Mass movement
 

Choose one:A.  happens only when the slope of a hill gets steeper than the angle of repose.B.  can’t happen underwater because the buoyancy force of water is too great.C.  is a gravity-driven downslope movement of natural materials.D.  is more likely to happen under dry conditions than under wet conditions.
 

Which of the following processes most logically explains the different tilts of gravestones in a hillside cemetery?
 

Choose one:A.  slumpB.  creepC.  mudflowD.  liquefaction

Avalanches
 

Choose one:A.  are slow mass-movement events.B.  never happen twice in the same place; therefore, the pathway an avalanche creates is a safe place to build.C.  always contain snow and/or ice.D.  can be triggered by explosions, people, or even just new snow.

Solifluction
 

Choose one:A.  is a kind of creep that is found in high-elevation regions or in the Arctic on slopes that are underlain by permafrost.B.  is the proper term for alternate expanding and contracting of swelling clays.C.  means that the level of the water table fluctuates with precipitation.D.  is a faster-than-usual kind of slump in wetlands.

Identify the true statement.
 

Choose one:A.  The angle of repose is the steepest angle at which unconsolidated sediments can sit without slipping downhill.B.  The head scarp of a slump is found at the base of the slump block.C.  Lahars are mudflows that have been triggered by earthquake shaking.D.  Slow movement of unconsolidated material downslope is called a turbidity current.

Which of the following is a suitable method of managing snow avalanches?
 

Choose one:A.  increasing the slope’s load by planting vegetation on the cornice of mountain slopesB.  expansive water drainage systemsC.  targeted, controlled explosionsD.  allowing skiers to use only avalanche chutes (regions where avalanches will not occur)

Identify the true statement.
 

Choose one:A.  Weathering does not affect the stability of a slope.B.  Vegetation is heavy, and therefore deforesting an area can help keep slopes stable.C.  Forest fires followed by heavy rains are likely to result in severe mud and debris flows.D.  Saturating a slope with water tends to hold unconsolidated grains together and thus helps stabilize slopes.

Consider the following eight phrases:
 

1. careful inventory and mapping to determine dangers
2. weathering of minerals to produce clay
3. controlled blasting of unstable slopes
4. controlled water drainage
5. retaining walls along highway embankments
6. spraying shotcrete on road cuts
7. removing support at the toe of the slope
8. adding weight at the top of the slope
 

Which of these are factors that lead to mass movement?

 Choose one:A.  choices 3 and 8 onlyB.  choices 2, 7, and 8C.  choices 1, 2, and 4D.  choices 2, 4, 7, and 8

Watch the Submarine Slide portion of the Slides topic of the animation. How can a submarine slide at the edge of a continental shelf create a tsunami?
 

Choose one or more:A.by the upward displacement of the edge of the continental shelfB.by the sudden drop of the seafloor as the mass of material breaks off the continental shelfC.by pushing water being pushed into a bulge ahead of the advancing underwater debris flowD.by the rebound of the continental shelf as mass is released from its edgeE.by the settling of the deep seafloor under the weight of the incoming mud

quiz #2

Identify the true statement.
 

Choose one:A.  Henri Becquerel discovered principles of radioactivity, which led to the determination of the Earth’s age.B.  Charles Lyell correctly explained how fossils form, and he formulated some of the basic principles of relative dating.C.  James Hutton, the father of geology, added up generations of patriarchs in the Bible and concluded that the birth date of the Earth was October 23, 4004 B.C.E.D.  Archbishop James Ussher introduced the principle of uniformitarianism.

Nicolas Steno’s observations of fossil shark teeth convinced him that
 

Choose one:A.  the rock they were in originated as loose sand, not solid rock.B.  the physical processes that produce the geologic features of today operated in the past to produce the same types of geologic features.C.  geologic features develop by a series of events over periods of time shorter than human history.D.  these were tongues of mythical dragons.

Which of the following statements is true?
 

Choose one:A.  An unconformity is a break in the rock record indicating that the area was underwater for millions of years.B.  Varieties of an element that differ only in the number of neutrons are called isotopes.C.  The generally accepted age of the Earth is 4.56 million years.D.  A paleosol is a rock layer identified by such factors as rock type and approximate geologic age.

Several surfaces between rock layers are identified by letters in this diagram. Which letter correctly identifies an angular unconformity where tilted sedimentary rocks are found beneath flat-lying sedimentary rocks?
 

Choose one:A.  AB.  CC.  BD.  E

 Which of the following statements about this diagram is true?
 

Choose one:A.  Bed 5 (a sandstone) is older than the sill that sits beneath it.B.  The contact between the granite pluton and Bed 3 would be a disconformity.C.  The granite pluton intruded before the rocks were folded.D.  The fault occurred after the basalt dike intruded the region.

Which of the following lists fits the order of these three descriptions: Age of Mammals, Age of Dinosaurs, and longest geologic time period.
 

Choose one:A.  Cenozoic, Mesozoic, PrecambrianB.  Mesozoic, Cenozoic, ProterozoicC.  Cenozoic, Hadean, PaleozoicD.  Mesozoic, Cenozoic, Paleozoic
 

Identify the statement that is true about radiometric dating.
 

Choose one:A.  It can begin only when the isotopes heat up enough to decay.B.  It can be used only if some uranium is present in the rock.C.  Dating of an individual sand grain in a sandstone accurately dates the sedimentary rock’s formation.D.  Dating of metamorphic rock tells when the high temperatures of metamorphism cooled below the closure temperatures of the minerals involved.

A radioactive isotope of the element potassium decays to produce argon. If the ratio of argon to potassium is found to be 7:1, how many half-lives have occurred?
 

Choose one:A.  8 half-livesB.  7 half-livesC.  1 half-lifeD.  3 half-live