moosemossium-41 The gas argon-40, which decays to solid potassium-40 the gas argon-40, which decays to the gas potassium-40 The solid potassium-40, which decays to solid argon-40

The solid potassium-40, which decays to the gas argon-40

Which is younger: Fault I Rock layer E The tree Uncomformity K Rock layer F

The tree

What probably happened in the above picture? Jeffrey pines such as this are known as multi-leader trees, and typically grow such a trunk for extra support nothing The park service hired an expert in topiary, the growth of interesting trees to make sculptures such as this along the rim of Bryce Canyon The tree started with its roots underground but erosion washed the dirt away from them. so now they stick out

The tree started with its roots underground but erosion washed the dirt away from them. so now they stick out

Statistically, and based on how many people are likely to die if they engage in or are exposed to the following problems, which is most dangerous to residents of the United States: The various diseases that come from smoking, overeating and under-exercising for a long time Earthquakes commercial airline crashes meteorite impacts tornadoes

The various diseases that come from smoking, overeating and under-exercising for a long time

What is accurate about the planets climate system? The wind blows because heating near the poles drives convection cells in the atmosphere and the winds appear to curve to the left or right over the surface of the planet because of friction produced by the spherical planet's rotations beneath the atmosphere The wind blows because heating near the equator drives convection cells in the atmosphere and the winds appears to curve to the left or right over the surface of the planet because of friction produced by the spherical planets rotation beneath the atmosphere The wind blows because heating near the equator drives convection cells in the atmosphere and the winds appear to curve to the left or right over the surface of the planet because of the planets spherical shape the wind blow because of marmot flatulence The wind blows because heating of the poles drives convection cells in the atmosphere and the winds appear to curve to the left or right over the surface of the planet because of the planets spherical shape

The wind blows because heating near the equator drives convection cells in the atmosphere and the winds appears to curve to the left or right over the surface of the planet because of friction produced by the spherical planets rotation beneath the atmosphere

Above is a "beach" at Acadia National Park. the pieces are granite. There is no sand here, because the park service mines the sand to pave park roads There is no sand her to this must be a place where sand is not produced There is sand under the rocks, the Park Service places the rocks on top to protect the beach, and takes the rocks off on sunny days There is no sand here, so sand must be lost to deep water fast enough in comparison to sand supply that sandy beaches have not formed

There is no sand here, so sand must be lost to deep water fast enough in comparison to sand supply that sandy beaches have not formed

What is known scientifically about transitional forms in the fossil record? They conclusively provide the genetic linkage between coke and pepsi They are found frequently for those general types of living things (such as shelly shallow-marine creatures) that commonly produce fossils, but are not found as frequently for other general types Their occurrence is predicted by special-creation ("Ford-Mustang type") "catastrophist" models of the history of life, but not by evolution theory They provide complete records of every fossil lineage They are not observed

They are found frequently for those general types of living things (such as shelly shallow-marine creatures) that commonly produce fossils, but are not found as frequently for other general types

What happens to most living things, after they die? They are buried in regions with much oxygen, and turned into fossil fuel They are buried in regions with little oxygen, and turned into fossil fuel They are fossilized They are recycled, usually by being "burned" with oxygen to provide energy for other living things, or to provide energy to fires

They are recycled, usually by being "burned" with oxygen to provide energy for other living things, or to provide energy to fires

Hot spots are important geological features. What is accurate about hot spots? They are rapidly moving features zipping along beneath the nearly stationary plates above to make lines of volcanoes They are rising towers of hot rock, perhaps from as far down as the core-mantle boundary, bringing heat up to feed volcanoes they feed volcanoes that grow up from the sea floor, but are never found breaking through continents They feed volcanoes that form on continents but never feed volcanoes that grow up from the sea floor.

They are rising towers of hot rock, perhaps from as far down as the core-mantle boundary, bringing heat up to feed volcanoes

The Ptarmigan and the marmot have something in common, other than being cute. What is it? They both are standing on aretes They both are standing on glacially eroded surfaces They both are hyper-flatulent amphibians They are both standing on glacial deposits They both are standing on special glacial deposits called moraines

They both are standing on glacially eroded surfaces

Araucarioxylon arizonicum was a beautiful tree of the Mesozoic, and is the most common tree found fossilized in Petrified Forest National Park. A specatcular specimen is show above. Based on the discussions of evolution in the textbook and lectures. It is likely that: Some trees alive today are essentially identical to Araucarioxylon arizonicum Trees alive today are related to Araucarioxylon arizonicum, but even those modern trees most similar to Araucarioxylon arizonicum are recognizably different from it. All trees alive today are completely unrelated to Araucarioxylon arizonicum

Trees alive today are related to Araucarioxylon arizonicum, but even those modern trees most similar to Araucarioxylon arizonicum are recognizably different from it.

In the picture above, Dr. Alley is discussing events that are happening outside of Grand Canyon National Park, which may impact the park. What are the issues he is discussing? Water pumped out of the ground for gold courses and other uses evaporates, so less water flows through the ground to the springs of the canyon A terrible shortage of Pepsi has alarmed the Park Service Water spread on golf courses is introducing nitrates into the park Water spread on golf courses is causing flooding in the park

Water pumped out of the ground for gold courses and other uses evaporates, so less water flows through the ground to the springs of the canyon

Large rivers sometimes have natural levees because: Point bars run together to make levees Water slows and deposits sediment as the water leaves the main river channel during floods The mud deposited by the river compacts and sinks there are not natural levees oxbow lakes run together to make levees

Water slows and deposits sediment as the water leaves the main river channel during floods

The picture above shows ocean in the upper right, a beach and land in the lower left. The red dashes trace the crest of a wave. Waves move perpendicular to their crests. What principle might be illustrated by the picture? Coasts always have sandy beaches Waves come in faster than they go out, so beaches are eroded in summer when breakers are common Waves go slower in shallower water Waves always curve because of the rotation of the Earth

Waves go slower in shallower water

At the beach, you can build really good sand castles: When the sand is dry When the sand is damp, because the water in the sand makes It heavier so the grains cohere better When the sand is damp, because gelatinous material in the water from seaweed gives an agar glue that holds the sand grains together When the sand is damp because water is attracted to sand grains and to other water; thus pulling sand grains apart when damp requires "breaking" the water, which isn't easy When the sand is fully saturated

When the sand is damp because water is attracted to sand grains and to other water; thus pulling sand grains apart when damp requires "breaking" the water, which isn't easy

You are dating a lava flow by the potassium-argon system. However, the offspring in this system are leaking out of the minerals. Which is accurate? A) You will think that the lava flow is older than it really is, and you will have no way to detect your error. B) You will think that the lava flow is younger than it really is, and you will have no way to detect your error. C) You will think that the lava flow is older than it really is, but you will be able to detect the error by comparing concentrations of offspring from the edges and centers of grains. D) You will think that the lava flow is younger than it really is, but you will be able to detect the error by comparing concentrations of offspring from the edges and centers of grains. E) You will get the age exactly right without worrying about any complications.

You will think that the lava flow is younger than it really is, but you will be able to detect the error by comparing concentrations of offspring from the edges and centers of grains.

Look at the picture above. What type of volcano is this?(snowy mountains) The mound made when a giant marmot name George dug his hole A head of hot spot mushrooms cloud type plateau basalt a hot spot type basaltic shield volcano a subduction zone type steep and andesitic stratovolcano a small loose thrown rocks type cinder-cone volcano

a subduction zone type steep and andesitic stratovolcano

The peer review process in which scientists submit write-ups of their ideas and experiments to a set of colleagues who judge how good the ideas before the ideas can be published is: always infallible a way for the scientific establishment to maintain control over ideas and theories a useful and important, even if imperfect, mechanism of quality-control for the scientific literature a way to keep unpopular or dangerous ideas out of public circulation the way all publications do business including the popular press such as the New York Times, Rolling Stone, Etc.

a useful and important, even if imperfect, mechanism of quality-control for the scientific literature

chemists recognize many different elements, such as gold, or oxygen, or carbon. Suppose you got some carbon, and started splitting it into smaller pieces. The smallest piece that would still be called "Carbon" would be: a quark a neutron an electron an atom a proton

an atom

Which of the following is commonly expected near a "textbook" subduction zone? basaltic hot-spot type volcanoes slide-past earthquakes and faults basaltic mid-ocean ridge-type volcanoes andesitic stratovolcanoes fed by melt from the slab being subducted pull-apart earthquakes and faults

andesitic stratovolcanoes fed by melt from the slab being subducted

The deepest earthquakes are rare, and differ in some ways from the more-common types of quakes. These deepest earthquakes probably: Are the shaking of the ground caused by elastic rebound of bent rocks when a fault breaks are caused by atomic bomb testing are the shaking of the ground caused by "implosion" as minerals rearrange to denser forms as the pressure on them rises in downgoing slabs

are the shaking of the ground caused by "implosion" as minerals rearrange to denser forms as the pressure on them rises in downgoing slabs

Two neutral atoms have the same number of protons in the nucleus, but different numbers of neutrons. These are: different packaging of the same cola different isopleths of the same element different isotopes of the same element different ions of the same element different elements

different isotopes of the same element

Hot spots: Are not associated with volcanoes feed volcanoes that are especially steep-sided above sea level feed andesitic volcanoes (composition similar to continents), unless the hot spot is altered in composition coming through a continent, in which case the volcano may be basaltic feed basaltic volcanoes (composition similar to continents), unless the hot spot is altered in composition coming through a continent, in which case the volcano may be andesitic feed stratovolcanoes

feed basaltic volcanoes (composition similar to continents), unless the hot spot is altered in composition coming through a continent, in which case the volcano may be andesitic

Your job depends on you finding the best available information on a particular technical topic. Where should you concentrate your search if you want to do it right and keep your job? scan databases of newspaper articles to find the views of public figures on the technical issue locate articles in weekly news magazines analyzing the views of public officials on the technical issue as reported in the newspapers watch cola commercials during broadcasts of political conventions get on the web and go looking for the pages posted by "think-thanks" headquartered near Washington find and study referred scientific articles in learned journals

find and study referred scientific articles in learned journals

The Paleozoic: is "old life", the age of algae Is "middle life" the age of dinosaurs is "old life" the age of shellfish ellfishis "new life", the age of dinosaurs is "new life" the age of mammals

is "old life" the age of shellfish

You get in your Magic School Bus, drive down the throat of a volcano, and find that you are driving through melted rock that does not make lumps but flows more easily than does most melted rock, it is likely that the melted rock you are driving through: Is being stirred rapidly by Teletubbies is especially poor in iron and other things that would get between silicon-oxygen tetrahedra, compared to most melted rocks is especially cool compared to most melted rocks is especially low in water and carbon dioxide compared to most melted rocks is especially rich in water and carbon dioxide compared to most melted rocks

is especially rich in water and carbon dioxide compared to most melted rocks

What happens to most of the water that falls on central Pennsylvania's Happy Valley each year(or any similar place, such as Washington DC or other places with trees)? It soaks into the ground and then flows to streams It is used in soft drink bottling plants It flows directly over the surface into streams It falls directly onto streams it is re-evaporated mostly after passing through trees

it is re-evaporated mostly after passing through trees

Human population continues to grow. Looking at many of the things we use on Earth (farmland and land for wood and other things, fish in the sea etc): our use is large but not everything; we are approaching use of half of all that is available we use less than 1% or so, the tiniest bit, with vast amounts out there in the wilderness somewhere we use almost everything 99% or more, so we're in deep doo-doo for the future we use almost all of the Diet Pepsi springs but with huge natural reserves of Diet Coke we use almost all of the dilithium crystals for our warp drives

our use is large but not everything; we are approaching use of half of all that is available

Geology departments are seeing a lot of recruiters recently, because geology is an in-demand major. Which of the following is NOT a job that geologists commonly end up doing? exploring for oil, coal, gas, diamonds, gold, or other valuable things packaging substandard mortgages into "securities" and trying to sell them to unsuspecting people helping people to use knowledge of the earth to make wise decisions educate or teacher helping people avoid landslides, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions, and other natural disasters

packaging substandard mortgages into "securities" and trying to sell them to unsuspecting people

ignoring good manners, you start rooting around in the nucleus of a poor, unsuspecting atom, to see what is in there. What are you most likely to find? only neutrons neutrons, usually with some electrons hanging around among the neutrons protons, usually with some neutrons hanging around among the protons protons, usually with some electrons hanging around among the protons only protons

protons, usually with some neutrons hanging around among the protons

What tectonic setting is primarily responsible for producing Crate Lake? Silde past Pull-apart push together subduction Hot-spot Push-together obduction

push together subduction

In a humid-temperate climate such as that of Pennsylvania or Washington DC weathering breaks down granite to produce: Quartz sand and clay, that stay to help make soil while iron and other ions dissolve and wash away quartz sand and rust that stay to help make soil, while aluminum, potassium and other ions dissolve and wash away quartz sand, clay, and rust that stay to help make soil, while some ions dissolved and wash away

quartz sand, clay, and rust that stay to help make soil, while some ions dissolved and wash away

The law that established Yellowstone as the first national park: was written to help people today and in the future, by requiring that the parts provide enjoyment today while preserving the parks for the future clearly was written by political conservatives, because it required conservation of the parks even if that means locking people out today. clearly was written by politicians running for reelection, because it required that the parks make people happy today even if things are damaged in the future written by socialists because it mentions the word "society" was written by communists because park rangers have installed commodes in commodious outhouses

requiring that the parts provide enjoyment today while preserving the parks for the future

Geographically speaking the water table: changes elevation randomly never changes its elevation because it is pinned by the creeks rises during or soon after rainstorm as spaces fill up, and sinks during droughts as water drains away sits next to the coffee table in the capitol building rises in elevation during times of drought as trees suck it up and sinks during rainstorms as trees quit pulling up water because they are well watered

rises during or soon after rainstorm as spaces fill up, and sinks during droughts as water drains away

opinion polls show most residents of the US do not believe they understand science very well, but they do favor more government support of science. Why do most US residents favor government support of science? Scientists apply their scientific method, which allows them to learn the truth science has helped make our lives healthier, wealthier, easier, safer, etc. and people hope that more funding of more science will provide even more health, wealth, ease, safety, etc. science is simply so fascinating that almost everyone can't wait to see what will be discovered next science is so boring that almost everyone uses public-broadcasting science programming as a sleep aid, and government funding is needed to insure a steady support of boredom scientists are so breathtakingly sexy that most people are drawn through sheer carnal lust to support the scientific enterprise

science has helped make our lives healthier, wealthier, easier, safer, etc. and people hope that more funding of more science will provide even more health, wealth, ease, safety, etc.

Which is not evidence that glaciers were much bigger about 20,000 years ago than they are now? Some land that does not have glaciers today bears the unique marks of erosion and deposition by glaciers, and those marks are about 20,000 years old shells of creatures that lived in the ocean about 20,000 years ago indicate that the ocean water was especially isotopically light then Prominent embayments such as Chesapeake Bay with the form and sediments of old river valleys are now flooded 20,000 year old deceased shallow-water corals occur in growth position far below the surface on the sides of oceanic islands Land bearing the unique marks of glaciers is rising today, while regions just around that land are sinking as deep hot rock flows back after being displaced by the glaciers

shells of creatures that lived in the ocean about 20,000 years ago indicate that the ocean water was especially isotopically light then

much melting in the mantle occurs near subjecting slabs primarily because: Convection cells from the deep mantle rise along subduction zones slabs are the hottest things in the mantle because of friction from subduction hot spots come up from subduction zones water taken down subduction zones lowers the melting temperature in and near the slabs sediments scraped off downgoing slabs pile up, trapping heat and causing the rocks below to be warmer than elsewhere in the mantle

water taken down subduction zones lowers the melting temperature in and near the slabs