| Term | Definition |
|---|
| having knowledge | science |
| control | comparison in an experiment |
| identify a problem | first step in scientific method |
| hypothesis | educated guess |
| scientific theory | the idea that a comet is like a dirty snowball |
| scientific law | an object at rest will remain at rest unless acted upon by a force |
| constant | variables that stay the same in an experiment |
| dependent variable | variable being tested |
| element | contains only one type of atom |
| proton | has a positive electric charge |
| electrons | forms the cloud around the nucleus |
| protons plus neutrons | mass number |
| isotopes | atoms of the same element with a different number of neutrons |
| hydrogen bonding | bonding of polar molecules of water |
| ions | electrically charged |
| inorganic | characteristic of a mineral |
| silicon and oxygen | what all silicates contain |
| magma | holt, melted rock |
| silicate mineral group | mineral group of quartz |
| hardness | measure of how easily a mineral can be scratched |
| streak | powdered mineral formed when being rubbed |
| fracture | the way quartz break |
| ordered atoms | what all crystalline solids have |
| diamond | hardest on Mohs scale |
| cubic | crystal system that halite crystals belong to |
| it is less dense than surrounding rock | why magma rises towards Earth's surface |
| minerals align into layers | happens during metamorphism of granite into gneiss |
| granite | rock with large mineral grains |
| magma | forms into igneous rock |
| nonfoliated rock | marble |
| conglomerate | sedimentary rock made of large, angular pieces of sediments |
| breccia | an example of detrital sedimentary rock |
| compaction | process in which sediments press together |
| lava | molten material at Earth's surface |
| coquina | organic sedimentary rock |
| bituminous coal | has highest content of carbon |
| peat | first step in the evolution of coal |
| nonrenewable energy resources | fossil fuels |
| gangue | waste material seperated from an ore |
| folded rock | rock structure that oil and natural gas gets trapped under |
| hydroelectric | energy resource using large dams in a river |
| wind farm | area where windmills are found |
| ore | a mineral that can be mined at a profit |
| making gasoline | important use of petroleum |
| petroleum | nonrenewable energy resource |
| plains | 50% of all land areas in the United States |
| 90 degrees North | location of the north pole |
| volcanic | Hawaiian Island mountains |
| longitude | lines that are parallel to the equator |
| 15 | distance between the 24 time zones |
| Mercator map | map distorted at the poles |
| Topographic map | map showing changes in elevation at Earth's surface |
| elevation | measured with respect to sea level |
| Geologic map | map showing rock types making up Earth's surface |
| Colorado Plateau | major U.S. landform including the Grand Canyon |
| chemical weathering | caused by acids produced by plants |
| mechanical weathering | occurs when roots force rocks apart |
| oxygen | reacts with iron to form rust |
| ice wedging | agent of mechanical weathering |
| warm, moist regions | regions where chemical weathering is most rapid |
| soil | mixture of weathered rock, organic matter, air, and water |
| humus | decayed organic matter |
| A horizon | horizon where most humus is found |
| soil erosion | prevented by no-till farming |
| terracing | reduces erosion on steep slopes |
| creep | leaning trees on a hillside |
| fibrous | root system of the best plants for reducing wind erosion |
| cirque | created at the point where valley glaciers start |
| aretes | caused by glacier erosion |
| glacier | a mass of snow and ice in motion |
| U-shaped | shape that glacier-created valleys have |
| dune | feature created by deposition |
| deflation | wind erosion that leaves pebbles and boulders behind |
| moraine | a ridge formed by deposition of till |
| rill | structure created by deposition |
| subsidence | deposit that forms when a mountain river runs onto a plain |
| acquifer | layer of permeable rock that water flows through |
| river system | network formed by a river and all the smaller streams that contribute to it |
| permeable rock | rocks through which fluids can flow easily through |
| young | stage of development of mountain streams |
| spring | forms when the water table meets Earth's surface |
| hot spring | contains heated groundwater that reaches Earth's surface |
| flat shorelines | where beaches are most common |
| pressure | why water rises in an artesian well |
| mantle | layer of Earth containing the asthenosphere |
| transform boundary | plate boundary of the San Andreas Fault |
| continental drift | hypothesis stating that continents slowly moved to their current positions |
| Nazca | plate subducting beneat the South American Plate to form the Andes mountain range |
| glacial deposits | indicates that many continents were once near Earth's south pole |
| magnetic reversals | evidence in rocks that support the theory of seafloor spreading |
| convergent plate boundary | plate boundary that the Mid-Atlantic Ridge is a part of |
| plate tectonics | theory stating that plates move around on the asthenosphere |
| transform plate boundary | forms when a plate slides past another plate |
| island arcs | volcanic landforms that form when oceanic plates collide |
Combine with other sets
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