A physical cycle is the reversible changes in non-living aspects
A biogeochemical cycle refers to geology
Identify examples of physical cycles in Earth Systems (2 answers)
Reproduction
Rock cycle (atoms being rearranged in rocks)
Supercontinental cycle (plate tectonic movement)
Identify examples of biogeochemical cycles (2 answers)
Carbon cycle (regulating climate)
Hydrological cycle (water cycle)
Rock cycle (rearrangement of atoms)
What are the four principal Earth Systems? (4 answers)
Atmosphere, Biosphere, Geosphere, Hydrosphere
Biosphere, Geologicalsphere, Chemsphere, Hydrosphere
Photosphere, Transphere, Atmosphere, Geosphere
What are examples of short-time scales? (2 answers)
Global warming
Deforestation
Climate change
What are examples of long-time scales? (2 answers)
Population growth
Mass extinction
How can changes vary? (3 answers)
Type of change
Frequency (how often it occurs)
Underlying cause
Level of importance/devastation
A mineral is a rock
Most rocks are composed of more than one type of mineral
What defines a mineral? (6 answers)
Naturally occuring
Solid
Crystalline (an ordered crystalline structure based on atomic patterns also known as 'crystal lattice')
Orderly arrangement of atoms
Usually inorganic
Only found in volcanoes
Contain carbon-hydrogen bonds
How is a mineral tested for identification? (9 answers)
Colour
Streak
Lustre
Hardness
Specific gravity (density)
Crystal habit/form
Cleavage/fracture
Magnetism
Taste/touch
State of matter (liquid, gas, solid)
Colour is a reliable source of identification
Mafic rocks contain dark-coloured minerals.
Felsic rocks contain light-coloured minerals.
The Mohs Hardness Scale is used for rocks only.
Identify the ideal shape (morphology) of crystal habit in minerals. (8 answers)
Cube
Octahedra
Blade
Hexagonal Prism
Dodecahedra
Compound Form
Rhombahedra
Tetragonal Prism
Irregular
What are the types of cleavage? (4 answers)
Planar (basal) - 1 direction
Prismatic - 2 directions at 90 degrees
Cubic - 3 directions all at 90 degrees
Orthorhombic - 3 directions not at 90 degrees
Isosceles - 2 directions at 60 degrees
The Earth's crust is composed of silicate minerals (a type of salt made up of silicon and oxygen)
Plate tectonics do not predict earth's behaviour.
Seismology is the study of earthquakes.
What do earthquakes do?
Generate energy waves
Directly kill people
Open up and swallow people
There are three main layers of earth (crust, mantle, core)
The further you explore earth, the thinner the layering and the lower the density (pressure).
What are the elements in the crust? (8 answers)
Si (Silicon)
O (Oxygen)
Al (Aluminium)
Fe (Iron)
Ca (Calcium)
Na (Sodium)
K (Potassium)
Mg (Magnesium)
Cu (Copper)
Continental crust is thicker than oceanic crust
Continental crust is more dense than oceanic crust
Continental crust is mafic and oceanic crust is felsic
The 'Moho' is the crust-mantle boundary
The mantle is made up of solid rock (ultramafic peridotite)
The mantle flows like a river of lava.
What minerals does the core comprise of? (4 answers)
Ni (Nickel)
Pt (Platinum)
Au (Gold)
Ag (Silver)
The innermost part of the core is liquid.
The flow in the outer core generates the earth's magnetic field.
The Asthenosphere flows like softened wax (caramel).
The Lithosphere is below the Asthenosphere.
What are the types of plate boundaries? (3 answers)
Divergent
Convergent
Transform
Arctangent
What is the cause of divergent plate boundaries?
Sea-floor spreading
Balanced sea-floor spreading
In a transform plate boundary, plate boundaries are created and destroyed.
Active volcanoes create seamounts (hotspots)
The oceanic crust is formed at divergent boundaries.
Weathering is the same as erosion.
Identify an example of physical weathering:
Root wedging
Oxidation
Chemical reaction
Identify an example of chemical weathering:
Hydrolysis
Jointing
Animal/Human activity
The fastest weathering minerals are Halite, Calcite, and Olivine.
The slowest weathering minerals are Hermatite, Gibbsite, and Quartz.
The corners of a rock weather the slowest.
Over time, rocks will form roughly spherical shapes from harsh weathering.
What are the causes of erosion? (5 answers)
Wind
Running water, waves
Ice (glaciers)
Living organisms
Gravity
How are rocks held together? (2 answers)
Clastic (cement)
Crystalline (interlocking grains)
Glue
What are the major rock groups? (3 answers)
Igneous
Sedimentary
Metamorphic
Crystalline
What are examples of an igneous rock? (2 answers)
Granite
Basalt
Pebble
Lava
What are examples of sedimentary rocks?
Sandstone
Limestone
Slate
Magma
What are examples of metamorphic rocks?
Marble
Gabbro
Glass
How can rocks be identified? (5 answers)
Grain size
Shape (morphology)
Mineralogy and composition
Texture
Layering
Magma can be any state of matter (solid, liquid, or gas)
Magmas vary chemically due to: (4 answers)
Initial source rock compositions
Partial melting
Assimilation and mixing
Fractional composition
Climate
Type and location of volcano
Bowen's Reaction Series refers to a graph that will identify what type of volcanic rocks will melt at what specific temperature.
A xenolithe is a foreign rock.
Metamorphic rocks do not hold any economic value.
New minerals are grown in metamorphic rock.
What are the sedimentary rock classes? (4 answers)
Clastic/detrital
Organic
Geochemical
Inorganic
Biochemical
Chemical
Granule is the smallest size of rock.