Chapter 16 Natural Disasters and Catastrophes- Review
Multiple choice
1. The coastal region around New Orleans is subsiding at rates of 1 to 4 meters per 100 years. This subsidence can be attributed to all of the following except:
a) global warming
b) erosion due to construction along the coast.
c) extraction of oil and gas
d) loss of sediment from the Mississippi River
e) extraction of groundwater
2. A natural hazard can be defined as any natural process that:
a) is a threat to human life and property
b) creates expenditures of over $1 million.
c) occurs in a defined geographic area
d) all of the above
3. A disaster can be defined as:
a) a hazardous event that occurs over a limited time span
b) a hazardous event that occurs in a defined geographic area
c) a hazardous event that causes significant loss of human life and property
d) all of the above
4. A catastrophe:
a) requires significant time and money for recovery
b) does not effect humans
c) is almost always a result of global warming
d) all of the above
5. Why are hazards that previously produced disasters now producing catastrophes?
a) global warming
b) intensive agriculture
c) increased human population
d) poor city planning
6. The Saffir-Simpson scale is a 1-5 rating of the intensity of a:
a) earthquake
b) tornado
c) volcanic eruption
d) drought
e) hurricane
7. The tsunami that killed an estimated 250,000 people around the rim of the Indian ocean in 2004 was triggered by a:
a) hurricane
b) volcanic erruption
c) earthquake
d) landslide
8. All of the following are “active” responses to natural hazards except:
a) evacuation planning
b) protection of natural ecosystems that protect against disasters
c) land-use planning and zoning
d) construction of disaster-resistant structures
e) distributing food and shelter to disaster survivors
9. ___________ contributed to flooding of the Yangtze River in China and landslides in Honduras during Hurricane Mitch.
a) a volcanic eruption
b) deforestation
c) intensive agriculture
d) oil drilling
10. Global warming may increase the number and/or severity of natural disasters. All of the following are likely effects of global warming that may lead to increased natural hazards except:
a) warming oceans causing more intense hurricanes
b) increased precipitation in some areas causing larger floods
c) less precipitation in some areas causing more severe droughts
d) increasing Arctic temperatures causing unstable soils and slopes
e) increased biodiversity causing more frequent volcanic eruptions
11. The best way to predict the future occurrence of a natural disaster is to:
a) look at the history of a particular disaster in a particular area
b) go to a psychic
c) there is no way to predict natural disasters.
12. The greatest cause of damage from Hurricane Katrina came from:
a) wind
b) electrical fires
c) flooding
d) rioting
e) waves
13. When rocks in the Earth’s crust rupture, this is referred to as __________.
a) geographic subluxation
b) landslide
c) volcanic eruption
d) earthquake
14. To be considered a hurricane, a storm must have sustained winds of at least:
a) 30 mph
b) 74 mph
c) 100 mph
d) 184 mph
15. Losses of life and property damage from disasters is likely to increase in coming years because:
a) earth quakes are predicted to increase
b) more people are moving into high risk areas
c) costs of construction are increasing
d) the cost of evacuation is too high
True/False
16. The term “acceptable risk” refers to the number of human casualties a government is willing to risk when making certain decisions.
17. Some hazards can be predicted.
18. There are 10 hurricane categories, with Category 10 being the smallest and Category 1 being the largest.
19. As hurricanes encounter warmer waters they tend to speed up and increase in intensity.
20. The number of major disasters per year has been decreasing steadily every year since 1950.