Deck 14: Geology and Nonrenewable Mineral Resources

Question 1

What part makes up 71% of the crust?

A)oceanic crust
B)asthenosphere
C)lithosphere
D)continental crust
E)geosphere

Answer 1

A

Question 2

The zone of hot, partly melted rock that flows and can be deformed is called the

A)crust
B)asthenosphere
C)core
D)mantle
E)lithosphere

Answer 2

B

Question 3

Which one of the following is not one of the top five gold producing countries of the world?

A)China
B)South Africa
C)Egypt
D)Australia
E)United States

Answer 3

C

Question 4

Large sections of the earth's crust, called ______________, move slowly on the mantle below them.

A)asthenosphere
B)mantle
C)tectonic plates
D)core
E)oceanic ridges

Question 5

The severity of an earthquake is a measure of its seismic waves, and is called

A)epicenter
B)focus
C)magnitude
D)ridges
E)valleys

Question 6

The physical, chemical, and biological activities, part of the external geologic processes driven by energy from the sun, is called?

A)decomposition
B)wind erosion
C)weathering
D)water erosion
E)glacial erosion

Question 7

Tectonic plates can move in opposite but parallel directions along a fracture or fault at a boundary called a

A)divergent plate boundary
B)convergent plate boundary
C)subduction zone
D)mantle fault
E)transform fault

Question 8

Minerals and rocks take a long time to form and are called

A)unusable resources
B)waste products
C)nonrenewable resources
D)degraded capital
E)renewable resources.

Question 9

The place where an earthquake begins is called its

A)start
B)focus
C)magnitude
D)epicenter
E)fault

Question 10

The location on the earth's surface above where an earthquake begins is called its

A)start
B)focus
C)magnitude
D)epicenter
E)fault

Question 11

The slowest of the earth's cyclic processes is the

A)hydrological cycle
B)carbon cycle
C)rock cycle
D)phosphorus cycle
E)nutrient cycle

Question 12

A series of large waves generated in the ocean by an earthquake, landslide, or volcanic activity are called

A)pipe waves
B)quake waves
C)seismic waves
D)rollers
E)tsunamis

Question 13

The change of rocks from one type to another type is known as

A)metamorphism
B)the rock cycle
C)petrography
D)consolidation
E)hydrogeology

Question 14

Limestone, when exposed to heat and pressure, becomes

A)salt
B)quartzite
C)granite
D)marble
E)bituminous coal

Question 15

When an oceanic plate collides with a continental plate the continental plate usually slides up and over the denser oceanic plate, pushing it down into the mantle, a process called

A)production
B)subduction
C)induction
D)convection
E)trenching

Question 16

Granite is what type of rock?

A)igneous
B)mineral
C)metamorphic
D)sedimentary
E)organic

Question 17

Although often covered by other kinds of rock, which type of rock forms most of the earth's crust?

A)igneous
B)mineral
C)metamorphic
D)sedimentary
E)organic

Question 18

The second largest volcanic eruption of the 20th century occurred in 1991 when which mountain erupted?

A)Mt.Pinatubo
B)Mt.McKinley
C)Mt.St.Helens
D)Mt.Everest
E)Humphrey's Peak

Question 19

Vibrations caused when energy accumulated over time is released, are called

A)fractures
B)seismic waves
C)glaciations
D)tsunamis
E)drift

Question 20

A common form of extracting gold from rock used in Australia and North America is

A)power flushing
B)cyanide heap leaching
C)sulfuric acid leaching
D)hydraulic scouring
E)yellow-cake extraction

Question 21

Which of the following is not a type of metallic mineral?

A)iron
B)lead
C)copper
D)aluminum
E)coal

Question 22

Which of the following is not one of the important, but scarce, mineral resources?

A)manganese
B)copper
C)chromium
D)cobalt
E)platinum

Question 23

Which of the following does mining not cause?

A)forest fires
B)water pollution
C)toxic chemical emissions
D)subsidence
E)diseases

Question 24

Many of the millions of miners that have moved into tropical forests and other tropical regions looking for gold use the very destructive technique known as

A)acid leaching
B)contour strip mining
C)mountain-top removal
D)area-strip mining
E)hydraulic mining

Question 25

Which of the following is not a part of the life cycle of a metal?

A)recycling
B)mining
C)using
D)transformation to another element
E)processing

Question 26

Which of the following is not a long-term harm to the environment caused by mining?

A)scarring and disruption of the land surface
B)large amounts of radioactivity
C)subsidence
D)large amounts of solid waste
E)toxic chemical releases into the atmosphere

Question 27

The portion of ore that does not contain the desired mineral is called

A)hazardous waste
B)spoil
C)gangue
D)tailings
E)smelt

Question 28

Which of the following is not one of the nations supplying most of the nonrenewable mineral resources used by modern societies.

A)China
B)Canada
C)Russia
D)United States
E)South Africa

Question 29

The United States subsidizes mining companies through depletion allowances that amount to ____% of their gross income from mining and processing.

A)2─4
B)4─8
C)5─10
D)5─22
E)6─33

Question 30

When a resource has been economically depleted, we can do all of the following, except

A)Use other supplies of the resource
B)Recycle existing supplies.
C)Waste less.
D)Use less.
E)Do without.

Question 31

Which of the following would most likely be used to mine coal on hilly terrain?

A)open-pit mining
B)contour mining
C)area strip mining
D)strip mining
E)mountain-top removal

Question 32

Which of the following is associated more with surface mining than subsurface mining?

A)It is more dangerous.
B)It is more expensive.
C)It produces less waste material.
D)It disturbs more land.
E)It causes subsidence.

Question 33

Waste soil and rock removed during surface mining is called

A)hazardous waste
B)gangue
C)spoil
D)tailings
E)smelt

Question 34

Depletion time is the time it takes to use up approximately ____% of the mineral reserves at a given rate of use.

A)30
B)50
C)60
D)70
E)80

Question 35

The United States, Germany, and Russia, with only 8% of the world's population, consume about ____ of the world's most widely used metals.

A)25%
B)33%
C)50%
D)67%
E)75%

Question 36

Which of the following is not a member of the group of nations that supply most of the nonrenewable mineral resources used by modern societies?

A)United States
B)Russia
C)South Africa
D)Germany
E)Canada

Question 37

If consumers paid the full market cost of mineral extraction and processing, all of the following would occur, except

A)Harmful environmental effects would be reduced.
B)Economies would collapse.
C)Recycling would increase dramatically.
D)Minerals would be replaced with less harmful substitutes.
E)Reuse would increase.

Question 38

Of the 20 key nonrenewable mineral resources it needs, what percentage does the U.S.import?

A)15%
B)25%
C)40%
D)80%
E)100%

Question 39

Nonmetallic mineral resources include all of the following except

A)phosphate
B)iron
C)gypsum
D)limestone
E)sulfate

Question 40

Experts are particularly concerned about four strategic metal resources that are important for the U.S.economy and military strength, and that must be imported. Which of the following is not one of those metal resources?

A)cobalt
B)manganese
C)iron
D)chromium
E)platinum

Question 41

In 1975, which company began a Pollution Prevention Pays program?

A)DuPont
B)BP
C)IBM
D)3M
E)Exxon

Question 42

Soil that forms from the weathering of volcanic lava is not very fertile.

Question 43

An active volcano forms where magma reaches the earth's surface through a vent or a fissure.

Question 44

The highest peaks and deepest valleys are on the continents.

Question 45

In the transportation industry, switching to high-strength plastics and composite materials strengthened by light-weight carbon and glass fibers in place of metals, have all of the following advantages, except

A)they serve as the best catalysts available
B)they cost less to produce
C)they involve less pollution by not needing painting
D)they can be molded into virtually any shape
E)they increase fuel efficiency by reducing weight

Question 46

Some analysts suggest we can increase supplies of some minerals by extracting lower grades of ore. Which of the following is not a factor that limits the mining of lower- grade ores?

A)increased cost of mining and processing the larger volumes of ore
B)increasing shortage of freshwater needed to mine and process ore
C)the lack of new earth-moving equipment and mining techniques
D)environmental impact of increased land disruption
E)the pollution produced during the mining and processing of ore

Question 47

The oceanic crust makes up less than 30% of the earth's crust.

Question 48

Recycling aluminum beverage cans and scrap aluminum produces ____ percent less air pollution than mining and processing aluminum ore.

A)75
B)80
C)85
D)90
E)95

Question 49

External geological processes tend to build up the earth's surface, including mountains and volcanoes.

Question 50

The mining law that governs the exploration and mining of hard rock minerals on U.S.public lands was passed into law in what year?

A)1992
B)1972
C)1952
D)1932
E)1872

Question 51

The advantages of using microorganisms for mining include all of the following, except

A)reduced land disturbance
B)reduced air pollution
C)faster removal of the mineral
D)reduced use of hazardous chemicals
E)reduced water pollution

Question 52

The Great Lakes in the United States, are the world's largest body of fresh water, and were formed when glaciers retreated after the last ice age.

Question 53

The continents, riding on tectonic plates, have crashed together and separated several times during the earth's history.

Question 54

Which of the following is true concerning the possible mining of the ocean floor?

A)Working around volcanic vents is too dangerous
B)Countries cannot come to an agreement about who owns the minerals.
C)Disturbance of the sea floor may release dangerous chemicals.
D)No one has the ability to mine the deep ocean floor.
E)Giant squid may interfere with the mining.

Question 55

Each year the General Mining Law of 1872 allows companies to remove at least $4 billion of hard rock minerals from public lands and pay what percentage of the value of the minerals to the U.S.?

A)13.2%
B)25%
C)2.3%
D)3.6%
E)82%

Question 56

Tidal waves in the open ocean can travel as fast as jet airplanes.

Question 57

The gold necessary for two wedding rings produces enough mining waste to weigh the same as three mid-sized cars.

Question 58

Major earthquakes measure from 7.0-7.9 on the Richter scale.

Question 59

The slowest of the earth's cyclic processes is the carbon cycle.

Question 60

Most earthquakes occur near the center of a tectonic plate.

Question 61

Magma that manages to reach the surface of the earth is called ____________________.

Question 62

Nanotechnology is proving to be a likely answer to the possible shortage of mineral resources, especially since it has no known disadvantages.

Question 63

When two continental plates collide they form ____________________.

Question 64

Instead of asking how we can increase the supplies of nonrenewable minerals, we should be asking how can we decrease our use and waste of such resources?

Question 65

Adding chemicals to remove metals from their ores is called smelting.

Question 66

The most commonly used nonmetallic minerals are sand and gravel.

Question 67

Mining operations produce one-third of all solid waste in the United States.

Question 68

The common mining process used in the United States and Australia uses a very toxic chemical called ____________________.

Question 69

Rocks can be converted from one type to another.

Question 70

The part of the earth's crust that makes up 71% of all the earth's crust, is called the ____________________.

Question 71

Reserves of minerals increase when new, profitable sources are identified, and when technologies make it profitable to extract deposits formerly considered too expensive to remove.

Question 72

When an oceanic plate and a continental plate collide, the continental plate rides up over the denser oceanic plate, pushing the oceanic plate down in a process called _______________.

Question 73

At least 1,200 miles of Appalachia's rivers and streams have been buried by mining activities in the region.

Question 74

If geologists identify 10,000 possible deposits of a given resource, only one will become a productive mine or well.

Question 75

When oceanic plates move apart, molten rock, called ____________________, flows up through the cracks formed by the movement.

Question 76

Minerals are considered nonrenewable resources because they take so long to form.

Question 77

The higher the grade of ore, the higher the environmental impact.

Question 78

Mining companies have not been successful in pressuring the U.S.Congress to continue the current mining law, or in keeping the royalties at the current levels.

Question 79

If all nations extract metal resources at the same rate as developed nations do today, there may not be enough metal to meet the demand, even with extensive recycling.

Question 80

Surface mining is used to extract 60% of the coal used in the United States.