Question 1

Early warning systems use computers to detect a nearby earthquake and send an emergency alert to warn of the event.Which seismic phase is the system detecting when it sends the alert?

Accepted Answer

A)  Love wave
B)  Rayleigh wave
C)  P-wave
D)  S-wave

Question 2

Earthquake ________ is a means of deciding where the ground is stable enough to build on in earthquake-prone areas.

Accepted Answer

A)  mitigation
B)  zoning
C)  retrofitting
D)  prevention

Question 3

The vast majority of earthquakes occur ________.

Accepted Answer

A)  along transform-plate boundaries only
B)  near hotspots
C)  along passive margins
D)  along all types of plate boundaries

Question 4

An earthquake occurs with an epicenter in the town of New Madrid,Missouri,in the interior of the North American Plate.Where might the hypocenter of this earthquake plausibly be found?

Accepted Answer

A)  in New Madrid (hypocenter and epicenter mean precisely the same thing) 
B)  20 km south of New Madrid
C)  20 km beneath New Madrid
D)  200 km north New Madrid

Question 5

Moderate- and deep-focus earthquakes occur along only ________.

Accepted Answer

A)  convergent-plate boundaries
B)  divergent-plate boundaries
C)  transform-plate boundaries
D)  hotspots

Question 6

Which seismic wave phase causes the ground to roll like a wave?

Accepted Answer

A)  P-wave
B)  S-wave
C)  Rayleigh wave
D)  Love wave

Question 7

What is the magnitude of the earthquake shown in the image below?

Accepted Answer

A)  5
B)  24
C)  220
D)  6

Question 8

According to the diagram below,the energy released by the 1994 Northridge earthquakes was roughly the same as the energy released by ________.

Accepted Answer

A)  the H-bomb
B)  Mount St.Helens
C)  the tornado
D)  the hurricane

Question 9

Which earthquake scale is used to assess the effects of an earthquake on humans and human-made structures?

Accepted Answer

A)  Richter scale
B)  Mercalli scale
C)  moment magnitude scale
D)  surface-wave magnitude scale

Question 10

An increase in size of one unit of magnitude translates to ________ the ground motion.

Accepted Answer

A)  1 time
B)  2 times
C)  32 times
D)  10 times

Question 11

Earthquakes that occur in a band called the ________ can be used to track the motion of subducted oceanic lithosphere.

Accepted Answer

A)  Wegener belt
B)  seismic gap
C)  Wadati-Benioff zone
D)  Richter zone

Question 12

Wet and unconsolidated substrates are uniquely susceptible to ________ during an earthquake.

Accepted Answer

A)  displacement
B)  collapse
C)  liquefaction
D)  faulting

Question 13

Much of the capitol city of Port-au-Prince was destroyed during the 2010 Haiti earthquake despite the fact that similarly sized earthquakes in other cities did very little damage.What caused so much damage during the Haiti earthquake?

Accepted Answer

A)  A tsunami wiped out the city.
B)  Landslides covered large areas.
C)  The buildings were poorly built.
D)  The residents did not evacuate in time.

Question 14

The ________ of a fault gives the average time between events.

Accepted Answer

A)  displacement
B)  exceedance probability
C)  recurrence interval
D)  annual probability

Question 15

Which of the following does NOT affect the severity of damage from an earthquake?

Accepted Answer

A)  weather
B)  distance
C)  duration
D)  magnitude

Question 16

How is the Mercalli intensity scale used to determine the magnitude of an earthquake? What errors might be associated with this technique?

Accepted Answer

The Mercalli intensity scale uses the te...

Question 17

Why do deep-focus earthquakes occur along convergent plate boundaries? Why do they not occur along divergent or transform boundaries?

Accepted Answer

As cold subducting crust moves down into...

Question 18

________ travel with a compressional motion.

Accepted Answer

A)  Love waves
B)  Rayleigh waves
C)  P-waves
D)  S-waves

Question 19

At any point along the surface of any nonvertical fault such as is shown in the figure below,the ________.

Accepted Answer

A)  hanging wall lies vertically above the footwall
B)  footwall lies vertically above the hanging wall
C)  hanging wall lies to the left of the footwall
D)  footwall lies to the left of the hanging wall

Question 20

The quantity of motion that occurs along a fault is termed ________.

Accepted Answer

A)  the fault gouge
B)  the fault gauge
C)  displacement
D)  accumulation

Exam 8: A Violent Pulse: Earthquakes

Much of the capitol city of Port-au-Prince was destroyed during the 2010 Haiti earthquake despite the fact that similarly sized earthquakes in other cities did very little damage.What caused so much damage during the Haiti earthquake?

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

The quantity of motion that occurs along a fault is termed ________.

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

________ travel with a compressional motion.

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

Early warning systems use computers to detect a nearby earthquake and send an emergency alert to warn of the event.Which seismic phase is the system detecting when it sends the alert?

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

Why do deep-focus earthquakes occur along convergent plate boundaries? Why do they not occur along divergent or transform boundaries?

Correct AnswerverifiedAs cold subducting crust moves down into...View AnswerShow Answer

An earthquake occurs with an epicenter in the town of New Madrid,Missouri,in the interior of the North American Plate.Where might the hypocenter of this earthquake plausibly be found?

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

Which of the following does NOT affect the severity of damage from an earthquake?

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

How is the Mercalli intensity scale used to determine the magnitude of an earthquake? What errors might be associated with this technique?

Correct AnswerverifiedThe Mercalli intensity scale uses the te...View AnswerShow Answer

The vast majority of earthquakes occur ________.

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

According to the diagram below,the energy released by the 1994 Northridge earthquakes was roughly the same as the energy released by ________.

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

What is the magnitude of the earthquake shown in the image below?

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

Wet and unconsolidated substrates are uniquely susceptible to ________ during an earthquake.

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

Earthquakes that occur in a band called the ________ can be used to track the motion of subducted oceanic lithosphere.

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

Earthquake ________ is a means of deciding where the ground is stable enough to build on in earthquake-prone areas.

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

Which seismic wave phase causes the ground to roll like a wave?

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

At any point along the surface of any nonvertical fault such as is shown in the figure below,the ________.

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

The ________ of a fault gives the average time between events.

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

An increase in size of one unit of magnitude translates to ________ the ground motion.

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

Which earthquake scale is used to assess the effects of an earthquake on humans and human-made structures?

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

Moderate- and deep-focus earthquakes occur along only ________.

Correct AnswerverifiedShow Answer

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified
As cold subducting crust moves down into...
View Answer

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified
The Mercalli intensity scale uses the te...
View Answer

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified

Correct Answer
verified