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GEOL 5 - Earth History (with Lab)

Exam # 1 Study Guide - Spring 2010

exam date: Tuesday, March 16, 2010

Professor: Dr. Alessandro Grippo, Ph.D.

 
General InformationLast Updated  •  March 11, 2010   
PLEASE NOTE:
Cellular phones, iPods, Blackberries, Bluetooth, headphones, computers, pocket calculators, translators or, in general, ANY KIND of electronic device CAN NOT be used during the test.
All electronic devices MUST BE TURNED OFF: if a cell phone rings or a device is on while in class during test time, you will not be allowed to finish your test and your result will be invalidated.

You can not use any text, notes, dictionary, pocket calculator, flash card, or any source of information other than your brain. You will NOT need a ruler for this test.

You will ONLY need to bring:

  1. one Scantron, Form 882-E
  2. a number 2 pencil
  3. 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.
There is no additional information compared to what has been said, discussed, shown, illustrated in class.
It is YOUR personal responsability to cover the materials listed below on the lecture textbook, on the lab textbook, on "Cradle of Life", on the web pages, and on your notes.

I would strongly recommend that you peruse your notes for completeness of information: some information that has been detailed in class is only mentioned briefly on the textbooks, and you are responsible for covering 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. Review the materials from your quizzes.
Read the summary at the end of each chapter, try to answer review questions, try to work with other fellow students if you find it useful.
Never hesitate to ask me questions in class or during the lab.

ammonites
Jurassic ammonites from the Ammonitic Red Formation (Italian Alps)
used as a decorative stone in Bologna, Italy

 
Study Guide: part 1 - readings from "Cradle of Life"Last Updated  •  March 11, 2010   

There will be a few questions out of William Schopf's book, Cradle of Life.
Refer to the familiar assignments list for a review.
Only the introduction and Chapter 1 will be part of this test.

 
Study Guide: part 2 - LECTURELast Updated  •  March 11, 2010    
Chapter 1 - Earth as a System
Study the whole chapter; pay special attention to the following topics:

  1. Be sure to know the concepts of Uniformitarianism, Actualism and Catastrophism
  2. Know the Nature and Origin of Rocks (Igneous, Sedimentary and Metamorphic); these are also seen in much greater detail in Chapter 2
    Among other things:
    • 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 is 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 11
    • 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 12 on the textbook)
  3. Know the paragraph on Imaging Earth Below (Earth's core, mantle and crust, and the concepts of lithosphere and asthenosphere)
  4. Know Plate Tectonics
  5. Know the Water Cycle
  6. Know Directional Change in Earth's History
  7. Know Episodic Change in Earth's History

Chapter 2 - Rock-Forming Minerals and Rocks

  1. Know the Structure of Minerals: elements, atoms, ions, isotopes, subatomic particles, types of chemical bonds
  2. Know the geologic utility of both stable and unstable isotopes; remember the examples of oxygen isotopes and carbon isotopes
  3. Know the main properties and the main families of minerals
  4. Know all the textbook material on igneous and metamorphic rocks, and pay with special attention to sedimentary rocks
  5. Remember the discussion of pelagic chemical (limestones and cherts) and non-chemical (red clays) sediments, and their origin (see also Chapter 3). In particular, review your notes on the C.C.D. (Carbonate Compensation Depth). Know the names of the planktonic organisms involved (which is which, in terms of phytoplankton/zooplankton and in terms of calcareous vs. siliceous shell).

Chapter 3 - The Diversity of Life

  1. Know what fossils are and the main ways of fossilization
  2. Know the names of the six kingdoms of living things
  3. Know what Taxonomic Groups are
  4. Know what a Clade is
  5. 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)
  6. Know the Paleontology pages on this web site (parts 1, 2, 3 and 4)
  7. 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 (deep marine) rocks such as (microcrystalline) limestones and cherts. See also Chapter 2)
  8. Know the main evolutive stages of plants (nonvascular, vascular; spore, seeds; gymnosperms and angiosperms)
  9. 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, trilobites, mollusks, brachiopods, bryozoans (please note that brachiopods and bryozoans are distinct from all other organisms), echinoderms, chordates.

 
Study Guide: part 3 - LABLast Updated  •  March 11, 2010    

Chapter 1 - Sedimentary Rocks in Hand Sample

  1. You will not be asked to identify a hand sample, BUT:
  2. Know the introduction to the chapter
  3. Know the texture of all sedimentary rocks
  4. Know the names and diagnostic features, as from Table 1.1a, page 5
  5. 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
  6. Know about hardness, color and bedding

Chapter 2 - Textural Clues to the History of Sediment

  1. Know particle size and sorting
  2. Know roundness of grains
  3. Skip size distribution of coarse gravel (no questions on this paragraph)

Chapter 3 - Sedimentary Rocks under the Microscope

  1. You will not be asked to identify a rock under the microscope, BUT:
  2. Know the introduction ("Basic Information": know what thin sections and acetate peels are, but I will not ask you how to prepare an acetate peel)
  3. Know textures of sandstones
  4. Know textures of carbonate rocks (be sure to know Folk's classification, including the three components grains, cement and matrix; know the four major types of grains, as from page 23 of your lab manual; know how this classification differs from Dunham's (on the same page, and also in Table 3.2), and know the difference between micrite and sparite)
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