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Geology Quiz Questions and Answers
1) The scientific name for fossilized faeces is:
Answer: Coprolites.
A coprolite is fossilized feces—the name comes from the Greek words κόπρος (kopros) meaning “dung” and λίθος (lithos) meaning “stone”. Coprolites are classified as trace fossils as opposed to body fossils, as they give evidence for the animal’s behaviour (such as diet) rather than morphology. They were first described by William Buckland in 1829.
2) Humidity is the:
Answer: Amount of water vapor in the air
3) The Law of Superposition states that:
A) Older rocks are found deeper in the earth’s crust than younger rocks
B) Carnivorous dinosaurs were more deadly than herbivorous dinosaurs
C) Animals that evolved at a later time are more advanced than those from an earlier time
Answer: A.
The law of superposition is a fundamental principle used in geologic stratigraphy to help determine the relative age of rock layers. This law states that in an undeformed sequence of sedimentary rocks, each layer of rock is younger than the one above it and older than the one below it. The law is often summarized by the maxim “like layers like” which means that when you find two or more layers of similar composition they are probably the same age.
4) The most common element in the earth’s crust is:
Answer: Silicon.
Silicon is a chemical element. It has the chemical symbol Si and its atomic number 14. The mass number (the total number of protons and neutrons) of silicon is 28. Silicon is a semiconductor: it conducts electricity better than most metals but it isn’t as good as a conductor as other non-metals such as carbon.
5) Gondwana is the name given to the super-continent:
A) That existed 20 million years ago
B) In the southern hemisphere
C) On which dinosaurs such as Tyrannosaurus Rex roamed one million years ago
Answer: B.
The Gondwanaland supercontinent was formed during the Neoproterozoic era, around 550 million years ago and was centered on the South Pole. It consisted of several cratons: Laurentia, Baltica (West and East), and Kalaharia. Rodinia was formed prior to this and rifted off about 750 million years ago.
6) The atmospheric pressure at sea level is 1 atmosphere. This is equal to:
Answer: 1013 hectopascals.
A hectopascal (hPa) is a unit of pressure and is equivalent to 100 pascals (Pa). It is the SI-derived unit of pressure. The unit is named after Blaise Pascal, the French mathematician, physicist and inventor. The pascal was named after the 18th-century French engineer and physicist Blaise Pascal. In most fields other than meteorology, the hectopascal is rarely used.
7) What forms when a moving mass of cold or cool air moves under a still mass of warm air?
Answer: A cold front.
A cold front is a temperature boundary positioned to the east of a warm front or west of a stationary front and separated from it by a relatively narrow zone of transition. It is the leading edge of a cooler air mass and associated weather such as thunderstorms, precipitation, and strong winds. Cold fronts often bring light showers and thunderstorms, sometimes severe ones.
8) In the southern hemisphere, cyclones:
A) Rotate anticlockwise
B) Create winds with a maximum speed of 50 km/h
C) Form over tropical oceans in summer
Answer: C.
The world’s tropical oceans are vast, beautiful, and even deadly. From the shark-infested waters of the Great Barrier Reef to the deep sea trenches of the Mariana Trench, these remote wilderness areas are home to some of the planet’s most fascinating, mysterious, and fascinating creatures. They are also increasingly under threat from climate change, pollution, and overfishing.
9) The instrument used to measure wind speed is the:
Answer: Anemometer.
An anemometer is a device used to measure the speed of wind. An anemometer that measures and displays wind speed at a single location is called a “point” anemometer, while one that measures the wind at multiple heights within the atmosphere is called a “widespread” or “echelon” anemometer.
10) On a synoptic chart or weather map, lines joining areas of equal air pressure are called:
Answer: Isobars.
Isobars are lines drawn on a weather map connecting points of equal pressure. The pressure is indicated in millibars (mb) and the height of the isobar is given in meters. The higher the isobar, the stronger the winds between it and the associated weather system.
11) Examples of imprints are:
A) Drawings on rock made by prehistoric men
B) Frozen remains of elephant-like mammoths
C) Footprints and animal tracks
Answer: C
12) Convergent crustal plate boundaries are sites of:
Answer: Earthquakes.
The term “convergent boundary” describes a meeting point between three or more geological plates, where two of the plates move towards one another while the third one moves away. The crust of the Earth is broken up into a number of large, separate pieces called tectonic plates, which are constantly on the move, crashing into one another and causing massive geological events.
13) The original super-continent that may have existed 200 million years ago has been named:
Answer: Pangaea.
The Pangaea supercontinent is the name given to the Earth’s landmass during the late Paleozoic era, about 335 million years ago. At the time, the land on our planet was joined together in one large landmass of lower latitudes, covering most of the world’s surface.
14) The instrument used to measure earthquakes is the:
Answer: Seismograph.
The seismograph is one of the oldest instruments for measuring the movement of the surface of the earth, and it is still in widespread use, with modern instruments now digitized. The term seismograph originally referred to a seismometer that was hand-held.
A seismograph is usually a long cylinder (10–40 cm (4–16 in) in diameter) equipped with various transducers at one or both ends.
15) The earthquake waves that cause the greatest damage to buildings are the:
Answer: L or longitudinal waves.
A longitudinal wave is a mechanical wave that moves along a transmission medium in the same direction as the energy transfer. For example, the sound is a longitudinal wave because sound energy is transferred from the source to the receiver as a wave of pressure variations in the air molecules that make up the sound wave. A longitudinal wave is a transverse wave that is polarized in a direction parallel with its propagation direction.
16) The molten rock which flows from a volcano vent is:
Answer: Lava.
Lava is the molten rock expelled by a volcano during an eruption. The resulting rock after solidification and cooling is also called lava. The molten rock is formed in the interior of some planets, including Earth, and some of their satellites. On Earth, lava is a volcanic product formed at magma temperatures as high as 1,200 °C (2,190 °F).
17) Larger fossil animals are thought to be:
A) Adults or males
B) The most common type of animal that existed throughout earth’s living past
C) Extinct because they ate too much
Answer: A.
18) What occurs where crustal plates diverge or move apart?
A) Erosion
B) Earthquakes
C) Volcanoes
Answer: C.
A volcano (plural volcanoes) is a rupture in the earth’s crust through which hot, molten rock (magma), gases, and volcanic ash emitted from the earth’s interior. When you step back and look at it, the effect is awe-inspiring: a boiling cauldron of rock and magma that produces a variety of eruption types (including the deadliest kind) and lava flows.
19) The point at which an earthquake begins under the earth is called the:
Answer: Focus.
An earthquake originates at a place inside the Earth’s crust called the focus. The focus is the place where rocks fracture in response to stress. Stress can be caused by pressure from magma, buried salt layers, or the force of continental plates grinding against each other. Movements in the Earth’s crust can play a role in determining where an earthquake will occur.
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