Multiple Choice
Identify the choice that best
completes the statement or answers the question.
|
|
|
1.
|
Students in a science class examined an unknown material. They found that it
was made of four main components. They recorded the percent of each component in the graph
above.
Based on this evidence, what is the unknown substance?
a. | soil | c. | concrete | b. | quartz | d. | igneous rock |
|
|
|
2.
|
Farmers prefer to plant crops in soil that is rich
in nutrients. Which of these soil types would MOST LIKELY contain the most nutrients?
a. | soil that has many large rock particles in it
| c. | soil with a bedrock that is very close to the surface
| b. | soil that allows water to drain very easily through it
| d. | soil with a lot of decomposed organic material in it
|
|
|
|
3.
|
Soils have four basic components. What important
soil component is a by-product of the action of decomposers like bacteria and fungus?
a. | silt | c. | air
space | b. | humus | d. | minerals |
|
|
|
4.
|
In cold climates rocks are broken into pieces by
the action of water. This process that breaks down rocks and helps form soil can best be
explained as
a. | leaching of minerals from the rock.
| c. | chemical weathering due to water reacting with calcite.
| b. | decomposition due to the action of ice
crystals | d. | mechanical weathering due to alternate freezing and thawing.
|
|
|
|
5.
|
Chemical weathering of rocks occurs and helps to
form soils. Which of the following is an agent of chemical weathering?
a. | acid rain | c. | tree
roots growing through rocks | b. | freezing and
thawing | d. | rocks tumbling in a river or stream |
|
|
|
6.
|
Humus, silt, clay, and sand are all parts of
—
a. | fungi | c. | soil | b. | rocks | d. | plants |
|
|
|
7.
|
Organic matter in soil is made from —
a. | weathered parent rock. | c. | acid rain | b. | decayed plants and
animals | d. | carbon dioxide |
|
|
|
8.
|
Which of these is NOT a part of soil?
a. | humus | c. | plastic | b. | bits of
rock | d. | clay |
|
|
|
9.
|
Because of the long drought, hay is in short supply
and Farmer Brown is letting his cattle over-graze his pastures. Because of the over-grazing, what
should he predict will happen?
a. | The soil will become more fertile.
| c. | The soil will be eroded by wind and
water | b. | The grass in the pasture will grow faster.
| d. | The soil will become water soaked in the
spring |
|
|
|
10.
|
Farmer Brown has cut down a stand of pine trees so
he can plant corn in the spring. What would be a practical solution to help stop soil erosion during
the fall and winter when the corn is not growing?
a. | He could let cows graze in the
field | c. | He could surround the corn field with shrubs and a
fence. | b. | He could dig a pond next to the corn
field | d. | He could plow the corn under and then let the field lay
dormant |
|
|
|
11.
|
Tropical rain forests are being cut down to create
farms and pastures, and to harvest trees for construction. What has this type deforestation
increased?
a. | soil erosion | c. | fertilizers | b. | soil
moisture | d. | microorganisms |
|
|
|
12.
|
Sedimentary rocks are not found on the Moon because
a. | there is no silicon on the Moon | c. | the Moon’s gravity is too weak | b. | lava flows are missing from the surface | d. | there is no
weathering on the Moon |
|
|
|
13.
|
The major process that wears down whole mountain
ranges is
a. | earthquakes | c. | plate
movement | b. | weathering | d. | silt
deposition |
|
|
|
14.
|
The surfaces of old concrete statues are often
covered with small holes or pits. Which of these MOST LIKELY causes these holes or
pits?
a. | long exposure to sunlight causes the pits to
form | c. | the concrete is chipped away by sand particles blown by
strong winds | b. | the concrete is
chemically weathered by acid rain | d. | the concrete becomes pitted as water freezes in small
cracks in the statue |
|
|
|
15.
|
Over time, this rocky cliff will become many smaller rocks and eventually sand
particles. This is due to which process?a. | erosion | c. | weathering | b. | deposition | d. | evaporization |
|