An extreme example of the greenhouse effect is thought to be associated with an
abundance of carbon dioxide in the Martian atmosphere.
Ash and lapilli are different sized pyroclastic particles.
The Sun is considered an average star.
Blowouts are broad, shallow depressions excavated by deflation.
Shields and stable platforms are typically found in the interior regions of a continent.
One river can be the base level for another.
Clams, sponges, and other bottom-dwelling animals are called benthos organisms.
A basaltic volcano is likely to produce an explosive column that would endanger flying
aircraft.
The apparent annual path of the Sun upon the celestial sphere is called the ecliptic.
If the earth did not have an atmosphere, there would still be a hydrologic cycle.
The greater the density, the steeper the angle of descent for the subducting slab.
Annual temperature ranges are high throughout a humid continental climate.
Scientists only use measurements that are known to be reliable and accurate.
Tidal flats are submerged during ebb tide.
The micas, biotite and muscovite, both exhibit one direction of cleavage.
Thermoclines in the ocean are best developed at lower latitudes.
Comets are thought to be composed of dust and tiny, icy particles encased in small,
solidified, metallic fragments.
The earth is sometimes called “The Blue Planet” because the atmosphere appears blue
in sunlight.
The bodies of our solar system began forming about 5 billion years ago from an
enormous cloud of minute rocky fragments and gases.
The greatest storm surge and highest winds occur in the right-front quadrant of
Northern Hemisphere hurricanes.
Metals are good conductors of electricity because their protons can roam freely
throughout the material.
If you are north of the Tropic of Cancer, you will never see stars south of the celestial
equator.
Examine the words and/or phrases for each question below and determine the
relationship among the majority of words/phrases. Choose the option which does not fit
the pattern.
Under the right circumstances, any rock can be transformed into another type of rock in
the rock cycle.
A brown mineral specimen and a green mineral specimen have identical hardness;
therefore, they are the same mineral, but just happen to be different color
Volcanic activity was common in western North America during much of Cenozoic
time.
The continental rise lies at the bottom of the continental slope.
The aphotic zone is the near-surface zone of the ocean where light is strong enough for
photosynthesis to occur.
Atoms are too small to be seen with an optical microscope.
Arid and semiarid climates cover nearly one-third of Earth’s land surface.
Divergence aloft helps maintain surface lows.
Compaction would probably be most significant as a lithification process for ________.
A) shale
B) sandstone
C) conglomerate
D) breccia
Burial of rocks increases the confining pressure so that deeply buried rocks are more
likely to ________ than shallow rocks.
A) fracture
B) fold
C) deform
D) shear
Which of the following best describes the process of eluviation?
A) removal of very fine-sized silt and clay particles from the A and E soil horizons
B) buildup of calcite in the B-horizon of pedocal soils
C) removal of soluble chemical constituents from the A and B soil horizons
D) feldspar decomposition and leaching of the soluble products from the C soil horizon
Structural damage from seismic vibrations would be worse ________.
A) where buildings were built to code on solid rock
B) where older buildings were built on a thick layer of sediment
C) where the focus is about 800 kilometers below the surface
D) where buildings are made mostly of wood
What is the modern explanation for what the ancient Chinese called “guest stars”?
A) They are comets.
B) They are planets.
C) They are Nova or Supernova.
D) They are meteorites.
E) None of the above.
A solar telescope would quickly incinerate your eyes, so how do astronomers save their
eyes when looking at the Sun?
A) They use heavy filters to block out light, particularly at specific wavelengths.
B) They project the telescope image onto a large screen or record the image with a
camera.
C) They use a special water cooled camera system to avoid superheating the camera.
D) They look at the image very quickly.
Which electrons are responsible for most chemical bonding?
A) outer electron shell because these electrons can be readily exchanged with adjacent
atoms
B) innermost electron shell because the electrons can be transferred to the nucleus
C) middle electron shell because they are intermediate in distance between the nucleus
and the adjacent atom that bonds with the atom
D) Any electron can exchange with adjacent atoms to form a bond; there is no
preference.
Chalk forms from ________.
A) the hard parts of microscopic organisms that accumulate on the sea floor
B) magnesium rich fluids that chemically alter limestone bearing reefs
C) direct precipitation from seawater
D) evaporation of magnesium rich waters
The Bergeron Process suggests that the coexistence of ice crystals and supercooled
water droplets in a cloud is ideal for producing rain because ________.
A) the ice crystals have a stronger affinity for water vapor than does liquid water.
B) the ice crystals have a stronger affinity for liquid water than does water vapor
C) the liquid water has a stronger affinity for water vapor than do ice crystals.
D) the ice crystals provide nuclei needed to form more water droplets
E) the ice crystals provide the nuclei for snowflakes to form as precipitation
Most granitic batholiths are generated ________.
A) as intrusions beneath composite volcanos along convergent plate margins
B) where spreading ridges occur beneath continents
C) along transform faults, which accounts for their linear geographic distribution
D) along hot spot chains beneath continents, like a welder cutting through the continent
to make a linear belt of intrusive granites
This scientist determined the nature of the forces that kept the planets in their orbits.
A) Sir Isaac Newton
B) Galileo
C) Tycho Brahe
D) Nicolaus Copernicus
Rounding of angular edges of rock outcropping and formation of insitu, spherical
boulders are both indications of ________.
A) chemical weather and associated spheroidal weathering
B) rock fall onto sharp edges breaking of angular corners of rock outcrops
C) dissolution of the rock surface by acid rain
D) humans and animals walking across the Earth’s surface, wearing away the surface
Light is an electromagnetic wave, meaning an electric field and magnetic field travel
together, oscillating at specific frequency. All metals are electrical conductors and all
metals are also opaque to light. Why might this be, knowing the nature of light waves?
A) The metal atoms absorb the light into their nucleus.
B) The free electrons in the metal capture the light.
C) The electric field of the wave excites electrons, which move through the solid
conductor
and dissipate the electric field, stopping the light wave.
D) The magnetic field polarizes iron, so all metals have a similar property, so when the
magnetic field interacts with atoms, it dissipates the wave.
Almost ________ of Australia is desert.
A) 10%
B) 20%
C) 30%
D) 40%
E) 50%
Why do storm systems move from west to east in mid latitudes of the Northern
Hemisphere?
A) The storms are steered by approximately west to east winds aloft that are
approximately geostrophic winds produced by Coriolis forces.
B) The prevailing wind is from the west.
C) The prevailing wind is from the east, and the storm systems move toward the surface
flow.
D) The continents break up air flow that would normally be south to north and the
Coriolis force turns the storms to the right, or toward the east.
Productivity is highest in ________.
A) polar oceans
B) tropical oceans
C) temperate oceans
D) none of the above
A meandering river is flowing in a broad, alluvial valley and the river is silt-laden but
also moves sand and a small amount of gravel. The government decides to build a dam
across the valley for power and flood control. What will happen to the river
downstream of the dam?
A) The river will start to deposit sand and gravel, frequently spilling out of its channel.
B) The river will not change.
C) The river will respond to the new temporary base level and cut laterally outside its
valley, widening the valley.
D) The trapping of silt in the reservoir will change the river to a braided stream because
it will only have sand and gravel in its sediment load.
Land heats and cools more than water because ________.
A) water gives off its heat in the form of warm water vapor with less efficiency than
land
B) land is opaque so only the surface is heated
C) it takes more energy to heat land than to heat water but land retains the heat better
D) there is more water surfaces than land so the heat is spread out more efficiently in
water bodies
The 2010 deep water horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico was a tragedy brought on
in part by new technology allowing development of oil and gas reserves in deep water.
Given the scope of the spill, why would companies take a risk of such a disaster given
the scope of the litigation following the disaster?
A) They didn’t care about the risk, they just drove forward.
B) The oil and gas industry is poor at assessing risk, and didn’t understand the risk.
C) The potential profit is so large from a major oil find that the companies take the risk,
try to use all cautions to minimize risk, but sometimes fail.
D) They just assume their lawyers can win any lawsuit, regardless of the disaster.
Prior to the formation of the protostar, ________.
A) the interstellar clouds are composed of equal amounts of hydrogen and helium
B) the temperature of the cloud is greater than 10,000 K
C) nuclear fusion converts hydrogen to helium
D) nuclear fusion does not occur
The subpolar low (polar front) is ________.
A) a zone where the trade winds meet
B) the forward edge of the Antarctic ice cap
C) a zone where the polar easterlies and the westerlies converge
D) the boundary between frozen and liquid
Which of the following was an important factor in determining the different parts of the
solar system where the small rocky planets formed versus where the light, gaseous
planets formed?
A) density
B) viscosity
C) temperature
D) gravity
E) velocity
What mineral is the hardest known substance in nature?
A) silicate
B) native gold
C) diamond
D) muscovite
The mixing ratio = mass of water vapor (grams)/ mass of dry air (kilograms). So if you
have 10 grams of water vapor in 100 kilograms of dry air, what is the mixing ratio?
A) 10 g/kg
B) 100 g/kg
C) 0.1 g/kg
D) 0.01 g/kg
E) 1 g/kg
Thunderstorms form from what type of cloud?
A) cumulonimbus
B) stratus
C) altostratus
D) cirrus
Which type of unconformity would generally indicate the greatest amount of erosion
prior to deposition of the overlying rocks?
A) nonconformity
B) angular unconformity
C) disconformity
D) buttress unconformity
Which of the following generally has the lowest surface slope?
A) continental slope
B) continental rise
C) continental shelf
D) beach shoreface
Which of the following is not a type of fog caused by cooling of near surface air to
below its dew point?
A) radiation fog
B) frontal fog
C) advection fog
D) upslope fog
High clouds that form delicate veil-like patches or extended wispy fibers are termed
________.
A) cumulus
B) stratus
C) cirrus
D) alto
Mass wasting, a process that often occurs between weathering and erosion, involves
________.
A) the chemical dissolution of minerals due to water
B) the mechanical breakdown of minerals due to exposure to the Sun and atmosphere
C) the transport of material by water, wind, or ice
D) the transport of material due to gravity
Unconformities which represent a break in the geologic record of deposition are
important because ________.
A) they cannot be mapped
B) they represent a period of major activity
C) the fossils found in the unconformities can be used to correlate global time period
D) they give an indication of sea level rise within an ocean basin
In the science fiction book series “Red Mars, Green Mars, Blue Mars” the author spins
a story of “terraforming” Mars with the formation of oceans and a breathable
atmosphere by the end of the series. The author describes a scenario, however, where
the inhabitants of this fictional world were able to live relatively normally on most of
the world but not on Olympus Mons and the Tharsus region. Assuming you could create
a breathable atmosphere as described in the books, is the description of where you
might live on Mars realistic, or just spinning a yarn?
A) No, it is absurd. Even with an atmosphere, it would be too cold to live anywhere on
Mars.
B) Yes, because Olympus Mons and the Tharsus region are higher above the Martian
plains than Mt. Everest, so the air would always be dramatically thinner and colder
there, even with an Earth atmosphere.
C) No, because you could use water ice from these high altitude sites whereas there is
no water at lower elevations on Mars.
D) No, because these regions are so rugged it would be impossible to live in the
Martian mountains, regardless of an atmosphere or not.
What type of front is illustrated in the diagram below?
High clouds that form delicate veil-like patches or wispy fibers are called ________
clouds.
Why are meteorites a possible source of information regarding the origin and
composition of Earth? Also, what other “clues” might be present in meteorites?
Briefly explain how Plate Tectonic Theory can explain evidence that some tropical
regions have experienced glaciation in the past but cannot explain the Quaternary Ice
Ages.
Explain why the Mesosaurus was a good example to support Wegener’s ideas.
The Laramide Rockies formed between about 85-50 million years ago. A popular theory
is this event was caused by “flat slab subduction” of over-thickened oceanic crust. From
your understanding of mountain building processes in this part of the course, evaluate
the following question(s).
If these mountains formed 50 million years ago, why are they still high?
________ refers to sediments deposited from streams.
On the blanks provided, fill in the name of the labeled features that formed as a product
of alpine glaciation.
Af and Am climates form a discontinuous belt astride the ________.
Briefly explain why the oceanic ridges are higher than the surrounding ocean basins?
Label the troposphere, thermosphere, mesosphere, and stratosphere on the diagram
below.
________ continental margins occur where oceanic lithosphere is being subducted
beneath the edge of a continent.
By international agreement, lesser tropical cyclones are given different names based on
the strength of their winds. When a cyclone’s strongest winds do not exceed 61
kilometers (38 miles) per hour, it is called a(n) ________.
Examine the words and/or phrases for each question below and determine the
relationship among the majority of words/phrases. Choose the option which does not fit
the pattern.
What energy resource is present in the oceans with far more energy reserves than
conventional oil and gas?
The two types of polar climates are the ________ climate (ET) and the ________
climate (EF).