Geology 100A Midterm #1 September 25, 2015 Study guide – 34 multiple-choice questions

• What is the difference between catastrophism and uniformitarianism? • Be familiar with the geologic time scale, specifically the wingspan and year models. • What evidence did Wegener use to support his Continental Drift hypothesis? Why was his

idea rejected? • What evidence did Harry Hess use to support his sea floor spreading hypothesis? • What causes the volcanism at Hawaii? How was Hawaii used to support the theory of

plate tectonics? • Approximately how fast does the ocean floor spread? Be able to calculate a spreading

rate. Fill in the following chart about plate boundaries. Plate Boundary

Relative Motion

What type of earthquakes occur here?

Do volcanoes occur?

Name a geographic example.

Divergent

Convergent with subduction

Convergent without subduction

Transform

Hot-spot (not at a plate boundary)

• Define the following vocabulary words: island arc, volcanic arc, deep sea trench, mid-

ocean ridge. • What causes subduction? • What two scales do we use to determine the size and intensity of an earthquake? What is

the relationship between magnitude, amplitude, and energy? • How can the location of an earthquake be determined? What information is needed?

• What are the three main types of seismic waves? What are the characteristics of each wave?

• What do seismic waves tell us about the Earth’s interior? • What methods of heat transfer apply to the interior of the Earth? • Draw a sketch of the Earth’s interior—you won’t have to do this on the exam, but you

need to be familiar with the layers and the characteristics of each layer. What layer is liquid? What layer is plastic? How do we know?

• Define the following vocabulary words: Atom, Atomic mass, Atomic number, Proton, Neutron, Electron, Ion, Isotope

• What are the 5 characteristics of a mineral? Be able to apply these to determine what is or is not a mineral.

• What are the 8 main groups of minerals? Provide the name of one mineral from each group. What is the name of the group that contains the majority of minerals on Earth?

• What are the 8 most abundant elements in the Earth’s crust? What are the 2 most abundant elements?