Terms And Definitions

Question 1

Abiotic

Answer 1

Pertaining to factors or things that are separate and independent from lining things; no lining.

Question 2

Abyssal zone

Answer 2

This is the deepest region of the ocean. This zone is marked by extremely cold temperatures and very low levels of dissolved oxygen, but very high levels of nutrients because of the decaying plant and animal matter that falls from the zones above.

Question 3

Acid

Answer 3

Any compound that releases hydrogen ions when dissolved in water. Also, a water solution that contains a surplus of hydrogen ions.

Question 4

Active volcano

Answer 4

Volcano that is currently erupted or has erupted within recorded history.

Question 5

Aggregate

Answer 5

Crowded or massed into a dense cluster

Question 6

Air mass

Answer 6

Enormous bodies of air that move as a unit.

Question 7

A layer

Answer 7

A soul horizon; the layer below the O layer is called the A layer. The A layer is formed of weathered rock, with some organic material; often referred to as topsoil.

Question 8

Alkaline

Answer 8

A basic substance; chemically, a substance that absorbs hydrogen io s or release hydroxyl ions; in reference to natural water, a measure of the base content of the water.

Question 9

Aquifer

Answer 9

An underground layer of porous rock, sand, or other material that allows the movement of water between layers of nonporous rock or clay. Aquifers are frequently tapped for wells.

Question 10

Arable

Answer 10

Land that’s fit to be cultivated.

Question 11

Asthenosphere

Answer 11

The part of the mantle that lies just below the lithosphere.

Question 12

Atmosphere

Answer 12

The gaseous mass or envelope surrounding a celestial body, especially the one surrounding the earth, which is retained by the celestial body’s gravitational field.

Question 13

Barrier Island

Answer 13

A long, relatively narrow island running parallel to the mainland, built up by the action of waves and currents and serving to protect the coast from erosion by surf and tidal surges.

Question 14

Bathyal Zone

Answer 14

The steep descent of the seabed from the continental shelf to the abyssal zone.

Question 15

Benthic Zone

Answer 15

The deepest layer in a body of water; characterized by very low temperatures and lo oxygen levels.

Question 16

Biological Weathering

Answer 16

Any weathering that’s caused by activities of living organisms.

Question 17

Biotic

Answer 17

Living or derived from living things.

Question 18

B layer

Answer 18

A soil horizon; B receives the minerals and organic materials that are leached out of the horizon E.

Question 19

Chemical Weathering

Answer 19

The result of chemical interaction with the bedrock that is typical of the action of both water and atmospheric gases.

Question 20

C layer

Answer 20

A soil horizon, horizon C is made up of larger pieces of rock that have not undergone much weathering.

Question 21

Clay

Answer 21

Soil made up of particles that are less that 0.002 mm in diameter.

Question 22

Conduction

Answer 22

The transmission or conveying of something through a medium or passage, especially the transmission of electric charge or heat through a conducting medium without perceptible motion of the medium itself

Question 23

Convecton

Answer 23

The vertical movement of air due to atmospheric heating and cooling.

Question 24

Convection Currents

Answer 24

Ocean currents caused by the vertical movement of air due to atmospheric heating and cooling.

Question 25

Convergent Boundary

Answer 25

A plate boundary where two plates are moving toward each other and have, or will, collide

Question 26

Coral Reef

Answer 26

An erosion-resistant marine ridge or mound consisting chiefly of compacted coral together with algal material and biochemically deposited magnesium and calcium carbonates.

Question 27

Coriolis Effect

Answer 27

The observed effect of the Coriolis force, especially the deflection of an object moving above the earth, rightward in the Northern Hemisphere, and leftward in the Southern Hemisphere.

Question 28

Crop Rotation

Answer 28

The practice of alternating the crops grown on a piece of land - for example corn one year, legumes for two years, and then back to corn.

Question 29

Delta

Answer 29

A usually triangular alluvial deposit at the mouth of a river.

Question 30

Divergent Boundary

Answer 30

A pate boundary at which plates are moving away from each other. This causes an up-welling of magma from the mantle to cool and form new crust.

Question 31

Doldrums

Answer 31

A region of the ocean near the equator, characterized by calms, light winds, or squalls.

Question 32

Dormant Volcanoes

Answer 32

Volcanoes that have not been known to erupt.

Question 33

Drip Irrigation

Answer 33

A method of supplying irrigation water through tubes that literally drip water onto the soil at the base of each plant.

Question 34

Earthquake

Answer 34

The result of vibrations (often due to plate movements) deep in the earth that release energy. They often occur as two plates slide past one another at a transform boundary.