Deck 26: the Rock Cycle in the Earth System

Question 1

Why have many Precambrian rocks remained unchanged for billions of years?

A) They are so old that they haven't had time to move past the first stage.
B) They are protected within the interiors of the continents.
C) They are only found in Antarctica and thus are not exposed to erosion.
D) They are metamorphic rocks that are too hard to be transformed.

Answer 1

B

Question 2

If a rock is uplifted and exposed,what is likely the next type of rock that will form?

A) igneous
B) crystalline
C) metamorphic
D) sedimentary

Answer 2

D

Question 3

Why is the rock cycle important?

A) because it describes how water and rocks interact within the Earth to produce melt
B) because it describes how rocks move throughout the Earth's ocean basins
C) because it explains how long rocks have existed on this planet
D) because it explains how rocks are constantly changing from one type to another

Answer 3

D

Question 4

To form a sedimentary rock,which process must happen?

A) melting
B) erosion
C) cooling
D) deep burial

Question 5

Identify the correct steps to create an igneous rock and transform it into a metamorphic rock and then into an igneous rock.

A) melted and solidified $\rightarrow$ exposed,eroded,and deposited $\rightarrow$ buried deeply
B) melted and solidified $\rightarrow$ buried deeply $\rightarrow$ remelted and solidified
C) eroded and deposited $\rightarrow$ buried deeply $\rightarrow$ remelted and solidified
D) eroded and deposited $\rightarrow$ melted and solidified $\rightarrow$ buried deeply

Question 6

What process is necessary to transform a metamorphic rock into an igneous rock?

A) melting
B) burial
C) erosion
D) deposition

Question 7

Which of the following is NOT one of the three major rock groups?

A) igneous
B) crystalline
C) sedimentary
D) metamorphic

Question 8

What is the progression of rock types if the steps of a process are as follows? melting and crystallization $\rightarrow$ erosion,deposition,and lithification $\rightarrow$ burial

A) sedimentary $\rightarrow$ igneous $\rightarrow$ metamorphic
B) igneous $\rightarrow$ sedimentary $\rightarrow$ metamorphic
C) igneous $\rightarrow$ metamorphic $\rightarrow$ metamorphic
D) metamorphic $\rightarrow$ sedimentary $\rightarrow$ igneous

Question 9

Identify which of the following paths could create a metamorphic rock and eventually transform it into a sedimentary rock.

A) erosion,deposition,and lithification $\rightarrow$ burial $\rightarrow$ melting
B) burial $\rightarrow$ erosion,deposition,and lithification $\rightarrow$ melting
C) burial $\rightarrow$ melting $\rightarrow$ erosion,deposition,and lithification
D) melting $\rightarrow$ erosion,deposition,and lithification $\rightarrow$ melting

Question 10

Identify the correct steps in the transformation of a sedimentary rock into a metamorphic rock.

A) rock eroded away and deposited in ocean basin $\rightarrow$ rock pulled into subduction zone and melted
B) rock eroded away and deposited in ocean basin $\rightarrow$ rock buried under many layers of sediments
C) rock eroded away and deposited in ocean basin $\rightarrow$ volcano erupts through ocean floor and melts rocks
D) rock eroded away and deposited in alluvial fan $\rightarrow$ rock buried deeply and melted by intrusion

Question 11

If a rock is melted,then erupted at the surface and hardened,then eroded,deposited,and lithified,what two rock types are involved in the sequence?

A) igneous and sedimentary
B) igneous and metamorphic
C) sandstone and gneiss
D) slate and granite

Question 12

What process must occur for an igneous rock to turn into a sedimentary rock?

A) metamorphism
B) erosion
C) melting
D) petrogenesis

Question 13

What type of rock is formed after erosion,deposition,and lithification?

A) metamorphic
B) crystalline
C) igneous
D) sedimentary

Question 14

What the Earth process is illustrated below?

A) hydrologic cycle
B) erosion cycle
C) rock cycle
D) carbon cycle

Question 15

What is the rock cycle?

A) the cycle that rocks go through when interacting with water
B) the transformation of one mineral type to another
C) the transformation of one rock type to another
D) the cycle that rocks undergo when interacting with air

Question 16

What type of rock is formed from pressure due to deep burial?

A) sedimentary
B) chemical
C) metamorphic
D) igneous

Question 17

If a rock is buried and subjected to high heat and pressure,then uplifted,exposed,eroded away,and deposited,what rock types were involved in the sequence?

A) igneous and sedimentary
B) igneous and metamorphic
C) metamorphic and sedimentary
D) sedimentary only

Question 18

Why does uplifting metamorphic rocks during mountain building lead to the formation of sedimentary rocks?

A) because water can't penetrate the ground
B) because metamorphic rocks can only be eroded by air
C) because the rocks become exposed to the elements and erode
D) because metamorphic rocks are only found under mountains

Question 19

If a rock is buried,then exposed and eroded,and the sediment is then lithified,after which the rock is melted and solidified,what type of rock is the end result?

A) igneous
B) sedimentary
C) metamorphic
D) clastic

Question 20

What is the progression of rock types if these processes occur? burial $\rightarrow$ uplift,erosion,deposition,lithification $\rightarrow$ burial $\rightarrow$ melting and crystallization

A) metamorphic $\rightarrow$ metamorphic $\rightarrow$ igneous $\rightarrow$ sedimentary
B) metamorphic $\rightarrow$ sedimentary $\rightarrow$ metamorphic $\rightarrow$ igneous
C) sedimentary $\rightarrow$ sedimentary $\rightarrow$ igneous $\rightarrow$ metamorphic
D) igneous $\rightarrow$ sedimentary $\rightarrow$ igneous $\rightarrow$ igneous

Question 21

The rock cycle,hydrologic cycle,and carbon cycle are all examples of _________.

A) mass-transfer cycles
B) temporal cycle
C) biogeochemical cycles
D) Earth-system reservoirs

Question 22

Why are so few Precambrian-age rocks found on the Earth?

Question 23

The amount of time a material stays within a given reservoir in the Earth System is its _________.

A) residence time
B) temporal cycle
C) mass-transfer cycle
D) cyclic rate

Question 24

Describe the changes that occur (i.e.,what happens to the rock)along a pathway through the rock cycle as seen below:
Sedimentary rock $\rightarrow$ Igneous rock $\rightarrow$ Sedimentary rock $\rightarrow$ Metamorphic rock

Question 25

The rock cycle is an example of a ___________.

A) biogeochemical cycle
B) temporal cycle
C) geochemical cycle
D) hydrologic cycle

Question 26

What is a cycle? A reservoir? What happens during a mass-transfer cycle? Summarize these concepts using the rock cycle as an example.

Question 27

Describe how the rock cycle is linked to plate tectonics.

Question 28

The rock cycle is driven by __________.

A) the Earth's internal energy alone
B) external forces acting on the Earth alone
C) the Earth's internal and external sources of energy
D) geologic time and cyclothymic action

Question 29

Which of the following is true of how atoms make their way through the rock cycle?

A) Not all atoms follow the same path through the rock cycle the same way or at the same rate.
B) When an igneous rock forms,atoms become locked in a mineral crystal; they will remain a part of this mineral as they move through the rock cycle.
C) Atoms must become a part of a new mineral every time a rock changes from one type to another as it progresses through the rock cycle.
D) All atoms will pass through the rock cycle every 100,000 years; this is why very old rocks are so rare.

Question 30

Illustrate the rock cycle.Be sure to include the three types of rocks and the processes that convert one rock type to another.