Earth History and Global Change

GEOL-1122    Spring 2015

PRACTICE for LECTURE TEST #3

Name __________________________

PART I - Multiple Guess (44 pts. - 2 pts each question)

1) The Universe is composed mostly of:

      a) Hydrogen and oxygen

      b) Hydrogen and helium

      c) Carbon and oxygen

      d) Silica and oxygen

2) Which of the following statements concerning the Sun is correct?

      a) It is a white dwarf star.

      b) It is estimated to be approximately 10.0 billion years old.

      c) It gives off energy as hydrogen undergoes fusion to form helium.

      d) All of the above

3) Which of the following best describes the Milky Way?

      a) A rotating spiral-shaped galaxy

      b) A non-rotating irregular-shaped galaxy

      c) A rotating elliptical-shaped galaxy

      d) A non-rotating disc-shaped galaxy

4) Which of the following is used as evidence in support of the Big Bang Theory?

      a) The differences in the composition of the inner and outer galaxies

      b) The angular momentum and energy of the galaxies and solar systems

      c) The rapid expansion of the Universe

      d) All of the above

5) Which of the following rock types is commonly found in Archean deposits or terrains?

      a) Low-grade metamorphic volcanic rocks

      b) Quartz-rich sandstones

      c) Hematite-rich sandstones and shale

      d) All of the above

6) The widely-accepted 4.6 billion year age for the earth is based mostly on:

      a) Written records from earliest humans

      b) Radiometric (using isotopes) ages of moon rocks and meteorites

      c) Interpretations of the Bible

      d) Estimates of cooling rates for the earth and other planets

7) Pre-geologic time is used to describe:

      a) Time before the formation of the Earth (or before 4.6 Billion Years)

      b) Time when biblical views dominated and few if any scientific theories were used to explain Earth history and processes

      c) Time between the age of the oldest recorded Earth rocks and the proposed age of the formation of the Earth

      d) Time before the dinosaurs

8) Which of the following conditions were present during the earliest part of Earth history?

a) An absence of large continental landmasses

b) An absence of widespread glaciers

c) An absence of plants and animals

d) All of the above

9) Which of the following is commonly used as evidence that free oxygen appeared in the atmosphere and oceans during the Proterozoic?

      a) Appearance of widespread redbeds

      b) Absence of Banded Iron formations

      c) Appearance of widespread uranium- and sulfide-rich Proterozoic sediments

      d) All of the above

10) Which of the following is a correct statement concerning Banded Iron Formations?

      a) They are composed of interbedded or layered mixtures of iron sulfides and calcite.

      b) They are only found in Archean deposits.

      c) They are important ores or sources of iron.

      d) All of the above

11) Which of the following compounds is the structural framework of life forms?

      a) Proteins

      b) Water

      c) Carbohydrates

      d) Nucleic Acids

      e) Glutamates

12) The ozone layer of the atmosphere most likely formed by:

      a) Photosynthesis

      b) Hydrolysis

      c) Photochemical dissociation

      d) Volcanic degassing

13) The earliest life forms are believed to have been:

      a) Single-cell photosynthesizing bacteria

      b) Single-cell chemosynthesizing bacteria

      c) Multicellular blue-green algae

      d) Simple eukaryotic organisms

14) There was minimal evolutionary change in the Archean because:

      a) Only prokaryotes existed at this time.

      b) There was an absence of water.

      c) Solar radiation was much weaker.

      d) All of the above

15) Which of the following is a large component of most continents that consists of Precambrian basement rocks overlain by flat-lying sedimentary sequences?

      a) Continental monocline

      b) Mobile belt

      c) Peneplain

      d) Stable platform

16) Which of the following is a group of fossilized life forms of late Proterozoic age that indicate life became much more complex and diverse at this time?

      a) Ediacarian Fossils

      b) Franciscan Fossils

      c) Burgess Shale Fossils

      d) Chattanooga Shale Fossils

17) Which of the following is a present-day ocean that remains from the super ocean that existed during the late Paleozoic and covered approximately 3/4 of the Earth's surface?

      a) Pacific Ocean

      b) Atlantic Ocean

      c) Arctic Ocean

      d) Indian Ocean

18) Which continents were part of the supercontinent Gondwana?

      a) North America, South America, Antarctica, Australia and Africa

      b) Africa, Australia, Antarctica, Asia and India

      c) Siberia, Baltica, China and North America

      d) Africa, Australia, Antarctica, India, and South America

19) Which of the following best describes the transgressions of the Paleozoic?

      a) They were mostly minor fluctuations that only affected low-lying areas.

      b) They included both major long-term and smaller cyclic transgressions.

      c) There was only one major transgression and it covered most of North America.

      d) They were caused by changes in the rotation and position of the moon.

20) Which of the following continental landmasses collided during the Acadian Orogeny?

      a) Laurentia (N. America and Greenland) and Baltica

      b) Gondwana and Laurasia

      c) Gondwana and Laurentia (N. America and Greenland)

      d) Laurasia and Baltica

21) The Precambrian – Paleozoic (Cambrian) Boundary is defined or recognized by:

      a) The appearance of diversification and abundant marine life forms

      b) The extinction or disappearance of Monera and Protista life forms

      c) The appearance and diversification of land animals

      d) All of the above

22) The cause of the major transgressions and regressions in the Paleozoic were:

      a) Changes in global climate and seafloor spreading rates

      b) Long term subsidence and uplift of continental landmasses

      c) Vertical movement of large amounts of groundwater

      d) Long term expansion and reductions in the size of global oceans

PART II - Guess in the Blanks (46 pts. - 2 pts. each question)

23-24) List and describe two major lines of evidence (or system characteristics) that support the Nebular Hypothesis.

      a) ____________________________________________________________________

      b) ____________________________________________________________________

25) Define a light year. _______________________________________________________

26) Explain how Obler’s Paradox indicates that the Universe has defined and definite limits.

      _____________________________________________________________________

27-29)(6 pt) Describe the major components of Greenstone Belts and what they indicate about the Archean.

      ____________________________________________________________________

      ____________________________________________________________________

      ____________________________________________________________________

30-31) Define granulites and explain why they were only formed in the Archean.

      ____________________________________________________________________

      ____________________________________________________________________

32-33) The two most important processes that were responsible for enriching the oceans and atmosphere with free oxygen were ____________________________________ and _______________________________.

34-35) The most abundant fossil of the early Proterozoic were __________________ (layered masses of blue-green algae) that formed widespread limestone deposits.  These organisms are believed to have changed earth’s atmosphere by giving off or adding free _________________________ and removing ________________________.

36) The major component of a continent that consists of large areas of exposed Precambrian basement rocks is called a/an _____________________.

37) The first major episode of Appalachian Mountain building that occurred in the Ordovician was called the ___________________ Orogeny.

38-39) Which two continents collided during the Appalachian or Alleghanian Orogeny? ____________________ and ________________________  Describe how this episode of mountain building changed eastern North America.  __________________________________________________________________________________________     

40) What is the name of the supercontinent that formed by the end of the Paleozoic? ___________________.

41-42) List the four major elemental components (elements) found in all living things. _______________, _______________, _______________ and _______________.

43) Evolution occurred at a much faster rate after eucaryotes appeared because __________________________________________________________________________.

44-45) Widespread interbedded sequences of upper Paleozoic marine and nonmarine shale and sands are called _____________________.  These formed by minor transgressions and regressions.  They are economically important because they commonly contain large deposits of ____________.

PART III - Geologic Time Scale (10 pts. - 1 point each blank)

  Fill in the correct Era or Period name for each blank.

ERA	PERIOD	EPOCH
__ ________________	Quaternary         Neogene         Paleogene	Holocene    Pleistocene    Pliocene    Miocene    Oligocene    Eocene    Paleocene
__________________	____Cretaceous_____         Jurassic________           Triassic________
______________	____Permian________ ___________________  ___________________  ___________________  ___________________  __________________  ___________________
Proterozoic (Age: ________________)      _____________ Archean (Age: ___________________)		Extra Credit (2pts): Give the age ranges for both the Proterozoic and Archean.