The Lithosphere

Question 1

What’s the lithosphere?

Answer 1

The hard shell of the Earth, (crust and the top of the upper mantle).

Question 2

What does the lithosphere contain?

Answer 2

Minerals.

Question 3

What are minerals and where do they come from?

Answer 3

They’re inorganic substances, (not living) that come from the Earth.

Question 4

What are the 2 types of minerals?

Answer 4

1. Idiochromatic

2. Allochromatic

Question 5

What is idiochromatic?

Answer 5

If rubbed across unglazed porcelain, it will leave a dark coloured streak, (might make a different colour than the mineral).

Question 6

What is allochromatic?

Answer 6

If rubbed across unglazed porcelain, it will leave a light coloured streak, regardless of the mineral colour.

Question 7

What’s the mineral classification?

Answer 7

1.Transparent to 2.Translucent to 3.Opaque

Question 8

What does translucent mean?

Answer 8

Light passes through at some places.

Question 9

What’s hardness?

Answer 9

Resistance to being scratched.

Question 10

What do we use to locate and extract minerals?

Answer 10

Mining.

Question 11

What is ore?

Answer 11

Rock and mineral.

Question 12

What is soil created through?

Answer 12

The process of erosion of the parent rock.

Question 13

What are soil horizons?

Answer 13

Layers of soil.

Question 14

Classify the different soil horizons in order from the grass to the inner part of the soil.

Answer 14

1. Organic materials
2. Top Soil
3. Subsoil
4. Weathered or decomposed rock
5. Solid rock

Question 15

What’s organic materials/matter?

Answer 15

It contains humus, (decomposing plant/animal residue)

Question 16

What’s topsoil?

Answer 16

A mix of humus and minerals.

Question 17

What’s subsoil?

Answer 17

Small minerals, (trees get nutrients from this layer).

Question 18

What’s weathered or decomposed rock/fragmented parent rock?

Answer 18

Disintegrated parent rock

Question 19

What’s solid rock/unaltered parent rock?

Answer 19

The starting point of soil.

Question 20

What 4 things alter soil?

Answer 20

1. Oxidation, (decomposers/worms)
2. Neutralization
3. Decomposition
4. Contaminants

Question 21

SOIL BUFFERING CAPACITY: What is soil able to limit?

Answer 21

pH variations

Question 22

SOIL BUFFERING CAPACITY: What 3 things does soil need to support plant life?

Answer 22

1. Enough minerals
2. Enough moisture
3. An appropriate pH level, (usually 7) for the types of producers

Question 23

SOIL BUFFERING CAPACITY: What happens when the soil is finer/filtered?

Answer 23

It has a higher resistance to changes in the pH when acids and bases are added to it.

Question 24

Where does acid rain come from?

Answer 24

From emission SOx and NOx.

Question 25

What will often acidify soil with low buffering capacity? And why?

Answer 25

Acid rain because it destroys nutrients and kills decomposers which are needed for nutrient recycling.

Question 26

What's permafrost?

Answer 26

A layer of permanently frosted soil, (has been 0 degrees Celsius or lower for over 2 years).

Question 27

What are 3 consequences of permafrost thawing?

Answer 27

1. Loss of infrastructure 2. Landslides 3. Release of stored carbon as CO2, (contributes to global warming!!!)

Question 28

What are 3 energy resources?

Answer 28

1. Fossil Fuels 2. Plutonium, (Uranium/Nuclear Energy) 3. Geothermal Energy

Question 29

How much of the world's electricity is produced by fossil fuels?

Answer 29

2/3

Question 30

How are oil and natural gas formed?

Answer 30

Small marine animals and dead algae that were covered with silt, sand, and minerals.

Question 31

How is coal formed?

Answer 31

It's formed by terrestrial swamps being buried, then were compressed by silt and sand.

Question 32

What advantage is there to fossil fuels?

Answer 32

Lots of energy

Question 33

What 2 disadvantages are there to fossil fuels?

Answer 33

1. Polluting | 2. Non renewable

Question 34

What energy emits from uranium?

Answer 34

Fission, (splitting the atoms)

Question 35

What advantage is there to plutonium?

Answer 35

It burns clear.

Question 36

What 2 disadvantages are there to plutonium?

Answer 36

1. Non renewable | 2. Waste is radioactive

Question 37

How is geothermal energy formed?

Answer 37

Water which is deep underground will heat from the Earth's internal heat which will then raise the water back to the surface.

Question 38

What do we do with the heated water that raises to the surface?

Answer 38

We transform it into electrical energy or we use it directly to heat/

Question 39

What 2 advantages are there to geothermal energy?

Answer 39

1. Renewable | 2. Clean, (no pollutants/emissions)

Question 40

What 2 disadvantages are there to geothermal energy?

Answer 40

1. Small disruption | 2. Only useful if we have thermal/volcanic