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Earth and Human Activity (Resources, Hazards, Climate Change) — 6th Grade Science practice questions

20 multiple-choice questions and 3 flashcards on Earth and Human Activity (Resources, Hazards, Climate Change), about 13% of the 6th Grade Science bank. Every one carries a written rationale.

Written and maintained by Nick Burton · last updated 2026-08-22 · how we write and review questions

What this chapter covers

Earth and Human Activity (Resources, Hazards, Climate Change) is one of 5 chapters in CoStudy's 6th Grade Science (Earth Science) bank, and it holds 20 of the bank's 150 multiple-choice questions — roughly 13% of the total. That proportion is not arbitrary: chapters follow the certifying body's published exam outline, and the number of questions in each is set by that domain's published weight, so the share of your practice time this chapter takes matches the share of the real exam it accounts for.

Studying by chapter is worth doing once you have a diagnostic score. A single overall percentage tells you whether you are close; it does not tell you which domain is dragging. Working a weak chapter in isolation, and re-testing it in isolation, is the fastest way to move a score that has stalled — and it is why the mock exams in CoStudy report by domain rather than as one number.

Free Earth and Human Activity (Resources, Hazards, Climate Change) practice questions

6 questions drawn from this chapter, with the full rationale shown — the controlling principle behind the right answer, and why each wrong option tempts and fails.

Which is a clean (low-emission) energy source?

  1. Coal
  2. Solar power — converts sunlight directly to electricity via photovoltaic panels with no direct emissions during operation
  3. Diesel oil
  4. Natural gas

Answer: B — Solar power — converts sunlight directly to electricity via photovoltaic panels with no direct emissions during operation

Solar produces no operational emissions. (A), (C), (D) emit greenhouse gases when burned.

Renewable resources include:

  1. Coal and oil
  2. Natural gas only
  3. All metals
  4. Solar, wind, and (when managed sustainably) wood

Answer: D — Solar, wind, and (when managed sustainably) wood

D) Replenishable on human timescales. A/B) Fossil fuels are finite. C) Metals are extracted from finite ores.

Renewable resources are:

  1. Always plentiful forever
  2. Coal and oil
  3. Resources that replenish on human time scales — solar, wind, hydro, geothermal, sustainably-managed timber and fisheries
  4. Only metals

Answer: C — Resources that replenish on human time scales — solar, wind, hydro, geothermal, sustainably-managed timber and fisheries

Renewable = replenishable. (A) is misleading; (B) is non-renewable; (D) misreads.

Earth's atmospheric layers (from surface outward) are:

  1. Random
  2. Two layers only
  3. Just one layer
  4. Troposphere → Stratosphere → Mesosphere → Thermosphere → Exosphere — weather happens in the troposphere; the ozone layer sits in the stratosphere

Answer: D — Troposphere → Stratosphere → Mesosphere → Thermosphere → Exosphere — weather happens in the troposphere; the ozone layer sits in the stratosphere

5-layer atmosphere. (A), (C), (B) misread.

Earth's magnetic field is generated by:

  1. The Sun
  2. Convection currents of molten iron in Earth's outer core — generating a magnetic field that protects Earth from solar wind and creates auroras at the poles
  3. Plate tectonics
  4. Sunspots

Answer: B — Convection currents of molten iron in Earth's outer core — generating a magnetic field that protects Earth from solar wind and creates auroras at the poles

Geodynamo effect in the outer core. (A), (C), (D) misread.

What is the layer of Earth where we live?

  1. The mantle
  2. The outer core
  3. The inner core
  4. The crust — the thin, solid outer layer (about 5-70 km thick), which 'floats' on the upper mantle (asthenosphere)

Answer: D — The crust — the thin, solid outer layer (about 5-70 km thick), which 'floats' on the upper mantle (asthenosphere)

Crust is Earth's outer layer. (A), (C), (B) are deeper.

Earth and Human Activity (Resources, Hazards, Climate Change) flashcards

2 cards from the 3 in this chapter.

How do scientists figure out Earth's age?

Radiometric dating of rocks (~4.5 billion years), studying meteorites, layered rock analysis.

What is the 'water table'?

The level below which the ground is saturated with water. Above is unsaturated.

Practise the full chapter

These are a sample. The full Earth and Human Activity (Resources, Hazards, Climate Change) chapter runs 23 items with per-chapter progress tracking, on the web and in the iOS app.

Open 6th Grade Science in CoStudy →

Other 6th Grade Science chapters

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