Exam 3: Geology 101, Fall 2004
Name:_____________________________________
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1. Geologists use two types of time: (a)_____ indicates the sequence of events, and (b)_____ actually assign an age to an event.
B. (a) absolute time, (b) relative time
C. (a) radioactive dating, (b) tree rings
D. (a) cross-cutting relationships, (b) superposition
E. none of the above combinations
2. As an example of the different types of time, the Clinton years would be an example of _____, and we would say the Clinton years came after the Reagan-Bush years.
A. precise time
C. absolute time
D. political time
E. none of the above
3. The correct order for the three geological eras from youngest to oldest is _____.
A. Paleozoic, Mesozoic, Cenozoic
B. Mesozoic, Cenozoic, Paleozoic
D. Paleozoic, Cenozoic, Mesozoic
E. none of the above combinations
4. Many words used in geology, and science, have roots that may help us recall their meaning. For instance, Paleozoic time means (a)_____ time and Mesozoic time means (b)_____time.
A. (a) recent, (b) old
B. (a) old, (b) recent
C. (a) middle, (b) old
E. none of the above combinations
5. Which of the following geological principles are used to ascertain relative time?
A. relationships of rock bodies
B. types of fossils
C. sequences of rocks and fossils
E. none of the above are used
6. In radioactive dating we can fairly precisely determine the age of materials by:
A. determining the concentration of a parent and daughter element and knowing their decay half life
B. knowing the decay half life of an isotope
C. determining the concentration of a parent and daughter element
D. using the theory of superposition
E. using the theory of cross-cutting relationships
7. Isotopes are best defined as:
A. human-made radioactive elements
C. elements with different numbers of electrons and protons
D. elements with the same number of electrons and neutrons
E. none of the above
8. Mass wasting is best defined as:
A. decay of radioactive elements
B. chemical breakdown of elements
D. physical breakdown of rocks
E. none of the above
9. The term ³mass² in mass wasting refers to (a)_____, and mass wasting is driven by (b)_____.
A. (a) the number of protons plus neutrons, (b) electrical charges
B. (a) the number of protons plus electrons, (b) radioactive decay
C. (a) bedrock, rock, soil, or snow, (b) water
E. none of the above combinations
10. Some of the factors controlling mass wasting are:
A. high relief
B. steep slopes
C. loose material
D. orientation of bedding planes
11. Mass wasting events are often trigged by:
A. water
B. oversteepening slopes
C. ground shaking, mainly from earthquakes
E. none of the above
12. Mass wasting is classified based on:
A. rate of movement
B. type of material moved
C. nature of movement
E. none of the above
13. (a)_____ is the slowest form of mass movement and occurs on all slopes as a result of (b)_____.
A. (a) Mudflow, (b) expansion and contraction of material on the slope
B. (a) Mudflow, (b) high rainfall
D. (a) Creep, (b) high rainfall
E. none of the above combinations
14. A major problem can occur when a landslide dams a river, because:
A. the dam will form a lake
C. the dam will remove a portion of the streamıs floodplain
D. the groundwater will be polluted by sediment from the landslide
E. none of the above
15. One of the most important definitions of the semester is that for a floodplain, which is:
B. an area next to a river that is safe from flooding
C. a great place to build a house because it is flat and close to water
D. a place where the water table is often very far below the surface
E. none of the above
16. The _____ of 1889 was the greatest natural disaster (so far) in the United States, claming 2,100 lives.
A. Mississippi River flood
B. San Francisco flood
D. Yangtze flood
E. Ohio River flood
17. What are the main things streams do?
A. carry water and material
B. remove material
C. deposit material
E. none of the above
18. Whether a stream will transport, erode, or deposit sediments relates to the sedimentsı (a)_____ and the waterıs (b)_____.
A. (a) shape, (b) width
B. (a) shape, (b) velocity
C. (a) size, (b) depth
E. none of the above combinations
19. Interestingly, a streamıs velocity changes across the stream and _____ downstream.
B. decreases
C. stays the same
D. cannot be predicted
E. none of the above
20. As we go across a stream, its velocity is usually the greatest:
A. on the inside of a meander bend
C. in the middle of the stream on a meander bend
D. can be any of the above
E. none of the above
21. Streams can carry different types of material; in general, a stream can carry.
A. bed load
B. suspended load
C. dissolved load
E. none of the above
22. In general, a stream that carries a large amount of bed load is (a)_____, while one with a large amount of suspended load is (b)_____.
A. (a) very deep, (b) very shallow
B. (a) very muddy, (b) very clear
C. (a) wider than it is deep with clear water, (b) fairly deep and its water is muddy
D. (a) fairly deep and its water is muddy, (b) wider than it is deep with clear water
E. none of the above combinations
23. The discharge of a stream can be defined as (a)_____ and can be calculated by (b)_____.
A. (a) the amount of water going into the stream from groundwater, (b) the amount of rainfall
B. (a) the amount of water going into the stream from groundwater, (b) the amount of pumped groundwater
C. (a) the amount of water flowing in the stream, (b) multiplying the streamıs width times depth
D. (a) the amount of water flowing in the stream, (b) multiplying the streamıs width times depth times velocity
E. none of the above combinations
24. The side of the stream with the greatest velocity is called the (a)_____, and the side with the lowest velocity is the (b)_____.
A. (a) levee, (b) floodplain
B. (a) floodplain, (b) levee
C. (a) pointbar, (b) cutbank
E. none of the above combinations
25. Streams are classified:
A. by the amount of water they carry
C. by the type of bed load they carry
D. all of the above
E. none of the above
26. Straight streams tend to carry _____ than meandering streams.
A. less suspended load
B. less bed load
D. more suspended load
E. none of the above
27. We have tried to control flooding with several different methods. Dams are often built to form (a)_____ as a means to store water, and (b)_____ are ridges built next to streams in hopes of keeping the water in the stream.
A. (a) floodplains, (b) levees
B. (a) floodplains, (b) dams
C. (a) lakes, (b) floodplains
E. none of the above combinations
28. In the end, the best solution for flood control is:
A. to build levees
B. to build dams
C. to channelize the stream
E. none of the above
29. Caves mainly form in the rock type:
A. granite
B. sandstone
C. calcite
E. none of the above
30. Caves form by both mechanical and chemical weathering. Chemical weathering involves the dissolution of _____ by naturally occurring acidic groundwater.
A. soil
B. quartz
D. clays
E. none of the above
31. Cave formations (e.g., stalactites and stalagmites) form when water enters the cave and (a)_____. And while we are in the cave, the caveıs air temperature would be (b)_____.
A. (a) its mineral content changes (b) the average yearly temperature of the area
B. (a) its carbon dioxide content changes (b) the average yearly temperature of the area
C. (a) it evaporates, (b) warmer than the average yearly temperature of the area
D. (a) it evaporates, (b) above freezing
E. none of the above combinations
32. Groundwater is best defined as:
A. water on the ground
C. water in an aquifer
D. water in a well
E. none of the above
33. The majority of the fresh water (i.e., non-saltwater) on earth is in:
A. rivers
B. lakes
C. groundwater
E. oceans
34. Bangladesh currently has a major issue with their groundwater because:
A. it contains high levels of iodine (I)
B. it contains low levels of iodine (I)
C. it contains low levels of radioactive waste
D. it contains high levels of anthropogenic arsenic (As)
E. it contains high levels of naturally-occurring arsenic (As)
35. To understand the amount of water that can be stored in a solid (e.g., a rock), we must know the solidıs (a)_____. To determine if water will flow through it, we must know the (b)_____.
A. (a) location in the water table, (b) amount of recharge
B. (a) void space, (b) porosity
C. (a) permeability, (b) porosity
E. none of the above combinations
36. The water table is best defined as:
A. the place underground where there is water
B. the spot below the ground where there is an underground river
D. a rare occurrence, because water occurs in underground lakes
E. none of the above
37. An aquifer is best defined as:
A. the area below the water table
C. a source of chemically clean water
D. an area that might contain groundwater
E. none of the above
38. Groundwater does not necessary flow downhill, but flows:
B. in underground rivers
C. into wells located on hills
D. away from wells located in valleys next to streams
E. none of the above
39. Recharge is the amount of water that goes into an aquifer (usually from rainfall). If we pump out more water than is recharged, we say we are _____ the aquifer.
A. optimizing use of
C. maintaining the level of the water table in
D. adding pollutants
E. none of the above
40. Several problems can occur if we remove too much groundwater by pumping. One of them, (a) _____, is the term used to describe an overall drop in the water table, while (b)_____ refers to a localized drop adjacent to a well.
A. (a) surface subsidence, (b) drawdown
B. (a) cone of depression, (b) drawdown
C. (a) saltwater intrusion, (b) surface subsidence
E. none of the above combinations
41. _____ is a unique problem that occurs when wells close to the ocean are over pumped.
A. Overdrafting
B. Drawdown
D. Surface subsidence
E. none of the above
42. The water table can rise or fall with changes in rainfall. Regardless, it _____ the surface on top of a hill than in a valley.
B. is closer to
C. provides higher flows near
D. provides cleaner water farther from
E. none of the above
43. Approximately how many gallons of water do we use in Moscow per year (hint: we use about 100 gallons per person per day).
A. 1,2000,000
B. 12,000,000
C. 120,000,000
E. 12,000,000,000
44. Given that a volume of 1,000,000 cubic feet could hold 8,000,000 gallons of water, how much water would the same volume of rock hold if it had a 0.1% porosity?
A. 800 gallons
B. 8,000 gallons
C. 80,000 gallons
D. 800,000 gallons
E. 8,000,000 gallons
45. How many gallons of water are in one cubic foot?
A. 1
B. 5
C. 10
D. 12
46. All public water systems in the US are routinely tested for impurities, especially human derived ones. One of the main indicators of human contamination of water is _____.
B. iron
C. arsenic
D. all of the above
E. none of the above
47. Clean water is one of the worldıs largest health concerns. Of the (a)_____ billion people on earth, approximately (b)_____ billion are without clean water.
A. (a) 1, (b) 0.1
B. (a) 3, (b) 0.5
D. (a) 6, (b) 2.5
E. none of the above combinations
48. Professor Karen Humes, the guest lecturer one week ago, mainly discussed?
A. minerals
B. rocks
C. volcanoes
E. groundwater
49. One of my concluding remarks on the section of the course dealing with Landforms was:
A. rivers do not modify landscapes
B. landforms change very little over time
D. most steep slopes are stable
E. none of the above
50. I have made sure that my ID and name are correctly entered on the scan sheet, I will take the test with me when I leave, and I have answered all the questions on the test and entered them on the scan sheet.
B. no