Earth Science Geology, the Environment, and the Universe

Chapter 17: Plate Tectonics

Standardized Test Practice-English

1
The supercontinent from Wegener's theory of continental drift is called __________
A)Gondwanaland
B)Pangaea
C)North America
D)Laurasia
2
Wegener proposed that the continents were __________
A)plowing through oceanic crust
B)formed at deep ocean trenches
C)slowly sinking into the ocean floor
D)floating on top of oceanic crust
3
What causes the seafloor to spread?
A)sinking magma
B)rising magma
C)earthquakes
D)drifting continental crust
4
What two topographic features of the ocean floor were discovered only with the use of sonar?
A)shallow-sea trenches and volcanic islands
B)volcanic islands and mid-ocean ridges
C)mid-ocean ridges and earthquakes
D)mid-ocean ridges and deep-sea trenches
5
What is the study of Earth's magnetic record?
A)magnetometer
B)paleogeography
C)paleomagnetism
D)paleontology
6
Rocks close to mid-ocean ridges are __________ rocks far from mid-ocean ridges.
A)younger than
B)a different composition than
C)older than
D)the same age as
7
What is the polarity of a magnetic field that has the same polarity as the present magnetic field?
A)an isochron
B)a magnetic reversal
C)a normal polarity
D)a reverse polarity
8
An expedition finds a sample in the rock on the seafloor thought to be 4 million years old. What was the polarity of Earth at that time, according to the figure?
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A)nonexistent
B)reversed
C)normal
D)half-reversed
9
Where do tectonic plates interact?
A)at mid-ocean ridges
B)in deep-sea trenches
C)at plate centers
D)at plate boundaries
10
A place where two plates slide laterally past each other is called a __________
A)convergent boundary
B)mid-ocean ridge
C)transform boundary
D)divergent boundary
11
The __________ states that Earth's crust and rigid upper mantle are broken into plates that move at different rates and in different directions.
A)theory of plate tectonics
B)hypothesis of continental movement
C)theory of seafloor spreading
D)hypothesis of continental drift
12
According to the figure, where is an earthquake most likely to occur?
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A)near the south pole
B)in the middle of the Pacific Ocean
C)in northern Eurasia
D)along the west coast of North America
13
Much of Earth's internal heat comes from ___________________
A)ultraviolet radiation absorbed by rocks
B)the decay of radioactive elements
C)lightning strikes
D)rotation of Earth's core
14
Which element helps preserve magnetic patterns on the ocean floor?
A)silica
B)iron
C)calcium
D)magnesium
15
Where are the youngest rocks on the seafloor located?
A)at the mid-ocean ridges
B)along the continental shelves
C)in the Mariana Trench
D)near the Hawaiian Islands
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