1) Which of the following is a required characteristic of minerals?
a)Inorganic solid.
b) Naturally formed.
c)Distinct chemical formula.
d) Ordered arrangement of atoms.
e)All of the above.
2) What determines the element that an atom belongs to?
a)The number of electrons.
b) The number of neutrons.
c)The number of protons.
d) The number of shells or orbitals.
e)All of the above.
3) What are the two most common elements in the earth's crust?
a)Carbon and nitrogen
b) Hydrogen and helium
c)Iron and nickel
d) Silicon and oxygen
4) What determines the bonding properties of an element?
a)The number of protons in the nucleus.
b) The number of neutrons in the nucleus.
c)The number of electrons in the nucleus.
d) The number of electrons in the outer shell.
e)The total number of electrons.
5) What do we call atoms with the same number of protons but different numbers of neutrons?
a)Anions.
b) Cations.
c)Complex ions.
d) Compounds
e)Isotopes.
6) What do we call positively charged atoms?
a)Anions.
b) Cations.
c)Complex ions.
d) Compounds
e)Isotopes.
7) What do we call negatively charged atoms?
a)Anions.
b) Cations.
c)Complex ions.
d) Compounds
e)Isotopes.
8) What is a rock with mineral grains too small to see with the unaided eye called?
a)Aphanitic.
b) Glass.
c)Phaneritic.
d) Porphyritic.
e)Tuff.
9) What is a rock with both large and microscopic mineral grains called?
a)Aphanitic.
b) Glass.
c)Phaneritic.
d) Porphyritic.
e)Tuff.
10) What is a rock with mineral grains that are all big enough to see with the unaided eye called?
a)Aphanitic.
b) Glass.
c)Phaneritic.
d) Porphyritic.
e)Tuff.
11) What is a rock made of unordered atoms called?
a)Aphanitic.
b) Glass.
c)Phaneritic.
d) Porphyritic.
e)Tuff.
12) Which term describes the composition of the earth's mantle?
a)Felsic.
b) Intermediate.
c)Mafic.
d) Ultramafic.
13) Which term describes the composition of a basalt?
a)Felsic.
b) Intermediate.
c)Mafic.
d) Ultramafic.
14) Which term describes the composition of a granite?
a)Felsic.
b) Intermediate.
c)Mafic.
d) Ultramafic.
15) Which rock is the fine-grained equivalent of granite (same composition but aphanitic)?
a)Andesite.
b) Basalt.
c)Komatiite.
d) Obsidian.
e)Rhyolite.
16) Which rock is the coarse-grained equivalent of basalt (same composition but phaneritic)?
a)Diorite.
b) Gabbro.
c)Granite.
d) Peridotite.
e)Pumice.
17) Which rock is the coarse-grained equivalent of andesite (same composition but phaneritic)?
a)Diorite.
b) Gabbro.
c)Granite.
d) Peridotite.
e)Pumice.
18) Which of the following rocks contains the most quartz (the lowest temperature mineral on Bowen's Reaction Series)?
a)Andesite.
b) Basalt.
c)Komatiite.
d) Obsidian.
e)Rhyolite.
19) Which of the following rocks contains the most olivine (the highest temperature mineral on Bowen's Reaction Series)?
a)Diorite.
b) Gabbro.
c)Granite.
d) Peridotite.
e)Pumice.
20) Which of the following rocks is pyroclastic?
a)Diorite.
b) Gabbro.
c)Granite.
d) Peridotite.
e)Tuff.
21) What process results in the exfoliation (concentric fracturing) of granite domes?
a)Dissolution.
b) Frost wedging.
c)Hydrolysis.
d) Oxidation.
e)Unloading.
22) Which type of weathering creates clay minerals?
a)Dissolution.
b) Frost wedging.
c)Hydrolysis.
d) Oxidation.
e)Unloading.
23) Which type of weathering works most effectively on limestone?
a)Dissolution.
b) Frost wedging.
c)Hydrolysis.
d) Oxidation.
e)Unloading.
24) Which type of weathering produces cones of talus?
a)Dissolution.
b) Frost wedging.
c)Hydrolysis.
d) Oxidation.
e)Unloading.
25) Which types of weathering are significantly promoted by acid rain (two correct answers)?
a)Dissolution.
b) Frost wedging.
c)Hydrolysis.
d) Oxidation.
e)Unloading.
26) Which of these silicate minerals is likely to be chemically weathered most easily?
a)Augite (pyroxene).
b) Hornblende (amphibole).
c)K-feldspar.
d) Kaolinite (clay).
e)Olivine.
f) Quartz.
27) Which of these silicate minerals is unlikely to be chemically weathered?
a)Augite (pyroxene).
b) Hornblende (amphibole).
c)K-feldspar.
d) Kaolinite (clay).
e)Olivine.
f) Quartz.
28) Chemical weathering in a soil tends to create what shape of rock fragments?
a)Angular.
b) Columnar.
c)Cubic.
d) Spheroidal.
e)Tetrahedral.
29) What is the definition of erosion?
a)The accumulation of sediment following transportation.
b) The disintegration and decomposition of rocks at or near the earth's surface.
c)The dissolution of soil components.
d) The incorporation of and transportation of material by mobile agents such as water, wind, and ice.
e)The transfer of rock material downslope under the influence of gravity.
f) The washing out of fine soil components.
30) What weathering products are most easily transported by water?
a)Clays in suspension.
b) Dissolved ions.
c)Pebbles.
d) Sand grains.
31) What is the primary agent of sediment transportation from sites of weathering to sites of deposition?
a)Glaciers.
b) Gravity.
c)Plants and animals.
d) Rivers.
e)Wind.
32) Which weathering products, if present, are deposited first when a river reaches the ocean?
a)Clays in suspension.
b) Dissolved ions.
c)Pebbles.
d) Sand grains.
33) Which weathering products, if present, are not necessarily deposited when a river reaches the ocean?
a)Clays in suspension.
b) Dissolved ions.
c)Pebbles.
d) Sand grains.
34) In which climate is chemical weathering likely to occur most rapidly?
a)Desert.
b) Polar region.
c)Tropical forest.
35) What is the definition of eluviation?
a)The accumulation of sediment following transportation.
b) The disintegration and decomposition of rocks at or near the earth's surface.
c)The dissolution of soil components.
d) The incorporation of and transportation of material by mobile agents such as water, wind, and ice.
e)The transfer of rock material downslope under the influence of gravity.
f) The washing out of fine soil components.
36) What is the definition of leaching?
a)The accumulation of sediment following transportation.
b) The disintegration and decomposition of rocks at or near the earth's surface.
c)The dissolution of soil components.
d) The incorporation of and transportation of material by mobile agents such as water, wind, and ice.
e)The transfer of rock material downslope under the influence of gravity.
f) The washing out of fine soil components.
37) What rock is defined as having angular-shaped clasts?
a)Breccia.
b) Conglomerate.
c)Sandstone.
d) Shale.
e)Siltstone.
38) What is the most abundant type of sedimentary rock?
a)Conglomerate.
b) Evaporites.
c)Limestone.
d) Sandstone.
e)Shale.
39) Which sedimentary rock is usually composed of mostly quartz?
a)Conglomerate.
b) Evaporites.
c)Limestone.
d) Sandstone.
e)Shale.
40) Which sedimentary rock is made of clay minerals?
a)Conglomerate.
b) Evaporites.
c)Limestone.
d) Sandstone.
e)Shale.
41) Which sedimentary rock is made of calcite?
a)Conglomerate.
b) Evaporites.
c)Limestone.
d) Sandstone.
e)Shale.
42) Which sedimentary rock contains the largest particles?
a)Conglomerate.
b) Evaporites.
c)Limestone.
d) Sandstone.
e)Shale.
43) Which sedimentary rock contains the smallest particles?
a)Conglomerate.
b) Evaporites.
c)Limestone.
d) Sandstone.
e)Shale.
44) Which of these metamorphic rocks breaks along foliation lines?
a)Gneiss.
b) Marble.
c)Quartzite.
d) Schist.
45) Which metamorphic rock is foliated but does not generally break along the foliation planes?
a)Gneiss.
b) Marble.
c)Quartzite.
d) Schist.
46) What is the usual orientation of foliation?
a)Horizontal, the same as sedimentary beds.
b) Vertical and parallel to stress.
c)Vertical and perpendicular to stress.
d) Random orientation.
47) What sequence of rock types will shale pass through with successively higher grades of metamorphism?
a)Shale, phyllite, gneiss, schist, slate, partial melting.
b) Shale, phyllite, gneiss, slate, schist, partial melting.
c)Shale, phyllite, slate, schist, gneiss, partial melting.
d) Shale, slate, phyllite, gneiss, schist, partial melting.
e)Shale, slate, phyllite, schist, gneiss, partial melting.
48) What type of mass wasting involves block rotation and leaves scarps?
49) Creep.
a)Earthflow.
b) Lahar.
c)Mudflow.
d) Rockslide.
e)Slump.
f) Solifluction.
50) What type of mass wasting is channelized like a river?
51) Creep.
a)Earthflow.
b) Lahar.
c)Mudflow.
d) Rockslide.
e)Slump.
f) Solifluction.
52) What type of mass wasting involves sliding on well-defined surfaces?
53) Creep.
a)Earthflow.
b) Lahar.
c)Mudflow.
d) Rockslide.
e)Slump.
f) Solifluction.
54) What is the most common type of mass wasting on active volcanoes?
55) Creep.
a)Earthflow.
b) Lahar.
c)Mudflow.
d) Rockslide.
e)Slump.
f) Solifluction.
56) Which type of mass wasting occurs most slowly?
57) Creep.
a)Earthflow.
b) Lahar.
c)Mudflow.
d) Rockslide.
e)Slump.
f) Solifluction.
58) Which type of mass wasting is associated with permafrost?
59) Creep.
a)Earthflow.
b) Lahar.
c)Mudflow.
d) Rockslide.
e)Slump.
f) Solifluction.
60) What process builds talus cones?
61) Creep.
a)Frost wedging.
b) Rockslides.
c)Stream action.
d) Volcanic activity.
62) What is a rock avalanche?
a)A glacial moraine.
b) A snow avalanche with an abundance of rock in it.
c)Another term for rockslide.
d) The fastest type of mass wasting.
e)The slowest type of mass wasting.
63) What is the angle of repose?
a)A flat slope.
b) Overhanging cliffs.
c)The slope at which mudflows begin to occur.
d) The slope of high mountain rivers.
e)The steepest slope that loose particles can maintain.
64) What triggers mass wasting?
a)Earthquakes.
b) Loss of vegetation.
c)Oversteepening of slopes.
d) Saturation by water.
e)All of the above.
65) What is the ultimate force that causes mass wasting?
a)Electricity.
b) Gravity.
c)Tides.
d) Water.
e)Wind.
66) What reservoir holds the greatest amount of water besides the oceans?
a)Atmosphere.
b) Glaciers.
c)Groundwater.
d) Lakes.
e)Streams.
67) What powers the hydrologic cycle?
a)Earthquakes.
b) Gravity.
c)Internal heat.
d) Solar energy.
e)Wind.
68) What is the release of water into the atmosphere by plants called?
a)Evaporation.
b) Infiltration.
c)Precipitation.
d) Runoff.
e)Transpiration.
69) What is water soaking into the ground called?
a)Evaporation.
b) Infiltration.
c)Precipitation.
d) Runoff.
e)Transpiration.
70) What is the rate of water flow in a river channel?
a)Discharge.
b) Laminar flow.
c)Settling velocity.
d) Sheet flow.
e)Turbulent flow.
71) Where does the maximum water velocity occur in a meander bend?
a)In the middle of the river channel.
b) On the inside of the bend.
c)On the outside of the bend.
72) What is often formed when a mountain stream enters a broad valley?
a)Alluvial fans.
b) Deltas.
c)Drainage basins.
d) Point bars.
e)Tributaries.
73) What features are created when rivers enter the ocean?
a)Alluvial fans.
b) Deltas.
c)Drainage basins.
d) Point bars.
e)Tributaries.
74) What drainage pattern is the most common?
a)Concentric.
b) Dendritic.
c)Rectangular.
d) Radial.
e)Trellis.
75) What type of drainage pattern tends develop around volcanoes?
a)Concentric.
b) Dendritic.
c)Rectangular.
d) Radial.
e)Trellis.
76) What is alluvium?
a)Any stream-deposited sediment.
b) Back swamp mud deposits.
c)Bed load sediments.
d) Dissolved sediments.
e)Suspended sediments.
77) What type of sediment load is deposited first when a river enters the ocean?
a)Bed load.
b) Dissolved load.
c)Suspended load.
78) In which part of the groundwater system are the pore spaces not filled with water?
a)Capillary fringe.
b) Hydraulic gradient.
c)Water table.
d) Zone of aeration.
e)Zone of saturation.
79) What is an aquifer?
a)A geyser.
b) A high discharge spring.
c)A permeable rock type.
d) A reservoir of ground water.
e)An impermeable rock type.
80) Which problem is not caused by groundwater withdrawal?
a)Chemical contamination.
b) Drying up of springs.
c)Drying up of wells.
d) Salt-water incursion.
e)Subsidence.
81) What is formed when water is removed from a well?
a)Cavern.
b) Cone of depression.
c)Cone of discharge.
d) Zone of aeration.
e)Zone of saturation.
82) What rock type do caves nearly always form in?
a)Basalt.
b) Granite.
c)Limestone.
d) Sandstone.
e)Shale.
83) What is terrain full of sinkholes and disappearing streams called?
a)Dendritic drainage.
b) Inverted valleys.
c)Karst topography.
d) Patterned ground.
e)Potholes.
84) What causes water to eject from a geyser?
a)A pressure surface high above the ground.
b) A perched water table.
c)Dissolved gasses.
d) Dissolved ions.
e)Superheated water turning to steam.
85) Which type of glaciers are the largest?
a)Alpine glaciers.
b) Ice sheets.
c)Ice shelves.
d) Outlet glaciers.
e)Piedmont glaciers.
86) What term refers to glacial melting below the snow line?
a)Ablation.
b) Basal slip.
c)Calving.
d) Plastic flow.
e)Plucking.
f) Surging.
87) What term refers to a type of glacial erosion?
a)Ablation.
b) Basal slip.
c)Calving.
d) Plastic flow.
e)Plucking.
f) Surging.
88) Which feature is not formed by glacial erosion?
a)Where do crevasses form in glaciers?
b) Where a glacier flows into a bay.
c)Where a glacier drags large rocks over bedrock.
d) Where a glacier is melting.
e)Where a glacier is subjected to tension.
f) Where pieces of ice break off of a glacier.
89) What name is given to evaporite desert lakes?
a)Bajadas.
b) Blowouts.
c)Inselbergs.
d) Playas.
e)Ventifacts.
90) What name is given to rocks sculptured by natural sandblasting?
a)Bajadas.
b) Blowouts.
c)Inselbergs.
d) Playas.
e)Ventifacts.
91) What name is given to wind eroded depressions?
a)Bajadas.
b) Blowouts.
c)Inselbergs.
d) Playas.
e)Ventifacts.
92) What name is given to coalesced alluvial fans?
a)Bajadas.
b) Blowouts.
c)Inselbergs.
d) Playas.
e)Ventifacts.
93) Why are playa lakes typically more salty than the ocean?
a)All water entering them evaporates, leaving its salt behind.
b) Extensive evaporite deposits are being eroded in desert regions.
c)Playa lakes are areas that were previously part of the ocean.
d) The wind blows fine salt particles into playa lakes.
e)Meteoritic accumulates in great volumes in deserts.
94) What are the largest particles that can generally be carried by the wind?
a)Boulders.
b) Dust.
c)Pebbles.
d) Sand.
e)Silt.
95) What process creates a desert pavement?
a)Ablation.
b) Aeration.
c)Deflation.
d) Inflation.
e)Saltation.
96) By what process is sand transported by wind?
a)Ablation.
b) Aeration.
c)Deflation.
d) Inflation.
e)Saltation.
97) How is the transportation of sediment by wind different from that of running water?
a)Wind has a low density compared to water.
b) Wind is not confined to channels.
c)Wind can spread sediment over large areas.
d) Wind is not capable of transporting coarse sediments.
e)All of the above.
98) Which side of a sand dune is typically steepened to the angle of repose?
a)Downwind.
b) Upwind.