Earth Systems Semester Exam

Which of the following best describes the nebular hypothesis?

• Planets were captured by the Sun's gravity

• The solar system formed from a large cloud of gases that collapsed

• The solar system was created by a cosmic collision

What is the correct order of formation in the nebular hypothesis?

• Dust → planetesimal → protoplanet → planet

• Planetesimal → dust → protoplanet → planet

• Protoplanet → dust → planetesimal → planet

According to the Giant Impact Hypothesis, how was the Moon formed?

• It formed from the same nebula as Earth

• It resulted from a collision between Earth and a Mars-sized planetesimal

• It was ejected from Earth during its rapid rotation

Which Earth system is responsible for plate tectonics and volcanic activity?

• Atmosphere

• Hydrosphere

• Geosphere

Which dating method uses the half-life of radiometric isotopes to determine the exact age of fossils and rocks?

• Radiometric dating

• Stratigraphy

• Relative Dating

What is the maximum age of organic materials that can be dated using Carbon-14?

• 10,000 years

• 50-60,000 years

• 4.5 billion years

Which principle states that the oldest rock layers are at the bottom and the youngest at the top?

• Principle of Original Horizontality
• Principle of Superposition
• Principle of Crosscutting Concepts

In which epoch are we currently living?

• Holocene
• Anthropocene
• Miocene

What is the most common type of fossilization?

• Molds and casts
• Full body fossils
• Permineralization

Which of the following is NOT a type of plate boundary?

• Divergent boundary
• Convergent boundary
• Subduction boundary