Metamorphism can affect only sedimentary rocks.
The major source of oxygen in Earth’s atmosphere is from the decay of plants.
Quartz weathers readily to aluminum-rich clay minerals.
During the Cenozoic era, the eastern and western margins of North America
experienced similar geologic events.
If the earth were not rotating, there would be no Coriolis force.
The atmosphere is an efficient absorber of the longer wavelengths of terrestrial
radiation.
Seawalls stabilize beaches producing renewed deposition on the beach.
Galileo believed in a Sun-centered view of the universe.
A southwest wind blows toward the northeast.
Fossils from the sea floor became older with increased distance from the ridges.
The larger the magnitude number, the brighter will be the star.
Quartz is quite resistant to weathering and is an important component of sands in
riverbeds and on beaches.
Distance variations between Earth and the Sun are very important in understanding
seasonal temperature variations.
Albedo is a constant 30 percent everywhere on Earth.
The star Vega will be the North Star in a few thousand years.
Quartz sand is a useless commodity unless you want to rebuild a beach.
Quartz is quite resistant to weathering and is an important component of sands in
riverbeds and on beaches.
The youngest rocks found on the moon by Apollo missions are older than all but a few
rocks on Earth.
Although current technology will allow the construction of much larger optical
telescopes, astronomers see no advantage in building these larger instruments.
The region where the trade winds meet is also called the doldrums.
The geologic time scale was devised before numerical dating using radioactivity was
invented.
All minerals exhibit cleavage.
When air rises, it expands and cools adiabatically.
Ferromagnesian minerals (like olivine and pyroxene) that crystallize at high
temperatures in Bowen’s reaction series are generally much less susceptible to chemical
weathering than quartz.
All of geologic time prior to the beginning of the Paleozoic era is termed the
Phanerozoic eon.
During the Cenozoic era, a great wedge of sediments from the eroding Rockies created
the Great Plains.
The Basin and Range region of the western United States is an excellent example of a
mountainous desert landscape.
Well preserved remains of many tiny organisms extend the record of life back beyond 5
billion years.
The red shift refers to the tendency of stars to cool and become red in color.
The ocean ridge systems that make up the major divergent plate boundaries are a source
of frequent large earthquakes and tsunamis.
Point bars are depositional features located along the outer portions of meander bends.
When a wave impinges on a beach, the particle motion changes from elliptical to
circular, producing the characteristic curl form of breaking waves.
Sand, silt, and clays deposited on the ocean floor are described as terrigenous
sediments.
Generally the water vapor content of the air over a tropical desert exceeds that of the air
over the polar ice caps.
Impact craters are common on the surface of all of the planets except Earth and a few
moons with active tectonics, volcanism, or both.
Air that resists vertical motion is described as being stable.
The existence of jet streams was first determined by Ben Franklin as a result of his kite
experiments.
Seamounts ________.
A) are a special type of oceanic trench
B) are volcanoes that form on the ocean floor
C) form only in the Pacific Ocean basin
D) are submarine canyons found near Australia
If you were to examine the profile of a typical river, you would probably find that the
gradient is ________.
A) steepest near the mouth
B) steepest near the head
C) the same at both the head and mouth
D) none of these
Why are raindrops larger than 5 millimeters rare?
A) There is no process to form large raindrops in clouds.
B) Because they start as snowflakes, they must grow much larger than 5 millimeters
while falling from a cloud without sublimating.
C) The frictional drag from falling is greater than the surface tension that holds the
drops together when they get larger than 5 millimeters.
D) If they form larger than 5 millimeters then they will reach the ground as snow or hail
instead of rain because they cannot melt completely.
Large megathrust earthquakes in the mountainous regions flanking the Mediterranean
sea are generally due to ________.
A) the collision of the African Plate with Eurasia
B) the collision of the African Plate with Southeast Asia
C) the collision of the Indian Plate with Eurasia
D) the collision of the Indian Plate with Southeast Asia
You are given a six-month assignment by your employer to work at a remote location in
Australia. In order to pack as lightly as possible, you try to research the climate of the
small town in Australia, but there is little data since no major cities are located within
300 miles. What are some geographic or other considerations that might help you
“predict” what general weather patterns exist at the location?
The crests of mid-oceanic ridges ________.
A) are heavily mantled with sediment
B) lie at depths exceeding 6 kilometers
C) contain active rift zones
D) are geologically old features
The North America craton formed as a result of ________.
A) collision of older crustal fragments composed of island arcs and other fragments
B) the collision of two continents to form a supercontinent
C) the break-up of a large supercontinent
D) a huge volcanic eruption
E) the metamorphism of oceanic crust
A stream’s turbulence is strongly influenced by its ________.
A) temperature
B) sediment load
C) velocity
D) viscosity
E) sinuosity
New York and London are on two separate plates so the distance between the cities is
________.
A) stationary
B) increasing
C) decreasing
D) always changing direction
Why are there virtually no sediments at ocean ridges, even when they are close to land?
A) The sediments get buried by volcanic rocks, so are not visible.
B) The sediments get deflected from the topographic high of the ridge.
C) The crust is too young; there hasn’t been enough time for sediments to accumulate.
D) No one knows, it is one of the mysteries of geology.
Which of the following does not happen when the humidity exceeds 100%?
A) It rains
B) It snows
C) It gets warmer
D) Clouds form
E) It hails
Galileo observed several features using the telescope. Which one of the following did
he not discover?
A) sunspots
B) phases of Venus
C) Jupiter’s four largest moons
D) the two moons of Mars
Both the Earth’s moon and Mars have thick layers of loose surface materials. How are
they different?
A) They are not different. They are both comprised primarily of ejecta from impacts
that accumulates on the surface.
B) They are not different. Both have surfaces that are remnant soils from a period when
they had water on the surface.
C) They are different. Lunar regolith is mostly ejecta from impacts, whereas Martian
soil is more earthlike with classic soils developed by weathering of rock.
D) They are different. Lunar regolith is mostly ejecta from impacts whereas Martian
regolith is primarily wind-blown dust and sand on older surfaces that vary from water
laid surfaces to volcanic surfaces.
Which mechanism for heat transfer can operate in a vacuum?
A) contraction
B) conduction
C) radiation
D) convection
Which of the following is not a significant factor in determining whether precipitation
will soak into the ground or run off on the surfaces?
A) steepness of the slope
B) vegetation
C) saturation level
D) lithology
E) amount and duration of precipitation
Given an environmental lapse rate of 5oC/1000 m and a dry adiabatic of 10oC, what
would be the temperature of unsaturated surface air after it rises to height of 2000 m if
its surface temperature had been 25oC?
A) 25oC
B) 20oC
C) 15oC
D) 10oC
E) 5oC
The 2011 earthquake and tsunami in Japan killed approximately 21,000 people while
the 2010 earthquake in Haiti killed approximately 316,000 people because ________.
A) the earthquake in Haiti was a larger magnitude (released more energy) than the one
in Japan
B) the earthquake in Haiti generated a very large tsunami that killed most of the people
C) the construction methods in Haiti were not as good as those used in Japan
D) the population of Haiti was much greater than that of northern Japan where the
earthquake occurred
E) All of the above were factors.
Which main-sequence stars are the least massive?
A) red
B) orange
C) yellow
D) blue
A 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, upstream of the dam?
A) The river will downcut.
B) The river will start to deposit sand and gravel, frequently spilling out of its channel.
C) The river will not change.
D) The river will respond to the new temporary base level and cut laterally outside its
valley, widening the valley.
On a typical seismogram, ________ will show the highest amplitudes.
A) P waves
B) S waves
C) surface waves
D) body waves
The principle of horizontality which states that sediments are usually deposited in
relatively flat layers is important because ________.
A) it showed that catastrophism could not explain the flat layers of the earth
B) it provided a way to recognize if rocks had been deformed
C) it provided an explanation how rocks behave in a depositional setting
D) it allowed geologists to correlate sedimentary units over large distances
Faults are “locked” because ________.
A) earthquakes only form when the rocks are free to move
B) high confining pressure increases friction on the fault
C) otherwise they would have earthquakes all the time
D) elastic rebound occurs on faults
E) major faults occur at plate boundaries that only move occasionally
The first modern astronomer to propose a Sun-centered universe was ________.
A) Sir Isaac Newton
B) Galileo
C) Tycho Brahe
D) Nicolaus Copernicus
Neptune and Uranus both appear bluish in sunlight whereas Jupiter and Saturn are
multicolored. Why are Neptune and Uranus blue?
A) They contain ice crystals high in the atmosphere, and water ice is blue.
B) They contain methane ice in their atmosphere which causes the color.
C) They do not contain dust and debris in the atmosphere, like Saturn and Jupiter.
D) The effect is not real; it is just due to low light levels.
The major adaptions that made it possible for mammals to evolve into their modern
forms included all of the following except ________.
A) they became significantly larger
B) they developed a more efficient respiratory system
C) their brains increased in capacity
D) they developed specialized teeth to adapt to a varied diet
E) they developed specialized limbs to adapt to a varied life style
Clouds are classified on the basis of their ________.
A) thickness
B) height
C) shape or form
D) form and height
E) thickness and height
Kilauea is an example of a ________.
A) shield volcano
B) cinder cone
C) lava dome
D) volcanic neck
Which of the following is the correct definition of stream gradient?
A) the distance traveled by water in a channel times a drop in elevation
B) the drop in elevation of a stream divided by the distance the water travels
C) the water pressure at the bottom of the stream divided by the stream’s width
D) the increase in discharge of a stream per unit drop in elevation
The north end of Earth’s axis is tilted 23.5 degrees toward the Sun on ________.
A) December 21 or 22
B) March 21 or 22
C) June 21 or 22
D) September 22 or 23
E) none of the above
There are three possible fates for the universe: 1) eternal expansion; 2) total collapse; or
3) some equilibrium condition with no further motion. What conditions might favor one
result over the other?
A) Critical velocityis there enough momentum to continue expansion forever?
B) Critical densityis there enough mass in the universe to cause gravitational collapse?
C) Critical energyis there enough energy in the universe to maintain either expansion or
collapse?
D) Critical volumeis the universe large enough for unlimited expansion?
All of the following are factors that affect rates of weathering except for ________.
A) rock characteristics
B) surface area
C) climate
D) geologic age of earth materials
Earth receives energy from the Sun in this way.
A) conduction
B) convection
C) radiation
D) all of these
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.
A barrier built at a right angle to the beach for the purpose of trapping sand that is
moving parallel to the shore 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 are the mass and charge of an alpha particle?
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.
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.
The two most important elements in a climatic description are ________ and ________.
What is the smallest particle of matter that exhibits and defines the distinctive chemical
characteristics of the individual elements?
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.
Use one of the following five terms to fill in the blanks for the questions below:
Continental crust, Asthenosphere, Mantle, Lithosphere, Oceanic crust
________ makes up the largest part of the volume of the earth.
The average distance from Earth to the Sun is called the ________ unit.
Why is the vertical movement of air critical to the formation of clouds and
precipitation?
What role do adiabatic temperature changes play in these processes?
In the figure above, identify the letter corresponding to a playa or salt flat.
Einstein’s equation E = mc2 describes the conversion of mass to energy that occurs
during nuclear fusion. If a billion joules of energy are released by this process, how
much mass has been consumed? (Recall, a joule is a Nt-m or kg-m2/s2 and the speed of
light is ~300 million m/s.)
Because deep ocean circulation is driven largely by variations in water temperature and
salinity, it is also called ________ circulation.
Give the term that best answers each phrase.
small basaltic cones built during one short, eruptive episode
How does climate change affect the hydrologic cycle?
The distance light travels in a year, called a(n) ________, is used by astronomers to
measure stellar distances.