1 .
During the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, catastrophists believed that Earth's landscapes had been shaped primarily by great disasters. True False
2 .
A system is a group of interacting or interdependent parts that form a complex whole. True False
3 .
The geologic time scale was developed using principles of relative dating. True False
4 .
The theory of plate tectonics provides geologists with a comprehensive model of Earth's internal workings. True False
5 .
All science is based on the assumption that the natural world behaves in a consistent and predictable manner that is comprehensible through careful, systematic study. True False
6 .
Over 82 percent of Earth's volume is contained in the crust. True False
7 .
Earth can be thought of as consisting of four spheres: the hydrosphere, the atmosphere, solid Earth, and biosphere. True False
8 .
More than 2300 years ago, Aristotle's keen observations and experiments helped the early Greeks correctly explain many things about the natural world. True False
9 .
The age of Earth is about 6.4 billion years. True False
10 .
Earth's outer core is liquid, while the inner core behaves like a solid. True False
11 .
There is a fixed path that scientists always follow that leads unerringly to scientific knowledge. True False
12 .
Humans are not considered parts of the Earth system. True False
13 .
The two broad areas of geology are physical geology and structural geology. True False
14 .
Magma is molten material that forms in certain environments in Earth's interior where temperatures and pressures are such that rock melts. True False
15 .
Along some divergent plate boundaries, oceanic crust is being consumed in subduction zones. True False
16 .
The law of superposition and the principle of fossil succession are each used for relative dating. True False
17 .
Based on physical properties, Earth's outermost layer, consisting of the crust and upper mantle, is called the lithosphere. True False
18 .
A scientific hypothesis is a tentative (or untested) explanation. True False
19 .
The global ocean covers about 71 percent of Earth's surface and accounts for nearly 97 percent of the planet's water. True False
20 .
Lithification is a term that means "conversion into rock." True False
21 .
All major interactions among individual lithospheric plates occur along their boundaries. True False
22 .
As defined by composition, Earth's internal structure consists of the core, mantle, and crust. True False
23 .
Uniformitarianism is a fundamental principle of geology that states that the physical, chemical, and biological laws that govern geological processes remain unchanging through time. True False
24 .
Scientific theories that explain a large number of interrelated aspects of the natural world are called paradigms. True False
25 .
Along divergent plate boundaries, the upwelling of material from the mantle creates new sea floor. True False
26 .
The Earth system is powered by two parts, the Sun and heat from burning fossil fuels. True False
27 .
On average, continental rocks are more dense than the rocks of the oceanic crust. True False
28 .
The rock cycle illustrates the origin of the three basic rock types and the role of various geologic processes in transforming one rock type into another. True False
29 .
As a consequence of plate tectonics, the total surface area of Earth is decreasing. True False
30 .
The boundary between the continents and the deep-ocean basins lies along the continental shelf. True False
31 .
Extremely deep (occasionally more than 11,000 meters deep), relatively narrow depressions on the ocean floor are called abyssal plains. True False
32 .
Earth's lithospheric plates move at the rate of about 5 centimeters (2 inches) a year. True False
33 .
Transform fault boundaries are located where plates grind past each other without either generating new lithosphere or consuming old lithosphere. True False
34 .
The composition of Earth's core is thought to be an iron-nickel alloy with minor amounts of oxygen, silicon, and sulfur. True False
