Test Bank For
Essentials of Oceanography 9th Edition by Tom S. Garrison, Robert Ellis Copyright 2026
Chapter 1-11
Chapter 1
1. The ocean holds more than 97% of Earth's water.
a. True
b. False
2. Gravity was important in the formation of our planet because it pulled dense metals such as iron and nickel inward,
forming Earth's core.
a. True
b. False
3. The average land elevation on Earth is greater than the average depth of the ocean.
a. True
b. False
4. Scientific hypotheses are never revised or updated.
a. True
b. False
5. Eratosthenes was a scientist who was interested in the size of Earth and used methods of geometry to determine the
circumference of our planet.
a. True
b. False
6. The ocean provides a variety of resources ranging from food and water to energy, construction materials, and life-
saving pharmaceuticals.
a. True
b. False
7. Nuclear fusion in stars converts hydrogen and helium into heavier elements such as carbon, oxygen, silicon, and iron in
stars.
a. True
b. False
8. Humans spread to nearly all of the inhabitable areas of Earth after the European voyages of discovery in the late 1400s
and early 1500s.
a. True
b. False
9. Latitude lines run from pole to pole.
a. True
b. False
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,10. Captain Cook proved that no Arctic continent existed.
a. True
b. False
11. The ancestors of invertebrates produced enough oxygen to oxidize minerals dissolved in the ocean and surface
sediments through a process called respiration.
a. True
b. False
12. Marine science draws on information from the disciplines of geology, biology, chemistry, physics, and engineering.
a. True
b. False
13. The atoms that formed the Earth and the ocean were formed within stars billions of years ago.
a. True
b. False
14. The Library of Alexandria was an important warehouse for written knowledge relating to trade, natural wonders,
artistic achievements, and other items of interest to seafarers.
a. True
b. False
Indicate the answer choice that best completes the statement or answers the question.
15. The average land elevation is approximately ____.
a. 200 meters (650 feet)
b. 760 meters (2,500 feet)
c. 840 meters (2,756 feet)
d. 3,700 meters (12,000 feet)
16. The death of a star is characterized by a massive release of energy called a ____.
a. nebula
b. protostar
c. supernova
d. comet
17. The Challenger expedition (1872–1876) was a unique and historic voyage. Why?
a. It is the longest continuous scientific oceanographic expedition on record.
b. Its scientists developed the first reliable navigational charts to indicate current and wind patterns.
c. It was the first expedition to use an echo sounder to study the seafloor.
d. It proved the hypothesis that life could not exist in the deep sea.
18. The primary physical process responsible for the formation of Earth’s layers – the inner and outer core, mantle, and
crust – is ____.
a. density stratification
b. radioactive decay
c. outgassing
d. mass layering
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,19. Volcanic venting of volatile substances including water vapor is called ____.
a. outgassing
b. fissure
c. fusion
d. condensation
20. Which is true regarding the world ocean?
a. It plays a minor role in the weather and the shape of Earth’s landmasses.
b. It does not influence the way organisms live on land.
c. It dramatically influences weather, nurtures life, and provides crucial natural resources.
d. It has an average depth that represents over half of Earth's radius.
21. What did the Polynesians use to navigate among the islands in the Pacific Ocean?
a. The compass invented by the Chinese to map the interior of their continent
b. Detailed maps with latitude and longitude lines marking the path of previous expeditions
c. Maritime records obtained from the Library of Alexandria that included weather data
d. Subtle directional clues based on wind and wave patterns, the sun, moon, and stars, and marine organisms
22. The first scientific expedition to use an echo sounder was the ____.
a. Challenger expedition
b. Meteor expedition
c. United States Exploring expedition
d. voyage of Trieste
23. When using the scientific method, scientific theories must be ____.
a. tested and consistently supported by observations or experiments
b. verified by the leading authorities in the field
c. consistent with previous, universally accepted scientific concepts
d. consistent with the fact that the ocean is of great age
24. New planets formed in a cloud of dust and debris surrounding our young sun through a process known as ____.
a. supernova
b. oxygen revolution
c. accretion
d. cataclysmic expansion of energy and matter
25. Who was the first person to compile a picture of the large-scale wind and current systems?
a. Benjamin Franklin
b. Matthew Maury
c. Eratosthenes of Cyrene
d. Wyville Thomson
26. What was the most important outcome of Matthew Maury's work?
a. The discovery of the Hawai'ian Islands
b. The formulation of a working hypothesis for the formation of coral reefs
c. The invention of a chronometer for the determination of longitude
d. The charting of ocean currents, which shortened sailors’ travel time significantly
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, 27. Oxygen first began to accumulate in Earth’s atmosphere as a result of ____.
a. biosynthesis
b. cellular respiration
c. methane synthesis
d. photosynthesis
28. Glomar Challenger is known mainly for ____.
a. being the first modern scientific survey ship to circumnavigate the globe
b. being the first nuclear-powered scientific research vessel
c. being owned and operated simultaneously by four governmental agencies
d. taking the first complete cores of seafloor sediments
29. Although the first regular ocean traders were probably the Cretans or the Phoenicians, the first direct evidence of
voyaging (traveling the ocean for a specific purpose) comes from ____.
a. ancient maps left by Polynesian people
b. Eratosthenes’s latitudinal and longitudinal maps
c. records of trade in the Mediterranean Sea
d. James Cook’s accurate charts of New Zealand, Australia, and the Great Barrier Reef
30. The field of marine science involves ____.
a. building oil platforms, ships, harbors, and other structures that enable us to use the ocean wisely
b. making observations, asking questions, and forming hypotheses
c. scientifically studying the ocean, its associated life-forms, and its bordering lands
d. testing hypotheses by controlled experiments
31. The water for the Earth’s ocean originated from ____.
a. water vapor produced by cellular respiration in early living organisms
b. radioactive heating of Earth's interior and the impacts of meteorites
c. capture of water molecules in space by Earth's gravity
d. volcanic gases and the impact of icy comets and asteroids
32. What device bounces sound waves off the ocean bottom to study the depth and contours of the seafloor?
a. Echo sounder
b. Satellite
c. Bathyscaphe
d. Submersible
33. Who was the first to provide a rough chart of an ocean current, specifically, the Gulf Stream?
a. Edward Forbes
b. Tim Folger
c. Benjamin Franklin
d. Captain James Cook
34. By which process do stars (such as our sun) generate light and heat?
a. Accretion
b. Oxygen revolution
Copyright Cengage Learning. Powered by Cognero. Page 4
Essentials of Oceanography 9th Edition by Tom S. Garrison, Robert Ellis Copyright 2026
Chapter 1-11
Chapter 1
1. The ocean holds more than 97% of Earth's water.
a. True
b. False
2. Gravity was important in the formation of our planet because it pulled dense metals such as iron and nickel inward,
forming Earth's core.
a. True
b. False
3. The average land elevation on Earth is greater than the average depth of the ocean.
a. True
b. False
4. Scientific hypotheses are never revised or updated.
a. True
b. False
5. Eratosthenes was a scientist who was interested in the size of Earth and used methods of geometry to determine the
circumference of our planet.
a. True
b. False
6. The ocean provides a variety of resources ranging from food and water to energy, construction materials, and life-
saving pharmaceuticals.
a. True
b. False
7. Nuclear fusion in stars converts hydrogen and helium into heavier elements such as carbon, oxygen, silicon, and iron in
stars.
a. True
b. False
8. Humans spread to nearly all of the inhabitable areas of Earth after the European voyages of discovery in the late 1400s
and early 1500s.
a. True
b. False
9. Latitude lines run from pole to pole.
a. True
b. False
Copyright Cengage Learning. Powered by Cognero. Page 1
,10. Captain Cook proved that no Arctic continent existed.
a. True
b. False
11. The ancestors of invertebrates produced enough oxygen to oxidize minerals dissolved in the ocean and surface
sediments through a process called respiration.
a. True
b. False
12. Marine science draws on information from the disciplines of geology, biology, chemistry, physics, and engineering.
a. True
b. False
13. The atoms that formed the Earth and the ocean were formed within stars billions of years ago.
a. True
b. False
14. The Library of Alexandria was an important warehouse for written knowledge relating to trade, natural wonders,
artistic achievements, and other items of interest to seafarers.
a. True
b. False
Indicate the answer choice that best completes the statement or answers the question.
15. The average land elevation is approximately ____.
a. 200 meters (650 feet)
b. 760 meters (2,500 feet)
c. 840 meters (2,756 feet)
d. 3,700 meters (12,000 feet)
16. The death of a star is characterized by a massive release of energy called a ____.
a. nebula
b. protostar
c. supernova
d. comet
17. The Challenger expedition (1872–1876) was a unique and historic voyage. Why?
a. It is the longest continuous scientific oceanographic expedition on record.
b. Its scientists developed the first reliable navigational charts to indicate current and wind patterns.
c. It was the first expedition to use an echo sounder to study the seafloor.
d. It proved the hypothesis that life could not exist in the deep sea.
18. The primary physical process responsible for the formation of Earth’s layers – the inner and outer core, mantle, and
crust – is ____.
a. density stratification
b. radioactive decay
c. outgassing
d. mass layering
Copyright Cengage Learning. Powered by Cognero. Page 2
,19. Volcanic venting of volatile substances including water vapor is called ____.
a. outgassing
b. fissure
c. fusion
d. condensation
20. Which is true regarding the world ocean?
a. It plays a minor role in the weather and the shape of Earth’s landmasses.
b. It does not influence the way organisms live on land.
c. It dramatically influences weather, nurtures life, and provides crucial natural resources.
d. It has an average depth that represents over half of Earth's radius.
21. What did the Polynesians use to navigate among the islands in the Pacific Ocean?
a. The compass invented by the Chinese to map the interior of their continent
b. Detailed maps with latitude and longitude lines marking the path of previous expeditions
c. Maritime records obtained from the Library of Alexandria that included weather data
d. Subtle directional clues based on wind and wave patterns, the sun, moon, and stars, and marine organisms
22. The first scientific expedition to use an echo sounder was the ____.
a. Challenger expedition
b. Meteor expedition
c. United States Exploring expedition
d. voyage of Trieste
23. When using the scientific method, scientific theories must be ____.
a. tested and consistently supported by observations or experiments
b. verified by the leading authorities in the field
c. consistent with previous, universally accepted scientific concepts
d. consistent with the fact that the ocean is of great age
24. New planets formed in a cloud of dust and debris surrounding our young sun through a process known as ____.
a. supernova
b. oxygen revolution
c. accretion
d. cataclysmic expansion of energy and matter
25. Who was the first person to compile a picture of the large-scale wind and current systems?
a. Benjamin Franklin
b. Matthew Maury
c. Eratosthenes of Cyrene
d. Wyville Thomson
26. What was the most important outcome of Matthew Maury's work?
a. The discovery of the Hawai'ian Islands
b. The formulation of a working hypothesis for the formation of coral reefs
c. The invention of a chronometer for the determination of longitude
d. The charting of ocean currents, which shortened sailors’ travel time significantly
Copyright Cengage Learning. Powered by Cognero. Page 3
, 27. Oxygen first began to accumulate in Earth’s atmosphere as a result of ____.
a. biosynthesis
b. cellular respiration
c. methane synthesis
d. photosynthesis
28. Glomar Challenger is known mainly for ____.
a. being the first modern scientific survey ship to circumnavigate the globe
b. being the first nuclear-powered scientific research vessel
c. being owned and operated simultaneously by four governmental agencies
d. taking the first complete cores of seafloor sediments
29. Although the first regular ocean traders were probably the Cretans or the Phoenicians, the first direct evidence of
voyaging (traveling the ocean for a specific purpose) comes from ____.
a. ancient maps left by Polynesian people
b. Eratosthenes’s latitudinal and longitudinal maps
c. records of trade in the Mediterranean Sea
d. James Cook’s accurate charts of New Zealand, Australia, and the Great Barrier Reef
30. The field of marine science involves ____.
a. building oil platforms, ships, harbors, and other structures that enable us to use the ocean wisely
b. making observations, asking questions, and forming hypotheses
c. scientifically studying the ocean, its associated life-forms, and its bordering lands
d. testing hypotheses by controlled experiments
31. The water for the Earth’s ocean originated from ____.
a. water vapor produced by cellular respiration in early living organisms
b. radioactive heating of Earth's interior and the impacts of meteorites
c. capture of water molecules in space by Earth's gravity
d. volcanic gases and the impact of icy comets and asteroids
32. What device bounces sound waves off the ocean bottom to study the depth and contours of the seafloor?
a. Echo sounder
b. Satellite
c. Bathyscaphe
d. Submersible
33. Who was the first to provide a rough chart of an ocean current, specifically, the Gulf Stream?
a. Edward Forbes
b. Tim Folger
c. Benjamin Franklin
d. Captain James Cook
34. By which process do stars (such as our sun) generate light and heat?
a. Accretion
b. Oxygen revolution
Copyright Cengage Learning. Powered by Cognero. Page 4
