THIRD WRITTEN TEST IN EARTH AND LIFE SCIENCE

QUARTER 1, SY 2021-2022

Instructions: Read each question carefully and write the correct answer on a
separate sheet of paper or on the answer sheet provided to you. Do not write anything
on this test questionnaire.

1. Which of the following movements lead to the folding of rocks?

A. plates sliding past each other
B. plates pushing each other down
C. plates moving towards each other
D. plates moving away from each other

2. You noticed a similar folded rock formation as shown in Figure 1 below. What type
of fold does it represent?

Figure 1. Sample Folded Rock

(Source: https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-KkNd883N_ck/VOtUQdew8rI/
AAAAAAAAEiM/cFrsmkLQylw/s640/Monocline%2Bfold.bmp)

A. syncline fold
B. anticline fold
C. monocline fold
D. overturned fold

3. You are walking along a flat rock surface. You discover that as you walk further,
the age of the rocks decreases until you reach the middle of the surface, then for
some reason, they get older again. What structure have you just passed over?
A. syncline fold
B. anticline fold
C. monocline fold
D. overturned fold

4. The East African Rift Valley is found at the divergent plate boundary which splits
the African plate apart. Based on its location, what type of fault is formed?
A. horst fault
B. graben fault
C. reverse fault
D. normal fault

Test Developer: Jean Ailyn O. Pitolan DepEd-Caraga

School: Agusan del Sur National High School Sukdanan
Email Address: jeanailyn.pitolan@deped.gov.ph Standardized Assessment
For items 5-7, refer to Figure 2 below.

Figure 2. Stress and Strain Curve of Certain Rocks

(Source: https://ars.els-cdn.com/content/image/1-s2.0-S0950061817315088-gr2.sml)

5. Stress refers to the force applied on the rock while strain refers to the degree of
deformation (or folding) a rock can undergo. Which rock can accept the highest
amount of stress before it finally breaks?
A. basalt
B. dolomite
C. granite
D. quartzite

6. Which rock can be deformed or folded the most when put under stress?
A. basalt
B. dolomite
C. granite
D. quartzite

7. Which conclusion is correct based on the graph?

A. Rocks can break even without having to undergo folding.
B. All rocks undergo the same amount of strain before breaking.
C. All rocks undergo the same amount of stress before breaking.
D. Rocks can only receive a certain amount of stress before breaking.

8. You came across a scientific paper that a portion of a proposed relocation site in
your community sits over a normal fault. What can you best propose to the
authorities if they still insist with their plan despite learning this fact?
A. Ignore the information and trust the authorities in their plans of helping
the people.
B. Agree with them since places with faults will not have any harmful effect
on the people near it.
C. Suggest to them to also build structures to prevent earthquakes from
occurring in the area.
D. Convince them that the place is prone to earthquakes, so they should find
another much safer site.

Test Developer: Jean Ailyn O. Pitolan DepEd-Caraga

School: Agusan del Sur National High School Sukdanan
Email Address: jeanailyn.pitolan@deped.gov.ph Standardized Assessment
9. Which principle in stratigraphy states that older sedimentary layers are formed on
top of younger rock layers?
A. Superposition
B. Lateral Continuity
C. Original Horizontality
D. Cross-Cutting Relationship

10. Rock layers can also undergo changes and deformations. Based on Figure 3
below, the igneous intrusion (Rock 3) is the youngest rock.

Figure 3. Sample Cross-section of Stratified Rocks

(Source: https://studylib.net/doc/5814119/unconformities)

What principle of stratigraphy was used to arrive at this conclusion?

A. Superposition
B. Lateral Continuity
C. Original Horizontality
D. Cross-Cutting Relationship

11. A geologist was interested in the age of rock layers in a specific area, as shown
in Figure 4 below.

Figure 4. Sample Cross-section of Stratified Rocks

(Source: https://eastmontscience.weebly.com/uploads/1/3/3/8/13389395/2550116.jpg)

Which of the following set of rock layers is correctly arranged from oldest to
youngest?
A. P – O – N – M – L – Q
B. P – Q – O – N – L – M
C. Q – O – N – M – L – P
D. Q – P – O – N – M – L

Test Developer: Jean Ailyn O. Pitolan DepEd-Caraga

School: Agusan del Sur National High School Sukdanan
Email Address: jeanailyn.pitolan@deped.gov.ph Standardized Assessment
12. You were on a tour with your friend when you saw a rock formation with a similar
stratification as shown in Figure 5 below.

Figure 5. Sample Cross-section of Stratified Rocks

(Source: https://www.pinterest.ph/pin/385480049329216013/)

He/She cannot believe that this was possible. How can you best discuss to
him/her the processes that resulted to the rock formation?
A. Rocks EF were deposited first, followed by Rocks ABCD being folded and
eroded.
B. Rocks EF were folded first, followed by Rocks ABCD being deposited and
eroded.
C. Rocks ABCD were first folded, and then erosion took place; Rocks EF were
deposited afterward.
D. Rocks ABCD were first eroded, and then folding took place; Rocks EF were
deposited afterward.

13. What type of dating involves using radiometric techniques that give the exact
age of a rock?
A. cross dating
B. relative dating
C. geologic dating
D. absolute dating

14. A parent isotope has a half-life of 1 million years. If a rock contained 100 mg of
the parent isotope when it formed, how much parent isotope would be left after 1
million years?
A. 12.5 mg
B. 25 mg
C. 50 mg
D. 100 mg

15. A geologist used relative dating methods to guess that an igneous rock sample is
between 1 million and 5 million years old and was curious about its exact age.
Will using carbon-14 in determining the age of the rock be helpful?
A. Yes, because the rock sample contains traces of carbon in it.
B. Yes, because carbon-14 is widely used by scientists in absolute dating.
C. No, because the half-life of carbon-14 is too short for the age of the rock
sample.
D. No, because it is not sure whether dead bodies of organisms are present in
the sample.

Test Developer: Jean Ailyn O. Pitolan DepEd-Caraga

School: Agusan del Sur National High School Sukdanan
Email Address: jeanailyn.pitolan@deped.gov.ph Standardized Assessment
For items 16-17, refer to Figure 6 below.

Figure 6. Location of the Fossil Relative to the Rock Layers

(Source: https://www.pinterest.ph/pin/385480049329216013/)

16. What could be the possible age of the dinosaur fossil?

A. cannot be determined
B. 80 – 100 million years old
C. older than 100 million years old
D. younger than 80 million years old

17. A geologist found a dinosaur fossil and wants to estimate what period that
dinosaur existed in the past. The geologist measured the ages of the rocks
beneath and above the fossil. What dating technique he/she is about to use?
A. cross dating
B. relative dating
C. geologic dating
D. absolute dating

18. Figure 7 below shows two columns of rocks found in different places. Each box
in each rock column represents a different layer that contains certain fossils.

Column A Column B
Figure 7. Fossils in Different Rock Columns
(Source: https://uhlibraries.pressbooks.pub/app/uploads/sites/6/2019/06/Figure-Ex0305b-v2.png)

What conclusion can be made when relative dating is used?

A. Ammonites and bivalves once lived in the same period.
B. Trilobites and gastropods once lived in the same period.
C. Among the given fossils, trilobites existed most recently.
D. Among the given fossils, ammonites were the first to exist.

Test Developer: Jean Ailyn O. Pitolan DepEd-Caraga

School: Agusan del Sur National High School Sukdanan
Email Address: jeanailyn.pitolan@deped.gov.ph Standardized Assessment
19. What information is generally shown in the geologic time scale?
A. the branches of geology
B. the geologic history of the Earth
C. the geologic features of the Earth
D. the geologists with significant contributions

For items 20-22, refer to Figure 8 below.

Figure 8. Geologic Time Scale

(Source: https://sci.waikato.ac.nz/evolution/images/Geol-timescale.gif)

20. Which of the following events occurred after the Devonian period but before the
Triassic period?
A. extinction of trilobites
B. formation of the Earth
C. dominance of dinosaurs
D. appearance of first land plants

21. Suppose a scientist found a fossil of a particular mammal. Using radiometric

dating, the fossil was estimated to be 7 million years old. It was then concluded
that the mammal lived during the Tertiary period. Is this conclusion correct?
A. No, because the information is not enough to conclude.
B. Yes, because this period was the only time when mammals existed.
C. Yes, because the age of the fossil is within the time range of this period.
D. No, because this is not the correct time when mammals have first appeared.

Test Developer: Jean Ailyn O. Pitolan DepEd-Caraga

School: Agusan del Sur National High School Sukdanan
Email Address: jeanailyn.pitolan@deped.gov.ph Standardized Assessment
22. If we can extend the geologic time scale into the future, a new unit of time could
be added. Based on the previous trends, what will likely mark the end of the
Cenozoic era and the start of a new era?
A. death of planet Earth
B. formation of new landforms
C. another mass extinction event
D. first appearance of new species

23. Which hazard may happen if loosely-packed and water-logged sediments at or

near ground surface lose strength during earthquakes?
A. eruption
B. fire
C. liquefaction
D. tsunamis

24. A barangay located near the sea experienced a magnitude 8.0 earthquake. What
hazard are the residents most exposed to after this?
A. eruption
B. fire
C. liquefaction
D. tsunami

25. The eruption of Mt. Pinatubo in 1991 was so explosive that it was considered
the second largest volcanic eruption of the 20th century. What does it tell us
about its magma’s viscosity and amount of dissolved gases?
A. low viscosity and low amount of dissolved gases
B. high viscosity and low amount of dissolved gases
C. low viscosity and high amount of dissolved gases
D. high viscosity and high amount of dissolved gases

For items 26-27, refer to Table 1 below.

Table 1. Expected human death rates in a certain volcanic eruption

Distance (km) Ash thickness (cm) Range in death rate (%)
200 40 4.0 – 5.0
600 20 0.3 – 0.8
900 15 0.05 – 0.02
1200 10 0.02 – 0.08
1500 1 0.005 – 0.02
(Source: https://www.aon.com/reinsurance/gimo/20190924-gimo-volcanoes)

26. What happens to the death rate during an eruption as people live farther from
the volcano?
A. Death rate increases.
B. Death rate decreases.
C. Death rate is constant.
D. Death rate could be determined.

Test Developer: Jean Ailyn O. Pitolan DepEd-Caraga

School: Agusan del Sur National High School Sukdanan
Email Address: jeanailyn.pitolan@deped.gov.ph Standardized Assessment
27. What is the relationship between ash thickness and death rate in an eruption?
A. The thicker the ash, the lower the death rate.
B. The thinner the ash, the lower the death rate.
C. The thicker the ash, the higher the death rate.
D. The thinner the ash, the higher the death rate.

For item 28, refer to Table 2 below.

Table 2. Landslide susceptibility parameters used by MGB-DENR—Philippines

Landslide
susceptibility Low Moderate High Very High
parameters
Slight to Moderate to Steep to very Steep to very
Slope gradient
moderate (<18°) steep (18°-35°) steep (>35°) steep (>35°)
Weathering/ Intense; soil Intense; soil
Slight to
soil Moderate usually non- usually non-
moderate
characteristics cohesive cohesive
Rock mass Very good to Poor to very Poor to very
Fair
strength good poor poor
Soil creep and Active
Stable with no Inactive
other indications landslides
identified landslides
for possible evident; tension
Ground stability landslide scars, evident;
landslide cracks, bulges,
either old, tension cracks
occurrence are terracettes,
recent, or active present
present seepage present
May be an
Human-initiated
aggravating
effects
factor
(Source: https://d3i71xaburhd42.cloudfront.net/fe6345934a3176500b560946e337902853eb6884/2-Table1-
1.png)

28. Who among these families lives in a place with the lowest susceptibility to a
landslide?
A. Family W, whose house stands on a rock with good strength and is on a
moderately steep area.
B. Family Y, whose house stands on a relatively plain land with no indications
of past or present landslides.
C. Family X, whose house stands on a non-cohesive soil with some signs of
possible landslide occurrence.
D. Family Z, whose house stands near a recent landslide incident and on a
very steep side of the mountain.

29. Who among these individuals is NOT preparing correctly for an upcoming
disaster?
A. Person G created and mastered his/her family’s emergency disaster plan.
B. Person H secured a copy of map on landslide-susceptible areas within their
community.
C. Person J made sure that his/her house was constructed according to
prescribed engineering codes.
D. Person I bought a fire extinguisher even without knowing how to
manipulate it during an actual fire.

Test Developer: Jean Ailyn O. Pitolan DepEd-Caraga

School: Agusan del Sur National High School Sukdanan
Email Address: jeanailyn.pitolan@deped.gov.ph Standardized Assessment
30. A community is situated at the foot of the hill with a history of a landslide that
happened decades ago. If you are given a chance to propose a project to lessen
the hazard of landslide that the people living here are exposed to, what would it
be?
A. Build a retaining wall to support the slope.
B. Create a dam to direct the water to the river.
C. Cover the whole hill with concrete to lessen erosion.
D. Flatten the whole hill so landslide could not happen.

Test Developer: Jean Ailyn O. Pitolan DepEd-Caraga

School: Agusan del Sur National High School Sukdanan
Email Address: jeanailyn.pitolan@deped.gov.ph Standardized Assessment