1. Exam 1 Practice Start Practice Test OCNG 251-505 Click here to
For more practice:
Exam 1 Sample Questions
Earth Origin PowerPoint
Oceanography History PowerPoint
Plate Tectonics PowerPoint A and B
Marine Provinces PowerPoint
Marine Sediments PowerPoint

2. The magnetic pattern on the seafloor
a. is created by lava emerging at deep sea trenches
b. is symmetrical about and parallel to mid-ocean ridges
c. has been used to explain the cause of magnetic reversals
d. confirms the theory of continental drift
e. all of the above

3. b - symmetrical about and parallel to mid- ocean ridges

4. The first voyage designed solely to collect oceanographic data was aboard the
a. Fram
b. Meteor
c. HMS Challenger
d. Pangaea
e. JOIDES Resolution

5. c - HMS Challenger

6. The seafloor
a. increases in age from the ridge outward
b. is oldest at the ridge
c. shows no systematic age pattern

7. a - increases in age from the ridge outward

8. Which of the following led the first voyage that circumnavigated the world?
a. Christopher Columbus
b. Vasco da Gama
c. Sir Francis Drake
d. Ferdinand Magellan
e. none of the above

9. d - Magellan

10. Which important contribution did Benjamin Franklin make?
a. organized effort to produce accurate map of the Gulf Stream
b. described the relationship between coral reefs and volcanic islands
c. noted that rocks found on land must have formed in the ocean since they had seashells in them
d. made important observations about the chemistry of seawater

11. a - map of Gulf Stream

12. Which explorer sought to determine whether a continent existed near the North Pole?
a. James Cook
b. Fridtjof Nansen
c. Sir John Ross
d. John Cabot
e. Ferdinand Magellan

13. b - Nansen

14. The primary evidence for the Big Bang is
a. the presence of many solar systems other than our own
b. the size of the planets within the solar system
c. the Milky Way
d. galaxies moving away from a central point
e. the age of the earth and moon

15. d - galaxies moving away from a central point

16. Continental crust is primarily made of
a. clay minerals
b. basalt
c. granite
d. phyllites and schists
e. carbonate sedimentary rocks

17. c - granite

18. Oceanic crust is primarily made of
a. clay minerals
b. basalt
c. granite
d. phyllites and schists
e. carbonate sedimentary rocks

19. b - basalt

20. Which unique conditions appear to cause Earth to have oceans?
a. age
b. size
c. distance from Sun
d. presence of the moon

21. c - distance from the sun

22. Free oxygen first accumulated in our atmosphere in significant amounts about _______ million years ago.
a. 2000
b. 200
c. 20
d. 2

23. a

24. Differences in height between continental crust and oceanic crust are explained by
a. isostasy
b. continental drift
c. paleomagnetism
d. ophiolites

25. a - isostasy

26. Movement of particles as a P wave passes through can be best described as
a. compression and extension in the direction of the wave movement
b. compression and extension in a direction perpendicular to wave movement
c. shear motion perpendicular to the direction of wave movement
d. shear motion in the direction parallel to wave movement

27. a - compression and expansion in the direction of wave movement

28. Movement of particles as an S wave passes through can be best described as
a. compression and extension in the direction of the wave movement
b. compression and extension in a direction perpendicular to wave movement
c. shear motion perpendicular to the direction of wave movement
d. shear motion in the direction parallel to wave movement

29. c - shear motion perpendicular to the direction of wave movement

30. Which of the following can be found at convergent plate boundaries on the seafloor?
a. crest of a mid-ocean ridge
b. offset of a mid-ocean ridge
c. deep sea trenches
d. fracture zones

31. c - deep sea trenches

32. Transform faults are _________ while fracture zones are ____________.
a. seismically active; aseismic
b. aseismic; seismically active
c. convergent; divergent
d. divergent; convergent

33. a - seismically active; aseismic

34. Which of the following is characteristic of oceanic-oceanic convergent plate boundaries?
a. volcanic island arcs
b. andesitic volcanoes
c. mid-ocean ridges
d. fracture zones

35. a - volcanic island arcs

36. Which of the following is characteristic of oceanic-continental convergent plate boundaries?
a. volcanic island arcs
b. andesitic volcanoes
c. mid-ocean ridges
d. fracture zones

37. b - andesitic volcanoes

38. The gentlest slopes in the ocean can be found at the
a. continental slope
b. mid-ocean ridges
c. abyssal plains
d. continental shelf

39. c - abyssal plains

40. Characteristics of passive continental margins include all of the following except
a. thick sediment accumulation
b. broad continental shelf
c. deep-sea trench
d. very little volcanic and earthquake activity

41. c - deep-sea trench

42. Characteristics of active continental margins include all of the following except
a. broad continental shelf
b. deep-sea trench
c. chains of islands
d. lots of volcanic and earthquake activity
e. thin sediment accumulation

43. a - broad continental shelf

44. Walking away from the shore toward the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, in what order would one find the following provinces?
a. slope, rise, shelf, abyssal plain
b. shelf, slope, rise, abyssal plain
c. abyssal plain, rise, slope, shelf
d. abyssal plain, shelf, slope, rise

45. b - shelf, slope, rise, abyssal plain

46. Shelf break marks the boundary between the ________ and the __________.
a. shelf; rise
b. shelf; slope
c. shelf; abyssal plain
d. slope; rise

47. b - shelf; slope

48. Sediments which are poorly sorted and made of a variety of minerals might have been deposited by
a. a volcanic eruption
b. the wind
c. a river
d. a turbidity current

49. d - a turbidity current

50. Which of the following is made of calcium carbonate?
a. granite
b. basalt
c. diatoms
d. shark's teeth
e. foraminifera

51. e - foraminifera

52. Which of the following is made of silica?
a. phosphorites
b. corals
c. diatoms
d. foraminifera
e. coccolithophores

53. c - diatoms

54. The most likely place to find abundant manganese nodules is
a. a continental shelf
b. an abyssal plain far from a continent
c. near the crest of a mid-ocean ridge
d. in the Atlantic Ocean basin
e. all of the above have abundant nodules

55. b - an abyssal plain far from a continent

56. Sediments derived from preexisting rocks are called
lithogenous
biogenous
c. hydrogenous
d. cosmogenous

57. a - lithogenous

58. Sediments produced by plants and animals in the sea are called
lithogenous
biogenous
c. hydrogenous
d. cosmogenous

59. b - biogenous

60. Sediments produced as a result of chemical reactions in seawater are called
a. lithogenous
b. biogenous
c. hydrogenous
d. cosmogenous

61. c - hydrogenous

62. All of the following are terrestrial sediments except
a. clays
b. beach sand
c. diatom ooze
d. glacial deposits
e. volcanogenic particles

63. c - diatom ooze

64. Biogenous sediments might be composed of all of the following except
a. coralline sands
b. diatoms
c. coccolithophores
d. foraminifera
e. red clay

65. e - red clay