Salt Lake Community College - Geography 1700

Quiz #2
A. J. Allred, Adjunct

Student Name: ____Nicolai Clawson

1. Government rules (building codes) exist for river levees as well as ordinary buildings. The result is flood
protection along the Mississippi and other flood-prone rivers.
True _X__

False ___

2. The secondary effects of volcanoes account for most of the deaths and property damage.
True _X__

False ___

3. The largest volcanoes can send enough dust into the atmosphere to alter world or regional weather for
months or even years.
True __X_
False ___
4. In hilly areas, mud flows can occur with little warning, day or night, any time of year.
True __X_

False ___

5. Keeping the lights on in the classroom results in land surfaces becoming less stable somewhere.
True ___

False _X__

6. Geothermal energy resources are inexhaustible and are especially abundant in Utah and the western states.
True ___

False _X__

7. Human efforts to make rivers and coastlines safe probably dont work.
True _X__

False ___

8. Limestone is tough, durable stone for buildings. For limestone underground, however, the rules change:
mild acid easily erodes this material, producing caves that . . . . cave in.
True __X_

False ___

9. About how many people live near enough to volcanoes to be at risk for injury or property damage.
a. Five million
b. 50 million
c. 500 million
d. Five billion
e. 500,000
10. Federal (FEMA) flood insurance rate maps, local land use planning rules and private insurance providers
use actuarial statistics and other empirical science to accurately determine areas where buildings can be
safely constructed.
True ___

False __X_

11. Extrapolating on the basis of actual history since 1937, about how many people are likely to die from
flooding somewhere on the Mississippi river system over the next 10 years?
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.

7
70
700
7000
70000

12. Most people who die in flash floods are in automobiles.

True ___

False _X__

13. Volcanic eruptions are often preceded by swarms of small earthquakes, except when they arent.
True __X_

False ___

14. Flash floods and dam failures (with flooding) are most common in rainy climates.
True __X_

False ___

15. Modern land use planning calls for more surface water to be put in pipes underground in order to prevent
downstream flooding and to save money.
True ___

False __X_

Optional Short Essay Questions (up to five points each):

1.

What role do humans play in hazards involving caves, sinkholes and subsidence?
Lets take the city if Venice Italy, there is water underground directly underneath the city, in various sized
pockets. The people have been using this water for years, piping it out and leaving the pockets empty. As
the city grows it becomes bigger and heavier. Those empty pockets collapse and the city is now slowly
sinking into the sea. Also New Orleans was built in a swampy land and when the people built the ground
compressed and started to lower, and now we have a city under sea level.

2.

Describe the range of potential effects of a volcanic eruption on a town nearby.

If a volcano was to erupt near a small town the first effects would be the earthquakes, depending if this is
happening in a third world country there would be a lot of buildings damaged. After the eruption depending
on the type of volcano the shock wave could decimate a great deal. Then well after the eruption there will
be landslides because all of the vegetation is gone. Also the ash in the air would block out the sun and lower
the temp. in the region for quite some time.
Make a list or show a composite drawing of the effects of steep slopes.

3.

4. Describe the potential effects of building a dam on a river.

When building a dam the company first has to redirect the river temporarily, so that they are not working in
the river itself. So now there is a river in an area that it wasnt before, and that can easily cause a lot of
damage in flooding. When the dam is built the river behind it will grow into a lake, flooding even more
land, people and animals would have to move out of its way. When the dam is taking on too much stress
from the lake the engineers will open the valves and let water out so that the dam will not be over stressed
and burst. But by doing that they are sending a flash flood downstream that could easily cause a lot of
damage and death.
5.
Design and answer your own question.
6.

Give an informed opinion about current science and/or policy thinking regarding the sequestration of CO2.

7.

Compare and contrast the difference between interpolate and extrapolate.