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sciences
the physical universe
Questions and Answers of
The Physical Universe
Dinosaurs were the dominant form of animal life for a period of abouta. 1000 yearsb. 1 million yearsc. 100 million yearsd. 1 billion years
The earth’s history is sometimes divided into two eons, Cryptozoic (“hidden life”) and Phanerozoic (“visible life”), with the first corresponding to Precambrian time and the second
Dinosaurs were abundant in thea. Cenozoic b. Mesozoic c. Paleozoicd. Precambrian
The dinosaurs were which one or more of the following?a. Reptilesb. Primitive mammalsc. All carnivorousd. Still living when early humans appeared
What is the oldest division of geologic time? In what division are we living today?
Amphibians, fishes, and marine invertebrates were the dominant form of life in thea. Cenozoicb. Mesozoicc. Paleozoic d. Precambrian
The oldest land vertbrates werea. Reptilesb. Dinosaurs c. Mammalsd. Amphibians
Why are fossils never found in igneous rocks and only rarely in metamorphic rocks?
A bed of coal usually implies that the region was once aa. Desertb. Coniferous forest c. Swampd. River bed
List as many different kinds of fossils as you can.
Coal is composed ofa. Petrified woodb. Buried plant material that has partially decayedc. Buried animal material that has partially decayedd. A variety of igneous rock
Ancient geologic processes as revealed in Precambrian strata werea. Primarily volcanicb. Primarily glacialc. Primarily erosion and sedimentationd. Of the same kinds as those of the present time
The half-life of potassium-40 is 1.3 billion years. If a rock sample contains 0.010 percent of this radionuclide today, what was its percentage in the rock 3.9 billion years ago?
The oxygen in the atmospherea. Was present since the earth was formedb. Was emitted by volcanoesc. Is the result of sunlight decomposing water vapord. Was produced by photosynthesis
Living things have been present on the eartha. Only in the most recent geological erab. Only since Pangaea split into Laurasia and Gondwanac. For most of its existenced. For all of its existence
What is the basis of the radiocarbon dating procedure?
Precambrian rocks area. Never foundb. Extremely rarec. Exposed in a number of regionsd. The most common rocks
Arrange the following divisions of geologic time in their proper sequence, starting with the oldest:a. Paleozoic Erab. Precambrian time c. Cenozoic Erad. Mesozoic Era
The earth was formeda. In 4004 B.C.b. About 2 million years agoc. About 4.6 billion years agod. About 10 billion years ago
The division of geologic time into eras and periods is based upona. The coming of ice agesb. The disappearance of continentsc. Biological extinctionsd. Worldwide flooding
The oldest sediments found on the floor of the South Atlantic Ocean, which are 1300 km west of the axis of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, were deposited about 70 million years ago. What rate of plate
Conditions for the preservation of fossils are best fulfilleda. In the desertb. On the floors of shallow seasc. On ocean floorsd. On river beds
Fossils are least likely to be found ina. Limestoneb. Sandstone c. Shaled. Granite
Which plate collisions are responsible for creating island arcs such as the West Indies, the Aleutians, and Indonesia?
Radiocarbon dating is limited to the remains of plants and animals that died no longer ago than abouta. 100 yearsb. 5700 years c. 40,000 yearsd. 1,000,000 years
Radiocarbon dating is based upon the fact thata. 14C is continually being formed in the remains of living things after their deathb. 14C is not radioactivec. The 14C content of the remains of living
The San Andreas Fault in California is a strike-slip fault that lies along the boundary between the Pacific and North American Plates. What does this indicate about the nature of the boundary?
An uneven surface on which a horizontal upper bed rests is called a (an)a. Stratumb. Fault c. Diked. Unconformity
The theory of evolution is supported by which one or more of the following?a. The fossil record of organisms in the pastb. The distribution of life forms around the worldc. Similarities in the
Which are younger, the Rocky Mountains or the Himalayas?
If the processes of plate tectonics were to stop acting, which of the following would be the last to cease?a. Earthquakesb. Volcanic eruptionsc. Erosiond. Tsunamis
The San Andreas Fault in California is the result of the Pacific Plate movinga. Toward the North American Plateb. Away from the North American Platec. Vertically upward with respect to the North
The Himalayas are the highest mountain range on earth. Why are they still rising?
Iceland was oncea. A coral reefb. Magma that rose from the Mid-Atlantic Ridgec. Art of Laurasiad. Part of the Appalachian mountain range
The Indian subcontinenta. Was always part of Asiab. Came into being 45 million years ago as the result of extensive vulcanismc. Collided with Asia 45 million years agod. Began to move away from Asia
The energy source of erosional processes is the sun. Where does the energy involved in tectonic activity come from?
Most volcanoes are founda. Where continental plates collide with each otherb. In the interior of continentsc. Along subduction zonesd. Along transform faults
A region where an edge of a lithospheric plate slides under an edge of another plate is called aa. Transform faultb. Fault scarpc. Morained. Subduction zone
How do the ages of the ocean floors compare with the ages of continental rocks? What is the reason for the difference, if any?
In the course of 100 years, a lithospheric plate will typically have moveda. 3 mmb. 3 mc. 3 kmd. 300 km
The number of large plates into which the lithosphere is divided isa. 3b. 7 c. 20d. 50
According to the hypothesis of seafloor spreading, molten rock is rising up along thea. Trenches that rim the Pacific Oceanb. Ridges on midocean floorsc. Location of the Tethys Sead. Equator
As we will learn in Chap. 6, electric charges of the same kind (both positive or both negative) repel each other, whereas charges of opposite sign (one positive and the other negative) attract each
Find the speed of an electron whose kinetic energy is 26 eV.
The radius of the earth is 6.37 × 106 m and its mass is 5.98 × 1024 kg. (a) Find the average density of the earth. (b) The average density of the rocks at the earth’s surface is 2.7 ×
When evaporation occurs, the liquid that remains is cooler becausea. the pressure on the liquid decreasesb. the volume of the liquid decreasesc. the slowest molecules remain behindd. the fastest
(a) What is the difference between the earth’s crust and its lithosphere? (b) How is it possible for a plastic asthenosphere to occur between a rigid lithosphere and a rigid mantle? (c)
The ocean floor near a midocean ridgea. Has the same constant magnetization on both sidesb. Is magnetized in one direction on one side and in the opposite direction on the other sidec. Has strips of
Compared with the continents, the ocean floors area. Much youngerb. Much olderc. About the same aged. In some places older and in others younger
Which of today’s continents were once part of Laurasia? Of Gondwanaland?
Compared with the earth’s crust under the oceans, the crust under the continents isa. Thinnerb. Thickerc. About the same in thicknessd. In some places thinner and in others thicker
The shell of rigid rock that makes up the earth’s crust and the outer part of the mantle is called thea. Lithosphereb. Asthenosphere c. Thermosphered. Subduction zone
The eastern coast of South America is a good fit against the western coast of Africa. What sort of evidence would you look for to confirm that the two continents were once part of the same landmass?
North America, Greenland, and most of Eurasia once made up the supercontinent ofa. Pangaeab. Laurasia c. Gondwanad. Atlantis
A mountain range that was not once part of the Tethys Sea is thea. Alpsb. Pyrenees c. Andesd. Himalayas
Why is it believed that the region where the Rocky Mountains now stand was once near or below sea level?
The ancient supercontinents Laurasia and Gondwana were separated by thea. Atlantic Oceanb. Pacific Ocean c. Tethys Sead. Caribbean Sea
The rugged character of mountain landscapes is largely the result ofa. Foldingb. Faultingc. Stream erosion d. Glacier erosion
What geologic process is chiefly responsible for the landscape of a mountain range?
A long, narrow bay with an irregular outline, such as Chesapeake Bay, was formed bya. Wave actionb. Stream erosion and later submersionc. Glacier erosion and later submersiond. Faulting
A crack in the earth’s crust along which movement has taken place is calleda. A faultb. A fold c. An earthquaked. A moraine
What landscape features are associated with faults?
(a) Why are metamorphic rocks often found near plutons? (b) Where would you expect to find the wider zone of thermal metamorphism, near a dike or near a batholith?
What is the cause of the holes found in many volcanic rocks?
What kinds of rocks are likely to be found in lava flows? What is the most common volcanic rock?
What is the probable origin of the following sedimentary rocks?a. a thick limestoneb. a conglomerate with well-rounded boulders and numerous thin beds of sandy and clayey materialc. a sandstone
Why are clay minerals and quartz particles abundant in sediments that have not been chemically deposited?
What is the eventual site of deposition of most sediments?
What is a water table? An aquifer?
What agent of erosion produces valleys with a V-shaped cross section? A U-shaped cross section?
A batholith is aa. Fissure from which groundwater emergesb. Natural rock pillarc. Large body of intrusive rockd. Volcanic cone
Under what circumstances does a glacier form?
Active volcanoes are not founda. In the West Indiesb. In the Mediterranean regionc. On the rim of the Pacific Oceand. In eastern Canada
The holes found in most volcanic rocks are due toa. Gases trapped in solidifying lavab. Erosionc. Marine organismsd. Rapid cooling
Is there a limit to the depth to which streams can erode a particular landscape? Is there a limit in the case of glaciers?
The most common volcanic rock isa. Graniteb. Basalt c. Limestoned. Shale
Molten rock underneath the earth’s surface is calleda. Magmab. Lava c. Obsidiand. Till
In what way is the weathering of rock important to life on earth?
The chief constituent of volcanic gases isa. Nitrogenb. Oxygen c. Carbon dioxided. Water vapor
Most caves are produced by the solvent action of ground-water ona. Limestoneb. Sandstonec. Granited. Schist
Why are igneous and metamorphic rocks in general more susceptible to chemical weathering than sedimentary rocks?
Minerals deposited by groundwater in rock fissures forma. Dikesb. Veins c. Sillsd. Moraines
The largest amounts of sediment are depositeda. By glaciersb. On river beds c. On the ocean floorsd. By chemical precipitation
Why is it unlikely that the earth’s magnetic field originates in a huge bar magnet located in its interior?
An aquifer isa. A river or stream on the surfaceb. An underground streamc. A water tabled. A body of porous rock that contains groundwater
(a) Why is it believed that the earth’s outer core is a liquid? (b) Why is it believed that the liquid is mainly molten iron?
Most of the groundwater present in soil and underlying porous rocks comes froma. Streams and riversb. Melting glaciers c. Springsd. Rain
A fairly fast valley glacier might have a speed ofa. 1 m/h b. 1 m/day c. 1 m/monthd. 1 m/year
What evidence is there in favor of the idea that the earth’s interior is very hot?
The approximate percentage of the earth’s land area covered by ice today isa. 1 Percentb. 2 Percent c. 10 Percentd. 30 Percent
The last stage in the erosion of a river is the production of a (an)a. Deltab. Alluvial fanc. Morained. Floodplain
How does the radius of the earth’s core compare with the total radius of the earth?
Glaciers produce which one or more of the following?a. U-shaped valleysb. V-shaped valleysc. Batholithsd. Caves
Which of the following is not produced by rivers?a. Flood plainsb. Deltas c. Alluvial fansd. Moraines
In what part of the earth does the rock motion occur that causes an earthquake?
The principal agent of erosion isa. Groundwaterb. Running waterc. Iced. Wind
A rock readily attacked by chemical weathering isa. Limestoneb. Obsidian c. Granited. Chert
Why is the mantle thought to be solid?
If we travel around the earth, we would find that the earth’s magnetic fielda. Is the same in direction and strengthb. Is the same in direction but not in strengthc. Is the same in strength but not
The earth’s magnetic fielda. Never changesb. Has reversed itself many timesc. Is centered exactly at the earth’s centerd. Originates in a permanently magnetized iron core
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