Question 1

Which of the following is NOT a type of terrane in California?

Accepted Answer

A)   oceanic crust
B)   island arcs
C)   accretionary prism
D)   displaced granitic rocks
E)   all of these are present in CaliforniaF) D) and E)
G) B) and E)

Question 2

How will future tectonic events change the thickness of the crust?

Accepted Answer

A)   it will thin the crust along the west coast and the east coast
B)   it will thin the crust along the west coast and thicken the crust along the east coast
C)   it will thicken the crust along the west coast and thin the crust along the east coast
D)   it will thicken the crust along both the west and east coastE) None of the above
F) B) and C)

Question 3

Volcanism creates mountains that are:

Accepted Answer

A)   sometimes local and not accompanied by regional increases in crustal thickness
B)   formed of piled volcanic material, such as scoria, ash, lava flows, debris flows, and mudslides
C)   varied in size from small cinder cones to large shield and composite volcanoes
D)   all of these are types of mountains created by volcanismE) A) and C)
F) B) and C)

Question 4

In the region shown in this figure, what is the most likely cause for a basin between the arc and continent?

Accepted Answer

A)   it is a foreland basin
B)   it is an accretionary prism
C)   it formed by back-arc rifting and spreading
D)   it formed by strike-slip motion during a continental collisionE) All of the above
F) C) and D)

Question 5

The average thickness of oceanic crust is:

Accepted Answer

A)   7 km
B)   5 km
C)   50 km
D)   12 kmE) A) and B)
F) None of the above

Question 6

Which of the following is NOT the name of a supercontinent?

Accepted Answer

A)   Gondwana
B)   Laurasia
C)   Pangaea
D)   Rodinia
E)   TethysF) A) and E)
G) B) and E)

Question 7

What geologic setting is expressed by the formation of the Sierra Nevada and adjacent features?

Accepted Answer

A)   a continental collision east of to the right of)  the Sierra Nevada
B)   an ocean-continent convergent zone
C)   a continental rifting event east of to the right of)  the Sierra Nevada
D)   continental rifting west to the left of)  of the Sierra NevadaE) A) and C)
F) All of the above

Question 8

Which numbered area on this geologic map of North America consists of recently added tectonic terranes?

Accepted Answer

A)   1, southern Alaska
B)   2, continental platform of west-central Canada
C)   3, continental shield of eastern Canada
D)   4, coastal plain along the Gulf Coast of the U.S.E) A) and C)
F) B) and C)

Question 9

If you had this type of deformation of a region, it would:

Accepted Answer

A)   thicken the crust and cause subsidence
B)   thicken the crust and cause uplift
C)   thin the crust and cause subsidence
D)   thin the crust and cause uplift
E)   none of theseF) A) and B)
G) A) and E)

Question 10

How can we tell that the Himalaya has been uplifted?

Accepted Answer

A)   uplift can be measured with a global positioning system GPS) 
B)   deep rocks are exposed at the surface and yield young isotopic ages
C)   the top of Mount Everest contains a limestone with marine fossils
D)   all of theseE) C) and D)
F) A) and B)

Question 11

A prism- or wedge-shaped, structurally complex zone of faults, folds, and mostly metamorphosed rocks that form along the upper parts of a subduction zone where sedimentary material and oceanic crust are scraped off the downgoing slab is called an) :

Accepted Answer

A)   accretionary prism
B)   subduction wedge
C)   foreland basin
D)   passive marginE) None of the above
F) All of the above

Question 12

What tectonic event in the western U.S. caused magmatism and deformation to move farther into the continent during the late Mesozoic and early Cenozoic Laramide Orogeny?

Accepted Answer

A)   the continent overran a hot spot
B)   the continent overran the East Pacific Rise
C)   continental extension stretched the continent to twice its original width
D)   an oceanic plate subducted at a low angle beneath the continentE) A) and D)
F) B) and C)

Question 13

What would probably happen to the small piece of continent that was offshore in the middle of the ocean) ?

Accepted Answer

A)   it will be rifted in two, forming a new ocean basin
B)   it will be carried farther out to sea by seafloor spreading
C)   it will be carried toward and collide with the continent
D)   there was no small piece of continent offshore in the oceanE) None of the above
F) A) and D)

Question 14

Which of the following is NOT a setting in which regional mountain belts form?

Accepted Answer

A)   continental collision
B)   subduction zone
C)   upwelling of the mantle
D)   passive margin
E)   the collision of India with AsiaF) A) and B)
G) B) and D)

Question 15

What type of basin is shown in this figure?

Accepted Answer

A)   passive margin
B)   normal-fault basin
C)   foreland basin
D)   basin along a strike-slip faultE) B) and C)
F) All of the above

Question 16

Which of the following is used to match continents or track positions of the continents in the past?

Accepted Answer

A)   reconstructions of seafloor spreading
B)   rock types and structures
C)   magnetism stored in rocks
D)   all of these
E)   a and b onlyF) B) and D)
G) A) and C)

Question 17

Which numbered site is likely to have a thin sequence of sediments over crystalline rocks of the basement?

Accepted Answer

A)   1, the continental shield
B)   2, the continental platform
C)   3, a basin in the continent
D)   4, a continental shelf
E)   5, a deep sediment-filled basin next to the continentF) All of the above
G) A) and D)

Question 18

Which of the following regions below would you predict to have the thickest continental crust?

Accepted Answer

A)   the West Coast because it is close to the plate boundary
B)   the Colorado Rockies and adjacent Great Plains
C)   the area with thick sediments around the Mississippi River
D)   the Appalachian Mountains, the dominant range in the eastern U.S.
E)   the East Coast because it is a passive marginF) B) and E)
G) None of the above

Question 19

Numerous terranes exist in Alaska. One of these is the Wrangellia terrane. Why is the Wrangellia terrane considered part of the same terrane as that from pieces scattered from western Idaho northward to Alaska?

Accepted Answer

A)   The terranes have similar ages and sequences of rocks.
B)   The terranes are joined by a single fault line.
C)   The terranes are of distinctly different rock types from each other.
D)   The terranes were formed during increasingly older times as they progress northwest.E) C) and D)
F) A) and D)

Question 20

What geologic events are expressed in this cross section of the western U.S. in late Paleozoic - early Mesozoic time?

Accepted Answer

A)   an old episode of continental rifting that lead to a passive margin
B)   collision of an island arc with western North America
C)   oceanic crust and sediment that was thrust onto North America
D)   a basin formed by the weight of thrust sheets
E)   all of theseF) A) and E)
G) A) and D)

Exam 11: Mountains, Basins, and Continents

Which of the following is used to match continents or track positions of the continents in the past?

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

What geologic events are expressed in this cross section of the western U.S. in late Paleozoic - early Mesozoic time?

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

What tectonic event in the western U.S. caused magmatism and deformation to move farther into the continent during the late Mesozoic and early Cenozoic Laramide Orogeny?

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

In the region shown in this figure, what is the most likely cause for a basin between the arc and continent?

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

If you had this type of deformation of a region, it would:

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

Which of the following is NOT a setting in which regional mountain belts form?

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

What would probably happen to the small piece of continent that was offshore in the middle of the ocean) ?

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

How will future tectonic events change the thickness of the crust?

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

Volcanism creates mountains that are:

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

A prism- or wedge-shaped, structurally complex zone of faults, folds, and mostly metamorphosed rocks that form along the upper parts of a subduction zone where sedimentary material and oceanic crust are scraped off the downgoing slab is called an) :

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

Which numbered area on this geologic map of North America consists of recently added tectonic terranes?

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

Which of the following is NOT a type of terrane in California?

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

Numerous terranes exist in Alaska. One of these is the Wrangellia terrane. Why is the Wrangellia terrane considered part of the same terrane as that from pieces scattered from western Idaho northward to Alaska?

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

The average thickness of oceanic crust is:

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

What type of basin is shown in this figure?

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

How can we tell that the Himalaya has been uplifted?

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

Which of the following regions below would you predict to have the thickest continental crust?

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

Which numbered site is likely to have a thin sequence of sediments over crystalline rocks of the basement?

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

What geologic setting is expressed by the formation of the Sierra Nevada and adjacent features?

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

Which of the following is NOT the name of a supercontinent?

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

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