A soil sample with 75% finer than No. 4, 61% passing No. 200, a liquid limit of 62, and high dry strength is most consistent with deposits formed in a:

• A. Desert dune deposits
• B. Lake bed deposits
• C. Alluvial fan deposits
• D. Till from glaciation

Answer: (B)

The test is about how particle size and plasticity indicate the environment in which the soil formed. A sample with most of its material as fines (75% finer than 4.75 mm and 61% finer than 0.075 mm) is dominated by very small particles. The liquid limit of 62 shows notable clay content with plastic behavior, and the phrase “high dry strength” signals a cohesive soil rather than a loose, granular one.

Lake bed deposits are formed in quiet water where fine sediments—clay and silt—settle out and accumulate. This environment tends to produce clayey, cohesive soils with high plasticity, matching the observed high liquid limit and strong cohesion. Desert dunes would be dominated by sand with very little fines, giving low LL and weak cohesion. Alluvial fans are typically coarser, with more sand and gravel and less chance of such high plasticity. Till from glaciation can be variable, often containing a mix of sizes and less consistently fine, cohesive material than a lacustrine clay.

So the combination of substantial fines and high plasticity points most strongly to lake bed deposits.