EVSC 101 : Exam 1
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Introduction to Environmental Sciences
SAMPLE TEST #1 : EVSC 101
1.
The principle of uniformitarianism says that
a. all important geological processes act very slowly.
b. the Earth processes we observe today have operated throughout much of geologic time.
c. geologic events such as earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and floods have catastrophic impacts on human activities and lives.
d. geologic events which happen suddenly and with catastrophic impacts are more important than the cumulative effects of
small, continuous processes.
2.
Conduction
a. is a mode of heat transfer in which hot, less dense materials rise upwards and are replaced by cold, denser, downwardflowing materials.
b. accounts for two-thirds of the heat transfer inside the terrestrial planets (from the core to the surface).
c. the end result of the absorption of incoming solar radiation by the Earth.
d. the driving force behind plate tectonics.
3.
Which of the following is not a chemical weathering reaction?
a. the hydrolysis of potassium feldspars reacting with acidic water to form clay minerals, potassium ions, and dissolved silica.
b. the evaporation of very saline (salty) water and the precipitation out of halite deposits.
c. The dissolution of carbonates by acidic water
d. The oxidation of ferromagnesium minerals by water and oxygen.
4.
An earthquake’s focus refers to
a. the epicenter of an earthquake.
b. the point from which an earthquake's energy originates.
c. the point on the Earth's surface directly above the epicenter of an earthquake.
d. the amount of slippage that occurs accounting to the elastic rebound theory.
5.
What are environmental sciences?
a. the study of rocks, minerals, volcanoes, earthquakes, and plate tectonics.
b. the study of environmental policies and issues in order to better promote the conservation of Earth’s resources.
c. the study of how geology, hydrology, and climate relate to each other, but excludes biology and ecology.
d. the study of the processes and interactions occurring between living and nonliving things in a particular place.
6.
The rock cycle
a. is more important now than ever before in Earth's history.
b. does not involve the biosphere or the atmosphere, only the solid Earth and the hydrosphere.
c. describes the processes whereby the internal activities of the solid Earth interact with external activities involving the
hydrosphere, biosphere, and atmosphere.
d. operates independently of the process of plate tectonics.
7.
Which of the following is NOT a mineral?
a. natural diamonds
b. obsidian glass
c. table salt
d. quartz
e. calcite
EVSC 101 : Exam 1
8.
The main force(s) that hold grains together in sedimentary rocks is (are)
a. gravity
b. sedimentation
c. viscosity
d. cementation and recrystallization
e. metamorphism and remelting.
9.
Calderas form by
a. accumulation of thick piles of lava.
b. accumulation of thick piles of tephra.
c. explosion and/or collapse within a volcanic structure.
d. extensive fissure flows and flood basalts.
e. the development of lave domes.
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10. The three major families of rocks (igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic) are defined and distinguished from one another in
terms of their
a. rock-forming processes
b. textural relationships
c. mineral assemblages
d. geologic age
e. chemical composition
11. No new crust is formed nor old crust subducted along which of the following plate margin types:
a. divergent
b. convergent
c. transform
d. new crust is formed along all types of plate margins
12. Alfred Wegener
a. was a proponent of the continental drift hypothesis.
b. amassed an impressive body of evidence in support of the hypothesis of continental drift.
c. used climatic evidence to support the hypothesis of continental drift.
d. All of these are true.
13. All of the following are examples of mechanical weathering EXCEPT
a. freeze-thaw action within rock cracks in cold and temperate climates
b. dissolution and sink hole formation in limestone (karst) topography
c. fracture of rocks by tree roots
d. exfoliation caused by thermal expansion and contraction
14. Sediment derived from the precipitation of minerals out of solution is called _______ sediment.
a. biogenic
b. chemical
c. low-grade
d. clastic
15. A soil formed in a climate that is cold and dry is most likely to have which of the following characteristics?
a. Have very distinct, well-defined horizons
b. Contain lots of clay minerals
c. Is relatively shallow and poorly developed
d. Has high B horizon accumulations of Fe and Al
e. Is highly weathered
16. The least viscous magma would probably be
a. basaltic
b. andesitic
c. rhyolitic
d. found in cinder cone volcanoes
EVSC 101 : Exam 1
e.
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found in stratovolcanoes
17. The surface seismic waves produced by earthquakes
a. are used to locate earthquake epicenters
b. are the P wave and S wave
c. have the highest velocities of all seismic waves
d. travel primarily just along the surface of the Earth
e. are also known as tsunami
18. The Mohorovicic discontinuity is
a. the level at which S waves are lost, at a depth of 2,883 km below the Earth's surface
b. a "shadowing" of P and S waves, on the opposite side of the Earth from an epicenter
c. a slight density change without any composition change at about 600 km depth
d. a decrease in P and S wave velocities, which defines the top of asthenosphere
e. an abrupt increase in P and S wave velocities, used to define the base of the crust at about 40 km depth
19. The irregular blanket of loose, uncemented rock particles that covers the solid Earth is referred to as
a. petrolith.
b. lithosphere.
c. tectonics.
d. regolith.
e. soil
20. Deep ocean trenches are found at
a. convergent plate boundaries.
b. shear plate boundaries.
c. divergent plate boundaries.
d. All of these are true.
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Answers: B,B,B,B,D, C,B,D,C,A, C,D,B,B,C, A,D,E,D,A