Test your basic knowledge |

CSET Earth

Subjects : cset, science
Instructions:
  • Answer 50 questions in 15 minutes.
  • If you are not ready to take this test, you can study here.
  • Match each statement with the correct term.
  • Don't refresh. All questions and answers are randomly picked and ordered every time you load a test.

This is a study tool. The 3 wrong answers for each question are randomly chosen from answers to other questions. So, you might find at times the answers obvious, but you will see it re-enforces your understanding as you take the test each time.
1. The process in which one type of rock changes into another






2. Rocks are placed into groups according to how they form...






3. Takes place when the moon passes between the earth and the sun - with the moon blocking the sunlight for about two minutes - A total ___________ may be seen only from a small zone on the earth






4. Scientists theorize that massive volcanic eruptions on a global scale contributed to the earth's cooling - resulting in the onset of the...






5. Less than 1% of the earth; this relatively thin zone (5 to 25 miles) contains the only rocks we can study - even in the deepest mines or drill holes






6. Traces of ancient life preserved in the strata as shells - footprints - and the like - Soft plant and animal tissues decompose quickly in the presence of decay bacteria - which exist wherever oxygen exists






7. - The materials left over after the rock breaks down combine with organic material - The mineral content is determined by the parent material; thus - a soil derived from a single rock type can often be deficient in one or more minerals for good ferti






8. Composed of the fragments of other types of rocks - Cover 75 to 80% of the earth's land area - Often deposited in distinct parallel layers - Weather and erosion break down other rock types into sediments - Over time - the sediments become cemented an






9. Paleontology: Fossil evidence indicates the similarity of fossils on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean - Continental 'jigsaw puzzle': The outlines of the continents seem to fit together






10. Continental polar (dry - cold air)






11. The outermost part of the earth's interior is made up of two layers...






12. A small Solar System body that orbits the Sun - When close enough to the sun - exhibits a visible coma (atmosphere) or a tail - both primarily from the effects of solar radiation upon the comet's nucleus - Have a variety of different orbital periods






13. The Pacific Ring of Fire has examples of volcanoes caused by ___________ coming together






14. Sedimentary rocks containing large fragments of other rock material - e.g. Sandstone






15. The spectra of distant objects display a red shift - which is interpreted as meaning that they are rapidly receding from us - This apparent expansion of the universe has given rise to the big bang theory of cosmology - in which one primeval mass expl






16. Occur when two plates pull away from each other - Such faults are generally weak and shallow Example: the Mid - Atlantic Range in the Atlantic Ocean






17. Rising air currents take the vapor up into the atmopshere where cooler temperatures cause it to condense into ____






18. Center: 3000


19. Characterized by similar temperatures and moisture levels






20. The farther from the tropics you are positioned - the ________ the angle of the sun - This causes those locations to be cooler due to the indirect sunlight






21. Some infiltration stays close to the land surface and can seep back into surface - water bodies (and the ocean) as...






22. Formed from calcium carbonate - also an example of chemical sedimentary rocks - like roock salt - can contain organic or once - living matter and can record the history of that matter's formation in features such as strata - fossil evidence - and rip






23. The motive force behind land breezes and sea/lake breezes - also known as on - or off - shore winds - Land absorbs and radiates heat faster than water - but water releases heat over a longer period of time






24. A natural flow of water - usually freshwater - traveling toward an ocean - a lake - or another stream






25. The lateral movement of the plates is typically at speeds of ___ mm annually






26. Somewhat cooler disturbances in the photosphere






27. Forms over the Tropics and is warm






28. A land form that stretches above the surrounding land in a limited area - with a peak - Usually produced by the movement of lithospheric plates






29. Believed to originate at a much greater distance from the Sun - in a cloud (the Oort cloud) consisting of debris left over from the condensation of solar nebula - Comets are thrown from the outer planets or nearby stars - or as a result of collisions






30. Pulls the planets toward the sun - while their inertia keeps them moving forward in an elliptical orbit around the sun


31. Bbreaking along flat surfaces






32. Takes approx. seven and a half earth months to revolve around the sun - Takes approx. eight earth months to rotate on its axis - a day on ________ is longer than a year






33. Younger beds were originally deposited above older beds






34. Not all runoff flows into rivers; much of it infiltrates into the ground through...






35. A continuous drill would find gas - oil - and water in that order - The three substances occur in their order of density - with the lightest substance on top and the heaviest on the bottom






36. The transformation of water from liquid to gas phases as it moves from the ground or bodies of water into the overlying atmosphere






37. The major mountains tend to occur in __________ - indicating tectonic plate boundaries and activity






38. Air currents move clouds around the globe and cloud particles collide - grow - and fall out of the sky as ________ - Most of it falls back into the oceans or onto land - where the precipitation flows over the ground as surface runoff - portion of run






39. Bodies similar to the sun but immensely distant - Closest stars are 4 light - years away






40. The breakdown of rocks - soils and minerals through atmospheric chemicals or biologically produced chemicals (also known as biological weathering)






41. The best determiner of climate - as it is consistently and directly correlated with temperature - other factors: Rain shadows - as well as water currents - elevation and so forth






42. The source of energy for evaporation is primarily through ___________






43. Different visual appearance; when discovered - comets show a perceptible coma while asteroids do not






44. Comprised of the crust and the rigid uppermost part of the mantle - broken up into tectonic plates (7 major and many minor) - ride on the asthenosphere






45. Cirrus - Stratus - Cumulonimbus - Altostratus






46. Darkens the moon as the earth passes between it and the sun - casting a shadow on the moon - may be seen from anywhere the moon is visible - about half of the earth






47. The process of chemical or physical breakdown of earth rocks - soils - and their minerals






48. The science that describes and interprets the earth Fields: - Geomorphology (land forms) - Petrology (rocks) - Stratigraphy (layered rocks) - Paleontology (fossils)






49. Most sediments were deposited in beds that were originally horizontal - and any tilting is due to later earth movements






50. The sun and oceans can also affect the weather of land - If the sun heats ocean waters for a period of time - water can evaporate - Once evaporated into the air - the moisture can spread over nearby land - thus making it cooler