Groundwater - The Changing Earth: Exploring Geology and Evolution - page 353

Review Questions

1. Two features typical of areas of karst topography are
a. _____ geysers and hot springs;
b. _____ hydrothermal activity and springs;
c. _____ saltwater incursion and pollution;
d. _____ sinkholes and disappearing streams;
e. _____ dripstone and a cone of depression.
2. The water table is a surface separating the
a. _____ zone of porosity from the underlying zone of
permeability;
b. _____ capillary fringe from the underlying zone of
aeration;
c. _____ capillary fringe from the underlying zone of
saturation;
d. _____ zone of aeration from the underlying zone of
saturation;
e. _____ zone of saturation from the underlying zone
of aeration.
3. The term hydrothermal refers to
a. _____ calcareous tufa;
b. _____ groundwater contamination;
c. _____ hot water;
d. _____ sinkhole formation;
e. _____ artesian wells.
4. A cone of depression forms when
a. _____ a stream fl ows into a sinkhole;
b. _____ water in the zone of aeration is replaced by
water from the zone of saturation;
c. _____ a spring forms where a perched water table
intersects the surface;
d. _____ water is withdrawn faster than it can be re-
placed;
e. _____ the ceiling of a cave collapses, forming a
steep-sided crater.
5. The water in hot springs and geysers
a. _____ is thought by some people to have curative
properties;
b. _____ is noncorrosive;
c. _____ contain large quantities of dissolved minerals;
d. _____ answers a and b;
e. _____ answers a and c.
6. Which of the following is not an example of ground-
water erosion?
a. _____ karst topography;
b. _____ stalactites;

c. _____ sinkholes;
d. _____ caves;
e. _____ caverns.
7. When water is pumped from wells in some coastal
areas, a problem arises that is known as
a. _____ artesian recharge;
b. _____ dripstone deposition;
c. _____ geothermal depression;
d. _____ saltwater incursion;
e. _____ permeability decrease.
8. The capacity of a material to transmit fl uids is
a. _____ porosity;
b. _____ permeability;
c. _____ solubility;
d. _____ aeration quotient;
e. _____ saturation.
9. A perched water table
a. _____ occurs wherever there is a localized
aquiclude;
b. _____ is frequently the site of springs;
c. _____ lacks a zone of aeration;
d. _____ answers a and b;
e. _____ answers b and c.
10. What is the correct order, from highest to lowest usage
of groundwater in the United States?
a. _____ agricultural, industrial, domestic;
b. _____ industrial, domestic, agricultural;
c. _____ domestic, agricultural, industrial;
d. _____ agricultural, domestic, industrial;
e. _____ industrial, agricultural, domestic.
11. What is different between an artesian system and a water
well? Is there any difference between the water obtained
from an artesian system and the water from a water well?
12. Describe the confi guration of the water table beneath
a humid area and beneath an arid region. Why are the
confi gurations different?
13. Explain how some Earth materials can be porous yet
not permeable. Give an example.
14. Explain how groundwater weathers and erodes Earth
materials.
15. Why does groundwater move so much slower than sur-
face water?
16. Explain how saltwater incursion takes place and why it
is a problem in coastal areas.