Test Bank For Essentials of Oceanography 7th Edition by
Toms Garrison Copyright 2026
,Indicate whether the statement is true or false.
1. Of all the planets in the solar system, Earth is the only planet to currently have large quantities of liquid water on its
surface.
a. True
b. False
2. The ocean holds more than 97 percent of Earth's water.
a. True
b. False
3. 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
4. Deep-sea fossils suggest that life evolved within the last million years.
a. True
b. False
5. There is convincing evidence that water once flowed on the surface of Mars.
a. True
b. False
6. The universe began to form around 13 billion years ago.
a. True
b. False
7. Marine science draws on information from disciplines of geology, biology, chemistry, physics, and engineering.
a. True
b. False
8. Scientific hypotheses are never revised or updated.
a. True
b. False
9. Saturn’s moon, Titan, is known to possess liquid hydrocarbons on its surface.
a. True
b. False
10. The average land elevation on Earth is greater than the average depth of the ocean.
a. True
b. False
Indicate the answer choice that best completes the statement or answers the question.
,11. The temperature of the ocean about four billion years ago was ____.
a. about the same as today’s ocean
b. much colder than that of today’s ocean
c. extremely hot compared with today’s
ocean
d. only slightly warmer than today’s ocean
12. Planets other than Earth with liquid on or near the surface are ____.
a. nonexistent
b. less rare than we thought
c. extremely common but only in the form of water
d. extremely common but only in the form of ice
13. About ____ percent of Earth's water is found in the ocean.
a. 97
b. 71
c. 67
d. 30
14. Evidence suggests the universe began about 13.7 billion years ago in a ____.
a. slow accretion of atoms
b. very large galaxy
c. cataclysmic expansion of energy and
matter
d. protostar
15. What theory best explains how the universe was formed?
a. condensation
theory
b. scientific method
c. outgassing theory
d. big bang theory
16. Which phrase best describes biosynthesis?
a. The discovery of organic molecules in space
b. The evolution of living organisms from simple organic building blocks
c. The evolution of inorganic molecules in seawater
d. Experiments that show that early organisms lived in an oxygen-free
environment
17. To recreate an environment for biosynthesis, scientists included which element in their experiments?
a. extremely cold temperatures
b. oxygen
c. ocean water
d. mixtures of dissolved compounds and gases thought to be similar to Earth’s early atmosphere
, 18. On a planetary scale, the ocean comprises about ____ of Earth’s mass.
a. 8%
b. 71%
c. 20%
d. 0.02%
19. Scientists predict that our planet in its current form will exist for about another ____.
a. 5 billion years
b. 1 million years
c. 500 million
years
d. 13 billion years
20. Oxygen first began to accumulate in Earth’s atmosphere as a result of ____.
a. biosynthesis
b. cellular respiration
c. methane synthesis
d. photosynthesis
21. Which statement is most consistent with the scientific method?
a. Hypotheses cannot be revised after they are proposed.
b. Hypotheses are tested through observation and controlled
experiments.
c. Scientific laws always arise fully formed and in correlating groups.
d. Theories cannot be modified after they are tested.
22. An example of another body in our solar system that has an ocean is ____.
a. the moon of Earth
b. Europa
c. Mars
d. Saturn
23. In 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. Evidence suggests that the first living molecules may have formed near ____.
a. the continents
b. subduction zones
c. the surface of the ocean
d. mineral-rich seeps on the ocean floor
Toms Garrison Copyright 2026
,Indicate whether the statement is true or false.
1. Of all the planets in the solar system, Earth is the only planet to currently have large quantities of liquid water on its
surface.
a. True
b. False
2. The ocean holds more than 97 percent of Earth's water.
a. True
b. False
3. 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
4. Deep-sea fossils suggest that life evolved within the last million years.
a. True
b. False
5. There is convincing evidence that water once flowed on the surface of Mars.
a. True
b. False
6. The universe began to form around 13 billion years ago.
a. True
b. False
7. Marine science draws on information from disciplines of geology, biology, chemistry, physics, and engineering.
a. True
b. False
8. Scientific hypotheses are never revised or updated.
a. True
b. False
9. Saturn’s moon, Titan, is known to possess liquid hydrocarbons on its surface.
a. True
b. False
10. The average land elevation on Earth is greater than the average depth of the ocean.
a. True
b. False
Indicate the answer choice that best completes the statement or answers the question.
,11. The temperature of the ocean about four billion years ago was ____.
a. about the same as today’s ocean
b. much colder than that of today’s ocean
c. extremely hot compared with today’s
ocean
d. only slightly warmer than today’s ocean
12. Planets other than Earth with liquid on or near the surface are ____.
a. nonexistent
b. less rare than we thought
c. extremely common but only in the form of water
d. extremely common but only in the form of ice
13. About ____ percent of Earth's water is found in the ocean.
a. 97
b. 71
c. 67
d. 30
14. Evidence suggests the universe began about 13.7 billion years ago in a ____.
a. slow accretion of atoms
b. very large galaxy
c. cataclysmic expansion of energy and
matter
d. protostar
15. What theory best explains how the universe was formed?
a. condensation
theory
b. scientific method
c. outgassing theory
d. big bang theory
16. Which phrase best describes biosynthesis?
a. The discovery of organic molecules in space
b. The evolution of living organisms from simple organic building blocks
c. The evolution of inorganic molecules in seawater
d. Experiments that show that early organisms lived in an oxygen-free
environment
17. To recreate an environment for biosynthesis, scientists included which element in their experiments?
a. extremely cold temperatures
b. oxygen
c. ocean water
d. mixtures of dissolved compounds and gases thought to be similar to Earth’s early atmosphere
, 18. On a planetary scale, the ocean comprises about ____ of Earth’s mass.
a. 8%
b. 71%
c. 20%
d. 0.02%
19. Scientists predict that our planet in its current form will exist for about another ____.
a. 5 billion years
b. 1 million years
c. 500 million
years
d. 13 billion years
20. Oxygen first began to accumulate in Earth’s atmosphere as a result of ____.
a. biosynthesis
b. cellular respiration
c. methane synthesis
d. photosynthesis
21. Which statement is most consistent with the scientific method?
a. Hypotheses cannot be revised after they are proposed.
b. Hypotheses are tested through observation and controlled
experiments.
c. Scientific laws always arise fully formed and in correlating groups.
d. Theories cannot be modified after they are tested.
22. An example of another body in our solar system that has an ocean is ____.
a. the moon of Earth
b. Europa
c. Mars
d. Saturn
23. In 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. Evidence suggests that the first living molecules may have formed near ____.
a. the continents
b. subduction zones
c. the surface of the ocean
d. mineral-rich seeps on the ocean floor
