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. Type of volcano; built from ejected lava fragments - cone shaped piles of tephra - steep slope angle - smaller in size - frequently occur in groups - deep craters.






2. A linear belt in which continental lithosphere pulls apart - the lithosphere stretches horizontally.






3. A proposition in 1960 - by Princeton University professor Harry Hess - that continents drift apart because new ocean floor forms between them by this process.






4. 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






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






6. Built up deposit of volcanic bombs and lapilli - known as volcanic agglomerate.






7. Pea to plum-sized fragments of pyroclastic debris - consists of pumice or scoria fragments.






8. Magma type; contains about 66% to 76% silica. Name reflects the occurrence of feldspar and quartz in rocks formed in this magma.






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






10. 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).






11. A vent at Which melt from inside the Earth spews onto the planet's surface. Erupt.






12. 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).






13. 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.






14. The ocean floor is diced up by narrow bands of vertical fractures. Lie roughly at right angles to mid-ocean ridges - effectively segmenting the ridges into small pieces.






15. 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.






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






17. 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.






18. Successive turbidity currents deposit successive graded beds - creating this sequence of strata.






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






20. Four settings: in volcanic arcs bordering deep-ocean trenches - isolated hot spots - within continental rifts - and along mid-ocean ridges.






21. Highest soil horizon; consists almost entirely of organic matter and contains barely any mineral matter. Surface level has 'litter' and deeper it contains 'humus'. Part of the zone of leaching.






22. 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.






23. Sedimentary rock consisting of cemented together solid fragments and grains derived from preexisting rocks.






24. Along much of the perimeter of the Pacific Ocean - the ocean floor reaches astounding depths of 8-12km. These areas define elongate troughs - and they border volcanic arcs - the curving chains of active volcanoes.






25. An intrusion starting to inject between layers but then dome upwards - creating this blister-shaped intrusion.






26. During the final stages of cooling - lava flows contract and may fracture into roughly hexagonal columns.






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






28. Refers to the chemical reactions that alter or destroy minerals when rock comes in contact with water solutions or air.






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






30. Farther down from a zone of leaching - new mineral crystals precipitate directly out of the water or form when the water reacts with debris - this the region where the new minerals and clay collect.






31. The record of paleomagnetism revealed that the location of Earth's magnetic poles had been changing through geologic time. This 'wandering' meant that Earth's magnetic poles do not move with respect to fixed continents. Rather - continents move relat






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






33. 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.






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






35. The separated lithosphere into distinct pieces. Twelve major 'pieces' and several minor. Consist of active margins and passive margins between them.






36. 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.






37. Breaks intact rocks into unconnected grains or chunks - collectively called debris or detritus. Grain size from largest to smallest: boulders - cobbles - pebbles - sand - silt - mud/clay.






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






39. 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.






40. Type of igneous rock composition; composed of light-colored silicates - very rich in felsic (feldspar and silica). Major constituent of continental crust.






41. Molten rock beneath Earth's surface.






42. Layering in sedimentary rocks.






43. Subsoil - ions and clay leached and transported down from above accumulate here. As a result - new minerals form - and clay fills open spaces. Part of the zone of accumulation.






44. Mineral crystal formation type; form from a solidification of a melt - meaning the freezing of a liquid.






45. Cause of melting; when magma rises up from the mantle into the crust - it brings heat with it which raises the temperature of the surrounding crustal rock - and in some cases melting occurs.






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






47. Active hot-spot volcanoes commonly occur at the end of a chain of dead volcanoes.






48. 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






49. Mineral class; consist of a metal cation bonded to a sulfide anion. Examples - galena and pyrite. Many have a metallic luster. Can also be considered ores with high proportions of metal within the mineral.






50. Aggregates of mineral crystals or grains - and masses of natural glass; a coherent - naturally occurring solid - consisting of an aggregate of minerals or a mass of glass.