100 Updated Geology Interview Questions
Q – 1 What is crystal?
Ans- A solid mass such as a mineral, determined by its atomic structure. A single crystal growing without interference has flat faces and such crystals are highly valued. Others crystals growing with interference, such as crystals of quartz found in granite, will not have perfect form/flat faces.
Q – 2 What is what are some of the sub-disciplines within the field of Geology?
Ans- For instance, if you are thinking – I have a strong interest in physics/chemistry – can I combine such disciplines with geology and still be able to find employment as a geologist?
Geology is a broad field and allows for combining different disciplines – such as physics, chemistry, mathematics, and biology with geology.
In fact one of the main reasons students are drawn to geology is because they can easily merge their interests in most scientific fields with geology – an approach that is well-suited for solving environmental problems as the study of the Earth also involves understanding its physics, chemistry and biology!
Q – 3 What is Vein in Geology?
Ans- Mineral which may fill or comprise a crack in a rock, or masses of rock which occupy fissures in other rocks. Veins may have originated in many different ways and can present a great variety of forms and structures. They are often classified in three groups:
(i.) veins of igneous rock,
(ii.) of sedimentary, and
(iii.) of minerals deposited by water or by gases.
Q – 4 What is engineering geologists?
Ans- Engineering geologists apply geological data, techniques, and principles to the study of rock and soil surficial materials and groundwater; they investigate geologic factors that affect structures such as bridges, buildings, dams and airports.
Q – 5 What is paleontologists?
Ans- Paleontologists study fossils to understand past life forms and their changes through time and to reconstruct past environments.
Q – 6 What is Sustainable Development?
Ans- Sustainable development is the development of industry and natural resources in such a way as not to damage the ability of future generations to meet their basic needs for food, shelter, products, etc.
Q – 7 What is environmental geologists?
Ans- Environmental geologists study the interaction between the geosphere, hydrosphere, atmosphere, biosphere and human activities. They work to solve problems associated with pollution, waste management, urbanization, and natural hazards, such as flooding and erosion.
Q – 8 Explain me industrial Minerals?
Ans- A group of minerals and rocks, largely non-metallic, that are of economic value (e.g., gravel, sand, clay, potash, building stone).
Q – 9 What is petrologists?
Ans- Petrologists determine the origin and natural history of rocks by analyzing mineral composition and grain relationships.
Q – 10 What is marine geologists?
Ans- Marine geologists investigate the ocean-floor and ocean-continent boundaries; they study ocean basins, continental shelves and coastal environments.
Q – 11 Why are minerals and petroleum important for Manitoba?
Ans- Manitoba minerals and petroleum represent the province’s 2nd largest primary resource industry and the sector is a key contributor to Manitoba’s ongoing economic growth.
In 2012, the combined value of mineral production for metals ($1.325 billion), industrial minerals ($187.5 million) and petroleum ($1.62 billion) totalled about $3.13 billion. The industries employ an average of 5,700 workers directly, with many more in indirect jobs and generating millions of dollars in spin-off business.
Q – 12 What is matte?
Ans- A mining term referring to the product of a smelter (metal with some contained sulphur) which must be further refined to obtain the pure metal.
Q – 13 What is mineralogists?
Ans- Mineralogists study mineral formation, composition, uses and physical and chemical means for identifying them.
Q – 14 What is petroleum?
Ans- A complex mixture of chemicals, containing both oil and gas, made up of the elements hydrogen and carbon (combined as chemical compounds called hydrocarbons).
Q – 15 Tell me what’s the difference between ‘soft’ rock and ‘hard’ rock geology?
Ans- ‘Hard’ rock geology focuses mainly on igneous and metamorphic rocks. Hard rock geologists work mostly with mineral deposits, mine development and bedrock mapping. Soft rock geology deals with sedimentary rocks where ‘sediment’ was formed through long exposure to the elements or glaciers. Soft rock geologists quite often work in the petroleum industry.
Q – 16 What is compression Stage?
Ans- A stage in the formation of sedimentary rock that occurs when sediments are pressed together by the weight of overlaying layers.
Q – 17 What is roasting?
Ans- In mining, the treatment of ore by heat and air, or oxygen-enriched air, in order to remove sulphur and arsenic.
Q – 18 What is seismologists?
Ans- Seismologists study earthquakes and analyze the behavior of earthquake waves to interpret the structure of the Earth.
Q – 19 What is earth Science?
Ans- The study of Earth and all of its materials both above and below the Earth’s surface.
Q – 20 How does geologic time link to Manitoba’s landscape?
Ans- Manitoba’s 650 000 km2 is underlain entirely by rocks of Precambrian age and sedimentary rocks deposited during the Paleozoic, Mesozoic and Cenozoic eras.
Q – 21 What is hydrogeologists?
Ans- Hydrogeologists study the occurrence, movement, abundance, distribution, and quality of subsurface waters and related geologic aspects of surface waters.
Q – 22 What is metamorphic Rock?
Ans- Rock that has been altered by heat, pressure, or hot molten rock (such as magma) from the Earth’s interior.
Q – 23 What is sedimentary Rock?
Ans- Rock formed during the compression and cementation staged of loose sediments (e.g. sandstone) or by deposition from a solution (e.g. salt).
Q – 24 What is conductors?
Ans- Substances, typically metals and metallic minerals, which allow heat and electricity to pass through them easily.
Q – 25 What is economic geologists?
Ans- Economic geologists explore for and develop metallic and non-metallic resources; they study mineral deposits and find environmentally safe ways to dispose of waste materials from mining activities.
Q – 26 What is planetary geologists?
Ans- Planetary geologists study planets and their moons in order to understand the evolution of the solar system.
Q – 27 What is hardness Scale?
Ans- A scale used to measure the hardness of any mineral material, also referred to in geology
Q – 28 What is cementation Stage?
Ans- A stage in the formation of sedimentary rock in which the grains of rocks or minerals become fixed.
Q – 29 What is gravel?
Ans- An unconsolidated or loose natural accumulation of rounded rock fragments which are coarser than sand.
Q – 30 What is ore?
Ans- A natural concentration of minerals which can be mined and can render profitability.
Q – 31 What is Rock Cycle?
Ans- A sequence of events explaining how rock can change (e.g., from sedimentary rock to metamorphic rock).
Q – 32 What is pyrite?
Ans- A bright brass-yellow mineral often called ‘Fool’s Gold’ and made up of the elements iron and sulphur.
Q – 33 What is metallurgy?
Ans- The various methods of preparing metals for use by separating them from their ores.
Q – 34 What is crude?
Ans- Oil that comes straight out of the ground as a liquid. Crude can come in a range of compositions and colours.
Q – 35 What is asthenosphere?
Ans- Portion of the mantle of the Earth that is non-rigid and able to flow.
Q – 36 What is gangue in Geology?
Ans- Invaluable minerals associated with valuable minerals, contained within an ore deposit.
Q – 37 What is mineralogist?
Ans- A scientist whose primary study is to examine the properties of minerals.
Q – 38 What is renewable Resource?
Ans- A resource that can be replaced within a human lifetime.
Q – 39 What is waste?
Ans- Barren rock in a mine, or minerals which are considered too low in grade to be of economic value.
Q – 40 What is inorganic matter?
Ans- Materials that are not derived from living organisms.
Q – 41 What is hydrosphere?
Ans- A term referring to the waters of the Earth.
Q – 42 What is diamond?
Ans- A mineral form of the element ‘carbon’. Clear varieties are valued as gems.
Q – 43 What is clay?
Ans- Natural materials composed of very small mineral particles which can be molded when wet.
Q – 44 What is asphalt?
Ans- A caramel-like hard or solid form of petroleum.
Q – 45 What is seismic?
Ans- A term used to describe any phenomena related to vibrations caused by earthquakes.
Q – 46 What is potash?
Ans- Potassium salts found in sedimentary rocks.
Q – 47 What is magma?
Ans- Molten rock formed in the interior of the Earth.
Q – 48 What is hematite?
Ans- A mineral composed of iron oxide.
Q – 49 What is element in Geology?
Ans- The basic building block of ‘matter’.
Q – 50 What is crusher?
Ans- A machine used for crushing rock.
Q – 51 What is bitumen?
Ans- A semi-solid form of petroleum with a molasses-like texture.
Q – 52 What is anode?
Ans- A rectangular plate of copper (or other metal) cast in a shape suitable for electro-refining.
Q – 53 Explain me structural geologists?
Ans- Structural geologists analyze rocks by studying deformation, fracturing, and folding of the Earth’s crust.
Q – 54 What is shaft?
Ans- A vertical or inclined excavation for the purpose of opening and servicing a mine.
Q – 55 What is Non-Renewable Resource?
Ans- A resource of Earth, which once extracted, cannot be replaced within a human’s lifetime.
Q – 56 What is lava?
Ans- Magma forced through volcanic action to the Earth’s surface.
Q – 57 What is crust?
Ans- The outermost layer or shell of the Earth which varies from 6 to 60 kilometres in depth/thickness.
Q – 58 What is cleavage?
Ans- Property of a mineral that allows it to split along crystal planes.
Q – 59 What is aggregates?
Ans- In construction, rock fragments that range from sand-sized grains to gravel-sized.
Q – 60 What is oceanographers?
Ans- Oceanographers investigate the physical, chemical, biological, and geologic dynamics of oceans.
Q – 61 What is silt in Geology?
Ans- Very fine particles of rock fragments between sand and clay sizes, which are often carried by moving water and deposited as sediment.
Q – 62 What is prospector?
Ans- A person who searches for mineral deposits.
Q – 63 What is lithosphere?
Ans- The solid outermost shell of the Earth.
Q – 64 What is erosion?
Ans- The breaking down and subsequent removal of either rock or earthy surface material by the forces of nature.
Q – 65 What is blast hole?
Ans- A hole drilled for the purpose of blasting rather than for exploration or geological information.
Q – 66 What is Geology?
Ans- Geology is the primary science in the study of Earth Sciences. Geology involves exploring and investigating the Earth and its properties and resources in every dimension.
Q – 67 What is alloy?
Ans- A compound of two or more metals, usually produced by fusion.
Q – 68 What is concentrate?
Ans- A product containing the valuable metal from which most of the waste material in ore has been eliminated.
Q – 69 What is drift (or Drive)?
Ans- A mining term for a horizontal passage underground that follows along the length of a vein or rock formation.
Q – 70 What is lustre?
Ans- A description of the manner in which light reflects from a mineral surface.
Q – 71 What is natural Resource?
Ans- Any raw material which may be used to meet human needs.
Q – 72 What is Rock Quarry?
Ans- A surface pit site for the extraction of rock.
Q – 73 What is stope in Geology?
Ans- An excavation in a mine from which ore is being extracted, or has been extracted.
Q – 74 What is geophysicists?
Ans- Geophysicists apply the principles of physics to study the earth’s interior and investigate Earth’s magnetic, electric, and gravitational fields.
Q – 75 What is volcanologists?
Ans- Volcanologists investigate volcanoes and volcanic phenomena to understand these natural hazards and predict eruptions.
Q – 76 What is sedimentologists?
Ans- Sedimentologists study the nature, origin, distribution, and alteration of sediments such as sand, silt, and mud. Oil, gas, coal and many mineral deposits occur in such sediments.
Q – 77 What is geochemists?
Ans- Geochemists use physical and inorganic chemistry to investigate the distribution of major and trace elements in ground water and Earth materials, and use organic chemistry to study the composition of fossil fuel (coal, oil, and gas) deposits.
Q – 78 What is tailings?
Ans- Material which is rejected from a mill after the recoverable valuable minerals have been extracted.
Q – 79 What is slag in Geology?
Ans- The vitreous mass separated from fused metals in the smelting process.
Q – 80 What is reclamation?
Ans- The reclaiming and reuse of materials and lands which were once part of a mining operation.
Q – 81 What is minerals?
Ans- Naturally occurring chemical elements or compounds with a crystal-like structure.
Q – 82 What is magnetism?
Ans- The ability of a mineral to be attracted to a magnet.
Q – 83 What is mantle?
Ans- The layer of the Earth’s interior which separates the crust and core.
Q – 84 What is igneous Rock?
Ans- ‘Extrusive’ igneous rock is rock formed as a result of magma being forced out of the Earth’s crust and hardening on the surface. ‘Intrusive’ igneous rock is rock formed as a result of magma solidifying within the Earth’s crust.
Q – 85 What is gneiss?
Ans- A layered or banded crystalline metamorphic rock whose grains are aligned or elongated into a roughly parallel arrangement.
Q – 86 What is concentrator?
Ans- A particular type of milling plant that produces a concentrate of valuable minerals or metals. After milling, the concentrate must be treated in another type of plant, such as a smelter, to effect recovery of pure metal.
Q – 87 What is cathode?
Ans- A rectangular plate of metal produced by electrolytic refining which is melted into commercial shapes such as wirebars, billets, ingots, etc.
Q – 88 Tell me what resources do Manitoba mines produce?
Ans- Manitoba mines produce a variety of mineral resources from base and precious metals such as nickel, copper, zinc and gold and specialty metals like cesium. In addition, Manitoba’s industrial minerals include dolomite, spodumene, silver, gypsum, salt, granite, limestone, lime, sand and gravel.
Q – 89 What is ‘geologic time’?
Ans- Geologic time traces Earth’s history in blocks of time such as eons, eras, periods, epochs. Geologic time is most often presented in a graph called a geologic time scale.