Chapter 1 Montana Vocabulary
The study of Earth’s physical structures and the processes that change those structures.
What is Geology?
masses of slow moving rivers of ice that advanced across land
What is a glacier?
The scientific study of human cultures by analyzing the physical clues that people have left behind.
25 What is Archaeology?
a very effective throwing stick for killing animals at a distance
31 What is an atlatl?
A frigid dry wind that forms on the high plains of Alberta, Canada and cruises southeastward over dry land from 40-60 MPH.
What is the Alberta Clipper?
(Montana’s central region) blustery dry warm winds that blow down the eastern slope of the mountains & raise temperatures as much as 50 degrees in several hours.
What is the Chinook Corridor?
a pile of stones used as a marker to mark a trail, a symbolic spot or other landmark
37 What is a carin?
- traditional stories that tell about the creation of the world.
25 What are creation stories?
oil, coal, natural gas
What are fossil fuels?
Scientists who study fossils
Who are Paleontologists?
a transport device made of two joined poles and drawn by an animal
33 What is a travois?
A sewing tool used to punch holes
37 What is an Awl?
where earthquakes are most likely to happen as the crystal plates continue moving against each other
What is the Intermountain seismic belt?
An area on the inward side of a mountain range that is dryer because it is sheltered from rain bearing clouds.
What is a Rain shadow?
semi frozen shallow soil where plants grow low to the ground
29 What is tundra?
stone circles left after a tipi encampments
34 What are Tipi Rings
a large crater formed by a volcanic explosion or collapse of a volcanic cone
What is a caldera?
The lush foliage that had supported large animals
What is Megafauna (large animals)?
structures made of stones arrayed in a circle
36 What is a Medicine wheel?
a corral-like enclosure used to trap a bison.
40 What is a Bison pound?
This region has rugged mountains, forested ridges and high precipitation
What is the Western region of Montana?
This region has isolated Mountains, high plains, and chinook winds.
What is the central region of Montana?
a scientific method of determining the age of something that was once
26 What is carbon-dating?
- objects produced or shaped by human activity
25 What are Artifacts?
This region has rolling plains, persistent winds, and an endless sky.
What is the eastern region of Montana?
This is where rivers meet the ocean.
What is an Estuary?
- a swampy bog too wet to grow many kinds of plants
29 What is a muskeg?
important stories that people pass down from generation to generation.
24 What are Oral Histories?