Download Earth`s Systems and Resources Unit Test

Earth’s Systems and Resources Unit Test
1. What do the topographic lines on the map to the right
represent?
A. a rounded mountain
B. a flat-topped volcano
C. a steep mountain
D. a mountain with two peaks
2. Using the map to the right, what would
the elevation be at contour line J?
A. 3500 feet
B. 4900 feet
C. 5600 feet
D. 6300 feet
3. A topographic map is primarily used to
determine the
A. number of continents in the world.
B. location of major cities in the country.
C. rainfall of desert regions.
D. elevation of an area.
4. Which point on the topographic map to the right
has the highest elevation?
A. point A
B. point B
C. point C
D. point D
5. The Sphinx in Egypt has been eroded by desert
sands.
Which process has most likely helped in breaking
down the surface of the Sphinx?
A. cementation
B. deposition
C. weathering
D. faulting
6. Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains were once among the tallest in the world, similar in altitude
to the Himalayas of today. This would still be the case if not for the process of
A. erosion
C. volcanism
B. folding.
D. metamorphism.
7. A mountain in the picture to the right showed the following change in profile over
millions of years.
What happened to most of the material removed from
the mountain?
A. The material weathered and formed sediments.
B. The material was absorbed by plant roots.
C. The material disintegrated from exposure to
sunlight.
D. The material was destroyed by chemical reactions.
8. How do wind and water change rocks over time?
A. They add minerals to the rocks.
C. They increase the mass of the rocks.
B. They change the shape of the rocks. D. They build up the rocks with sand particles.
9. Which statement is true about rocks?
A. Minerals are made of rocks.
B. Crystals are made of rocks.
C. Rocks are made of one or more minerals.
D. Magma is made of solid rock.
10. Which processes change metamorphic rock into igneous rock?
A. melting and cooling
C. heat and pressure
B. compaction and cementation
D. weathering and erosion
11. In the rock cycle, sedimentary rock forms when rock
is
A. crystallized into natural glass.
B. exposed to great temperature.
C. melted into liquid magma.
D. broken down by weathering.
12. Look at the diagram to the right.
Which sentence best describes a process in the rock
cycle?
A. Igneous rocks can be put under extreme heat and
pressure to become metamorphic rocks.
B. Metamorphic rocks can form by the weathering
process.
C. Igneous rocks can melt into magma and become sedimentary rocks.
D. Sedimentary rocks can melt to become metamorphic rocks.
13. Earth is made of different layers that have varying characteristics. Which is the thinnest
layer?
A. the mantle
C. the outer core
B. the inner core
D. the crust
14. Due to extreme pressure, the inner core of Earth is
A. solid.
C. gas.
B. liquid.
D. plasma.
15. Which section of Earth is composed primarily of liquid metal?
A. crust
C. outer core
B. mantle
D. inner core
16. Which of these correctly lists Earth’s layers in order from the center to the surface?
A. outer core, inner core, asthenosphere, lithosphere
B. asthenosphere, lithosphere, outer core, inner core
C. inner core, asthenosphere, lithosphere, outer core
D. inner core, outer core, asthenosphere, lithosphere
17. The Appalachian Mountains are approximately 480 million years old, making them the
oldest mountains in North America. The Appalachian Mountains are folded mountains that
were once as high as 20,000 feet. Now they reach to about 3,000 feet. How did these mountains
form?
A. Folded mountains occur when two plates of the Earth's crust diverge.
B. Folded mountains are the result of many volcanoes erupting all at the same time.
C. Folded mountains occur when two plates of the Earth's crust converge.
D. Folded mountains form over millions of years as sediments are deposited and build up.
18. An earthquake occurs in western Nevada. What most likely causes the earthquake?
A. stress due to the movement of Earth’s tectonic plates
B. gravitational variation due to the Moon’s orbit around Earth
C. temperature variation due to Earth’s orbit around the Sun
D. rotational imbalance due to changes in the location of Earth’s poles
19. The diagram shows the formation of a
subduction zone as two tectonic plates collide.
What will be the most likely formation at
location Y?
A.
B.
C.
D.
island
lake
plateau
volcano
20. Earthquakes occur frequently along this boundary. Earth’s crust is neither created nor
destroyed. Which type of plate boundary is being described?
A. transform boundary
C. convergent boundary
B. divergent boundary
D. compression boundary
21. Earthquakes are caused
A. by slow, steady movement in the lithosphere.
B. by slow, steady movement in the inner core.
C. by sudden movement along faults.
D. when movement along a fault stops
22. In Alfred Wegener’s continental drift theory he believed that at one time in geologic history
the continents were joined together in one large landmass called
A. Eurasia.
C. Permian.
B. Pangaea.
D. Panthalassa.
23. Which of these pieces of evidence did NOT help in the development of the theory of plate
tectonics?
A. The outlines of the different continents look like they could fit together like puzzle pieces.
B. Similar fossil evidence has been found on continents separated by great distances.
C. Nearly identical rock formations were found on the east coast of the U.S. and the west
coast of Europe.
D. No mountains in the world are increasing in size.
24. The movement of the tectonic plates is caused by
A. convection currents in Earth’s mantle.
C. the rotation of the Earth.
B. the gravity of the iron-nickel core.
D. the gravity from the moon.
25. ____________________ helps explain why there are a large number of identical species in
Australia and South America, two continents that were once connected.
A. Ozone production
C. The fifth mass extinction
B. Continental drift
D. The first mass extinction
26. The map shown to the right would
be useful in predicting the location of
future
A. droughts.
C. hurricanes
B. earthquakes.
D. tornadoes.
27. The majority of volcanoes (dots) in
this map are MOST LIKELY caused
by
A. folding.
B. subduction.
C. metamorphism.
D. tension stresses.
28. Where would an explosive volcano MOST LIKELY occur?
A. In the middle of a large plate of earth.
B. Where plates of earth are coming apart.
C. Where large plates of earth are transforming.
D. Where large plates of earth are colliding.
29. Use the map to the right to answer this question.
California has been plagued with earthquakes over the
centuries; earthquakes that are a severe danger to life and
land. Earthquakes are frequent because in California
A. lies directly over the Ring of Fire.
B. lies on a continental plate that is falling under the
oceanic plate it meets.
C. the Pacific plate is moving northwest, sliding
horizontally past North American plate.
D. the Pacific plate and the North American plate are
meeting at a convergent plate boundary.
30. An earthquake is a vibration of the Earth produced by a rapid release of energy. This
vibration usually begins when there is a build-up of stress in the Earth's crust resulting in
A. tectonic plates buckling up.
B. plate movement at fault lines.
C. rift zones under the oceans.
D. convection currents within Earth’s magma.
31. ___________ currents in the Earth's mantle cause plate movement which causes
earthquakes and volcanic activity.
A. Conduction
C. Ocean
B. Convection
D. Radiation
32. Magma that reaches Earth’s surface is known as
A. lava.
C. cinder.
B. ash.
D. focus.
33. A region of volcanic activity that happens at subduction zones surrounding the Pacific
Ocean is known as
A. the trenches.
C. the San Andreas Fault.
B. the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. D. the Ring of Fire.
34. There are over 56,000 earthquakes recorded yearly on Earth. Many occur on the ocean floor
while others are so small that they can only be detected using special equipment. A small
percentage of earthquakes can lead to massive destruction on Earth, including loss of life and
property. Which of these earthquakes would most likely lead to the most damage to human
lives?
A. a 7.2 earthquake in Los Angeles
B. a 8.5 earthquake in the rain forest
C. a 3.6 earthquake in downtown Chicago
D. a 3.5 earthquake at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean
35. To determine the epicenter of an earthquake, seismologists must record S and P waves from
___ seismic recording stations.
A. 4
C. 2
B. 3
D. 1
36. Forecasting the time of, location, and magnitude of a seismic event does not prevent the
event from happening, but it can help us reduce the destruction caused by
A. earthquakes.
C. hurricanes.
B. flooding.
D. volcanoes.
37. What scientific instrument can be used to detect and record the Earth's movement in the rift
zones of the ocean floor?
A. GPS
C. seismograph
B. anemometer
D. satellites
38. Rocks are composed of different kinds of
A. soils.
C. sands.
B. minerals.
D. water crystals.
39. Fossil fuels are the compressed remains of ancient organisms like plants or dinosaurs. They
cannot be recycled. Once they are used, they are gone. Which of these is a fossil fuel?
A. Corn
C. Timber
B. Coal
D. Sunshine
40. Running a mineral across a porcelain plate to see the color it leaves behind on the plate may
be described as testing for
A. color.
C. luster.
B. hardness.
D. streak.
41. Diamonds are MOST LIKELY used in industrial drill bits because of their
A. high luster.
C. octahedral crystalline shape.
B. resistance to being scratched. D. tendency to break along preexisting weak zones.