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EESB15 Earth History 4 Midterm October 26, 2015
Use Scantron form for answers of Part 1 !!!!! (32 points total)
1. Layering of sedimentary rocks evident due to grain size variations or colour differences (composition) is called
______.
a. foliation
b. bedding
c. linear mineral alignment
d. metamorphic zoning
2. During metamorphism, changes in the bulk composition of a rock occur as a result of ____?
a. an increase in pressure
b. an increase in temperature
c. a reaction with fluids
d. all of the above
3. In what environment would you expect to find thick (tens of meters) deposits of very fine-grained shale?
a. In a very low energy environment of a deep lake.
b. In a very low energy environment of a deeper ocean basin.
c. Along the flank of a mountain where torrential rainfalls occur very frequently, which transport large amounts
of eroded material into the valley.
d. In a high-energy beach environment where storm waves occur very frequently.
e. Both A and B.
4. What is the most prominent textural feature possibly found in rocks, which are formed due to regional
metamorphism?
a. ripple marks
b. bedding
c. foliation
d. porphyritic texture
5. Metamorphism occurs ______.
a. adjacent to igneous intrusions
b. in mountain belts
c. in subduction zones
d. in all of these settings
6. Which of the following sets is arranged in order of increasing metamorphic grade (none to high)?
a. shale – slate – phyllite – schist - gneiss
b. phyllite – gneiss – schist – shale - slate
c. phyllite – slate – schist – gneiss - shale
d. schist – shale – gneiss – phyllite – slate
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7. In order for a sedimentary rock (from loose particles) to form, what processes take place (individually or in
combination)?
a. compaction
b. burial
c. cementation
d. all of the above
8. The parent (source) material for igneous rocks is
a. nickel
b. quartz
c. sand grains
d. granite
e. magma
9. The texture of igneous rocks is determined by the rate at which magma
a. cools
b. melts
c. absorbs sunlight
d. reflects light
10. In regional metamorphism the source of increased temperature and pressure is _______.
a. a local intrusive heat source
b. impact metamorphism (meteorite)
c. tectonic forces- due to the increase in temperature with increasing depth
d. due to increased rate of radioactive decay
11. A rock sample is dull, dark grey in colour, very fine-grained, finely laminated, and contains fossil fragments. This
rock is most likely a_____.
a. igneous rock
b. metamorphic rock
c. sedimentary rock
d. mineral
e. metal
12. Marble is a metamorphic rock that forms form a ________ protolith.
a. granite
b. limestone
c. sandstone
d. shale
13. A rock composed of cemented, rounded pebbles is a _____
a. porphyre
b. shale
c. breccia
d. conglomerate
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14. Ripples and/or dunes are formed by
a. heating and cooling
b. drying and shrinking
c. moving wind and water
d. contact with magma
15. Which of the following groups does a sandstone belong to?
a. foliated metamorphic rocks
b. unfoliated metamorphic rocks
c. clastic sediments
d. chemical sediments
e. phaneritic igneous rocks
16. When magma cools quickly, what kind of texture or crystals does a rock have?
a. coarse-grained = large crystals (aphanitic)
b. fine-grained = small crystals (aphanitic)
c. coarse chert pebbles
d. coarse-grained = large crystals (phaneritic)
17. Select the right sequence of terms for the tectonic zones indicated in the figure below (from left to right):
a. Oceanic-oceanic plate collision, mid-ocean ridge system, Ocean-Continent collision, Continental rift,
Continent-Continent collision
b. Continental rift, mid-ocean ridge system, Continent-Continent collision, Oceanic-oceanic plate collision,
Ocean-Continent collision
c. Continent-Continent collision, continental rift, Oceanic-oceanic plate collision, mid-ocean ridge system,
Ocean-Continent collision
d. Ocean-Continent collision, mid-ocean ridge system, Oceanic-oceanic plate collision, Continental rift,
Continent-Continent collision
18. Why has much of our knowledge of Earth’s interior come from analyzing seismic waves?
a. The type of seismic waves changes as they travel from layer to layer
b. Seismic waves behave similarly as they pass through different materials
c. A seismic waves behaviour changes as they travel through different materials
d. All seismic wave types can travel through solids and liquid
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19. The boundary between the crust and mantle
a. Is the source of the P-wave shadow zone
b. Is the source of the S-wave shadow zone
c. Coincides with the boundary between lithosphere and asthenosphere
d. Is marked by a change in velocity of seismic waves
20. The process in which sediment is dropped by the transport medium and comes to rest is called ____.
a. cementation
b. foliation
c. deposition
d. metarmorphism
e. crystallization
21. Plate tectonic theory postulates all of the following, EXCEPT that ____.
a. Lithospheric plate move
b. Continental crust is younger than oceanic crust
c. One plate can be made of both continental and oceanic crust
d. Old lithosphere is destroyed in subduction zones
e. New lithosphere is created at divergent plate boundaries
22. The zone of the earth that is divided into rigid plates is the ____________.
a. Atmosphere
b. Lithosphere
c. Hydrosphere
d. Asthenosphere
23. How old are the oldest preserved parts of Earth’s oceanic crust (ocean floor)?
a. About 20 million years old
b. About 4.0 billion years old
c. About 180 million years old
d. About 570 million years old
24. Archimedes Principle: Block A (size: 10cm wide, 10cm high, density: 0.5 g/cm 3) floats in water and sinks
approximately 5 cm into the fluid (density 1.0 g/cm3). What would you expect that happen to a second Block B,
also made of wood, which has the same dimensions, but has 0.2 g/cm3 higher density?
a. Block B will sink less than Block A.
b. Block B will not float, but will sink to the bottom of the bucket.
c. Block B will float, but will sink in a bit deeper than Block A.
d. Block B will float on the water surface.
25. Which of the following is the correct order of decreasing magma viscosity (from left to right) due to decreasing
silica content?
a. Andesite – rhyolite – basalt
b. Basalt - andesite – rhyolite
c. Basalt – rhyolite – andesite
d. Rhyolite – andesite – basalt
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26. The theory of plate tectonics states that rigid "plates" are driven by forces within the Earth and interact by
___________________.
a. colliding with each other
b. pulling apart from each other
c. sliding past each other
d. all of the above
27. In correct order from the centre outward, Earth includes which layers?
a. core, upper mantle, lower mantle, crust
b. inner core, outer core, inner mantle, outer mantle, crust
c. inner core, crust, mantle, hydrosphere
d. core, crust, mantle, hydrosphere
28. A clastic rock is_____:
a. a rock formed from the cementation of transported grains
b. a rock formed from the evaporation of sea water
c. transformed by heat into limestone
d. transformed by pressure into limestone
29. Perfectly shaped dodecahedral crystals (e.g. garnet) in schist are _____ crystals.
a. euhedral
b. anhedral
c. subhedral
30. New oceanic lithosphere forms at ______.
a. convergent plate boundaries
b. transform plate boundaries
c. divergent plate boundaries
d. all of the above
31. Which statement is correct regarding sediment erosion, transport, and deposition?
a. Very small clay minerals (0.01mm) can only be transported
by very high stream flow velocities (900cm/s).
b. Very small clay minerals (0.01mm) need high stream flow
velocities to be eroded from the stream bed.
c. Large pebbles (90mm) are transported at very low stream
flow velocities (1 cm/s).
d. A 1 mm large sand grain would be eroded from the stream bed
at very low stream flow velocities (1cm/s).
e. Clay minerals do not exist in streams.
32. The S-wave shadow zone is caused by the ______.
a. the crust-mantle boundary (Moho)
b. the outer (liquid) core
c. the low velocity zone between lithosphere and asthenosphere
d. the inner core
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Part II – Short Answer Section. (14.5 points total)
- Answer these question on the exam sheet below.
- Point form is sufficient
1. Describe what the term “Wilson cycle” stands for and describe briefly what happens during the individual
stages. (6 points)
2. Describe how sediment material changes due to transport, depending on the transport distance/time (physical
maturation of sediment). (4.5 points)
3. Describe briefly how an igneous rock that formed from the quick cooling of lava differs from an igneous rock
that formed from the slow cooling of magma. (4 points)
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Part III – Rock Identification (6.5 points total):
- Hand in your answers in the exam booklets
- Point form is sufficient
a. Describe your rock sample # ______ (colour/colour index, composition, grain/crystal size, texture
bedding/foliation/none of these, and any other important characteristic). (5 points)
b. Based on your hand sample description, is this an igneous, a metamorphic or a sedimentary rock?
(regarding texture, colour index, composition). (1 point)
c. Based on your hand sample description, what is the name of the rock type of sample #____? (0.5 points)