Topic 7- Lesson 2 Quiz Review

Which of the following mineral identification tests looks at the powder left behind by a mineral after it is scratched on a porcelain plate?

• hardness

• luster

• streak

• specific gravity

Which option correctly fills in the following blanks;

any mineral can scratch any mineral ______ than itself, and can be scratched by any mineral that is ________.

• harder, softer

• softer, the same

• harder, the same

• softer, harder

What determines crystal size in minerals formed by lava or magma?

• the kind of mineral that formed

• the amount of material available

• the rate at which the minerals cooled

• the materials in the lava or magma

What causes the differences in the way diamonds form compared to graphite?

• high pressure and location in the continental crust

• low temperature and low pressure

• high temperature and high pressure

• low temperature and location deep in the mantle

Which of the following is NOT a characteristic of a mineral?

• naturally occurring

• solid with a definite chemical composition

• crystalline structure

• formed by organic processes

Answer explanation

Minerals are formed by inorganic processes!

Is this a mineral or a rock?

It is not a crystalline solid, has a definite chemical composition, it is a solid, formed through inorganic processes, and is naturally occurring.

• It is a mineral because it has all necessary parts to be classified as one.

• It is a rock because it does not have a crystalline structure.

• It is a mineral because it has a definite chemical composition but does not have a crystalline structure.

• It is neither of them, it is obsidian (was once magma/lava).