CM 3503 - Soils Test 3 Final - Shear
Strength Questions Fully Solved 2026
Updated.
Soil - Answer Accumulation of solid particles (with or without organic matter) produced by
disintegration of rocks
Rock - Answer Natural solid mineral matter that requires drilling/blasting for excavation
Mechanics (soil or rock) - Answer Branch of science that deals with behavior of ___
mechanics and various forces
Soil engineering - Answer Application of soil mechanics
Geotechnical engineering - Answer Application of principles of soil and rock mechanics
Karl Terzaghi - Answer Father of soil mechanics (concept of effective stress)
Coulomb - Answer Elementary theories of soil strength (1776)
Allied Fields - Answer Mining engineering, geological engineering, petroleum engineering,
geology, geophysics
Classes of problems - Answer Foundation engineering, slope stability (unretained vs
retained), soil dynamics and geoenvironmental problems, geosynthetics and seepage
Compressible and Weaker - Answer Soil is more ___ and much ___
Advantages of soil - Answer Readily available, low cost, simple, flexible, can be modified
(blending, mixing, compacting), and durable
Nonhomogenous - Answer Soil is ___
Erratics - Answer Presence of rocks, boulders or weak areas (disadvantage of soil)
Igneous Rock - Answer Formed by solidification of magma (intrusive or extrusive)
, Sedimentary Rock - Answer Formed by compaction or cementation of small soil particles
Metamorphic Rock - Answer Formed by changing composition of rocks by heat/pressure
without melting
Weathering - Answer Process of breaking down rocks by mechanical or chemical
disintegration
Physical and Chemical - Answer Water effects both ___ & ___
Examples of weathering - Answer Expansion and contraction due to heating/cooling, wind
and water
Transported and Residual - Answer 2 types of weathering
Transported - Answer 1. Aeolian (wind), 2.Water (alluvial-streams; marine-ocean/beach;
lacustrine-lakes; glacial-drift,outwash; ice-glacial till) 3. Colluvial (gravity/mass wasting)
Residual - Answer Weathered in place
O, Si, Al, Fe = 87.4% of Earth - Answer Major elements make up what % of Earth?
Clay minerals - Answer a major component of soils and have important behavioral effects on
soils
Mineral - Answer Solid, homogenous, naturally occurring material inorganic chemical
element or compound usually having a crystalline structure
Nonclay minerals and clay minerals - Answer 2 classifications of minerals
Rock/Soil - Answer Naturally combination of minerals
Clay and Silt (.001-.074) - Answer Fine Grained (cohesive)
Sands, Gravel, Cobbles and Boulders (.074-1000) - Answer Coarse Grained (cohesionless)
Strength Questions Fully Solved 2026
Updated.
Soil - Answer Accumulation of solid particles (with or without organic matter) produced by
disintegration of rocks
Rock - Answer Natural solid mineral matter that requires drilling/blasting for excavation
Mechanics (soil or rock) - Answer Branch of science that deals with behavior of ___
mechanics and various forces
Soil engineering - Answer Application of soil mechanics
Geotechnical engineering - Answer Application of principles of soil and rock mechanics
Karl Terzaghi - Answer Father of soil mechanics (concept of effective stress)
Coulomb - Answer Elementary theories of soil strength (1776)
Allied Fields - Answer Mining engineering, geological engineering, petroleum engineering,
geology, geophysics
Classes of problems - Answer Foundation engineering, slope stability (unretained vs
retained), soil dynamics and geoenvironmental problems, geosynthetics and seepage
Compressible and Weaker - Answer Soil is more ___ and much ___
Advantages of soil - Answer Readily available, low cost, simple, flexible, can be modified
(blending, mixing, compacting), and durable
Nonhomogenous - Answer Soil is ___
Erratics - Answer Presence of rocks, boulders or weak areas (disadvantage of soil)
Igneous Rock - Answer Formed by solidification of magma (intrusive or extrusive)
, Sedimentary Rock - Answer Formed by compaction or cementation of small soil particles
Metamorphic Rock - Answer Formed by changing composition of rocks by heat/pressure
without melting
Weathering - Answer Process of breaking down rocks by mechanical or chemical
disintegration
Physical and Chemical - Answer Water effects both ___ & ___
Examples of weathering - Answer Expansion and contraction due to heating/cooling, wind
and water
Transported and Residual - Answer 2 types of weathering
Transported - Answer 1. Aeolian (wind), 2.Water (alluvial-streams; marine-ocean/beach;
lacustrine-lakes; glacial-drift,outwash; ice-glacial till) 3. Colluvial (gravity/mass wasting)
Residual - Answer Weathered in place
O, Si, Al, Fe = 87.4% of Earth - Answer Major elements make up what % of Earth?
Clay minerals - Answer a major component of soils and have important behavioral effects on
soils
Mineral - Answer Solid, homogenous, naturally occurring material inorganic chemical
element or compound usually having a crystalline structure
Nonclay minerals and clay minerals - Answer 2 classifications of minerals
Rock/Soil - Answer Naturally combination of minerals
Clay and Silt (.001-.074) - Answer Fine Grained (cohesive)
Sands, Gravel, Cobbles and Boulders (.074-1000) - Answer Coarse Grained (cohesionless)
