Exam 6: Restless Earth: Earthquakes, Geologic Structures, and Mountain Building

How did the Himalayas form?

Three of the following statements are wrong. One is correct. Which of the following statements is correct?

Our greatest source of knowledge about Earth's interior comes from ________.

________ are destructive sea waves induced by earthquakes.

A(n)________ is an instrument that is used to record earthquake vibrations.

The record of an earthquake obtained from a seismic instrument is a(n)________.

These rock layers in this photo have experienced elastic deformation.

Most orogenesis occurs along ________ plate boundaries.

What sorts of geologic structures would an Earth scientist expect to find forming in a convergent plate boundary? What sorts of geologic structures would be most likely to form at a divergent plate boundary setting? Draw a cross-section to help explain your answer.

Earth has ________ distinct kinds of crust.

The difference between a continent and a microcontinent is ________.

The North American Cordillera consists of many terranes which bear magnetic and fossil evidence suggesting they originated far to the south of the modern-day positions.

Thrust faults shorten the crust horizontally and thicken it vertically.

During an earthquake near Port Royal, Jamaica, the water-saturated sand on which the city was built vigorously shook. As a result, the sand particles lost contact with one another, giving the mixture the consistency of a thick milk shake. Anything supported by the ground, such as buildings and people, either floated or sank. One eyewitness stated: "Whole streets with inhabitants were swallowed up. . . . Some were swallowed quite down, and cast up again by great quantities of water; others went down and were never more seen." This is a description of ________.

Seismic waves may reflect, but not diffract or refract, as they encounter different layers in Earth's interior.

________ is/are an example of ductile deformation.

In general, buildings constructed on ________ fare better in an earthquake than buildings constructed on ________, as this material amplifies seismic shaking.

What kind of fault is illustrated in this figure?

On a typical seismogram, ________ will show the highest amplitudes.

As you can see from this map, the Ural Mountains exhibit a north-south orientation through Eurasia. They are about the same age as the Appalachian mountains of eastern North America. How does the theory of plate tectonics explain the existence of this mountain belt in the interior of an expansive continental landmass? Compare and contrast the Ural and Appalachian situations, given their similar age.