Download Physical Earth Science Semester 1 Mid

Physical Earth Science Semester 1 Mid-term Review Key
1. Describe the principle of cross-cutting relationships. An intrusive rock body is younger than the rocks into
which it intrudes
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What event may have triggered the great Paleozoic extinction? Climatic change
What is the thermal convection that drives plate motion caused by? An unequal distribution of heat
Describe each stage of the rock cycle. What geologic processes take you from one stage to the next?
Describe the law of superposition. In an undeformed sequence of sedimentary rocks, each layer is older than
the one above it.
6. Mohs scale is used to determine what property of minerals? hardness
7. What is the current geologic age? What title best describes the current geologic age? Cenozoic Era, Age of
Mammals
8. A succession of ocean waves set in motion by a submarine earthquake is called a(n) _____. tsunami
9. Explain how minerals form. Minerals form by crystallization from magma, precipitation from water, changes
in pressure and temperature, and formation from hydrothermal solutions.
10. What layers of Earth make up the lithosphere? The crust and upper mantle
11. What geologic process occurs at an oceanic continental plate boundary? What geologic features
characterize this type of boundary? Subduction, deep ocean trenches and continental volcanic arcs
12. List the characteristics of minerals. Naturally occurring, solid substance, orderly crystalline structure, definite
chemical composition, inorganic
13. How are the three types of rocks classified? By how they formed
14. What is the minimum number of seismic stations that is needed to determine the location of an earthquake’s
epicenter? three
15. The distance, measured in degrees, north and south of the equator is referred to as ________. latitude
16. What kind of plate boundary occurs where two plates grind past each other without destroying or producing
lithosphere? Transform fault boundary
17. Know how to read and interpret a travel-time graph. (pg 225 Fig 8)
18. How does a scientific hypothesis become a theory? By testing the hypothesis extensively and eliminating
competing hypotheses
19. Which seismic waves travel most rapidly? P waves
20. The SF earthquake of 1906 occurred along what fault? San Andreas fault
21. Be able to read and interpret a half-life graph. (pg 348 Fig 13)
22. In what type of rocks would geologists most likely find evidence of past life forms? Sedimentary rocks
23. Which era immediately follows the Precambrian? Paleozoic
24. Describe the law of conservation of mass. It states that mass cannot be created or destroyed
25. What is the largest expanse of time on the geologic time scale called? eon
26. What is an example of a geologic event that could be recorded in rocks? A volcanic eruption
27. What is the order of elements in the periodic table based on? The number of protons in the nucleus
28. An atom’s mass number equals the number of ______. Protons plus the number of neutrons
29. What affects the amount of destruction caused by earthquake vibrations? The intensity and duration of the
vibrations, the nature of the material on which the structures are built, location and population of the
epicenter, and the design of the structures
30. Be able to read and interpret the sedimentary rocks table. (pg 79 Table 2)
31. What are the building blocks of minerals? elements
32. What do ionic bonds form between? Ions with opposite charges
33. Where does seafloor spreading occur? At divergent plates
34. Describe the principle of fossil succession. It states that different types of fossil organisms succeed one
another in a definite order.
35. Highly explosive volcanoes tend to have what type of magma? Magma with high silica, high viscosity, and
higher gas content
36. What is an element? A substance that cannot be broken down into simpler substances.
37. What was the super continent in the continental drift hypothesis called? Pangea
38. What are the agents of metamorphism? Heat, pressure, and hydrothermal solutions
39. What is the color of the powdered form of a mineral called? streak
40. Differences in elevation are best shown using what kind of map? A topographic map
41. What is the current geologic period? Quaternary
42. Where is new ocean crust formed? At divergent boundaries
43. What happened to all the continents by the close of the Paleozoic? They fused into Pangea.
44. Be able to read and interpret a topographic map. (pg 14 Fig 15)
45. What are the main types of chemical bonds? Ionic, covalent, and metallic
46. Define matter. Matter is anything that has mass and takes up space.
47. What is paleomagnetism? What does it provide evidence for? Paleomagnetism describes strips of alternating
magnetic polarites found in rocks in the ocean basins and it provides evidence for seafloor spreading.
48. List the 3 types of rock and describe the formation of each. Igneous rocks form from cooling magma or lava.
Sedimentary rocks form when sediments settle out of fluid or air and become cemented together.
Metamorphic rocks form when rocks are exposed to heat, pressure and/or hydrothermal solutions.
49. What is half-life? The time is takes for 50% of the nuclei in a radioactive sample to decay to its stable isotope
50. What is an earthquakes magnitude the measure of? Size of the seismic waves it produces
51. Atoms of elements that are in the same group have the same number of _____. Valence electrons
52. Describe each of the layers of the Earth. The crust is thin, solid and rocky and makes up the top part of the
lithospheric plates. The mantle is 80% of the Earth’s interior. It is made up of the lithosphere(solid),
asthenosphere(liquid), and the lower mantle(solid). The outer core is liquid, made of iron and nickel, and
more than 4500 degrees Celsius. The inner core is solid due to intense pressure, made of iron and nickel and
more than 5000 degrees Celsius.
53. In the early Paleozoic, where was life restricted to? The seas
54. What is an ion? An atom that loses or gains electrons
55. On a topographic map, contour lines that form a circle indicate a(n) _____. hill
56. In mountainous regions, is the continental crust thicker or thinner than average? Thicker than average
57. In which type of bond do atoms share electrons? Covalent bond
58. How do scientists test a hypothesis? Doing experiments
59. Where is an earthquake’s epicenter? The place on the surface directly above the focus
60. When an earthquake occurs, energy radiates in all directions from its source, which is called the
______.focus
61. If a layer of sandstone is in contact with a mass of granite that contains small pieces of the sandstone, which
rock is older? The sandstone
62. When large masses of magma solidify far below the Earth’s surface, they form igneous rocks that have what
kind of texture? Coarse-grained texture
63. A tectonic plate consists of what layers of the Earth? The crust and uppermost mantle
64. Where are most of the active volcanoes on Earth located? The Pacific Ring of Fire
65. Describe the principle of uniformitarianism It states that the physical, chemical, and biological laws that
operate today have also operated in the geologic past.
66. When can scientific theories be changed or replaced? When new discoveries are made
67. How were the Hawaiian Islands formed? They formed when the Pacific plate moved over a hot spot.
68. How was most of the information about the Earth’s interior obtained? By studying earthquake waves
69. What is the currently accepted age of Earth? About 4.6 billion years old
70. Describe the characteristics of a composite cone volcano. It is fairly symmetrical and has both layers of
lava and pyroclastic deposits.
71. What animals dominated the Mesozoic Era? dinosaurs
72. What are isotopes? Atoms containing the same numbers of protons and different numbers of neutrons
73. Which seismic waves are the most destructive? surface waves
74. Where does the energy that drives the rock cycle come from? Earth’s interior and the sun
75. The process of mineral formation from magma is called _____. crystallization
76. What is a rock that forms when magma hardens beneath Earth’s surface called? Intrusive igneous rock
77. As the rate of cooling of igneous rocks increases, what happens to the size of the crystals that form? The size
decreases
78. Which period represents the last 2 million years of geologic time? Quaternary
79. After examining a sequence of tilted sedimentary rocks, you determine that there is a considerable span of
time for which no sedimentary rock layers exist at this location. You have discovered a(n) _______.
Angular unconformity
80. What determines whether a mineral will show cleavage or break in irregular fractures? It’s internal atomic
structure
81. How is radioactivity produced? It’s produced when unstable nuclei break apart.
82.What type of rocks are formed by processes powered by the sun? sedimentary rocks
83. List the 8 most common elements in Earth’s continental crust. Oxygen, silicon, aluminum, iron, calcium,
sodium, potassium, and magnesium
84. What continents made up Laurasia? What continents made up Gondwana? Laurasia was made up of presentday North America, Europe, and western Asia. Gondwana was made up of present-day South America,
Africa, Australia, Antarctica, and parts of Asia.
85. What does the radiometric date of a metamorphic rock most likely represent? When the rock was heated
during metamorphism
86. Define the scientific method. It is a series of logical steps that is followed in order to solve a problem.
87. How do foliated metamorphic rocks form? They form when crystals combine and form visible bands.
88. Describe the characteristics of shield volcanoes. a broad, slightly dome-shaped volcano