Earth History CAST Review

Some students are testing rock samples they collected. If you wanted to test these rocks for calcite, what would you put in the bottle and what would you expect to happen if calcite is there?

• Put water in the bottle; if there is calcite, the rock will dissolve.

• Put salt water in the bottle; if there is calcite, the rock will turn a darker color

• Put acid in the bottle; if there is calcite, the rock will  fizz.

Tags

NGSS.MS-PS1-2

Consider the following diagram of a river flowing through a landscape. A rain storm causes a large amount of water to ow through the river in a very short time. Where would someone find smallest sized sediments (such as fine clay particles)?

• Location X

• Location Y

• Location Z

Answer explanation

Water can carry smaller particles farther. Therefore you are more likely to find cobbles and pebbles at location X where the water runs faster, smaller rocks like sand and gravel at location Y where the water runs slower, and finer clay particles at location Z.

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS2-1

NGSS.MS-ESS2-2

NGSS.MS-ESS2-4

The diagram shows two rock columns. A mining company is sending a team to Paradise Canyon to drill down below Kimi Sandstone. What kind of rock do you think they will  nd directly under the Kimi Sandstone?

• Sunshine Shale

• New York Limestone

• Purple Sandstone

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS1-4

Which explanation best describes how a boulder can turn into silt as it moves down a river?

• Water washes over the boulder until it is silt-sized

• The boulder hits other rocks or objects and breaks apart.

• A chemical reaction turns the boulder into silt.

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS2-2

Use the cross-section drawing to answer the question. The Colorado River started eroding the Grand Canyon 6 million years ago. Of the layers shown at location X, which two layers did the Colorado River erode away first?

• Kaibab Formation and Toroweap Formation

• Redwall Limestone and Supai Group

• Bright Angel Shale and Tapeats Sandstone

Answer explanation

Kaibab Formation and Toroweap Formation are the top most layers, so they eroded first.

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS1-4

NGSS.MS-ESS2-2

NGSS.MS-ESS2-3

To a geologist, the most important use of index fossils is _______.

• to show what kind of life existed long ago

• to show that the sediments were deposited horizontally

• to determine the age of the rock

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS1-4

Which statement is TRUE about plate tectonics?

• All earthquakes are caused by plate movement.

• All volcanic eruptions are caused by plate tectonics.

• The continents are made of plates, but not the seaoor

• Volcanoes and earthquakes are often found near plate boundaries.

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS2-3

Shown on the map is where you'd most likely find volcanoes. Where are you least likely to experience an earthquake?

• Along a volcanic island chain

• Along the boundary of a crustal plate

• In a subduction zone

• Randomly anywhere on Earth

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS2-3

NGSS.MS-ESS3-2

Which feature is the yongest?

• the Canyon

• Granite

• Limestone

• Sandstone

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS1-4

Mountains of the British Isles and the Caledonian Mountains of Scandinavia have the same rock composition as the Appalachian Mountains. What does this tell us about the story of the past geology of this part of Earth?

• The mountain chains were likely once connected (and North America and Europe were once close together)

• Africa and North America were once connected

• A great ice sheet once covered these areas and it used to be underwater.

Tags

NGSS.HS-ESS1-5