Name: Date: 1. The road shown below was suddenly broken by a natural event. 3. Which of the following provides evidence for plate tectonics? A. sea-floor topography B. ocean currents C. Coriolis effect Which natural event most likely caused the crack in the road? D. atmospheric temperatures A. wind B. earthquake C. a lava flow from a volcano D. an avalanche down a mountain 4. A rift valley is evidence of which kind of plate boundary? A. convergent B. divergent C. transform D. uniform 2. Which of the following is the best evidence that Earth s continents were once in vastly different positions than they are today? A. Penguins are found only in the Southern Hemisphere. B. Fossils of tropical plants are found in Antarctica. C. Volcanoes encircle the Pacific Ocean. D. Major rivers form deltas from continental erosion. 5. Earthquake vibrations are detected, measured, and recorded by instruments called A. sonargraphs. B. seismographs. C. Richter scales. D. magnetometers. page 1
6. The Richter scale measures which of the following earthquake characteristics? A. intensity B. magnitude C. frequency D. probability 8. The table below shows how far away people can feel tremors from earthquakes of different magnitudes. The table also shows about how many times each year earthquakes of different magnitudes occur. Use the table to answer the following question(s). According to the table, as the magnitude of earthquakes increases, the distance that tremors will be felt A. increases. B. decreases. 7. Earthquake activity in California is primarily caused by C. increases and then decreases. D. remains the same. A. the lowering of aquifer levels. B. the interaction of tides with the coast. C. mining activity during the nineteenth century. D. plates grinding past each other along active faults. 9. Which of these is an immediate result of the movement of tectonic plates? A. ocean currents B. earthquakes C. glaciers D. tides page 2
10. The diagram below shows a geologic cross-section. 11. Of the following statements, which best supports the continental drift theory? A. All oceans are salty. B. Igneous rocks are found on all continents. C. Fossils of the same species of extinct land plants have been found in both South America and Africa. Which of these does the arrow indicate? D. Early humans migrated to North America over a land bridge from eastern Asia. A. a magma chamber B. a fault line C. a tectonic plate D. a volcanic vent page 3
Earth scientists use theories and principles to help determine the relative age and formation of rocksand landforms. Superposition Cross-cutting Unconformities Younger sedimentary rock layers are generally found on top of older rock layers. Faults and igneous intrusions are younger than the rock they cut through. An eroded surface that separates older rocks below from younger rocks above. page 4
12. 14. Use the diagram below to answer the following question(s). cross section view How was the mountain shown above most likely formed? A. Plates A and B are moving towards each other. B. Plates A and B are moving apart from each other. C. Plate A is moving away and Plate B is stationary. D. Plate A is stationary and Plate B is moving away. Based on the diagram, which process explains why less dense, hot magma rises to the surface to displace more dense, cooler magma? A. conduction B. diffusion C. radiation D. convection 13. Which of the following best describes Earth s tectonic plates? A. They move away from each other at the equator. B. They move because of convection currents in the mantle. C. They collide at midocean ridges. D. They form at subduction zones. page 5
15. Use the diagram below to answer the following question. 17. On the map below, dark circles indicate the positions of volcanoes in the Ring of Fire in and around the Pacific Ocean. Dark lines indicate tectonic plate boundaries of Earth s crust. On the Atlantic Ocean floor, there is a long ridge of underwater mountains caused by volcanic eruptions. New volcanoes keep erupting, and new mountains keep forming. Why is this happening? A. A new continent is forming. B. The ocean floor is spreading. C. Earth s center is becoming hotter. D. Crustal plates are colliding. Map showing positions of volcanoes in the Ring of Fire in and around the Pacific OceanAccording to this map, which of the following describes where volcanoes are most likely to form in the Ring of Fire? A. Volcanoes form in the middle of a tectonic plate. B. Volcanoes form below the surface of tectonic plates. C. Volcanoes form where tectonic plates meet other plates. 16. An earthquake is caused by sudden shifts in which of the following layers of Earth? D. Volcanoes form where earthquakes are least likely to occur. A. outer core B. crust C. inner core D. mesosphere page 6
18. Seafloor spreading provides evidence of which of the following Earth processes? 20. What is the primary cause of continental plate movement? A. erosion of coastlines B. weathering of mountains C. movement of crustal plates D. formation of sedimentary rocks A. rotation of Earth on its axis B. uneven heating of the mantle C. density differences within the atmosphere D. gravitational pull of the Moon on continents 19. The map below shows areas with active volcanoes. 21. Jamal makes a scale model of Earth for a school project. In his model, he uses different materials to show each layer of Earth. Which layer in his model should be the thinnest? A. Mantle B. Crust C. Outer core D. Inner core Where are most of the active volcanoes located? A. along the equator B. in the middle of the oceans C. on tectonic plate boundaries D. at the center of the continents page 7
22. The diagram below shows four layers of Earth s internal structure. 24. The diagram below shows a cross section of Earth. Which layer is composed mostly of solid iron and nickel? Which numbered part of the diagram represents the mantle of Earth? A. layer W B. layer X A. 1 B. 2 C. 3 D. 4 C. layer Y D. layer Z 23. The diagram below shows four layers of Earth. Each layer is identified by a number. 25. In which major layer of Earth is soil found? A. Crust B. Mantle C. Inner core D. Outer core Which layer of Earth is composed primarily of solid iron? A. layer 1 B. layer 2 C. layer 3 D. layer 4 26. Which part of Earth is hottest? A. Core B. Crust C. Mantle D. Surface page 8
27. The following diagram shows a cross-section of Earth. Cross-Section of Earth 29. Which best describes Earth s crust? A. It is stationary and unable to move. B. It is thicker than the mantle and the core. C. It is located between the outer and the inner core. D. It is composed of continental and oceanic plates. Which letter represents the location of the asthenosphere? A. A B. B C. C D. D 30. Which feature would most likely be forming at converging continental tectonic plate boundaries? A. rift valley B. deep trench C. volcanic cone D. uplifted mountain 28. Which of these describes the lithosphere and the asthenosphere? A. The lithosphere is rigid and immovable, and the asthenosphere is hot and flowing. B. The asthenosphere is rigid and immovable, and the lithosphere is hot and flowing. C. Both are hot inner layers of earth capable of bending and moving. D. Both are hard and rigid layers of earth close to the surface. 31. What piece of evidence supports the theory that volcanic eruptions formed Earth s early atmosphere? A. Volcanoes expel gases with chemical compositions which closely match the ratios of non-photosynthetic gases in air. B. Volcanoes are clustered near the equator, so their gas output spreads over Earth s surface. C. Volcanoes expel a mixture of gases consisting almost entirely of water vapor and oxygen. D. Volcanic eruptions are inversely proportional to local atmospheric pressure. page 9
32. The table below shows how far away people can feel tremors from earthquakes of different magnitudes. The table also shows about how many times each year earthquakes of different magnitudes occur. Use the table to answer the following question(s). 33. A geologist checks her seismometer for activity after an earthquake that occurs on the other side of Earth. The instrument records P-waves, but not S-waves. What statement explains why S-waves are not recorded? A. Seismometers do not record evidence of S-waves. B. S-waves travel in a different direction than P-waves. C. The earthquake was not strong enough to produce S-waves. If an earthquake with a magnitude of 2 occurred, how far away from the earthquake would the tremors most likely be felt? D. The S-waves were stopped by a liquid interior layer. A. more than 112 kilometers B. between 48 and 112 kilometers C. between 24 and 48 kilometers D. less than 24 kilometers 34. Heat from deep in Earth s interior is transferred to its crust by which of the following? A. conduction in the ocean B. convection in the mantle C. radiation from the solid core D. evaporation at mid-ocean ridges page 10
35. Students are studying the growth of the two plants shown below. They are preparing a report about these plants. Which data table should be in their report? A. B. C. D. page 11
36. Charles Darwin made a number of observations and inferences during his travels. He studied island finches during a long period of time. Which statement is an inference? A. Individual birds have different colored feathers. B. Island finches have a large number of offspring. 38. Which statement is an observation? A. The plant has flowers. B. The plant is very pretty. C. The plant will grow berries. D. The plant might be poisonous. C. Individual birds of an island finch species have many differences. D. Island finches share a common ancestry with mainland finch species. 39. Kerry made a simple flashlight. She recorded the following statements in her lab book. Which statement is an inference? A. The wire was 35 cm long. 37. Study the table below. B. The flashlight contained a battery. C. The plastic switch was better than the metal switch. D. The bulb was lit for 20 minutes before it burned out. Which question is most likely answered using the data in the table? A. Will eagles and brown bears eat fish? B. Do eagles and brown bears hunt at the same time? C. Do brown bears affect the eagle population in the area? D. Is the number of fish in the area due to seasonal changes? 40. A prediction was made that the best conditions for earthworm growth occur when there are fewer than five earthworms per cubic meter of soil. This prediction is called a A. law. B. theory. C. hypothesis. D. conclusion. page 12