Geology Midterm

Front 1

What are the five spatial themes for geography?

Back 1

Location, region, human-earth relationships, movement and place.

Front 2

Define spatial analysis.

Back 2

A method geography synthesizes topics from many fields, integrating information to form a whole-earth concept.

Front 3

Define the systems theory.

Back 3

A system is any ordered interrelated set of things and their attributes, linked by flows of energy and matter, as distinct from the surrounding environment outside the system.

Front 4

Define physical geography.

Back 4

A spatial analysis of all the physical elements and process systems that make up the environment.

Front 5

What are a few of the environments geologists study?

Back 5

energy, air, water, weather, climate, landforms, soils, animals, plants, earth...

Front 6

What are the three abiotic spheres that make up Earth's environment? Relate these to the biotic sphere: the biosphere.

Back 6

An abiotic sphere is nonliving. Those spheres are the atmosphere, lithosphere and hydrosphere. These three spheres make up the biosphere.

Front 7

What is GPS and how does it assist you in finding location and elevation on Earth? Give a couple of examples where GPS technology was utilized to correct heights for some famous mountains.

Back 7

GPS is also known as global positioning system. It's done by using 24 satellites and 6 different orbital planes that transmit navigational signals for earth bound use. A GPS receiver is now built into tons of everyday technology and senses signals from a minimum of three satellites for location and four satellites to measure the receivers altitude. This is accomplished by calculating the distance between each satellite and receiver using clocks built into each instrument that time radio signals travelling at the speed of light between them. GPS was used in determining the height of Mt. Everest and Mt. Rainier.

Front 8

The major decision in selecting a map projection is deciding between ___________.

Back 8

equal area and true shape

Front 9

What is unique about the science of geography? On the basis of information in this chapter, define physical geography and review the geographic approach.

Back 9

The science of geography combines natural systems such as geographic areas, society, cultural activities and the interdependence of all of these over space. Everything we do has to do with geography in some way. That is what's unique to geography in comparison to all other sciences and subjects. Physical geography is the science concerned with the spatial aspects and interactions of the physical elements and processes that make up the environment: energy, air, water, etc.

Front 10

In general terms, how might a physical geographer analyze water pollution in the Great Lakes?

Back 10

Physical geographers can depict the lake elevations, flows, volumes and yearly mixing patterns as temperatures change seasonally. Physical geographers may also find population centers and point sources of pollution which would require using population concentrations estimate non-point sources of pollution. They can map published data of water chemical analyses. Geographers may also use a GIS model to develop a composite cover of all the above essentials.

Front 11

The atmosphere, lithosphere, and hydrosphere are examples of __________ systems.

Back 11

Abiotic

Front 12

__________ feedback acts to stabilize a system.

Back 12

Negative

Front 13

State whether the following ratios are large scale, medium scale, or small scale: 1:3,168,000; 1:24,000; 1:250,000.

Back 13

The first one of the three is from a small scale, the second is from a large scale and the third example is from a medium scale.

Front 14

If you were in charge of planning the development of a large tract of land, how would GIS methodologies assist you? How might planning and zoning be affected if a portion of the tract in the GIS is a floodplain or prime agricultural land?

Back 14

GIS would give me a detailed example of the land and all that the land is worth. Meaning it would show me all the different layers from the topographic base, the floodplains and the soils (also including much more detailed information). GIS is defined as a computer based, data processing tool for gathering, manipulating and analyzing geographic information. It alloys direct surveys to be made which would greatly help in the makings of a large developmental plan. Planning and zoning might be affected lands in floodplains and agricultural land because they are always changing properties that could be washed away/flooded during a flood.

Front 15

Suggest a representative example for each of the five geographic themes and use that theme in a sentence, such as, atmospheric and oceanic circulation spreading radioactive contamination is an example of the movement theme. I am specifically looking for why each example is associated with this theme and not with another theme. Be very specific in your response.

Back 15

Location identifies a specific address or absolute and relative portion of land. A great example of this would be where the equator is or my own personal home address. Place identifies 'places' because there are no two places that are exactly the same. This includes both human and physical aspects of the specific location. An example of this may be that Walla Walla is a prime place to make and sell wine because of the specific climate that allows the grapes to mature specifically in. Region is an area defined by uniform physical or human characteristics. An example of region would be the northwest because it's climate is specifically one of four seasons. Movement is defined as the communication, migration and diffusion across earths surfaces in our interdependent world. An example of this would be the pollution in the air and how it moves about through out atmosphere. Lastly, Human-Earth Relationships could consist of natural hazards such as earth quakes and tornadoes and avala

Front 16

Geography is described as a_________ science.

Back 16

Physical geography

Front 17

If increased levels of carbon dioxide lead to further increases in temperature by promoting the release of even more carbon dioxide from the oceans, this means that ________ feedback has occurred and that the planet is ________

Back 17

positive; out of equilibrium

Front 18

How far north you live from the equator is measured as your ________, whereas an imaginary line marking all those places at that same distance north of the equator is called a ________.

Back 18

latitude; parallel

Front 19

The larger the scale of a map, the ________ the area covered by the map and the ________ detail it provides.

Back 19

smaller; more

Front 20

Global Positioning System (GPS) units are used for what....?

Back 20

-are used by surveyors and the military.
-show your location accurate to 100 m.
-recently found the correct height of Mount Everest to be 8850 m (29,035 feet.)
-are used in Precision Agriculture.

Front 21

Which of the following compose the fundamental duality in the field of geography?

Back 21

physical versus human/cultural

Front 22

What was the cause of the “sickness of the Andes” from Suzuki?

Back 22

Lack of oxygen

Front 23

A principal methodology governing geographic inquiry

Back 23

involves spatial analysis.

Front 24

Relative to the fundamental themes of geography, the Taj Mahal in India and Ayers Rock in Australia are best described within which of the five themes?

Back 24

Location or place?

Front 25

The scientific method is described as?

Back 25

The application of common sense, a series of procedures developed by Newton and the development of hypothesis in predicting and testing

Front 26

What are examples of a system?

Back 26

a leaf, a river drainage basin, a midlatitude cyclonic storm

Front 27

What type of feedback maintains stability in a system, i.e., what type of feedback keeps a system functioning properly?

Back 27

Negative

Front 28

If a system responds to a change in input by moving further away from its equilibrium condition, what type of feedback has occurred?

Back 28

Positive

Front 29

The increase in meltponds in Arctic regions is an example of

Back 29

positive feedback, because the melt ponds absorb more solar energy than the ice did.

Front 30

The science that specifically attempts to determine Earth's shape and size by surveys and mathematical means is called

Back 30

Geodesy

Front 31

The basis for defining the length of a day is the fact that

Back 31

Earth rotates on its axis in 24 hours, i.e., it rotates 15 degrees of longitude per hour.

Front 32

If it is 10:00 AM in Miami, Florida (Eastern time zone), what time is it in Los Angeles, California located 3 time zones to the west in the Pacific Time zone?

Back 32

7 am

Front 33

The flooding of New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina falls within which of the five themes?

Back 33

human-earth relationship

Front 34

The part of geography that embodies map making is known as

Back 34

Cartography

Front 35

What issue played in the role of the formation of the EU?

Back 35

Cross-boundary drift of pollution was an issue that played a role in the formation of the EU.

Front 36

When classified by temperature, what are the layers of the atmosphere?

Back 36

troposphere, stratosphere, mesosphere, and thermosphere

Front 37

List the five physical factors that operate together to produce seasons.

Back 37

Revolution, Rotation, Tilt of Earth's Axis, Axial Parallelism and the suns declination to the earth.

Front 38

What is special about March 21?

Back 38

On March 21 there is equal day and night everywhere on Earth

Front 39

The uneven distribution of insolation by latitude is primarily a result of

Back 39

Earth's sphericity, which presents varied angles to parallel solar rays.

Front 40

Which of the following regions would have the greatest range of temperatures?

Back 40

Siberia, Russia

Front 41

If the temperature at the surface of Earth (at sea level) is 100 degrees F, what is the temperature at 2000 feet if the normal lapse rate is 3.5 degrees F/1000 feet?

Back 41

93 degrees F

Front 42

As a result of the characteristics of water, cities located near a coast should experience a temperature range that is ________ those of cities located in the interior at the same latitude.

Back 42

smaller than

Front 43

Assess the potential for solar energy applications in our society. What are some negatives? What are some positives?

Back 43

No green house gases, no costly energy, decentralization of power, etc. Some negatives are does not work at night, storage, inefficiency, installation cost

Front 44

Our planet and our lives are powered by

Back 44

radiant energy from the Sun.

Front 45

What are some facts about he milky way galaxy?

Back 45

It is one of millions of galaxies in the universe.
It is a spiral-shaped galaxy.
It contains approximately 300 billion stars.
Our Solar System is on a trailing edge of the Milky Way Galaxy

Front 46

Earth and the Sun formed specifically from

Back 46

a nebula of dust and gases

Front 47

The Sun produces which of the following?

Back 47

only solar wind

Front 48

Intercepted solar radiation is called

Back 48

insolation

Front 49

Based on composition, the atmosphere is divided into

Back 49

two broad classifications: homosphere and heterosphere.

Front 50

Based on function, the atmosphere has

Back 50

two functional areas that absorb radiation from the Sun.

Front 51

Which of the following is true regarding the depletion of ozone in the ozonosphere?

Back 51

It results from chemical reactions with chlorine that is derived from CFCs.

Front 52

The ozonosphere is critical to life because it

Back 52

absorbs most ultraviolet wavelengths.

Front 53

A by-product of photosynthesis is

Back 53

Oxygen

Front 54

The passage of shortwave and longwave energy through the atmosphere or water is an example of

Back 54

Transmission

Front 55

Which two gases are primarily responsible for the greenhouse effect because of their ability to absorb infrared energy?

Back 55

water vapor and carbon dioxide

Front 56

Because of the process known as ________ the Sun appears above the horizon ________ it has actually risen.

Back 56

refraction; before

Front 57

Which of the following has the highest albedo?

Back 57

fresh snow

Front 58

Which of the following is true about the hemisphere?

Back 58

Northern Hemisphere temperatures are more strongly dominated by continentality than are Southern Hemisphere temperatures.

Front 59

An isoline that connects all points of highest mean temperature on a world map is called

Back 59

the thermal equator

Front 60

The wind-chill index

Back 60

does not consider whether or not a person is engaged in physical activity

Front 61

As compared to land surfaces, water bodies tend to have ___________ evaporation rates, ___________specific heat capacity, ___________transmissibility, and ___________ flowing movements or currents. These characteristics together produce more ___________temperatures over the ocean as compared to more ___________ temperature patterns over the continents. These conditions over the oceans are termed ___________whereas over land conditions are described with the term ___________.

Back 61

higher, higher, more, more, moderate, extreme, marine effect, continental effect

Front 62

What percentage of water on earth does the ocean hold?

Back 62

The oceans contain 97% of all the water.

Front 63

What is humidity? How is it related to the energy present in the atmosphere? To our personal comfort and how we perceive apparent temperatures?

Back 63

Humidity is the amount of water vapor in the air. The vapor content in the air changes with the temperature in the atmosphere. If the air is warm the air has a greater chance to hold water then if the air is cold. Warm air stores a higher amount of energy then cold air. The warmth of the air enables the atmosphere to store more vapor in the air which makes humidity affect the temperature. If we live in areas that are hot and humid, this means that the air is close to being saturated, and may not be able to hold more moisture. Our perspiration then may not be absorbed by the atmosphere, making the apparent heat seem much higher than actual air temperature.

Front 64

What atmospheric temperature and moisture conditions would you expect on a day when the weather is unstable? When it is stable? Relate in your answer what you would experience if you were outside watching.

Back 64

Instability in our moisture and temperature conditions. Warm air is less dense and would tend to rise and cold air, well, the opposite. When the warm air rises, it then causes precipitation in the atmosphere. On a stable day, there is no vertical movement in the air and the atmosphere typically remains cool and dry. If I were outside watching and feeling I may experience rain or a stable environment (if the temperature/moisture conditions stay the same).

Front 65

What type of cloud is fog? List and define the principal types of fog.

Back 65

A cloud that is in contact with the ground is usually considered fog with visibility restricted to less than 1 km.

Advection fog: forms when air in one place migrates to another place where saturated conditions exist.

Valley fog: is another form of advection fog- because cool air is denser than warm air, it settles in low-lying areas like valleys. Another type of fog forms when cold air flows over the warm water of a lake, ocean surface, or even a swimming pool.

Evaporation fog/steam fog: may form as the water molecules evaporate from the water surface into the cold overlying air. A type of advection fog, involving the movement of air, forms when moist air is forced to higher elevations along a hill or mountain. This upslope lifting leads to cooling by expansion as the air rises.

Radiation fog: forms when radiative cooling of a surface chills the air layer directly above that surface to the dew-point temperature, creating saturated conditions and fog. This fog occurs espec

Front 66

Which of these cloud types is associated with lightning and thunder?

Back 66

cumulonimbus

Front 67

Air masses are classified according to their_____.

Back 67

temperature and source region

Front 68

Which one of the following causes lake effect snow?

Back 68

cP air masses absorbing heat and humidity from the Great Lakes

Front 69

What are the four principal lifting mechanisms that cause air masses to ascend, cool, condense, form clouds, and perhaps produce precipitation? Briefly describe each.

Back 69

Convergent lifting:
Frontal Precipitation Lifting:
Convectional lifting:
Orgraphic lifting:

Front 70

Over the last two decades, costs for weather-related destruction has, on an annual basis

Back 70

increased five-fold.

Front 71

When water freezes, its density

Back 71

decreases

Front 72

Which is true regarding water in rivers, streams, and the atmosphere?

Back 72

-On average, a water molecule travels through the hydrologic cycle in less than two weeks.
-They contain 0.033 percent of the world's fresh water supply.
-The total amount of water in these locations is equal to 14,250 km3 (3400 mi3).

Front 73

In winter, freezing water can break pipes and even crack engine blocks. Why does this happen?

Back 73

Water expands in volume as it freezes in response to hydrogen bonding.

Front 74

The elevation at which the bottoms of clouds begin to form represents the elevation at which

Back 74

relative humidity reaches 100 percent AND dew point occurs.

Front 75

An air parcel is considered unstable when it

Back 75

continues to rise until it reaches an altitude at which the surrounding air has a similar density.

Front 76

Clouds that have vertical development and produce precipitation are called

Back 76

cumulonimbus.

Front 77

Which cloud type is specifically a good indicator of an arriving storm, say within the next 24 hours?

Back 77

Cirrus

Front 78

Which of the following is incorrectly matched?

Back 78

fog – a stratus cloud that is high in elevation off the ground

Front 79

Fog often lingers in river valleys because

Back 79

the water cools off faster and cold air sinks

Front 80

The wetter, intercepting slope of a mountain is termed the ________ slope, whereas the drier, downwind slope is termed the ________ slope.

Back 80

windward; leeward

Front 81

Which of the following statements is true?

Back 81

When air is cooled, its ability to hold moisture decreases.
Precipitation should occur when moist air rises over a mountain.
There is greater precipitation near the equator than near the poles.
Winters in Siberia should be very dry, with little precipitation.

Front 82

Which of the following is incorrectly matched?

Back 82

cold front – clear cold air and high clouds as the front approaches

Front 83

The area along a cold front is described by which of the following?

Back 83

wind direction shifting and strong, warm air abruptly lifted by colder air

Front 84

The area along a warm front is best described by which of the following?

Back 84

warm air being lifted gently and steadily over cooler air

Front 85

What is needed for a tornado to take place?

Back 85

a mesocyclone
a horizontally rotating body of air generated by differences in wind speed between low-level and upper-level air flow
a strong updraft
horizontally rotating air and a strong updraft only.

Front 86

Which of the following cloud types is associated with tornado development?

Back 86

cumulonimbus

Front 87

Which is false regarding the 2005 Atlantic Hurricane season?

Back 87

There were three category 5 hurricanes in the Gulf of Mexico at the same time.

Front 88

Tornadoes, typhoons and hurricanes are identical in physical structure and properties, although they occur in different parts of the world.

Back 88

False

Front 89

Summer thunderstorms in the southern U.S. are usually produced by towering ________ clouds that form by ________.

Back 89

cumulonimbus; convection

Front 90

From the Suzuki reading, the average American uses ______ cubic meters of water per year compared with an Egyptian who uses ______ cubic meters per year.

Back 90

2300, 90

Front 91

The largest portion of fresh water today is located in

Back 91

ice caps and glaciers.

Front 92

In the Southern Hemisphere, a migrating center of low pressure, with converging, ascending air that spirals clockwise, is a cyclone.

Back 92

true

Front 93

Which of the following normally would be true of the humidity above the tropical rain forests of the world?

Back 93

The relative humidity would be high.
The specific humidity would be high.
The saturation vapor pressure would be high