The Earth’s outer layer is made of plates that have moved throughout history is called?
Plate Tectonics
What are the four types of boundaries discussed?
Divergent, convergent- collisional, transform, and convergent-subduction.
What is convection and how is it related to plate tectonics?
Convection is heat rising from the inner iron core of the Earth, the heat spreads out in waves. This heats the asthenosphere, which moves the lithosphere plate
Seafloor spreading is caused by this type of boundary, what is it?
Divergent plate boundary. In class we talked about the Mid Atlantic Ridge, in the Atlantic Ocean we have a HUGE rift that is filling in with magma.
The Earth is not getting bigger. What happens to keep the Earth the same size?
Subduction. When an oceanic plate and a continental plate collide, the oceanic plate goes beneath the land plate and melts. Atlantic plate is making mountains
What creates volcanoes?
Subduction
Earthquakes are created for this type of boundary.
Transform Plate Boundary.
How are mountains created?
Convergent plate boundaries of 2 continental plates.
What is weathering?
Weathering is the process of breaking rocks into smaller pieces.
What are the two types of weathering?
Mechanical (One the lab we called these physical and biological) and Chemical
What is the rock cycle?
The rock cycle is a model that describes the formation, breakdown, and reformation of a rock. Sedimentary, igneous, and metamorphic are the 3 rocks groups.
Why are sedimentary rocks the only type of rock to contain fossils?
The movement of weathering rock will cover an organism and preserve the imprint or hard remains. Igneous and metamorphic rock have too much heat and pressure.
What are fossils?
The naturally preserved remains or traces of life that lived in the geologic past.
Why are most fossils invertebrates?
Invertebrates often have shells or exoskeletons that preserve well, also more than 95% of all organisms today are invertebrates.
What are the two types of fossils and give an example?
1) Remain/Body Fossils- examples are shells, teeth, bones, fur or feathers. 2) Imprint Fossils- examples are footprints, eggs, leaves and feces.
How are fossils formed?
Fossils are always found in sedimentary rock because they are formed when layers of sediments like clay, mud or sand layer and harden over an organism.
