ASBOG Sample Questions: Fluvial Geomorphology (FG and PG Test)

I always recommend an intro physical geology book to start your preparation for the ASBOG geology test. In recent days, the physical geology books got way nicer and colorful and they cover tons of great materials. Just pick up any recent physical geology book and you are good to go.

Initially I thought about putting together all physical geology questions under one quiz. Well, after preparing the question set for the fluvial part only I have got more than 65 questions already. So, I decided to present the sample questions on fluvial geomorphology (river action) separately than other parts.

In fluvial geomorphology there are few important things that you need to know such as the various stages of river formation, river morphology, types of valleys, types of rivers (braided, meandering), drainage types (trellis, rectangular, annular etc) and some bedforms related to erosional and depositional action by flowing water (cut bank, bars, ox bow lake, delta etc).

I will try to update this post with short study guide as soon as I can. In the mean time, enjoy the test.

Also consider taking a look at my other ASBOG tests and lessons:

Physical Geology - River Action : ASBOG Sample Questions

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Physical Geology / Geomorphology: ASBOG Sample Questions: Recommended Book: Physical Geology, 13th edition, is the latest refinement of a classic introductory text that has helped countless students learn basic physical geology concepts for over 25 years. Students taking introductory physical geology to fulfill a science elective, as well as those contemplating a career in geology, will appreciate the accessible writing style and depth of coverage in Physical Geology. Hundreds of carefully rendered illustrations and accompanying photographs correlate perfectly with the chapter descriptions to help readers quickly grasp new geologic concepts. Numerous chapter learning tools and a website further assist students in their study of physical geology. Some of the questions are borrowed and modified from the book while some other questions are taken from sample questions by Steven Dutch, Natural and Applied Sciences http://www.uwgb.edu/DutchS/sitemap.htm

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Question 1

The discharge of a stream is related to the stream gradient.

A	True
B	False

Question 2

Which of the following is not a drainage pattern:

A	trellis
B	radial
C	dendritic
D	all of the above

Question 3

Generally, the discharge of a stream will diminish downstream.

A	True
B	False

Question 4

In uniform flat rocks, drainage patterns tend to be

A	dendritic
B	radial
C	braided
D	trellis

Question 5

In urban areas, floods often become more frequent because:

A	storm sewers conduct runoff more efficiently to streams
B	extensive pavement limits infiltration to soils
C	extensive pavement increases runoff to streams
D	all of these contribute to increase flooding in urban areas

Question 6

A stream that has more sediment to move than it can carry at one time is likely to be

A	mature
B	youthful
C	meandering
D	braided

Question 7

Landscapes can be rejuvenated

A	any time except old age
B	only during maturity
C	only during old age
D	at any time

Question 8

You see a stream cutting right through a ridge. This landscape is called:

A	antecedent or superposed drainage
B	rift valley
C	old-age landscape
D	peneplain

Question 9

The logitudinal profile of all streams is concave upward.

A	True
B	False

Question 10

Base level is:

A	the level below which streams will not erode
B	the level above which flood waters will not rise
C	the normal elevation of a reservoir
D	the level associated with the base of a river channel

Question 11

These are all names for hills or mountains that form when erosion leaves remnants behind, except one. Which is not?

A	mesa
B	plateau
C	inselburg
D	monadnock

Question 12

Alluvial fans commonly form as a result of stream deposition in arid areas.

A	True
B	False

Question 13

All streams have the potential to flood.

A	True
B	False

Question 14

River channels which were abandoned by a captured stream are now sometimes seen as:

A	water gaps
B	wind gaps
C	rocky gaps
D	hanging valleys

Question 15

Besides Earth, what other planets show evidence of stream erosion?

A	Venus
B	Mercury
C	Mars
D	Jupitar

Question 16

Flood plains are erosional features of stream valleys.

A	True
B	False

Question 17

The largest drainage basin in the continental United States is:

A	The Arkansas River drainage basin
B	The Columbia River drainage basin
C	The Missouri River drainage basin
D	The Mississippi River drainage basin

Question 18

Cobble-sized particles are most likely to be transported as part of a stream's:

A	Bed load
B	solution load
C	suspension load
D	none of the above

Question 19

The average time between floods of a given magnitude is:

A	the flood stage
B	the flood frequency
C	the flood recurrence interval
D	the flood incidence

Question 20

In urban areas, the frequency of floods often increases as urbanization proceeds.

A	True
B	False

Question 21

A dam will most likely:

A	cause the reservoirs to fill with sediment eventually
B	accelerate erosion above the reservoir
C	not affect the river downstream
D	accelerate erosion upstream

Question 22

Streams have tributaries whereas deltas have distributaries.

A	True
B	False

Question 23

Which of the following is a local base level?

A	Ocean
B	Lake
C	Point bar
D	flood plain

Question 24

Stream erosion and deposition are controlled primarily by a river's:

A	Discharge
B	Channel Shape
C	Gradient
D	Velocity

Question 25

Some flood prevention projects have actually increased the frequency and magnitude of flood events.

A	True
B	False

Question 26

Base level can never be above sea-level.

A	True
B	False

Question 27

All of these can result in a canyon cutting through a ridge. Which one is least likely to be the correct explanation?

A	the crust is uplifted across the course of the stream
B	the stream erodes down into a buried ridge and the overlying cover is stripped away
C	a peneplain is uplifted and resistant rocks form ridges
D	a huge flood carves a canyon

Question 28

Not a major factor in arid erosion

A	intense chemical weathering
B	lack of vegetation
C	thin soil cover
D	episodic rainfall

Question 29

Which factor does not directly influence the shape of a delta?

A	volume of sediment carried by the river
B	width of the continental shelf
C	strength and height of tides
D	intensity of wave action on the shore

Question 30

The dry lake beds in many deserts are:

A	playas
B	bajadas
C	pediments
D	inselburgs

Question 31

A particular stream has a 47-year record of peak discharges available on the Internet. What is the recurrence interval of the 4th-ranked flood in this record?

A	188 yrs
B	12 yrs
C	365 days
D	4 times every 100 years

Question 32

Methods that have been used to control damage from floods include:

A	construction of levees and flood walls along streams
B	relocating entire communities out of flood plains
C	construction of dams along streams
D	all of the avove

Question 33

How levees form along rivers

A	are piled up by aquatic organisms
B	built up by deposits laid down when the stream floods
C	form when clay along the river bank dries out and swells up
D	built by Army Corps of Engineers

Question 34

In the United States, the standard unit of discharge used by the United States Geological Survey Water Resources Division is:

A	cubic feet per second
B	meter cube per second
C	liters per second
D	square feet per second

Question 35

The process by which one stream loses a major portion of its headwaters to another stream is called:

A	stream piracy
B	stream plagiarism
C	stream capture
D	stream discharge

Question 36

Erosional remnants of floodplains that are higher than the current level of a stream are:

A	stream terraces
B	natural levee
C	oxbow lake
D	point bar

Question 37

The gradient of a stream that drops 20 feet over a horizontal distance of two miles is:

A	10 feet per mile
B	20 feet per mile
C	2 feet per mile
D	none of the above

Question 38

This kind of drainage suggests stream piracy

A	barbed
B	dendritic
C	radial
D	braided

Question 39

This kind of drainage suggests strong variations in erosional resistance of the bedrock:

A	meandering
B	dendritic
C	deranged
D	trellis

Question 40

Hydraulic action, solution, and abrasion are all examples of:

A	stream deposition
B	stream erosion
C	stream transportation
D	Stream discharge

Question 41

Energy to drive the hydrologic cycle comes from the Sun.

A	True
B	False

Question 42

Engineering projects on rivers often exacerbate flooding.

A	True
B	False

Question 43

Sand bars deposited on the inner curve of a stream meander are called:

A	point bars
B	meander bars
C	bed load
D	cutbanks

Question 44

The primary process by which bed load is transported is:

A	Saltation
B	Sustension
C	Solution
D	abration

Question 45

A drainage pattern in which streams flow in and out of lakes with irregular flow directions is:

A	deranged
B	graded
C	radial
D	annular

Question 46

The removal of thin layers of soil by water over a more or less continuous surface is

A	leaching
B	sheet erosion
C	gullying
D	exfoliation
E	weathering

Question 47

The principal reason rivers do not fit the idealized erosion cycles of youth-maturity-old age:

A	global sea levels have changed markedly in the last few thousand years
B	climate is not constant over large river basins
C	they flow across rocks of varying hardness
D	none of the above

Question 48

An old-age stream

A	is of no definite age but flows across a low landscape and has many meanders
B	has a straight course with few bends
C	is at least 1,000,000 years old
D	is at least 10,000 years old

Question 49

All of the sediment carried by saltation and rolling and sliding along a stream bed is the:

A	suspended load
B	bed load
C	drainage capacity
D	Channel pattern

Question 50

The bed load of a stream may be transported by saltation.

A	True
B	False

Question 51

Earth is the only planet where streams have been active.

A	True
B	False

Question 52

A stream can lengthen its channel by:

A	headward erosion
B	hydraulic action
C	down cutting
D	vertical accretion

Question 53

The transfer of water among various reservoirs in the Earth system is:

A	water table
B	the hydrologic cycle
C	water basin management
D	none of the avove

Question 54

By definition, a flood is:

A	an interval of time during which stream velocity increases its discharge
B	an interval of time during which stream discharge exceeds the capacity of the stream channel
C	an interval of time during which a stream occupies its flood plain
D	none of the above

Question 55

A wedge-shaped mass of sediment deposited by a stream into a body of water is called:

A	a delta
B	a submarine fan
C	Ripple mark
D	an alluvial fan

Question 56

A stream's discharge is:

A	influenced by channel width and depth, stream gradient, channel shape, and channel roughness
B	the volume of water passing a fixed point per unit time
C	the product of a stream's velocity and channel cross-sectional area
D	all of the above

Question 57

Large rivers can erode channels below base level.

A	True
B	False

Question 58

The gradient of a stream normally decreases downstream.

A	True
B	False

Question 59

The feature separating one drainage basin from another is a(an):

A	divide
B	valley
C	point bar
D	natural levee

Question 60

The gently sloping rock surface that forms at the base of mountains in arid regions

A	Graben
B	Playa
C	Pediment
D	Monadnock

Question 61

The headwaters of a stream are always located:

A	at the source of the stream
B	at the terminus of the stream where it enters another body of water
C	along the longitudinal profile of the stream
D	none of the above

Question 62

The total area drained by a stream and its tributaries is called the:

A	drainage basin
B	hydrologic cycle
C	divide
D	tributary area

Question 63

A broad, shallow stream channel will move water more efficiently than a channel with a semi-circular cross-section.

A	True
B	False

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Physical Geology - River Action : ASBOG Sample Questions

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