Test your basic knowledge |

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 rate of increase in temperature - decreases with increasing depth. The dashed lines represent the solidus and liquidus for mantle rock (peridotite). The solidus line defines the conditions of pressure and temperature at Which mantle rock begins t






2. Physical property of a mineral; represents the density of a mineral - as specified by the ratio between the weight of a volume of the mineral and the weight of an equal volume of water a 4 degrees C.






3. The broad - relatively flat regions of the ocean that lie at a depth of about 4-5km below sea level.






4. Theory confirmed by 1968 - geologists had developed the complete model of continental drift - sea-floor spreading - and subduction. Within this model - Earth's lithosphere consists of about 20 distinct pieces - or plates - that move relative to each






5. Rocks which develop when hot molten rock cools and freezes solid.






6. Type of igneous rock composition; composed of dark silicates and calcium-rich feldspar - referred to as mafic (magnesium and iron). Make up the ocean floor/volcanic islands.






7. Carbon-containing compounds that either occur in living organisms - or have characteristics that resemble the molecules within living organisms. Examples - oil - protein - plastic - fat - and rubber.






8. The shape of the sea floor surface. Investigation of the sea-floor revealed the presence of several important features: mid-ocean ridges - deep-ocean trenches - seamount chains - and fracture zones.






9. The most important mineral group; comprise the most rock-forming minerals - they are very abundant due to large % of silicon and oxygen in Earth's crust. Examples - oxygen - silica - aluminum.






10. The force that subducting plates apply to oceanic lithosphere at a convergent boundary - arises simply because lithosphere formed 10 million years ago is denser than asthenosphere - so it can sink into the asthenosphere. Thus once an oceanic plate st






11. Develops because mid-ocean ridges lie at a higher elevation than the adjacent abyssal plains of the ocean. The surface of the sea floor overall slopes away from the ridge axis. Gravity causes the elevated lithosphere at the ridge axis to push on the






12. The display of the pattern of atoms or ions within a mineral. Meaning that the shape of one part of a mineral is a mirror image of the shape of another part.






13. Mineral class; consist of pure masses of a single metal - with metallic bonds. Copper and gold can appear in this way.






14. Lava flowing on dry land cools more slowly that lava erupting underwater.






15. A sediment-filled depression; in an area where the lithosphere has subsided.






16. The resistance to flow of magma. Reflects its distinct silica content - for silica tends to polymerize - meaning it links up to form long - chainlike molecules whose presence slows down the flowing ability of magma. Thus felsic magmas flow less easil






17. 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.






18. A name for any kind of unconsolidated debris that covers bedrock. Includes both soil and accumulations of sediment that have not evolved into soil.






19. The removal of soil by running water or by wind.






20. Rocks with a fragmental texture consist of igneous fragments that are packed together - welded together - or cemented together after having solidified. Examples - pyroclastic rocks such as tuff or breccia.






21. The angle between the direction that a compass needle points at a given location and the direction of the 'true' (geographic) north. Through this process - the magnetic poles never stray more than 15 degrees of latitude from the geographic pole.






22. Distinguishing feature of magma; the composition of the melt reflects the composition of the solid from which it was derived. Not all magmas form from the same source rock - therefore not all magmas have the same compositions.






23. Fluid basaltic lava extruded from crustal fractures called fissures.






24. Type of lava flow; the most viscous of any lava flow because it is the most silicic and the coolest in nature. Tends to accumulate in a lava dome above the vent or in short and bulbous flows 1 to 2 km long.






25. Biochemical sedimentary rock; it's made from cryptocrystalline quartz. Examples - flint and jasper.






26. Deeper sublayer of the mantle - depth of 660km to 2900km.






27. The crust moves away from the Mid-Atlantic Ridge axis at a rate of 1cm per year. This velocity of sea-floor spreading is determined by the relationship between the paleomagnetic anomaly-stripe's width and the reverse polarity duration - the data reve






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






29. Center of the Earth - consists mainly of iron alloy.






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






31. A sedimentary bed that has developed a reddish color. The red comes from a film of iron oxide (hematite) that forms on grain surfaces.






32. Sedimentary rocks consisting of carbon-rich relicts of plants.






33. The base of the soil profile; consists of material derived from the substrate that's been chemically weathered and broken apart - but has not yet undergone leaching or accumulation.






34. Mineral crystal formation type; from directly from a vapor - occurs around volcanic vents or around geysers. At such locations - volcanic gases or steam enter the atmosphere and cool - so certain elements cannot remain in gaseous form.






35. Lava flow; associated with felsic magma - consists of ash and pumice fragments - material is propelled from the vent at a high speed.






36. Molten rock that has flowed out onto Earth's surface.






37. The absorption of water into the crystal structure of minerals - causes some minerals to expand.






38. Type of sedimentary rock; rocks whose grains are stuck together by cement.






39. Hot basaltic lava that erupts with such low viscosity that it can flow tens to hundreds of kilometers across the landscape.






40. Most common mineral on Earth; compose over 95% of the continental crust. Consist of combinations of a fundamental building block called silicon-oxygen tetrahedron - different groups: independent tetrahedra - single chains - double chains - sheet sili






41. Magma viscosity depends upon temperature - volatile content - and silica content. Hotter magma - more volatiles - and mafic magma all have less viscosity.

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42. Materials that easily transform into gas at the relatively low temperatures found at the Earth's surface.






43. Physical property of a mineral; a measure of a minerals relative ability to resist scratching - and therefore represents the resistance of bonds in the crystal structure being broken. The atoms or ions in crystals of a hard mineral are more strongly






44. Some rocks develop their magnetization - their ability to produce a magnetic field - at the time that the rocks themselves formed. Such rocks - preserve a record of the Earth's magnetic field at known times in the past.






45. Type of soil; forms in tropical regions where abundant rainfall drenches the land during the rainy season - and the soil dries during the dry season.






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






47. 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






48. Process occurring after sediment has been compacted - can then be bounded together to make coherent sedimentary rock. Binding material consists of minerals (commonly quartz or calcite).






49. Process where a convergent boundary ceases to exist when a piece of buoyant lithosphere - such as a continent or island arc - moves into the subduction zone. Yield some of the most spectacular mountains/mountain ranges on the planet including the Him






50. Volcanic landform; steep walled depression at the summit - size exceeds one kilometer in diameter.