NAME:Quandric CLASS PERIOD:3rd

Rock Cycle

1. What is the definition of the Rock Cycle

● A rock model that describes the formation, breakdown, and
reformation of a rock.
2. What is weathering?
● Weathering is the breaking down of rocks, soils, and minerals also
weathering includes (rain, ice, wind),
chemical changes, and living things (plant).
3. What is created during weathering?
● Sediments.
4. What is erosion?
● Erosion is Wind, Water, Ice, and Gravity.
5. What is deposition?
● When rocks are deposited into layers.
6. What is compaction?
● Sediments are deeply buried, placing them under pressure because
of the weight of overlying layers.
7. What is cementation?
● New minerals stick the sediment together just like cement.
8. Using your definitions for questions 2-7, Explain how sedimentary
rock is formed. Make sure you include all processes.
● Sedimentary rocks are formed when Sediments are deeply buried,
placing them under pressure because of the weight of overlying
layers and that is called compaction then new minerals stick the
sediment together just like cement and that is Cementation.
9. Explain the processes involved in forming metamorphic rock (heat,
pressure).
● The processes involved in forming metamorphic rock is that Heat
temperatures are high enough to change the structure but not to melt
it and Pressure is caused when intense collisions and friction of
tectonic plates and pressure from overlying rock layers.
10. Explain how the processes from Question 9 form metamorphic
rock.
● The processes form metamorphic rocks because they both can
change the rock.
11. Explain the processes involved in the formation of Igneous rock
(meliting, cooling and hardening)
● The processes involved to form Igneous rock is through cooling and
hardening of magma then as hot molten rock rises to the surface then
it changes it’s temperature and pressure that causes it to cool,
solidify, and crystallize.
12. Explain how the processes from Question 11 form igneous rock.
● The processes form igneous rocks because melted rocks turn in
solids and slow cooling forms large crystals and fast cooling forms
small crystals.

Plate Tectonics

1. What theory did Alfred Wegener come up with?

● Alfred Wegener came up with the theory that the continents drift.
2. What did Harry Hess discover?
● Harry Hess discovered that magma was rising on the seafloor
causing it to spread.
3. Define the Theory of Plate Tectonics.
● The theory that Alfred Wegener & the discovery that Harry Hess had
found is the 2 theories that had led up to The Theory of Plate
Tectonics.
4. Explain convection currents including the effect heat has on
density and how this affects the motion of the currents.
● Convection currents transfer energy in the mantle; it also causes the
hotter magma in the mantle to rise and it causes the cooler magma in
the mantle to sink.
5. Explain how convection currents move tectonic plates.
● Rising magma pushes against the tectonic plates which moves them
together, moves them apart, or along each other.
 6. Use the table below to list the characteristics for each type of
crust.

Continental Crust Thicker and less dense than

oceanic crust.
Oceanic Crust
A thin layer of crust that
underlies the ocean basins.

7. List the three types of plate boundaries and explain which

direction the plates are moving at each.
● Convergent & Moves into each other.
● Divergent & Moves apart.
● And Transform & Moves sideways.
8. Use the table below to list the type of plate boundaries and the
geologic features that are created at each.
Type of Boundary Crust Type Geologic Feature
Involved Created
Divergent Mid-Ocean Ridge. Seafloor spreading.
Divergent Rift Valley.
Great Rift Valley in
Africa.
Transform Earthquakes. San Andreas fault
in California.
Convergent Folded mountains. Himalaya
Mountains.
Convergent Volcanoes Cascade
Volcanoes in WA,
OR, and CA.
Convergent Volcanic arc of Aleutian Islands in
islands Alaska.

9. Define subduction zone.

● Region of the Earth's crust where tectonic plates meet.
10. Define Oceanic trench
● A long, narrow depression on the seafloor.
11. Describe the Ring of Fire. (What is it located on, why does
this cause a lot of geologic activity in this area)
● The Ring of Fire is a long chain of volcanoes that surround the Pacific
Ocean. It is located on the Pacific Ocean. It causes a lot of geologic
activity because it is the site of frequent earthquakes and volcanic
eruptions. Also caused by plate boundaries converging, diverging and
transforming.
Volcanoes

1. Explain what a volcano is.

● A cone-shaped mountain or hill which usually has a crater or

depression at the summit.
2. Use the table below to list the features of a volcano and the definition
of each feature.

Feature Definition of feature

Magma
Molten rock under the earth’s
surface.
Magma Chamber
Large underground pool of
molten rock sitting underneath
the Earth’s crust.
Main Vent
The weak point in the Earth’s
crust where hot magma rises
from the magma chamber and
reaches the surface.
Crater
Circular basin or depression.
Secondary Vent
Magma can reach the surface in
 other areas.
Secondary Cone
Lava builds up here in the shape
of a cone.
Volcanic Bombs
Large projectiles thrown through
the air.
Ash Cloud
Small pieces of pulverized rock,
minerals, and volcanic glass
created during eruption

Pyroclastic Flow Fast-moving current of hot gas

and rock that moves away from
a volcano.
Lava
Molten rock above the earth’s
surface
Caldera
A large basin-like depression
resulting from
the explosion or collapse of
the center of a volcano.

3. Explain how volcanoes are formed at convergent boundaries.

● The more dense oceanic crust slides under the continental crust
creating a Subduction Zone. Through heat and pressure the dense
oceanic crust melts. This melted crust (because it’s less dense)
works its way to the surface forming volcanoes.
4. Explain how volcanoes are formed at divergent boundaries.
● Rift Valleys form on land when two continental plates diverge. Active
divergent plate boundaries also occur between oceanic plates at the
mid-ocean ridges.
5. Describe what a hot spot volcano is and how it is formed.
● A hot spot is regions of the mantle that are very hot compared to the
surrounding mantle. It is formed when this creates a mantle plume
that eventually breaks through the crust as a volcano.
 Earthquakes

1. Use the table below to list the types of stress put on rocks and which
way the rocks are moving at each

Stress Type Direction rocks are moving

Compression Rocks move together.
Tension Rocks move away from each
other.
Shearing Rocks slide past each other.

2. Define what a fault is and how they can create earthquakes.

● A fault is when a fracture or zone of fractures between two blocks of
rock.
3. Use the table below to list the types of faults, what stress type is
involved in each, and which direction the hanging wall moves in
relation to the foot wall.

Fault Type Stress Type What direction is the

hanging wall moving
in relation to the foot
wall
Normal Fault Tension Downward
Reverse Fault Compression Rises
Strike-Slip Fault Shearing Horizontal direction.

4. Describe how an earthquake happens and what occurs when this

happens.
● An earthquake happens when the pressure built up along a fault line
becomes so great that the rocks on either side of the fault suddenly
rip apart. What occurs is that pent-up pressure is released as energy.
5. Use the table below to define each of the terms.

Seismograph
● An instrument that
measures and records
details of earthquakes.
Seismogram
● The record produced by
the seismograph.
Seismologist
● A scientist who studies
earthquakes.

6. Use the table below to define each wave type and the motion for
each wave type

Wave type Definition Motion of the wave

P Waves ● Shakes the
● First waves to ground back
arrive at the
seismic station and forth.
(fastest).
S Waves ● Slower than P
Waves. ● Moves rock
particles side to
side or up and
down.
Surface Waves ● Travel only ● Rayleigh Wave
through the - Circular
crust. ● Love Wave -
Back & Forth.
7. Define what the focus of an earthquake is.
● The focus of an earthquake is the point within the earth where the
earthquake originates.
8. Define what the epicenter of an earthquake is.
● The epicenter of an earthquake is the point on the earth’s surface
directly above the focus.
9. Describe what triangulation is and how seismologists use it to
determine the epicenter of an earthquake.
● Triangulation is when scientists take 3 seismographs to locate the
epicenter. Seismologists must determine the distance each station is
from the earthquake and draw a circle around each using the
distance as the radius. Where the 3 circles intersect, is the epicenter.
10. What are the two scales used to measure earthquakes?
● Richter scale & Mercalli scale.
11. Describe how tsunamis are formed and the characteristics of a
tsunami.
● Tsunamis are formed when a powerful series of waves generated by
an earthquake or landslide under the ocean. The characteristics of a
tsunami are
● Huge amounts of seawater are displaced.
● Can travel at an average of 450 mph in the open ocean.
● And Can be very destructive to coastal areas.
12. List the 5 ways that humans can prepare for earthquakes.
● Emergency Kit
● Determine a way of communicating with family members
● Attach shelves to walls and put heavy stuff on bottoms shelves
● Get under doorways or outside away from buildings
● Falling objects are the killers.

Soil

1. Use the table below to list the kinds of weathering, the definition and
the types of each kind of weathering

Kind of weathering Definition Types of each kind

 Mechanical Physical forces ● Frost Wedging
Weathering break rock into ● Unloading
smaller and smaller ● Biological
pieces without Activity
changing the rock’s
mineral
composition.
Chemical The transformation ● Water
Weathering of rock into one or ● CO2
more new ● Granite
compounds.

2. Define weathering.
● Weathering is the breaking down and changing of rocks near Earth’s
surface.
3. List the 4 components of soil.
● Mineral Matter, Humus, Water, and Air.
4. Use the table below to list the 3 types of soil particles and the mixture
of all three. Provide size and characteristics for each.

Particle Size Characteristics

Sand .05 to 2mm Large, Feels gritty.
Silt .002 to .05mm Feels like flour, Feels
smooth.
Clay <002mm Small, Feels smooth.
Loam .05 > 63 A mixture of all
three sizes) is
best suited for
plant life.

5. List the four things that have an impact on soil development.

● Time, Climate, Organisms, and Slope.
6. Use the soil triangle to answer the question.
What type of soil would I have if I had 20% clay, 50% sand, and 30%
silt?
● Loam.