Description : A circular cavity ground out of bedrock by running water is called a: w) cave x) pothole y) sinkhole z) kettle hole
Last Answer : ANSWER: X -- POTHOLE
Description : Which of the following is the most important erosional and transportation agent? w) wind x) water y) glaciers z) none of the above
Last Answer : ANSWER: X -- WATER
Description : A pair of rivers that mark the approximate southern limit of the Ice Age glaciers in North America are the Missouri and which of the following? w) St. Lawrence x) Ohio y) Delaware z) Tennessee
Last Answer : ANSWER: X -- OHIO
Description : Which of the following does NOT affect sea level change? w) Antarctic ice sheet x) small glaciers and ice caps y) Arctic sea ice z) Greenland ice sheet
Last Answer : ANSWER: Y -- ARCTIC SEA ICE
Description : All of the following are TRUE of the Paricutin volcano except w) its slopes are steep x) it is a lava cone y) it is located in Mexico z) it was built over a short period of time
Last Answer : ANSWER: X -- IT IS A LAVA CONE
Description : Which of the following are barchans? w) deflation basins x) oases y) crescent-shaped dunes z) sand storms
Last Answer : ANSWER: Y -- CRESCENT-SHAPED DUNES
Description : In geological studies, a dome shaped intrusion is called a: w) volcanic neck x) laccolith y) nuee ardente z) caldera
Last Answer : ANSWER: X -- LACCOLITH
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 : 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 : Coal is believed to have been principally formed in which of the following types of environment? w) river beds x) swamps y) volcanic regions z) deserts
Last Answer : ANSWER: X -- SWAMPS
Description : Rocks formed in layers are said to be: w) crystalline x) stratified y) chemical z) metamorphosed
Last Answer : ANSWER: X -- STRATIFIED
Description : According to the French scientist Buffon, the solar system formed when our sun w) was first formed x) collided with a comet y) began to cool down z) began to expand.
Last Answer : ANSWER: X -- COLLIDED WITH A COMET
Description : Which of the following mountain ranges were formed as a result of volcanic action? w) Appalachians x) Teton Range y) Front Range z) Cascade Range
Last Answer : ANSWER: Z -- CASCADE RANGE
Description : What type of rocks are formed as a result of volcanic activity? w) metamorphic x) sedimentary y) igneous z) Hudson
Last Answer : ANSWER: Y -- IGNEOUS
Description : In the nebular hypothesis, each planet is formed from which of the following? w) a comet x) a number of moons y) a passing star z) a ring of gas
Last Answer : ANSWER: Z -- A RING OF GAS
Description : The curved body of water formed when a meandering river reshapes and cuts off one of its bends is called: w) an Essing pond x) an Oxbow lake y) a Swensen pool z) a Groovy pool
Last Answer : ANSWER: X -- AN OXBOW LAKE
Description : Which one of these glacial features is believed to have formed in the bed of a subglacial stream? w) an esker x) a kame y) a drumlin z) a moraine
Last Answer : ANSWER: W -- AN ESKER
Description : Iceland has a great deal of volcanic activity. The reason for this is: w) it was formed above a mid-ocean rift. x) it is part of the "Ring of Fire". y) two tectonic plates are rubbing against each other under Iceland. z) the American plate is diving under the European plate in this region.
Last Answer : ANSWER: W -- IT WAS FORMED ABOVE A MID-OCEAN RIFT.
Description : Which of the following pairs of minerals are difficult to tell apart because both are always dark in color and almost equally hard? w) muscovite and orthoclase x) muscovite and quartz y) hornblende and talc z) hornblende and augite
Last Answer : ANSWER: Z -- HORNBLENDE AND AUGITE
Description : Which of these pairs of minerals are always found in granites? w) muscovite and calcite x) quartz and orthoclase y) hornblende and talc z) augite and magnetite
Last Answer : ANSWER: X -- QUARTZ AND ORTHOCLASE
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 : 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 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 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 : 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 : Which of the following distances in kilometers is closest to the diameter of the earth? w) 750 kilometers x) 2,750 kilometers y) 12,750 kilometers z) 127,500 kilometers
Last Answer : ANSWER: Y -- 12,750 KILOMETERS
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 : 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 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