Rocks & Minerals

1. When various minerals are split by a wedge, some break evenly along a flat surface while others fracture unevenly. Which property of a mineral is responsible for the way in which it splits?

Softness
Density
Atomic arrangement
Chemical composition

2. Which property best describes a rock which formed from sediments?

Crystalline structure
Distorted structure
Fragmental particles arranged in layers
Banding or zoning of minerals

3. Which observation about an igneous rock would support the inference that the rock cooled slowly underground?

The rock has well-defined layers
The rock has large crystals
The rock is about 50% plagioclase feldspar
The rock is light in color and low in density

4. The diagram depicts a piece of conglomerate rock. Which of the following is the oldest?



The limestone particles
The mineral vein
The calcite cement
The conglomerate rock itself

5. The igneous rock pictured in the diagram is most likely



Gabbro
Rhyolite
Obsidian
Granite

6. Clay is related to shale as pebbles are related to

Sandstone
Siltstone
Pumice
Conglomerate

7. Which statement correctly describes the distribution of sedimentary rocks on the Earth?

Sedimentary rock layers are thickest in the middle of the oceans.
Sedimentary rocks extend down into the Earth's crust to the inner core.
Sedimentary rocks are usually located in volcanic regions.
Sedimentary rocks form a thin layer over large areas of the continents.

8. Extremely small crystal grains in an igneous rock are an indication that the crystals formed

Under high pressure.
Over a short period of time.
Deep below the Earth's surface.
From an iron-rich magma.

9. What processes are responsible for the formation of the sedimentary rock shown in the diagram?



Heat and/or pressure
Melting and solidification
Recrystalization
Compaction and cementation

10. In which rock type are fossils usually found?

Igneous
Volcanic
Sedimentary
Metamorphic

11. According to the Reference Tables, which rock is of felsic composition, low in density, light in color and coarse grained?

Rhyolite
Basalt
Granite
Gabbro

12. Which is usually a characteristic of igneous rocks with a high density?

They are light in color.
They are felsic.
They have a high aluminum content.
They contain iron.

13. According to the Earth Science Reference Tables, which is the most abundant element in the Earth's crust?

Aluminum
Oxygen
Hydrogen
Silicon

14. The rock shown in the diagram is most likely



Granite
Conglomerate
Limestone
Gneiss

15. According to the Earth Science Reference Tables, some sedimentary rocks form as the direct result of the

Solidification of molten magma.
Recrystalization of material.
Melting of minerals.
Cementation of rock fragments.

16. Which of the following minerals would be able to scratch the other three?

Gypsum
Quartz
Calcite
Pyrite

17. Why do calcite and dolomite both bubble when placed in acid?

Both are silicate minerals
Both are metamorphic rocks
Both are carbonates
Both are colorless and are of similar hardness

18. What property of halite is shown in the diagram?



Hardness
Streak
Luster
Cleavage

19. According to the Earth Science Reference Tables, which type of sedimentary rock contains the greatest range of particle sizes?

Conglomerate
Sandstone
Shale
Siltstone

20. Large rock salt deposits in the Syracuse area indicate that the area once had

Large forests
Many terrestrial animals
A range of volcanic mountains
A warm, shallow sea

21. Which process would form sedimentary rock?

Cooling of molten magma within the Earth's crust.
Recrystallization of unmelted material within the Earth's crust.
Cooling of a lava flow on the Earth's surface.
Precipitation of minerals as seawater evaporates.

22. When dilute hydrochloric acid is placed on the sedimentary rock limestone and the nonsedimentary rock marble, a bubbling reaction occurs with both. What does this indicate?

The minerals of these two rocks have similar chemical composition.
Their molecular structure has been changed by heat and pressure.
The physical properties of these two rocks are identical.
The two rocks originated at the same location.

23. Which property of a mineral is being tested in the diagram?



Luster
Hardness
Cleavage
Streak

24. What is the main difference between metamorphic rocks and most other rocks?

Many metamorphic rocks contain only one mineral.
Many metamorphic rocks have an organic composition.
Many metamorphic rocks exhibit banding and distortion of structure.
Many metamorphic rocks contain a high amount of oxygen-silicon tetrahedron

25. The structure shown in the diagram is found in



Limestone
Flourite
Pyrite
Quartz

26. All rocks contain

Minerals
Intergrown crystals
Sediments
Fossils

27. Which is most likely a nonsedimentary rock?

A rock containing fossils.
A rock composed of layers of gravel cemented together.
A rock consisting of large intergrown crystals.
A rock showing ripple marks and mud cracks.

28. The physical properties of a mineral are due largely to its

Volume.
Organic composition.
Internal arrangement of atoms.
Melting point.

29. Which statement concerning a large outcrop of granite (coarse grained igneous rock) is most likely correct?

A number of volcanoes are nearby.
The granite is the probable result of a lava flow.
The rock was never under water.
A great deal of erosion has taken place at this location.

30. Diamond and graphite are two minerals composed totally of carbon. Why are diamond and graphite so different in physical properties?

The atoms of carbon are different.
Graphite and diamond formed at different ages of the Earth.
The arrangement of carbon atoms is different in the two minerals.
Graphite is organic and diamond is not.

31. The texture of an igneous rock gives information regarding

The rate at which the rock formed.
The chemical composition of the rock.
How old the rock is.
The number of erosional-depositional cycles the rock has gone through.

32. Moh's scale is used in describing the mineral characteristic of

Cleavage
Specific gravity
Magnetism
Hardness

33. The rock in the diagram contains intergrown crystals that are 0.7 mm in diameter. This rock is most likely



Breccia
Basalt
Pegmatite
Siltstone

34. Which rock is shown in the diagram?



Granite
Limestone
Schist
Obsidian

35. Two mineral samples have different physical properties, but each contains silicate tetrahedrons as its basic structural unit. Which statement about the two mineral samples must be true?

They have the same density.
They are similar in appearance.
They contain silicon and oxygen.
They are the same mineral.

36. Which statement best describes a general property of rocks?

Most rocks have a number of minerals in common.
Most rocks are composed of a single mineral.
All rocks contain fossils.
All rocks contain minerals formed by compression and cementation.

37. Which property is used to classify the land-derived sedimentary rocks listed in the Earth Science Reference Tables?

Particle size
Mineral composition
Fossil content
Color

38. According to the Earth Science Reference Tables, dolostone, rock gypsum and rock salt are formed by the process of

Melting and solidification
Evaporation and precipitation
Erosion and deposition
Weathering and metamorphism

39. According to the Earth Science Reference Tables, which property would be most useful for identifying igneous rocks?

Kind of cement
Mineral composition
Number of minerals present
Types of fossils present

40. A river carrying pebbles, sand, silt and clay flows into the ocean. The sediments are sorted by size as they are deposited at different distances from shore. Which sedimentary rock will most likely form from sediments deposited farthest from shore?

Conglomerate
Sandstone
Siltstone
Shale

41. Sand collected at a beach contains a mixture of pyroxene, olivine, amphibole and plagioclase feldspar. According to the Earth Science Reference Tables, the rock from which this mixture of sand came is best described as

Dark-colored with mafic composition
Dark-colored with felsic composition
Light-colored with mafic composition
Light-colored with felsic composition

42. Of the Earth's more than 2,000 identified minerals, only a small number are commonly found in rocks. This fact indicates that most

Minerals weather before they can be identified.
Minerals have properties that are difficult to identify.
Rocks have a number of minerals in common.
Exposed surface rocks are igneous.

43. Which property of a rock is shown in the diagram?



Cleavage
Streak
Fracture
Intergrown crystals

44. Which sedimentary rocks are formed from organic matter?

Rock salt and shale
Coal and limestone
Shale and rock salt
Sandstone and conglomerate

45. Where are sedimentary rocks most frequently found?

Near mid-ocean ridges
Near recently formed volcanic mountains
On continents as surface bedrock
At nonsedimentary bedrock interfaces

46. Which foliated rock is formed by exposing shale to heat and pressure?

Slate
Phylite
Schist
Gneiss

47. Which foliated metamorphic rock with fine to medium grain size contains quartz, amphibole, garnet and pyroxene?

Slate
Phyllite
Schist
Gneiss

48. Which rock is formed by the metamorphism of limestone or dolostone?

Granite
Quartzite
Marble
Metaconglomerate

49. Which rock is formed by the cementation of particles which are 0.00021 cm in diameter?

Sandstone
Siltstone
Shale
Slate

50. An extrusive igneous rock with glassy with non-vesicular texture is composed of plagioclase feldspar, biotite, and pyroxene. This rock is most likely

Obsidian
Basaltic glass
Pumice
Scoria

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