Exam #1

Question 1

Your instructor said this type of natural disaster is the least likely for you to experience in your lifetime but could have the most severe consequences:

A) Asteroid and comet impact.
B) Earthquakes.
C) Severe weather.
D) Volcanic eruptions.

Answer 1

A) Asteroid and comet impact.

Question 2

Which of the following types of natural disaster did your instructor say you are most likely to experience in your lifetime?

A) Asteroid and comet impact.
B) Earthquakes.
C) Severe weather.
D) Volcanic eruptions.

Answer 2

C) Severe weather.

Question 3

Which of the following statements is TRUE? Hint: only one of them is true.

A) Diamonds grown in a laboratory would be considered to be a mineral.
B) Diamonds found in a volcanic pipe would be considered to be a mineral.
C) Both diamonds grown in a laboratory and diamonds found in a volcanic pipe would be considered to be minerals.
D) Neither diamonds grown in a laboratory and diamonds found in a volcanic pipe would be considered to be minerals.

Answer 3

B) Diamonds found in a volcanic pipe would be considered to be a mineral.

Question 4

Which of the following minerals discussed in class has the MOST symmetrical mineral crystals?

A) Fluorite (CaF2).

B) Quartz (SiO2).

C) Albite (NaAlSi3O8).

D) All minerals have equally-symmetrical mineral crystals.

Answer 4

A) Fluorite (CaF2).

Question 5

_____________ are the most common chemical elements in the universe overall.

A) Hydrogen and helium.
B) Iron, oxygen, silicon and magnesium.
C) All chemical elements are equally abundant in the universe overall.

Answer 5

A) Hydrogen and helium.

Question 6

_____________ are the most common chemical elements in the solid Earth.

A) Hydrogen and helium.
B) Iron, oxygen, silicon and magnesium.
C) All chemical elements are equally abundant in the solid Earth.

Answer 6

B) Iron, oxygen, silicon and magnesium.

Question 7

Earth’s magnetic field is generated in its only totally molten layer which is _____________.

A) The lithosphere.
B) The asthenosphere.
C) The outer core.
D) The inner core.

Answer 7

C) The outer core.
For EXAM 1, also know that the inner core is hotter than the outer core, but that the pressure in the inner core is so high that the inner core is solid.

Question 8

The tectonic plates of the Earth are found in the crust and uppermost mantle, called _____________.

A) The lithosphere.
B) The asthenosphere.
C) The outer core.
D) The inner core.

Answer 8

A) The lithosphere.
For EXAM 1, also know that the partly-
molten asthenosphere that the overlying
tectonic plates move across is in the upper
mantle.

Question 9

Most of the earthquakes and volcanism on Earth happen at _____________.

A) The center of tectonic plates.
B) The margins of tectonic plates.
C) Most of the earthquakes and volcanism on Earth happen at random locations.

Answer 9

B) The margins of tectonic plates.

Question 10

At which of the following would you expect both volcanoes as well as earthquakes with the deepest points of origin?

A) Convergent plate boundaries with at least one oceanic plate.
B) Convergent plate boundaries with two continental plates.
C) Divergent plate boundaries.
D) Transform plate boundaries

Answer 10

A) Convergent plate boundaries with at least one oceanic plate.

Question 11

At which of the following would you expect earthquakes but not volcanism? Select as many answers as are correct (Hint: there is more than one correct answer, and you must select only the correct answers to get credit for this question).

A) Convergent plate boundaries with at least one oceanic plate.
B) Convergent plate boundaries with two continental plates.
C) Divergent plate boundaries.
D) Transform plate boundaries.

Answer 11

B) Convergent plate boundaries with two continental plates
D) Transform plate boundaries.

Question 12

Which of the following are also known as seafloor spreading centers because new oceanic crust is produced there?

A) Convergent plate boundaries.
B) Divergent plate boundaries.
C) Transform plate boundaries.

Answer 12

B) Divergent plate boundaries.

Question 13

Most of the energy that is contained in tectonic earthquakes that take place along faults is in the ______________.

A) P-wave body seismic waves.
B) S-wave body seismic waves.
C) Rayleigh and Love surface seismic waves.

Answer 13

B) S-wave body seismic waves.
For EXAM 1, also know that most of the energy in nuclear explosions is contained in the first-arriving P-
waves, making seismology a key to enforcing the terms of the Partial Nuclear Test Ban Treaty

Question 14

Which type (or types) of seismic waves are the last arriving from the origin of an earthquake?

A) P-wave body seismic waves.
B) S-wave body seismic waves.
C) Rayleigh and Love surface seismic waves.

Answer 14

C) Rayleigh and Love surface seismic waves.

Question 15

The molten outer core of the Earth blocks which type of seismic waves from passing through it?

A) P-wave body seismic waves.
B) S-wave body seismic waves.
C) Rayleigh and Love surface seismic waves.

Answer 15

B) S-wave body seismic waves.

Question 16

If you see on the news tomorrow that a Magnitude 7 earthquake happened near Istanbul, Turkey, in which earthquake scale is that Magnitude 7 probably being reported?

A) The Modified Mercali Scale.
B) The Moment Magnitude Scale.
C) The Richter Scale.
D) Strong Motion.

Answer 16

B) The Moment Magnitude Scale.
For EXAM 1, also know what the Modified Mercalli Scale, the Richter Scale and Strong Motion are

Question 16

At a minimum, how many seismometer stations are needed to determine the location of an earthquake epicenter?

A) 1.
B) 2.
C) 3.
D) 4.

Answer 16

C) 3.
For Exam 1, also know that each seismometer station provides an estimate of the distance from that station
to the origin of an earthquake because the slower-moving S-waves always begin to arrive at a seismometer after the first-arriving P-waves. P-waves and S-waves have characteristic velocities, permitting the gap in first arrival time to be used to calculate distance

Question 17

How many earthquakes of Magnitude 9 or greater happen in an average year?

A) 1.
B) 2.
C) 3.
D) 4.
E) The average year does not have an earthquake of Magnitude 9 or greater.

Answer 17

E) The average year does not have an earthquake of Magnitude 9 or greater.
This is what “<1” means.

Question 18

The seismic gap method of predicting where along a fault an earthquake is likely to occur next based on where stress has not been recently released along that fault indicates that the next earthquake along the Northern Anatolian Fault System in Turkey will originate near _____________.

A) Duzce, Turkey.
B) Istanbul, Turkey.
C) Izmit, Turkey.

Answer 18

B) Istanbul, Turkey.

Question 19

Your instructor said that long-term earthquake prediction suggests that we might not due for a repeat of this notable earthquake for at least another century or two:

A) The Pacific Northwest Subduction Zone Earthquake of 1700.
B) The Fort Tejon, California, Earthquake of 1857.
C) The Loma Prieta, California, Earthquake of 1989.
D) The Sendai, Japan, Earthquake of 2011.

Answer 19

A) The Pacific Northwest Subduction Zone Earthquake of 1700.

Question 20

__________ are are larger in magnitude and more widely-spaced around the origin of the main earthquake along a fault than are ___________.

A) Foreshocks; aftershocks.
B) Aftershocks; foreshocks.
C) Foreshocks and aftershocks are both of equal magnitude and equally closely-spaced around the origin of the main earthquake along a fault.

Answer 20

B) Aftershocks; foreshocks.
Could easily be two separate questions on exam!!

Question 21

What caused the earthquake that had its epicenter in Oklahoma and that your instructor felt hundreds of miles away in Manhattan, Kansas?

A) Underground nuclear testing.
B) Underground magma movement.
C) Movement along a plate tectonic boundary.
D) High-pressure fluids pumped into petroleum reservoirs and activating faults.

Answer 21

D) High-pressure fluids pumped into petroleum reservoirs and activating faults.

Question 22

In an earthquake, seismic shaking is at its maximum in areas underlain by ____________.

A) Loose soil and sediment
B) Solid bedrock.
C) Seismic shaking would be equally-great in areas underlain by loose soil and sediment or solid bedrock.

Answer 22

A) Loose soil and sediment

Question 23

Your instructor said that ____________ shows great promise for a real-time earthquake warning system.

A) Newspapers.
B) Radio and social media.
C) Telegrams.
D) Telepathy.

Answer 23

B) Radio and social media.

Question 24

Sand volcanoes and sand boils are caused by which of the following earthquake-related hazards?

A) Fires.
B) Landslides.
C) Liquefaction.
D) Waves and floods

Answer 24

C) Liquefaction.

Question 25

Which of the following types of landslides caused by earthquakes did your instructor say can be the fastest?

A) Earthflow.
B) Rock or debris avalanches.
C) Rock or debris falls.
D) Rock or debris slides.
E) Slumps.

Answer 25

B) Rock or debris avalanches.

Question 26

This type of seismic-generated wave or flood used to be incorrectly called a “tidal wave”:

A) A damburst flood.
B) A displacement wave.
C) An impoundment flood.
D) A tsunami.

Answer 26

D) A tsunami.
For EXAM 1, also know what I said about these other types of seismically-induced waves or floods. (ALL THREE)

Question 27

Where is seismic hazard highest in the People’s Republic of China? Where is seismic risk highest in the People’s Republic of China?

A) Eastern China; western China.
B) Western China; eastern China.
C) They are both highest in eastern China.
D) They are both highest in western China.

Answer 27

B) Western China; eastern China.

Question 28

Your instructor said that historical records indicate that this earthquake in China had the highest death toll of any earthquake in recorded history:

A) Huaxian (1556).
B) Haiyuan (1920).
C) Tangshan, 1976.
D) Sichuan, 2008.

Answer 28

A) Huaxian (1556).

Question 29

Seismic shaking was more of a hazard north and south of the namesake of this notable earthquake.

A) Port Royal, Jamaica (1692).
B) Lisbon, Portugal (1755).
C) New Madrid, Missouri (1811-1812).
D) San Francisco, California (1906).
E) The Gobi Desert, Mongolia (1957).

Answer 29

D) San Francisco, California (1906).
For EXAM 1, also know that the main
earthquake hazard from this
earthquake in San Francisco were the
fires started by the earthquake

Question 30

Seismic shaking was worse inland from the namesake of this notable earthquake, while liquefaction and negative floatation were the principle hazards at the namesake of this same notable earthquake:

A) Port Royal, Jamaica (1692).
B) Lisbon, Portugal (1755).
C) New Madrid, Missouri (1811-1812).
D) San Francisco, California (1906).
E) The Gobi Desert, Mongolia (1957).

Answer 30

A) Port Royal, Jamaica (1692).

Question 31

Bores and displacement flooding along one of the world’s major rivers were major earthquake-related hazards in this notable earthquake:

A) Port Royal, Jamaica (1692).
B) Lisbon, Portugal (1755).
C) New Madrid, Missouri (1811-1812).
D) San Francisco, California (1906
E) The Gobi Desert, Mongolia (1957).

Answer 31

C) New Madrid, Missouri (1811-1812).
Specifically the Mississippi River.

Question 32

Your instructor said that _____________ was the key factor in determining the physical and chemical characteristics of an igneous melt.

A) Silica content.
B) Temperature.
C) Volatility.
D) Viscosity.

Answer 32

A) Silica content.

Question 33

Intrusive or plutonic igneous rocks have ___________ texture.

A) Amorphous or non-crystalline.
B) Aphanitic or fine-grained.
C) Phaneritic or coarse-grained.
D) Porphyritic or bimodal (fine-grained and coarse-grained).

Answer 33

C) Phaneritic or coarse-grained.

Question 34

Extrusive or volcanic igneous rocks have _____________ texture.

A) Amorphous or non-crystalline.
B) Aphanitic or fine-grained.
C) Phaneritic or coarse-grained.
D) Porphyritic or bimodal (fine-grained and coarse-grained).

Answer 34

B) Aphanitic or fine-grained.

Question 35

We talked about the following four types of volcanic igneous rocks. Which of them are MOST LIKELY to erupt explosively? HINT: There is more than one, and you must indicate only those that answer this question to receive credit.

A) Rhyolite.
B) Andesite.
C) Basalt.
D) Komatiite.

Answer 35

A) Rhyolite.
B) Andesite.

Question 36

our instructor said that mafic basalt lava tends to come from a _____________ source, while felsic rhyolite and intermediate andesite lava tend to come from a _____________ source.

A) Crustal source; mantle source.
B) Mantle source; crustal source.
C) Your instructor said that they all tend to come from a crustal source.
D) Your instructor said that they all tend to come from a mantle source.

Answer 36

B) Mantle source; crustal source.

Question 37

Relatively small volcanic cones composed of loose pyroclastic debris are called _____________.

A) Cinder cones.
B) Shield volcanoes.
C) Maar volcanoes.
D) Stratovolcanoes.
E) Volcanic domes.

Answer 37

A) Cinder cones.

Question 38

Your instructor called this the classic volcanic cone, as much as tens of miles across at the base and as much as 10,000 feet in height or more, and consisting of alternating layers of andesite lava flows and pyroclastic debris:

A) Cinder cones.
B) Maar volcanoes.
C) Shield volcanoes.
D) Stratovolcanoes.
E) Volcanic domes.

Answer 38

D) Stratovolcanoes.

Question 39

Often the last gasp of volcanism in a volcano, ______________ consists of viscous, high-silica lava extruding rather than flowing out of a crater or out of a fissure on the side of a larger volcano:

A) Cinder cones.
B) Maar volcanoes.
C) Shield volcanoes.
D) Stratovolcanoes.
E) Volcanic domes.

Answer 39

E) Volcanic domes.
For EXAM 1, also know what a maar
volcano is.
A maar is a low-relief, broad volcanic crater formed by shallow explosive eruptions

Question 40

While water vapor might drive phraetic eruptions on Earth that consist of steam and entrained debris, phraetic eruptions observed on Mars are driven by ____________ and phraetic eruptions observed on Neptune’s moon Triton are driven by ____________.

A) Boiling liquid nitrogen; sublimating carbon dioxide ice.
B) Sublimating carbon dioxide ice; boiling liquid nitrogen.
C) They are all drive by water vapor.
D) They are all driven by boiling liquid nitrogen.
E) They are all drive by sublimating carbon dioxide ice

Answer 40

B) Sublimating carbon dioxide ice; boiling liquid nitrogen.

Question 41

The largest volcanic eruption in recorded history rated as a _____ on the Volcanic Explosivity Index (VEI) scale.

A) 0.
B) 2.
C) 4.
D) 7.
E) 8.

Answer 41

D) 7.

Question 42

Most volcanic eruptions over the past 10,000 years are estimated to have rated ______ on the Volcanic Explosivity Index (VEI) scale.

A) 0.
B) 2.
C) 4.
D) 7.
E) 8

Answer 42

B) 2.

Question 43

Over a 500 year period of time, about half of all human deaths caused by volcanic eruptions came from _____ eruptions.

A) 0.
B) 2.
C) 4.
D) 7.
E) 8.

Answer 43

C) 4.

Question 44

Volcanic hazards involving erupted material at the time of eruption are called ______________.

A) Primary volcanic hazards.
B) Secondary volcanic hazards.
C) Indirect volcanic hazards.
D) Social volcanic hazards or social effects.

Answer 44

A) Primary volcanic hazards.