Earth Science, 13e (Tarbuck)

Chapter 8 Earthquakes and Earth's Interior

1) The elastic rebound theory for the origin of earthquakes was first proposed by ________
following the ________ earthquake.
A) Reid; 1906, San Francisco
B) Giuseppe; 1925, Pizza Lake
C) Richter; 1989, Loma Prieta
D) Mohorovicic; 1964, Anchorage
Answer: A
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.2 What is an Earthquake?
Bloom's: Remembering
2) When an earthquake occurs, energy radiates in all directions from its source. The source is
also referred to as the ________.
A) inertial point
B) epicenter
C) focus
D) seismic zone
Answer: C
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.2 What is an Earthquake?
Bloom's: Remembering
3) Which one of the following statements is correct?
A) P waves travel through solids; S waves do not.
B) P and S waves travel through liquids, but P waves do not travel through solids.
C) S waves travel through solids and P waves travel through liquids.
D) P and S waves travel through liquids, but S waves do not travel through solids.
Answer: C
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.4 Seismology: The Study of Earthquake Waves
Bloom's: Analyzing
4) ________ have the highest velocities.
A) Primary waves
B) Secondary waves
C) Surface waves
D) Refracted S waves
Answer: A
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.4 Seismology: The Study of Earthquake Waves
Bloom's: Remembering

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5) Which one of the following is true regarding tsunamis?

A) They travel as deep-water waves at speeds greater than surface seismic waves but slower than
S waves.
B) Their wave heights decrease and wavelengths increase as they move into shallower water.
C) They are started by fault-induced, horizontal shifts in the seafloor that suddenly propel great
masses of water in opposite directions.
D) They occur in the open ocean, wavelengths are many miles or kilometers and wave heights
are only a few feet.
Answer: D
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.8 Earthquake Destruction
Bloom's: Analyzing
6) The amount of destruction caused by earthquake vibrations is affected by ________.
A) design of structures
B) intensity and duration of the vibrations
C) nature of the surface material
D) all of these
Answer: D
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.8 Earthquake Destruction
Bloom's: Remembering
7) On a typical seismogram, ________ will show the highest amplitudes.
A) P waves
B) S waves
C) surface waves
D) body waves
Answer: C
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.4 Seismology: The Study of Earthquake Waves
Bloom's: Remembering
8) Major earthquakes are often followed by somewhat smaller events known as ________.
A) aftershocks
B) foreshocks
C) tremors
D) hyposhocks
Answer: A
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.2 What is an Earthquake?
Bloom's: Remembering

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9) The ________ magnitude scale is a measure of the energy released. It does not directly
measure the extent of building damage.
A) Gutenberg
B) Reid
C) Mercalli
D) Richter
Answer: D
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.6 Measuring the Size of Earthquakes
Bloom's: Remembering
10) The instrument that records earthquake waves is termed a ________.
A) polygraph
B) thermograph
C) seismograph
D) barograph
Answer: C
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.4 Seismology: The Study of Earthquake Waves
Bloom's: Remembering
11) ________ is the maximum possible damage designation on the Mercalli scale.
A) XII
B) 3
C) X
D) 10
Answer: A
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.6 Measuring the Size of Earthquakes
Bloom's: Remembering
12) The position on Earth's surface directly above the earthquake source is called the ________.
A) epicenter
B) inertial point
C) focus
D) seismic zone
Answer: A
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.2 What is an Earthquake?
Bloom's: Remembering

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13) The mechanism by which rocks store and eventually release energy in the form of an
earthquake is termed ________.
A) elastic rebound
B) seismic rebound
C) fault displacement
D) stress fracture
Answer: A
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.2 What is an Earthquake?
Bloom's: Remembering
14) Overall, this type of seismic wave is the most destructive.
A) P wave
B) S wave
C) surface wave
D) tsunami
Answer: C
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.4 Seismology: The Study of Earthquake Waves
Bloom's: Remembering
15) Approximately how much more energy is released in a 6.5 Richter magnitude earthquake
than in one with magnitude 5.5?
A) 3000 times
B) 3 times
C) 300 times
D) 30 times
Answer: D
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.6 Measuring the Size of Earthquakes
Bloom's: Applying
16) P waves ________.
A) propagate only in solids
B) are faster than S waves and surface waves
C) have higher amplitudes than do S waves
D) produce the strongest ground shaking
Answer: B
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.4 Seismology: The Study of Earthquake Waves
Bloom's: Remembering

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17) The Mercalli Scale is a scale from ________.

A) 1 to 12 that rates the energy required for faulting to occur
B) 1 to 10 that rates the energy released by an earthquake
C) I to XII that rates the structural damage due to an earthquake
D) I to X that rates the total energy released during the main quake and all aftershocks
Answer: C
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.6 Measuring the Size of Earthquakes
Bloom's: Remembering
18) The distance between a seismological recording station and the earthquake source is
determined from the ________.
A) earthquake magnitude
B) intensity of the earthquake
C) length of the seismic record
D) arrival times of P and S waves
Answer: D
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.5 Locating the Source of an Earthquake
Bloom's: Remembering
19) The Richter magnitude of an earthquake is determined from the ________.
A) duration of the earthquake
B) intensity of the earthquake
C) arrival time of P and S waves
D) amplitude of the largest seismic wave
Answer: D
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.6 Measuring the Size of Earthquakes
Bloom's: Remembering
20) Which one of the following best characterizes tsunamis?
A) They cause the land to ripple and oscillate.
B) They are faster than seismic surface waves.
C) They have relatively small amplitudes compared to their very long wavelengths.
D) They are easily seen at sea but are lost in the swell and breaking waves along a coast.
Answer: C
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.8 Earthquake Destruction
Bloom's: Remembering

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21) The ________ earthquake was accompanied by extensive fire damage.

A) Anchorage, 1964
B) San Francisco, 1906
C) Mexico City, 1985
D) Yerevan, Armenia, 1988
Answer: B
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.8 Earthquake Destruction
Bloom's: Remembering
22) ________ refers to the tendency for a foundation material to lose its internal cohesion and
fail mechanically during earthquake shaking.
A) Slurrying
B) Liquefaction
C) Motion slip
D) Seismoflowage
Answer: B
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.8 Earthquake Destruction
Bloom's: Remembering
23) The record of an earthquake obtained from a seismic instrument is a(n) ________.
A) seismograph
B) seismogram
C) time-travel graph
D) epigraph
Answer: A
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.4 Seismology: The Study of Earthquake Waves
Bloom's: Remembering
24) Most of our knowledge about Earth's interior comes from ________.
A) drill holes
B) volcanic eruptions
C) seismic waves
D) examination of deep mine shafts
Answer: C
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.10 Earth's Interior
Bloom's: Remembering

Copyright 2012 Pearson Education, Inc.

25) Which one of the following statements about the crust is NOT true?
A) It is the thinnest of the major subdivisions.
B) It is thickest where prominent mountains exist.
C) Oceanic crust is enriched in potassium, sodium, and silicon.
D) Continental rocks are compositionally different than oceanic rocks.
Answer: C
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.10 Earth's Interior
Bloom's: Analyzing
26) The dense core of Earth is thought to consist predominantly of ________.
A) nickel
B) lead
C) iron
D) copper
Answer: C
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.10 Earth's Interior
Bloom's: Remembering
27) The lithosphere is defined as ________.
A) a rocky layer having a relatively uniform chemical composition
B) a rigid layer of crustal and mantle material
C) a rocky layer composed mainly of crustal rocks
D) a plastic layer composed mainly of mantle material
Answer: B
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.10 Earth's Interior
Bloom's: Remembering
28) The average composition of the oceanic crust is thought to approximate that of ________.
A) granite
B) basalt
C) peridotite
D) iron
Answer: B
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.10 Earth's Interior
Bloom's: Remembering

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29) The average composition of the continental crust most closely approximates that of
________.
A) granite
B) basalt
C) peridotite
D) iron
Answer: A
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.10 Earth's Interior
Bloom's: Remembering
30) The Earth's magnetic field originates by ________.
A) weak electrical currents associated with hot, rising, mantle plumes
B) magnetic mineral grains in the inner core
C) weak electrical currents associated with fluid motions in the outer core
D) magnetization of oxygen and nitrogen atoms in the atmospheric ozone layer by solar radiation
Answer: C
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.10 Earth's Interior
Bloom's: Remembering
31) The asthenosphere is located ________.
A) within the crust
B) in the upper mantle
C) between the mantle and outer core
D) within the outer core
Answer: B
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.10 Earth's Interior
Bloom's: Remembering
Word Analysis. Examine the words and/or phrases for each question below and determine the
relationship among the majority of words/phrases. Choose the option which does not fit the
pattern.
32) P wave
S wave
surface wave
body wave
Answer: surface wave
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.4 Seismology: The Study of Earthquake Waves
Bloom's: Analyzing
33) focus
seismograph
epicenter
Answer: seismograph
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.2 What is an Earthquake?
Bloom's: Analyzing

fault

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34) tsunami
fire
liquefaction
Answer: amplitude
Diff: 2
Topic: 8.8 Earthquake Destruction
Bloom's: Analyzing

amplitude

35) Modified Mercalli

energy
Richter
Answer: Modified Mercalli
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.6 Measuring the Size of Earthquakes
Bloom's: Analyzing
36) crust
biosphere
Answer: biosphere
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.10 Earth's Interior
Bloom's: Analyzing
37) core
asthenosphere
Answer: core
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.10 Earth's Interior
Bloom's: Analyzing

core

amplitude

mantle

mantle

lithosphere

38) S waves can travel through solid and liquid media.

Answer: FALSE
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.4 Seismology: The Study of Earthquake Waves
Bloom's: Analyzing
39) The time between the first P-wave and S-wave arrivals is a measure of the distance from a
receiving station to the epicenter of the earthquake.
Answer: TRUE
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.5 Locating the Source of an Earthquake
Bloom's: Analyzing
40) Earthquakes result from the sudden release of elastic strain energy previously stored in rocks
surrounding a zone of fault movement.
Answer: TRUE
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.2 What is an Earthquake?
Bloom's: Analyzing

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41) Tsunamis are caused by sudden displacement of large volumes of seawater.

Answer: TRUE
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.8 Earthquake Destruction
Bloom's: Analyzing
42) The Richter earthquake magnitude scale is based on the total amount of energy released by
the earthquake.
Answer: TRUE
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.6 Measuring the Size of Earthquakes
Bloom's: Analyzing
43) The epicenter of an earthquake is on the surface of the Earth directly above the focus.
Answer: TRUE
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.2 What is an Earthquake?
Bloom's: Analyzing
44) Unconsolidated, water-saturated soils or sediments provide good foundation materials for
buildings and other structures.
Answer: FALSE
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.8 Earthquake Destruction
Bloom's: Analyzing
45) Oceanic crust is mainly basaltic in composition; the mantle is more like the igneous rock
peridotite in chemical composition.
Answer: TRUE
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.10 Earth's Interior
Bloom's: Analyzing
46) Continental crust is generally thicker than oceanic crust.
Answer: TRUE
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.10 Earth's Interior
Bloom's: Analyzing
47) The crust and mantle are solids; the inner core is thought to be solid.
Answer: TRUE
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.10 Earth's Interior
Bloom's: Analyzing

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48) The mantle is composed mainly of metallic iron with small amounts of magnesium silicate
minerals.
Answer: FALSE
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.10 Earth's Interior
Bloom's: Analyzing
49) What instrument is used to record earthquake vibrations?
Answer: seismograph
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.4 Seismology: The Study of Earthquake Waves
Bloom's: Remembering
50) ________ is the name of the earthquake-magnitude scale based on the amount of seismic
energy released during the event.
Answer: Richter
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.6 Measuring the Size of Earthquakes
Bloom's: Remembering
51) ________ is another name commonly used by scientists to denote seismic sea waves induced
by earthquakes.
Answer: Tsunami
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.8 Earthquake Destruction
Bloom's: Remembering
52) An earthquake of magnitude 7.5 releases about how much more energy than one of
magnitude 5.5?
Answer: 900 times more
Diff: 2
Topic: 8.6 Measuring the Size of Earthquakes
Bloom's: Applying
53) The ________ is the site of initial rupturing associated with an earthquake.
Answer: focus
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.2 What is an Earthquake?
Bloom's: Remembering
54) What is thought to be the material state (liquid, solid, gas) and elemental composition of
Earth's outer core?
Answer: liquid iron
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.10 Earth's Interior
Bloom's: Analyzing
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55) ________ is the cool, brittle, outer layer of Earth that includes the crust and uppermost
mantle.
Answer: Lithosphere
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.10 Earth's Interior
Bloom's: Remembering
56) ________ is the layer of warm rock below the crust and uppermost mantle that readily
deforms and flows plastically.
Answer: Asthenosphere
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.10 Earth's Interior
Bloom's: Remembering
57) The ________ core is probably solid.
Answer: inner
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.10 Earth's Interior
Bloom's: Remembering
58) The upper mantle is very close in chemical and mineralogical composition to ________.
Answer: peridotite
Diff: 1
Topic: 8.10 Earth's Interior
Bloom's: Remembering
Critical Thinking and Discussion. Use complete sentences, correct spelling, and the
information presented in Chapter 8 to answer the questions below.
59) Would earthquakes of similar magnitudes in different regions of the Earth cause
approximately the same levels of damage necessarily? In your explanation, consider both
geologic and human-induced factors.
Diff: 3
Topic: 8.8 Earthquake Destruction
Bloom's: Applying
60) Since much of our knowledge of Earth's interior is inferred from the behavior of seismic
waves and not actual samples, what are some of the assumptions that are made in order for our
models to be correct? (Hint: Think of earth materials, physical and chemical parameters, etc.)
Diff: 3
Topic: 8.10 Earth's Interior
Bloom's: Remembering

12

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61) Label the focus and epicenter on the diagram below.

Answer: See Figure 8.2 in Chapter 8 of Earth Science, 13e

Diff: 1
Topic: 8.2 What is an Earthquake?
Bloom's: Applying

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