INTRO TO EARTH SCIENCE, SPRING 2014
REVIEW SHEET FOR QUIZ #1
* Give the names of three of your classmates.
* After examining the polar vortex maps as well as other maps provided in class, tell what kind
of information each one conveys and what common elements they include.
* Examine Figure E-1 at this Natural Resources Conservation Service site and determine what
the map illustrates.
* Determine and concisely state the characteristics of contour lines.
* Explain the meaning of the term density, and write a mathematical formula that expresses it.
* Name and explain the two factors that help determine the density of a substance.
* Sketch a diagram illustrating the structure of the Earth's atmosphere, including the following
pieces of information:
- position of the troposphere, tropopause, stratosphere, stratopause, mesosphere,
and thermosphere
- relative thicknesses of the layers
- where weather occurs (troposphere)
- where jet airplanes fly (within the troposphere or just into the stratosphere)
- where the ozone layer is (a layer within the stratosphere)
- where meteorites burns up (mesosphere)
- where satellites orbit the earth(exosphere)
- where the jet stream is (top of the tropopause)
* If the average diameter of Earth is 13,000 km (it's actually a bit less), sketch a diagram
showing the thickness of the atmosphere in relation to the size of the globe.
* List the gases that comprise air, and give the relative percentages of each gas.
* Determine the mass of each of the gas molecules listed in the attached table. (Hint: Use the
periodic table to find the atomic mass of each component.)
* Tell which is more dense: humid (moist) air or dry air. Explain why.
* Explain how air density is related to wind.
* Explain how to read this nifty wind visualization. (It updates every three hours!)
* Use a triple-beam balance to measure the density of rock samples.
* Describe what is expected of you as part of Assignment #3: 12- Hour Weather Watch.
REVIEW: Respond to the questions posed here.
* Explain how air density is related to barometric pressure, explaining what the term means.
* Circle the correct choices in this statement:
"Air moves
from areas of HIGH / LOW pressure
to areas of HIGH / LOW pressure."
* Explain how barometric pressure is related to wind.
* Draw a sketch illustrating how a barometer works.
* Give a range of typical values of barometric pressure. (Be sure to give the units of
measurement.) (26 to 32 inches, or 870 to 1084 millibars.)
* Using a US map showing barometric pressures around the nation, create a contour map
showing isobars (lines of equal pressure). Use a contour interval of 4 mb. (Source: NOAA
JetStream)
* Label the HIGH and LOW pressure systems on the pressure map you just made, explaining the
inward/outward and upward/downward flow of air in the vicinity of each.
* Sketch a diagram illustrating global patterns of circulation, including the polar cells, midlatitude (Ferrel) cells, and equatorial (Hadley) cells.
* REVIEW: Explain what makes the wind blow.
EARTH STRUCTURE AND GEOTECTONICS
* Sketch a diagram illustrating the three internal layers of the Earth as defined by their density.
(Be sure to show their relative thicknesses!)
* Explain the following terms related to the geography of places on Earth:
island
mid-continent
on the coast of a continent
island chain
mid-ocean
in a mountainous region
continent
continental shelf
in a plains region
sea or lake
*Using your world map and the maps in the classroom of the world and the sea floor, describe
the geographic setting of each of the 14 study sites. (Here is a sheet to help you organize the
data.)
* Using the maps available in the classroom, explain what each of the following terms means:
Volcano, Hot spot volcano, Thickness of Earth's crust, Depth of earthquake focus
Geotectonic plate boundary
EARTH STRUCTURE AND GEOTECTONICS
* REVIEW: Describe the differences between the oceanic crust and continental crust in terms of
their thickness and density.
* REVIEW: State the relationship between overall rock color and oceanic/continental crust.
* Using the data table you constructed in the previous class, with geographic information about
each of the 14 study sites, organize the data on this Geotectonics Summary Chart .
Add the next few bits of information, and then explain trends and patterns in the data:
* Note the presence of trenches or troughs adjacent to the study site.
* Categorize the earthquake depth data as shallow, medium, or deep.
* Categorize the crustal thickness data as thick, medium, or thin.
* Sketch a diagram illustrating the three internal layers of the Earth as defined by their density.
(Be sure to show their relative thicknesses!)
* Explain what the terms brittle and ductile mean as they relate to the behavior of Earth
materials under stress.
* Draw a diagram illustrating the layers of Earth according to how they behave under stress.
(Another way to say it: show different layers according to whether each layer is brittle or
ductile.)
* Define the terms lithosphere and asthenosphere.
* Explain what a lithospheric plate is.
* Explain what a lithospheric plate boundary is.
* List the three different directions of relative plate movements that can occur at a lithospheric
plate boundary.
* Based on the patterns you identified last time, describe the geologic features that occur at
each of the three different types of plate boundaries.
* Sketch a diagram that illustrates the components of lithospheric plates.
* Tell what type of earth material is found below a lithospheric plate, and what its
characteristics are.