The document consists of a series of questions related to geology, including topics such as catastrophism, geological time, types of rocks, and mineral properties. It covers scientific concepts, definitions, and processes in Earth science while engaging the reader in critical thinking through multiple-choice questions and prompts for essay responses. Additionally, it explores the classification of rocks, geological phenomena, and the scientific method.

1. Always pick the BEST answer. Please indicate your answer
clearly.
1) Catastrophists held that
A) all of Earth’s history would fit into 6,000 years.
B) all rocks had condensed from a global ocean.
C) the landscape had been shaped by a small number of
catastrophes.
D) volcanoes and other indications of change were the result of
minerals like coal burning underground.
E) All of the above were tenants of Catastrophism.
2) ________ was an important 18th-century English geologist
and proponent of uniformitarianism.
A) Charles Lyell
B) Isaac Newton
C) James Hutton
D) James Ussher
E) All of the above were co-authors of the initial proposal and
of uniformitarianism.
3) The peer reviewed best estimate for the age of Earth is
________ years.
A) 4.6 thousand
B) 6.4 trillion
C) 4.6 billion
D) 6.4 million
E) 4.6 billion plus or minus 4 billion
4) Which of the following best describes the fundamental
concept of superposition?

2. A) Strata with fossils are generally deposited on strata with no
fossils.
B) Older strata generally are deposited on younger strata
without intervening, intermediate age strata.
C) Older fossils in younger strata indicate a locally inverted
geologic time scale.
D) Any sedimentary deposit accumulates on top of older rock or
sediment layers.
E) A black cat released from a closed box onto strata will
always move toward the younger rocks.
5) A Theory
A) has undergone rigorous peer reviewed testing.
B) is an explanation of certain scientific observations that
remains after the elimination of most other potential
explanations.
C) will always be subjected to continued scrutiny by the
scientific community.
D) is a definitive and final explanation of certain scientific
observations.
E) All of the above describe a Theory
F) Only A), B) and C) can be used to describe a Theory.
6) All of the following are possible steps of scientific
investigation except for ________.
A) the collection of scientific facts through observation and
measurement
B) assumptionand acceptance of conclusions without prior
experimentation or observation
C) the development of one or more working hypotheses or
models to explain facts
D) development of observations and experiments to test the
hypotheses
E) All of the above are routine steps of scientific investigations.

3. 7) ________ rocks always originate at the surface of
lithospheric plates.
A) Secondary
B) Igneous
C) Metamorphic
D) Sedimentary
E) All of the above
8) Which one of the following statements is not correct?
A) Metamorphic rocks may melt to magma.
B) Sedimentary rocks may weather to igneous rocks.
C) Magmas crystallize to form igneous rocks.
D) Igneous rocks can undergo metamorphism.
E) All of the above are correct.
9) The ________________________ states that fossil organisms
succeed one another in a definite and determinable order.
10) The convective flow of liquid, metallic iron in the
_____________________ is thought to generate Earth's
magnetic field.
11) All other factors being equal (geothermal gradient, pressure,
composition, and heat from other sources such as friction), why
is magma generally produced in association with subduction
zones as opposed to areas away from subduction zones?
A) Subduction zones are inherently unstable areas where
volcanoes form.
B) Descending plates carry sea floor coal deposits down into
rock that is hot enough to cause it to burst into flame and melt

4. the surrounding rock.
C) Descending plates carry water and other volatiles down the
geothermal gradient and the volatiles cause flux melting to
occur.
D) All of the above are true.
E) Only A) and B) are true.
12) Which of the following best defines a mineral and a rock?
A) A rock has an orderly, repetitive, geometrical, internal
arrangement of minerals; a mineral is a lithified or consolidated
aggregate of rocks.
B) A mineral consists of its constituent atoms arranged in a
geometrically repetitive structure; in a rock, the atoms are
randomly bonded without any geometric pattern.
C) In a mineral the constituent atoms are bonded in a regular,
repetitive, internal structure; a rock is a lithified or
consolidated aggregate of different mineral grains.
D) A rock consists of atoms bonded in a regular, geometrically
predictable arrangement; a mineral is a consolidated aggregate
of different rock particles.
13) Atoms of the same element, zinc for example, have the same
number of ________.
A) electrons in the nucleus
B) protons in the nucleus
C) neutrons in the outer nuclear shell
D) electrons in the valence bond level
14) Which carbonate mineral reacts readily with cool, dilute
hydrochloric acid to produce visible bubbles of carbon dioxide
gas?
A) calcite
B) quartz

5. C) dolomite
D) plagioclase
15) A cubic centimeter of quartz, olivine, and gold weigh 2.5,
3.0, and 19.8 grams respectively. This indicates that ________.
A) gold is 6 to 7 times harder than olivine and quartz
B) gold has a higher density and specific gravity than quartz
and olivine
C) gold and olivine are silicates, quartz is elemental silicon
D) olivine and quartz powders are harder than metallic gold
16) Which of the following best characterizes ferromagnesian
silicates?
A) They contain iron and magnetite, are black in color, and they
have metallic lusters.
B) They are black to dark-green, silicate minerals containing
iron and magnesium.
C) They contain magnetite and ferroite and they are clear to
light green.
D) They are mostly clear, colorless, and rich in the elements
magnesium and ferrium.
17) The ion at the center of a silicate tetrahedron is surrounded
by ________.
A) 4 oxygen ions
B) 6 oxygen ions
C) 4 sodium ions
D) 4 silicone ions
18) What is the name given to an atom that gains or loses
electrons in a chemical reaction?
A) molecule

6. B) ion
C) isotope
D) nucleon
19) In which type of chemical bonding are electrons shared
between adjacent atoms?
A) ionic
B) subatomic
C) covalent
D) isotopic
20) What are the lightest or least massive of the basic atomic
particles?
A) uranium nuclei
B) protons
C) electrons
D) neutrons
21) The physical property denoting a mineral's tendency to
crack along parallel, planar surfaces is known as
__________________
22) Most glasses and some minerals exhibit a type of fracture
characterized by nested, curved, spoon-shaped, crack
surfaces. What term describes this property?
___________________________
23) Sketch a Carbon Atom and Label the various parts.

7. 24) What type of chemical bonding is shown in the diagram
below?
a) covalent b) ionic c) metallic d) hybrid
25) Lava flows are typically finer grained than intrusive igneous
rocks. Why?
A) Intrusive magma is cooler because it is well insulated by the
surrounding rock and lithostatic pressure prevents large grains
from growing.
B) Intrusive magma flows onto the Earth's surface and cools
very slowly, allowing many small mineral grains to grow.
C) The extrusive magma cools quickly so ions do not have time
to migrate and crystals do not have time to grow large.
D) The extrusive magma, because it is deep below the surface,
cools very slowly producing very small mineral grains.
26) ________ magma cools and consolidates without growth of
mineral grains
A. aphanitic B. porphyritic C. phaneritic D. glassy

8. 27) ________ mineral grains are of roughly equal size and
coarse enough to be seen without a microscope or magnifying
glass.
A. aphanitic B. porphyritic C. phaneritic D. glassy
28) A ________ is an open cavity in a volcanic rock that was
filled by a gas bubble when the lava was still mainly liquid.
A) porphyrocryst
B) vesicle
C) phenocryst
D) xenocryst
29) In a porphyritic volcanic rock, which mineral grains are the
last to crystallize?
A) phenocrysts
B) vesicles
C) pegmatites
D) matrix or groundmass
30) The last minerals to crystallize on Bowen's Reaction Series
result in igneous rocks with a ________ composition.
A) felsic
B) intermediate
C) mafic
D) ultramafic
31) Changing the composition of magma by incorporating
surrounding host rock is known as ________.
A) magma mixing
B) partial melting
C) differentiation

9. D) assimilation
32) What type of magma, commonly erupted along oceanic
ridge systems, originates by partial melting of mantle
peridotite? ____________________
33) Igneous rocks are classified on the basis of what two main
characteristics?
________________________ ___________________________
34) What portion of an angular, fracture-bounded granitic block
shows the highest rate of weathering?
A) theunfractured interior
B) the edges and corners
C) the crack surfaces not including edges and corners
D) All of the above show equal rates.
35) Which one of the following statements concerning
mechanical weathering is not true?
A) reduces grain sizes of rock particles
B) allows for faster rates of chemical weathering
C) is important in the formation of talus slopes
D) involves major changes in the mineral composition of the
weathered material
36) Assume that water filling a crack in a rock undergoes cycles
of freezing and melting. Which of the following statement is
true?

10. A) Water expands as it melts, causing the crack walls to be
pushed apart.
B) Water shrinks as it freezes, causing the crack walls to be
drawn closer together.
C) Water expands as it freezes, causing the crack walls to be
pushed apart.
D) Water shrinks as it melts, causing the crack walls to be
pulled closer together.
37) Half Dome in Yosemite National Park, California, and
Stone Mountain in Georgia, are shaped mainly by
what mechanical weathering process? _____________________
38) ________, a common mineral found in igneous rocks, is the
most abundant mineral in detrital sedimentary rocks.
A) Calcite
B) Orthoclase
C) Quartz
D) Biotite
39) Which major component of detrital sedimentary rocks only
rarely occurs as a primary mineral in igneous rocks?
A) clays
B) carbonates
C) quartz
D) ferromagnesian minerals
40) Which of the following best describes bedded gypsum and
halite?
A) detrital sedimentary rocks
B) varieties of dolostone

11. C) varieties of coal and peat
D) evaporates; chemical, sedimentary rocks
41) What is the main difference between a conglomerate and a
sedimentary breccia?
A) Breccia clasts are angular; conglomerate clasts are rounded.
B) A breccia is well stratified; a conglomerate is poorly
stratified.
C) Breccia clasts are the size of baseballs; conglomerate clasts
are larger.
D) Breccia has a compacted, clay-rich matrix; conglomerate has
no matrix.
42) Which of the following describes the correct order for
relative solubility of minerals in sedimentary rocks?
A) Evaporate minerals are more soluble than quartz and less
soluble than calcite.
B) Evaporate minerals are less soluble than quartz and calcite.
C) Evaporate minerals aremore soluble than calcite and quartz.
D) Evaporate minerals, quartz, and calcite all have the same
relative solubility.
43) Detrital sedimentary rocks are classified (named) based on
the ________.
A) colors of the cementing minerals
B) grain sizes of the detrital particles
C) compositions of soluble minerals
D) degree of compaction and lithification
44) Flint, chert, and jasper are microcrystalline forms of
________.

12. A) quartz (SiO2)
B) hematite (Fe2 O3)
C) halite (NaCl)
D) calcite (CaCO3)
45) Which type of sediment undergoes the most compaction as
it lithifies to sedimentary rocks?
A) marine mud
B) desert dune sand
C) reef limestone
D) coarse gravel
46) What is the chemical formula for dolomite, the major
mineral in dolostones?
A) NaCl
B) CaSO4 2H20
C) SiO2
D) CaMg(CO3)2
47) Coal beds originate in ________.
A) shallow lakes in a dry, desert region
B) channels of fast-moving streams
C) deep, marine basins below wave action
D) freshwater coastal swamps and bogs
48) What are the three, most common, cementing agents for
sandstones?
_________________________
________________________
_____________________-

13. Essay Questions -- Your Essay Answers should be concise and
neat. Label diagrams clearly. Answer ONLY TWO of the
following four questions. Your answers must fit on the
remainder of this page and the back of this page.
Essay Option 1-- Describe and discuss turbidity currents and
their relationship to ‘graded beds’.
Essay Option 2—Compare and contrast Basic Science and
Applied Science.
Essay Option 3: Sketch, label, and describe the Rock Cycle.
Essay Option 4: Describe the Peer Review Process.