Geology Exam Answer Keys
Pillow lavas are associated with ________ eruptions.
a. subaerial rhyolitic
b. submarine rhyolitic
c. subaerial basaltic
d. submarine basaltic
D
A fast-moving flow that resembles fluid concrete consisting of a mixture of water and volcanoclastic
debris is termed a ________
a. lahar
b. pyroclastic flow
c. flood basalt
d. hyaloclastite
A
Normal fault forms during
a. compression of the crust
b. extension of the crust
c. when the crust slide past each other
d. shortening of the crust
B
Identify the FALSE statement. Rhyolite lava
a. has more silica than basalt lava does
b. indicates the tendency for explosive activity
c. may be squeezed upward and out of the vent to create a lava fountain
d. is the most viscous
C
Important volatiles in magmas include ________.
a. mafic minerals, such as olivine
b. potassium and aluminum
c. water and carbon dioxide
d. silicon and iron
C
Which type of lava is most felsic and coolest?
a. basaltic
b. andesitic
c. rhyolitic
d. pyroclastic
C
Which of the places listed below was formed by a hotspot?
a. Mount St. Helens, Washington
b. Mount Fuji, Japan c. Kilauea, Hawaii
d. Mount Pinatubo, Philippines
C
,The point within Earth where an earthquake takes place is termed the ________.
a. Earthquake force
b. power
c. focus
d. epicenter
C
The presence of pillow lava is evidence of what volcanic circumstance?
a. a Submarine volcano
b. high-silica-content magma
c. an explosive eruption
d. caldera formation
A
Identify the FALSE statement. Andesite lava
a. is too viscous to flow far
b. andesitic flows mound around the vent and flow slowly.
c. Higher SiO2 content makes andesitic lavas visc
d. is a common feature of the mid-ocean ridge
D
Yellowstone is a classic example of which type of volcanism?
a. Continental rift
b. Mid-oceanic ridge
c. Convergent volcanic arc
d. Continental hot spot
e. Island arc
D
. ________ travel with a compressional motion.
a. Love waves
b. Rayleigh waves
c. P-waves
d. S-waves
C
What variables are considered when calculating discharge?
a. cross-sectional area and velocity
b. velocity and depth
c. width and velocity
d. cross-sectional area and width
A
Which earthquake scale is used to assess the effects of an earthquake on humans and human-made
structures?
a. Richter scale
b. Mercalli scale
c. moment magnitude scale
d. surface-wave magnitude scale
B
, Which of the following statements is FALSE? The Mississippi River Delta
a. consists of several distinct lobes.
b. is the product of several avulsions.
c. is stable and will not avulse in the future.
d. is a bird's-foot delta
C
________ occur(s) when earthquakes cause pore pressure to increase, which in turn causes grains to
loose contact and separate from each other.
a. Liquefaction
b. Aftershocks
c. Normal faults
d. Landslides
A
A tsunami is ________.
a. a sea wave generated by a vertical displacement of water by an earthquake
b. a sloshing of water back and forth within a lake or a bay
c. a wave caused by unusually large tidal forces
d. the tendency of wet, clay-rich soils to behave like a liquid during an earthquake
A
Streams come down out of steep areas onto much flatter land, lose velocity, and drop material in
triangular-shaped structures called
a. point bars.
b. alluvial fans.
c. levees.
d. oxbow lakes
B
Which statement is TRUE?
a. R- and L-waves are surface seismic waves
b. S-waves are compressional body waves; P-waves are shear body waves
c. Surface waves are the first to show up on a seismogram recording of a quake
d. Shallow-focus quakes do less damage than deep-focus quakes
A
An earthquake occurs with an epicenter in the town of New Madrid, Missouri, in the interior of the
North American Plate. Where might the hypocenter of this earthquake plausibly be found?
a. in New Madrid (hypocenter and epicenter mean precisely the same thing)
b. 20 km south of New Madrid
c. 20 km beneath New Madrid
d. 200 km north New Madrid
C
During an earthquake, if the hanging wall slides upward relative to the footwall, the fault is termed a
________ fault if the fault is steep (closer to vertical than horizontal). Refer to the figure below for an
example of such a feature.
a. normal
Pillow lavas are associated with ________ eruptions.
a. subaerial rhyolitic
b. submarine rhyolitic
c. subaerial basaltic
d. submarine basaltic
D
A fast-moving flow that resembles fluid concrete consisting of a mixture of water and volcanoclastic
debris is termed a ________
a. lahar
b. pyroclastic flow
c. flood basalt
d. hyaloclastite
A
Normal fault forms during
a. compression of the crust
b. extension of the crust
c. when the crust slide past each other
d. shortening of the crust
B
Identify the FALSE statement. Rhyolite lava
a. has more silica than basalt lava does
b. indicates the tendency for explosive activity
c. may be squeezed upward and out of the vent to create a lava fountain
d. is the most viscous
C
Important volatiles in magmas include ________.
a. mafic minerals, such as olivine
b. potassium and aluminum
c. water and carbon dioxide
d. silicon and iron
C
Which type of lava is most felsic and coolest?
a. basaltic
b. andesitic
c. rhyolitic
d. pyroclastic
C
Which of the places listed below was formed by a hotspot?
a. Mount St. Helens, Washington
b. Mount Fuji, Japan c. Kilauea, Hawaii
d. Mount Pinatubo, Philippines
C
,The point within Earth where an earthquake takes place is termed the ________.
a. Earthquake force
b. power
c. focus
d. epicenter
C
The presence of pillow lava is evidence of what volcanic circumstance?
a. a Submarine volcano
b. high-silica-content magma
c. an explosive eruption
d. caldera formation
A
Identify the FALSE statement. Andesite lava
a. is too viscous to flow far
b. andesitic flows mound around the vent and flow slowly.
c. Higher SiO2 content makes andesitic lavas visc
d. is a common feature of the mid-ocean ridge
D
Yellowstone is a classic example of which type of volcanism?
a. Continental rift
b. Mid-oceanic ridge
c. Convergent volcanic arc
d. Continental hot spot
e. Island arc
D
. ________ travel with a compressional motion.
a. Love waves
b. Rayleigh waves
c. P-waves
d. S-waves
C
What variables are considered when calculating discharge?
a. cross-sectional area and velocity
b. velocity and depth
c. width and velocity
d. cross-sectional area and width
A
Which earthquake scale is used to assess the effects of an earthquake on humans and human-made
structures?
a. Richter scale
b. Mercalli scale
c. moment magnitude scale
d. surface-wave magnitude scale
B
, Which of the following statements is FALSE? The Mississippi River Delta
a. consists of several distinct lobes.
b. is the product of several avulsions.
c. is stable and will not avulse in the future.
d. is a bird's-foot delta
C
________ occur(s) when earthquakes cause pore pressure to increase, which in turn causes grains to
loose contact and separate from each other.
a. Liquefaction
b. Aftershocks
c. Normal faults
d. Landslides
A
A tsunami is ________.
a. a sea wave generated by a vertical displacement of water by an earthquake
b. a sloshing of water back and forth within a lake or a bay
c. a wave caused by unusually large tidal forces
d. the tendency of wet, clay-rich soils to behave like a liquid during an earthquake
A
Streams come down out of steep areas onto much flatter land, lose velocity, and drop material in
triangular-shaped structures called
a. point bars.
b. alluvial fans.
c. levees.
d. oxbow lakes
B
Which statement is TRUE?
a. R- and L-waves are surface seismic waves
b. S-waves are compressional body waves; P-waves are shear body waves
c. Surface waves are the first to show up on a seismogram recording of a quake
d. Shallow-focus quakes do less damage than deep-focus quakes
A
An earthquake occurs with an epicenter in the town of New Madrid, Missouri, in the interior of the
North American Plate. Where might the hypocenter of this earthquake plausibly be found?
a. in New Madrid (hypocenter and epicenter mean precisely the same thing)
b. 20 km south of New Madrid
c. 20 km beneath New Madrid
d. 200 km north New Madrid
C
During an earthquake, if the hanging wall slides upward relative to the footwall, the fault is termed a
________ fault if the fault is steep (closer to vertical than horizontal). Refer to the figure below for an
example of such a feature.
a. normal
