Earth Science Review

Great Earth Science Review

MTG-PBOS Science Selection Camp

About the Lecturer

Ivan Lawrence S. Aguilar

• BS Math and Science Teaching graduate from UPLB

• School Principal, Alta Tierra Integrated School, Inc. (Cavite)

• Science Tutor (IMSO 2018, 2019)

• Science Juror (IMSO 2021, 2022)

• Book Author

Tips

• Listen intently

• Compose your answers using clearest and specific thoughts

• Skills we are trying to reinforce: deep reading, making and interpreting graphs, making inferences

• We will not be covering but you need to study: Precautions during earthquakes, tsunamis, and calamities

Multiple Choice

A teacher demonstrated the possible effects 3

of acid rain by placing several types of rocks in separate beakers containing a vinegar solution with a pH of 3. As time passed, some of the solutions retained a pH of 3 while other solutions gradually reached a pH of 7. Which of the following best explains this variation of pH in this demonstration?

• All solutions eventually reach a pH of 7, so the experiment is not complete.

• Vinegar is an organic compound that reacts unpredictably with inorganic rocks.

• The rocks have varying chemical composition, so some but not all of them react with acid.

• The students should have measured the pH immediately after mixing since acid rain reacts quickly in nature.

Multiple Choice

A day on Saturn takes about 10 Earth hours. Which fact would best explain this short day?

• Saturn is less dense than Earth.

• Saturn is much farther from the Sun than Earth.

• Saturn rotates more rapidly than Earth.

• Saturn’s orbit has greater eccentricity than Earth

Multiple Choice

The highest elevation on this topographic map can be no more than about

• 25 meters.

• 34 meters.

• 45 meters.

• 49 meters.

Multiple Choice

In an area where a river has cut deep into Earth, there are several layers of very different rock exposed. The oldest rock layer is most likely to be the layer that is

• below the other layers.

• the thickest layer.

• the most rich in fossils.

• igneous intrusive rock.

Multiple Choice

A student models an impact crater on the Moon by dropping a marble from a known height onto a pan of smooth flour. Before reaching any conclusions about the results of this simple experiment, the student repeats the activity several times so that

• differences produced by standard variability in conditions become clear.

• she can produce as large a crater as possible before measuring a diameter.

• her ability to simulate a meteor impact becomes more realistic with practice.

• she can illustrate a perfectly circular crater for her write-up of the experiment.

Multiple Choice

The existence of extraterrestrial life may never be proven, but this idea will become more scientifically acceptable over time if

• no one disputes this idea in a scientific forum.

• hypotheses are made related to the idea.

• alternative hypotheses are proposed and confirmed.

• increasing scientific evidence supports the idea.

Multiple Choice

Which of the following statements best describes how the planets of the solar system formed?

• They are condensed rings of matter thrown off by the young Sun.

• They are the remains of an exploded star once paired with the Sun.

• The Sun captured them from smaller, older nearby stars.

• They formed from a nebular cloud of dust and gas.

Multiple Choice

Evidence suggests that Earth is about 4.6 billion years old, even though no Earth rocks have been found that can be dated at more than 4 billion years old. This discrepancy is most likely caused by Earth’s original crust being

• difficult to date so precisely.

• subject to extensive erosion.

• blasted away during Earth’s formation.

• destroyed by solar radiation.

Multiple Choice

Which of the following is the best evidence that Earth’s continents were once in vastly different positions than they are today?

• Penguins are found only in the Southern Hemisphere.

• Fossils of tropical plants are found in Antarctica.

• Volcanoes encircle the Pacific Ocean.

• Major rivers form deltas from continental

  erosion.

Multiple Choice

Early telescopes showed stars as only points of light, while the planets appeared to be much larger, providing evidence that stars must

• be more plentiful in our solar system than planets.

• travel in elliptical orbits like planets.

• be much farther from Earth than planets.

• reflect much more light than planets.

Multiple Choice

Although many ancient civilizations designated certain patterns of stars as constellations, they never included planets in their constellations. What feature of planets, as opposed to stars, explains this?

• They look bigger than stars.

• They are more difficult to see than stars.

• There are not enough of them to form a constellation.

• They do not maintain fixed positions relative to other planets or stars.

Multiple Choice

What is the source of energy for the Sun?

• hydrogen fusion

• internal combustion

• nuclear fission of metals

• burning of solar gases

Multiple Choice

Fusion is a form of nuclear reaction resulting in an enormous release of heat energy. The fusion of hydrogen to helium is a reaction that commonly occurs in

• the Sun and other typical stars.

• the ionosphere and thermosphere.

• Earth’s outer core of molten iron.

• a comet’s tail of ionized gases.

Multiple Choice

The surfaces of planet Mercury and our moon contain some very large craters that are most likely the result of

• giant lava flows.

• asteroid impacts.

• nuclear explosions.

• large collapsed caves.

Multiple Choice

The Sun is an average yellow star in the Milky Way galaxy, which is described as

• a dwarf galaxy.

• a spiral galaxy.

• an elliptical galaxy.

• an irregular galaxy.

Multiple Choice

As part of the modern theory of the origins of the elements, it is hypothesized that before the formation of the stars, most of the matter in the universe consisted of what atoms?

• hydrogen and helium

• nitrogen and carbon

• silicon and lithium

• uranium and radium

Multiple Choice

Stars begin their life cycle in

• a black hole.

• a nova.

• a nebula.

• a supernova.

Multiple Choice

Astronomers have discovered vast differences in stars through their observations. One theory used to explain these differences is that

• the distances between stars are vast.

• stars are at different points in their life cycles.

• Earth’s atmosphere distorts our view of the stars.

• there is too much light pollution on Earth to study stars.

Multiple Choice

Which of the following provides evidence for plate tectonics?

• sea-floor topography

• ocean currents

• Coriolis effect

• atmospheric temperatures

Multiple Choice

A rift valley is evidence of which kind of plate boundary?

• convergent

• divergent

• transform

• uniform

Multiple Choice

The convergence of two continental plates would produce

• island arcs.

• rift valleys.

• folded mountains.

• trenches.

Multiple Choice

It is generally true that igneous rocks

• contain primarily evaporites.

• can be scratched with a penny.

• normally contain fossils.

• are composed of silicate minerals.

Multiple Choice

Relative cooling rates of igneous intrusive rocks

can be estimated by comparing rocks’

• crystal sizes.

• composition.

• density.

• chemical reactivity.

Multiple Choice

Earthquake vibrations are detected, measured, and recorded by instruments called

• sonargraphs.

• seismographs.

• Richter scales.

• magnetometers.

Multiple Choice

At which location would earthquakes be least likely to occur?

• 1

• 2

• 3

• 4

Multiple Choice

The Richter scale measures which of the following earthquake characteristics?

• intensity

• magnitude

• frequency

• probability

Multiple Choice

Which type of volcano would be the least explosive?

• cinder cone

• stratovolcano

• shield volcano

•  composite cone

Multiple Choice

Which of the following energy sources is most likely to be abundant in the Philippines due to its position on a plate boundary?

• wind

• nuclear

• solar

• geothermal

Multiple Choice

Geothermal energy is possible where there is

• wind.

• oil.

• coal.

• magma.

Multiple Choice



The Mount Taal caldera in Tagaytay City was formed by a massive volcanic eruption thousands of years ago. Since then, it has erupted several times. Of the following, which would be least likely to indicate that another eruption will soon occur?

• recurring earthquakes in the vicinity

• decreases in precipitation in the area

• changes in gas emissions from the caldera

• uplifting of the floor of the caldera

Multiple Choice

Earthquake activity in the Philippines is primarily caused by

• the lowering of aquifer levels.

• the interaction of tides with the coast.

• mining activity during the twentieth century.

• plates grinding past each other along active faults.

Multiple Choice

Only about 50% of the solar energy directed toward Earth penetrates directly to the surface. What happens to the rest of the radiation?

• It is absorbed or reflected by the atmosphere.

• It loses energy traveling through space.

• It is reflected off the Moon and back into space.

• It loses energy overcoming the Sun’s gravity.

Multiple Choice

Geothermal energy, a possible energy resource, is based on which phenomenon?

• There are concentrations of heat in some places of Earth’s crust.

• Earth’s internal energy heats its surface more than the Sun does.

• Heat energy from the Sun penetrates deep into Earth.

• Human activity is the largest source of heat energy on Earth.

Multiple Choice

The Moon is very hot on the side facing the Sun and very cold on the dark side. This extreme temperature difference is primarily due to the Moon’s

• mineral composition.

• thin atmosphere.

• reflective rocks.

• lack of volcanic activity.

Multiple Choice

Venus is warmed by solar radiation, but its thick cloud cover increases the temperature because the clouds

• prevent the escape of heat into space.

• convert solar radiation into heat.

• absorb short light wavelengths, leaving heat.

• produce heat as they are pushed by strong winds.

Multiple Choice

Which of these could increase average global temperatures?

• increased use of fossil fuels

•  increased ocean algal blooms

• decreased carbon dioxide emissions

• increased numbers of animal species

Multiple Choice

The clouds that surround Venus are so thick that the planet actually absorbs less sunlight than the Earth. Nevertheless, Venus has a surface temperature of more than 400 degrees Celsius. Which of these best explains this high surface temperature?

• The bright surfaces of the clouds reflect sunlight back on the planet.

• The strong winds in the atmosphere produce friction.

• The thick clouds in the atmosphere prevent heat from escaping.

• The sulfuric acid in the clouds releases heat energy.

Multiple Choice

More solar energy reaches the equatorial regions than the polar regions because the equatorial regions

• are covered by a greater area of land.

• have more vegetation to absorb sunlight.

• have days with more hours of light.

• receive sun rays closest to vertical.

Multiple Choice

Which diagram best models the movement of coastal air during the afternoon?

Multiple Choice

What causes the wind deflection from the north and south poles?

• the rotation of Earth on its axis

• the oblate shape of Earth

• the tilt of Earth’s axis relative to its orbital plane

• the difference in total land mass of the two hemispheres

Multiple Choice

Air moving from the poles toward the equator turns west. The primary cause of this global deflection is

• the shape and size of land masses.

• larger cities surrounded by farmlands.

• changes in the magnetic field.

• the rotation of the planet.

Multiple Choice

When a layer of cool air at the surface of Earth is found under a layer of warmer air above it, the result is known as

• the Coriolis effect.

• the greenhouse effect.

• a temperature inversion.

• an upwelling.

Multiple Choice

At which location on the map would a rain forest most likely be found?

• 1

• 2

• 3

• 4

Multiple Choice

Which of these effects generally occurs as the result of a warm air mass and a cooler air mass converging at Earth’s surface?

• The sky becomes clear.

• Winds die down.

• Cloud formation decreases.

• Stormy weather patterns develop.

Multiple Choice

Snow on the ground prevents polar climates from gaining heat by what mechanism?

• heating by greenhouse gases

• heat spread from the equator

• reflection of solar radiation

• release of heat from Earth’s core

Multiple Choice

Shifts in Earth’s continents most likely caused a change in Earth’s

• climatic regions.

• mass.

• orbital velocity.

• atmospheric temperature.

Multiple Choice

Which of these statements is best illustrated by this diagram?

• Animals under water eat plants.

• Land animals exhale oxygen into water.

• Water-dwelling animals breathe carbon dioxide.

• Plants can take in carbon dioxide from air or water.

Multiple Choice

Earth’s atmosphere is divided into layers that

are based upon their

• water content.

• relative humidity.

• gas content.

• temperature gradient.

Multiple Choice

The diagram above shows four layers of Earth’s atmosphere. Which of the following correctly labels the layers represented by A, B, C, and D (from Earth moving upward) in the correct sequence?

• troposphere, stratosphere, mesosphere, thermosphere

• thermosphere, mesosphere, stratosphere, troposphere

• troposphere, mesosphere, thermosphere, stratosphere

• mesosphere, troposphere, thermosphere, stratosphere

Multiple Choice

Which of the following human activities reduces the level of ozone in the atmosphere?

• using artificial lighting in scientific polar stations

• using large banks of solar cells for energy production

• releasing chlorofluorocarbons from aerosol cans

• destroying large areas of the equatorial rain forests