Geology 103
Exam 2 Sample questions
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1. Which relative dating principle indicates the fault
below is younger than the rocks it displaces: |
a.
superposition |
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2. During which era did the organisms below
live: |
a.
Paleozoic |
3. Who estimated a 90 million year old age of the earth based on the
salinity of the ocean:
a. Nicolas Steno
b. Lord Kelvin
c. James Hutton
d. Archbishop Ussher
e. John Joly
4. Approximately how many millions of years ago did the Paleozoic begin:
a. 1.6
b. 65
c. 543
d. 2500
e. 4600
5. If 1/32 of the parent radioactive isotope is remaining in a mineral
sample and 31/32 has converted to the daughter isotope, how many half-lives
have passed (assume there was no daughter product at the time of
crystallization):
a. less than 1
b. 2
c. 3
d. 4
e. more than 4
6. Which of the following would cause a marine transgression:
1. downwarping of the continent
2. an ice age
3 rapid spreading of the mid-ocean ridge
a. 1 and 2
b. 1 and 3
c. 2 and 3
d. all 3 would cause a marine
transgression
e. none of the 3 would cause a
marine transgression
7. If the half-life of an element is 10 million years, and 1/4 of the
parent radioactive isotope is remaining in a mineral sample, what is the age of
the sample:
a. 2.5 million years old
b. 4 million years old
c. 10 million years old
d. 15 million years old
e. 20 million years old
8. Which isotope below has a half-life of approximately 4.5 billion
years:
a. Potassium-40
b. Thorium-232
c. Carbon-14
d. Uranium-238
e. Strontium-87
9. If you viewed a column of sedimentary rocks which formed during a marine
transgression, which would be the correct order of sedimentary rocks from bottom
to top?
a. limestone, shale, sandstone
b. limestone, sandstone, shale
c. sandstone, shale, limestone
d. sandstone, limestone, shale
e. none of the above
10. Which period immediately follows the Cretaceous?
a. Triassic
b. Tertiary
c. Cenozoic
d. Jurassic
e. Permian