Geography Final

The basic sampling unit in soil surveys is called...

a pedon

The sandblasting action of wind-blown particles is called

abrasion

A soil rich in hydrogen ions is an ________ soil, and high in base cations is an _________ soil.

acid; basic

The destruction of a mangrove swamp might lead to

all of the above are true

Alpine glaciers include all of the following except

an ice cap

A terrace us

an uplift wave-cut platform

Coral formations

are made of animals living symbolically with simple algae

Which of the following is not related to coral rock formations?

bay barriers and barrier spits

Terms used to describe soil structure include...

fine, medium, and coarse

If precipitation events occur in a desert, a dry stream bed can fill with a torrent called a ______ and the dry stream bed is known as a _____

flash flood; wash

A general term for a mass of perennial ice, resting on land or floating shelf-like in the sea adjacent to land is

glacier

Brine water results from

high evaporation rates

The general name for any distinct layer in a pedon is...

horizon

The type of glacier that dominates Greenland and Antarctica is

ice sheet

The ability of the wind to move materials

is small compared to other transporting agents, such as water and ice

Which side of a dune typically has a slop angle equal to that of the angle of repose for sand?

leeward side

The concentration of dissolved solids in the seawater is called

salinity

Mollisols are associated with

the greatest grain harvests in the world

An earthquake, submarine landslide, or eruption of undersea volcano is capable of producing a

tsunami

Which of the following is not an example of a depositional coastal landform?

wave-cut platform

In terms of area extent, which of the following sequences is in order from most to least area covered?

ice sheet, ice cap, ice field

Brackish water would most like occur

in a deltaic swamp

Salinization is likely to occur

in areas of high potential evapotranspiration and low actual evapotranspiration.

The principle natural soil-forming factors

include climate, vegetation, topography

Which of the following grain sizes is most readily moved by the wind?

intermediate

List three classes of dune forms

linear, star, and crescentic

A general term for the coastal environment is

littoral zone

A roughly equal mixture of sand, silt, and clay is called

loam

Which of the following occurs when the Sun, Moon, and Earth are all in alignment?

maximum tidal ranges occur

About 2% of the oceanic mass comprise the

mixing zone of blended solutes and temperatures

A coral is a type of _____ that secretes ____ to form an organic rock home.

polyp; calcium carbonate

The basic soil unit used in preparing soils maps; i.e., in identifying a series of soils in an area, is the...

polypedon

At present, which of the soil orders of soil taxonomy occupy the most land area in the United States?

Mollisols

True solum is made up of

a combination of the A, E, and B horizons

Because the algae which live in symbiotic relationship with coral perform ________, corals _______

photosynthesis; must live in water that is penetrated by light

About _____ area of desert areas are covered with sand?

10%

World wide average salinity is

3.5%

Approximately what percentage of the world's freshwater is frozen?

77 percent

Clay is easy to lift from a surface and also is easy to keep suspended in the air.

False

Firn has a higher density than glacial ice.

False

Glacial ice can form during the duration of a single winter season in most glacial areas.

False

Seawater is not a solution.

False

Soil color does not reflect composition or chemical makeup of soils.

False

In China, the desert pavements are called

Gobi

Why, specially, is glacial ice analogous to a metamorphic rock?

It forms as a result of recrystallization caused by pressure.

Which of the following soil horizon designations is in correct sequences from the surface to bedrock?

O, A, E, B, C, R

Which of the following is true of the ocean deep zone?

Only A and B are true.

A soil order characteristic of the Amazon Basin is an

Oxisol

The largest ocean in the world in terms of area is the ____ and the smallest ocean in terms of the area is ______

Pacific; Arctic

The science that deals with the origin, classification, and distribution of soils is known as...

Pedology

Soils associated with iron oxides generally show ________ color.

Red

Pebbles can be moved by _________ in a process known as __________.

Saltating particles; surface creep

Which of the following is incorrectly matched?

Spring tides - high tides only

Which of the following surface conditions would limit the effectiveness of wind as an erosional agent?

Surface materials consisting of clay-sized particles

The term eloian refers to

erosion, transportation, and deposition by the wind

At present, which of the following soil orders occupies the most land area worldwide?

Aridisols

Gelisols are most likely to be found in

Canada

Although many elements are dissolves in seawater; no gases are dissolved in it.

False

As the evaporation rate increases, salinity decreases.

False

Brine water tends to occur near coastal deltas.

False

Which of the following is not true of alluvial fans?

They frequently occur in the eastern US.

A desert is an area in which potential evaptranspiration rates exceed actual evaptranspiration rates.

True

Swelling clays can damage foundation because they swell when moisten and shrink when dried.

True

The Moon's gravitational pull on the Earth is greater than that of the Sun's.

True

The bulk of ice on Earth is in Greenland and Antarctica.

True

The formation of desert pavement involves both wind and water.

True

The rate of sand movement is proportional to the wind speed.

True

The saltating particles can initiate the movement of other particles.

True

The skipping and bouncing action of saltation accounts for about 80% of wind transported particles.

True

Which soil order would tend to occur in the southeastern US with its high temperature and humid environment?

Ultisols

Heavy, expandable clay soils are classified as

Vertisols

Which of the following soils would have limited horizon development and would be destructive of buildings and roads?

Vertisols

An atoll is approximately ______ in shape because it forms _______

circular; around submerged volcanic islands

A glacier that is confined in a bowl-shaped recess is called a

cirque glacier

From inland to the ocean, which sequence of zones is correct?

coast, back shore, foreshore, nearshore

A continuous mass of ice covering a large landmass is known as

continental glacier

Removal of vegetation from a semiarid grassland environment is likely to lead to

deflation

The removal and lifting of individual loose particles by the wind is termed

deflation

Which two processes create desert pavement?

deflation and rain wash

Near the short, waves of transition begin to "feel bottom" and, as a result, the orbits of the water molecules in the wave become more ____. The process eventually cause _____ to form.

elliptical; breakers

The movement of material out of a layer is called ____________, whereas the deposition of materials in a layer is called _____________.

eluviation; illuviation

As regards wetlands; which of the followings is correctly matched?

salt marsh - poleward of the 30th parallel in either hemisphere

White to pale color in soils are generally associated with

silicates and aluminum oxides

What size material comprises the dust in a dust storm that extends thousands of feet above the ground?

silts and clays

Which of the following lists of soil categories gives the proper hierarchy for the soil Taxonomy system from the largest group to the smallest unit?

soil orders, suborders, great groups, subgroups, families, series

Which of the following is true of loess deposits?

They are formed of fine-grained clays and silts.

Which of the following is not true of tides?

They are produced solely by the gravitational pull of the Sun.

The suspension of finer particles by the wind over significant distances is a phenomenon known as

a dust storm

The spatial distributions of Earth's dry regions are attributable to all of the following factors except

the equatorial low pressure region and the ITCZ

Which of the following is not an example of an erosional coastal landform?

tombolo

The R horizon refers to

unweathered sediment or consolidated bedrock

Elongated, streamlined ridges aligned parallel to the most effective wind direction are called

yardangs

The height of a tsunami grows as it approaches a coastline primarily because

its wavelength shortens

Desertification is caused by

poor agricultural practices, deforestation, and global climate changes

Desert landscapes tend to be ____ in appearance because of the ____

rugged and hard-edged; lack of water erosion

Soil texture described the size of

soil particles

In which region of the US are eolian processes most effective?

southwest

The arrangement of soil particles is called soil

structure

Desert pavement refers to

surfaces of concentrated pebbles and gravels

Waves in shallow water that "feel bottom" are _____ and more _____ speed than the swell they are related to.

taller, closely