The San Andreas Fault was created
A) during the Cenozoic.
B) by the collision of the eastward moving North American Plate and the Pacific ridge.
C) by the same tectonic activity that formed the Gulf of California.
D) by Cenozoic tectonic activity that also formed the Gulf of California as the North
American Plate collided with the Pacific ridge.
Answer:
If the rock particles in a sedimentary rock are relatively small with well sorted and well
rounded grains, we can infer that the sediment grains traveled a
A) short distance.
B) long distance for a long time.
C) long distance in a short time.
D) short distance for a long time.
Answer:
A rock is thrown upward at 50 with respect to the horizontal. As it rises, its vertical
component of velocity
A) increases.
B) remains unchanged.
C) decreases.
Answer:
Lakes lying in granite basins, such as those in the northeastern U.S., tend to become
acidified by acid rain more readily than lakes lying in limestone basins, such as those
found in the midwestern U.S. Why is this so?
A) The granite contains acidic minerals that dissolve in the rain water and are added to
the lakes.
B) Since the acidified water cannot percolate through the granite, the acid in the lakes
becomes more concentrated.
C) The limestone, which is calcium carbonate, serves to neutralize the acid in the rain.
D) There is more acid rain in the northeast than in the midwestern regions of the U.S.
Answer:
Earth’s atmosphere probably developed from gases escaping from its interior during
volcanic eruptions. This outgassing also produced Earth’s
A) protective ozone layer.
B) oceans.
C) numerous mountain belts.
D) ionosphere.
Answer:
Fair weather can usually be expected with the approach of a
A) low pressure system.
B) high pressure system.
Answer:
Sound will be louder when a struck tuning fork is held
A) in the air.
B) with its base against a tabletop.
C) with its prongs in shallow water.
D) in your closed fist.
Answer:
The break-up of Pangaea resulted in
A) a worldwide rise in sea level.
B) a worldwide drop in sea level.
C) no significant change in sea level.
D) alternating sea level changes.
Answer:
In radioactive decay, when the parent material decays to one-quarter of its original
amount, the time is
A) one half-life.
B) two half-lives.
C) three half-lives.
D) four half-lives.
Answer:
Spacetime is curved by
A) mass.
B) the force of gravity.
C) quantum fluctuations.
D) the vacuum force.
Answer:
Fatty acid molecules can align to form a barrier called a bilipid layer, shown below. In
this schematic, the ionic end of the fatty acid is shown as a circle and the nonpolar
chain is shown as a squiggly line.
From the schematic above: why do nonpolar molecules have a difficult time passing
through the bilipid layer?
A) The nonpolar molecules are too large for the space through which they need to pass.
B) The nonpolar molecules are repelled by the polar water molecules.
C) The nonpolar molecules have a difficult time getting past the ionic heads of the fatty
acid molecules, which are surrounded by water molecules.
D) Nonpolar molecules tend to bind with the bilipid layer, thus inhibiting their passage.
Answer:
Which equation best describes the reaction represented in the illustration above?
A) 2 + 2 + → 2 + 2
B) 2 + 2 + → 2 + 2 DBA
C) 2 + 2 + → 2 + 2
D) 2 + 2 + → 2 + 2
Answer:
An iron ball and a wooden ball of the same size are dropped from a tall tower. Taking
air resistance into consideration, the object to hit the ground first will be the
A) lighter wooden ball.
B) heavier iron ball.
C) both hit at the same time.
D) not enough information
Answer:
Chemistry is the study of
A) matter.
B) transformations of matter.
C) only microscopic phenomena.
D) only macroscopic phenomena.
E) both A and B
Answer:
At the end of 1/2 second an apple freely falling from rest has a speed of
A) 1 m/s.
B) 5 m/s.
C) 10 m/s.
D) more than 10 m/s.
Answer:
The reactants shown schematically below represent iron oxide, and carbon
monoxide, CO. Which of the following is the correct full balanced chemical equation
for what is depicted?
A) + 3 CO → 2 Fe + 3
B) + 3 CO → 3 FeO + 2 C
C) + 3 CO → 3 Fe + 2 C
D) + 3 CO → 2 Fe + 3 O
Answer:
The formations of rock hanging from the roofs of caves are called
A) moraines.
B) stalactites.
C) stalagmites.
D) dikes.
Answer:
Why isn’t distillation used commercially to purify water?
A) Water requires large amounts of energy to boil affordably.
B) Bacteria are not killed during the distillation process.
C) Odd smelling contaminants boil at lower temperatures than water and so are
impossible to remove.
D) Distillation does not remove suspended particles such as dirt and humus.
E) none of the above
Answer:
If a weighted air-filled balloon sinks in deep water, it will
A) likely sink to an equilibrium level before reaching the bottom.
B) likely burst if water pressure is great enough.
C) become less dense as it sinks.
D) be acted on by a continually decreasing buoyant force.
E) none of the above
Answer:
Hydrogen sulfide, H2S, burns in the presence of oxygen, , to produce water, O,
and sulfur dioxide, SO2. Through this reaction, is sulfur oxidized or reduced?
2 S + 3 → 2 O + 2
A) Sulfur is reduced.
B) Sulfur is oxidized.
C) Sulfur is both oxidized and reduced.
D) Sulfur is neither oxidized nor reduced.
Answer:
When you tune a radio to a certain station, you match the frequency of the internal
electrical circuit to the frequency of that radio station, which illustrates
A) forced vibrations.
B) resonance.
C) beats.
D) reverberation.
E) wave interference.
Answer:
The most important agent of erosion is
A) water.
B) glaciation.
C) wind.
D) wave action.
Answer:
In contrast to Aristotle’s way of explaining nature, Galileo relied on
A) experiment.
B) logic.
C) patterns.
D) mathematics.
Answer:
A catalytic converter increases the amount of carbon dioxide emitted by an automobile.
Is this good news or bad news?
A) bad news because carbon dioxide contributes to global warming
B) good news because plants thrive on carbon dioxide
C) bad news because the carbon dioxide contributes to acid rain
D) good news because it means more noxious chemicals are not being emitted
Answer:
The amount of light reflected from the front surface of common window glass is about
A) 4%.
B) 8%.
C) 40%.
D) 92%.
E) 96%.
Answer:
In comparison to S-waves, P-waves
A) cannot travel through solids, they only travel through fluids.
B) are the fastest of all seismic waves and the first to register on a seismograph.
C) are the second to register on a seismograph.
D) all of the above
Answer:
A space probe in remote outer space continues moving
A) because some kind of force acts on it.
B) in a curved path.
C) even though no force acts on it.
D) due to gravity.
Answer:
A suitable electric pump in an electric circuit is a
A) chemical battery.
B) generator.
C) both of these
D) neither of these
Answer:
When Po emits a beta particle, it transforms into a new element. What are the
atomic number and atomic mass of this new element?
A) atomic number = 84; atomic mass = 219
B) atomic number = 86; atomic mass = 214
C) atomic number = 85; atomic mass = 218
D) atomic number = 82; atomic mass = 214
Answer:
A sustained electric current can be achieved with a
A) generator.
B) battery.
C) both
D) none of the above
Answer:
Why is it usually necessary for an air mass to rise if it is to produce precipitation?
Answer:
Which would have the greater effect on Earth’s ocean tidesa Moon with a greater
diameter, or Earth with an increased diameter? Explain.
Answer:
Toss a rock at an angle into the air and it follows a curved path. Its velocity at any
instant can be resolved into horizontal and vertical components. Which of these
components changes with time, and why?
Answer:
The majority of elements in the Periodic Table are metallic. Does this mean that most
minerals are metallic?
Answer:
Why does a hot dog pant?
Answer:
What is partial melting?
Answer:
Fill a U-tube with water and the level in both ends is the same. Water seeks its own
level. Why?
Answer:
Work is done on an object when you lift it against gravity. How does this work relate to
gravitational potential energy? If the lifted object is dropped, what becomes of this
energy?
Answer:
Why is it believed that large parts of the United States were once covered by shallow
seas?
Answer:
How does movement in a normal fault differ from that in a reverse fault?
Answer:
Distinguish between pressure and force in the case of weighing yourself on a common
bathroom scale.
Answer:
In terms of momentum, why is a drinking glass less likely to break if it falls on a
carpeted floor than falling on a hard concrete floor?
Answer:
Rainwater becomes acidic as it falls through the air. How does this affect areas of Karst
topography?
Answer:
Why does a July day in the Gulf of Mexico generally feel appreciably hotter than a July
day in Arizona?
Answer:
Describe the fate of planet Earth if the Sun were to collapse to a black hole.
Answer:
Explain the relationship between the general circulation of the air and the circulation of
ocean currents.
Answer: