Deck 2: Minerals: Building Blocks of Rocks

Question 1

The strong tendency of certain minerals to break along smooth, parallel planes is known as ________.

A) streak
B) cleavage
C) cracking luster
D) habit

Answer 1

B

Question 2

Which group of minerals are the most abundant in the Earth's crust?

A) sulfides
B) carbonates
C) silicates
D) halides

Answer 2

C

Question 3

Which one of the following is NOT true for minerals?

A) They have a specific, internal, crystalline structure.
B) They can be a liquid, solid, or glass.
C) They have a specific, predictable chemical composition.
D) They can be identified by characteristic physical properties.

Answer 3

B

Question 4

What element is the most abundant in the Earth's crust by weight?

A) carbon
B) chlorine
C) oxygen
D) sodium

Question 5

An atom's mass number is 13 and its atomic number is 6. How many neutrons are in its nucleus?

A) 19
B) 7
C) 13
D) 6

Question 6

The resistance of a mineral to abrasion is known as ________.

A) luster
B) cleavage
C) streak
D) hardness

Question 7

Which of the following is NOT a fundamental particle found in atoms?

A) neutron
B) selectron
C) electron
D) protons

Question 8

A cubic centimeter of quartz, olivine, and gold weighs 2.5, 3.0, and 19.8 grams respectively. This indicates that ________.

A) gold has a higher density and specific gravity than quartz and olivine
B) gold is 6 to 7 times harder than olivine and quartz
C) gold and olivine are silicates, whereas quartz is elemental silicon
D) olivine and quartz powders are harder than metallic gold

Question 9

Which of the following minerals is a silicate?

A) hematite
B) feldspar
C) calcite
D) halite

Question 10

Atoms of the same element, zinc for example, have the same number of ________.

A) electrons in the nucleus
B) protons in the nucleus
C) neutrons in the outer nuclear shell
D) electrons in the valence bond level

Question 11

Which of the following best defines a mineral and a rock?

A) A rock has an orderly, repetitive, geometrical, internal arrangement of minerals; a mineral is a lithified or consolidated aggregate of rocks.
B) A mineral consists of its constituent atoms arranged in a geometrically repetitive structure; in a rock, the atoms are randomly bonded without any geometric pattern.
C) In a mineral the constituent atoms are bonded in a regular, repetitive, internal structure; a rock is a lithified or consolidated aggregate of different mineral grains.
D) A rock consists of atoms bonded in a regular, geometrically predictable arrangement; a mineral is a consolidated aggregate of different rock particles.

Question 12

Which of the following is correct for isotopes of the same element?

A) The atoms have different numbers of protons and the same number of neutrons.
B) The atoms have the same number of electrons and different numbers of protons.
C) The atoms have different numbers of neutrons and the same number of protons.
D) The atoms have different numbers of electrons but the same number of neutrons.

Question 13

Which carbonate mineral reacts readily with cool, dilute hydrochloric acid to produce visible bubbles of carbon dioxide gas?

A) calcite
B) quartz
C) gypsum
D) plagioclase

Question 14

Which one of the following mineral groups exhibits a sheet-like silicate structure?

A) carbonates
B) pyroxenes
C) micas
D) feldspars

Question 15

Atoms that have an electrical charge due to a gain or loss of electrons are called ________.

A) isotopes
B) ions
C) isochrons
D) periodic elements

Question 16

What mineral is the hardest known substance in nature?

A) silicate
B) native gold
C) diamond
D) muscovite

Question 17

Which mineral is easily soluble in water at room temperature conditions?

A) diamond
B) talc
C) halite
D) olivine

Question 18

Which common mineral is composed entirely of silicon and oxygen?

A) calcite
B) diamond
C) olivine
D) quartz

Question 19

All silicate minerals contain which two elements?

A) iron, silicon
B) silicon, sodium
C) oxygen, carbon
D) silicon, oxygen

Question 20

The ion at the center of a silicon-oxygen tetrahedron is surrounded by ________.

A) four oxygen ions
B) six oxygen ions
C) four sodium ions
D) six sodium ions

Question 21

The most unreliable (variable) diagnostic property of minerals such as quartz is ________.

A) hardness
B) habit
C) specific gravity
D) color

Question 22

All atoms of the same element have the same atomic number.

Question 23

Which of the following describes the light reflecting and transmission characteristics of a mineral?

A) luster
B) color streak
C) virtual absorption
D) fluorescence

Question 24

All minerals exhibit cleavage.

Question 25

Rocks are aggregates of two or more minerals.

Question 26

Word Analysis. Examine the words and/or phrases for each question below and determine the relationship among the majority of words/phrases. Choose the option which does not fit the pattern.
A. electron B. atom C. proton D. neutron

Question 27

Diamond and quartz are both minerals composed of a single element.

Question 28

Word Analysis. Examine the words and/or phrases for each question below and determine the relationship among the majority of words/phrases. Choose the option which does not fit the pattern.
A. oxygen B. sulfur C. aluminum D. iron

Question 29

Which of the following is NOT one of the eight most common elements in the Earth's crust?

A) carbon
B) potassium
C) aluminum
D) calcium

Question 30

Electrically neutral atoms have equal numbers of electrons and protons.

Question 31

A mineral can be composed entirely of one element.

Question 32

Mineral deposits which have been identified and can be extracted profitably are called ________.

A) reserves
B) ores
C) resources
D) tailings

Question 33

Which of the following has the highest specific gravity?

A) wood
B) water
C) gold
D) quartz

Question 34

Mineral luster is broadly classified as either being metallic or opaque.

Question 35

Most minerals have a higher specific gravity than water.

Question 36

Word Analysis. Examine the words and/or phrases for each question below and determine the relationship among the majority of words/phrases. Choose the option which does not fit the pattern.
A. hardness B. streak C. luster D. cleavage

Question 37

Word Analysis. Examine the words and/or phrases for each question below and determine the relationship among the majority of words/phrases. Choose the option which does not fit the pattern.
A. quartz B. olivine C. feldspar D. calcite

Question 38

More than 100 elements are currently known.

Question 39

In the silicon-oxygen tetrahedron, there are more silicon atoms than oxygen atoms.

Question 40

Which the following denotes the positively charged particles in an atom's nucleus?

A) protons
B) electrons
C) isotrons
D) neutrons

Question 41

Using the information from Table 2.1, identify five different materials that you encounter or use on a daily basis and give a possible mineral that could be mined to supply those materials. Can you think of any other considerations other than economic that might prohibit or limit the mining of certain minerals?

Question 42

Moh's hardness scale is a relative measure of which physical property of minerals?

Question 43

What is the hardest mineral known?

Question 44

Most glasses and some minerals exhibit a type of fracture characterized by nested and curved crack surfaces. What term describes this property?

Question 45

The two most abundant elements found in Earth's crust are ________ and ________.

Question 46

A compound is a stable chemical substance composed of two or more ________.

Question 47

Isotopes of the same element have the same mass number.

Question 48

What is the smallest particle of matter that exhibits and defines the distinctive chemical characteristics of the individual elements?

Question 49

The physical property denoting a mineral's tendency to crack along parallel, planar surfaces is known as ________.

Question 50

Nonmetallic minerals like halite and gypsum have no industrial uses.

Question 51

Label the various parts of an atom in the diagram below.

Question 52

Overall, the physical properties of minerals provide a reliable means to identify common minerals. However, certain properties can exhibit a range of characteristics or values making them less useful for identification purposes. Choose three physical properties that might vary considerably between samples of the same mineral and explain why such variability might exist.

Question 53

The micas, biotite and muscovite, both exhibit one direction of cleavage.

Question 54

Why are most rock-forming minerals silicates? Also, considering the composition of Earth's crust, do all of the nonsilicate mineral groups make sense chemically? Why or why not?

Question 55

The central region of an atom is called the ________.

Question 56

An aggregate of two or more minerals is called a(n) ________.

Question 57

Nearly 4000 minerals have been named.

Question 58

What molecule is illustrated in the diagram below?

Question 59

What physical property denotes the color of a powdered mineral?