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Earth Science Test 1 > Earth Science > Flashcards

Earth Science Flashcards

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1
Q

What is geology?

A

the science that deals with the earth’s physical structure and substance, its history, and the processes that act on it.

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2
Q

These rocks are formed when magma (molten rock) from the Earth’s interior cools and solidifies.

A

igneous rock

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3
Q

A type of rock that forms from an existing rock that is changed by heat, pressure, or chemical reactions.

A

Metamorphic rock

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4
Q

A type of rock that forms when particles from other rocks or the remains of plants and animals are pressed and cemented together

A

Sedimentary rock

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5
Q

Rock that forms when magma cools above the surface of the Earth

They cool quickly and are fine-grained or lack crystal growth.

A

Extrusive igneous rock

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6
Q

igneous rock that formed below Earth’s surface.
They cool slowly and as a result form visible crystals (coarse-grained.)

A

intrusive Igneous rock

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7
Q

The process that converts sediments into solid rock by compaction or cementation.

A

Lithification

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8
Q

What are the two main branches of geology?

A

physical and historical

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9
Q

What is historical geology?

A

study of the physical processes and changes of the Earth through time.

Changes = Evolution

Studies the origin and evolution of the earth, its continents, oceans, atmosphere, and LIFE

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10
Q

Volcanic Activity -> Weathering -> Transport (Erosion) -> Deposition -> Metamorphism -> Melting -> Magma

A

Rock Cycle

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11
Q

Dentrital and Chemical

A

Methods of Classification

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12
Q

foliated and non-foliated

A

Metamorphic rock classification

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13
Q

Constructive = Building

Destructive = Erosive

A

Two main geological processes

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14
Q

a coherent explanation for one or several related natural phenomena supported by a large body of objective evidence.

In other words, it is a hypothesis that has been tested many times and nothing has disproved it. Explains why

A

Theory

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15
Q

965 -1040 AD

Born in Iraq, lived in Egypt & Spain most of his life.

Scientist:

Optics, Physics, Astronomy, and Mathematics

Called by many the father of the scientific method

A

Alhazen

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16
Q

a method of procedure that has characterized natural science since the 17th century, consisting of systematic observation, measurement, and experiment, and the formulation, testing, and modification of hypotheses.

A

What is the scientific method?

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17
Q

Define a question -> Background research -> Hypothesis -> Test Hypothesis -> Analyze Data -> Interpret Data -> Conclusions -> Publish -> Retest

A

The Scientific Method

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18
Q

generalizes a body of observations, nothing has disproved it yet- doesn’t explain why

A

Law

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19
Q

does not imply causation

A

Correlation

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20
Q

complex, conscious thought

A

What distinguishes humans from all other species?

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21
Q

What is the universe defined by astronomers?

A

All of the space and matter and energy within

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22
Q

The theory is that the universe originated in a huge explosion that released all matter and energy.

A

Big Bang Theory

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23
Q

What is cosmology?

A

The scientific study of the universe

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24
Q

The universe is expanding and background radiation

A

Evidence for the Big Bang

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25
Q

1929

Velocity increases proportionally

Spectral Lines

Doppler Effect

A

Edwin Hubble (1889-1953)

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26
Q

high frequency, short wavelength (compressed)

A

Blue light

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27
Q

low frequency, long wavelength (spread out)

A

Red light

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28
Q

What happened after the Big bang (Step 1)?

A

Basic forces emerged such as gravity, electromagnetism, and strong & weak nuclear.

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29
Q

What happened after the Big bang (Step 2)?

A

100% Hydrogen (H) and Helium (He) –> 98% Hydrogen (H) and Helium (He) & 2% all other elements

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30
Q

part of the milky way galaxy

Solar nebula theory

A

Our solar system

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31
Q

How are heavier elements formed?

A

Stelluar nucleosynthesis and elements formed past Iron (Fe) are formed in a supernova.

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32
Q

The ball at the center grows dense and hot –> Fusion reactions begin, the sun is born –> Dust in the rings condenses into particles –> Particles coalesce to form planetesimals.

A

Formation of the Solar System

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33
Q

Anything that has mass and takes up space

A

What is matter?

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34
Q

A substance that cannot be broken down into simpler substances

A

What is an element?

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35
Q

The basic unit of matter; structure, atomic number, and atomic mass, made of protons and neutrons and surrounded by electrons with a nucleus in the center.

A

What is an atom?

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36
Q

Atoms of the same element that have different numbers of neutrons

A

Isotopes

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37
Q

electrons in the outermost shell

A

valence electrons

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38
Q

2 or more elements chemically combined

A

Compounds

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39
Q

A group of atoms bonded together

A

Molecule

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40
Q

Ionic = Transfer

Covalent = Share

A

Chemical bonds

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41
Q

unequal sharing of electrons

A

Polar Covalent

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42
Q

Why is Polar Covalent important in nature?

A

Water

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43
Q

a naturally occurring, inorganic solid that has a crystal structure and a definite chemical composition

A

What is a mineral?

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44
Q

minerals that contain silicon and oxygen and usually one or more other elements.

Ex: Quartz, feldpars, (orthoclase and plagioclase), olivine, pyroxenes, amphiboles, and biotite.

A

Silicates (SiO2)

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45
Q

No Si (Silicon) and O (Oxygen)

Ex: Carbonates, Halidies, Native Elements, Oxides, Sulfates, and Sulfides.

A

Non-silicates

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46
Q

The arrangement of atoms and shapes varies based on bonds.

A

Crystalline structures

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47
Q

silicon-oxygen tetrahedron

A

Silicate Structures

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48
Q

form rings by sharing oxygen atoms

A

ring silicates

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49
Q

form a chain by sharing oxygen atoms

A

single chain silicates

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50
Q

form when two single chains of tetrahedra link to each other by sharing oxygen atoms

A

double chain silicates

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51
Q

Varying chemistry - many crystal forms

Cubes, hexagons, etc

Tetrahedrons are possible but not around Si (Silicon)

Properties determined by crystal pattern - native elements have closely spaced atoms = high density

A

Non-silicate structures

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52
Q

Study of Earth time

A

Geochronology

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53
Q

the branch of geology concerned with the order and relative position of strata and their relationship to the geological time scale. (Putting Geological events in order)

A

Stratigraphy

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54
Q

The study of the vertical layering of rock types. (Using rocks)

A

Lithostratigraphy

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55
Q

a relative dating technique based on the regular changes seen in evolving groups of animals as well as the presence or absence of particular species. (using fossils)

A

Biostratigraphy

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56
Q

absolute ages of rocks, as agreed upon by an international team of geologists (Using radioactive dates)

A

Chronostratigraphy

57
Q

Determines how old something is in relation to something else.

(Not a number).

Ex: I am older than my brother but younger than my father

A

relative age dating

58
Q

superposition, original horizontality, lateral continuity

A

Steno’s laws

59
Q

the principle that in undisturbed rock layers, the oldest rocks are on the bottom

A

Superposition

60
Q

layers of sediment initially extend laterally in all directions

A

Lateral Continuity

61
Q

The principle states that sedimentary rocks are deposited in horizontal or nearly horizontal layers.

A

original horizontality

62
Q

Younger layer slices through the older surrounding layers (Fault line, Magma, etc).

A

Cross-Cutting (Hutton)

63
Q

a piece of older rock that becomes part of a new rock

A

Inclusion

64
Q

Fossil organisms succeed one another in a definite and determinable order, and any time period can be recognized by its fossil content.

A

fossil succession

65
Q

an unconformity in which younger sediment or sedimentary rocks rest on the eroded surface of tilted or folded older rocks

A

angular unconformity

66
Q

A gap in sedimentary rock record due to subaerial exposure.

A

Disconformity

67
Q

Sedimentary rocks sit on metamorphic or igneous rocks.

A

Non-conformity

68
Q

units in unbroken vertical succession record environments that would have been laterally adjacent

  • implies TIME TRANSGRESSION during depositional events
A

Walther’s Law

69
Q

a method that enables scientists to determine the actual age of certain rocks and other objects

Ex: Dendrochronology, Ice core measurements, written accounts/records.

A

absolute age dating

70
Q

The process of counting tree rings to determine the age of a tree

A

Dendrochronology

71
Q

A spontaneous process in which unstable nuclei lose energy by emitting radiation. Alpha Decay, Electron Capture; Have loss of subatomic particles leading to a change in the structure and potential charge.

A

radioactive decay

72
Q

Determining the age of a rock or mineral through its radioactive elements and decay products.

A

isotope dating

73
Q

The time it takes for half of an isotope to decay

A

half-life

74
Q

What percent of Carbon-14 would you expect from a sample from 11,000-12,000 years ago?

Reference: Half-life for Carbon-14 is 5,730

A

25%

75
Q

A sample shows 35% Carbon-14 at 20,000 years is this correct?

Reference: A Half-life for Carbon-14 is 5,730 years

A

No, it is not correct because 50% and 25% of the parent material in Carbon-14 ranges from 5,730 years to 11,460 years.

76
Q

isotope age dating lab conditions:

A

Assumes closed system
No one leaks out
No one leaks in
All products produced by decay
Clean lab conditions
Cost and Economic pressures

77
Q

Not a new idea.

Continental fit

Plant fossils

Glaciations

A

Seuss

78
Q

Continental movements

Mountains = lateral movements

A

Taylor

79
Q

German Meteorologist & polar explorer

Continental drift

Pangea

Tons of Data!

A

Alfred Wegener

80
Q

Wegener supporter

Further developed continental drift hypothesis

Climate paradox

Laurasia

A

Alexander Du Toit

81
Q

Evidence of Late Paleozoic glaciers found on five continents.

Some of this evidence is now far from the poles.

These glaciers could not be explained unless the continents had moved.

A

Glacial Evidence

82
Q

Placing Pangaea over the Late Paleozoic South Pole:

Wegener predicted rocks defining Pangea climate belts.

Tropical coals

Tropical reefs

Subtropical deserts

Subtropical evaporites

A

Paleoclimatic evidence

83
Q

identical fossils found on widely separated land masses.

Mesosaurus– A freshwater reptile

Glossopteris– A subpolar plant with heavy seeds

Lystrosaurus– A nonswimming, land-dwelling reptile.

Cynognathus- A nonswimming, land-dwelling mammal-like reptile.

A

Fossil Evidence

84
Q

A physical phenomenon resulting from the spin of electrons in some solids–particularly those of iron– and moving electricity

A

Magnetism

85
Q

An area in which magnetic substances such as iron are affected by lines of magnetic force emanating from the earth.

A

Magnetic field

86
Q

difference between geographic north and magnetic north.

Depends on:

The absolute position of the two poles and longitude

A

Declination

87
Q

The angle between the magnetic field line and the surface of the earth.

Depends on:

Latitude

A

Inclination

88
Q

the study of fossil magnetism

A

Paleomagnetism

89
Q

-high temp-no magnetization

-thermal energy of atoms is very high

-magnetic dipoles are randomly oriented

A

hot magma

90
Q
  • Low Temp: permanent magnetization
  • Thermal energy of atoms slows
  • Dipoles align with Earth’s magnetic field
  • Magnetic dipoles become frozen in alignment with the field
A

cooled magma

91
Q

Before World War II, little was known about the sea floor

*Echo-sounding (sonar) allowed rapid sea-floor mapping

-Sea-floor maps created by ships crossing the oceans.

-Bathymetric maps are now produced using satellite data.

A

Sea Floor Bathymetry

92
Q

The oceanic crust is covered by sediment-

Thickest near the continents-

Thinnest (or absent) at the mid-ocean ridge

The oceanic crust consists primarily of basalt-

Lacks a variety of continental rock types

Heat flow is much greater at the mid-ocean ridges.

A

The Oceanic Crust

93
Q

The process by which molten material adds new oceanic crust to the ocean floor; Old ocean floor sinks into the mantle and magnetism in sea floor rocks varied farther from MOR

A

sea-floor spreading

94
Q

Changes in Earth’s magnetic field over geologic time, recorded in ocean-floor rocks and continental basalt flows- Reversals occur at uneven intervals- Longer intervals (500 to 700+ Ka) are called chrons- Shorter intervals (~200 Ka) are subchrons

A

Magnetic reversals

95
Q

It provides a unified mechanism explaining:

◦The distribution of earthquakes and volcanoes.

◦Changes in past positions of continents and ocean basins.

◦The origins of mountain belts and seamount chains.

A

A unifying theory

96
Q

A theory stating that the earth’s surface is broken into plates that move - the earth’s outer shell is broken into a rigid plate that moves.

Plate motion defines three types of plate boundaries.

A

Plate Tectonics

97
Q

A rigid layer made up of the uppermost part of the mantle and the crust. Continental - 150km thick, Oceanic - 100km

in motion over the asthenosphere

Bends elastically when loaded

Asthenosphere flows plastically when loaded

A

Lithosphere

98
Q

Where land meets the ocean

A

continental margin

99
Q

Tectonic plates move apart.

Forming either rift valleys or mid-ocean ridges (MOR)

A

divergent boundary

100
Q

Tectonic plates move together

Causes uplift or subduction

A

convergent boundary

101
Q

Tectonic plates slide sideways.

A

Transform boundary

102
Q

Magma from deep within the mantle melts through the crust above it.

A

Hot spots

103
Q

The driving mechanism of plate tectonics

A

Convection

Ridge-push

Slab-pull

104
Q

An episode of intense rock deformation, or mountain building, results in compressive forces generated by collision.

A

Orogeny

105
Q

The relationship between mountain building and the opening/closing of ocean basins.

A

Wilson Cycles

106
Q

Importance of sedimentary rocks

A

preserve evidence of surface processes responsible for deposition, many contain fossils that are rare or absent in most other rocks, and many are resources or host rocks.

107
Q

Sedimentary rocks form at or near Earth’s surface in one of several ways:

A

Cementing loose clasts (fragments) of preexisting rock.

Cementing together loose shells and shell fragments.

Accumulation of organic matter from living organisms.

Precipitation of minerals dissolved in water.

108
Q

Clastic: Loose rock fragments (clasts) cemented together.

Organic: Carbon-rich remains of once-living organisms.

Biochemical: Cemented shells of organisms.

Chemical: Minerals that crystalize directly from the water.

A

Geologists define four classes of sedimentary rocks

109
Q

Classified on the basis of texture and composition:

A

Clast (grain) size

Clast composition

Angularity & Sphericity

Sorting

Character of cement

110
Q

the degree of edge or corner smoothness

Negligible transport (younger)

A

angularity

111
Q

the degree to which a clast nears a sphere

Long transport distances (Older)

A

Sphericity

112
Q

the uniformity of grain size

A

Sorting

113
Q

all clasts have nearly the same grain size

A

Well-sorted

114
Q

clasts show a wide variety of grain sizes

A

poorly sorted

115
Q

features that developed during or shortly after the deposition of the sediments

A

sedimentary structures

116
Q

 Sedimentary rocks are usually layered or stratified.

 Arranged in planar, close-to-horizontal beds.

 The boundary between two beds is a bedding plane.

 Several beds together constitute strata.

A

Bedding and stratification

117
Q

Why does bedding form?

A

Bedding reflects changing conditions during deposition.

118
Q

Bedding forms due to changes in:

A

Climate

Water Depth

Current Velocity

Sediment Source

Sediment Supply

119
Q

bedding or stratification

A

A sequence of beds

120
Q

Water or wind flowing over sediment creates

A

bedforms

121
Q

Bedform character is tied to

A

Flow velocity

Grain size

122
Q

cm-scale ridges and troughs.

Develop perpendicular to flow

Frequently preserved in sandy sediments

Found on modern beaches

Found on bedding surfaces of ancient sedimentary rocks

A

ripple marks

123
Q

similar to ripples except for much larger

Form from water or wind-transported sand.

Occur in streams and in desert or beach regions.

Range in size from tens of cm to hundreds of m

Often preserve internal cross beds.

A

Dunes

124
Q

created by ripple and dune migration; sediment moves up the gentle side of a ripple or dune; sediment piles up, then slips down the steep face

A

Cross beds

125
Q

Sediment moves on a slope as a pulse of turbid water.

As pulse wanes, water loses velocity and grains settle.

Coarsest material settles first, medium next, then fines.

This process forms graded beds in turbidite deposits

A

Turbidity currents and graded beds

126
Q

occur after deposition while sediment is still soft

A

Bed surface markings

127
Q

polygonal desiccation features in wet mud, indicate alternating wet and dry terrestrial conditions

A

Mudcracks

128
Q

troughs eroded in soft mud by current flow

A

Scour marks

129
Q

evidence of past life

footprints

Shell impressions

A

Fossils

130
Q

Locations where sediment accumulates. They differ in:

Chemical, physical, and biological characteristics. Sediment delivery, transport, and depositional conditions. Energy regime.

Environments include Terrestrial,Coastal, and Marine.

A

depositional environment

131
Q

large areas where sediment accumulates.

Thin to absent where nonsedimentary rocks outcrop

thicken to 10-20 km in sedimentary basins

A

Sedimentary basins

132
Q

sinking of the land during sedimentation

A

Subsidence

133
Q

Craton side of the collisional mountain belt

The weight of the mountain belt pushes down the crust’s surface

A

Foreland basin

134
Q

Divergent (pull-apart) plate boundaries.

downward slip on faults produces narrow troughs

A

Rift basin

135
Q

Interiors far from margins.

the basin forms in the interior of a continent, perhaps over an old rift

A

intracontinental basins

136
Q

Continental edge is far from the plate boundary.

subsidence occurs over thinned crust at the edge of an ocean basin

A

passive margin basin

137
Q

flooding due to sea-level rise.

Sediment belts shift landward; strata “deepen” upward.

A

transgression

138
Q

Exposure due to sea level fall

A

Regression

139
Q

Physical, chemical, and biological changes to sediment.

Lithification is an example of it.

As sediments are buried, pressure and temperature rise.

A

Diagenesis

Earth Science Test 1 (1 decks)

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