Description : Which of the following areas is closest to the total surface area of the earth in square kilometers? w) 500 million x) 500 billion y) 500 thousand z) 5 billion
Last Answer : ANSWER: W -- 500 MILLION
Description : Most earthquakes originate at depths of between w) the surface and 100 kilometers x) 100 kilometers and 500 kilometers y) 500 kilometers and 700 kilometers z) 700 kilometers and the outer core
Last Answer : ANSWER: W -- THE SURFACE AND 100 KILOMETERS
Description : Continental shelves range in width from: w) 1,500 to 5,000 kilometers x) 1,500 to 3,000 kilometers y) 0 to 5,000 kilometers z) 0 to 1,500 kilometers
Last Answer : ANSWER: Z -- 0 TO 1,500 KILOMETERS
Description : The most powerful earthquake ever recorded in North America had a Richter scale magnitude closest to w) 6.5 x) 7.5 y) 8.5 z) 9.5
Last Answer : ANSWER: Y -- 8.5
Description : On the Phanerozoic (pron: fan-eh-reh-zO-ik) time scale, which of the following geologic periods occurred approximately 500 to 570 million years ago? Is it: w) Cambrian x) Ordovician (pron: ord-eh-vish-en) y) Carboniferous z) Silurian
Last Answer : ANSWER: W -- CAMBRIAN
Description : What is considered to be the approximate difference in average temperature between the "little ice age" and today? w) 1 to 3 degrees centigrade x) 5 to 8 degrees centigrade y) 10 to 12 degrees centigrade z) 15 to 20 degrees centigrade
Last Answer : ANSWER: W -- 1 TO 3 DEGREES CENTIGRADE
Description : What is the relative humidity when the absolute humidity is 3 grams per cubic meter and the air has a capacity of 12 grams per cubic meter? w) 4% x) 9% y) 25% z) 400%
Last Answer : ANSWER: Y -- 25%
Description : Biomass energy is w) formed through photosynthesis x) caused by heat due to the large mass of the Earth y) has been used for only a few years z) the predominant source of commercial heat energy in the northern regions of the United States
Last Answer : ANSWER: W -- FORMED THROUGH PHOTOSYNTHESIS
Description : The core of the earth is thought to be composed of which of the following? w) basalt and granite x) compressed gases y) uranium and lead z) iron and nickel
Last Answer : ANSWER: Z -- IRON AND NICKEL
Description : Which of these events gives us evidence that the earth is spherical? w) a volcanic eruption x) an earthquake y) an eclipse of the moon z) the earth's rotation
Last Answer : ANSWER: Y -- AN ECLIPSE OF THE MOON
Description : Which of the following causes the oblate spheroid shape of the earth? w) the earth's magnetism x) the earth's gravity y) the earth's rotation z) the moon's tidal pull
Last Answer : ANSWER: Y -- THE EARTH'S ROTATION
Description : To what does the atmosphere's "greenhouse effect" refer to? w) the fact that ozone reflects ultraviolet radiation x) the fact that air prevents heat from leaving the earth y) the fact that clouds prevent sunlight from reaching the earth z) the fact that green plants use sunlight to produce food
Last Answer : ANSWER: X -- THE FACT THAT AIR PREVENTS HEAT FROM LEAVING THE EARTH
Description : How much of the sun's total radiation actually reaches the earth? Is it one part in w) 2,000 x) 200,000 y) 2 million z) 2 billion
Last Answer : ANSWER: Z -- ONE PART IN 2 BILLION
Description : On which one of the following is the largest known volcanic cone in the solar system located? w) Earth x) Io y) Mars z) the moon
Last Answer : ANSWER: Y -- MARS
Description : Which of the following is the oldest period of tim lasting from the beginnings of the earth to approximately 570 million year ago? w) Precambrian x) Pleistocene (pron: ply-sto-sin) y) Miocene (pron: my-o-sin) z) Jurassic
Last Answer : ANSWER: W -- PRECAMBRIAN
Description : In studies of the surface of the earth, a reverse fault having a dip between 10 and 45 degrees is known as a: w) thrust fault x) normal fault y) strike-slip fault z) neither of these
Last Answer : ANSWER: W -- THRUST FAULT
Description : The Greenhouse Effect is caused primarily by which of the following processes? w) blocking incoming short wave solar energy x) absorbing incoming short wave solar energy y) heating of the Earth's stratosphere z) absorbing outgoing long wave radiation from the Earth
Last Answer : ANSWER: Z -- ABSORBING OUTGOING LONG WAVE RADIATION FROM THE EARTH
Description : A man picks up a 50 kilogram block and carries it up a flight of stairs 10 meters high. He then carries the block back down the stairs and places the block in its original position. What is the NET work done on the block? w) 1,000 joules x) 750 joules y) 500 joules z) 0 joules
Last Answer : ANSWER: Z -- 0 JOULES
Description : The speed of sound (at sea level) in air is: w) 340 meters per second x) 400 meters per second y) 500 meters per second z) 760 kilometers per second
Last Answer : ANSWER: W -- 340 METERS PER SECOND
Description : Pangaea is the name of a former continent that included: w) all the continents x) only Europe and Asia y) only South America and Africa z) only North and South America
Last Answer : ANSWER: W -- ALL THE CONTINENTS
Description : What mineral is the most dense? w) hematite x) cinnabar y) marcasite z) rhodochrosite
Last Answer : ANSWER: X -- CINNABAR
Description : Which of the following mountain ranges was formed during the Mesozoic era? w) Rocky Mountains x) Cascades y) Appalachian z) Sierra Nevada
Last Answer : ANSWER: Z -- SIERRA NEVADA
Description : Sulfuric acid aerosols from the eruption of Mt. Pinatubo reduced the rate of global warming last year. They also contributed to the record size of: w) acid rainfalls in Europe x) the anchovy catch off Peru y) the ozone hole over Antarctica z) fish kills in the Amazon River
Last Answer : ANSWER: Y -- THE OZONE HOLE OVER ANTARCTICA
Description : Cloud droplets unite most easily to form raindrops in clouds containing which of the following substances? w) ozone x) plant pollen y) carbon tetrachloride z) large salt crystals
Last Answer : ANSWER: Z -- LARGE SALT CRYSTALS
Description : Which of the following is an average number of inches of snow equal to one inch of rain? w) 1 inch x) 5 inches y) 10 inches z) 25 inches
Last Answer : ANSWER: Y -- 10 inches
Description : When the difference in the temperature of the wet-bulb thermometer and dry-bulb thermometer is large, what does it indicate about the air? w) it is very dry x) it is nearly saturated y) it is very warm z) it is very cold
Last Answer : ANSWER: W -- IT IS VERY DRY
Description : What is considered to be the oldest lake in North America? w) Mono Lake, CA x) Lake Superior, MI y) The Great Salt Lake, UT z) Crater Lake, OR
Last Answer : ANSWER: W -- MONO LAKE, CA
Description : On which of the following does the capacity of a kilogram of air for holding water depend? w) the air pressure x) the air temperature y) the dust content of the air z) the ions in the air
Last Answer : ANSWER: X -- THE AIR TEMPERATURE
Description : What form of runoff is water that flows down a slope within the upper layers of the soil rather than on top of them? w) interflow x) extraflow y) endoflow z) detrital runoff
Last Answer : ANSWER: W -- INTERFLOW
Description : When does the air cool most rapidly? Is it during w) a cloudy day x) a cloudy night y) a sunny day z) a clear night
Last Answer : ANSWER: Z -- A CLEAR NIGHT
Description : The approximate average yearly rainfall in centimeters for the United States is: w) 25 centimeters x) 50 centimeters y) 75 centimeters z) 100 centimeters
Last Answer : ANSWER: Y -- 75 CENTIMETERS
Description : Valleys formed by glaciers always have which of the following characteristics? w) U-shaped cross sections x) straight courses y) uniform slopes z) bedrock floors
Last Answer : ANSWER: W -- U-SHAPED CROSS SECTIONS
Description : When the front of a glacier is stationary for a long time, the glacier will do which of the following? w) form many crevasses x) melt away y) not erode its bed z) build a large terminal moraine
Last Answer : ANSWER: Z -- BUILD A LARGE TERMINAL MORAINE
Description : Carbon dioxide is an important greenhouse gas. What is the current rate in parts per million per year of atmospheric increase of this gas? w) 0.15 ppm per year (parts per million) x) 1.5 ppm per year y) 15 ppm per year z) 150 ppm per year
Last Answer : ANSWER: X -- 1.5 PPM PER YEAR
Description : The largest single component, by weight, in the average American landfill is: w) toxic waste x) diapers y) newspapers z) pizza boxes
Last Answer : ANSWER: Y -- NEWSPAPERS
Description : North American Indians used this mineral of volcanic origin to make tips for arrows: w) obsidian x) quartz y) flint z) pumice
Last Answer : ANSWER: W -- OBSIDIAN
Description : Which animal is the center of the timber-harvest controversy in the Pacific Northwest? w) blackfooted ferret x) California condor y) northern spotted owl z) gray wolf
Last Answer : ANSWER: Y -- NORTHERN SPOTTED OWL
Description : In geological studies, the Mohorovicic Discontinuity, commonly called the Moho, is the boundary between the w) the mantle and the crust x) asthenosphere and the mantle y) mantle and the outer core z) outer core and the inner core
Last Answer : ANSWER: W -- THE MANTLE AND THE CRUST
Description : Which of the following is the approximate ratio of the area of the continents to the area of the earth's oceans? w) 2:1 x) 1:1 y) 2:5 z) 1:10
Last Answer : ANSWER: Y -- 2:5
Description : Safety aside, for which of the following reasons is alcohol used in preference to mercury in a minimum thermometer? w) Alcohol has a higher boiling point x) Alcohol has a lower freezing point y) Alcohol contracts more uniformly z) Alcohol can be dyed for visibility
Last Answer : ANSWER: X -- ALCOHOL HAS A LOWER FREEZING POINT
Description : Which of the following is the mineral name for ordinary salt? w) biotite x) calcite y) halite z) dolomite
Last Answer : ANSWER: Y -- HALITE
Description : Which of the following minerals is a source of lead? w) Bauxite x) Hematite y) Malachite z) Galena
Last Answer : ANSWER: Z -- GALENA
Description : A geologic feature called a kimberlite indicates the possibility of thepresence of which of the following? w) rubies x) diamonds y) sapphires z) opals
Last Answer : ANSWER: X -- DIAMONDS
Description : The wind-chill index outside is -10 F when the wind blows at 20 mph and the air temperature is 20 F. To what temperature will a dry object cool when placed outside? w) 20 F x) 10 F y) -10 F z) -20 F
Last Answer : ANSWER: W -- 20 F
Description : The oldest rocks that contain abundant fossils are: w) Precambrian x) Paleozoic y) Mesozoic z) Cenozoic
Last Answer : ANSWER: X -- PALEOZOIC
Description : The principal mineral in most sand beaches is w) quartz x) orthoclase y) magnetite z) muscovite
Last Answer : ANSWER: W -- QUARTZ
Description : The air around a high pressure area circulates: w) clockwise in the Northern Hemisphere x) counterclockwise in the Northern Hemisphere y) clockwise in the Southern Hemisphere z) in either direction regardless of hemisphere
Last Answer : ANSWER: W -- CLOCKWISE IN THE NORTHERN HEMISPHERE
Description : On the Richter scale, a magnitude 6 earthquake is how much larger than a magnitude 4 earthquake? w) 1.5 times x) 4 times y) 15 times z) 100 times
Last Answer : ANSWER: Z -- 100 TIMES
Description : The longest era was the w) Mesozoic x) Precambrian y) Cenozoic z) Paleozoic
Last Answer : ANSWER: X -- PRECAMBRIAN
Description : The rock in which ground water is LEAST likely to form caverns is: w) sandstone x) limestone y) salt z) rock gypsum
Last Answer : ANSWER: W -- SANDSTONE