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** GEOL 110 **
is offered by Grossmont College,
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Assignments:
Assignment #2-4: Geology 110
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On campus students will use a ScanTron (GradeMaster) answer sheet, Online students will use a BlackBoard answer sheet. Go to the BlackBoard, Assignments - "Assignment Papers" for details.
1. Porphyritic texture forms from
- A. initial rapid cooling then slow cooling of magma
- B. initial slow cooling then rapid cooling of magma
- C. extremely rapid cooling of magma
- D. escape of gas bubbles during cooling of lava
2. During crystallization of a basaltic magma _____________ is the first mineral to crystallize.
- A. olivine
- B. pyroxene
- C. plagioclase
- D. quartz
3. How does water influence the formation of magma?
- A. rocks with higher water content melt at higher temperatures
- B. rocks with higher water content melt at lower temperatures
- C. rocks with higher water content produce basaltic magma
- D. rocks with higher water content produce rhyolitic magma
4. According to theory, if fractional crystallization occurs (e.g. by early-formed crystals settling to the bottom of the magma chamber)
- A. the remaining magma becomes more mafic-rich
- B. the remaining magma does not change in composition
- C. the remaining magma becomes more rich in silica
- D. the magma cools faster
5. A very large igneous intrusion, such as the one that forms the core of the Sierra-Nevada mountain range, is called a
- A. sill
- B. dike
- C. stock
- D. batholith
6. Obsidian, or volcanic glass forms by
- a. lava cools so fast minerals can't crystallize
- b. lava cools so fast minerals are very fine-grained
- c. rock is shattered during an eruption
- d. volcanic mudflow deposition
7. Extrusive igneous rocks have smaller crystals than intrusive igneous rocks because _______.
- A. Intrusive igneous rocks cool slower than extrusive rocks
- B. Extrusive igneous rocks cool slower than intrusive rocks
- C. Intrusive igneous rocks melt slower than extrusive rocks
- D. Extrusive igneous rocks melt slower than intrusive rocks
8. Most common rock-forming minerals are ______.
- A. carbonates
- B. oxides
- C. silicates
- D. sulfides
9. What type of rocks form from the solidification of molten rock?
- A. igneous
- B. mineralogic
- C. sedimentary
- D. metamorphic
10. What types of rocks form from pre-existing rocks that are subjected to high temperature and pressure?
- A. igneous
- B. mineralogic
- C. sedimentary
- D. metamorphic
11. A basalt is an example of a(n) _______ rock.
- A. igneous
- B. mineralogic
- C. sedimentary
- D. metamorphic
12. Which best describes basalt?
- A. a foliated metamorphic rock
- B. a non-foliated metamorphic rock
- C. a coarse-grained light colored igneous rock
- D. a fine-grained dark colored igneous rock
13. Clastic sediments form from _______.
- A. rapid cooling of molten sediments
- B. physically deposited particles of sediment
- C. precipitation of sediments from sea water
- D. accumulation of calcium carbonate shells
14. Limestone, a rock that forms from the shelly remains of organisms, is an example of a(n) _______.
- A. extrusive igneous rock
- B. intrusive igneous rock
- C. clastic sedimentary rock
- D. chemical sedimentary rock
15. An igneous rock that is coarse-grained and contains abundant quartz is _______.
- A. granite
- B. rhyolite
- C. basalt
- D. gabbro
16. Which of the following properties is diagnostic of a sedimentary rock?
- A. layering
- B. foliation
- C. glassy texture
- D. orogeny
17.Sediment forms as a result of rock weathering.
- A) TRUE
- B) FALSE
18.Clastic sedimentary rocks do not contain particles that have been altered as a result of chemical weathering.
- A) TRUE
- B) FALSE
19.Weathering is an important part of the process whereby sediment becomes sedimentary rock.
- A) TRUE
- B) FALSE
20.Sedimentary rocks never contain valuable natural resources because they are highly weathered.
- A) TRUE
- B) FALSE
21.Sediments only form as a result of the weathering of igneous rocks.
- A) TRUE
- B) FALSE
22.Quartz is a common component of sedimentary rocks because it is resistant to chemical weathering.
- A) TRUE
- B) FALSE
23.There is no upper limit to the size a sediment particle can have.
- A) TRUE
- B) FALSE
24.Chemical sedimentary rocks are less common than Detrital sedimentary rocks.
- A) TRUE
- B) FALSE
25.Chemical sedimentary rocks are always formed as a result of chemical weathering of other rocks.
- A) TRUE
- B) FALSE
26.Chemical sedimentary rocks typically form as precipitates from solutions.
- A) TRUE
- B) FALSE
27.Sedimentary rocks reveal a great deal about Earth surface conditions as they were forming.
- A) TRUE
- B) FALSE
28.Ripple marks preserved in a sandstone may be used to determine the direction a current was flowing.
- A) TRUE
- B) FALSE
29.Sediment can be transported great distances from its source area before being deposited.
- A) TRUE
- B) FALSE
30.Cement that forms to bind sediments is usually precipitated from solution.
- A) TRUE
- B) FALSE
31.Boulders cannot be transported or deposited to form sedimentary rocks.
- A) TRUE
- B) FALSE
32.The grain size of clastic sedimentary rocks may provide clues to the environment in which the sediments were deposited.
- A) TRUE
- B) FALSE
33.Geologists use sedimentary rocks to reconstruct the geologic history of Earth.
- A) TRUE
- B) FALSE
34.Some successions of sedimentary rocks allow geologists to interpret the history of sea-level oscillations on Earth.
- A) TRUE
- B) FALSE
35.Coral reefs are a type of chemical sedimentary rock.
- A) TRUE
- B) FALSE
36.Earth is the only planet with sedimentary rocks.
- A) TRUE
- B) FALSE





