Physical Geology example Chapters 1-6

36) A ________ volcano is a very large, gently sloping mound composed mainly of basaltic lava flows.

A) shield

16) All silicate minerals contain which two elements?

A) silicon, oxygen

15) Which of the following phenomena accompanied the year without a summer (1816) in parts of North America and northern Europe?

A) snow falls and frosts in New England during July and August

8) The 1991 Pinatubo eruption in the Philippines caused brilliantly colored sunrises and sunsets to be seen for the next few years. What caused this phenomenon?

A) sulfur dioxide and other erupted gases formed aerosols in the stratosphere

3) Frost wedging is the major weathering process contributing to the formation of which regolith material?

A) talus slopes

1) Lava flows are typically finer grained than intrusive igneous rocks. Why?

A) the extrusive magma cools quickly so the mineral grains do not have time to grow

22) Which one of the following is not true for minerals?

A) they can be a liquid, solid, or glass

40) The Icelandic volcanoes are related to plate tectonics because ________.

A) they lie on a spreading center where two plates are moving apart

8) What two factors speed up rates of chemical reaction and weathering in rocks and soils?

A) warm temperatures; very moist

18) Assume that water filling a crack in a rock undergoes cycles of freezing and melting. Which of the following statement is true?

A) water expands as it freezes, causing the crack walls to be pushed apart

4) What portion of an angular, fracture-bounded granitic block shows the highest rate of weathering?

C) the edges and corners

37) Which of the following best describes Shiprock, a famous volcanic feature in New Mexico?

C) the eroded remains of a volcanic pipe and radiating dikes

16) Which one of the following statements best describes erosion?

C) the process by which weathered rock and mineral particles are removed from one area and transported elsewhere

11) Which of the following is associated with deep mantle hot spots?

C) the volcanoes of Hawaii and Quaternary activity in Yellowstone National Park

6) Which statement concerning sedimentary rocks is not true?

C) they were originally deposited at depth below the bottom of the sea

7) Which of the following applies to the basic constituents of halite, gypsum, and sylvite?

C) transported as dissolved ions; deposited by evaporation

14) The ion at the center of a silicate tetrahedron is surrounded by ________.

D) 4 oxygen ions

43) At low pressures and in the absence of water, rhyolites and granites begin to melt at about

D) 800 C

29) ________ is named for a prominent, volcanic mountain range in western South America

D) Andesite

33) ________ often contain gem-quality crystals of minerals such as beryl and tourmaline and high concentrations of relatively rare elements such as lithium, boron, and beryllium?

D) Granitic pegmatites

23) ________ tend to increase the explosive potential of a magma body beneath a volcano.

D) High viscosity and dissolved gas

4) ________ was an important 18th century English geologist and proponent of uniformitarianism.

D) James Hutton

47) What is the largest, known volcano in the Solar System?

D) Olympus Mons, Mars

32) ________ is thought to be common in the Earth's mantle but rare in the crust?

D) Peridotite

1) ________, a common mineral found in igneous rocks, is the most abundant mineral in detrital sedimentary rocks.

D) Quartz

10) Which was the most powerful, explosive volcanic eruption of historic time?

D) Tambora, Indonesia, 1815

24) Which type of basaltic lava flow has its surface covered with sharp-edged, angular blocks and rubble?

D) aa

13) Which of the following igneous rocks exhibit aphanitic texture?

D) andesite, rhyolite

35) The average composition of rocks comprising a large composite cone or stratovolcano is similar to a (an) ________ magma.

D) andesitic

31) What is the name of dark-colored mica?

D) biotite

44) What volcanic events formed Crater Lake, OR? When did they take place?

D) caldera collapse followed major ash and pyroclastic-flow eruptions; 6000 years ago

34) The 1943 eruption of Paricutin in Mexico was characterized by ________.

D) cinder cone building and basaltic lava

13) Which one of the following is a typical product of weathering?

D) clays

15) Which one of the following describes a mineral's response to mechanical impact?

D) cleavage

19) The strong tendency of certain minerals to break along smooth, parallel planes is known as ________.

D) cleavage

19) In sedimentary rocks, lithification includes ________.

D) compaction and cementation

27) What are the lightest or least massive of the basic atomic particles?

D) electrons

5) Which of the following describes the correct order for relative solubility of minerals in sedimentary rocks?

D) evaporate minerals are more soluble than calcite and quartz

10) A cubic centimeter of quartz, olivine, and gold weigh 2.5, 3.0, and 19.8 grams respectively. This indicates that ________.

D) gold has a higher density and specific gravity than quartz and olivine

15) Visible quartz and potassium feldspar grains are the main constituents in a ________.

D) granite

19) In which area would weathering by frost wedging probably be most effective?

D) in moist, temperate climates

52) Xenoliths are associated most closely with which magmatic process and igneous rock body?

D) intrusion; granitic batholith

15) Which one of the following statements concerning mechanical weathering is not true?

D) involves a major change in the mineral composition of the weathered material

20) What in the name given to an atom that gains or loses electrons in a chemical reaction?

D) ion

6) What fate befell the 'Lost City of Atlantis' mentioned in Plato's writings?

D) it disappeared as part of caldera collapse following a major, explosive, volcanic eruption

13) The asthenosphere is actually a part of the ________ of the Earth.

D) mantle

17) Which term best describes those processes that move weathered rock materials and soils downslope?

D) mass wasting

14) In a porphyritic volcanic rock, which mineral grains are the last to crystallize?

D) matrix or groundmass

9) Consider the Bowen's reaction series. Which mineral would you expect to see as a phenocryst in a porphyritic basalt?

D) olivine

23) In which of the following igneous rocks and environments would you expect to find unusually high concentrations of rare elements such as lithium, beryllium, and boron?

D) pegmatite; crystallized from a water-rich, highly differentiated, residual magma

13) Which of the following best describes seamounts and islands of the deep ocean basins?

D) piles of basaltic lava flows built up from the ocean floor by multiple, summit and flank eruptions

26) Which the following denotes the massive, positively charged, nuclear particles?

D) protons

8) Which mineral is composed of silicon dioxide (Si02)?

D) quartz

45) Which one of the following shows the correct order (left to right)of decreasing magma viscosity?

D) rhyolite, andesite, basalt

16) Which of the following igneous rocks has a pyroclastic texture?

D) rhyolitic tuff

2) Which of the following is not a fundamental particle found in atoms?

D) selectron

12) Which of the following best describes sets of fractures in relatively fresh bedrock, such as granite, that are roughly parallel to the land surface?

D) sheeting fractures

49) A ________ is an intrusive, igneous rock body that is tabular and concordant.

D) sill

5) Which of the following is correct for isotopes of the same element?

D) the atoms have different numbers of neutrons and the same number of protons

27) Which of the following best describes an aphanitic texture?

D) the rock is crystalline; mineral grains are too small to be visible without a magnifying lens or microscope

24) How do the electrons behave in a mineral with metallic bonding?

D) they can move relatively easily from atom to atom inside the mineral

8) A ________ is an open cavity in a volcanic rock that was filled by a gas bubble when the lava was still mainly liquid.

D) vesicle

30) Which one of the following statements is not true?

D) when magma reaches the surface, its dissolved gas content increases

12) diorite

a. andesite

7) a magnifying glass or microscope is needed to see individual mineral grains

a. aphanitic

37) a. galena b. calcite c. gypsum d. halite

a. galena

23) a. mountain belt b. shield c. craton d. stable platform

a. mountain belt

17) massive, gently sloping volcanoes built of successive, basaltic lava flows

a. shield volcanoes

21) the big volcanoes of Hawaii

a. shield volcanoes

33) a. electron b. atom c. proton d. neutron

b. atom

21) a. hydrosphere b. biosphere c. atmosphere d. solid Earth

b. biosphere

18) large, fairly steep-sided cones composed of lavas and pyroclastic layers

b. composite/stratovolcanoes

20) the volcanoes of southwestern Alaska and the Aleutian Islands

b. composite/stratovolcanoes

11) basalt

b. gabbro

6) rock has two or more, distinctly different-sized populations of mineral grains

b. porphyritic

36) a. olivine b. quartz c. amphibole d. pyroxene

b. quartz

19) small basaltic cones built during one, short, eruptive episode

c. cinder cones

20) a. hypothesis b. theory c. fact d. observation

c. fact

22) a. crust b. mantle c. lithosphere d. core

c. lithosphere

34) a. hardness b. streak c. luster d. cleavage

c. luster

5) mineral grains are of roughly equal size and coarse enough to be seen without a microscope or magnifying glass

c. phaneritic

10) granite

c. rhyolite

35) a. quartz b. olivine c. feldspar d. calcite

d. calcite

4) magma cools and consolidates without growth of mineral grains

d. glassy

5) The currently accepted age of Earth is ________ years.

A) 4.6 billion

26) ________ destroyed the city of St. Pierre, Martinique in 1902

A) A nueé ardente

7) ________ magma is the most abundant type of erupted at oceanic spreading centers.

A) Basaltic

22) ________ is characterized by very coarse mineral grains?

A) Pegmatite

18) ________ is composed mainly of ferromagnesian minerals

A) Peridotite

2) Compared to the age of Earth accepted as correct today, how did 17th and 18th century proponents of catastrophism envision the Earth's age?

A) They believed Earth to be much younger than current estimates

3) ________ is a major dissolved volatile constituent in both magmas and volcanic gases?

A) Water

28) A(n) ________ texture would be most unlikely to occur in an extrusive igneous rock.

A) aphanitic

32) Kilauea and Mauna Loa are ________.

A) basaltic shield volcanoes

25) Which one of the following statements concerning volcanic blocks and bombs is true?

A) bombs are ejected as magma lumps; blocks are ejected as solid fragments

29) Which of the following will react readily with acids such as hydrochloric?

A) calcite

7) Which carbonate mineral reacts readily with cool, dilute hydrochloric acid to produce visible bubbles of carbon dioxide gas?

A) calcite

9) Detrital grains of which mineral(s) are extremely rare in detrital sediments? Why?

A) calcite; it is soft and relatively soluble

7) Clay minerals, silica (SiO2), and dissolved potassium bicarbonate in the soil water are products of which process?

A) chemical weathering of orthoclase feldspar

12) Which one of the following mineral groups exhibits a sheet-like silicate structure?

A) clays

4) Studies of deep-sea sediment cores have contributed greatly to scientific knowledge of ________.

A) climatic changes during the last four million years

8) A ________ system is one in which energy moves freely in and out, but no matter enters or leaves the system.

A) closed

26) What do pumice and obsidian have in common?

A) glassy texture

28) Which of the following has the highest specific gravity?

A) gold

51) Which of the following best describes the bedrock in the Sierra Nevada Mountains in California?

A) granite; batholiths

1) What are the basic differences between the disciplines of physical and historical geology?

A) historical geology involves the study of rock strata, fossils, and geologic events, utilizing the geologic time scale as a reference; physical geology includes the study of how rocks form and of how erosion shapes the land surface

13) What two, chemical constituents cannot form by chemical weathering of the feldspar minerals?

A) insoluble iron oxides and soluble magnesium bicarbonates

10) Which of the following statements about acidic precipitation is likely to be false?

A) lowered taxes and relaxed governmental regulations will result in more private and public sector spending to reduce emissions of acid-forming gases to the atmosphere

9) Which of the following minerals is a silicate?

A) muscovite

18) The most prominent feature on the ocean floor are the ________.

A) oceanic ridges

14) The ________ is thought to be a liquid, metallic region in the Earth's interior.

A) outer core

18) What element is the most abundant in the Earth's crust by weight?

A) oxygen

9) The finely divided, red, brown, and yellow soil-coloring minerals originate by what process?

A) precipitation of iron oxides during the chemical weathering process

3) Atoms of the same element, zinc for example, have the same number of ________.

A) protons in the nucleus

8) Sedimentary rocks account for about what percentage of the Earth's outermost 10 kilometers of rock (first percentage). Also, what percentage of the Earth's continental area is covered by sedimentary rocks (second percentage)?

B) 5% & 75%

10) What is the chemical formula for dolomite, the major mineral in dolostones?

B) CaMg(CO3)2

10) ________, a popular natural philosophy of the 17th and early 18th centuries, was based on a firm belief in a very short geologic history for Earth.

B) Catastrophism

25) ________ has the same mineral composition as andesite?

B) Diorite

3) ________ cement produces bright-red and yellow colors in some sandstone

B) Iron oxide

1) In 1980, ________ was the first Cascade Range volcano to erupt since Mt. Lassen, California, in 1915-16.

B) Mt. St. Helens

9) The ________ ocean basin is rimmed by the most subduction zones.

B) Pacific

17) ________ is a volcanic rock that is extremely vesicular and glassy

B) Pumice

16) ________ are usually the most abundant gases emitted during basaltic volcanism.

B) Water and carbon dioxide

28) The Columbia Plateau in Washington and Oregon is ________.

B) a flood basalt plateau

17) Active mountain belts are most likely to be found ________.

B) along the margins of continents

33) Mount St. Helens is ________.

B) an explosive stratovolcano

6) Which of the following best describes the fundamental concept of superposition?

B) any sedimentary deposit accumulates on older rock or sediment layers

35) Changing the composition of magma by incorporating surrounding host rock is known as ________.

B) assimilation

31) Which igneous rock or magma has the lowest silica (SiO2) content?

B) basalt

48) A ________ is the largest, discordant body of intrusive, igneous rock.

B) batholith

2) Which of the following is/are most susceptible to chemical weathering by dissolution?

B) calcite

1) Clay minerals formed from gabbro or diorite bedrock illustrate which kind of weathering?

B) chemical

16) All of the following provide evidence or clues to the composition of Earth's interior except for ________.

B) comets

36) All of the following are factors that affect the generation of magma except for ________.

B) crystal size

32) Hornblende and the other amphiboles have what type of silicate structure?

B) double chains

11) Which one of the following is an important, mechanical weathering process for enlarging fractures and extending them deeper into large boulders and bedrock?

B) frost wedging

14) Pockets of magmas can be formed by the melting of deep continental crust heated by the intrusion of other magmas. Which of the following correctly describes this process?

B) intrusion of basaltic magma causes deep crustal rocks to melt, producing andesitic or rhyolitic magmas

5) Which of the following describes a characteristic process in the formation of a pedalfer soil?

B) iron oxides and aluminum-rich clays are precipitated in the B-horizon

50) A ________ is a near surface, intrusive, igneous rock body that results from local inflation of a horizontal sill.

B) laccolith

6) Why is the humus layer typically thicker in a cool, temperate, forest soil than in a tropical rainforest soil?

B) less humus is produced in the cool, temperate forest but the rate of decay and oxidation is slower than in a tropical rainforest

7) The ________ forms the relatively cool, brittle plates of plate tectonics

B) lithosphere

46) Why do magmas rise toward Earth's surface?

B) magmas are mainly liquid and contain dissolved fluids such as water; most are less dense than the adjacent solid rock

2) Which type of basaltic lava flow has a fairly smooth, unfragmented, ropy surface?

B) pahoehoe

24) A(n) ________ texture represents a single, long period of cooling and crystallization.

B) phaneritic

3) Which one of the following observations and inferences is consistent with the idea of uniformitarianism?

B) sand rolling along a stream bottom shows that sediment is moving downstream

12) The composition of the core of Earth is thought to be ________.

B) solid iron-nickel alloy

12) Why would a plume of solid silicate rock rising slowly from deep in the mantle begin melting as it neared the base of the lithosphere?

B) temperatures remain high as lowered pressures decrease melting temperatures

27) Which one of the following statements concerning cinder cones is false?

B) the cinders and other pyroclastic particles are consolidated into welded tuff

14) Under similar warm, moist climatic conditions, why would basalt and gabbro generally have higher chemical weathering rates than rhyolite and granite?

B) the ferromagnesian minerals in the gabbro and basalt are subject to oxidation and chemical breakdown

11) Which of the following best characterizes ferromagnesian silicates?

B) they are black to dark-green, silicate minerals containing iron and magnesium

21) Which of the following are used for studying rocks with a polarizing microscope?

B) thin sections

21) An atom's mass number is 13 and its atomic number is 6. How many neutrons are in its nucleus?

C) 7

30) ________ is the dominant lava erupted from volcanoes on Hawaii and Iceland

C) Basalt

20) ________ is the dominant feldspar in basalt.

C) Plagioclase

9) ________ is often paraphrased as "the present is the key to the past."

C) Uniformitarianism

42) Which of the following statements best describes the big Hawaiian volcanoes?

C) are situated in the interior of a large, Pacific plate above a hot spot deep in the mantle

4) Volcanic bombs originate ________.

C) as erupted magma blobs that partly congeal before falling to the ground

11) The ________ is not a part of the Earth's physical environment

C) astrosphere

4) Which of the following is an accurate description of ionic bonding?

C) atoms of different elements, having gained or lost electrons, form negative and positive ions that are bonded together by attractive forces between ions with opposite charges

5) Which natural phenomenon occurs for many years after major explosive volcanic eruptions such as Tambora and Pinatubo?

C) brilliantly colored sunrises and sunsets

2) Which major component of detrital sedimentary rocks only rarely occurs as a primary mineral in igneous rocks?

C) clays

23) In which type of chemical bonding are electrons shared between adjacent atoms?

C) covalent

15) The ________ is the thinnest layer of the Earth.

C) crust

6) What mineral is the hardest known substance in nature?

C) diamond

22) Which statement about the May, 1980, eruption of Mount St. Helens is false?

C) during the eruptive period, the mountain peak was substantially built up by new lava flows and pyroclastic debris

29) Which kind of eruptive activity is most likely to be highly explosive?

C) eruptions of big, continental margin, composite cones or stratovolcanoes

34) The last minerals to crystallize on Bowen's Reaction Series result in igneous rocks with a ________ composition.

C) felsic

17) Which mineral is easily soluble in water at room temperature conditions?

C) halite

2) Which magma is most likely to quench (congeal) to a natural glass?

C) highly viscous; cools quickly

1) Which of the following best defines a mineral and a rock?

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

30) Which of the following describes the light reflecting and transmission characteristics of a mineral?

C) luster

19) Which of the following minerals crystallize early in Bowen's reaction series?

C) olivine

39) The recent (geologically) volcanic activity in Yellowstone National Park is ________.

C) related to intraplate, hot spot volcanism

41) Which one of the following best describes volcanism in the Cascade Range, northwestern U. S.?

C) related to plate subduction

25) Which group of minerals are the most abundant in the Earth's crust?

C) silicates

31) Which kind of volcanism is typical of mid-oceanic ridge systems?

C) submarine; basaltic lava flows

3) The sizes, shapes, and arrangements of mineral grains in an igneous rock are known as ________.

C) texture

38) Which region has the greatest concentration of currently active volcanoes?

C) the circum-Pacific area