Multiple Choice Questions for Interior of the Earth - Chapter 17
Each chapter will include a few questions designed to test your knowledge of material covered in the chapter and in the Internet-based resources. Your answers are not being recorded. Try the following.
1. What is the approximate distance from the surface to the center of he Earth?
1,000 miles
4,000 miles
10,000 miles
40,000 miles
2. When sesimic waves pass across the boundary between two different materials, ___________.
the waves refract
the waves reflect
the waves change in velocity
all of the above
3. Which region in the Earth is about 85% iron?
A
B
C
D
4. Which region in the Earth molten?
A
B
C
D
5. In which region of the Earth is conduction the dominant heat transfer mechanism?
A
B
C
D
6. How long does it take a P-wave to travel through the Earth?
1 minute
5 minutes
10 minutes
20 minutes
7. Which of the following statements is false?
the P-wave shadow zone is larger than the S-wave shadow zone.
Seismic waves follow curved paths through the interior of the Earth
P waves travel more slowly in the outer core than in the lower mantle
Liquids do not transmit S waves
8. The S wave shadow zone is caused by the _________ .
the crust-mantle boundary
the outer core
the lower mantle
the inner core
9. The S-wave shadow zone extends from _____ to 180 o angular distance from the earthquake focus on one side and from ______ to 180o on the other.
45 degrees
75 degrees
105 degrees
145 degrees
10. The boundary between the mantle and the core lies at a depth of approximately ________ .
300 kilometers
1000 kilometres
3000 kilometers
5000 kilometers
11. Continental crust can be up to ______ kilometers thick.
5
35
65
100
12. Where do P waves travel the fastest?
upper mantle
lower mantle
outer core
inner core
13. Which of the following statements about the Moho is false?
seismic waves speed up as they pass across the Moho heading downward
the Moho separates denser rocks below from less dense rocks above
the Moho separates the crust from the mantle
the Moho marks the top of a partially molten layer
14. After melting of a continental ice cap, the surface of the continent will tend to __________ .
rise
sink
sink or rise depending on the thickness of the ice cap
remain the same - ice does not weigh that much
15. If the Earth cooled only by conduction, heat from depths greater than ______ kilometers would not yet have reached the surface.
20
100
400
2000
16. The mechanical transfer of heat by vibration of atoms and molecules is called __________ .
radiation
conduction
magnetism
convection
17. What drives plate tectonics?
thermal convection
thermal conduction
solar energy
erosion
18. In a deep mine, temperatures increase at the rate of ________ .
3 degrees C per kilometer
30 degrees C per kilometer
300 degrees C per kilometer
1 degree C per kilometer
19. Where is the Earth's magnetic field generated?
in the crust
in the mantle
in the outer core
in the inner core
20. At what temperature do materials loose their permanent magnetism?
100 degrees C
250 degrees C
400 degrees C
550 degrees C
21. Which of the following statements is true?
the Earth's magnetic poles are aligned with the Earth's rotation axis
the Earth's magnetic poles are inclined approximately 11 degrees from the Earth's rotation axis
the Earth's magnetic poles are inclined approximately 45 degrees from the Earth's rotation axis
the Earth's magnetic poles are perpendicular to the Earth's rotation axis
22. The Earth's magnetic field reverses itself roughly every ________ .
50 years
5,000 years
500,000 years
50 million years
23. Permanent magnetism acquired by minerals in igneous rocks during crystallization is called __________ magnetization.
depositional remnant
paleoremnant magnetism
silicate
thermoremanent magnetism
24. Which of the following rock types would be most likely to record the magnetic field at the time the rock formed?
an alluvial conglomerate
a basaltic lava flow
an evaporite deposit of halite
a schist
25. Which one of the following lists most accurately describes oceanic crust?
basaltic - density of 3.0 g/cm3
granitic - density of 3.0 g/cm3
quartz arenites - density of 2.6 g/cm3
basaltic - density of 2.6 g/cc
26. The Moho separates:
the outer core from the inner core
the lithosphere from the asthenosphere
the asthenosphere from the Mesosphere
the crust from the mantle
27. Which one of the following term associations is FALSE?
asthenosphere --- plastic behavior
lithosphere --- rigid solid
outer core --- right solid
continental crust --- rigid solid
28. To induce a positive Bouguer anomaly, a rock unit should have the following property:
transmit only P waves
be denser than the surrounding materials
be less dense than the surrounding materials
be magnetic
29. The lithosphere includes:
crust and uppermost, rigid mantle
outer core and inner core
asthenosphere and mesosphere
outer core and lower mantle
30. A cooling magnetic material _________ its magnetic character at its Curie temperature:
gains
looses
neither of these happens
31. What region of the Earth takes up the greatest volume?
the crust
the outer core
the inner core
the mantle
32. Which of the following terms describes the mechanical behavior of a part of the Earth?
the continental crust
the oceanic crust
the lithosphere
the mantle
33. The continental crust consists mainly of _________.
granitic rocks
basaltic rocks
ultramafic rocks
gabbroic rocks
34. The oceanic crust consists mainly of _________.
granitic rocks
basaltic rocks
ultramafic rocks
gabbroic rocks
35. The mantle consists mainly of _________.
granitic rocks
basaltic rocks
ultramafic rocks
gabbroic rocks
36. The boundary between the Earth's crust and mantle was first discovered by __________.
analyzing seismic waves
deep continental drilling
detailed geologic mapping
paleomagnetic studies
37. How fast do P-waves travel through granite?
4 kilometers per second
6 kilometers per second
8 kilometers per second
10 kilometers per second
38. Which of the following statements is false?
the crust-mantle boundary is called the Mohorovicic discontinuity
the oceanic crust consists of basalt and gabbro
the crust is less dense than the mantle
P-waves travel faster in the crust than in the mantle
39. An ophiolite may not include a piece of____________.
continental crust
oceanic crust
upper mantle
the Moho
40. Which of the following regions consists primarily of olivine and pyroxene?
continental crust
oceanic crust
upper mantle
the core
41. Which of the following statements is false?
the asthenosphere lies beneath the lithosphere
the asthenosphere is stronger than the lithosphere
the asthenosphere rises close to the surface beneath mid-ocean ridges
the asthenosphere is partially molten
42. The lithosphere is approximately _________ kilometers thick
25
100
250
2900
43. Which of the following statements is true
the lithosphere contains the crust
the crust contains the lithosphere
the lithosphere and crust are different terms for the same part of the Earth
the lithosphere and crust are totally separate parts of the Earth
44. The sharp increase in velocity of S-waves at 400 and 670 kilometers depth in the mantle are probably caused by ___________.
changes to more compact mineral structures
changes in the composition of the mantle
changes in the temperature of the mantle
changes in the pressure of the mantle
45. What element makes up most of the Earth's core?
silicon
oxygen
iron
nickle
46. The boundary between the inner core and the outer core lies at a depth of ______ kilometers
700
2900
5100
6400
47. How thick a continental root would be produced by a 3 kilometer thick continental ice sheet?
about 1 kilometers
about 2 kilometers
about 10 kilometers
about 30 kilometers
48. Which of the following statements best describes the nature of the core-mantle boundary?
the core-mantle boundary is smooth
the core-mantle boundary is rough with a topography of about 5 kilometers
the core-mantle boundary is rough with a topography of about 100 kilometers
the core-mantle boundary is rough with a topography of about 400 kilometers
49. Which of the following statements regarding the inner core is true?
P waves do not travel through the inner core
Primary S waves (those generated at the focus of an event) travel through the inner core
P waves travel through the inner core at a higher velocity than S waves travel through the inner core
the inner core is thought to be a liquid
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