Chapter 14: The Ocean Floor

Multiple Choice
1. Which one of the following is NOT part of a passive continental margin? a. continental shelf b. continental slope c. continental rise d. continental trench 2. Atolls may be described as __________. a. coral reefs paralleling a nearby coast b. coral reefs surrounding a lagoon c. a flat-topped submergent seamount d. coral reefs separated from the mainland by a shallow lagoon e. a small reef growth in a lagoon 3. Which of the following would NOT be associated with turbidity currents? a. deposits of graded beds b. density current c. excavation of submarine canyons d. formation of seamounts e. sediment transport 4. Submarine canyons found on the continental slope and rise are believed to have been created ___________. a. by rivers during the ice age b. by faulting c. because of a plate plunging into the mantle d. any two of the above e. none of the above 5. Graded bedding is characterized by ___________. a. an increase in sediment size from bottom to top b. a decrease in sediment size from bottom to top c. an unsorted mixture of many different sediment sizes d. being found only on the continental slope off the Newfoundland coast 6. Which of the following is NOT true of deep ocean trenches? a. b. c. d. they are long and narrow depressions they are sites where plates plunge back into the mantle they are geologically very stable they may act as sediment traps

7. The best definition of the outer edge of the continental shelf is that place where __________. a. the gradient becomes very gentle b. the water depth reaches 100 fathoms c. it meets an oceanic ridge d. a rapid steepening of the gradient occurs e. none of the above 8. Seamounts ___________. a. are a special type of oceanic trench b. are volcanoes that form on the ocean floor c. form only in the Pacific Ocean basin d. are submarine canyons found near Australia e. none of the above 9. Which one of the following is NOT a requirement for coral reef growth? a. warm water b. shallow water c. abundant sunlight d. abundant amounts of suspended sediment 10. The scientist who correctly proposed the theory of atoll formation was _________. a. Kelvin b. Hutton c. Darwin d. Wegener e. none of the above 11. Which of the following is associated with mid-ocean ridges? a. rift zones b. mountainous topography c. greater heat flow than occurs in other parts of the world

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d. e. volcanic structures all of the above 17. Directly seaward of the continental shelf is a more steeply sloping region known as the __________. a. continental shelf b. continental slope c. continental rise d. submarine canyon e. ocean basin 18. Located within the continental margin are deep, steep-sided valleys known as __________. a. continental shelf b. continental slope c. continental rise d. submarine canyon e. ocean basin 19. Most available information favors the view that submarine canyons on the continental slope have been generated by _________. a. streams when sea level was much lower than it is today b. streams when sea level was much lower than it is today c. submarine glaciation d. turbidity currents e. faulting 20. Charles Darwin was first to explain how reef-building organisms that require shallow, sunlight water could create reef complexes extending for thousands of meters below sea level. Darwin hypothesized that __________. a. in contrast to modern forms, ancient reef-building organisms could, in fact, live in deep, cold, water b. as sea level rose during the Pleistocene, these organisms kept pace by building the reef complex upward c. as sea level dropped during the onset of the ice age, these organisms built the reef in what is presently much deeper water d. as volcanic islands with fringing coral reefs began to sink, these organisms kept pace by building the reef complex upward

12. Calcareous ooze is an example of __________. a. terrigenous sediment b. biogenous sediment c. hydrogenous sediment d. both terrigenous sediment and biogenous sediment e. terrigenous sediment, biogenous sediment, and hydrogenous sediment 13. Sediments derived primarily from the products on the continents are called ___________. a. terrigenous sediment b. biogenous sediment c. hydrogenous sediment d. both terrigenous sediment and biogenous sediment e. terrigenous sediment, biogenous sediment, and hydrogenous sediment 14. Manganese nodules are an example of ____________. a. terrigenous sediment b. biogenous sediment c. hydrogenous sediment d. both terrigenous sediment and biogenous sediment e. terrigenous sediment, biogenous sediment, and hydrogenous sediment 15. Minerals that crystallize directly from seawater are examples of ___________. a. terrigenous sediment b. biogenous sediment c. hydrogenous sediment d. both terrigenous sediment and biogenous sediment e. terrigenous sediment, biogenous sediment, and hydrogenous sediment 16. The gently sloping submerged surface extending from the shoreline toward the deep ocean is termed the __________. a. continental shelf b. continental slope c. continental rise d. submarine canyon e. ocean basin

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21. The crests of mid-oceanic ridges _______. a. are heavily mantled with sediment b. lie at depths exceeding 6 kilometers c. contain active rift zones d. are geologically old features e. have never been observed by humans 22. One of the deep-diving manned submersibles that has been used to photograph mid-ocean ridges is the __________. a. SS Trinity b. Alvin c. Challenger d. SS Woods Hole e. Catanach 23. The development of this instrument greatly enhanced our knowledge of the ocean floor. a. pulsar b. echo sounder c. submarine transit d. tuzometer e. infrared opscanner 24. The oceans cover approximately ______ percent of Earths surface. a. 30 b. 40 c. 50

Testban

c. Indian d. Arctic e. All are approximately the same size 28. He wrote the first textbook on oceanography, titled, The Physical Geography of the Sea. a. Nansen b. Franklin c. Forbes d. Maury e. Thomson The first and perhaps most comprehensive study of the global ocean lasted from December 1872 until May 1876 and is known as the __________ expedition. a. Challenger b. Fram c. Meteor d. Alvin e. Maury Concerning the distribution of land and water, which of the following statements is true? a. the percentage of land and water is about the same in both the Northern and Southern Hemispheres b. the Southern Hemispheres has much more water surface than the Northern Hemisphere c. the Northern Hemisphere has much more water surface than the Southern Hemisphere When muddy currents emerge from the mouth of a submarine canyon onto the flat ocean floor, they deposit sediment that forms a(n) __________. a. alluvial fan b. deep-sea fan c. atoll d. slope fan e. none of the above Most deep-ocean trenches are located in the __________ Ocean. a. Atlantic b. Arctic c. Indian

29.

30.

d. 60 e. 70

25. The continents cover approximately _____ percent of Earths surface. a. 30 b. 40 c. 50 d. 60 e. 70 26. The _________ Ocean is the largest ocean. a. Atlantic b. Pacific c. Indian d. Artic e. All are approximately the same size 27. Which ocean has the greatest average depth? a. Atlantic b. Pacific

31.

32.

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The Ocean Floor True-False:

33. The continental margin off of the west coast of South America is very similar to the continental margin off of the east coast of North America.. 34. Abyssal plains are more extensive on the floor of the Atlantic as compared to the floor of the Pacific. 35. A flat-topped seamount is termed a guyot. 36. Oceanic ridges exist only in the Atlantic and Pacific. 37. Turbidites are examples of biogenous sediment. 38. Calcareous shells will not accumulate on the ocean floor when the water depth exceeds about 4500 meters (15,000 feet). 39. Most deep-ocean trenches are located in the Pacific. 40. In a few locations such as Iceland, the mid-oceanic ridge actually extends above sea level. 41. Atolls are coral reefs surrounding a lagoon. 42. The mid-ocean ridges stand above the deep ocean basin mainly because they are warmer, and thus more buoyant than adjacent regions. 43. The deepest portions of the ocean are part of the relatively narrow features called submarine canyons. 44. The percentage of surface area in the Southern Hemisphere that is ocean, is greater than in the Northern Hemisphere. 45. The Northern Hemisphere is sometimes called the land hemisphere. 46. The Southern Hemisphere is sometimes called the water hemisphere. 47. The area covered by oceans is greater in the Northern Hemisphere than the Southern Hemisphere. 48. The largest ocean is the Atlantic. 49. The average height of the continents above sea level is greater than the average depth of the oceans below sea level.

d. Pacific

Completion:
50. The most extensive mountain range on Earth extends for about 65,000 kilometers on the ocean floor and is known as the __________.

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Testban

51. Flat-toped volcanic structures located on the floor of the deep ocean basin are termed __________. 52. A prominent feature of the Mid-Atlantic is a very deep linear valley known as a __________ valley. 53. The correct theory of atoll formation was proposed by __________. 54 The gently sloping submerged surface extending from the shoreline toward the deep ocean is termed the __________. 55. The continental shelf, slope, and rise make up a unit called the continental __________. 56. __________ sediment consists of shells and hard parts of marine organisms. 57. Manganese nodules are an example of __________sediment. 58. The ocean floors are dotted with isolated volcanic peaks called __________. 59. Name the instrument used to measure water depths in the ocean by employing sound waves. 60. The first and perhaps most comprehensive study of the global ocean lasted from December 1872 until May 1876 and is known as the __________ expedition. 61. The two main types of continental margins are __________ and __________.

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Answers to Chapter 14 Test Questions

Multiple Choice: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. d b d e b c 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. d b d c e b 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. a c c a b d 19. 20. 21. 22. 23. 24. d d c b d e 25. 26. 27. 28. 29. 30. a b b d a b 31. b 32. d

True-False: 33. 34. 35. 36. 37. 38. 39. 40. 41. 42. 43. false true true false false true true true true true false 44. 45. 46. 47. 48. 49. true true true false false false

Completion: 50. 51. 52. 53. 54. 55. 56. 57. 58. 59. 60. 61. mid-ocean ridge guyot rift Charles Darwin continental shelf margin Biogenous hydrogenous seamounts echo sounder Challenger passive continental margins; active continental margins

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