Multiple Choice
Identify the
choice that best completes the statement or answers the question.
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1.
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Which of the following is NOT one of the main
areas of Earth science? a. | geology | c. | astrology | b. | oceanography | d. | astronomy |
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2.
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What is the study of the atmosphere and the processes that produce weather and
climate?
a. | oceanography | c. | meteorology | b. | geology | d. | astronomy |
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3.
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The distance, measured in degrees, north and south of the equator is referred to
as ____.
a. | longitude | c. | the prime meridian | b. | latitude | d. | the poles |
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4.
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The most abundant element in Earth’s continental crust (by weight) is
____.
a. | oxygen | c. | calcium | b. | silicon | d. | iron |
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5.
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The central region of an atom is called the ____.
a. | proton | c. | nucleus | b. | electron | d. | neutron |
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6.
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The smallest particle of an element that still retains all the element’s
properties is a(n) ____.
a. | compound | c. | isotope | b. | atom | d. | mineral |
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7.
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An atom that loses or gains electrons is called a(n) ____.
a. | isotope | c. | neutron | b. | proton | d. | ion |
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8.
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Which subatomic particles are most involved in chemical bonding?
a. | protons | c. | neutrons | b. | electrons | d. | isotopes |
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9.
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The main types of chemical bonds are ____.
a. | ionic, covalent, and metallic | c. | isotopic, covalent, and
metallic | b. | ionic, compound, and metallic | d. | ionic, covalent, and
nonmetallic |
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10.
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What is a naturally occurring, inorganic solid with an orderly crystalline
structure and a definite chemical composition?
a. | a mineral | c. | an isotope | b. | an element | d. | a compound |
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11.
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The most common mineral group in Earth’s crust is the ____.
a. | oxides | c. | sulfides | b. | carbonates | d. | silicates |
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12.
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The appearance or quality of light reflected from the surface of a mineral is
called ____.
a. | streak | c. | cleavage | b. | color | d. | luster |
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13.
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The resistance of a mineral to being scratched is called ____.
a. | streak | c. | hardness | b. | fracture | d. | cleavage |
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14.
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The color of the powdered form of a mineral is called ____.
a. | cleavage | c. | luster | b. | streak | d. | fracture |
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15.
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Mohs scale is used to determine what property of minerals?
a. | cleavage | c. | hardness | b. | density | d. | luster |
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16.
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The tendency of minerals to break along smooth flat surfaces is called
____.
a. | fracture | c. | streak | b. | cleavage | d. | crystal form |
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17.
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What is the uneven breakage of a mineral called?
a. | fracture | c. | crystal form | b. | cleavage | d. | hardness |
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18.
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In Figure 3-1, what type of rock should occur in the part of the rock cycle
labeled B?
a. | igneous | c. | lava | b. | metamorphic | d. | sedimentary |
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19.
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In Figure 3-1, what process or processes would be occurring in the part of the
rock cycle labeled E?
a. | cooling | c. | compaction and cementation | b. | melting | d. | weathering and erosion |
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20.
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In Figure 3-1, what type of rock should occur in the part of the rock cycle
labeled F?
a. | igneous | c. | lava | b. | metamorphic | d. | sedimentary |
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21.
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If granite undergoes high temperatures and high pressures at depth within Earth,
what type of rock will be formed? Assume that the granite does not melt.
a. | a sedimentary rock | c. | magma | b. | a metamorphic rock | d. | an igneous rock |
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22.
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Fossils are only found in ____.
a. | intrusive igneous rocks | c. | sedimentary
rocks | b. | foliated metamorphic rocks | d. | nonfoliated metamorphic rocks |
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23.
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The process that occurs when physical forces break rock into smaller pieces
without changing the rock’s chemical composition is called ____.
a. | differential weathering | c. | mechanical
weathering | b. | chemical weathering | d. | erosion |
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24.
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When water freezes, its volume ____.
a. | decreases slightly | c. | stays the same | b. | increases | d. | decreases
greatly |
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25.
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Wegener’s continental drift hypothesis stated that all the continents once
joined together to form ____.
a. | two major supercontinents | b. | two major supercontinents and three smaller
continents | c. | one major supercontinent | d. | three major
supercontinents |
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26.
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The supercontinent in the continental drift hypothesis was called ____.
a. | Panthalassa | c. | Mesosaurus | b. | Pangaea | d. | Africa |
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27.
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What hypothesis states that the continents were once joined to form a single
supercontinent?
a. | plate tectonics | c. | continental drift | b. | seafloor spreading | d. | paleomagnetism |
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28.
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What type of volcano is built almost entirely from ejected lava
fragments?
a. | cinder cone | c. | shield volcano | b. | composite cone | d. | pahoehoe
volcano |
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29.
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The broad, slightly dome-shaped volcanoes of Hawaii
are ____. a. | composite cone volcanoes | c. | pyroclastic
volcanoes | b. | shield volcanoes | d. | cinder cone volcanoes |
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30.
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A volcano that is fairly symmetrical and has both
layers of lava and pyroclastic deposits is a ____. a. | cinder cone volcano | c. | pyroclastic volcano | b. | shield volcano | d. | composite cone
volcano |
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31.
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What is the most abundant gas in the atmosphere?
a. | oxygen | c. | carbon dioxide | b. | nitrogen | d. | hydrogen |
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32.
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The form of oxygen that combines three oxygen atoms into each molecule is called
____.
a. | argon | c. | chlorofluorocarbon | b. | thermopause | d. | ozone |
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33.
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What is the lowest layer of the atmosphere?
a. | thermosphere | c. | stratosphere | b. | troposphere | d. | mesosphere |
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34.
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Most important weather phenomena occur in the ____.
a. | stratosphere | c. | troposphere | b. | mesosphere | d. | thermosphere |
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35.
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When does the summer solstice occur in the Northern Hemisphere?
a. | June 21 | c. | September 21 | b. | March 21 | d. | December 21 |
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36.
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Which of the following is true about equinoxes?
a. | They occur in June and December. | b. | The sun’s vertical rays are striking
either 23.5 S or 23.5 N. | c. | Days and nights are equal in length everywhere. | d. | The length of
daylight in the Arctic and Antarctic Circles is 24 hours. |
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37.
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Which electromagnetic waves have the longest wavelengths?
a. | radio | c. | gamma | b. | infrared | d. | ultraviolet |
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38.
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Earth receives energy from the sun through what method of heat transfer?
a. | conduction | c. | radiation | b. | convection | d. | none of the
above |
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39.
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The two most important heat-absorbing gases in the lower atmosphere are
____.
a. | oxygen and nitrogen | c. | argon and hydrogen | b. | ozone and
chlorofluorocarbon | d. | water
vapor and carbon dioxide |
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40.
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Which of the following was unknown to the ancient Greeks?
a. | Earth | c. | Venus | b. | Mars | d. | Uranus |
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41.
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The apparent westward movement of a planet against the background of stars is
called ____.
a. | retrograde motion | c. | rotation | b. | revolution | d. | universal
gravitation |
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42.
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The geocentric model of the universe stated that ____.
a. | Earth revolved around the celestial sphere | b. | the sun was the
center of the universe | c. | Earth was a
“wanderer” | d. | Earth was the center of the
universe |
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43.
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Which scientist determined the nature of the forces that keep the planets in
their orbits?
a. | Copernicus | c. | Brahe | b. | Galileo | d. | Newton |
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44.
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Which scientist was the first to use the telescope in astronomy?
a. | Newton | c. | Copernicus | b. | Galileo | d. | Kepler |
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45.
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The true shape of planetary orbits was discovered by ____.
a. | Newton | c. | Brahe | b. | Galileo | d. | Kepler |
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46.
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Seasons are caused by ____.
a. | Earth’s rotation | c. | Earth’s tilted axis | b. | precession | d. | Earth’s distance from the sun |
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47.
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The moon’s period of revolution is 27 1/3 days, and its period of rotation
is ____.
a. | 27 1/3 days | c. | 30 1/3 days | b. | 29 1/2 days | d. | 33 1/2 days |
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48.
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What occurs when the moon casts its shadow on Earth?
a. | lunar eclipse | c. | sidereal month | b. | solar eclipse | d. | synodic month |
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49.
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Round depressions on the moon’s surface are called ____.
a. | highlands | c. | craters | b. | maria | d. | meteorites |
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50.
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Which of the following is NOT a Jovian planet?
a. | Earth | c. | Neptune | b. | Saturn | d. | Uranus |
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51.
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Which of the following is NOT a terrestrial planet?
a. | Mercury | c. | Mars | b. | Earth | d. | Jupiter |
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52.
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Gamma rays, X-rays, visible light, and radio waves are all types of ____.
a. | nuclear energy | c. | ultraviolet radiation | b. | chromatic
aberration | d. | electromagnetic
radiation |
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53.
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The fact that light can exert a pressure on matter suggests that it is made of
particles called ____.
a. | electrons | c. | photons | b. | protons | d. | neutrons |
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54.
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The outermost layer of the sun is called the ____.
a. | ionosphere | c. | corona | b. | photosphere | d. | chromosphere |
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55.
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What effect do solar flares have on Earth?
a. | auroras | c. | magnetic pole reversal | b. | global
warming | d. | tides |
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56.
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Stellar distances are usually expressed in what units?
a. | miles | c. | light-years | b. | kilometers | d. | none of the
above |
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57.
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Light cannot escape the intense gravitational pull of a ____.
a. | black hole | c. | main-sequence star | b. | black dwarf | d. | red giant |
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58.
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Our galaxy is called the ____.
a. | Local Group | c. | Andromeda | b. | Orion | d. | Milky Way |
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59.
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According to the big bang theory, the universe began about ____.
a. | 4.5 billion years ago | c. | 49.6 billion years ago | b. | 13.7 billion years
ago | d. | 130 billion years
ago |
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Completion
Complete each
statement.
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60.
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A(n) ____________________ is a solid mass of mineral or mineral-like matter that
occurs naturally.
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61.
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Rocks are generally classified as igneous, ____________________, or
metamorphic.
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62.
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Because of the processes that take place within the ____________________, rocks
can change from one type to another.
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63.
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A material’s ____________________ is a measure of its resistance to
flow.
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64.
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A cloud of dust and gas in space is called a(n) ____________________.
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65.
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A meteoroid that reaches Earth’s surface is called a(n)
____________________.
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66.
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Patterns of stars called ____________________ were originally named in honor of
mythological characters or great heroes.
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67.
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A light-year is the distance ____________________ travels in a year.
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68.
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The Milky Way is classified as a(n) ____________________ galaxy.
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Short Answer
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69.
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What are the major erosional agents that can pick up, transport, and deposit the
products of weathering?
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Essay
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70.
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Explain the rock cycle by describing how an igneous rock can become a
sedimentary rock, then a metamorphic rock, and then an igneous rock again.
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