Systems and Cycles Final Exam 2023 Questions with
correct answers;100% guaranteed success
What is the primary source of heat within Earth's modern day interior?
radioactive decay
Like every other terrestrial planet in our star system, Earth's core is composed
primarily of which chemical element?
iron (Fe)
Which layer of Earth's geology behaves like a brittle solid, unlike other layers that
behave more like a plastic or ductile solid?
lithosphere
Which of the following is NOT a line of evidence that provides us with data about
Earth's core?
direct core samples
Which description best applies to the material found inside Earth's mantle?
hot, dense silicate rock rich in Mg and Fe
What ingredient appears necessary to lower the melting point of hot upper-mantle
or crustal rock, so that partial melting can occur and plate tectonics becomes
possible?
H2O
The presence of (129)Xe and (26)Mg in meteorites directly implicates what type of
event as a contributor to the formation of our solar system?
supernova
What is the approximate age of the Earth and our solar system?
4.6 billion years
Expanding clouds from supernova detonations are rich sources of what material?
heavy elements
Stars like the Sun are powered by fusion reactions that consume hydrogen and
create which element?
helium
As the Sun ages over billions of years, it gradually changes in what way?
the Sun is slowly expanding and brightening
Which is NOT a line of evidence supporting an impact-capture model for the
Moon's formation?
the Moon carries ample water beneath its surface in vast underground aquifers
Comets contain organic material but are primarily composed of what type of
substance?
ices and rock
Among the types of planets that can exist, which type is (maybe) NOT present in
our solar system?
super-Earths
The Late Heavy Bombardment most likely occurred after which planet out to a
further orbit?
Neptune
Approximately how many exoplanets are currently known to exist?
, 5,000
Which of the following is NOT an organic compound?
CO2
Organic compounds can form in space, for example in star-forming nebulae,
through the interaction of dust and gas with...
UV radiation
In the 1950s, the famous Miller-Urey experiment first demonstrated what fact
about the origins of life on our planet?
organic molecules are easily and automatically produced by simple natural processes
Nucleotides, which make up molecules such as ATP, RNA and DNA, are
comprised of what three basic parts?
phosphate, a 5-carbon sugar, and an amino acid
The most likely geochemical environment where life began on Earth was where?
seafloor hydrothermal vents
On which object in our solar system do organic compounds continue to form
today, by processes very similar to those that would have occurred during
Earth's early history?
Titan
The material making up our cell membrane is comprised mostly of what type of
compound?
fatty acids
Oceans on Earth provide a number of services that support the presence of a
biosphere over geologic time. Which of the following is NOT supported by the
oceans of our planet?
internal heat generation
Venus probably began with ample liquid water on its surface, but lost all its water
over time to which process?
sunlight UV split water vapor molecules into O and H
Mars also began with surface lakes and seas, but lost its water over time because
of what process?
Mars' interior heat sputtered out, its magnetic field fell, and the solar winds scoured all
the air way
Which moon of Jupiter appears to support a deep subsurface ocean of water
beneath a thin, cracked surface crust of water ice?
Europa
Far beneath the ice crust of Saturn's moon Titan occur deep layers of differing
composition, including a layer of liquid water, and probably at least two others,
separate layers of...
high-pressure forms of water ice
DNA is advantageous over RNA in a living cell because it provides the
functionality of...
stability - DNA is more stable and mutates less than RNA
The earliest forms of self-replicating material - life - on Earth were probably
composed of complexly folded and chained molecules of the chemical
compound...
RNA
correct answers;100% guaranteed success
What is the primary source of heat within Earth's modern day interior?
radioactive decay
Like every other terrestrial planet in our star system, Earth's core is composed
primarily of which chemical element?
iron (Fe)
Which layer of Earth's geology behaves like a brittle solid, unlike other layers that
behave more like a plastic or ductile solid?
lithosphere
Which of the following is NOT a line of evidence that provides us with data about
Earth's core?
direct core samples
Which description best applies to the material found inside Earth's mantle?
hot, dense silicate rock rich in Mg and Fe
What ingredient appears necessary to lower the melting point of hot upper-mantle
or crustal rock, so that partial melting can occur and plate tectonics becomes
possible?
H2O
The presence of (129)Xe and (26)Mg in meteorites directly implicates what type of
event as a contributor to the formation of our solar system?
supernova
What is the approximate age of the Earth and our solar system?
4.6 billion years
Expanding clouds from supernova detonations are rich sources of what material?
heavy elements
Stars like the Sun are powered by fusion reactions that consume hydrogen and
create which element?
helium
As the Sun ages over billions of years, it gradually changes in what way?
the Sun is slowly expanding and brightening
Which is NOT a line of evidence supporting an impact-capture model for the
Moon's formation?
the Moon carries ample water beneath its surface in vast underground aquifers
Comets contain organic material but are primarily composed of what type of
substance?
ices and rock
Among the types of planets that can exist, which type is (maybe) NOT present in
our solar system?
super-Earths
The Late Heavy Bombardment most likely occurred after which planet out to a
further orbit?
Neptune
Approximately how many exoplanets are currently known to exist?
, 5,000
Which of the following is NOT an organic compound?
CO2
Organic compounds can form in space, for example in star-forming nebulae,
through the interaction of dust and gas with...
UV radiation
In the 1950s, the famous Miller-Urey experiment first demonstrated what fact
about the origins of life on our planet?
organic molecules are easily and automatically produced by simple natural processes
Nucleotides, which make up molecules such as ATP, RNA and DNA, are
comprised of what three basic parts?
phosphate, a 5-carbon sugar, and an amino acid
The most likely geochemical environment where life began on Earth was where?
seafloor hydrothermal vents
On which object in our solar system do organic compounds continue to form
today, by processes very similar to those that would have occurred during
Earth's early history?
Titan
The material making up our cell membrane is comprised mostly of what type of
compound?
fatty acids
Oceans on Earth provide a number of services that support the presence of a
biosphere over geologic time. Which of the following is NOT supported by the
oceans of our planet?
internal heat generation
Venus probably began with ample liquid water on its surface, but lost all its water
over time to which process?
sunlight UV split water vapor molecules into O and H
Mars also began with surface lakes and seas, but lost its water over time because
of what process?
Mars' interior heat sputtered out, its magnetic field fell, and the solar winds scoured all
the air way
Which moon of Jupiter appears to support a deep subsurface ocean of water
beneath a thin, cracked surface crust of water ice?
Europa
Far beneath the ice crust of Saturn's moon Titan occur deep layers of differing
composition, including a layer of liquid water, and probably at least two others,
separate layers of...
high-pressure forms of water ice
DNA is advantageous over RNA in a living cell because it provides the
functionality of...
stability - DNA is more stable and mutates less than RNA
The earliest forms of self-replicating material - life - on Earth were probably
composed of complexly folded and chained molecules of the chemical
compound...
RNA
