GEOLOGY 201 MIDTERM 1 EXAM
QUESTIONS WITH CORRECT
ANSWERS
What happens to ore minerals once exposed to air and water? - Answer- they turn into
sulfuric acid
Copper - Answer- - can come in the elemental form Cu
- can also be extracted from mineral ores (meaning that is contains enough metal to be
economically feasible)
Ore minerals - Answer- not evenly distributed in the crust and have two different types
of deposits
How do you identify minerals? - Answer- 1. color
2. luster
3. streak
4. hardness
5. how they break
6. reaction to acid
Identifying minerals by color - Answer- can be diagnostic of some minerals
Identifying minerals by luster - Answer- metallic or nonmetallic
Identifying minerals by streak - Answer- mineral leaves crushed powder on an unglazed
porcelain plate
Identifying minerals by hardness - Answer- scratching resistance of a mineral, directly
linked to atomic-bond strength
Identifying minerals by cleavage - Answer- tendency for mineral to break along lattice
planes with weaker atomic bonds
Identifying minerals by effervescence - Answer- reactivity with acid
, What is a rock? - Answer- a rock can either be clastic or crystalline and are broken
down into individual pieces. Coherent, naturally occurring solid, and consists of an
aggregate of minerals.
4 objectives of geology - Answer- 1. atmospheric science
2. hydrology
3. geology
4. biology
what is geology? - Answer- the scientific study of the Earth's processes and materials
steps of the scientific method - Answer- 1. observe/collect data
2. form a hypothesis
3. test hypothesis
4. multiple lines of evidence gives one confidence
5. theory
how did our solar system form? - Answer- - giant cloud of hydrogen (Nebula) collapses
due to gravity
- early sun= proto sun (flat spinning disk)
- heavy and light elements separate
- inner planets= rocky and metal
- outer planets= gaseous and lighter elements
how old is the moon? - Answer- 4.5 billion years old and has same composition as
Earth's crust
how old is Earth? - Answer- 4.6 billion years old
how old are the oldest minerals? - Answer- 4.4 billion years old
when did the oceans form? - Answer- 4 billion years ago
how old are the oldest fossils? - Answer- 3.5 billion years old
percentage of elements in early Earth - Answer- 34.8% Iron
29.3% Oxygen
percentage of elements in continental crust - Answer- 45.2% Oxygen
27.2% Silicon
how did spherical shapes develop? - Answer- spherical shapes develop from sufficient
mass and gravity
compositional layers of Earth - Answer- - continental crust (O, Si, Al, Fe)
- oceanic crust (O, Si, Al, Fe)
QUESTIONS WITH CORRECT
ANSWERS
What happens to ore minerals once exposed to air and water? - Answer- they turn into
sulfuric acid
Copper - Answer- - can come in the elemental form Cu
- can also be extracted from mineral ores (meaning that is contains enough metal to be
economically feasible)
Ore minerals - Answer- not evenly distributed in the crust and have two different types
of deposits
How do you identify minerals? - Answer- 1. color
2. luster
3. streak
4. hardness
5. how they break
6. reaction to acid
Identifying minerals by color - Answer- can be diagnostic of some minerals
Identifying minerals by luster - Answer- metallic or nonmetallic
Identifying minerals by streak - Answer- mineral leaves crushed powder on an unglazed
porcelain plate
Identifying minerals by hardness - Answer- scratching resistance of a mineral, directly
linked to atomic-bond strength
Identifying minerals by cleavage - Answer- tendency for mineral to break along lattice
planes with weaker atomic bonds
Identifying minerals by effervescence - Answer- reactivity with acid
, What is a rock? - Answer- a rock can either be clastic or crystalline and are broken
down into individual pieces. Coherent, naturally occurring solid, and consists of an
aggregate of minerals.
4 objectives of geology - Answer- 1. atmospheric science
2. hydrology
3. geology
4. biology
what is geology? - Answer- the scientific study of the Earth's processes and materials
steps of the scientific method - Answer- 1. observe/collect data
2. form a hypothesis
3. test hypothesis
4. multiple lines of evidence gives one confidence
5. theory
how did our solar system form? - Answer- - giant cloud of hydrogen (Nebula) collapses
due to gravity
- early sun= proto sun (flat spinning disk)
- heavy and light elements separate
- inner planets= rocky and metal
- outer planets= gaseous and lighter elements
how old is the moon? - Answer- 4.5 billion years old and has same composition as
Earth's crust
how old is Earth? - Answer- 4.6 billion years old
how old are the oldest minerals? - Answer- 4.4 billion years old
when did the oceans form? - Answer- 4 billion years ago
how old are the oldest fossils? - Answer- 3.5 billion years old
percentage of elements in early Earth - Answer- 34.8% Iron
29.3% Oxygen
percentage of elements in continental crust - Answer- 45.2% Oxygen
27.2% Silicon
how did spherical shapes develop? - Answer- spherical shapes develop from sufficient
mass and gravity
compositional layers of Earth - Answer- - continental crust (O, Si, Al, Fe)
- oceanic crust (O, Si, Al, Fe)
