Nature of Science
If an accident occurs, or something spills or breaks during a lab, what should you do?
tell the teacher immediately
What is a series of processes on Earth's surface and in the crust and mantle that slowly changes rocks from one kind to another called?
the rock cycle
What is Earth's mantle made of?
layer of hot rock, magnesium, silicon, aluminum
A wide sloping deposit of sediment formed where a stream leaves a mountain range is called what?
alluvial fan
Radiometric dating works best with what type of rocks?
igneous rocks
Why is it useful for scientists to develop models for the structure of atoms?
Atoms are too small to study directly
Minerals are classified into what two groups?
silicates and non-silicates
The process by which rock changes shape or breaks under stress is called what?
deformation
What kind of weathering causes the mineral composition of rocks to change?
chemical weathering
How do most fossils form?
Living things die and their remains are buried by sediment
What must a scientific hypothesis be?
able to be tested
What are the properties of a mineral?
streak, color, luster, hardness, and cleavage/fracture
What is the place where two plates come together called?
convergent boundary
Which type of volcano has gently sloping sides and erupts nonexplosively?
shield volcano
Extremely fine particles of clay and silt eroded and deposited by the wind are called what?
loess
The metric prefix "milli" represents what place value?
thousandths
The process by which wind removes surface materials is called what?
deflation
Wind carrying sand grains deposits the sand when the wind does what?
slows down or hits an obstacle
What happens to tsunami waves as they approach the shore?
they get bigger
What are fossils of organisms that were widely distributed but only lived during a short period of time called?
index fossils
Describe the difference between an independent and dependent variable.
Dependent variable changes based on the independent variable
Can water be a mineral?
Yes, if it is frozen (ice). Ice is a solid, it has a crystalline structure, definite chemical composition, inorganic, naturally occurring
The formation of the Hawaiian Islands is one example of what?
volcanoes forming over a hot spot
How do earthquake waves travel?
They travel away from the focus in all directions.
Explain the difference between relative and absolute dating.
Relative dating compares a rock age to the ages of rocks around it (older or younger). Absolute dating uses the rates of decay of radioactive elements within the rock to find out exactly how old the rock is.