Name: _______________________________
1) ____ New York State’s generalized landscape regions are identified primarily on the basis of elevation and
a) bedrock structure
b) climate zones
c) geologic age
d) latitude
2) ____ What is the largest sediment that can be transported by a stream that has a velocity of 125 cm/sec?
a) cobbles
b) pebbles
c) sand
d) clay
3) ____The photograph shows a valley. Which agent of erosion most
likely produced this valley’s shape?
a) wave action
b) moving ice
c) blowing wind
d) flowing water
4) ____ Deposition within a meandering stream usually occurs on the
inside of the curves because the
a) water velocity decreases
b) stream gradient increases
c) water is deeper
d) stream is narrower
5) ____ The diagram shows an outcrop of different layers of
sandstone in a region receiving heavy rainfall. Which
sandstone layer appears to be the least resistant to
weathering?
a) A
b) B
c) C
d) D
6) ____The photograph shows a large boulder of metamorphic rock in a field
in the Allegheny Plateau region of New York State. The boulder was most
likely moved to this location by
a) glacial ice
b) prevailing wind
c) streamflow
d) volcanic action
7) ____The map shows a meandering river. Points A and B are locations on the banks of the river. What are the
dominant processes occurring at locations A and B?
a) deposition at location A; erosion at location B
b) erosion at location A; deposition at location B
c) deposition at both locations A and B
d) erosion at both locations A and B
Regents Review – Weathering and Erosion
1-5
Created: February 2010
Name: _______________________________
Base your answers to questions 8 through 11 on the diagram below. The arrows show the direction in which sediment is
being transported along the shoreline. A
barrier beach has formed, creating a lagoon
(a shallow body of water in which
sediments are being deposited). The
eroded headlands are composed of diorite
bedrock. A groin has recently been
constructed. Groins are wall-like structures
built into the water perpendicular to the
shoreline to trap beach sand.
8) ____ The groin structure will change
the pattern of deposition along the
shoreline, initially causing the beach to
become
a) wider on the western side of the groin
b) wider on the eastern side of the groin
c) narrower on both sides of the groin
d) wider on both sides of the groin
9) ____ Which two minerals are most likely found in the beach sand that was eroded from the headlands?
a) quartz and olivine
b) plagioclase feldspar and amphibole
c) potassium feldspar and biotite
d) pyroxene and calcite
10) ____ The sediments that have been deposited by streams flowing into the lagoon are most likely
a) sorted and layered
b) sorted and not layered
c) unsorted and layered
d) unsorted and not layered
11) ____ Which event will most likely occur during a heavy rainfall?
a) Less sediment will be carried by the streams.
b) An increase in sea level will cause more sediments to be deposited along the shoreline.
c) The shoreline will experience a greater range in tides.
d) The discharge from the streams into the lagoon will increase.
The diagram below shows sand particles being moved by wind.
12) ____ At which Earth surface locations is this process usually the most dominant type of erosion?
a) deserts and beaches
b) deltas and floodplains
c) glaciers and moraines
d) mountain peaks and escarpments
13) ____ During a heavy rainstorm, runoff is most likely to occur if the surface soil is
a) firmly packed clay-sized particles
b) loosely packed sand-sized particles
c) covered by trees, shrubs, and grasses
d) unsaturated and has a gentle slope
Regents Review – Weathering and Erosion
2-5
Created: February 2010
Name: _______________________________
The block diagrams below, labeled A, B, and C, show the relative elevation and rock structure of three different landscape
regions.
14) ____ Which set correctly identifies the landscape region shown in each block diagram?
a) A–mountain, B–plateau, C–plain
b) A–mountain, B–plain, C–plateau
c) A–plateau, B–mountain, C–plain
d) A–plateau, B–plain, C–mountain
Base your answers to questions 15 through 17 on the cross section, which
shows the bedrock of a portion of the Helderberg Escarpment, located in
Thacher State Park near Albany, New York. The rock formations are
identified by name.
15) ____ Which formations appear to be the most resistant to weathering?
a) Esopus and Oriskany
b) Onondaga and Coeymans
c) Schoharie, and Marcellus and Hamilton
d) New Scotland, and Schenectady and Indian Ladder beds
16) ____ What is the main factor that causes the bedrock to weather at
different rates?
a) elevation above sea level
b) mineral composition
c) age of rock layers
d) environment of formation
17) ____ The Manlius layer formed during the early Devonian Period. What type of fossils could possibly be found in the
Manlius layer?
a) earliest birds
b) earliest reptiles
c) Tetragraptus
d) Ctenocrinus
18) ____ U-shaped valleys and parallel grooves in bedrock are characteristics of erosion by
a) mass movement
b) wave action
c) running water
d) glacial ice
19) ____ What elevation and bedrock structure are generally found in the Catskills?
a) low elevation and horizontal sedimentary bedrock structure
b) high elevation and horizontal sedimentary bedrock structure
c) low elevation and folded metamorphic bedrock structure
d) high elevation and folded metamorphic bedrock structure
Regents Review – Weathering and Erosion
3-5
Created: February 2010
Name: _______________________________
20) ____The landscape diagram shows a fan-shaped pattern of sediment deposits. The
fan-shaped pattern of these sediments is most likely the result of deposition by
a) glacial ice
b) ocean waves
c) running water
d) prevailing winds
21) ____ Four quartz samples of equal size and shape were placed in a stream. Which of
the four quartz samples below has most likely been transported farthest in the
stream?
22) ____ The model shown illustrates stream erosion
between locations A and B in the stream. Placing a
second block under location A will cause the stream’s
velocity to
a) decrease and the rate of erosion to decrease
b) decrease and the rate of erosion to increase
c) increase and the rate of erosion to decrease
d) increase and the rate of erosion to increase
Regents Review – Weathering and Erosion
4-5
Created: February 2010
Name: _______________________________
Base your answers to questions 23 through 25 on the map and the stream data table below. The map represents a
stream flowing into a lake. An arrow shows the direction of streamflow. Points A and B are locations at the edge of the
stream. Line AB is a reference line across the
stream surface. Line CD is a reference line
along the lake bottom from the mouth of the
stream into the lake. The data table gives the
depth of the water and distance from point A,
in feet, along line AB.
23) On the grid provided, construct a profile of
the depth of water below line AB, following
the directions below.
• Mark an appropriate numerical scale
showing equal intervals on the axis labeled
“Depth of Water.” The zero (0) on the depth of
water axis represents the stream surface.
• Using the data table, plot with an X the depth
of water at each distance from point A to point
B. Connect the Xs with a smooth, curved line.
Points A and B have already been plotted.
24) Using the map and the data table, explain why the depth of water 20 feet from point A is different from the depth of
water 20 feet from point B.
25) The sediments being carried by the stream include clay, pebbles, sand, and silt. List these sediments in the most
likely order of deposition from point C to point D.
Regents Review – Weathering and Erosion
5-5
Created: February 2010