APSC 151 Final Questions with complete
solution
Which of the following best describes the fundamental concept of
superposition?
A) Strata with fossils are generally deposited on strata with no fossils.
B) Older strata are deposited on younger strata without intervening,
intermediate age strata.
C) An igneous dyke cuts across sedimentary rock allowing relative dating.
D) Older fossils in younger strata indicate a locally inverted geologic time
scale.
E) Any sedimentary deposit accumulates on older rock or sediment layers. -
correct answer ✔E
New oceanic crust and lithosphere are formed at
A) divergent boundaries by porphyry eruptions and intrusions of felsic magma
B) convergent boundaries by submarine eruptions and intrusions of felsic
magma
C) divergent boundaries by submarine eruptions and intrusions of mafic
magma
D) convergent boundaries by submarine eruptions and intrusions of mafic
magma
E) transform boundaries by recycling of ocean floor material - correct answer
✔C
Deep ocean trenches are surficial evidence for ________
A) rifting beneath a continental plate and the beginning of continental drift
B) sinking of oceanic lithosphere into the mantle at subduction zones
,C) submarine landslides and sea floor scouring
D) rising of hot asthenosphere from deep in the mantle
E) transform faulting between an oceanic plate and a continental plate -
correct answer ✔B
Since the early Mesozoic, the _______ has been passive tectonically.
A) western margin of North America
B) western margin of South America
C) Red Sea
D) southern margin of Eurasia
E) eastern margin of North America - correct answer ✔E
Which is not a requirement for a mineral?
A) naturally occurring
B) well-formed external crystal shapes
C) orderly regular atomic or ionic structure
D) consistent isotopic composition E) definite chemical composition - correct
answer ✔D
Which of the following has the highest specific gravity?
A) wood
B) water
C) platinum
D) iron
E) quartz - correct answer ✔C
, Which element forms the strongest bonds with oxygen, based on its size and
charge?
A) aluminum
B) calcium
C) carbon
D) potassium
E) silicon - correct answer ✔E
Which of the following minerals are silicates?
A) hematite, magnetite, and corundum
B) muscovite, hornblende, and plagioclase
C) calcite, aragonite, and dolomite
D) Bornite, chalcopyrite, galena
E) anhydrite, gypsum, and barite - correct answer ✔B
Why doesn't quartz have any cleavages, only fractures?
A) it is a glass
B) all oxygens are shared between strongly bonded silicons in a 3D
framework.
C) all of the metallic cations form strong webs between the silicate chains.
D) it is made of pure silicon which is very strong.
E) it has strong helical chains in three perpendicular directions. - correct
answer ✔B
Rocks like basalt and gabbro:
A) are major constituents of the continental crust
B) are very low in their iron and magnesium contents
solution
Which of the following best describes the fundamental concept of
superposition?
A) Strata with fossils are generally deposited on strata with no fossils.
B) Older strata are deposited on younger strata without intervening,
intermediate age strata.
C) An igneous dyke cuts across sedimentary rock allowing relative dating.
D) Older fossils in younger strata indicate a locally inverted geologic time
scale.
E) Any sedimentary deposit accumulates on older rock or sediment layers. -
correct answer ✔E
New oceanic crust and lithosphere are formed at
A) divergent boundaries by porphyry eruptions and intrusions of felsic magma
B) convergent boundaries by submarine eruptions and intrusions of felsic
magma
C) divergent boundaries by submarine eruptions and intrusions of mafic
magma
D) convergent boundaries by submarine eruptions and intrusions of mafic
magma
E) transform boundaries by recycling of ocean floor material - correct answer
✔C
Deep ocean trenches are surficial evidence for ________
A) rifting beneath a continental plate and the beginning of continental drift
B) sinking of oceanic lithosphere into the mantle at subduction zones
,C) submarine landslides and sea floor scouring
D) rising of hot asthenosphere from deep in the mantle
E) transform faulting between an oceanic plate and a continental plate -
correct answer ✔B
Since the early Mesozoic, the _______ has been passive tectonically.
A) western margin of North America
B) western margin of South America
C) Red Sea
D) southern margin of Eurasia
E) eastern margin of North America - correct answer ✔E
Which is not a requirement for a mineral?
A) naturally occurring
B) well-formed external crystal shapes
C) orderly regular atomic or ionic structure
D) consistent isotopic composition E) definite chemical composition - correct
answer ✔D
Which of the following has the highest specific gravity?
A) wood
B) water
C) platinum
D) iron
E) quartz - correct answer ✔C
, Which element forms the strongest bonds with oxygen, based on its size and
charge?
A) aluminum
B) calcium
C) carbon
D) potassium
E) silicon - correct answer ✔E
Which of the following minerals are silicates?
A) hematite, magnetite, and corundum
B) muscovite, hornblende, and plagioclase
C) calcite, aragonite, and dolomite
D) Bornite, chalcopyrite, galena
E) anhydrite, gypsum, and barite - correct answer ✔B
Why doesn't quartz have any cleavages, only fractures?
A) it is a glass
B) all oxygens are shared between strongly bonded silicons in a 3D
framework.
C) all of the metallic cations form strong webs between the silicate chains.
D) it is made of pure silicon which is very strong.
E) it has strong helical chains in three perpendicular directions. - correct
answer ✔B
Rocks like basalt and gabbro:
A) are major constituents of the continental crust
B) are very low in their iron and magnesium contents
