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Plate Tectonics Quiz
True/False
Indicate whether the statement is true or false.
____
1. The oceanic lithosphere is thicker than the continental lithosphere.
Multiple Choice
Identify the choice that best completes the statement or answers the question.
____
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2. Which provides the best evidence for the theory that faults and volcanoes are results of tectonic plate
interactions?
a. Faults on tectonic plates are in constant
c. Tectonic plates that have many faults do
motion, but volcanoes may not erupt for
not usually have volcanoes
many years
b. Faults and volcanoes existed a long time d. Faults and volcanoes are often found at
before there were tectonic plates
tectonic plate boundaries
3. Identical rock types, identical fossils, and very similar mountain ranges are found on different continents that
are separated by a wide ocean. Which of these best explains these observations?
a. Organisms traveled between these
c. These continents were joined together at
continents on land bridges
one time in the past
b. The same forces erode mountains in
d. Some rock types are very common and are
different locations
found everywhere
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4.
____
Which of these is evidence that North America and Africa collided as Pangaea formed about 270 million
years ago?
a. Chesapeake Bay
c. Appalachian Mountains
b. Florida Peninsula
d. Great Dismal Swamp
5. The surface of Earth is composed of large tectonic plates that are constantly shifting as they float on top of
molten rock. Which process must occur in the mantle to make the plates move?
a. normal faulting
c. igneous intrusions
b. seafloor spreading
d. convection currents
6. Which layers of Earth are mostly made of solid material?
____
____
7.
____
8.
____
9.
____ 10.
____ 11.
____ 12.
____ 13.
a. inner core and outer core
c. crust and mantle
b. crust and inner core
d. mantle and outer core
Scientists believe continental drift over Earth’s geological history has had a significant impact on Earth’s
cycles of warmer and cooler climates. Which statement describes a characteristic of Earth’s continents that is
most likely to cause changes in global climate when continents drift?
a. The location of the continent affects its
c. Continental drift absorbs large amounts of
surface reflectivity.
kinetic energy.
b. Continental plate depth determines its
d. The temperature of a continent is affected
specific heat.
by its nearest ocean.
The Theory of Plate Tectonics is based on
a. evidence of sea floor spreading.
c. an anlaysis of soil at the plate boundaries.
b. topographic mapping of mountain ranges. d. volcanic activity along coastlines
South America and Africa are two continents separated by a large ocean. Scientists have found
200-million-year-old Mesosaurus fossils on both continents. What is the explanation for the reason these
fossils can be found on both continents?
a. The continents were both created through c. The animals crossed a land bridge that
volcanic activity.
once connected the continents.
b. The fossils were brought to South
d. The continents were once attached to each
America by explorers
other and then drifted apart.
A difference between the oceanic crust and the continental crust is that the oceanic crust is
a. composed chiefly of sedimentary rocks.
c. older than the continental crust.
b. more dense than the continental crust.
d. continually being created.
The first person to introduce the idea of the continents moving around the surface of Earth was
a. Niels Bohr.
c. Charles Darwin
b. Albert Einstein
d. Alfred Wegener
Geologists have been studying the movement of plate tectonics for years. Using evidence such as changes in
climate, geologists can map the movement of continents. Which discovery supports the claim that climate
changes over time?
a. magnetic reversals in seafloor rocks in the c. glaciers in South America
Pacific and Atlantic Oceans
b. similar rock formations in North America d. coal beds in Antarctica
and Greenland
The continental crust floats on top of the mantle because the crust is
a. less dense than the mantle
c. made up of oxygen which is a light
element
b. made of a liquid material
d. separated from the mantle by a layer of
water
____ 14. At the center of a mid-ocean ridge is a(n)
a. subduction zone.
c. rift valley.
b. fracture zone.
d. deep-ocean trench.
____ 15. Ferromagnetic molecules in the liquid igneous rocks orient themselves to align with Earth’s magnetic field.
When the rock cools, the molecules are set in place. Earth’s poles swap positions periodically, so molecules
from different periods have different orientations. Which finding would support modern plate tectonic theory?
a. Bands of ferromagnetic molecules with
c. Bands of ferromagnetic molecules with
alternating orientations are asymmetrical on
either side of a divergent boundary.
b. Bands of ferromagnetic molecules with
alternating orientations are asymmetrical on
either side of a convergent boundary.
alternating orientations are symmetrical on
either side of a convergent boundary.
d. Bands of ferromagnetic molecules with
alternating orientations are symmetrical on
either side of a divergent boundary.
____ 16. The contributions to the Theory of Plate Tectonics are listed in the table.
Time
1912
1950s
1960s
1968
Contributions
Alfred Wegener proposes Theory of Continental Drift
Scientists begin using echo-sounding devices to study the ocean floor
Harry Hess proposes the Theory of Sea-Floor Spreading
Scientists propose the Theory of Plate Tectonics by combining the
Theory of Continental Drift and the Theory of Sea-Floor Spreading
Which statement best identifies the nature of scientific theories?
a. Theories continuously change after each c. Theories depend entirely on the
new investigation.
development of new technology.
b. Theories can be revised if new
d. Theories are changed when new
information adds to old theories.
equipment is used in investigations.
____ 17. Scientists used the pattern of alternating normal and reversed polarity in rocks to create the geomagnetic
a. time scale.
c. reversal time scale.
b. sea-floor time scale.
d. normal time scale.
____ 18. What is the crack in the ocean floor through which magma rises?
a. a ridge
c. a rift
b. a rip
d. a rent
____ 19. How does sediment that is closer to a mid-ocean ridge compare to sediment that is farther away?
a. It is larger.
c. It is older.
b. It is smaller.
d. It is younger.
____ 20. Wegener’s hypothesis of continental drift was finally confirmed by
a. fossils from the same reptile found on two continents.
b. evidence supporting the idea of sea-floor spreading.
c. continental coastlines that fit together.
d. the formation of mountain ranges such as the Andes.
____ 21. Tectonic plates can include
a. only asthenosphere.
b. only oceanic crust.
c. only continental crust.
d. both oceanic and continental crust.
____ 22. Frequent earthquakes in an area may indicate
a. tectonic plate boundaries.
b. sea-floor spreading.
c. mantle convection.
d. reversed polarity.
Plate Tectonics Quiz
Answer Section
TRUE/FALSE
1. ANS: F
PTS: 1
MULTIPLE CHOICE
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OBJ:
D
C
C
D
B
A
A
D
B
D
D
A
C
2
D
B
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3
C
2
D
2
B
4
D
1
A
2
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1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
DIF: 1
REF: 2
PTS: 1
PTS: 1
PTS: 1
DIF: 1
REF: 1
PTS: 1
DIF: 1
REF: 1
PTS: 1
DIF: 1
REF: 1
PTS: 1
DIF: 1
REF: 1
PTS: 1
DIF: 1
REF: 2
PTS: 1
DIF: 1
REF: 2