Full Test Bank Test Bank Soil Resources Ch.10

Chapter 10 Test Bank: Soil Resources

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Which of the following describes why soils are important in environmental geology?

A. soil erosion is affecting the hydrologic cycle and contributing to climate change.

B. soil erosion worldwide is contributing to sea level rise.

C. soil loss will affect our ability to grow food as the population increases.

D. all of the answers listed here.

E. soil pollution is causing dangerous toxins to enter the food supply.

2. What best describes the basic way in which soils form?

A. repeated flooding over long periods of time

B. breakdown of minerals by ultraviolet radiation

C. reactions between water and atmospheric oxygen

D. physical and chemical weathering of rock

E. erosion and deposition of sediment

3. What describes how topsoil, or A-horizons develop?

A. accumulation of organic matter in the upper soil zone

B. clay particles that are pulled upwards by plant roots

C. clay particles carried downward by infiltrating water

D. reactions between water and atmospheric oxygen

E. repeated flooding over long periods of time

4. Which of the following best describes soil texture?

A. the relative amounts of air and water

B. whether a soil is rough or smooth

C. whether a soil is pebbly or sandy

D. the proportion of sand, silt, and clay particles

E. the number of fractures that develop when a soil becomes dry

5. Which of the following will cause soils to appear bright red or yellow?

A. clay minerals

B. all of the answers listed here

C. quartz minerals

D. organic material

E. iron oxide minerals

6. What would you expect to see when digging vertically downward in a mature soil?

A. horizons of different colors, textures, and composition

B. uniformly rich, fertile soil

C. progressively thicker soil horizons

D. alternating horizons of soil and rock

E. progressively coarser soil horizons

7. Which of the following statements best describes how time impacts soil formation?

A. time does not impact soil formation.

B. over time, more distinct soil horizons will form, each with their own characteristics.

C. over time, more clay minerals accumulate in the uppermost layer to form topsoil.

D. over time, a soil will become more homogenous.

E. over time, soils become enriched with air and water.

8. The topography of the landscape is an important soil forming factor. What topsoil characteristics would you expect to find on a topographic high?

A. poorly drained and relatively thick

B. heavily vegetated and well drained

C. well drained and relatively thin

D. iron oxide poor and well drained

E. iron oxide rich and poorly drained

9. A paleosol represents a soil profile that was buried under new sediment. What explains why paleosols are important in environmental geology?

A. provide valuable clues in the study of archaeology

B. organic content is much higher than normal topsoil

C. helps geologist locate coal deposits

D. are particularly well-drained

E. represent a distinct, datable time event

10. Soil scientists and engineers classify soils differently. What best describes the basis for how engineers classify soils?

A. thickness and density

B. physical properties

C. geographic location

D. water content

E. soil-forming factors

11. Porosity is the term that describes the amount of void space within a material. What explains why porosity is important with respect to soils?

A. allows iron oxides to accumulate

B. provides plant roots access to moisture and oxygen

C. reduces the ability of erosion to strip away topsoil

D. makes soils less compactable

E. provides space for the breakdown of aluminum minerals

12. Which of the following explains why clay-rich soils are less permeable than sandy soils?

A. sandy soils have greater vegetation cover.

B. clay particles are electrically charged and very small.

C. pores spaces of clay soils become plugged with sand grains.

D. clay soils have greater porosity.

E. sandy soils tend to form in areas with abundant rainfall.

13. What explains why the soil property known as shrink-swell is important in environmental geology?

A. causes soils to become unstable on steep slopes

B. causes structural damage in buildings

C. greatly enhances the effect of agricultural droughts

D. causes soils to become less permeable

E. prevents farmers from working their fields

14. What explains why the soil property known as ion exchange is important in environmental geology?

A. causes soils to compact more easily

B. reduces soil erosion in sandy soils

C. makes soils fertile by allowing them to store nutrients

D. causes farmers to use more chemicals to control weeds

E. leads to the buildup of salts within a soil

15. Which of the following best describes the root cause of soil loss?

A. farmers applying too much fertilizer

B. fields becoming too dry

C. climate change

D. farmers plowing their fields when wet

E. removal of natural vegetation

16. The problem known as sediment pollution is a major environmental issue. Which of the following is a problem associated with sediment pollution?

A. any pollution that causes crops to become unfit to eat

B. too much fertilizer makes soils toxic and unusable

C. compaction reduces crop production

D. excess sediment in stream channels increases flooding

E. buildup of heavy metals makes soils toxic and unusable

17. Which of the following is an effective technique for reducing soil erosion?

A. contour plowing

B. no-till farming

C. terracing

D. strip cropping

E. all of the answers listed here

18. Salinization refers to the process where agricultural fields become unusable because of saline water in the soil root zone. What is the basic reason the water becomes too saline?

A. use of saline water to irrigate crops builds up salts over time

B. irrigation water applied to the fields dissolves salt crystals within the soil

C. all of the answers listed here

D. plant growth gives off ions, but the salts can’t be flushed from the soil

E. ion exchange between rainwater and organic matter in the soil

True / False Questions

19. Quartz readily undergoes chemical weathering to form aluminum-rich clay minerals.

True / False

20. The O horizon, which is found only in some soil profiles, is an oxygen-rich layer.

True / False

Multiple Choice Questions

21. Soils are an important resource for all the following reasons except

A. they are the essential medium for growing food.

B. they are a renewable resource.

C. they are a source for building materials.

D. they are a source of aluminum.

22. Which is an important type of physical weathering?

A. Minerals react with water and change shape.

B. Minerals dissolve in water.

C. Water freezes and expands within pore spaces and fractures.

D. Plant roots excrete organic acids.

23. What is an important consequence of physical weathering?

A. It destroys harmful bacteria.

B. It removes toxic heavy metals.

C. It purifies groundwater.

D. It increases surface area, exposing more of the rock to chemical reactions.

24. All of the following are products of chemical weathering except

A. soil organic matter.

B. clay minerals.

C. iron oxides.

D. ions lost in solution.

25. What is the uppermost organic-rich zone in soil called?

A. A-horizon

B. B-horizon

C. C-horizon

D. R-horizon

26. What is the name of the zone of accumulation which is enriched in clay and other minerals?

A. A-horizon

B. B-horizon

C. C-horizon

D. R-horizon

27. What is the substance that gives soil a blackish to brownish appearance?

A. Iron oxide

B. Clay minerals

C. Salts

D. Organic matter

28. Soil texture refers to

A. the amount of sand, silt, and clay-sized material.

B. the amount of organic matter.

C. the tendency for the soil to split in clumps.

D. the amount of iron oxides.

29. All of the following are soil-forming factors except

A. time.

B. parent material.

C. leaching.

D. organisms.

30. Which soil order is characterized as having an uppermost horizon that is unusually rich in organic matter?

A. Ultisols

B. Aridisols

C. Gelisols

D. Histosols

31. What is the Unified Soil Classification System based on?

A. Chemical properties

B. Organic matter content

C. Physical properties

D. Soil color

32. Why is porosity an important soil property?

A. It indicates the amount of water potentially available for plant growth.

B. It indicates the ability of a soil to deform without breaking.

C. It indicates the ability of water to flow through soil.

D. It indicates how well soil particles stick together.

33. Which texture is generally the most drought resistant soil type?

A. Gravel

B. Sand

C. Silt

D. Clay

34. The shrink-swell capacity of soil is determined by

A. the type of sand.

B. the type of organic matter.

C. the type of gravel.

D. the type of clay.

35. What determines the ion exchange capacity of soil?

A. The permeability of the soil

B. The compressibility of the soil

C. The amount of electrically-charged particles

D. The amount of shrink-swell minerals

36. What is the process which converts atmospheric nitrogen into forms needed by plants?

A. Biological activity

B. Chemical weathering

C. Physical weathering

D. Dissolution

37. All of the following are useful for increasing soil fertility except

A. addition of fertilizer.

B. addition of manure.

C. addition of iron oxide.

D. crop rotation.

38. Soils are an important source of all of the following except

A. petroleum.

B. aluminum.

C. kaolinite clay.

D. peat.

39. What is the function of grassed waterways?

A. To increase soil fertility

B. To decrease soil fertility

C. To increase soil erosion

D. To decrease soil erosion

40. What is the usual cause of soil salinization?

A. Excessive soil erosion

B. Heavy irrigation on poorly drained desert soils

C. Excessive fertilizer additions

D. Overdevelopment of residential areas