Earth Science Quiz 2

Which of the following is not an example of an age-relationship based on absolute dating?

• The Vishnu schist at the bottom of the Grand Canyon is 2 billion years old.

• The dinosaurs became extinct 65 million years ago.

• The oldest known rocks on Earth are 3.96 billion years old.

• The Coconino formation in the Grand Canyon is older than the Kaibab formation.

Which of the following gives the correct sequence of layers in the Earth, from the surface to the center?

• crust, lower mantle, aesthenosphere, core

• crust, aesthenosphere, lower mantle, core

• aesthenosphere, lower mantle, crust, core

• crust, core, lower mantle, aesthenosphere

How have we gained knowledge of Earth's internal structure?

• studying shock waves from earthquakes and underground nuclear tests

• direct observation of Earth's inner layers

• analysis of seismic waves passing through Earth's layers

• all of the above

• A and C

The aesthenosphere can best be described as

• a rigid solid.

• plasma-like.

• plastic-like.

• a liquid.

The density of material below the Moho is that above it.

• less than

• the same as

• greater than

The majority of the Earth's crust is composed of rock.

• metamorphic

• sedimentary

• carbonate

• igneous

Heat energy and new materials are brought to the surface from the interior by the

• tectonic cycle.

• rock cycle.

• hydrologic cycle.

• mineral cycle.

Which of the following is not part of the hydrologic cycle?

• transportation

• radioactive decay

• sedimentation

• erosion

The major rocks of Earth's crust are classified into principal types based on

• element composition.

• mineral composition.

• relative and absolute locations.

• three specific rock-forming processes; i.e., the manner in which they formed.

Ocean floor subducts under continents because

• the ocean floor is made of mafic material and is therefore more dense than continental material.

• the ocean floor has a lower density and therefore sinks more easily.

• the ocean floor is made of felsic minerals and is heavier than continental material.

• the weight of the continents is so great that they push the ocean floor material downward.

• both A and B