GEO 102 Exam 1 Study Guide Lectures 1 11 Lecture 1 August 20 What is the foundational unifying theory of geology Plate Tectonics What is special about scientific journals They are how scientists communicate and they are a good source of accurate science because they are peer reviewed What is a theory The best most complete understanding of a natural phenomenon that humans possess The fundamental framework of humans understanding of the universe An unproven model Lecture 2 August 22 What binds clay minerals together Van Der Waals Forces When an oceanic plate is colliding with a continental plate which will subduct The oceanic plate will subduct because it is denser What type of rock can be altered to become a metamorphic rock Igneous rocks can be altered because of the pressure in the Earth Lecture 3 August 25 What is Science Science is a method that always starts with a problem and is tested by a hypothesis The assumption that the universe operates the same at all times is called uniformitarianism What are examples of Primary and Secondary Literature Primary Nature Public Library of Science One Secondary National Geographic Scientific American Lecture 4 August 27 Why is the City of Birmingham where it is The City of Birmingham is where it is because of the iron coal and limestone example Red Mountain is made of iron coated sandstone What geologic materials does Alabama produce lime marble salt sandstone and limestone Lecture 5 August 29 Why does clay bind together The Van Der Waals Forces create opposite attractions on both sides of the molecules This makes clay molecules flat and look like a sheet or stacks of paper How are minerals identified in the lab and field They are identified by their mass hardness luster shape and cleavage What controls the charge of an atom The number of protons and electrons in the atom Lecture 6 September 3 What are isotopes and how are they used by geologists Two or more forms of the same element that contain equal number of protons but different number of neutrons in their nuclei Geologists use them because they help to determine the age of rocks and fossils through isotopic dating Clastic Sedimentary rocks can be formed of pieces of what rock types broken igneous and metamorphic What is a chemical sedimentary rock Give an example Mineral constituents in solution become supersaturated and inorganically precipitate Form from chemical reactions Examples Rock salt and Gypsum Lecture 7 September 5 What defines a mineral The lattice the repeating pattern of the chemical composition the chemical composition must occur naturally must be inorganic and must be a solid What is rifting Fissures cracks or breaks that occur from large scale faulting Caves are usually formed by what processes dissolution erosion gravitational breakdown and collapsing Lecture 8 September 8 Where does the energy to drive tectonics come from The heat from the core of the Earth goes up to the mantle and causes the plates to move The San Andrea Fault system in California is an example of what kind of tectonic boundary This is an example of a Transform boundary The crust and upper mantle make up the The Lithosphere Lecture 9 September 10 Below the Lithosphere is the what Asthenosphere Subduction zones commonly have nearby inclined zones of earthquakes and volcanoes What happens to rocks after they form After rocks form they are either melted crushed together or transformed into a different kind of rock When two oceanic plates collide which is most likely to subduct The colder and the older plate is most likely to subduct because it is denser A concept that is not yet verified but if true would explain certain facts or phenomena and that can be tested by investigation Is a n Hypothesis If you evaporate a cup of salty water and grow a crystal what rock group does it belong to Silicates How do Geologists reconstruct past continental positions past latitude Continental drift and plate tectonics What is the inner and outer core made of Iron and nickel Where does our magnetic field come from The magnetic field comes from the solid and melted iron and nickel in the inner and outer core of the Earth Lecture 10 September 12 How do physical properties of minerals help you identify and understand rocks Rocks are made up of minerals so if you know the properties and what rocks they make and how the minerals look it is easier to identify rocks and know where a rock came from by the minerals that are in it Why does rain dissolve some rocks Rain is slightly acidic and some rock is very soft So the acidic from the rain dissolves the rock What sort of rocks do you find at each plate boundary mainly igneous rocks What evidence supports plate tectonics The shapes of the continents subduction zones and geothermal gradient Lecture 11 September 15 How are theories and hypothesis verified They are verified by experiments and the results of the experiments What roles do scientists have in society Scientists do various kinds of research and make sure that all the science in science journals is real and that is factual Scientists also help in major disasters and trying to figure out when the next one might be