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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. The most common minerals in the Earth. Contain silica (SiO2) mixed in varying proportions with other elements (typically iron - magnesium - aluminum - calcium - potassium - and sodium).






2. The process by which sediment settles out of the transporting medium.






3. The bottom portion of the upper mantle - the interval lying between 400km and 660km deep. Here within the Earth - the character of the mantle undergoes a series of abrupt changes.






4. Similar to ripples - but are much larger. Small ripples often form on the surface of these structures.






5. The freely pivoting up and down compass needle's angle of tilt relative to the location upon the Earth's surface. At the equator - the specialized magnetic needle would position horizontally and at a magnetic pole it would point straight down.






6. After sand has lost its feldspar composition due to weathering over time - sediment composed entirely of quartz grains gets buried and lithified to form this type of rock.






7. A rock made of solid mass of glass - or of tiny crystals surrounded by glass. Reflect light as glass does and tend to break conchoidally. Examples - obsidian - tachylite - pumice.






8. Low-viscosity (basaltic) lava flows out of a volcano easily - whereas high-viscosity (andesitic and rhyolitic) lava can clog and build pressure within a volcano. Basaltic eruptions are typically effusive and produce shield volcanoes - whereas rhyolit






9. Physical property of a mineral; results from the way a mineral interacts with light. A mineral absorbs certain wavelengths - so the color seen represents the color wavelengths the mineral did not absorb.






10. Form when solid materials become hot and transform into liquid - example - molten rock.






11. When water is trapped in a joint freezes - it forces the joint open and may cause the joint to grow.






12. The four classes of igneous silicate rocks based on the proportion of silicon to iron and magnesium. As the proportion of silicon in a rock increases - the density decreases - thus felsic rocks are less dense than mafic. In order - from greatest to l






13. On a gem are the ground and polished surfaces made with a certain type of machine.






14. Rock made by the freezing of magma underground - after it has pushed its way (intruded) into preexisting rock of the crust.






15. Forms when clots of lava fly into the air in lava fountains and then freeze to form solid chunks before hitting the ground. Some forms when the explosion of a volcano shatters preexisting rock and ejects the fragments over the countryside.






16. Distinguishing feature of magma; Because not all minerals melt by the same amount under given conditions - and because chemical reactions take place during melting - the magma that forms as a rock begins to melt does not have the same composition as






17. Rigid outer layer of Earth - 100-150km thick. Consists of the crust plus the uppermost part of the mantle.






18. An exposure of bedrock.






19. Mineral class; the molecule CO23 serves as the anionic group. Elements like calcium or magnesium bond to this group. Examples - calcite and dolomite.






20. Consists of rock and sediment that has been modified by physical and chemical interaction with organic material and rainwater - over time - to produce a substrate that can support the growth of plants.






21. Irregular or blob-shaped intrusions that range in size from tens of meters across to tens of kilometers across.






22. Created from preexisting rocks which undergo changes - such as the growth of new minerals in response to pressure and heat - and/or as a result of squashing - stretching - or shear.






23. If a stoped block does not melt entirely - but rather becomes surrounded by new igneous rock - it becomes this; xeno - meaning foreign.






24. Some rock bodies appear to contain distinct formations - defined either by bands of different compositions or textures - or by the alignment of inequant grains so that they trend parallel to one another.






25. Type of sedimentary soil/rock; Calcite in a pedocal soil accumulates in the B-horizon and may cement soil together - creating this solid mass.






26. Clast size - clast composition - angularity and sphericity - sorting - and character of cement.






27. A nearly horizontal - tabletop-shaped tabular intrusion - parallel to layering within the earth.






28. When silt and clay accumulate in the flat areas bordering a stream - lagoon - or delta - the silt when lithified becomes this type of sediment. And the mud - when lithified - becomes another type of sediment - also known as shale.






29. Rocks that consist of mineral crystals that intergrow when the melt solidifies - interlocking structure. Examples - granite and rhyolite.






30. Volcanic landform; pipes are short conduits that connect a magma chamber to the surface.






31. Type of volcano; most are adjacent to the Pacific - larger in size - interbedded lavas and pyroclastics - consist of alternating layers of lava and tephra - most violent type of activity - may produce nuee ardente or lahars.






32. Mineral group; feldspars - quartz - muscovite - clay minerals.






33. Molten rock beneath Earth's surface.






34. A term used for all the physical - chemical - and biological processes that transform sediment into sedimentary rock and that alter characteristics of sedimentary rock one the rock has formed.






35. Inorganic limestone; rock composed of crystalline calcium carbonate formed by chemical precipitation.






36. The layering nature of sedimentary rocks - surface features of layers formed during deposition - and the arrangement of grains within layers.






37. Soil section below the O-horizon - humus has decayed further and has mixed with mineral grains (clay - silt - and sand). Water percolating through this horizon causes chemical weathering reactions to occur and produces ions in solution and new clay m






38. Core division; from a depth of 5155km down to Earth's center at 6371km. A radius of about 1220km - is solid iron-nickel alloy - can reach temperature of 4700 degrees C. Solid in nature because of subjection to greater pressure - keeps atoms from wand






39. Chemical weathering during Which minerals dissolve into water.






40. Occurs within the asthenosphere - actively drags plates along and attributes partially for the mechanism shifting the plates along the Earth's surface.






41. An organic sedimentary rock; black - combustible rock consisting of over 50% carbon.






42. A single layer of sediment or sedimentary rock with a recognizable top and bottom.






43. Distinct internal laminations within a ripple or dune that are inclined at an angle to the boundary of the main sedimentary layer. Form as a consequence of the evolution of dunes or ripples.






44. Equant - meaning that they have the same dimensions in all directions. Or inequant - meaning their dimensions are not the same in all directions.






45. Physical property of a mineral; refers to the color of a powder produced by pulverizing the mineral. Provides a fairly reliable clue to the mineral's identity - since the color of the mineral powder tends to be less variable than the color of the who






46. A plate boundary at which two plates move apart from one another by process of sea-floor spreading. Mid-ocean ridges or simply a ridge. New crust is formed at ridges through the buoyant rising of magma from beneath the surface and solidifies to creat






47. An insulated - tunnel-like conduit through which lava moves within a flow.






48. A process occurring when sea level falls - the coast migrates seaward.






49. The distance of the deepest well ever drilled - hole in northern Russia. Penetrates only about 0.03% of the Earth.






50. A plate boundary at which two plates move toward one another so that one plate sinks beneath the other. Subduction zones; Engage the sinking process known as subduction - between plates - consuming old oceanic lithosphere due to high density. Can sim






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