GEOL 5 - Historical Geology (with Lab) Exam # 1 Study Guide - Spring 2008 exam date: March 18, 2008 Professor: Dr. Alessandro Grippo, Ph.D.   General Information Last Updated  •  March 7, 2008 NOTE: Cell-phones, electronic devices of ANY sort, dictionaries CAN NOT be used during the test. Electronic devices MUST BE TURNED OFF: if a cell phone rings, you wil not be allowed to finish your test. You will ONLY need to bring: one Scantron Form 882-E a number 2 pencil an eraser This study guide must be interpreted (literally) as a guide to the study of the subject and not as a listing of possible questions. It is YOUR responsability to cover the materials listed here on the lecture textbook, the lab textbook, the web pages, and your notes, including those you have taken during the projection of movies, if any. I would strongly recommend that you peruse your notes for completeness of information: some concepts have been expressed with much more detail in class than are explained on the book, and you are responsible for that; know what the key terms and concepts are (see the list at the end of each chapter on both your textbook and your lab manual); exercise with the questions for review also found at the end of each chapter. Read the summary at the end of each chapter, try to answer review questions, try to work with others if you find it useful. Never hesitate to ask me questions in class or during the lab Jurassic ammonites from the Ammonitic Red Formation (Italian Alps) used as a decorative stone in Bologna, Italy   Study Guide: part 1 - LECTURE Last Updated  •  March 1, 2008 Chapter 1 - Earth as a System Study the whole chapter; pay special attention to the following topics: Be sure to know the concepts of Uniformitarianism, Actualism and Catastrophism Know the Nature and Origin of Rocks (Igneous, Sedimentary and Metamorphic); these are also seen in much greater detail in Chapter 2 Know Formations, Members, Groups, Supergroups Know what Stratigraphy is Know the three principles of Steno (superposition, original horizontality and lateral continuity) Know what the rock cycle and how it works Know global dating of the rock record, including the use of fossils and radioactive decay Know what eons, eras, periods and epochs are For this test, memorize the names and the numerical age of eons (Archean, Proterozoic and Phanerozoic) and eras (Paleozoic, Mesozoic and Cenozoic), as from figure 1-11 on page 12 From the same figure, learn the names of the periods of the Paleozoic (Cambrian, Ordovician, Silurian, Devonian, Carboniferous {subdivided in North America into Mississippian and Pennsylvanian} and Permian), Mesozoic (Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous) and Cenozoic (Paleogene and Neogene); for this test, you do NOT need to memorize the epochs of Cenozoic Know the difference between geologic period and geologic system (page 13 on textbook) Know the paragraph on Imaging Earth Below (Earth's core, mantle and crust, and the concepts of lithosphere and asthenosphere) Know Plate Tectonics Know the Water Cycle Know Directional Change and Episodic Change in Earth's History Chapter 2 - Rock-Forming Minerals and Rocks Know the Structure of Minerals: elements, atoms, ions, isotopes, subatomic particles, types of chemical bonds Know the utility of both stable and unstable isotopes; remember the examples of oxygen isotopes and carbon isotopes Know the main properties and the main families of minerals Know all the textbook material on rocks, not limited but with special attention to sedimentary rocks remember the discussion of pelagic chemical (limestones and cherts) and non-chemical (red clays) sediments, and their origin (see also Chapters 3 and 5) Chapter 3 - The Diversity of Life Know what fossils are and the main ways of fossilization Know the names of the six kingdoms of living things Know what Taxonomic Groups are Know what a Clade is Read for completeness of information and better understanding of present and future materials the paragraph "Identifying Clades and Their Relationships", even if I will not ask direct questions on them (except for the concept of species) Know the Paleontology pages on this web site (parts 1, 2, 3 and 4) Know the main organisms for each kingdom; in particular, know all of the Protista (coccolitophores, foraminifers, diatoms, radiolarians) in detail (they are basic constituents of certain pelagic rocks, see Chapters 2 and 5) Know the main evolutive stages of plants (nonvascular, vascular; spore, seeds; gymnosperms and angiosperms) know the main geologic facts (if they are easily preserved in the fossil record, if they are common, what is preserved, the approximate time range in which they are important, etc.; there will be NO questions at this stage on the biology of these organisms) about sponges, corals, arthropods, mollusks, brachiopods, bryozoans (please note that brachiopods and bryozoans are distinct from all other organisms), echinoderms, chordates Chapter 4 - Environments and Life Know the basics of ecology Know about the atmosphere: its composition, patterns of air circulation on a non-rotating and a rotating earth with no land masses; know what the Coriolis effect is, how it acts, and why; know the main winds (trade winds, westerlies, polar easterlies) and their direction Know the Oceanography page on this website Know the main terrestrial environments; be aware of climate change with altitude and not only with latitude Know about the Marine realm: the differences between surface, wind-driven currents and deep, density-driven currents; know the patterns of surface ocean currents; know about the California current and the Gulf Stream; know about Equatorial currents and the West Wind Drift; know the basics about tides and the intertidal, subtidal (p.97) and supratidal zones Know the physiography of ocean bottoms, along passive and active continental margin (know the difference between a continental margin and a plate boundary!): shelf, slope, rise, abyssal plain, etc.; know what the photic zone is and its approximate depth in meters Know about marine life, and what plankton, nekton and benthos are; know about the influence of salinity and temperature of ocean waters on life; know about food webs Know freshwater environments Know about orbital variations and their influence on climate change (only if discussion has been held in class) Chapter 5 - Sedimentary Environments Know all of the environments detailed in this chapter Know how stratigraphic studies are done, in terms of where to look for information: outcrops, cores, geophysical logging Be aware of the discussions we had in class about the following subjects, only briefly touched upon on the textbook: varves, bioturbation, cross-bedding, playa lakes, meandering rivers (cut banks and point bars), transgression and regression Be able to discuss or explain Walther's Law, and to use it to detect transgressions and/or regressions Be able to explain the conditions for calcium carbonate deposition (carbonate platforms) and stromatolites existence Know turbidites and pelagic sediments (see reference to Protista in Chapter 3 for these)   Study Guide: part 2 - LAB Last Updated  •  March 7, 2008 Chapter 1 - Sedimentary Rocks in Hand Sample You will not be asked to identify a hand sample, BUT: Know the introduction to the chapter Know the texture of all sedimentary rocks Know the names and diagnostic features, as from Table 1.1a, page 4 Know what matrix and cement are; be aware that, together with grains and pores they make up for the possible four component of a clastic sedimentary rock Know about hardness, color and bedding Chapter 2 - Textural Clues to the History of Sediment Know particle size and sorting Know roundness of grains Skip size distribution of coarse gravel (no questions on this paragraph) Chapter 3 - Sedimentary Rocks under the Microscope You will not be asked to identify a rock under the microscope, BUT: Know the introduction Know textures of sandstones Know textures of carbonate rocks (be sure to know the difference between Folk's and Dunham's classifications, and to know the difference between micrite and sparite) Skip "making a peel of a prepared rock surface" (no questions on this paragraph) Chapter 4 - Ancient Sedimentary Environments Know the Kinds of Environments Know Bedding and Related Features Know Color Chapter 5 - Major Tectonic Settings of Earth History Know the whole chapter Know the difference between cratons and orogens Know where different kinds of sediment settle Know what a molasse and a flysch are Know Walther's Law Know what a facies and a facies association are Know (from previously covered chapters also) the different parts of an ocean basin (shelf, slope, rise, etc.) and what sediment settles there Be able to solve any problem in this chapter Go back to the home page       Go back to the Spring 2008 page