CSET Practice Test Subtest II Science

Characteristics of Bodies of Water

River
A river is a large, flowing body of water that usually 
empties into a sea or ocean.

Lake
A lake is a large body of water surrounded by land on 
all sides. Really huge lakes are often called seas.

Sea
A sea is a large body of salty water that is often 
connected to an ocean. A sea may be partly or 
completely surrounded by land.

Ocean
An ocean is a large body of salt water that surrounds 
a continent. Oceans cover more the two-thirds of the 
Earth's surface.

Estuary
An estuary is where a river meets the sea or ocean.

Fjord
A fjord is a long, narrow sea inlet that is bordered by 
steep cliffs.

Delta
A delta is a low, watery land formed at the mouth of a 
river. It is formed from the silt, sand and small rocks 
that flow downstream in the river and are deposited in 
the delta. A delta is often (but not always) shaped like 
a triangle (hence its name, delta, a Greek letter that is 
shaped like a triangle).

Cove
A cove is small, horseshoe-shaped body of water along 
the coast; the water is surrounded by land formed of 
soft rock.

Channel
A channel is a body of water that connects two larger 
bodies of water (like the English Channel). A channel is 
also a part of a river or harbor that is deep enough to 
let ships sail through.

Bay
A bay is a body of water that is partly enclosed by land 
(and is usually smaller than a gulf).

Gulf
A gulf is a part of the ocean (or sea) that is partly 
surrounded by land (it is usually larger than a bay).

Pond
A pond is a small body of water surrounded by land. A 
pond is smaller than a lake.

Strait
A strait is a narrow body of water that connects two 
larger bodies of water.

Wetland
A wetland is an area of land that is often wet; the soil 
in wetlands are often low in oxygen. Wetland plants are 
adapted to life in wet soil. There are many types of 
wetlands, including: swamp, slough, fen, bog, marsh, 
moor, muskeg, peatland, bottomland, delmarva, mire, 
wet meadow, riparian, etc.

Swamp
A swamp is a type of freshwater wetland that has spongy, 
muddly land and a lot of water. Many trees and shrubs 
grow in swamps.

Tributary
A tributary is a stream or river that flows into a larger river.

Modeling Earth Systems

Conduction is an important process that occurs mainly 
along the mid-oceanic ridges, as seen in the figure 
below. Here, heat is being dissipated by the plates as 
they move away from the ridge. As they cool and move 
away from the ridge the plates cool by conduction, and 
thicken, at a rate that is proportional to the square 
root of their age; as the laws of conduction predict.

Global heat flow. Notice that the highest values occur 
along the major and most active mid-oceanic ridges. 
1 Watt = 1 Joule/s =10^7 ergs/s. The total heat flow 
in a year is 1x10^21 Joules (compare with just 
1x10^18 Joules released by earthquakes)