Earth Sciences 80A - 1995 Quiz #2

Instructions:

This is the second of 3 quizzes in this class. Each will count as 25% toward the total point accumulation possible for the course. The attendance in the discussion section and your short paper will count for the other 25%. The quiz is to be completed in-class in 60 minutes or less. You cannot use any notes, and you are to do your own work (no discussion with classmates, no inspection of their answers).

Please write or print your short essay answers very clearly, so that your work can be easily read. Use appropriate size lettering so that you can fit your answer into the allowed space. Do not spill over onto the back of pages. Use reasonable grammar, but the substance of your answers is more important than style.

PRINT YOUR NAME CLEARLY in the indicated place at the top of each sheet of the exam (DO THIS NOW), because the graders will disassemble the exams.

When you have completed the quiz, take the entire exam copy to the front of the room, place the exam in the appropriate pile, and you are free to leave. Please try to minimize the disturbance of those around you as you depart. Good luck!

  1. Describe several ways in which recordings of ground shaking (seismograms) are used to study earthquakes. (10 points)

     

  2. Describe the essence of how seismic waves are used to study the structure of the earth. (10 points)

     

  3. List and explain the differences between volcanoes in rifts, subduction zones and hotspots. (10 points). What causes melting in each environment? What types of rocks are found in each region? etc.

     

  4. Briefly describe the major processes and structural elements of plate tectonics (use a few sketches). Summarize several lines of evidence supporting the hypothesis. How are surface plate tectonics related to the internal dynamic system of the Earth? (25 points: Thoroughness counts!)

     

  5. In the left column there is a list of terms and names, each of which is associated with a concept in the column on the right (in the context of this class). In the blank space next to the terms on the left, write the letter of the term in the right hand column with which it is mostly clearly associated. You may use the letters on the right only one time each , so pick the best association (Hint: go through all of the terms on the right first and pick out the easy ones) (15 points)

     

    Hawaii		        __________		A) Richter
   
   
San Andreas		__________		B) Hot Spot
   
   
Lateral Blast		__________		C) Subduction zone
   
   
Outer Core		__________		D) Volcanic arc
   
   
Thrust Faults		__________		E) Asthenosphere
   
   
Seismic Intensity	__________		F) Mt. St. Helens
   
   
Elastic Rebound	        __________		G) Andesite
   
   
Caldera		        __________		H) Continental Drift
   
   
Basalts	    	        __________		I) Magnetic Reversal History
   
   
Ductile Flow		__________		J) Damage
   
   
A. Wegener		__________		K) Effusive Eruption
   
   
Japan			__________		L) Major Shadow Zone
   
   
Seismic Magnitude	__________		M) Crater Lake
   
   
High viscosity magma    __________		N) Faulting
   
   
Geologic Time	        __________		O) Strike-slip fault

     

  6. For each of the following statements, circle the most appropriate response. Read the questions carefully, as some are intentionally tricky. (30 pts total)
    1. Seismic tomography is used to determine convective motions inside the earth.
      • True
      • False
    2. P waves are the fastest seismic waves and propagate by alternately compressing and dilating the material through which they move in the same way as a sound wave.
      • True
      • False
    3. Which volcano is responsible for the destruction of Pompeii:
      • a) Mt. Rainier
      • b) Mt. Etna
      • c) Mt. Vesuvius
      • d) Mt. Pelee
    4. Which of the following is least associated with volcanoes:
      • a) magma
      • b) friction
      • c) island arc
      • d) plumes
    5. Temperature increases rapidly with depth through the lithosphere and slowly with depth through the lower mantle because of a transition from conductive heat transport to convective heat transport.
      • True
      • False
    6. Subduction of sediments is important for producing arc volcanism because the volatiles release water which increases the melting temperature of rocks in the wedge overlying the slab.
      • True
      • False
    7. Which of the following is not a major type of plate boundary?
      • a) Subduction zone
      • b) Ocean Ridge
      • c) Hotspot Chain
      • d) Transform Fault
    8. Which of the following is not a type of surface wave:
      • a) Love wave
      • b) tsunami wave
      • c) shear wave
      • d) Rayleigh wave
    9. The 1989 Loma Prieta event was caused by normal faulting in the Santa Cruz Mountains.
      • True
      • False
    10. The Parkfield earthquake prediction is primarily based on:
      • a) seismic precursors
      • b) seismic recurrence interval
      • c) well water fluctuations
      • d) animal behavior
    11. The present rate at which volcanism contributes new gases to the atmosphere is sufficient to account for the total amount of material in the atmosphere.
      • True
      • False
    12. Magma appears to ascend a much greater distance for volcanoes associated with hot spots than for those associated with rifts.
      • True
      • False
    13. The eruption of Mt. Pinatubo was predicted by geologists, saving many lives.
      • True
      • False
    14. P wave amplitudes increase with distance from the source because the energy is spread over a larger wavefront area, causing strong damage at large distances.
      • True
      • False
    15. Strike-slip fault earthquakes in Israel have repeatedly destroyed cities in the Holy Land.
      • True
      • False

[return icon] Return to the Earth Sciences 8 Exams Page

 

Page maintained by Thorne Lay.
This page was last reviewed on 3/9/01.