ch 2 – Flashcard Test Questions

Flashcard maker : Kaitlynn Baldwin
supercontinent 250 million years ago
Pangaea

study of magnetism over geologic time
paleomagnetism

island arc
subduction zone

seafloor magnetic stripes
spreading center

trench
subduction zone

Evidence for continental drift includes:
all of the above.

Fossils of ancient polar plants are currently found near the equator because the:
plants lived near the poles, but landmasses have drifted to current locations.

Climate distribution on Earth is primarily controlled by:
latitude

Regarding glacial ages, why is it unlikely that the entire world was covered by ice 300 million years ago?
Coal deposits from the same geologic age are now present in North America and Europe, which formed from the remains of vast tropical swamp plants.

Earthquakes can occur only in the __________.
lithosphere

The book The History of Ocean Basins, which contained the idea of seafloor spreading, was written by geologist:
Harry Hess.

The seafloor magnetic pattern is best described as:
parallel to and symmetric about mid-ocean ridges.

Tectonic plates are pieces of the ________ that float on the more fluid ________ below.
lithosphere; asthenosphere

The magnetic north pole has remained very close to the geographic North Pole throughout all of geologic time.
false

New crust is formed at trenches and older crust is subducted at oceanic ridges.
false

The magnetic field of the Earth reverses itself each time that magma erupts at a mid-ocean ridge.
false

Describe Earth’s magnetic field, including how it has changed through time.
Earth’s magnetic field is composed of invisible lines of magnetic force that originate within Earth and travel out into space. The polarity of the field has reversed itself throughout geologic time.

Describe seafloor spreading and why it was an important piece of evidence in support of plate tectonics.
Captain Hess suggested that new ocean crust was created at the mid-oceanic ridges and disappeared back into deep Earth at the trenches near the edges of ocean basins. This was an important piece of evidence in support of plate tectonics because it provided a mechanism for continental and oceanic plate motion.

The Mid-Atlantic Ridge is an example of a:
divergent plate boundary.

Which of the following is characteristic of oceanic-continental convergent plate boundaries?
andesitic volcanoes

Which of the following is characteristic of continental-continental convergent plate boundaries?
uplifted mountain ranges

Deep-sea trenches are found at convergent plate boundaries.
True

Water depth decreases as you move away from the mid-ocean ridge.
False

Convergent plate boundaries occur when tectonic plates move in opposite directions.
False

Do most lithospheric plates contain both oceanic- and continental-type crust?
Yes, most lithospheric plates contain both oceanic- and continental-type crust.

Iceland is located on what type of plate boundary?
Divergent

The Hawaiian Islands are located where the Pacific plate is:
moving over a hot spot or mantle plume.

volcanoes on the seafloor that are flat-topped because of wave erosion are called:
tablemounts.

The first scientist to propose the origin of coral reefs based upon subsidence (sinking) of volcanic islands was:
Charles Darwin.

Areas of intense volcanic activity that remain in more or less the same location over long periods of geologic time and are unrelated to plate boundaries are called hotspots.
true

Charles Darwin was the first person to propose a hypothesis on the origin of coral reefs.
True

The study of historical changes of continental shapes and positions is called:
paleogeography.

Loihi is __________.
the newest Hawaiian volcano

The cities of Los Angeles and San Francisco, CA, are about 380 miles apart. Plate motion along the San Andreas Fault is about five centimeters per year. If the Los Angeles Dodgers and the San Francisco Giants continue to play at their current locations, how long will it be before their games will constitute a cross-town rivalry?
About 12,230,000 years

A researcher interested in the vertical zonation of oceanic lithosphere would want to study __________.
ophiolites

The Wilson Cycle uses plate tectonic processes to show the life cycles of ocean basins during their growth, formation, and destruction over geologic time.
true

Of the following statements about Earth’s magnetic field, which is/are true?
The magnetic field is oriented vertical relative to Earth’s surface at the south magnetic pole.

Of the following statements about ocean crust, which is/are true?
Ocean crust is destroyed at deep sea trenches.

What do all plate boundaries have in common? Select only one answer.
They are all associated with zones of earthquakes.

Of the following statements about nemataths and volcanic arcs, which is/are true?
In a volcanic arc, any of the volcanoes can be active at any time.

The majority of the world’s hotspots are associated with plate boundaries.
false

How is the age distribution pattern of the Hawaiian Islands-Emperor Seamount chain explained by the position of the Hawaiian hot spot?
The volcanoes in the Hawaiian Island-Emperor Seamount chain get progressively older as one heads northwestward from Hawaii. These age relationships suggest that the Pacific Plate has been steadily moving northwestward, while the underlying mantle plume has remained relatively stationary.

How can plate tectonics be used to help explain the difference between a seamount and a tablemount?
A seamount is a volcano with a cone-shaped top, whereas a tablemount is a volcano with a flattened top. Though both of these features originate at the crest (and topographic high) of the mid-ocean ridge, a tablemount has been subject to wave erosion when it rises above sea level. When the crust containing the tablemount is pushed away from the crest (and therefore onto a topographically lower position), or is moved away from a hot spot, it is re-submerged with its flat top.

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