Questions about science and other introductory material

1. Give an example of some aspect of the world or of human experience involves questions that science can properly address. ___
2. Give an example of some aspect of the world or of human experience involves questions that science can not properly address. ___
3. What is the essential characteristic that makes an observation into a scientific fact?
4. What is the essential characteristic of a scientific hypothesis that differentiates it from idle speculation?
5. What is the current best scientific estimate for the age of the Earth?
6. What are the primary layers of Earth's interior, listed from the inside out? (See p. 12-13)
7. About how thick is Earth's crust? (See p. 13)
8. What is the only major layer of Earth's interior that is in the liquid state?
9. We know about the layering of Earth's deep interior primarily through the analysis of how seismic waves from earthquakes propagate through the Earth. The composition of meteorites helps us constrain the composition of Earth's interior. Earth has a core composed of ___.
10. Increase in temperature by a sufficient amount (while holding pressure constant) will generally result in a change in state from a liquid to a ___ and from a solid to a ___.
11. Increase in pressure by a sufficient amount (while holding temperature constant) will generally result in a change in state from a gas to a ___ and from a liquid to a ___ for most materials.
12. Earth's temperature increases with depth to its highest temperature in the center. Pressure also increases to a maximum at the center. The inner core is in the ___ state of matter.
13. The mantle is in the ___ state of matter, and is able to flow in response to stress.
14. The outer core is in the ___ state of matter.
15. The rigid-elastic outermost part of the Earth is segregated into discreet plates that are in motion relative to each other. That layer is called the ___.
16. Just below the plates is a zone in the upper mantle, called the ___, that is hot enough so that a small amount of partial melting occurs and the remaining solid rock is very weak.

Atoms, molecules, minerals

1. There are just over 90 naturally occurring elements contained in Earth, each of which is differentiated from the other based on the number of ___ in its nucleus.
2. Most of the volume of an atom is represented by the space within its ___
3. Most of the mass of an atom is contained within its ___.
4. The isotope carbon-14 has 6 protons and 8 ___ in its nucleus.
5. An ion is a charged atom or molecule, and a cation has a greater number of ___ than ___.
6. In a(n) ___ bond, a cation is bonded to an anion resulting in an electrically neutral compound.
7. In a(n) ___ bond, a pair of electrons of different spin "orbit" around more than one nucleus.
8. It is commonly found that a material is stronger when it is dry than when it is wet, in part because water contributes to the substitution of weak ___ bonds for the stronger pre-existing bonds between atoms.
9. The three most abundant elements in Earth's crust are, in decreasing order of importance (most abundant first): ___
10. The words "silica" and "silicate" are used to partially describe the composition of minerals that contain ___ and ___.
11. The mica minerals muscovite and biotite can easily be separated into very thin sheets. As a consequence of their lattice structure, mica minerals have ___ direction(s) of cleavage.
12. Quartz, olivine and pyrite are examples of minerals that break like glass, along irregular surfaces. As a consequence of their lattice structure, these minerals have ___ direction(s) of cleavage.
13. Diamond and graphite have dramatically different physical properties because of their different ___.
14. Friedrich Mohs constructed a hardness scale based on the relative hardness of ten well known minerals. The hardest of these minerals was assigned a Mohs hardness value of 10, and is the mineral ___.
15. Density is a characteristic of an object that is equal to its mass divided by its ___
16. The diaphaneity of a mineral is a description of how light passes through the mineral. A mineral grain that allows some light to pass through it, but that would not permit you to read this exam through the grain, would be said to be ___.
17. The most common family of minerals in Earth's crust is the group known as the ___.
18. Examples of mafic (i.e., dark-toned, magnesium/iron-rich) minerals include ___ and ___.
19. A couple of important examples of minerals that do not have a silicate chemistry are ___ and ___.
20. The mineral ___ is easy to identify because it fizzes (effervesces) vigorously when a drop of dilute hydrochloric acid touches it.

Igneous processes and rocks

1. Mafic magmas crystallize to form relatively ___-toned rocks.
2. Silicic magmas are defined as containing ___% silica.
3. Mafic magmas are defined as containing ___% silica.
4. Mafic magmas tend to be (Choose one: more less as ) viscous than/as silicic magmas.
5. Basalt is an example of an important igneous rock type formed from ___ magma.
6. An igneous rock that crystallizes slowly, below Earth's surface, is called a(n) ___ igneous rock.
7. The intrusive igneous rock that is the mineralogical/chemical equivalent (twin) of basalt is ___.
8. If you have two magmas that are similar in all characteristics except that Magma A has more gas in it than Magma B, which of the two magmas will likely be more viscous?
9. If you have two magmas that are similar in all characteristics except that Magma A is hotter than Magma B, which of the two magmas will likely be more viscous?
10. Given two igneous rocks, one of which has a phaneritic texture and the other has an aphanitic texture, which will have the larger average grain size?
11. Given two igneous rocks, one of which has a phaneritic texture and the other has an aphanitic texture, which is more likely to have crystallized rapidly at or near Earth's surface
12. A rock formed by ash and other debris that is blasted out of a volcano is said to have a(n) ___ texture.
13. The pinkish mineral that is commonly found in a granite or rhyolite is ___
14. Examples of igneous rocks with an intermediate composition include ___.
15. A ___ provides evidence that the magma cooled under water.
16. We use the Hawaiian word ___ to indicate ropey lava.
17. A ___ is an intrusive igneous body that was emplaced parallel to the pre-existing layering of the rock into which the magma intruded.
18. Several times in Earth history (but not since humans were around to observe the process), gigantic volumes of basalt have erupted over geologically short time intervals, producing the sort of ___ that we can observe today along the Columbia River in the Pacific Northwest, in Siberia, and in the Deccan Traps of India.
19. Obsidian is an igneous material that has a glassy texture, because its rate of cooling was ___.
20. The most abundant gas generated by a typical volcano is ___.
21. Partial melting of the upper mantle, as occurs along mid-ocean ridges, yields magma that crystallizes to form the extrusive igneous rock ___ and the intrusive igneous rock ___.
22. The presence of xenoliths in an igneous rock suggests the possibility that its composition may have been altered by the process of ___.
23. Partial melting of the continental crust, along with other processes, may produce a silicic magma that crystallizes to form the quartz-rich intrusive rock ___ or its extrusive equivalent ___.
24. Rhyolitic and andesitic magmas tend to produce volcanoes that are (choose one: more less as ) explosive than/as those produced by basaltic magmas.
25. Shield volcanoes may be very tall, but they have ___ bases and ___ sloping sides.
26. Shield volcanoes tend to form from mafic magmas that are (choose one: more less as ) viscous than/as the magmas that form stratavolcanoes.
27. Shield volcanoes tend to form from mafic magmas that are (choose one: hotter cooler the same temperature ) hot than/as the magmas that form stratavolcanoes.

Sediment and sedimentary rocks

1. What geologic process involves the breakdown and alteration of rocks at Earth's surface through interaction with water and the atmosphere?
2. What is the common name for a sedimentary deposit that is composed of a mixture of silt and clay?
3. What is the general term we use for sediments or sedimentary rocks that are composed of the broken and worn particles of older geologic materials that have been deposited by wind or water? Hint: it comes from the ancient word "klastos" which means broken.
4. What is the type of sedimentary rock that is composed primarily of sand-size particles?
5. The life history of a detrital/clastic sedimentary grain that is enclosed within a sedimentary rock generally includes the following 5 stages/events, listed in the order in which they usually occur: ___, ___, ___, ___, and ___.
6. What is the name for a sedimentary rock formed from a deposit of silt and clay-sized particles, and that displays the layering and parallel-parting known as "fissility" or "shaley parting"?
7. What is the primary mineral in limestone?
8. What is the general name of sedimentary deposits that precipitate under conditions of high evaporation (e.g., heat, ±wind, low humidity)?
9. What are two main types of weathering?
10. What is the type of sedimentary rock that is composed primarily of gravel-size particles?
11. What is the most common mineral in a sandstone whose grains have been subjected to prolonged transportation, or perhaps to repeated cycles of deposition, erosion and transportation? Hint: this common mineral has no cleavage and is largely resistant to chemical weathering.
12. Does the volume of a mass of water stay the same, contract or expand as it passes from the liquid to the solid state?
13. How big are gravel-sized particles?
14. In what season(s) of the year would the freeze-thaw cycle be most active in the weathering of rock in the northern part of the continental United States?

Metamorphic rocks

1. During metamorphism, rock is subjected to high heat and significant pressure, but it does not ___. If it did, the formation of the subsequent rock would be an igneous process.
2. Most of the continental crust and nearly all of the lithosphere and mantle are composed of ___ rocks (in the broad sense of the term).
3. Economically valuable ore deposits can be concentrated through the percolation of hot fluids through rock. If the hot fluid is water, the process is called ____ metamorphism.
4. ___ is a system or field of forces directed perpendicular to all surfaces of a given solid object with the same magnitude everywhere. Changing this may cause a change in the object's volume.
5. ___ is a system of forces acting on a surface that may have a different magnitude in different directions. Changing this may cause a change in the object's volume and shape.
6. Increasing the temperature of a rock or fluid would generally ___(choose one: increase, decrease, not change) the chemical reactivity of the rock/fluid.
7. Increasing the temperature causes atoms to vibrate ___ (choose one: more slowly, more rapidly, the same as before the temperature change).
8. In average continental crust, the Earth's temperature ___ (choose one: increases, decreases, remains constant) as it is sampled from the surface downward toward the base of the crust.
9. The rate of change of Earth's temperature with changing depth is called the ___ gradient. Great changes have occurred in/on Earth during its ___ year history since its formation. (http://www.baylor.edu/Geology/index.php?id=26723)
10. In the metamorphic process of ___ (choose one: recrystallization, neomorphism, metasomatism), the same types of minerals are present in the rock both before and after metamorphism. An example is the mineral calcite, which dominates the composition of the sedimentary rock limestone and the meta-sedimentary rock marble.
11. In the metamorphic process of ___ (choose one: recrystallization, neomorphism, metasomatism), new types of minerals grow during metamorphism at the expense of the pre-existing minerals. For example, a shale containing clay minerals may be metamorphosed to produce a schist containing garnet, mica, and other new metamorphic minerals that did not occur in the shale.
12. The metamorphic process of ___ (choose one: recrystallization, neomorphism, metasomatism) occurs in a chemically open system in which atoms are transported in and out of the rock during metamorphism, resulting in changes in the chemical composition of the rock in addition to mineralogical changes.
13. Metamorphism that occurs under warm conditions and modest pressures, often with the active involvement of water, is called ___ (choose one: low intermediate high) grade metamorphism.
14. Metamorphism that occurs under very hot conditions and significant pressures is called ___ (choose one: low intermediate high) grade metamorphism.
15. Metamorphism that occurs due to the increase in pressure/temperature is called ___ (choose one: prograde retrograde) metamorphism, because of the sense of going forward into higher P/T conditions.
16. Metamorphism that occurs due to the decrease in pressure/temperature is called ___ (choose one: prograde retrograde) metamorphism, because of the sense of going back to lower P/T conditions.
17. ___ metamorphism occurs in the area surrounding a very hot rock body, such as an igneous intrusion.
18. ___ metamorphism occurs through the involvement of hot water circulating through the rock.
19. ___ metamorphism occurs due to the elevation of pressure/stress and temperature as a sediment or rock is buried under the weight of subsequent sedimentary strata.
20. ___ metamorphism affects a broad area, and is commonly associated with the development and erosion of collisional mountain ranges.
21. The layering that develops during metamorphism due to the growth of minerals perpendicular to the greatest stress direction is called ___.
22. The metamorphic rock gneiss is an example of a(n) ___ (choose one: low intermediate high) grade metamorphic rock.
23. The metamorphic rock ___ contains visible grains of mica minerals arranged in parallel layers, giving it a shiny luster.
24. The metamorphic rock __ contains very small (essentially invisible) grains of mica minerals arranged in parallel layers, giving the rock a silky luster. The layers are not generally planar, but are commonly wavy or irregular.
25. A very fine-grained metamorphic rock that breaks/cleaves in highly flat, planar layers is called ___.
26. Before metamorphism, slates were most likely the sedimentary rock ___.
27. Before metamorphism, quartzites were most likely the sedimentary rock ___.
28. Before metamorphism, calcite marbles were most likely the sedimentary rock ___.

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