ENHANCING TEST SKILLS - EARTH AND SPACE SCIENCE

For Physical Sciences majors

1. Earth's lithospheric plates move because

A. convection allows hot matter to rise and cool matter to sink.
B. they float along the world's oceans.
C. they float on Earth's liquid mantle.
D. the atmosphere is cooler than the mantle.

2. All silicate minerals contain the same building block which is

A. at least one chain of silica tetrahedra.
B. a double chain of silica tetrahedra.
C. a framework structure, such as seen in quartz.
D. the silica tetrahedron.

3. Contact metamorphism most often occurs

A. over very large areas.
B. during the process of mountain building when plates collide.
C. when sedimentary minerals come into contact with metamorphic minerals.
D. along the borders of igneous intrusions.

4. The violence of an eruption is related to

A. the amount of gas contained in the lava.
B. the location of the volcano.
C. whether it is a central eruption or a fissure eruption.
D. the size of the fragments ejected.

5. Physical weathering will be most intense in which climate?

A. warm and moist, where daily temperature variations are small
B. cold and moist, where daily temperature variations are large and span the
freezing point
C. warm and dry, where daily temperature variations are small
D. cold and dry, where daily temperature variations are large and span the
freezing point

6. Earthquake A has a magnitude of 5.5 and earthquake B has a magnitude of 7.5.

Which of the following statements is true?
A. The ground moved exactly twice as much in earthquake B as it did in A.
B. The ground moved 13 times as much in earthquake B as it did in A.
C. The ground moved 100 times in earthquake B as it did in A.
D. The relative amount of ground movement cannot be determined due to
insufficient information.

7. The largest storm in our atmosphere in terms of actual size (diameter) is the
A. hurricane.
B. tornado.
C. middle latitude cyclonic storm.
D. thunderstorm.

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 8. Annually, polar regions lose more heat energy than they receive, yet they are
prevented from becoming progressively colder each year mainly by the
A. absorption of heat by snow and ice surfaces.
B. conduction of heat through the interior of the earth.
C. storage of heat in the soil beneath the snow cover.
D. circulation of heat by the atmosphere and oceans.

9. The primary cause of radiation inversion is

A. infrared radiation absorbed by the Earth's surface.
B. infrared radiation absorbed by the atmosphere and clouds.
C. infrared radiation emitted by the Earth's surface.
D. solar radiation absorbed by the Earth's surface.

10. If you are interested in the air's water vapor density, then you would be interested in
the
A. specific humidity.
B. mixing ratio.
C. absolute humidity.
D. relative humidity.

11. Which of the following is not considered an important factor in the production of
rain by the collision-coalescence process?
A. the updrafts in the cloud
B. the number of ice crystals in the cloud
C. the cloud thickness
D. the relative size of the droplets

12. On a weather map, the strongest winds are normally observed

A. at the center of high pressure.
B. at the center of low pressure.
C. near a large body of water.
D. where the isobars or contour lines are close together.

13. Which of the following rovers did NOT explore the surface of Mars?
A. Opportunity
B. Spirit
C. Sojourner
D. Viking

14. Which of the following is correctly paired?

A. Ganymede icy crust
B. Europa grooved terrain
C. Io volcanically active
D. Callisto brittle crust

15. What was the space probe that flew past Saturn in 1980 and 1981?
A. Cassini
B. Mariner 10

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 C. Messenger
D. Voyager 1

16. At what stage of the stellar evolution would a star obey the mass-luminosity
relationship?
A. Giant
B. Main sequence
C. Red dwarf
D. White dwarf

17. Yuri Gagarin became famous for boarding ______.

A. Soyuz
B. Molniya
C. Berkut
D. Vostok

18. Who was the first American to orbit the Earth in Space?
A. Neil Armstrong
B. Buzz Aldrin
C. Alan Shepard
D. John Glenn

19. The densest water in the oceans is characterized to have

A. high salinity and high temperature
B. high salinity and low temperature
C. low salinity and low temperature
D. low salinity and low temperature

20. The Mid-oceanic Ridge is

A. a narrow valley that runs along the bottom of the ocean
B. an area where plates come together
C. a continuous mountain chain on the floors of the major oceans
D. a zone in the upper mantle of the earth

21. Which of the following phenomena supports the occurrence of spring tides?
A. speed of the earth around the sun
B. speed of the moon around the earth
C. alignment of the sun, the earth, and the moon
D. changing distances between the sun and the earth

22. A barrier built at a right angle to the beach to trap sand that is moving parallel to the
shore is known as a(n) ___________
A. groin
B. pier
C. stack
D. seawall

23. Compared to a fast flowing river, a slow-flowing river carries

A. less material and abrades its channel faster

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 B. more material and abrades its channel slower
C. more material and abrades its channel faster
D. less materials and abrades its channel slower

24. The largest reservoir of freshwater that is available to humans is ___________.

A. glaciers
B. river water
C. lakes
D. groundwater

25. Which process provides most of the oxygen found in Earth's atmosphere?
A. Photosynthesis
B. aerobic respiration
C. dehydration synthesis
D. fermentation

26. A rocky island appears as oceanic waters recede. Which of the following forms of
vegetation would probably appear first on the bare rocks?
A. lichens
B. weeds
C. shrubs
D. pioneer trees

27. If excessive amounts of hot water are discharged into a lake, the immediate result
will most likely be
A. an increase in the sewage content of the lake
B. a decrease in the amount of phospates in the lake
C. an increase in the amount of PCB pollution in the lake
D. a decrease in the amount of dissolved oxygen in the lake

28. An ecosystem, such as an aquarium, is self-sustaining if it involves the interaction

between organisms, a flow of energy, and the presence of
A. equal numbers of plants and animals
B. more animals than plants
C. materials cycles
D. pioneer organisms

29. Which of the following statements below has contributed to the production of acid
rain?
A. Passing environmental land pollution laws
B. Establishing reforestation projects in lumbered areas
C. Using pesticides for the control of insects that feed on lakes
D. Burning fuels that produce air pollutants containing sulfur and carbon
monoxide

30. According to the heterotroph hypothesis, autotrophs were able to evolve because
heterotrophs made conditions more favorable by _____.
A. producing chlorophyll for plants
B. adding carbon dioxide to the environment

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 C. storing energy in the bonds of inorganic compounds
D. manufacturing food from carbon dioxide and oxygen

31. Which process provides most of the oxygen found in Earth's atmosphere?
A. Photosynthesis C. dehydration synthesis
B. aerobic respiration D. fermentation

32. A rocky island appears as oceanic waters recede. Which of the following forms of
vegetation would probably appear first on the bare rocks?
A. lichens C. shrubs
B. weeds D. pioneer trees

33. If excessive amounts of hot water are discharged into a lake, the immediate result
will most likely be
A. an increase in the sewage content of the lake
B. a decrease in the amount of phospates in the lake
C. an increase in the amount of PCB pollution in the lake
D. a decrease in the amount of dissolved oxygen in the lake

34. Events that take place in a biome are

shown in the diagram below. Which
information formation is represented
in the diagram?
A. Respiration and photosynthesis
are interrelated.
B. Transpiration and condensation
are related to the water cycle.
C. Decomposers release a material
that is acted on by other
organisms.
D. Predators and their prey are
involved in many interactions

35. An ecosystem, such as an aquarium, is self-sustaining if it involves the interaction

between organisms, a flow of energy, and the presence of
A. equal numbers of plants and animals
B. more animals than plants
C. materials cycles
D. pioneer organisms

36. According to the heterotroph hypothesis, some early heterotrophs evolved into
autotrophs because of their ability to synthesize organic compounds from water and
____.
A. hydrochloric acid C. hydrogen
B. carbon dioxide D. oxygen

37. All of Earth's water, land, and atmosphere within which life exists is known as
A. a population C. a biome
B. a community D. the biosphere

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 38. Which is a biotic factor operating within an ecosystem?
A. the carnivores that consume other animals
B. the type of climate in a given region
C. the amount of helium gas in the air
D. the rate of flow of water in a river

39. An ecosystem is represented below. This ecosystem will be self-sustaining if _____.

A. the organisms labeled A outnumber
the organisms labeled B
B. the organisms labeled A are equal in
number to the organisms labeled B
C. the type of organisms represented
by B are eliminated
D. materials cycle between the
organisms labeled A and the
organisms labeled B

40. All the plants, animals, and protists living in a forest make up a
A. population C. species
B. community D. phylum

41. Which life process is classified as autotrophic in some organisms and heterotrophic
in other organisms?
A. hormonal regulation B. nutrition
B. anaerobic respiration D. transport

42. A certain plant requires moisture, oxygen, carbon dioxide, light, and minerals in
order to survive. This statement shows that a living organism depends on _____.
A. abiotic factors C. biotic factors
B. symbiotic relationships D. carnivore-herbivore relationships

43. According to the heterotroph hypothesis, autotrophs were able to evolve because
heterotrophs made conditions more favorable by _____.
A. producing chlorophyll for plants
B. adding carbon dioxide to the environment
C. storing energy in the bonds of inorganic compounds
D. manufacturing food from carbon dioxide and oxygen

44. Which of the following statements below has contributed to the production of acid
rain?
A. Passing environmental land pollution laws
B. Establishing reforestation projects in lumbered areas
C. Using pesticides for the control of insects that feed on lakes
D. Burning fuels that produce air pollutants containing sulfur and carbon monoxide

45. Which of the following statements best describe how humans affect the dynamic
equilibrium in the ecosystem?
A. Strong winds increases water evaporation.

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 B. A typhoon causes a stream to overflow its banks.
C. Water pollution causes a decrease in fish populations in rivers.
D. The ozone shield helps prevent harmful radiation from reaching the Earths
surface.

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