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Dynamic Earth Exam
Questions
Course Introduction
Dynamic Earth explores the processes and forces that continually shape and transform our planet. This course examines Earth's internal structure, plate tectonics, volcanism, earthquakes, mountain-building, and the rock cycle, while also considering the interactions between Earth's atmosphere, hydrosphere, and biosphere. Students will gain an understanding of both gradual and sudden changes to the landscape, the role of geologic time, and the human impact on geologic processes. Laboratory and fieldwork are often incorporated to provide hands-on experience with Earth materials and geoscientific methods.
Recommended Textbook
Earth Portrait of a Planet 5th Edition by Stephen Marshak
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Chapter 1: Cosmology and the Birth of Earth
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Sample Questions
Q1) Most asteroids inhabit the "asteroid belt" between the planets ____________.
A)Earth and Mars
B)Mars and Jupiter
C)Jupiter and Saturn
D)Neptune and Pluto
Answer: B
Q2) The closest galaxy to ours is ________________ ,which is ___________ million light years away.
A)Alpha Centauri;1.1
B)Andromeda;2.2
C)Alpha Centauri;3.3
D)Andromeda;4.4
Answer: B
Q3) The metal alloy that makes up the core of Earth is ____________,as compared to the rocky mantle.
A)less dense
B)denser
C)very similar in chemistry and density
D)distinct in chemistry but of very similar density
Answer: B
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Chapter 2: Journey to the Center of the Earth
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Sample Questions
Q1) The distinction between the crust and the mantle is primarily on the basis of a difference in ____________;the distinction between the lithosphere and the asthenosphere is primarily on the basis of a difference in ____________.
A)chemistry (mineral content);degree of physical rigidity
B)color;chemistry (mineral content)
C)degree of physical rigidity;chemistry (mineral content)
D)chemistry (mineral content);chemistry as well
Answer: A
Q2) Topographically,most of the ocean floor is made up of ____________.
A)ocean trenches (5-12 km below sea level)
B)ocean plains (2.5-4.5 km below sea level)
C)submarine mountains (less than 2.5 km below sea level)
Answer: B
Q3) Which of the following is NOT an example of sediment?
A)sand
B)ground-up seashells
C)cobbles on a beach
D)None of the above are correct.
Answer: D
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Page 4
Chapter 3: Drifting Continents and Spreading Seas
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Sample Questions
Q1) If we mentally align the continents to fit Wegener's concept of Pangaea,evidence of Late Paleozoic glacial deposits ____________.
A)is more difficult to explain than in the modern continental configuration
B)is much more readily explained than in the modern continental configuration
C)makes very little sense in either the Pangaea configuration or the modern configuration
Answer: B
Q2) Marine magnetic anomaly belts run parallel to ____________.
A)mid-ocean ridges
B)fracture zones
C)continental coastlines
D)continental shelves
Answer: A
Q3) The oldest basalts on the ocean floor are about ____________ years old.
A)50 thousand
B)4 billion
C)200 million
D)2.5 million
Answer: C
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Page 5
Chapter 4: The Way the Earth Works: Plate Tectonics
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Sample Questions
Q1) Tectonic plates might consist of ____________.
A)continental lithosphere only
B)oceanic lithosphere only
C)oceanic or continental lithosphere or a combination of both
D)either oceanic or continental lithosphere,but not both
Q2) At transform plate boundaries ____________.
A)earthquakes are common but volcanoes are absent
B)volcanoes are common but earthquakes do not occur
C)both earthquakes and volcanoes are common
Q3) Under the theory of plate tectonics,the plates themselves are ____________.
A)discrete pieces of lithosphere at the surface of the solid Earth that move with respect to one another
B)discrete layers of lithosphere that are vertically stacked one atop the other
C)composed only of continental rocks that plow through the weaker oceanic rocks
D)very thick (approximately one-quarter of Earth's radius)
Q4) Continental lithosphere ____________.
A)is thicker than oceanic lithosphere
B)contains more mafic rocks than oceanic lithosphere
C)is denser than oceanic lithosphere
D)contains no crustal material,consisting solely of lithified upper mantle
Page 6
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Chapter 5: Patterns in Nature: Minerals
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Sample Questions
Q1) The silica tetrahedron that forms the backbone of all the silicate minerals is composed of silicon and what other element?
A)magnesium
B)oxygen
C)iron
D)carbon
Q2) Which common mineral is found in most kitchens?
A)flour
B)sugar
C)halite
D)mustard
Q3) Gemstones are commonly found in pegmatites,which are igneous rocks that are
A)exceptionally mafic
B)extrusive,forming from lava
C)exceptionally coarse grained
D)exceptionally fine grained
Q4) The most recently formed portion of any crystal is always found ____________.
A)deep within the interior
B)on the outer edges
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Chapter 6: Up From the Inferno: Magma and Igneous Rock
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Sample Questions
Q1) All of the Earth's internal heat was acquired very early in its history through meteoric impact and differentiation of the core.The Earth's interior loses heat to space but does not currently receive heat through any known process.
A)True
B)False
Q2) Due to fractional crystallization and assimilation of surrounding host rock,most magmas that rise slowly through the crust chemically evolve to become
A)more felsic
B)more mafic
C)dominated by nonsilicate minerals
Q3) Viscosity depends on ____________.
A)temperature
B)volatile content
C)silica content
D)All of the above are correct.
Q4) If a body of magma becomes more felsic,its viscosity will ____________.
A)increase
B)decrease
C)stay the same
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Chapter 7: Pages of Earths Past: Sedimentary Rocks
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Sample Questions
Q1) Cemented shells of marine organisms form which kind of sedimentary rock?
A)biochemical
B)clastic
C)organic
Q2) If a geologist were to dig below the current beach and find offshore sediments underlain by beach and swamp deposits then he or she could conclude that ____________ has occurred.
A)transgression
B)regression
Q3) Topset,foreset,and bottomset beds are indicative of ____________.
A)alluvial fans
B)lake bottoms
C)deltas
D)deep-marine settings
Q4) The breakdown of exposed rock into small fragments and dissolved ions is termed ____________.
A)deposition
B)erosion
C)weathering
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Chapter 8: Metamorphism: A Process of Change
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Sample Questions
Q1) Metamorphism may be induced by ____________.
A)contact with a hot pluton
B)contact with hot groundwater
C)heat and pressure associated with deep burial
D)All of the above are correct.
Q2) The process of high-grade metamorphic rocks being altered to form low-grade metamorphic rocks is termed ____________ metamorphism.
A)foliated
B)prograde
C)retrograde
D)dynamic
Q3) A buried body of shale is subjected to differential stress,causing clay minerals to realign and produce slate;this is an example of ____________.
A)diagenesis
B)erosion
C)metamorphism
D)weathering
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Chapter 9: The Wrath of Vulcan: Volcanic Eruptions
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Sample Questions
Q1) Hot-spot volcanoes ____________.
A)can arise from the ocean floor
B)can arise on continents
C)may arise in the interior of lithospheric plates
D)All of the above are correct.
Q2) Gases that are abundantly emitted by volcanoes include ____________.
A)water vapor,carbon dioxide,and sulfur dioxide
B)oxygen,ozone,and water vapor
C)oxygen,hydrogen,and neon
D)carbon dioxide,carbon monoxide,and oxygen
Q3) Olympus Mons,the largest known volcano in the Universe,is an example of a _____________.
A)stratovolcano
B)cinder cone
C)shield volcano
Q4) All volcanic eruptions pass through the crater at the volcanic summit.
A)True
B)False
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Chapter 10: A Violent Pulse: Earthquakes
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Sample Questions
Q1) Virtually all of the deaths attributed to major earthquakes have resulted from the collapse of buildings.
A)True
B)False
Q2) Which earthquake severity scale measures the amplitude of deflection of a seismograph pen,standardized to an idealized distance of 100 km between epicenter and seismograph?
A)Richter scale
B)Mercalli scale
C)seismic-moment magnitude scale
Q3) Body waves include ____________.
A)both S- and P-waves
B)both L- and R-waves
C)both surface and interior waves
D)P-waves only
Q4) Which earthquake severity scale takes into account the type of rock that has been fractured?
A)Richter scale
B)Mercalli scale
C)seismic-moment magnitude scale
Page 12
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Chapter 11: Cracks, crags, and Crumples: Crustal
Deformation and Mountain Building
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Sample Questions
Q1) A body of rock to which a sudden,rapid stress has been applied is more likely to exhibit ____________ than is a body of rock subjected to a gradually applied stress.
A)brittle behavior
B)ductile behavior
Q2) Movement along faults often produces sharply angled rock fragments termed ____________.
A)fault gouge
B)rock flour
C)fault breccia
D)slickensides
Q3) Normal faults assume a more shallow dip angle with depth;when the fault plane becomes nearly horizontal,these faults are termed ____________.
A)thrusts
B)folds
C)detachments
D)decollements
Q4) Most fault surfaces,like joints,are roughly planar in orientation.
A)True
B)False
13
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Chapter
12: Deep Time: How Old Is Old
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Sample Questions
Q1) Why is radiocarbon dating only rarely applied in geological work?
A)No substances on Earth contain significant amounts of carbon-14.
B)The half-life of carbon-14 is so long that it is effectively a stable isotope.
C)The half-life of carbon-14 is so short that it can only be used to date materials that are less than 70,000 years old.
Q2) Which proportion of a radioactive isotope is expected to remain in an unaltered (unreacted)state after the passage of three half-lives?
A)one-third
B)three-halves
C)one-eighth
D)one-sixth
Q3) If the numerical ages of two formations are known,then the relative age of each with respect to one another can be inferred.
A)True
B)False
Q4) When an unstable isotope decays,the daughter isotope that results is always a stable isotope.
A)True
B)False
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Chapter 13: A Biography of Earth
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Sample Questions
Q1) Once an ancient mountain range is destroyed by erosion,it leaves no detectable record,and therefore geologists can never learn of its past existence.
A)True
B)False
Q2) The Cambrian Period is a time in Earth history when ____________.
A)the first abundant shelly organisms appear in the fossil record
B)Earth's interior was so hot that a solid outer crust,if present,was likely being extensively remelted
C)stable continental interiors,termed cratons,first formed D)the dinosaurs appeared and came to dominate large-scale terrestrial life
Q3) The Mesozoic Era is a time in Earth history when ____________.
A)the first abundant shelly organisms appear in the fossil record
B)Earth's interior was so hot that a solid outer crust,if present,was likely being extensively remelted
C)stable continental interiors,termed cratons,first formed D)the dinosaurs appeared and came to dominate large-scale terrestrial life
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Chapter 14: Squeezing Power From a Stone: Energy Resources
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Sample Questions
Q1) Congress has proposed storing nuclear waste beneath ____________.
A)Teapot Dome,Wyoming
B)Grand Tetons National Park,Wyoming
C)Yucca Mountain,Nevada
D)Camel Rock,New Mexico
Q2) Which of the following is NOT an important type of oil trap?
A)salt dome
B)syncline
C)stratigraphic
D)anticline
Q3) An impermeable rock,regardless of lithology,is a good candidate to serve as a ____________ in an oil-producing scenario.
A)reservoir rock
B)seal rock
C)source rock
Q4) Which of the following is a renewable resource?
A)coal
B)oil
C)wind
D)natural gas
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Chapter 15: Riches in Rock: Mineral Resources
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Sample Questions
Q1) The first widely used alloy in ancient civilizations was ____________.
A)bronze
B)copper
C)gold
D)iron
Q2) Which mineral resources are considered renewable?
A)base metals only
B)nonmetallic minerals only
C)iron and aluminum ores
D)No mineral resources are renewable.
Q3) Underground mining is considered the safest way to mine ore.
A)True
B)False
Q4) Concrete is ____________.
A)synonymous with the term "cement"
B)synonymous with the term "Portland cement"
C)a combination of cement,sand,and gravel
D)powdered rock of any lithology mixed with water and allowed to set overnight
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Chapter 16: Unsafe Ground: Landslides and Other Mass Movements
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Q1) ____________occur(s)when debris or snow mixes with air to form a chaotic cloud.
A)Avalanches
B)Slumps
C)Creep
D)Solifluction
Q2) ____________occur(s)when a semicoherent mass of material moves downslope on a failure surface.
A)Avalanches
B)Slumps
C)Creep
D)Solifluction
Q3) Which of the following increases the risk of mass movement?
A)adding a small amount of moisture to loose,dry sediment
B)waves breaking before they reach sea cliffs
C)flooding the sediment with water to the point of saturation
D)reducing the grade of the slope
Q4) Tectonic activity destabilizes the ground.
A)True
B)False
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Chapter 17: Streams and Floods: The Geology of Running Water
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Sample Questions
Q1) In a region with prominent orthogonal sets of joints,a ____________ drainage network is expected.
A)dendritic
B)radial
C)rectangular
D)trellis
Q2) Within a meander,where is sediment most likely to be deposited?
A)on the outer banks of the meander
B)on the inner banks of the meander
C)uniformly to either side of the meander
Q3) The discharge of a river traveling through a humid region will typically ____________ downstream;the discharge of a river traveling through an arid region will typically ____________ downstream.
A)increase;increase
B)decrease;decrease
C)increase;decrease
D)decrease;increase
Q4) Which has greater capacity?
A)a small mountain stream
B)the Mississippi River
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Chapter 18: Restless Realm: Oceans and Coasts
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Sample Questions
Q1) The width of a beach in winter is typically ____________ its width in summer.
A)greater than
B)less than
C)equal to
Q2) The oldest oceanic crust is approximately ____________ years old.
A)1 billion
B)200 million
C)100 million
D)50 million
Q3) A guyot is a(n)____________.
A)flat-topped seamount
B)large,counterclockwise ocean current in the northern hemisphere
C)isolated pocket of water with swirling currents
D)region of thick,floating seaweed that is abundant in the still waters within the central North Atlantic Ocean
Q4) High tides occur simultaneously at all coastlines around the world,except for minor effects on bays.
A)True
B)False
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Chapter 19: A Hidden Reserve: Groundwater
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Sample Questions
Q1) Unless it has recently rained,there is no water within pores in the unsaturated zone.
A)True
B)False
Q2) Groundwater:
A)rarely if ever contains dissolved ions
B)dissolves calcite and limestone
C)can contain dissolved minerals but can never precipitate minerals out of solution
D)can precipitate minerals but only if the ions that would form the mineral in question are undersaturated in the water
Q3) Rock or sediment between the water table and the land surface represents a(n)____________.
A)aquitard
B)confined aquifer
C)unconfined aquifer
D)unsaturated zone
Q4) If groundwater is clear,it can be assumed that it is drinkable.
A)True
B)False
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21
Chapter 20: An Envelope of Gas: Earths Atmosphere and Climate
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Sample Questions
Q1) In global convective circulation,air rises at the ____________ and the ____________.
A)equator;poles
B)equator;polar fronts
C)horse latitudes;poles
D)horse latitudes;polar fronts
Q2) As an air mass rises,it generally experiences ____________.
A)an increase in pressure
B)a decrease in pressure
C)no change in pressure
Q3) Which layer of the atmosphere has the lowest density?
A)mesosphere
B)stratosphere
C)thermosphere
D)troposphere
Q4) As an air mass rises,it generally experiences ____________.
A)an increase in temperature due to adiabatic heating
B)a decrease in temperature due to adiabatic cooling
C)an increase in temperature due to increasing proximity to the Sun
D)no change in temperature
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Chapter 21: Dry Settings: the Geology of Deserts
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Sample Questions
Q1) Although deserts have historically been sparsely populated regions,the arid southwestern states have comprised one of the fastest-growing regions in the United States since World War II.
A)True
B)False
Q2) The highest recorded temperature on Earth was in a ____________.
A)tropical rainforest in Brazil
B)low-latitude,high-elevation desert in Mexico
C)high-latitude,high-elevation desert in Mongolia
D)low-latitude,low-elevation desert in Libya
Q3) As compared to humid climates,rates of chemical weathering in deserts are ____________.
A)much faster
B)much slower
C)very similar
Q4) Most regions that are now deserts have _____________.
A)been deserts throughout the geologic past
B)experienced other climates in the geologic past
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23
Chapter 22: Amazing Ice: Glaciers and Ice Ages
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Sample Questions
Q1) Walking across an Antarctic ice sheet during winter would not be very treacherous,because ice is not slippery at temperatures well below freezing.
A)True
B)False
Q2) When sea level rises,causing the ocean to fill a glacially carved valley,a ____________ results.
A)smorgasbord
B)tarn
C)fjord
D)ford
Q3) Mars has polar ice caps that differ from the Earth's Antarctic ice cap in that ____________.
A)the Martian caps consist of a combination of water ice and frozen carbon dioxide (dry ice)
B)the Martian caps have a spiral fracture pattern not found in Antarctica
C)Martian caps are ablated by sublimation only;there is currently no liquid water on Mars
D)All of the above are correct.
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24
Chapter 23: Global Change in the Earth System
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Q1) In this chapter,"sedimentary sequences" refers to variations ____________ within stratigraphic sequences.
A)in fossil content
B)in the coarseness of clastic sediments/sedimentary rocks (e.g. ,proportion of sands/sandstones vs.muds/mudstones [such as shales])
C)due to or related to changes in sea level
Q2) Which of the following types of global change is reversible?
A)orogenic uplift
B)melting and crystallization of sedimentary rock to form igneous rock
C)evolution of life on Earth
D)flooding of the continents due to global warming
Q3) Nearly all biological,physical,and chemical systems on Earth are disconnected and can be effectively studied in isolation from each other.
A)True
B)False
Q4) Change within the Earth system is unidirectional and cannot be reversed.
A)True
B)False
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