STEM 11 – EARTH SCIENCE
3.1 ENDOGENIC PROECESSES
Geologic Processes – mechanisms involved
in the formation of rocks, weathering,
erosion, and plate tectonics.
ENDOGENIC PROCESSES
- processes that occur below the earth’s
surface
 Generation of heat from Earth’s core
 Formation and movement of magma
Sources of Earth’s Heat
 Compression of matter that compose
Earth.
 Sinking heavier metals into the
Earth’s center
 Residual heat of early planetesimals
that slammed into Earth billion years
ago.
 Radioactive decay within the Earth’s
Core
INTERNAL STRUCTURE OF EARTH
Western Deep Levels Gold mine
- deepest that humans have gone through
- 3777 meters deep
- Transvaal, South Africa
- only 0.05% of distance from surface to core
Earth’s Equatorial Radius: 6378 km
EARTH’S CORE: THE PLANET’S SURFACE
- Core is 6,000°C hot, nearly as hot as the sun
Crust
 Continental Crust
- thick crust (30-50km thick)
- more dense; made of granite.
 Oceanic Crust
- thin crust (5-7km thick)
- higher dense; made of basalt
Mantle – Hotter than Crust
 Upper Mantle
– cooler than the lower mantle.
- rocks are brittle and break when
acted upon force.
 Lower Mantle
– hotter than the Upper Mantle.
- rocks are soft and flow when acted
upon force.
Core
– Made from Iron and Nickel.
- Source of Earth’s internal heat.
 Outer Core - liquid iron and nickel
due to extreme heat.
- temperature is hot as sun’s
surface.
 Inner Core – solid and hotter.
- Extreme pressure keeps the inner
core in solid form.
Lithosphere
– rigid outer part of Earth.
- consists of crust and part of the upper
mantle.
Asthenosphere
– part of the upper layer of Earth’s Mantle.
- below lithosphere.
- hotter and more fluid than the lithosphere.
Compression of Matter
- As earth grew mass, gravity increased
- matter are being pulled toward the center
causing squeezing and compression
- the compression of matter causes the
release of heat
Sinking of Heavier Metals
The sinking of heavy metals (iron, nickel)
turns potential energy to kinetic energy
causing the Heat
Residual Heat of Planetesimals
- Earth’s gravity attracted masses of
planetesimals. They crashed in the planet
resulting to kinetic energy from the blast
causing heat.
Radioactive Decay
- Earth’s radioactive materials (uranium,
thorium) decay resulting to a release of beta
particles giving heat energy.
- Natural nuclear reaction is buried deep in
the earth’s surface where many nuclear
fission release heat energy.
FORMATION OF MAGMA
Magma
– molten rock beneath Earth’s crust.
Lava
– molten rock that has flowed out onto the
Earth's surface.
Formation of Magma
 Melting by decompression
 Melting due to volatiles
 Heat-transfer Melting
Decompression
– rocks can melt due to a decrease in
pressure.
- pressure prevents, melting, decompression
permits melting
Volatiles
- elements or compounds that evaporate
quickly and can exist in gaseous state at the
earth's surface.
- commonly found in the earth's interior are
water and carbon dioxide.
- when they mix with hot rocks, they weaken
and break the bonds that hold the atoms of
rocks together.
- decrease the melting point of rocks
resulting in the formation of magma.
Heat-Transfer
- Magma rises up bring the heat causing the
temperature of the surroundings to rise up
by direct heat-transfer/melting.
- Magma rises (1100 C) &
Melt of rocks (650-850 C)

Magnetism
- process by which magma is formed
- describes its subsequent development,
displacement, interaction with solid rocks,
and solidification.

MOVEMENT OF MAGMA
Magma always rise up as hot rises, cold sinks,
working its way to cracks/crevices.

REASONS BEHIND MAGMA’S MOVEMENT

 It is less dense
- magma is molten, less dense than
surrounding.
- increases in buoyancy, so it rises
upward
 Pressure from surrounding rocks
- The weight of the surrounding rocks
creates a pressure that squeezes
magma into the cracks and narrow
channels going all the way to the
Earth's surface.
 3.2 EXOGENIC PROCESS
Exogenic Process
- processes initiated by forces from earth’s
atmosphere, biosphere, hydrosphere.
- ex: weathering, erosion, transportation,
deposition, denudation, land inundation.
Physical Weather (Mechanical Weathering)
- breaks large masses of rocks into smaller
grains or chunks called Detritus.
- Detritus is a term also applied to decaying
or dead organic matter.

Rock Transformation
Rocks are the solidified forms of molten rock
that managed to reach the earth's crust and
surface either through plutonism or
volcanism.

 Rock - a naturally occurring and

coherent aggregate of one or more
minerals, rocks are the basic unit
which makes up solid earth.
 Igneous Rocks - form when molten Fresh Rock
rocks solidify due a decrease in – a rock whose grains have their original
temperature. composition and shape.

Weathering – processes that break up and Weathered Rock

corrode solid rocks, transforming them into – a rock that has reacted with air and/ or
sediments. water near the earth's surface.

 Sedimentary Rocks Chemical Weathering

fragments of earlier rocks, minerals, – chemical reactions that change or destroy
and organisms accumulate and minerals when rocks are exposed to water or
become cemented. air.
 Metamorphic Rocks Erosion
- pre-existing rocks change into new – thru weathering, bedrock breaks into
rock because of an increase in smaller fragments, and with the passing of
temperature and pressure. time, decomposes to clay and sand.
CLASSIFICATION OF SEDIMENTS BASED ON PROCESS OF PHYSICAL WEATHERING
SIZE Jointing
Course Medium Fine - rocks have naturally formed cracks called
Sediments Sediments Sediments “Joints.”
- rock changes shape due to breaks in joints.
Boulders Sand (1/16 Silt (1-256 –
(greater – 2 mm) 1/15 mm)
Frost Wedging
than 256
Mud (less - water trapped in joints freezes, forcing the
mm)
than 1/256) joints to open, causing it to break apart.
Cobbles (64
– 256 mm)
Pebbles (2- Root Wedging – Tree roots can grow into
64 mm) joints and force them to open.
Thermal Expansion
- all matter expands when subjected to
intense heat.
- creates forces strong enough for the outer
layer of rocks to break off.
Salt Wedging
– dissolved salt in ground water crystalizes
and enlarges open spaces in rocks.
- pushes apart the surrounding grains of the
rock causing it to crumble.
Animal Attack
– Burrowing animals, such as earthworms,
grasshoppers, etc., push open cracks, and
break rocks into fragments.
Exfoliation
– the process by which granites gradually
break into fragments.
- Large plates or shells peel away like layers
of onion.
Landslide (Mass Wasting)
– downward movement of Earth materials,
primarily due to gravity.
Regolith
– bedrocks are often overlain by a thin layer
of loose rock fragments, clay, and sand.
- a layer of loose materials covering solid
rock.
Soil
– the upper layer of the regolith which
supports plants.
PROCESSES OF CHEMICAL WEATHERING
Dissolution
– since rocks are made from minerals, the
dissolution of these minerals breaks rocks
apart.
Hydrolysis
– water trapped in the joints of rocks freezes,
it forces the joints to open, causing it to
enlarge and eventually for the rock to break
apart.
Oxidation
– when elements combine with oxygen.
Hydration
– when minerals contained in rocks absorb
water causing the minerals. Ex(Biotite and
Smectite).
Chemical Weather from Organisms
- microbes that obtain compounds from
minerals and use the energy from the
minerals' chemical bonds to support their
biological processes.
Wind Erosion
– Water erodes earth's surface through
surface run-off and through the action of
rivers and streams on rocks, soil, and
sediments.
Coastal Erosion
– Waves and currents from large bodies of
water, such as seas and lakes, act on rocks
and sediments through pounding and
abrasion.
- Sea water also corrodes rocks along
shorelines. contains carbonic acid.
Landslide (Mass Wasting)
– movement of earth materials down a
slope.
- induced by Earthquakes and Rainfall.
Gravity – a natural force that contributes to
the physical weathering of rocks.
Rock Cycle – process of rock formation
where interrelated events happen one after
another.
- Word “cycle” derived: “circle”
- Circle: a loop that repeats its shape
- describes the process of rock formation
- occur in succession and repeated again
ROCK TRANSFORMATION
Magma cools down
- magma rises up due to decompression and
pressure
- extrusive igneous rocks (volcanism)
- intrusive igneous rocks (plutonism)
Plutonism - cooled down below the earth's
surface tum into intrusive igneous rocks.
Igneous rocks undergo weathering and
Erosion
- Igneous rocks are exposed to physical &
chemical weathering wherein they break
down and reduced into tiny sediments.
Erosion carries and deposits them in places
they gather.
Compaction and cementation
- layers of sediments undergo compaction
and cementation forming sedimentary rocks
Sediments - collected in low lying places like
river channels and flood plains.
Underwater Avalanches - carry masses of
sediments to the bottom forming submarine
fan.
Sedimentary rocks – formed through
compaction and cementation.
Heat and pressure act on sedimentary rocks
leading to the formation of metamorphic
rocks
Extreme heat and pressure cause the atoms
of mineral crystals of sedimentary rocks to
vibrate rapidly. This vibration stretches and
bends the chemical bonds of atoms.
Metamorphic rocks melt and turn into
magma.
A thick layer of metamorphic rocks supports
the base of continents, as this layer gets
buried deeper close to asthenosphere due to
the combined forces.
Igneous rocks melt and turn into magma
- layers of igneous rocks melt due to gravity,
tectonic process, and weight of the upper
layer causing it to sink deeper.
Igneous rocks transform into metamorphic
rocks
- igneous rocks can turn into metamorphic
through subsidence or sinking of igneous
rocks and exposed to heat and pressure,
forming metamorphic rocks.
Sedimentary rocks transform into sediments
Physical and chemical weathering act on
sedimentary rocks breaking them into
smaller fragments.
Metamorphic rocks transform into
sediments due to weathering and erosion
Metamorphic rocks can be exposed to forces
of weathering. Erosion carries and collects
them in place where through compaction
and cementation, they turn into sedimentary
rocks.
Metamorphism
– process of transformation in shape, form,
or appearance. It is often observed in
biology, also a fitting description to describe CAUSES AND CONSEQUENCES OF
the transformation that leads to METAMORPHISM
metamorphic rocks. Cause Consequences
Heat and Recrystallization Heat Heat causes the atoms in
Heat minerals to rearrange
- affects the chemical composition of rocks themselves into a new
such that sedimentary or igneous rocks turn crystal structure
into metamorphic rocks. (recrystallization) Under
- causes the atoms of mineral crystals to very high temperatures,
vibrate faster, weakening and eventually the new metamorphic
breaking the chemical bonds that hold them rock develops
together. compositional banding
Recrystallization Reaction Hydrothermal water
- occurs when atoms detach from their old with hot passing through
crystalline formation, they migrate to nearby groundwater sedimentary rocks
spaces, where they form new bonds with transform their chemical
other atoms, and thus. composition, resulting in
a new metamorphic rock
Metamorphic Rocks
– sedimentary rocks are exposed to high heat Pressure Pressure compacts or
and pressure. The combined effects of heat stretches the atoms in
and pressure lead to recrystallization of old minerals causing a new
mineral crystals. formation in the mineral
Compositional Bonding crystalline structure
– compositional structure of metamorphic
rocks in which the migration of atoms
produces layers of different composition.

Subsidence
– sinking of a part of lithosphere. It
Sedimentary basin – leaves a behind a
depression, called, where sediments carried
by erosion accumulate and tum into
sedimentary rocks.

Diffusion
– process which atoms migrate through a
material is called.

Compositional Banding
– recrystallization produces layers of different
composition that gives the new transformed
rock an appearance of bands.
Contact with Hot Groundwater
- Hot water, can easily dissolve minerals into
ions.
- When hot water passes through rocks, it
carries dissolved ions and mixes them with
others.
Aquifer – layer of permeable rocks that
contain or transmit groundwater.

Pressure
- exerts two types of stresses on rocks:
Normal stress and Shear stress compression
of tension.

 Normal Stress
compression - being squeezed.
tension - being stretched.
 Shear stress
- one part of the rock is being pulled
in a particular direction relative to
the other part.

Protoliths (original rocks)

– do not react singly with either temperature
or pressure.
- react to the combination of the two.
Minerals begin to vibrate only at
temperatures greater than 250-300C.

Metamorphic Grade
- metamorphic rock reveals a metamorphic
grade based on the range of pressure and
temperature where it is formed.
 3.3 CONTINENTAL DRIFT THEORY
Continental Drift (1912)
- proposed that continents move and used to
be nee supercontinent.
- proposes that continents had once been
joined and over time had drifted apart.
- proposed by Alfred Wegener (German
Meteorologist, Geophysicist).
Alfred Wegener (1880-1930)
– published “The Origins of Continents and
Oceans”.
Pangaea
- supercontinent that existed between the
late Paleozoic and early Mesozoic eras.
WEGENER’S PROOF FOR
CONTINENTAL DRIFT THEORY
Apparent Fit of Continents
– rocks are of the same age and of the same
type
 the scattered evidence of glacial flow
makes sense if continents used to
form one land mass.
Theory of Plate Tectonics
– a model of the earth's lithosphere such
that it consists of separate plates that move
with respect to one another.
Mid-Ocean Ridge
– a 2 km-high submarine mountain belt that
forms along a divergent oceanic plate
boundary.
Paleomagnetism
– the traces of ancient magnetism preserved
in rocks.
Lithosphere
– the rigid outermost shell of the planet, its
crust and upper mantle.

 Von Humboldt
– noticed the mountain ranges of
Buenos Aires, Argentina matches the
mountain ranges of South Africa.

Fossil Correlation

 evidence came from fossil records

 four fossils distribution suggested
continents used to form a single land
mass
 “Cynognathus”

Rock and Mountain Correlation

- similarities in rock and mountain
formations between two different continents

Paleoclimate Data

 Paleoclimate: climate from the very

distant past
 Paleo (Greek: Palaios) – “ancient”
 with “Vladimir Kroppen”, they
plotted ancient desserts, jungles, ice
sheets on paleogeographic maps.
Spreading Seafloor and Paleomagnetism
The strongest evidence supporting the
theory of drifting continents came from plate
tectonics.
Convection Cells within the Mantle
Arthur Holmes
- upheld the continental drift theory, but
credited the convection cells of the Earth's
mantle as the driving force behind this
movement.
– British Geologist, supported the Theory of
Drifting Continents.
- Published the Principles of Physical Geology
Convection Cells
- thermal convection deep in the mantle
causes magma to move in circular currents
causing the ocean plate to move sideways
from Mid-Ocean Ridge.
Technology for Sea Floor Mapping
Sonar (Echo Sounding)- Transmitting pulses
towards the seafloor and collecting the trace
of echo to came back, scientist were able to
collect its bathymetric profile. IT is the
seafloor cross section which shows the depth
plotted against the location.
another and at right angles
to midocean ridges.
EVIDENCE FROM PALEOMAGNETISM
- Magma errupts from ocean, solidified
which acquires the earth’s magnetic
field.
- As magma rises up and solidify,
convection currents drives the
oceanic plate to spread from both
sides.
- Earth’s magnetic field reverses over
long period of time.
Paleomagnetism
- Indisputable physical evidence that
sea floor spreads.
- Molten rock that rises from ridges
become part of the sea floor over
time as it cools down and become
solid rock.
Subduction Zone
- Area where oceanic and continental
meet..

FEATURES OF THE OCEAN FLOOR

Mid-Ocean An elongate submarine
Ridges mountain ranges between
2 to 2.5 km below sea level.

Deep- An elongate deep areas

Ocean that lie along the perimeter
Trenches of the Pacific Ocean and in
a few other places. It is
about 8-12 km deep.

Seamount isolated submarine

Chains mountains which used to
be active volcanoes. Only
one mountain, the one that
at the end of the chain is
an active volcano.

Fracture Bands of vertical fractures.

Zones They lie parallel to one
 4.1 DEFORMATION OF EARTH’S CRUST
Plate Tectonic
– a theory proposing that earth’s lithosphere
consists of distinct plates that move with
respect to one another.
Tectonism
– deformation of the lithosphere and
tectonics is the study of this deformation.
Plate Boundaries
- where the plates meet
- where friction, sliding and collision happen.
- where volcanism, seismism and mountain
ranges are found.
Philippine Plate
– oceanic plate beneath Western Pacific
Ocean.
Eurasian Plate
– continental plate beneath the huge land
masses of Europe and Asia.
Fault
– fracture in the earth's crust along which
one body of rock is displaced by another.
Fold
– bend or a wrinkle of layers of rock as a
result of deformation.
TYPES OF PLATE BOUNDARIES
Transform Boundary
- two plates slide past each other along a
vertical fault surface.
Luzon Transform Fault – have two major
boundaries cross Luzon:
 Philippines Fault System(Continental)
 Verde Passage – Sibuyan Sea
Fault(Oceanic)
Divergent Boundary (Spreading Boundaries)
- two plates move apart from each other.
Rift Valley (Rift lake)
– divergent boundary occurs above sea level.
 Rift (Ridge)
– linear zone two tectonic plates are
being pulled part.
Convergent Boundary/Margin
- two plates move towards each other, one
plate sinking beneath the other.
- zone where two plates meet.
Oceanic-Continental Boundary
- plates collide, causing one plate to sink
below the other.
- being denser, goes under the continental
plate where it sinks into the subduction zone.
- forms Trenches.
Subduction Zone
– region along the convergent boundary
where one plate sinks below the other.
Volcanic Arc
– curving chain of volcanoes that is formed
adjacent to a convergent plate boundary.
Trench
– a deep elongate trough bordering a
volcanic arc. It defines the trace of a
convergent plate boundary.
 rock in opposite directions
resulting in a change in
shape

CAUSES OF CRUSTAL DEFORMATION

Confining Pressure caused by a load
Pressure of overlying rocks

Stress along Pressure exerted by

Oceanic-Oceanic Boundary plate crustal plates to each
(Volcanic Island Arc) boundaries other along plate
- involves two converging oceanic plates. boundaries
- geological formation found at the bottom of
oceans where one plate sinks beneath the
other.
DEFORMATION OF EARTH’S CRUST
- The older plate is the one that goes under.
- forms Volcanic Arc Folding
- One or a stack of planar surfaces are curved
Sea Mounts or bent as a result of forces setting on them.
- volcanic arc when under sea level and when
no longer active Faulting
Volcanic Island Arc - A fracture or a break as a result of the
- When it rises above sea level, it forms a displacement of one part of a Hick in relation
chain of islands. in the other.

Continental-Continental Boundary Mountain Building

(Mountain Ranges) - Rock layers are squeezed and pushed
- involves two converging continental plates. upward as a result compression and uplift.
- one plate sinks beneath the other. Mountain Range
Ex. Himalayan Mountain Ranges - A chain of mountains formed along the
DEFORMATION OF EARTH’S CRUST boundary of converging plates.
Deformation Trenches
- change in shape, volume, and position of - A long narrow steep-sided depression in
because of forces applied to them. the ocean as a result of diverging or
- leads to a change in shape, volume, or converging plates.
position of rocks.
Volcanoes
FORCES ACTING ON ROCKS. - are vents in earth's crust caused by the
Compressio Force that squeezes the eruption of molten rock, hot rock fragments,
n rock resulting in a and hot gases.
decreased volume
Valleys
Tension Force that stretches the - Elongate depression on the earth's surface.
rock resulting in an
increased volume Folding
- Forces can compress a rock stratum
Shear Force that acts on the resulting in the formation of folds.
Faulting
- fault is a break or planar fracture in a
stratum of rock due to the displacement of
one part of the rock in relation to the other.
- often found along plate boundaries.
Fault Blocks
- large masses of rock on either side of a
fault.
Mindanao
Fault
Mountain Building and Mountain Ranges
- rock layers are squeezed and pushed
upward as a result of compression and uplift.
Two Dominant Mountain Ranges:
 Sierra Madre
 Cordillera Central Mountain ranges.

Uplift Trenches
- rising of a part of earth's crust to higher - long deep steep-sided depression in the
elevation. ocean as a result of converging or diverging
plates.
Subsidence
- sinking of a part of earth's crust to lower Volcanoes
elevation. - vents in earth’s crust caused by eruptions of
molten rock, hot rock fragments, and hot
gases.
- One plate subducts under the other, thus
FIVE ACTIVE FAULT LINES IN PHILIPPINES heats up which releases water content. The
Fault Provinces, Cities, gas (volatiles) rises up and breaks through the
Municipalities at risk vents as “Fumarolic Gases”.

Central Ilocos Norte, Aurora, Volcanic Mountains

Philippine Quezon, Masbate Eastern - mountains formed by repeated eruption
Fault Leyte, Southern Leyte, and accumulation of lava.
Agusan Del Norte, Agusan
Del Sur, Davao del Norte
Valley - is an elongate depression on the
Marikina Montalban, San Mateo, earth's surface often drained by river.
Valley Marikina, Pasig Taguig. Rift Valley – when a valley is formed by
Fault/West Muntinlupa, San Pedro, diverging tectonic plates.
Valley Fault Biñan, Carmona, Santa
Line Rosa, Calamba, Tagaytay,
Oriental Mindoro

Western Western Philippine Fault

Philippine Luzon Sea. Mindoro Strait,
Fault Panay Gulf, Sulu Sea

Eastern Philippine Sea

Philippine
Fault

Southern Moro Gulf, Celebes Sea

 4.2 FORMATION OF OCEAN BASINS

RED SEA AND THE DIVERGING PLATES

OF EASTERN AFRICA
Divergent Plates and Ocean Basins

Red Sea
- a rift valley began to form 55 mil years ago
- relatively young body of water
- Arabian and African plates diversion STRUCTURE OF OCEAN BASINS
FORMATION OF OCEAN BASIS
Ocean Basins
Upwarping – the submarine regions occupied by
- Pressure from rising magma leads to the seawater.
upwarping of the crust directly on top. - cover nearly three-fourths of earth's
Formation of a rift valley surface.
- Magma breaks the crust and produces - are below sea-level.
divergent plates. Continental Shelf
- The diverging plates form a rift valley. Part of the continental land mass covered by
Formation of a linear sea the sea.
- Water fills into the depression forming a Continental Slope
linear sea. Edge of continental shelf which slopes
Formation of an ocean basin steeply downward.
- With the passing of millions of years, the Continental Rise
diverging plates continue to spread, and an Deepest region of ocean basins excluding the
ocean basin is formed. bottom of trenches. It is a vast, flat, and cold
solid surface

Abyssal Plane
The boundary between two diverging
tectonic plates consists of a chain of volcanic
mountains with a central valley

Ocean Ridge
Continental margin. the region occupied by
the continental shelf, continental slope, and
continental rise

Continental Margin - region occupied by the

continental shelf, continental slope, and
continental rise.
 5.1 METHODS OF DATING
STRATIFICATION OF ROCKS
Stratum (plural, strata)
– a layer of sedimentary rock or soil.
Stratification (bedding)
– the general layout of the strata of a rock.
FORMATION OF STRATA
Stratum
– layer of compacted and cemented
sediments.
Strata or stratification
– is a geologic term we apply only to
sedimentary rocks.
Metamorphic rocks
– a consequence of metamorphism, a change
in the crystalline structure of rocks due to
heat and pressure.
STAGES IN THE FORMATION OF ROCK STRATA
Weathering
either through physics or chemical
weathering breaks down rocks into tiny
fragments.
protoliths (parent rock) can be an igneous,
sedimentary rock, or metamorphic rock.
Erosion and Deposition
Erosion by wind or water carries sediments
sedimentary basin.
Lithification
Through the action of compaction by
pressure and cementation, they form a layer
of sedimentary rocks.
Folding, faulting, uplift, subsidence, etc.
Movement in the earth's crust causes
deformation in the sedimentary rocks, giving
the rock stratification its varied arrangement.
Erosion and Deposition
New sediments are carried into the
sedimentary basin, forming a new layer of
sedimentary rocks on top of the old ones.
FORCES THAT CAUSE ROCK DEFORMATION
Compressional stress
Intrusion of new rock forms
Movement of plates/crust beneath
METHODS OF DATING ROCKS
Law of Uniformitarianism
- a proposition that will become the
foundation of geology.
- geological processes that take place today
operated in the same manner in the past.
- “The present is the key to the past”
James Hutton – Scottish doctor and farmer,
introduced the idea of uniformitarianism.
RELATIVE DATING
Relative Dating – rocks, fossils, or geological
events are given an order of occurrence.
PRINCIPLES OF RELATIVE DATING
 Sediments are deposited into
sedimentary basins, body of water.
 Weathering and Erosion happens in
Earth’s surface; not underwater
 Law of Superposition: Layers at the
bottom are older than those on top
(younger).
 Sedimentary layers are deposited
horizontally.
 Intrusions are younger than the rocks
it metamorphoses
 Faults (cracks) are younger than the
rocks they cut through.
 Uplift, Weathering, Erosion,
Subsidence produce uncomformities
 Principle of Inclusions: inclusions
must be older than the rock they are
in.
Geological Sequence – a listing of geological
objects or events in a column of rock.
Law of Superposition – rock layers of a
geological sequence at the bottom are
generally older than those on top.
Law of Original Horizontality – sediments
composing a layer of sedimentary rocks are
originally deposited in horizontal formation.
Any deformation of that layer happens after
this deposition.
Unconformity – a boundary between two
rock layers representing an interval of time
when no new strata of rock were deposited.
Law of Inclusions – sediments or rocks
(inclusions) that had been included in a rock
layer are older than the sediments into which
the inclusions had been embedded.
Fossils contain traces of carbon-14 that has
not turned yet into nitrogen – comparing
the traces of carbon-14 found in fossils with
the carbon-14 found in the atmosphere
today, and using the known half-life of
carbon-14, scientists can estimate the age of
the fossils.
Half-life – refers to the length of time it takes
for a radioactive material to decrease to half
its initial mass through radioactive decay. The
half-life of carbon-14 is 5,730 years.

Intrusions – refer to intrusive rocks. They are

formed when magma solidifies into igneous
rocks within earth's crust and under the
earth's surface.

Faults through Rock Strata – a fault or a

crack is younger than the layers of rock it
cuts through.

ABSOLUTE DATING

You may have heard of the absolute dating

method called Carbon-14 Dating.
Carbon-14 – refers to the isotope of the
element carbon with an atomic weight of 14.

Carbon-14 dating – assumption that the

amount of carbon-14 available at the time
when the organism died and the amount of
carbon-14 found in the atmosphere today
are the same.

CARBON-14 DATING
Plants Absorb Carbon-14 - Plants absorb CO2
through photosynthesis.

Animals Eat Plants – Herbivores eat plants.

Carnivores eat animals that eat plants.

Carbon-14 becomes part of the plant and

animal tissue – When living organisms die,
some carbon-14 atoms turn to nitrogen.
 RADIOMETRIC DATING OF ROCKS
Carbon-14 – used for dating fossils or human
artifacts which are no more than 50,000
years old.
Radioisotopes – longer half-lives are used to
give a numeric date to rocks, fossils, and
other geological formations that are
hundreds of thousands or millions of years
old.
Potassium-Argon (K-Ar) Dating Method – it
is the preferred dating method for assigning
numeric age to very old rocks.
Potassium to Argon
Potassium – contains 19 protons, but there
are isotopes of potassium with different
number of neutrons.
CHARACTERISTICS OF A GUIDE FOSSIL
It is abundant.
It is widely distributed, that is, it is found in
many places around the world.
It appeared in a narrow range of time.
It is easily identifiable.
Earliest rock – process in which stellar dusts
get lumped together, and as these lumps
grew larger, they turn into planetesimals.
Emergence of life and new species of
organisms
- it is used as basis for setting the boundaries
between time periods.
- defining event to set the boundaries
between time periods.

Potassium-40 – an unstable element.

Fossil – a remnant, or trace, of an ancient

living organism that has been preserved in
rock or sediment.

Guide Fossil or (index fossil) – a widely

distributed fossil that appeared in a narrow
range of time, and is regarded as
characteristic of a given geological formation.
It is used to determine the age of a related
rock formation.

Fossil Correlation – a method for establishing

the estimate age of a layer of rock by
comparing the fossils if contains with a set of
fossils of known age (guide fossil).

Principle of Fossil Correlation -strata

containing related collections of fossils (fossil
assemblages) are of the same age. In
addition, fossils at the bottom of the strata
are older than fossils closer to the top of the
strata.
 LESSON 5.2: EVOLUTION OF EARTH
Geologic Time Scale (GTS)
- where subdivisions of geologic time are
based
- this system relates geological strata with
time
MAJOR SUBDIVISIONS OF EARTH’S NATURAL
HISTORY
1. Eons “Longest”
- largest subdivision
- “millions of years”
- First: Hadean Eon; Last: Phanerozoic Eon
(Emergence of Homos)
2. Eras “Long”
- Phanerozoic Eon is subdivided into Eras
- Eras: Paleozoic, Mesozoic, Cenozoic
3. Periods “Short”
- eras are subdivided into periods
4. Epochs “Shortest”
- cenozoic period is subdivided into 7 epochs.
EONS
- Hadean Eon (Planetesimals, Late
Bombardment Period)
- Archaean Eon (Earth’s crust, oceans,
prokaryotes)
- Proterozoic Eon (Eukaryotes, First Animals)
- Phanerozoic Eon (Cambrian Explosion)
1. HADEAN EON
- “Hell on Earth” (4.5-4.0 Bil. Ya)
- formation of earth from planetesimals
- earth was once a magma ocean. Molten
iron sank to from earth’s core “Iron
catastrophe”
- Late Heavy Bombardment Period: constant
meteor impacts pulverizing and melting the
planet; no crust was formed.
2. ARCHAEAN EON
- Birth of Earth’s crust, Oceans, Prokaryotes
- Cratons were formed
- Plate subduction, causing active volcanism
- Protocontinents (block of crust composed
of volcanoes) were formed.
- Condensation of Water Vapor, forming
oceans/rivers
- Prokaryotic cells appeared
3. PROTEROZOIC EON
- Transition to Modern World
- Cyanobacteria widespread and contributed
to increased ozygenation of atmosphere
- abundant in bacteria and archaeans
- Eukaryotes appeared, “First Animals”
Carboniferous Rainforest Collapse
- collapse of Carboniferous (Life) rainforest
due to COAL causing extreme fluctuations in
climate.
4. PHANEROZOIC EON
PALEOZOIC ERA
- Cambrian Explosion: appearance of life
forms (vertebrates, amphibians, reptiles,
gymnosperms)
- Carboniferous Period: earth dominated by
vast forests; highest oxygenated state.
- Permian Period: collapse of carboniferous
forest
- Supercontinent: Pangaea
MESOZOIC ERA
- dinosaurs & mammals appeared
- gymnosperms; later, angiosperms
- Pangaea Break apart
- (K-T/K-Pg extinction) a giant asteroid
crashed to Yucatan Peninsula; 75% of all
species of animals and plants became extinct.
CENOZOIC ERA
- Angiosperms & insects co-evolved
- “Age of Mammals” rise of mammals as
dominant fauna
- First hominids appeared.
1. Paleogene (Paleocene, Eocene, Oligocene)
- Cooling and drying of climate
- Drifting of Continents to current positions
- Rapid diversification of mammals
- Shrinking of tropical rainforest
- Deciduous plants (plants that shed leaves)