Question 1

Surface waves

Accepted Answer

A)  travel more rapidly than body waves. 
B)  produce most of the damage to buildings during earthquakes. 
C)  are the first waves produced in an earthquake. 
D)  are the first waves to arrive at a seismograph station after an earthquake. 
A)  travel more rapidly than body waves. 
B)  produce most of the damage to buildings during earthquakes. 
C)  are the first waves produced in an earthquake. 
D)  are the first waves to arrive at a seismograph station after an earthquake.

Question 2

Which earthquake scale measures the amplitude of deflection of a seismograph pen,standardized to an idealized distance of 100 km between the epicenter and the seismograph?

Accepted Answer

A)  the Richter scale 
B)  the Mercalli scale 
C)  the moment magnitude scale 
D)  the surface-wave magnitude scale 
A)  the Richter scale 
B)  the Mercalli scale 
C)  the moment magnitude scale 
D)  the surface-wave magnitude scale

Question 3

Faults that have moved recently or are likely to move in the future are referred to as ________ faults.

Accepted Answer

A)  passive 
B)  active 
C)  normal 
D)  reverse 
A)  passive 
B)  active 
C)  normal 
D)  reverse

Question 4

Seismic retrofitting is the process of

Accepted Answer

A)  predicting future earthquakes. 
B)  strengthening existing buildings and structures. 
C)  mapping areas prone to earthquakes. 
D)  fitting earthquake data after an event to see if it should have been predicted. 
A)  predicting future earthquakes. 
B)  strengthening existing buildings and structures. 
C)  mapping areas prone to earthquakes. 
D)  fitting earthquake data after an event to see if it should have been predicted.

Question 5

Earthquake warning systems

Accepted Answer

A)  are based on long-term predictions of earthquakes,allowing planners to schedule evacuations. 
B)  alert people just before an earthquake takes place,allowing them to evacuate buildings. 
C)  alert people when an earthquake has taken place,possibly giving them seconds to get to a safer place. 
D)  do not yet exist,but the technology is something seismologists are working on. 
A)  are based on long-term predictions of earthquakes,allowing planners to schedule evacuations. 
B)  alert people just before an earthquake takes place,allowing them to evacuate buildings. 
C)  alert people when an earthquake has taken place,possibly giving them seconds to get to a safer place. 
D)  do not yet exist,but the technology is something seismologists are working on.

Question 6

Why do deep-focus earthquakes occur along convergent plate boundaries? Why are they absent along divergent or transform boundaries?

Accepted Answer

Convergent plate boundaries result in su

Question 7

Earthquakes that occur in a band called the ________ can be used to track the motion of subducted oceanic lithosphere.

Accepted Answer

A)  Wegener belt 
B)  seismic gap 
C)  Wadati-Benioff zone 
D)  Richter zone 
A)  Wegener belt 
B)  seismic gap 
C)  Wadati-Benioff zone 
D)  Richter zone

Question 8

Why is an early warning system NOT considered a short-term earthquake prediction tool?

Accepted Answer

Early warning systems warn of

Question 9

Which type of fault does NOT,by definition,have a fault trace?

Accepted Answer

A)  normal fault 
B)  reverse fault 
C)  blind fault 
D)  All faults have recognizable traces. 
A)  normal fault 
B)  reverse fault 
C)  blind fault 
D)  All faults have recognizable traces.

Question 10

Geologists who specifically study earthquakes are called

Accepted Answer

A)  seismologists. 
B)  paleontologists. 
C)  volcanologists. 
D)  speleologists. 
A)  seismologists. 
B)  paleontologists. 
C)  volcanologists. 
D)  speleologists.

Question 11

During an earthquake,if the hanging wall slides upward relative to the footwall,the fault is termed a ________ fault if the fault is steep (closer to vertical than horizontal).Refer to the figure below for an example of such a feature.

Accepted Answer

A)  normal 
B)  reverse 
C)  strike-slip 
D)  thrust 
A)  normal 
B)  reverse 
C)  strike-slip 
D)  thrust

Question 12

How is the epicenter of an earthquake different from the focus? Why are both terms useful?

Accepted Answer

The focus,or hypocenter,of an earthquake

Question 13

An earthquake occurs with an epicenter in the town of New Madrid,Missouri,in the interior of the North American Plate.What is the most likely location of the hypocenter?

Accepted Answer

A)  in New Madrid (hypocenter and epicenter mean precisely the same thing) 
B)  20 km south of New Madrid 
C)  20 km beneath New Madrid 
D)  200 km beneath New Madrid 
A)  in New Madrid (hypocenter and epicenter mean precisely the same thing) 
B)  20 km south of New Madrid 
C)  20 km beneath New Madrid 
D)  200 km beneath New Madrid

Question 14

How is the Mercalli intensity scale used to determine the magnitude of an earthquake? What errors might be associated with this technique?

Accepted Answer

The Mercalli intensity scale defines ear

Question 15

A tsunami is

Accepted Answer

A)  a seawave generated by an earthquake,landslide,or submarine volcanic eruption that may destroy coastal cities thousands of kilometers from its source. 
B)  a sloshing of water back and forth within a lake or a bay. 
C)  a wave caused by unusually large tidal forces. 
D)  the tendency of wet,clay-rich soils to behave like a liquid during an earthquake. 
A)  a seawave generated by an earthquake,landslide,or submarine volcanic eruption that may destroy coastal cities thousands of kilometers from its source. 
B)  a sloshing of water back and forth within a lake or a bay. 
C)  a wave caused by unusually large tidal forces. 
D)  the tendency of wet,clay-rich soils to behave like a liquid during an earthquake.

Question 16

Which of the following structures is LEAST likely to survive an earthquake?

Accepted Answer

A)  a brick building 
B)  a wood frame building 
C)  a building made of reinforced concrete 
D)  an old building that has been seismically retrofitted 
A)  a brick building 
B)  a wood frame building 
C)  a building made of reinforced concrete 
D)  an old building that has been seismically retrofitted

Question 17

A primary force opposing motion on all faults is

Accepted Answer

A)  magnetic attraction among iron-rich minerals. 
B)  gravity. 
C)  friction. 
D)  the van der Waals force. 
A)  magnetic attraction among iron-rich minerals. 
B)  gravity. 
C)  friction. 
D)  the van der Waals force.

Question 18

The vast majority of earthquakes occur

Accepted Answer

A)  along transform-plate boundaries only. 
B)  near hot spots. 
C)  along passive margins. 
D)  along any plate boundary. 
A)  along transform-plate boundaries only. 
B)  near hot spots. 
C)  along passive margins. 
D)  along any plate boundary.

Question 19

Which earthquake severity scale varies from locality to locality for a single earthquake?

Accepted Answer

A)  the Richter scale 
B)  the Mercalli scale 
C)  the moment magnitude scale 
D)  the surface-wave magnitude scale 
A)  the Richter scale 
B)  the Mercalli scale 
C)  the moment magnitude scale 
D)  the surface-wave magnitude scale

Question 20

Sketch a seismogram that has recorded an earthquake.Be sure to label the arrival of each of the three types of seismic waves and include at least one aftershock.

Accepted Answer

Student answers shou

Exam 10: A Violent Pulse: Earthquakes

Surface waves

Which earthquake scale measures the amplitude of deflection of a seismograph pen,standardized to an idealized distance of 100 km between the epicenter and the seismograph?

Faults that have moved recently or are likely to move in the future are referred to as ________ faults.

Seismic retrofitting is the process of

Earthquake warning systems

Why do deep-focus earthquakes occur along convergent plate boundaries? Why are they absent along divergent or transform boundaries?

Earthquakes that occur in a band called the ________ can be used to track the motion of subducted oceanic lithosphere.

Why is an early warning system NOT considered a short-term earthquake prediction tool?

Which type of fault does NOT,by definition,have a fault trace?

Geologists who specifically study earthquakes are called

During an earthquake,if the hanging wall slides upward relative to the footwall,the fault is termed a ________ fault if the fault is steep (closer to vertical than horizontal).Refer to the figure below for an example of such a feature.

How is the epicenter of an earthquake different from the focus? Why are both terms useful?

An earthquake occurs with an epicenter in the town of New Madrid,Missouri,in the interior of the North American Plate.What is the most likely location of the hypocenter?

How is the Mercalli intensity scale used to determine the magnitude of an earthquake? What errors might be associated with this technique?

A tsunami is

Which of the following structures is LEAST likely to survive an earthquake?

A primary force opposing motion on all faults is

The vast majority of earthquakes occur

Which earthquake severity scale varies from locality to locality for a single earthquake?

Sketch a seismogram that has recorded an earthquake.Be sure to label the arrival of each of the three types of seismic waves and include at least one aftershock.

Cosmology and the Birth of the Earth

Journey to the Center of the Earth

Drifting Continents and Spreading Seas

The Way the Earth Works: Plate Tectonics

Patterns in Nature: Minerals

Up From the Inferno: Magma and Igneous Rocks

Pages of Earths Past: Sedimentary Rocks

Metamorphism: a Process of Change

The Wrath of Vulcan: Volcanic Eruptions

Crags,cracks,and Crumples: Crustal Deformation and Mountain Building

Deep Time: How Old Is Old

A Biography of the Earth

Squeezing Power From a Stone: Energy Resources

Riches in Rock: Mineral Resources

Unsafe Ground: Landslides and Other Mass Movements

Streams and Floods: the Geology of Running Water

Restless Realm: Oceans and Coasts

A Hidden Reserve: Groundwater

An Envelope of Gas: the Earths Atmosphere and Climate

Dry Regions: the Geology of Deserts

Amazing Ice: Glaciers and Ice Ages

Global Change in the Earth System

Introducing Rocks

a Surface Veneer: Sediments and Soils

the Rock Cycle in the Earth System

the Earths Interior, Revisited: Seismic Layering, Gravity, and the Magnetic Field

Memories of Past Life: Fossils and Evolution

Ever-Changing Landscapes and the Hydrologic Cycle

Prelude: and Just What Is Geology

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