Homework for Cenozoic Geology KEY
Structural Geology
Use these questions to test your knowledge of Cenozoic Geology
A. Multiple Choice
1) The Alpine-Himalayan belt is a continuous zone of:
(a) rifting.
(b) faulting.
(c) volcanism.
(d) mountain building.
2) The main difference between the Alpine-Himalayan belt and the circumPacific belt is:
(a) type of climate in each.
(b) type of tectonic processes in each.. (collision vs. subduction +
volcanic arc)
(c) age in which each originated.
3) All of the following mountain ranges are a part of the Alpine Orogen
EXCEPT:
(a) Alps.
(b) Apennines.
(c) Himalayas.
(d) Pyrenees.
4) The sand in Flysch deposits is deposited by:
(a) volcanic eruptions.
(b) submarine landslides.
(c) glaciers.
(d) flooding rivers.
5) Nappes are produced by:
(a) volcanic activity.
(b) thrust faulting.
(c) normal faulting.
6) In the Pliocene, a triple junction separated:
(a) Europe and Africa.
(b) Africa and Arabia.
(c) Europe and Arabia.
7) The Zagros Mountains were produced by subduction between Iran and
Arabia.
a) True
b) False
No, thrust faulting
8) Sediment scraped from the subducted Indian oceanic plate was
deposited:
(a) as an accretionary wedge.
(b) in the forearc basin.
(c) along the passive margin.
9) The warm climate of the Early Eocene was indicated by fossils of:
(a) tropical plants near the equator.
(b) tropical plants in the high latitudes.
10) During the Tertiary, temperatures cooled and mid-latitude climates
became drier, so:
(a) grasslands changed to forests
(b) forests were replaced by grasslands.
11) Grasses have drought-tolerant carbon cycles.
a) True
b) False
12) All of the following stages represent glacial advances EXCEPT:
(a) Illinoian.
(b) Nebraskan.
(c) Sangamon. Glacial advances are named for states
(d) Wisconsinan.
13) The best record of glacial climates is preserved in:
(a) glacial striations
(b) glacial outwash.
(c) glacial till.
(d) the tests of planktonic foraminifera .
14) During glacial ages, the proportion of 18O isotope compared to 16O
isotope IN THE OCEAN is:
(a) about the same.
(b) greater.
(c) less.
(d) none of the above.
15) The transitional period between the end of a glacial stage and the
onset of an interglacial stage can last:
(a) about 100,000 years.
(b) from 10,000 to 15,000 years.
(c) a few tens of years. Glaciers melt back fast. Look at northern
Canada on Google Earth: no ice sheets!
(d) there is insufficient evidence to predict the time interval.
16) The glacial stage for which standard radiocarbon (carbon-14) dating
can be applied is the:
(a) Kansan.
(b) Nebraskan.
(c) Illinoian.
(d) Wisconsinan. Carbon-14 has a half life of 5730 years, maybe good
for 57000 years. Only Wisc. young enough.
17) Evaporation of Lake Bonneville left behind:
(a) Lake Superior
(b) Great Salt Lake.
(c) Lake Placid
18) All of the following represent the effects of lowered sea level
EXCEPT:
(a) river valleys cut into the continental shelf.
(b) continental shelves with forests and animal populations.
(c) formation of land bridges.
(d) glacial rebound. [glaciers melted, sea level is higher, not lower]
19) The Basin and Range province was formed because of the breakup
of the buoyantly subducted Farallon plate beneath the continent. This
caused upwelling and stretched the crust.
a) True probably
b) False
20) The formation of the San Andreas transform involved the nearly
complete subduction of the:
(a) Juan de Fuca plate.
(b) Farallon plate.
(c) Cocos plate.
(d) Nazca plate.
21) The modern rise of sea level is due to all of the following EXCEPT:
(a) thinning of the Greenland ice sheet.
(b) melting of alpine glaciers.
(c) expansion of oceanic surface waters as they warm.
(d) increased rates of seafloor spreading. Not occuring now.
B. Match the terms
22)
Nappe __c__
a. alternating shales and sandstones b4 collision
23)
Flysch __a_
b. Non-marine deposits in foreland basin
24)
Molasse ___b__
c. Large recumbent folds in thrust-fault zones