Inside the Restless Earth chapter's 3 and 4
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basketballcutie42 on May 29, 2012
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Final study guide
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68 terms
Terms | Definitions |
|---|---|
 Uniformitarianism | principle that Earth's processes occurring today are similar to those that occurred in the past |
| Catastrophism | The view that most of earth's geological features are the result of large-scale catastrophes such as floods, volcanic eruptions, etc. |
| Relative dating | determining whether an object or event is older or younger than other objects or events |
| Superposition | a principle that states that younger rocks lie above older rocks if the layers have not been disturbed |
| Geological column | A theoretical picture in which layers of rock from around the world are meshed together into a single, unbroken record of earth's past. |
| Faults | breaks in Earth's crust where rocks have slipped past each other |
| Intrusions | molten rock from the earth's interior that squeezes into existing rock and cools |
| Folding | the bending of rock layers due to stress |
| Tilting | occurs when internal forces in the Earth slant rock layers without folding them |
| Uncomformity | A gap or break in the rock layer due to some disturbance. |
| Nondeposition | the stoppage of deposition when a supply of sediment is cut off |
| Erosion | condition in which the earth's surface is worn away by the action of water and wind |
| Discomformity | exists where part of a sequence of parallel rock layers are missing. |
| Noncomformity | exists where sedimentary rock layers lie on top of an eroded surface of nonlayer igneous or metamorphic rock |
| Angular uncomformity | rock layers are tilted, and younger sediment layers are deposited horizontally on top of the eroded and tilted layers |
| Absolute dating | any method of measuring the age of an event or object in years. the actual age for a rock or mineral |
| Isotopes | atoms of the same element that have different numbers of neutrons |
| Radioactive decay | the process in which a radioactive isotope tends to break down into a stable isotope of the same element or another element. |
| Radiometric dating | Determining the absolute age of a sample based on the ratio of parent material to daughter material |
| Half-life | time it takes for half the atoms of an isotope to decay |
| Fossil | The naturally preserved evidence of life |
| Permineralization | Process in which pore spaces in a fossil are filled in with mineral substances. |
| Petrification | a process in which an organism's tissues are completely replaced by minerals |
| Coprolites | preserved feces, or dung, from animals |
| Trace fossil | any naturally preserved evidence of animal activity, includes the footprints, tracks, trails, and burrows made by living things. |
| Mold | a cavity in the ground or rock where a plant or animal was burried |
| Cast | an object created when sediment fills a mold and becomes a rock |
| Index fossils | A Fossil that is associated with a particular span of geologic time. |
| Geological time scale | A time scale established by geologists that reflects a consistent sequence of historical periods, grouped into four eras: Precambrian, Paleozoic, Mesozoic, and Cenozoic. |
| Eons | largest division of geologic time |
| Eras | divides the 4 eons |
| Periods | unit of time into which eras are subdivided |
| Epochs | smallest and 4th largest divisions of geologic time |
| Crust | the thin and solid outermost layer of the Earth above the mantle |
| Mantle | the layer of the earth between the crust and the core |
| Core | extends from the bottom of the mantle to the center of the Earth |
| Lithosphere | the solid, outer layer of the earth that consists of the crust and the rigid upper part of the mantle |
| Asthenosphere | The Soft layer of the mantle on which pieces of the lithosphere move |
| Mesosphere | The strong, lower part of the mantle between the asthenosphere and the outer core |
| Outer core | the liquid layer of the Earth's core that lies beneath the Mantle and surrounds the inner Core |
| Inner core | the solid, dense center of our planet that extends from the bottom of the outer core to the center of the Earth |
| Tectonic plates | pieces of the lithosphere that move around on top of the asthenosphere |
| Continental Drift | the theory that continents can drift apart from one another and have done so in the past |
| Sea- floor spreading | is the process by which new oceanic lithosphere is created as older materials are pulled away |
| Magnetic reversal | when Earth's magnetic poles change places |
| Plate tectonics | the theory that the Earth's lithosphere is divided into tectonic plates that move around on top of the asthenosphere |
| Ridge push | the process by which an oceanic plate slides down the lithosphere-asthenosphere boundary |
| Convection | hot material from deep within the earth rises while cooler material near the surface sinks |
| Slab pull | a process in which the edge of the oceanic plate sinks and pulls the rest of the tectonic plate with it |
| Convergent boundary | A tectonic plate boundary where two plates collide, come together, or crash into each other. |
| Divergent boundary | a plate boundary where two plates move away from each other |
| Transform boundary | the boundary between two tectonic plates that are sliding past each other horizontally |
| Subduction zone | The region where oceanic plates sink down into the asthenosphere. |
| Stress | the amount of force per unit area that is put on a given material |
| Deformation | when rock changes its shape due to stress |
| Compression | the type of stress that occurs when an object is squeezed, as when 2 tectonic plates collide |
| Tension | stress that occurs when forces act to stretch an object |
| Folding | the bending of rock layers due to stress in the Earth's crust |
| Anticlines | Upward folds of rock layers, forms when horizontal stress acts on rock |
| Synclines | downward, troughlike folds od rock layers, also forms when horizontal stress acts on rocks |
| Monoclines | rock layers are folded so that both ends of the fold are horizontal |
| Fault | the surface along which rock break and slide past each other |
| Footwall | the fault block that is below a fault |
| Hanging wall | the fault block that is above a fault |
| Fault block | a block of the Earth's crust on 1 side of a fault |
| Normal fault | a type of fault where the hanging wall slides downward; caused by tension in the crust |
| Reverse fault | A fault in which the hanging wall moves up relative to the foot wall |
| Strike-slip fault | opposing forces cause rock to break and move horizontally |
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