Geol 101: Physical Geology
Spring 2006
EXAM 4
Write your name out in full on the scantron form and fill in the corresponding
ovals to spell out your name. Also fill in your student ID number in the space
provided. Do not include the dash and do not leave any spaces. Make sure you
have all 8 pages of the exam. There are 55 questions. For each question, select
the correct answer and fill in your choice on the scantron form. You MUST use
pencil on the scantron form!
1.
Which of the geologic sequences listed below involving events discussed
during the Geol 101 field trip shows the various geologic events in the
correct order of occurrence (from oldest to youngest)?
A. (1) Idaho batholith granite (2) Belt rocks
(3) Columbia
River flood basalts
(4) loess deposits
B. (1) Belt rocks
(2) Idaho batholith granite
(3) Columbia River flood basalts
(4) Missoula
flood
C. (1) Columbia River flood basalts
(2) Lewiston fold
(3)
Missoula flood
(4) Bonneville flood
D. (1) loess deposits
(2) Columbia River flood
basalts
(3) Idaho Batholith granite
(4) Belt
rocks
E. (1) Belt rocks
(2) Lewiston fold
(3) Columbia River
flood basalts
(4) loess deposits
2. At Granite Point, observable relative age relationships between the gneiss
and the basalt indicate that:
A. granite intruded into basalt and then both rocks got
metamorphosed
B. granite intruded into hot basalt, causing the granite to change
into gneiss
C. basalt flowed over hot gneiss, creating an aureole in the basalt
D. the basalt flowed over soil-covered gneiss at the Earth’s
surface, forming a nonconformity
E. the relative ages of the basalt and the gneiss are too ambiguous
to be reliably determined
3.
The pillow basalts in the Snake River gorge indicate that:
A. when the lavas erupted, they filled in the already existing
Snake River gorge
B. the Columbia River flood basalts formed on the ocean floor
C. columnar joints can sometimes form pillow-like shapes
D. some of the Columbia River flood basalts erupted into bodies of
water
E. lava flows were weathered at the surface between eruptive
events, resulting in pillows
4.
The Lewiston fold affects (1) _________ rocks and so must have formed (2)
__________.
A. (1) Missoula and Bonneville flood deposits
(2) less than
10,000 years ago
B.
(1) Missoula and Bonneville flood
deposits
(2) at the end of the last ice age
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C.
(1) Columbia River flood basalt
(2) less than 16 million years ago
D.
(1) Columbia River flood basalt
(2) more than 16 million years ago
E.
(1) Columbia River flood basalt
(2) due to subduction of the Farallon plate
5. Which of the following statements about the Missoula flood deposits is
FALSE?
A. the Missoula flood deposits show no evidence of sedimentary
structures like cross-bedding
B. the Missoula floods formed the scablands in eastern Washington
C. the Missoula flood deposits are still unconsolidated (i.e., have
not turned into rock yet)
D. the Missoula flood flowed upstream along the Snake River
E. Bonneville flood deposits are older so they are underneath the
Missoula flood deposits
6.
Which of the following statements are FALSE when referring to geologic events
occurring along the western margin of North America during the Cretaceous
(around 80-65 million years ago)?
A. microcontinent collisions formed terranes that ultimately
constructed Oregon and Washington
B. the Idaho batholith formed from magma related to a Cretaceous
subduction zone
C. the Belt rocks already existed at that time, so must have been
intruded by batholith magma
D. a large eruption in the Cretaceous volcanic arc formed the
Columbia River flood basalts
E. the subducting plate during the Cretaceous was the Farallon
plate
7.
Which of the following statements about the last ice age is FALSE?
A. about 30% of the Earth’s surface was covered in ice
B. there were ~20 cycles of cooling during the last ice age as
temperatures repeatedly rose and fell
C. Moscow, Idaho, was not covered by ice sheets during the last ice
age
D. the last ice age ended about 2,000 years ago
E. the were many pluvial and proglacial lakes in North America
during the last ice age
8.
The last ice age is commonly referred to as the _______________ ice age.
A. Pleistocene
B. Holocene
C. Carboniferous
D. Tertiary
E. Jurassic
9.
The pluvial lake in what is now Utah and that caused a giant flood to rush
downstream along the Snake River towards the end of the last ice age was
called:
A. Lake Missoula
B. Great Salt Lake
C. Lake Chad
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D. Lake Bonneville
E. Lake Utah
10.
During the
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
last ice age, sea level was:
about 130 m higher than it is today
about 130 m lower than it is today
about 10 m higher than it is today
about 10 m lower than it is today
about the same level as it is today
11.
Which of the following processes can ultimately affect global climate?
A. plate tectonics
B. volcanic eruptions
C. meteorite collisions
D. precession
E. all of the above
12.
It is believed that regular cyclical changes in global climate are totally
natural at time scales of 100,000 years as well as at time scales of 20,000
to 40,000 years, albeit due to different influences. These cycles are
called:
A. Precession cycles
B. Eccentricity cycles
C. Kyoto cycles
D. Milankovitch cycles
E. Komandorskiy cycles
13.
Which of the following terms specifically means “having to do with wind”?
A. meteorological process
B. deflation process
C. eolian process
D. thespian process
E. loessian process
14. Which of the following features results from the erosional process by wind
called deflation?
A. blowouts
B. yardangs
C. ventifacts
D. loess
E. dunes
15.
16.
Cross-beds in sand dunes develop because of sand cascading down the:
A. leeward slope
B. windward slope
C. angle of repose
D. dune face
E. horns
Which of the following types of sand dunes contains two horns that point
in the same direction in which the wind is blowing?
A. barchan
B. longitudinal
C. transverse
D. parabolic
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E. star
17.
Which of the following types of sand dunes occurs as long parallel ridges
of sand aligned along the prevailing wind direction and which are also
called seif dunes?
A. barchan
B. longitudinal
C. transverse
D. parabolic
E. star
18. Which of the following locations represent good examples of rainshadow
desert regions?
A. Sahara and Great Australian deserts
B. Gobi desert
C. Eastern Oregon, South Idaho and Nevada desert areas
D. Namib and Atacama deserts
E. Antarctica
19. Ocean currents
(2) _______.
A. (1)
B. (1)
C. (1)
D. (1)
E. (1)
20.
are driven by (1) ______ and extend down to a depth of about
gravity
waves
waves
wind
wind
(2)
(2)
(2)
(2)
(2) 100 m
100 m
10 m
100 m
10 m
The most dominant control on the creation of the Earth’s tides is:
A. the Moon
B. the Sun
C. the Earth
D. the Milky Way
E. Jupiter
21. When the Earth, Moon, and Sun are in alignment, gravitational forces
combine to form the highest tides, called:
A. flood tides
B. neap tides
C. ebb tides
D. spring tides
E. supremo tides
22.
23.
The depth to the wave base of an ocean wave is equal to about half the
_____________.
A. wave height
B. wavelength
C. wave amplitude
D. wave period
E. water depth
On a beach, platforms of sand called berms can be created during high tide
on the part of the beach called the:
A. backshore
B. foreshore
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C.
D.
E.
beach face
nearshore
surf zone
24.
Waves can approach a shoreline obliquely due to (1) ___________. As the
wave base hits the ocean bottom, each wave slows down, causing the wave to
bend parallel to the shoreline in a process called (2) __________.
A. (1) strong tides
(2) wave reflection
B. (1) tidal bulges
(2) wave refraction
C. (1) the wind direction
(2) wave refraction
D. (1) the rotation of the Earth
(2) rip curl
E. (1) longshore currents
(2) curvication
25.
Longshore drift can build a ridge of sand across a river mouth, and is
called a (1) _________. Similar ridges of sand can build up offshore forming
a line of (2) ________ that have a lagoon between them and the mainland.
A. (1) barrier island
(2) baymouth bars
B. (1) baymouth bar
(2) spits
C. (1) tombolo
(2) barrier islands
D. (1) pocket beach
(2) baymouth bars
E. (1) spit
(2) barrier islands
26.
A coastal resort community has a number of groins built along a north-south
oriented shoreline. If the beach sand is being eroded from the south side of
the groins and then deposited along the north side of the groins, then:
A. the longshore drift direction is from north to south
B. the longshore drift direction is from south to north
C. the longshore drift direction is from east to west
D. the longshore drift direction is from west to east
E. there is no longshore drift in this location
27.
28.
The three types of erosive processes along shorelines are:
A. abrasion, corrosion, and hydraulic action
B. abrasion, saltation, and hydrologic action
C. erosion, deposition, and abrasion
D. sea cliffs, wave-cut platforms, and headlands
E. longshore currents, waves, and tides
Erosion along a shoreline can form a flat platform of rock that gets
exposed at low tide and is called a
(1) __________. If this platform is lifted above sea level by tectonic
forces, it is called a (2) __________.
A. (1) wave-built platform
(2) marine terrace
B. (1) marine terrace
(2) wave-built platform
C. (1) wave-cut platform
(2) wave-built platform
D. (1) wave-built platform
(2) wave-cut platform
E. (1) wave-cut platform
(2) marine terrace
29. Which of the following sequences shows the correct order of development of
these features on a headland?
A. sea arch, sea stack, sea cave
B. sea cave, sea arch, sea stack
C. sea arch, sea cave, sea stack
D. sea stack, sea arch, sea cave
E. sea cave, sea stack, see another cave
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30.
31.
Which of the following processes would create an emergent coastline?
A. isostatic rebound
B. drop in sea level
C. rise in sea level
D. both A and B above
E. both A and C above
The two belts of small icy bodies at the very outer edges of the solar
system are:
A. the asteroid belt and the Kuiper belt
B. the asteroid belt and the Oort Cloud
C. the Kuiper belt and the Oort Cloud
D. the Kuiper belt and the Milky Way
E. the Oort Cloud and the Milky Way
32.
Which of the planets does NOT revolve in a counter-clockwise direction
around the sun?
A. Venus
B. Earth
C. Uranus
D. Neptune
E. all planets revolve in a counter-clockwise direction around the
sun
33.
Which planet does NOT revolve around the sun in the plane of the ecliptic?
A. Pluto
B. Jupiter
C. Saturn
D. Neptune
E. Mars
34.
Which planet rotates counter-clockwise about a rotational axis that always
points towards the sun, resulting in one half of the planet being constantly
in day and the other half being perpetually in night?
A. Earth
B. Jupiter
C. Uranus
D. Neptune
E. Mercury
35.
Which of the following planets is NOT considered to be one of the Jovian
planets?:
A. Neptune
B. Saturn
C. Jupiter
D. Uranus
E. Pluto
36.
The meteorite impact that ultimately resulted in the extinction of the
dinosaurs was the Chicxulub meteorite that hit the (1) ___________ region
about (2) __________ years ago.
A. (1) Siberian
(2) 49,000
B. (1) Mazatlan
(2) 66 million
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C.
D.
E.
37.
(1) Yucatan Peninsula
(2) 66 million
(1) Arizona desert (2) 49,000
(1) Manicougan
(2) 300 million
Chondrites, carbonaceous chondrites, and achondrites are all types of:
A. stony meteorites
B. stony-iron meteorites
C. iron meteorites
D. fragments from Mars
E. moon rocks
38.
The largest meteorite impact crater, the largest volcano, and the largest
rift valley in the solar system can all be found on the planet:
A. Mercury
B. Venus
C. Earth
D. Mars
E. Jupiter
39.
The planet
temperature
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
40.
41.
that is similar in size to Earth, but which has a surface
of 475ºC and an atmosphere that is about 95% CO2 is:
Mercury
Venus
Earth
Mars
Jupiter
Which of the following resources is nonrenewable?
A. wave energy
B. oil
C. wind
D. solar energy
E. wood
A fossil fuel forms from decayed organic matter. Which of the following
resources is NOT a fossil fuel?
A. peat
B. coal
C. oil
D. nuclear energy
E. natural gas
42. The correct order for the different types of coal from lowest to highest
grade is:
A. subbituminous coal - lignite - bituminous coal - anthracite
B. lignite - subbituminous coal - bituminous coal - anthracite
C. anthracite - lignite - bituminous coal - subbituminous coal
D. subbituminous coal - bituminous coal - lignite - anthracite
E. bituminous coal - lignite - anthracite - subbituminous coal
43.
Which of the following resources can NOT be considered to be associated
with the term hydrocarbon?
A. coal
B. crude oil
C. tar sands
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D. oil shales
E. kerogen
44.
What type of energy can be harnessed using photovoltaic cells?
A. solar
B. wind
C. tidal
D. hydroelectric
E. geothermal
45.
Which of the renewable energy resources listed below ultimately involves
driving a turbine to generate electricity?
A. nuclear
B. geothermal
C. tidal
D. hydroelectric
E. all of the above
46.
Which of the following is always going to be a geologic risk, no matter
where it happens?
A. an earthquake
B. a volcanic eruption
C. a landslide
D. a tsunami
E. none of the above
47.
48.
49.
50.
Which of the following is always going to be a geologic hazard, no matter
where it happens?
A. an earthquake
B. a flood
C. a volcanic eruption
D. all of the above
E. none of the above
Which of the following is NOT a type of geologic hazard?
A. earthquake
B. flood
C. tsunami
D. wildfire
E. erosion
An example
resulting in
in1999 is:
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
of a country that had poor building codes and thus a high risk,
a great amount of damage and loss of life during a M7.4 earthquake
U.S.A.
Japan
Bangladesh
Turkey
Phillipines
Which of the following examples constitutes the GREATEST geologic risk?
A. a tsunami along the coastline of the Aleutian Islands, Alaska
B. a flood on the Brahmaputra River delta, Bangladesh
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C. a volcanic eruption on an uninhabited volcanic island
D. a great earthquake in far northern Siberia
E. an avalanche in central Antarctica
BONUS QUESTIONS
51.
Which of the following types of sand dunes forms due to constantly
changing wind directions, causing the dunes to always stay in the same
place and not migrate?
A. barchan
B. longitudinal
C. transverse
D. parabolic
E. star
52.
The greatest tidal range on Earth is about 16 m and can be found at:
A. Puget Sound, Washington
B. Bay of Fundy, Nova Scotia
C. estuaries all around the Earth
D. San Francisco Bay, California
E. Gulf of Mexico, Texas
53.
54.
55.
The Kuiper belt object that has recently been determined to be larger than
the planet Pluto is informally named:
A. Xena
B. Sedna
C. Quaoar
D. Gabrielle
E. Oort
The 3 bodies in the solar system that are known to be currently
volcanically active are:
A. Earth, Triton, and Venus
B. Earth, Mars, and Venus
C. Earth, Triton, and Io
D. Triton, Io, and Europa
E. Venus, Mars, and Io
In reflecting upon Geol 101 this semester, it is clear that:
A. this class was totally awesome
B. I will think very carefully about the location where I buy a
house one day
C. Simon spent a lot of personal funds on Snickers bars
D. I will have to tell all my friends to consider taking this class
E. all of the above
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