Republic of the Philippines

PARTIDO STATE UNIVERSITY

Camarines Sur
PSY-SYL-___-___

MOCK EXAM 1
General Geology
ParSU Geology Board Examination Review 2021

Name: Date Taken:

Result: _ ______

PART 1. Multiple Choice. Choose the best answer. (100 pts)

1. Which of the following is not part of Steno’s Laws?

a) In an undeformed sequence of sedimentary rocks, each bed is older than the one above it and younger than the
one below
b) Layers of sediment are generally deposited in a horizontal position.
c) Sediments would spread out until they thin out at the edge of the depositional basin, stop at a depositional barrier
or grade into another type of sediment
d) Fossil organisms succeed one another in a definite and determinable order.

2. What is the depth at which the Lehmann Discontinuity occur?

a) 2900 km b) 5150 km c) 1250 km d) 3450 km

3. Which of these factors influence the type and rate of weathering?

a) mineral content b) climate
c) topography d) all of the above

4. Which one of the following factors does NOT influence stream velocity?
a) channel size and shape b) laminar flow
c) discharge d) channel roughness

5. Most streams transport the greatest amount of sediment as part of their ____________ load.
a) dissolved b) suspended
c) bed d) none of the above

6. A natural levee is ____________.

a) an erosional feature
b) a depositional feature
c) an erosional feature, essentially parallel to the stream channel
d) a depositional feature, essentially parallel to the stream channel

7. As stream discharge increases _________.

a) stream velocity, channel width, and depth all increase
b) stream velocity increases, but channel width and depth decrease
c) stream velocity, channel width, and channel depth all decrease
d) channel depth increases, but channel width and stream velocity decrease

8. Refer to various ways by which the mobile agents obtain and remove rock debris.
a) Weathering b) Erosion c) Mass wasting d) Flow

9. The average density of the continental crust is:

a) 2.2 to 2.6 g/cm3 b) 2.6 to 2.9 g/cm3
c) 2.9 to 3.1 g/cm3 d) 3.1 to 3.5 g/cm3

10. The person most often credited with formulating the principle of faunal succession is ____________.
a) Nicolaus Steno b) William Smith
c) John W. Powell d) James Hutton

11. Which of the following is not a type of chemical weathering?

a) Frost wedging b) Hydration
c) Hydrolysis d) Oxidation

12. This Hadean Era is also known as

a) Priscoa Eon b) Pricoan Eon c) Priscoal Eon d) Priscoan Eon

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 Republic of the Philippines
PARTIDO STATE UNIVERSITY
Camarines Sur
PSY-SYL-___-___

13. In nucleosynthesis, the result of the burning of four hydrogen atoms is known to be
a) He-4 b) He-8 c) He-6 d) He-2

14. Body waves are waves that travel to the earth’s interior. Which of the following is not a body wave?
a) S-waves b) P-waves
c) Both a and b d) None of the above

15. The solar system evolved from an enormous rotating cloud called:
a) Super nova b) Super nebula
c) Solar nova d) Solar nebula

16. Which of the following is not a subfield of Historical Geology?

a) Paleontology b) Stratigraphy
c) Geochronology d) Biochronology

17. A vast, saucer-shaped intrusion with a depressed central region with a dike or funnel shaped body below.
a) Phacolith b) Lacolith c) Lopolith d) Bysmalith

18. It separates the outer core from the inner core:

a) Conrad b) Mohorovicic c) Gutenberg d) Lehmann

19. What are the four most abundant elements in the earth’s crust?
a) O, Si, Al, Mg b) O, Si, Al, Ca
c) O, Si, Ca, Na d) O, Si, Al, Fe

20. Tall conical volcanoes built up by many layers of hardened lava, tephra, pumice, and volcanic ash
a) Scoria cone b) Lave-tephra plateau
c) Composite d) Strata cone

21. Catastrophism originated from the works of ________________.

a) James Hutton b) Georges Cuvier c) James Ussher d) Charles Lyell

22. Which of the following gases was NOT part of Earth's original atmosphere?
a) water vapor b) carbon dioxide c) nitrogen d) oxygen

23. When are waves affected by the sea floor, that is, when do waves begin to "feel bottom"?
a) when water depth is equal to one-half the wavelength
b) when water depth is equal to the wavelength
c) when water depth is twice as great as the wavelength
d) when water depth is three times as great as the wavelength

24. When waves reach shallow water, they are often bent and tend to become parallel to the shore. This process is
referred to as ______.
a) oscillation b) refraction c) translation d) reflection

25. Which of the following is not a diagenetic process?

a) bioturbation b) formation of stylolites
c) cementation d) formation of concretions in chert e) none of the above

26. This type of volcanic eruption is characterized by a short-lived, explosive outbursts of pasty lava ejected a few tens or
hundreds of meters into the air:
a) Strombolian b) Vulcanian
c) Hawaian d) Plinian e) Phreato-magmatic

27. Sediments that bounce or skip along the stream bed are said to be moving by ___.
a. capacity c. saltation
b. competence d. traction

28. The vertical drop of a stream channel over a certain distance defines ____________.
a) discharge b) laminar flow
c) runoff d) gradient

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 Republic of the Philippines
PARTIDO STATE UNIVERSITY
Camarines Sur
PSY-SYL-___-___

29. If you were to examine the longitudinal pro¬file of a typical river, you would proba¬bly find that ____________.
a) the gradient is steepest near the mouth
b) the gradient is steepest near the head
c) the gradient is about the same at both the head and the mouth
d) none of these

30. The part of the beach above the high tide line that is flat or slopes slightly landward is the:
a) beach face b) marine terrace c) Berm d) Surf zone e) Spit

31. When was the 7.8 magnitude earthquake along the Digdig segment of the Philippine Fault that devastated cities in
Luzon such as Baguio City
a) July 1990 b) December 2004 c) June 1991 d) September 1972

32. Pratt’s theory of isostasy assumes that the lithospheric blocks are of:
a) similar density and lie at different levels on the asthenosphere
b) different densities and lie at different levels on the asthenosphere
c) similar density and lie at similar levels on the asthenosphere
d) different densities and lie at similar levels on the asthenosphere
e) none of the above
33. What drainage pattern is developed when streams flow into a central depression such as lake?
a) radial b) Centripetal c) Centrifugal d) domal

34. Following the uniformitarian principle, the same physical processes that operate today operated throughout geologic
time, although not necessarily with the same ______ as now.
a) Duration b) Impact c) Intensity d) Number

35. Airy’s theory of isostasy states that:

a) Materials have varying densities, those which stand higher are lighter
b) Materials have “roots” and the higher a feature, the deeper its roots
c) Materials have differences in temperature, those which are hotter are lighter
d) Materials are subjected to varying pressures, those in lower pressure regimes stand higher

36. What volcanic hazard results from the mixture of pyroclastic materials and rain water?
a) pyroclastic flow b) debris avalanche c) ash fall d) lahar

37. The last eruption of Mt. Pinatubo was considered the greatest eruption of the 20th century. When was this eruption?
a) July 1990 b) June 1991
c) December 2004 d) September 1972

38. Mayon volcano is an example of what kind of volcano?

a) Composite b) Cinder c) Fissure d) Shield

39. Where was the epicenter of the earthquake that devastated China last 2008?
a) Sichuan b) Shanghai c) Beijing d) Hong Kong

40. Which of the following photo was taken by Apollo 8 astronauts in December 1968 showing a breathtaking view of the
earth?
a) Blue Marble b) Earth Marble c) Earth Rise d) Blue Earth

41. Which of the following photo was taken by Apollo 17 astronauts in December 1972? It was taken by the crew of the
Apollo 17 spacecraft on its way to the Moon, and is one of the most reproduced images in history.
a) Blue Marble b) Earth Marble c) Earth Rise d) Blue Earth

42. Which of the following is NOT an example of physical weathering?

a) exfoliation of granite b) rain dissolving a marble statue
c) hitting a rock with a hammer d) roots of trees fracturing concrete

43. What makes up the lithosphere?

a) Asthenosphere b) continental and oceanic crust
c) oceanic sediments d) crust and upper mantle

44. Which of the following is the major product of hydrolysis in rocks such as granite?

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 Republic of the Philippines
PARTIDO STATE UNIVERSITY
Camarines Sur
PSY-SYL-___-___

a) Rust b) clay c) pebbles d) dissolved calcium

45. The Mohorovicic discontinuity (Moho), as determined from seismic waves, marks the boundary between the
a) crust and mantle b) upper and lower mantle
c) mantle and core d) outer and inner core

46. All of the following deposits exhibit normal grading except:

a) Turbidites b) Tempestites c) Debrites d) None of the above

47. Columnar basalts are formed by

a) cooling of thick lava
b) formation of expansion joints due to sudden cooling
c) interaction of hot surface of lava with the atmosphere
d) interaction of hot surface of lava with the atmosphere causes removal of water content which cause the surface to
crack and extends downward

48. What phenomenon produces amphitheater feature on top with some traverse cracks?
a) sinkholes b) alluvial fan deposition
c) mudflow d) rock slide

49. Where do basalt residuals form thickest?

a) floodplain b) cuts
c) plateaus d) gentle moderate slope

50. What coast is formed during sea level rise?

a) submergent b) emergent c) concordant d) discordant

51. Liquefaction is caused by

a) high water table b) unconsolidated sediments
c) earthquake d) flooding

52. What is an evidence of maturity of an area?

a) meandering rivers b) flat terrain c) monadnocks d) steep channels

53. What is a paludal environment?

a) tidal flats b) lakes c) lagoons d) swamps

54. Which is not a geomorphologic agent?

a) water b) wind c) gravity d) glaciers

55. What is the drainage system for limestone?

a) dendritic b) trellis c) parallel d) deranged drainage

56. When is the tide at maximum?

a) spring b) neap c) winter d) summer

57. What is the rotation speed in the north pole?

a) same as speed in the equator b) less than the speed in the equator
c) greater than the speed in the equator d) zero

58. What is the difference between the magnetic north and geographic north?
a) declination b) inclination c) precession d) depression

59. In an uplift, erosion is ____

a) landward b) seaward c) headward d) intense

60. What ocean does not have a trench?

a) Pacific b) Indian c) Atlantic d) Antarctic

61. What portion of the stream profile has the highest velocity?
a) head b) body c) levee d) mouth

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 Republic of the Philippines
PARTIDO STATE UNIVERSITY
Camarines Sur
PSY-SYL-___-___

62. It is the part of the coastal zone found between the low tide level and the line where waves break at low tide.
a) Off Shore b) Foreshore c) Backshore d) Nearshore

63. On a 1:50,000 topographic map with contour interval of 20 meters, what is the actual distance between two points
separated by 5 cm length of the map?
a) 2.5 km b) 25 km c) 5 km d) 50 km

64. Alfred Wegener, a German meteorologist and geophysicist, in his book “The Origin of Continents and Oceans”
published in 1915, suggested a hypothesis which challenge the long-held assumption that the contintents and oceans
have a fixed geographic position.
a) Plate Tectonics b) Continental Drift
c) Sea-Floor Spreading d) Wegener Hypothesis

65. Which of the following is a characteristic of a mature terrain?

a) has a straight stream channel b) valley floor is insignificant
c) rivers flow through a V-shaped valley d) stream divides are generally broad e) none of the above

66. Which is a type of pyroclastic rock?

a) Dunite b) Ignimbrite c) Granodiorite d) Quartzite

67. An old topography in a humid environment is characterized by the presence of the following except?
a) valleys b) Monadnocks c) Peneplain d) meandering streams

68. On which island can you find the active volcano Mt. Ragang?
a) Luzon b) Mindanao c) Leyte d) Sulu

69. Abyssal is found at what depth:

a) <200 m b) 700 to 1000 m c) 2000 to 4000 m d) > 6000 m

70. _____is debris dislodged by weathering of steep slopes which accumulate at the base in a conical, fan shape
a) alluvial fan b) Bajada c) Talus d) delta

71. What drainage pattern is developed in strongly jointed rocky terrain?

a) deranged b) Dendritic c) Trellis d) rectangular

72. These are linear deposits of unsorted sediments formed by the advance or retreat of glaciers.
a) Moraine b) Horn c) Cirque d) glacial striations

73. A cross section with a vertical scale of 1cm = 125 m drawn from a 1:25,000 scale topographic map would have a vertical
exaggeration of: ____________.
a) 1.5 x b) 2 x c) 2.5 x
d) 3x e) none of the above

74. Circular arrangement of drainage pattern that may be found around maturely dissected domes which have alternating
belts of strong and weak rocks encircling them:
a) barbed b) Angulate c) Annular
d) deranged e) None of the above

75. Preserved feces of animals are called:

a) borings b) coprolites c) fecaliensis
d) trace marks e) none of the above

76. Wegeners theory on continental drift was rejected by philosophers and scientists during his time mainly due to his:
a) inability to present any evidence to support his theory
b) inability to provide an adequate explanation of the forces responsible for continental drift
c) inability to present his work with conviction
d) a and b
e) all of the above

77. The abundance of a particular mineral in sedimentary rock is dependent not only its source area geology but also on its
chemical and mechanical stability.
a) True b) False c) Cannot be determined

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 Republic of the Philippines
PARTIDO STATE UNIVERSITY
Camarines Sur
PSY-SYL-___-___

78. If one were to squeeze a ball of clay in the palm of the hand, the clay would contain a reverse replica of the inside or
palm of the hand. This produces an:
a) internal mold b) external mold
c) internal cast d) external cast e) none of the above

79. A fifteen (15) km road stretch is represented in a 1:10,000 map by what length (in centimeters)?
a) 1.5 cm b) 15 cm c) 150 cm
d) 1500 cm e) none of the above

80. Milankovitch theory is based on 3 cyclical alterations in the Earth's orbit around the Sun, which of the following is not
one of these cycles?
a) Eccentricity b) Equatorial gradient
c) Tilt d) Precession

81. Which of the following gets magma supply from a spreading mid-ocean ridge?
a) Hawaii b) Indonesia c) Philippines d) Iceland

82. If the half-life of a material x is 1000 years and you found a specimen with equal amounts of material x and material z
(the daughter product) the specimen would be about ____________.
a) 500 years old b) 1000 years old
c) 1500 years old d) 2000 years old

83. The maximum load of solid particles that a stream can transport is called its ______;
a) capacity c) saltation b) competence d) traction

84. It is a relatively conformable succession of genetically related strata, bounded at the top and base by unconformities
and correlative conformities.
a) Sequence b) Depositional System c) Systems Tract d) Parasequence

85. The measure of the maximum size of solid particles that a stream can transport is called its _______.
a) capacity b) saltation c) competence d) traction

86. What is the thickness of the outer core?

a) 2900 km b) 2250 km c) 1250 km d)3450 km
87. It is an elongated ridge of sand that projects from the land into the mouth of an adjacent bay.
a) Tombolo b) Trombolo c) Spit d) Baymouth bar

88. These are soils formed from the weathering of ultramafic rocks. They are confined to mainly tropical to subtropical
regions.
a) Red soils b) Laterite c) Regolith d) Duricrust

89. The following are island arcs EXCEPT

a) Japan b) Philippines c) Taiwan d) Indonesia

90. It is the part of the coastal zone found between the lowest tide level and the highest elevation affected by storm
waves.
a) Shore b) Foreshore c) Backshore d) Nearshore

91. Refers to the sudden change in the course of a river leading to a section of abandoned channel, a section of new
channel, and a segment of higher land (part of the floodplain) between them
a) Aversion b) Incision c) Abstraction d) Avulsion

92. The earth’s transition zone is found at what depth?

a) 100 to 250 km b) 250 to 410 km c) 410 to 660 km d) 660 to 2900 km

93. Which of the following agents play a major role in the erosional processes in deserts?
a) Wind b) Water c) Gravity d) Both a and b

94. This type of stream has position which is a result of the initial slope of a land in which the location is due solely to the
original irregularities of the land surface
a) consequent b) subsequent

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 Republic of the Philippines
PARTIDO STATE UNIVERSITY
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c) resequent d) insequent e) none of the above

95. These occur twice a month when the Earth-Moon-Sun system is aligned, thus the moon and sun’s gravitational forces
on the earth is combined producing large tidal range.
a) Lunar tide b) Solar tide c) Spring tide d) Neap tide

96. Which of the following will result to a relative sea level fall?
a) Tectonic uplift > eustatic rise b) Subsidence > eustatic fall
c) Tectonic uplift < eustatic fall d) All of the above

97. Which of the following is not true about Deltas?

a) They are roughly triangular in plan view
b) They are wedge-shaped in cross section
c) They are characterized by a fining upward sequence.
d) They are characterized by a wide range in sizes from coarse to fine mud.

98. The only planet that lies on its side wherein its axis of rotation nearly parallels the plane in which the planets revolve
around the Sun.
a) Jupiter b) Saturn c) Uranus d) Neptune

99. Which of the following is arranged according to increasing seismic velocity?

a) Surface – S – P waves c) P – S – Surface waves
b) Surface – P – S waves d) S – P – Surface waves
100. _____________ is the name for all the sciences that collectively seek to understand Earth and its neighbors in space.
a) Earth Science b) Geology c) General Science d) Astronomy

Prepared by: Reviewed and approved:

CRISTINA C. FAURILLO ERLINDA M. BASILLA, Ph.D.

PROGRAM DIRECTOR DEAN

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