Test your basic knowledge |

Earth Science

Subject : science
Instructions:
  • Answer 50 questions in 15 minutes.
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  • Match each statement with the correct term.
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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. (Latin- Terra & Greek- Gaia) Earth is named after the ancient Germanic Goddess of the soil. It is the third planet from the Sun.






2. The physical & chemical & and biological processes by which rock at or near the Earth's surface is broken down into smaller pieces.






3. A method of sediment transport in which the turbulence of a fluid is able to keep particles supported in the fluid.






4. A zone in the Earth between 400 and 670 km below the surface separating the upper mantle from the lower mantle.






5. In a stream & the volume of water passing through a channel in a given time.






6. An informal term to include all geologic time from the beginning of the Earth to the beginning of the Cambrian period 570 million years ago.






7. An aggregate of one or more minerals in varying proportions.






8. Mountains & characterized by extensive folding and thrust faulting & that form at convergent plate boundaries on continents.






9. A natural open space underground & large enough for a person to enter. Most commonly occur by the dissolution of soluble rocks & generally limestone.






10. A conical volcano formed by the accumulation of pyroclastic debris around a vent.






11. The science that deals with the study of the planet Earth--the materials of which it is made & the processes that act to change these materials from one form to another & and the history recorded by these materials; the forces acting to deform the ou






12. Swamp that forms in the low lying flood plain behind a levee.






13. Produced as a wave steepens and falls forward as the wave nears the shore.






14. The region of a shore that is covered at high tide and exposed at low tide.






15. The surface between the zone of saturation and the zone of aeration.






16. A substance that produces positively charged hydrogen ions (H+) when dissolved in water.






17. A rigid segment of the Earth's lithosphere that moves horizontally and adjoins other plates along zones of seismic activity. Plates may include portions of both continents and ocean basins.






18. That part of the continental margin that lies between the continental shelf and the continental rise. Slope relatively steep & 3o - 6o. The continental slope is underlain by crustal rocks of the continent.






19. Weathering processes that are the result of chemical reactions. Example: the transformation of orthoclase to kaolinite.






20. The amount of dissolved salt in water.






21. A detailed mathematical description of the cause-and-effect relationships between events that can be used to predict or explain other such events.






22. A large ridge or mound-like structure within a body of water that is built by calcareous organisms such as corals & red algae & and bivalves.






23. The amount of material a stream carries in suspension.






24. Reduction of pore space between individual particles as the result of overlying sediments or of tectonic movements.






25. The great circle on the Earth's surface passing through The North and South Poles & which is considered 0 degrees longitude. The prime meridian passes through Greenwich & England & and is used as a reference point for measuring longitude east and w






26. A term applied to large areas of basaltic lava presumably extruded from fissures.






27. 1. A steep-walled & usually conical depression at the summit or on the flanks of a volcano & resulting from the explosive ejection of material from a vent. 2. A bowl-shaped depression with a raised & overturned rim produced by the impact of a meteori






28. An era of geologic time lasting from 570 to 245 million years ago.






29. (Greek-Aphrodite)named after the Roman goddess of love. It is the planet closest in size to Earth and the second planted from the Sun.






30. To preserve & or to avoid wasteful use.






31. A coral reef attached directly to the mainland.






32. A natural depression in the surface of the land caused by the collapse of the roof of a cavern or subterranean passage & generally occurring in limestone regions.






33. A sedimentary rock composed of combustible matter derived from the partial decomposition of plant material.






34. The internal resistance to flow in a liquid.






35. Refers to rock or sediments made up primarily of broken fragments of pre-existing rocks or minerals.






36. Sediment formed by chemical precipitation from water. Example: halite precipitated as the result of the evaporation of sea water.






37. A group of stars that appear to make a pattern in the sky. The Big Dipper is a constellation.






38. A sea wave produced by any large-scale & short duration disturbance on the seafloor & commonly a shallow submarine earthquake but possibly also a submarine slide or volcanic eruption.






39. A method of sediment transport in which the turbulence of a fluid is able to keep particles supported in the fluid.






40. A division of geologic time next smaller than the eon and larger than a period. Example: The Paleozoic era is in the Phanerozoic eon and includes & among others & the Devonian period.






41. A person who makes maps.






42. A spring whose temperature is 6.5o C or more above mean annual air temperature.






43. The outermost part of the core. It is liquid & about 1 &700 km thick & and separated from the inner & solid core by a transition zone about 565 km thick.






44. A division of geologic time next shorter than a period. Example: the Pleistocene epoch is in the Quaternary period.






45. A process by which salts accumulate in soil.






46. A blanket of wind-driven sand with an upper surface about a meter above ground level.






47. The vertical distance between the crest and adjacent trough of a wave.






48. The oldest eon in Earth history & extending from the origin of the Earth to about 3.9 billion years ago.






49. A large volume of dust-sized particles lifted high into the atmosphere.






50. No identifiable layers of minerals in a rock sample