Multiple Choice
Identify the
choice that best completes the statement or answers the question.
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1.
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Which of the following provides evidence for
plate tectonics?
a. | sea-floor topography | c. | Coriolis
effect | b. | ocean currents | d. | atmospheric
temperatures |
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2.
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The youngest rocks on the ocean floor are typically
located near what feature?
a. | a mid-ocean ridge | c. | an abyssal
plain | b. | a continental shelf | d. | a subduction trench
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3.
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A rift valley is evidence of which kind of plate
boundary?
a. | convergent | c. | transform | b. | divergent | d. | uniform |
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4.
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The convergence of two continental plates would produce
a. | island arcs. | c. | folded
mountains. | b. | rift
valleys. | d. | trenches. |
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5.
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Which of the following is most responsible for the
formation of new crust at the edge of a tectonic plate?
a. | mountain building at a continent-continent convergent
boundary | c. | two tectonic plates sliding past one another at a transform
boundary | b. | magma rising up from the mantle at a divergent
boundary | d. | subduction of one oceanic plate under another at a convergent
boundary |
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6.
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It is generally true that igneous rocks
a. | contain primarily evaporites. | c. | normally contain fossils. | b. | can be scratched with a
penny. | d. | are composed of silicate minerals. |
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7.
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Relative cooling rates of igneous intrusive rocks can be
estimated by comparing rocks’
a. | crystal sizes. | c. | density. | b. | composition. | d. | chemical reactivity. |
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8.
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Which of the following is most likely to produce a
fragmental sedimentary rock?
a. | magma fractured on the ocean floor | c. | gravel deposited in a silt bed | b. | calcite crystallized from
seawater | d. | limestone dissolved in cave formation |
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9.
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Earthquake vibrations are detected, measured, and
recorded by instruments called
a. | sonargraphs. | c. | Richter
scales. | b. | seismographs. | d. | magnetometers. |
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10.
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 At which location
would earthquakes be least likely to occur?
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11.
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The Richter scale measures which of the following
earthquake characteristics?
a. | intensity | c. | frequency | b. | magnitude | d. | probability |
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12.
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Which type of volcano would be the least
explosive?
a. | cinder cone | c. | shield
volcano | b. | stratovolcano | d. | composite
cone |
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13.
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Which of the following energy sources is most
likely to be abundant in California due to its position on a plate boundary?
a. | wind | c. | solar | b. | nuclear | d. | geothermal |
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14.
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What energy resource is made possible by the volcanic
activity in California?
a. | hydroelectricity | c. | geothermal
energy | b. | nuclear power | d. | solar
energy |
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15.
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Geothermal energy is possible where there is
a. | wind. | c. | coal. | b. | oil. | d. | magma. |
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16.
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The Long Valley Caldera in east-central California was
formed by a massive volcanic eruption about 760,000 years ago. Since then, it has erupted several
times. Of the following, which would be least likely to indicate that another eruption will
soon occur?
a. | recurring earthquakes in the vicinity | c. | changes in gas emissions from the caldera | b. | decreases in precipitation in the area | d. | uplifting of the floor of
the caldera |
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17.
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Earthquake activity in California is primarily caused by
a. | the lowering of aquifer levels. | c. | mining activity during the nineteenth century. | b. | the interaction of tides with the coast. | d. | plates grinding past each
other along active faults. |
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18.
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Landslides in California are caused by a combination of
environmental factors, such as heavy precipitation, and geologic factors, such as
a. | karst topography and poor drainage. | c. | reverse faulting and perched water tables. | b. | crust folding and artesian springs. | d. | steep topography and
unstable soil structure. |
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19.
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The main purpose of the California aqueduct is to
a. | allow inexpensive water routes for transporting commercial
products. | c. | divert floodwater from populated regions to sparsely populated
areas. | b. | transport fresh water to areas with dense populations.
| d. | provide abundant ocean water to drier regions of California.
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20.
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Water is important to many different types of industry.
Which industry’s water requirement is the greatest burden on California’s fresh water
supply?
a. | aerospace | c. | tourism | b. | manufacturing | d. | agriculture |
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21.
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The majority of freshwater in California is used for
a. | drinking. | c. | livestock. | b. | agriculture. | d. | fire fighting. |
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22.
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Only about 50% of the solar
energy directed toward Earth penetrates directly to the surface. What happens to the rest of the
radiation?
a. | It is absorbed or reflected by the
atmosphere. | c. | It is reflected off
the Moon and back into space. | b. | It loses energy traveling through space. | d. | It loses energy overcoming the Sun’s gravity.
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23.
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 Geothermal energy, a possible energy resource, is based on which phenomenon?
a. | There are concentrations of heat in
some places of Earth’s crust. | c. | Heat energy from the Sun penetrates deep into Earth.
| b. | Earth’s internal energy heats
its surface more than the Sun does. | d. | Human activity is the largest source of heat energy on Earth.
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24.
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Venus is warmed by solar
radiation, but its thick cloud cover increases the temperature
because the clouds
a. | prevent the escape of heat into
space. | c. | absorb short light wavelengths,
leaving heat. | b. | convert solar radiation into heat. | d. | produce heat as they are pushed by strong winds.
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25.
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Which of these could increase
average global temperatures?
a. | increased use of fossil fuels
| c. | decreased carbon dioxide emissions
| b. | increased ocean algal blooms
| d. | increased numbers of animal species
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26.
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The clouds that surround
Venus are so thick that the planet actually absorbs less sunlight than the Earth. Nevertheless, Venus
has a surface temperature of more than 400 ïC. Which of these
best explains this high surface temperature?
a. | The bright surfaces of the clouds
reflect sunlight back on the planet. | c. | The thick clouds in the atmosphere prevent heat from escaping.
| b. | The strong winds in the atmosphere
produce friction. | d. | The sulfuric acid in the clouds
releases heat energy. |
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27.
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More solar energy reaches the
equatorial regions than the polar regions because the equatorial regions
a. | are covered by a greater area of
land. | c. | have days with more hours of
light. | b. | have more vegetation to absorb sunlight. | d. | receive sun rays closest to
vertical. |
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28.
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Which diagram
best models the movement of
coastal air during the afternoon?
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29.
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What is the driving force for
surface ocean currents?
a. | density layering
| c. | the Coriolis effect
| b. | global winds
| d. | salt concentration
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30.
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 What causes the wind deflection from the north and south
poles? a. | the rotation of Earth on its axis | c. | the tilt of Earth’s axis
relative to its orbital plane | b. | the oblate shape of Earth | d. | the difference in total land mass of the two
hemispheres |
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31.
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Air moving from the poles
toward the equator turns west. The primary cause of this global deflection is
a. | the shape and size of land
masses. | c. | changes in the
magnetic field. | b. | larger cities surrounded by farmlands. | d. | the rotation of the planet. |
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32.
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Earth rotates in an easterly
direction. Therefore, southward wind currents in the Northern Hemisphere appear to be deflected to
the
a. | east. | c. | north. | b. | west. | d. | south. |
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33.
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Earth’s atmosphere is
divided into layers that are based upon their
a. | water
content. | c. | gas
content. | b. | relative humidity. | d. | temperature gradient. |
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34.
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According to many scientists,
what process led to the formation of the early atmosphere of Earth?
a. | outgassing | c. | asteroid collision | b. | metamorphism | d. | galactic dust |
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35.
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According to scientists,
which of the following material categories is thought to be the primary cause for the depletion of
the ozone layer?
a. | chlorofluorocarbons
| c. | fossil fuels
| b. | coal-containing sulfur
| d. | hydrocarbons |
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36.
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 The diagram above shows four layers of Earth’s atmosphere. Which of the
following correctly labels the layers represented by A, B, C, and D (from Earth moving upward) in the
correct sequence? a. | troposphere, stratosphere,
mesosphere, thermosphere | c. | troposphere, mesosphere, thermosphere, stratosphere
| b. | thermosphere, mesosphere,
stratosphere, troposphere | d. | mesosphere, troposphere,
thermosphere, stratosphere |
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37.
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The primitive atmosphere of
Earth was deficient in free oxygen. What process was primarily responsible for the development of the
present percentage of free oxygen in the Earth’s atmosphere?
a. | outgassing
| c. | volcanic eruptions
| b. | photosynthesis
| d. | oxidation of iron-based minerals
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38.
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Most of the molecular oxygen
in the early atmosphere of Earth resulted from
a. | photosynthesis in primitive
plants. | c. | volcanic
eruptions. | b. | decaying primitive plants and animals. | d. | lightning striking Earth. |
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39.
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The first atmosphere that
formed above Earth was most
likely due to what process?
a. | eruption of
volcanoes | c. | development of land
plants | b. | movement of water | d. | occurrence of violent storms |
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40.
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Which of the following human
activities reduces the level of ozone in the atmosphere?
a. | using artificial lighting in
scientific polar stations | c. | releasing chlorofluorocarbons from aerosol cans
| b. | using large banks of solar cells for
energy production | d. | destroying large areas of the
equatorial rain forests |
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