Geology
What are the 4 layers of the earth?
Inner core, outer core, mantle, and the crust
The hardest known naturally occurring substance
Diamonds
The period of widespread glaciation
Ice age
Four divisions of the geologic column, in order from largest to smallest
eon, era, period, and epoch
The approximate percentage of Earth's surface covered by oceans
70%
List the 3 steps of the rock cycle
Igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic
Largest group of minerals
Silicates
The most important effect of wind erosion
Deflation
A radiometric dating method used on organic materials
Carbon 14 dating
The deepest known point in the ocean
Challenger Deep
What are 3 reasons we study geology
predicting disasters, finding resources, and understanding history
Most abundant sedimentary rock
Shale
The natural ridges along a rivers edge
levees
The term for fossils that extend through several rock layers
Polystrate fossils
What does the word scuba stand for
Self-contained underwater breathing apparatus
What is the earth's interior made of
iron and nickel
Process used to form alumina from bauxite
Bayer process
What is physical weathering
breakdown of large rocks into fragments by physical forces; the chemical composition of the rock is not change
Five main types of fossils
Petrified fossil, mold fossil, print fossil, resin fossil, and whole-specimen fossil
A cold current along South America's western coast
Peru current (or Humboldt current)
What are plate tectonics
The scientific theory that Earth's solid outer shell (lithosphere) is broken into several large and small moving pieces, called tectonic plates
Three methods used to produce synthetic gemstones
flame fusion process, pulled method, hydrothermal synthesis
What are the four sand dune shapes
Crescentic dune, parabolic dune, traverse dune, and star dune
A deep sea fish considered a living fossil
Coelacanth
What are the four types of currents