EXAM 2

DUE: THURSDAY, MARCH 5 (11:59 pm)

General Guidance:

• The exam questions below cover the material we will discuss in class. Your answers should reflect what we cover in class, the posted notes, and the text book.
• It is best to work on the questions as we cover the material; you should feel free to bring the questions up in class for discussion.
• Be thorough, it may take one or two paragraphs to completely answer the question.
• Put the answer into your own words. Short quotes are OK, but your answer should not be a single, long quote from a source.
• Please answer the questions using complete sentences, and be sure to use proper spelling and grammar (worth 10%).
• The answers must be typed.
• Informal citations are required.
  • If you are using information from the textbook; indicate the page number
  • If you are using information from your class notes; indicate so
  • If you are using other sources, you should indicate the source
  • Format examples: "According to [source], [followed by the information]" OR "[information] [followed by source in parentheses]"
• Answers that are copied from the book, notes, another student, or any other source (verbatim or superficially rephrased) will not be accepted. While you should use all the resources available and you can and should work with other students, the work you submit must be your own work in your own words.

Click here to download the file.

1. List (or explain) three ways a stream can transport its sediment load. (5 pts.)
2. Explain how a river can meander. (5 pts.)
3. Explain how alluvial fans and river deltas form. How do they differ? (5 pts.)
4. Ice is a mineral with a very low hardness value. Explain how a glacier can erode solid rock. (5 pts.)
5. Describe two of the affects glaciers had on Illinois during the last Ice Age. (5 pts.)
6. Some desert areas are covered by a layer of gravel called desert pavement, explain how it forms. (5 pts.)
7. List (or explain) two ways the wind transports its sediment load. (5 pts.)


8. The figure above shows a side view of a sand dune. Which way is the wind most likely blowing? Explain how you know. (5 pts.)
9. Describe the general process though which a deposit of gypsum or rock salt would form. (5 pts.)
10. Longshore drift is the primary mechanism for sediment transport along a beach. Explain how longshore drift works. (5 pts.)
11. Describe a turbidity current and explain how it works. (5 pts.)
12. Describe the difference between a clastic (detrital) and non-clastic (chemical or biochemical) sedimentary rocks. (5 pts.)
13. Describe two things you would look for in a sedimentary rock in order to determine the environment in which the sediment was originally deposited. For each, what would you look for and what would it tell you? (10 pts.)
14. Describe what happens to sediment as it moves from its source (ie. the mountains) to a distant location (ie. an ocean beach). (How does sediment near the source differ from sediment far from the source.) (5 pts.)
15. Describe the process through which sediment becomes sedimentary rock. (5 pts.)
16. What is a fossil and how does a fossil form? (5 pts.)
17. What is the unique identifying feature of limestone? (5 pts.)
18. At an outcropping of rocks, from bottom to top, you observe red sandstone with crossbeds (bottom), white sandstone with a few broken marine shells, grey shale with a few whole marine shells, and grey limestone with many marine shells, shark teeth, and coral (top). In what environments (be general) do you think each of these rocks was deposited? Was sea level rising or falling? Explain. (10 pts.)

GEL 1008 | courses | office hours | Mike's Home | IVCC Home | Contact IVCC | Contact Mike

copyright © 2020 Mike Phillips (includes all photos)
last updated: 2026-01-02