Use LEFT and RIGHT arrow keys to navigate between flashcards;
Use UP and DOWN arrow keys to flip the card;
H to show hint;
A reads text to speech;
80 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
A volcano consisting primarily of erupted volcanic ash and rock fragments held together loosely is a __?__ volcano. |
cinder-cone |
|
The upper layers of the ground stripped away by surface mining are the __?__. |
overburden |
|
Some glaciers extend into the ocean without breaking to form __?__. |
ice shelves |
|
Which type of weathering involves the breaking or peeling away of rock into layers? |
exfoliation |
|
What is an alloy of iron and carbon? |
steel |
|
What is the land that borders a river and is covered by river water in flood time? |
floodplain |
|
The amount of matter in an object is the __?__. |
mass |
|
Man is classified as Homo __?__. |
sapiens |
|
What type of mountain formed when rocks on one side of a fault were forced upward and the rocks on the other side were forced downward? |
fault-block |
|
What is the narrow zone of active volcanoes that encircles the Pacific basin? |
Ring of Fire |
|
What is the resistance of a smooth surface of a mineral to being scratched? |
hardness |
|
The largest group of minerals, which compose over 90% of the earth's crust, are the __?__. |
silicates |
|
What plant food element promotes the ripening of fruits? |
phosphorus |
|
What is the upper surface of ground water? |
water table |
|
Lava that hardens into rough, jagged rocks with crumbly or "blocky" texture is __?__ lava. |
aa |
|
What deep-sea-fish living fossil was once through to be the ancestor of the first amphibians? |
coelacanth |
|
What are crystalline substances found naturally in the earth? |
minerals |
|
A fan-shaped deposit of sediments at the mouth of a river is a(n) __?__. |
delta |
|
Which australopithecine was known as "upright man"? |
Homo erectus |
|
The sudden appearance of life in the fossil record is called the __?__. |
Cambrian explosion |
|
sandy, gently sloping underwater plain near a continent |
continental rise |
|
underwater mountain range |
mid-oceanic ridge |
|
one of the deep depressions in the earth's surface where the oceans are contained |
ocean basin |
|
underwater mountain |
seamount |
|
beginning marked by shelf break |
continental slope |
|
one of the huge, muddy valleys that cut through portions of the abyssal plain |
trench |
|
large fissure in the continental shelf |
seamount |
|
a pool of shallow, salty water at the center of an atoll |
lagoon |
|
a huge level region of the deep ocean floor |
abyssal plain |
|
Rhythmic back-and-forth motions of water that transfer energy are called __?__. |
waves |
|
Crystals are generally characterized by many flat surfaces called __?__. |
faces |
|
Oceanographers collect water samples from the ocean depths using __?__ bottles. |
Niskin |
|
The process in which wind lifts particles for short distances then drops them abruptly is __?__. |
saltation |
|
Movements of ocean water caused primarily by the moon are called __?__. |
tides |
|
The study of earth is __?__. |
geology |
|
The revolutionary submersible design invented by Auguste Piccard was the __?__. |
bathyscaphe |
|
Gentle, rolling waves that appear even in calm weather are __?__. |
(ocean) swells |
|
Seventy-eight percent of the salt in the ocean is __?__. |
sodium chloride |
|
The region where cold, deep water meets sun-warmed surface water is the __?__. |
thermocline |
|
The earth's rotation causes surface currents to move in circular paths called __?__. |
gyres |
|
A __?__ is a device with an open tube that is dropped to the sea floor, allowing its weight to puncture the sediment. |
gravity corer |
|
Huge chunks of floating glacial ice are __?__. |
icebergs |
|
The process that breaks rock down into soil is __?__. |
weathering |
|
The study of fossils is __?__. |
paleontology |
|
When water from heavy waves rapidly flows away from the shore through a gap in a sandbar, the water forms a(n) __?__. |
rip current (or riptide) |
|
Regions of the earth's surface where limestone is exposed and abundant are __?__ regions. |
karst |
|
The deepest regions of the sea, with depths greater than 6,000 meters (19,690 feet) are in the __?__ zone. |
hadal |
|
One idea that attempts to reconcile the Bible and evolution is __?__. |
theistic evolution |
|
The deepest known point in the sea is the __?__. |
Challenger Deep (or Marianas Trench) |
|
A mineral test that leaves a line of powder on a plate is a(n) __?__ test. |
streak |
|
The most abundant element in the earth's crust is __?__. |
oxygen |
|
A low hill formed when a glacier overruns a moraine is a __?__. |
drumlin |
|
When two rock layers are pushed violently together, causing the layers to buckle, __?__ mountains form. |
folded |
|
What is the red variety of corundum? |
ruby |
|
What device uses sound waves to detect underwater objects? |
sonar |
|
What is a warm surface current that flows in the Atlantic Ocean north of the equator? |
Gulf Stream |
|
What are large almond-or teardrop-shaped pieces of ejecta formed when lava solidifies? |
volcanic bomb |
|
Halfway between the spring tides are weaker-than-normal tides called __?__ tides. |
neap |
|
What type of fold occurs when rocks buckle upward? |
anticline |
|
What hypothetical time scale supposedly charts both the earth's history and the sequence of the rock layers in the earth's crust? |
geologic column |
|
Emerald and aquamarine are two forms of what mineral? |
beryl |
|
The amount of dissolved salt in seawater is __?__. |
salinity |
|
A theory that has never been proven false is a __?__. |
law |
|
What is a winding, looping curve in a river on flat ground? |
meander |
|
What type of mountain is formed when molten rock collects beneath an overlying rock layer, focusing the layer upward into a blister-like structure? |
domed |
|
What theory states that the earth's crust and upper mantle consist of huge plates slowly drifting as a result of convection currents in the mantle? |
plate tectonics |
|
The daily or twice-daily period when the ocean levels are at their highest point is called __?__ tide. |
high |
|
What is the false belief that all geological processes have always proceeded at the same rate? |
uniformitarianism |
|
What metal is more valuable than gold or silver? |
platinum |
|
What scale do chemists use to express acidity and basicity of substances? |
pH |
|
What is the study of the earth's oceans called? |
oceanography |
|
What percent of the earth's surface is covered by water? |
seventy |
|
Give the term for the water pressure? |
upwelling |
|
What is the scientific term for water pressure? |
hydrostatic pressure |
|
What does scuba stand for? |
self-contaminated underwater breathing apparatus |
|
What is the substance that makes up the physical world? |
matter |
|
What device serves as a framework for many water collection bottles, allowing oceanographers to collect water from different depths? |
rosette |
|
What is the point on the earth's surface directly above an earthquake's focus? |
epicenter |
|
What is the highest point of a wave? |
crest |
|
Who popularized evolution with his book "On the Origin of Species"? |
(Charles) Darwin |