Question 1

What role (if any)will our changing climate play in future desertification?

Accepted Answer

Average global temperatures wi

Question 2

Why do deserts lack thick deposits of soil?

Accepted Answer

A) Low temperatures and high soil moisture contents accelerate chemical weathering. 
B) Warm temperatures and high soil moisture contents accelerate chemical weathering. 
C) Warm temperatures and low soil moisture contents allow some mechanical weathering. 
D) Temperature has no effect on rock weathering. 
A) Low temperatures and high soil moisture contents accelerate chemical weathering. 
B) Warm temperatures and high soil moisture contents accelerate chemical weathering. 
C) Warm temperatures and low soil moisture contents allow some mechanical weathering. 
D) Temperature has no effect on rock weathering.

Question 3

What is the definition of an ephemeral stream?

Accepted Answer

A) A distributary channel on a stream delta 
B) A stream that meanders back and forth across a valley 
C) A stream that has interweaving channels and is choked with sediment 
D) An intermittent stream that only has water after specific episodes of rain 
A) A distributary channel on a stream delta 
B) A stream that meanders back and forth across a valley 
C) A stream that has interweaving channels and is choked with sediment 
D) An intermittent stream that only has water after specific episodes of rain

Question 4

What is a yardang?

Accepted Answer

A) A wind-sculpted landform oriented parallel to the prevailing wind, often narrow at the base 
B) A small rock polished and pitted on the exposed surface 
C) A shallow depression created by deflation 
D) A pit worn into a rock by circular currents of flowing water 
A) A wind-sculpted landform oriented parallel to the prevailing wind, often narrow at the base 
B) A small rock polished and pitted on the exposed surface 
C) A shallow depression created by deflation 
D) A pit worn into a rock by circular currents of flowing water

Question 5

What feature is present in this image?

Accepted Answer

A) Blowout 
B) Yardang 
C) Desert pavement 
D) Dune 
A) Blowout 
B) Yardang 
C) Desert pavement 
D) Dune

Question 6

What are the two primary sources for loess?

Accepted Answer

A) Lakes and streams 
B) Deserts and glacial deposits 
C) Atmosphere and volcanoes 
D) Shallow seas and lakes 
A) Lakes and streams 
B) Deserts and glacial deposits 
C) Atmosphere and volcanoes 
D) Shallow seas and lakes

Question 7

Which of the following statements about deserts is true?

Accepted Answer

A) Although rainfalls are infrequent, erosion and deposition related to water are important in deserts. 
B) Deserts are located where there are ascending air masses and low atmospheric pressure. 
C) Deserts are defined by their sand content. 
D) Deserts are always located in hot, humid coastal areas. 
A) Although rainfalls are infrequent, erosion and deposition related to water are important in deserts. 
B) Deserts are located where there are ascending air masses and low atmospheric pressure. 
C) Deserts are defined by their sand content. 
D) Deserts are always located in hot, humid coastal areas.

Question 8

Within water-deficient regions, two climatic types are recognized.What are they?

Accepted Answer

A) Subpolar high and subpolar low 
B) Ephemeral and playa 
C) Desert and steppe 
D) Saltation and tropical 
A) Subpolar high and subpolar low 
B) Ephemeral and playa 
C) Desert and steppe 
D) Saltation and tropical

Question 9

Streams in arid areas generally lack an extensive network of tributaries because they tend to be ephemeral.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 10

How can cold coastal currents along the west coasts of continents generate subtropical deserts?

Accepted Answer

Because of the cold water, temperatures

Question 11

How was the Salt Pan at Death Valley created? What is the name of such a desert feature?

Accepted Answer

A) Stream erosion; wadi 
B) Precipitation; nullah 
C) Evaporation; playa 
D) Chemical reactions; ephemeral 
A) Stream erosion; wadi 
B) Precipitation; nullah 
C) Evaporation; playa 
D) Chemical reactions; ephemeral

Question 12

Due to the lack of chemical weathering, there is a great deal of clay-sized sediment in desert areas.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 13

What percentage of Earth's land area is covered by dry regions such as deserts and steppes?

Accepted Answer

A) 14 percent 
B) 30 percent 
C) 9 percent 
D) 50 percent 
A) 14 percent 
B) 30 percent 
C) 9 percent 
D) 50 percent

Question 14

What process is illustrated in this image?

Accepted Answer

A) Formation of a bajada 
B) Rainshadow effect 
C) Saltation 
D) Migration of sand dunes 
A) Formation of a bajada 
B) Rainshadow effect 
C) Saltation 
D) Migration of sand dunes

Question 15

Which of the following areas is known for its rainshadow deserts?

Accepted Answer

A) The Sahara in Africa 
B) South America east of the Andes 
C) Central Iran 
D) Great Valley of Central California 
A) The Sahara in Africa 
B) South America east of the Andes 
C) Central Iran 
D) Great Valley of Central California

Question 16

Which set of characteristics would best fit a geologically recent fault block mountain uplift?

Accepted Answer

A) Large, broad bajadas with many inselbergs 
B) Small playas and large alluvial fans 
C) Flat upland surface, steep slopes, and small alluvial fans 
D) Extensive playas ringed by large sand dunes 
A) Large, broad bajadas with many inselbergs 
B) Small playas and large alluvial fans 
C) Flat upland surface, steep slopes, and small alluvial fans 
D) Extensive playas ringed by large sand dunes

Question 17

Which mechanical weathering process will be most common in an arid environment?

Accepted Answer

A) Salt wedging 
B) Abrasion 
C) Root wedging 
D) Exfoliation 
A) Salt wedging 
B) Abrasion 
C) Root wedging 
D) Exfoliation

Question 18

Which one of the following statements about landforms is correct?

Accepted Answer

A) Alluvial fans typically rim desert valleys. 
B) Playas form on high cuestas in arid areas. 
C) Inselbergs are composed of coarse sands and gravels. 
D) Inselbergs are found in low, circular depressions. 
A) Alluvial fans typically rim desert valleys. 
B) Playas form on high cuestas in arid areas. 
C) Inselbergs are composed of coarse sands and gravels. 
D) Inselbergs are found in low, circular depressions.

Question 19

Why doesn't interior drainage, such as the drainage that develops in deserts, flow out of the desert?

Accepted Answer

A) The water flows underground. 
B) The water fills large lakes. 
C) The water evaporates. 
D) The water freezes. 
A) The water flows underground. 
B) The water fills large lakes. 
C) The water evaporates. 
D) The water freezes.

Question 20

What feature is visible in this image?

Accepted Answer

A) Blowout 
B) Bajada 
C) Desert pavement 
D) Ventifact 
A) Blowout 
B) Bajada 
C) Desert pavement 
D) Ventifact

Exam 19: Deserts and Winds

What role (if any)will our changing climate play in future desertification?

Why do deserts lack thick deposits of soil?

What is the definition of an ephemeral stream?

What is a yardang?

What feature is present in this image?

What are the two primary sources for loess?

Which of the following statements about deserts is true?

Within water-deficient regions, two climatic types are recognized.What are they?

Streams in arid areas generally lack an extensive network of tributaries because they tend to be ephemeral.

How can cold coastal currents along the west coasts of continents generate subtropical deserts?

How was the Salt Pan at Death Valley created? What is the name of such a desert feature?

Due to the lack of chemical weathering, there is a great deal of clay-sized sediment in desert areas.

What percentage of Earth's land area is covered by dry regions such as deserts and steppes?

What process is illustrated in this image?

Which of the following areas is known for its rainshadow deserts?

Which set of characteristics would best fit a geologically recent fault block mountain uplift?

Which mechanical weathering process will be most common in an arid environment?

Which one of the following statements about landforms is correct?

Why doesn't interior drainage, such as the drainage that develops in deserts, flow out of the desert?

What feature is visible in this image?

An Introduction to Geology

Plate Tectonics: a Scientific Revolution Unfolds

Matter and Minerals

Magma, Igneous Rocks, and Intrusive Activity

Volcanoes and Volcanic Hazards

Weathering and Soil

Sedimentary Rocks

Metamorphism and Metamorphic Rocks

Geologic Time

Crustal Deformation

Earthquakes

Earths Interior

Divergent Boundaries

Convergent Boundaries

Mass Wasting

Running Water

Groundwater

Glaciers and Glaciation

Shorelines

Global Climate Change

Earths Evolution Through Geologic Time

Energy and Mineral Resources

Touring Our Solar System

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