Alessandro Grippo's earth Sciences pages

GEOL 5 - Earth History (with Lab)

Exam # 3 (Final) Study Guide - Spring 2011

exam date: Thursday, June 9, 2011

Professor: Dr. Alessandro Grippo, Ph.D.

 
General InformationLast Updated  •  May 29, 2011    
PLEASE NOTE:
Cellular phones, iPods, Blackberries, Bluetooth devices, headphones, computers 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 turned on in the classroom during test time, you will not be allowed to finish your test and your result will be invalidated.

You can not use any dictionary, translator, pocket calculator, flash card, or any external source of information. There will be no need for a ruler during this test. No hoods, hats, or anything else that can hide your ears will be allowed.

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.
It is YOUR personal responsability to cover the materials listed in this online study guide

  • on the lecture textbook
  • on the lab textbook
  • on "Cradle of Life"
  • on the web pages
  • 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 others if you find it useful.
Never hesitate to ask me questions in class or during a 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  •  May 29, 2011    

All questions from William Schopf's book, Cradle of Life, will be out of chapters 7, 8, 9, and 10.
There will be no questions from chapters 11 and 12.
Refer to the familiar assignments for a review.

  • Chapter 7 describes stromatolites
  • Chapter 8 deals with the hypobradytelism of cyanobacteria
  • Chapter 9 goes over the development of eukaryotes
  • Chapter 10 ends our discussion and highlights the solution to Darwin's dilemma, a quandary that accompanied us since chapter 1
 
Study Guide: part 2 - LECTURELast Updated  •  May 29, 2011    
Chapter 6 - Correlation and Dating of the Rock Record
This paragraph is fully integrated by the web pages on stratigraphy. Be sure to study all of them. Also, do not forget to check the illustrated stratigraphy page on the web.

  1. Know the Geologic Time Scale
  2. Know Stratigraphic Units
  3. Know Earth's Absolute Age
    There will be no questions on the three modes of radioactive decay (page 137) and on the specifics of U/Th, U/He, Rb/Sr, K/Ar and Ar/Ar dating (pages 138 and 139).
    Do study U/Pb and radiocarbon dating and, of course, the rest of the section (including the 86Sr/87Sr graph of Figure 6.12, page 142).
  4. Know Event Stratigraphy
Some concepts may have been discussed in class only. Refer to your notes. This is one of the most important chapters of the book. Expect detailed questions out of this, and be able to apply the concepts expressed in this section to chapters.


Chapter 7 - Evolution and the Fossil Record
This chapter provides you with the foundations for the understanding of Evolution.
You should study the whole chapter and the integrating materials that you can find on the class web page. Here is a detailed summary of the materials you need to know:

  1. Know the Introduction
  2. Know Adaptations
  3. Know Charles Darwin's Contribution (there will be questions on Charles Darwin)
  4. Read, in order to better understand the ideas behind the chapter, the section "Genes, DNA and Chromosomes" (there will be no direct questions on this short paragraph)
  5. Read, in order to better understand this chapter, the section "Populations, Species and Speciations". Know what a speciation is.
  6. Read, in order to better understand this chapter, the section "Rates of Origination". Know what evolutionary radiations and adaptive breakthroughs are.
  7. Know The Molecular Clock and Times of Origination
  8. Know Evolutionary Convergence
  9. Know Extinction
  10. Know Evolutionary Trends
  11. Know the online notes on evolution

Chapter 8 - The Theory of Plate Tectonics
Know the whole chapter; expect many questions to come out of this chapter (whose materials have already been discussed at least three times between lecture and lab)

  1. Know the History of Alfred Wegener's continental drift theory
  2. Know about the rise of Plate Tectonics
  3. Know about paleomagnetism
  4. Know about deformation, strike and dip (see also the online notes for this section, parts I, II, and III)
  5. Know faults and folds (folds are mentioned in Chapter 9 on the textbook but you should have in-depth notes on both faults and folds, including materials on their classification, on strike and dip, on the hanging wall and the foot wall, etc.).
  6. Know about faulting and volcanism (seismic and volcanic activity) along Plate Boundaries
  7. Know about Plate Movements, including measuring the movement, hot spots, thermal plumes, etc.

Chapter 9 - Continental Tectonics and Mountain Chains
Know the whole chapter; expect many questions to come out of this chapter too (it has also been discussed, as the previous one, at least three times between lecture and lab)

  1. Know about the Rifting of Continents
  2. Know about Mountain Building, including examples
  3. Know about Suturing of Small Landmasses to Continents (exotic terranes)
  4. Know about the Tectonics of Continental Interiors

Chapter 10 - Major Chemical Cycles
Know the whole chapter

  1. Know the Introduction, what the greenhouse effect is, what greenhouse gases are
  2. Know about Chemical Reservoirs
  3. Know about Carbon Dioxide, Oxygen and Biological Processes
  4. Know how Carbon isotopes are used
  5. Know the Phanerozoic Trends in Atmospheric Carbon Dioxide
  6. Know the Feedbacks in the Carbon Cycle
  7. Know Oxygen Isotopes, Climate and the Water Cycle
  8. Know Ocean Chemistry and Skeletal Mineralogy
  9. Know about Chalk, Ca/Mg ions in the oceans, calcite and aragonite seas

Both chapters 11 and 12 include a section on life and paleontology. We have discussed most of Earth's biological development in "Cradle of Life", so these materials are not new. My personal suggestion is that you study these pages and integrate the information with what you already know.

Chapter 11 - The Archean Eon

  1. Read the Introduction
  2. Know The Ages of the Planets and the Universe (know Meteorites and Comets but skip the Big Bang and the Redshift)
  3. Skip The Origin of the Solar System
  4. Know The Origin of Earth and Its Moon
  5. Know The Origin of Continents
  6. Read Greenstone Belts
  7. Know Evidence of Archean Life
  8. Read Chemical Evidence Bearing on the Origin of Life, BUT within that chapter know Life may have originated along mid-ocean ridges
  9. Know Atmospheric Oxygen
Chapter 12 - The Proterozoic Eon
  1. Read the Introduction
  2. Read A Modern Style of Orogeny
  3. Know Global Events of the Paleoproterozoic and Mesoproterozoic
  4. Know The Beginnings of Modern Life
  5. Know "Earth System Shift 12-1: Buildup of Atmospheric Oxygen" (pages 282-283)
  6. Read The Expansion and Contraction of Continents
  7. Know "Earth System Shift 12-2: Was there a Snowball Earth?" (pages 288-289)
  8. Read The Assembly of North America
  9. Read The Assembly and Breakup of Neoproterozoic Supercontinents

Chapters 1 through 6: review the main concepts
 
Study Guide: part 3 - LABLast Updated  •  May 29, 2011    

Chapter 6 - Sea-Floor Spreading and Plate Tectonics
(this chapter needs to be integrated with materials and notes from the lecture)

  1. Know the whole chapter
  2. Know names and location of the main plates
  3. Know what paleomagnetism is
  4. Be able to solve any problem in this chapter

Chapter 8 - Rock Units and Time-Rock Units
This lab reviews the basic concepts of correlation. Be sure to review the key to the lab on the web.

  1. Know the Introduction
    • know how to operate with the different units (rock units, time-rock units, time units, biostratigraphic units, etc.)
    • know what rock units, or Formations, are
    • know what fossils are
    • know how to correlate (in this case, but also in general, as from textbook chapter 6)
  2. Know the Standard Geologic Column
  3. Know Absolute Age Determination (stop at page 78, before "study questions" BUT be able to work with fig 8.6 A only - upper left on page 80, which will be discussed before the test)
  4. Read Formations of the Colorado Plateau

Chapter 9 - Ancient Shorelines

  1. Know what paleogegraphy is, and how it is possible to reconstruct it with the aid of isopach maps; what isopach lines are; how an isopach map is different from a facies map
  2. Know what a facies is
  3. Be sure to understand what a map such as that of fig. 9.1 page 86 means and how it works; know the answer to, among others, question 2 on the same page
  4. Know what transgression and regression are
  5. Know what Walther's Law says
  6. Know what formations and groups are (rock units, or lithostratigraphic units; see also lab manual chapter 8 and your textbook)

Chapter 10 - Fossils and Their Living Relatives (Fossils and Living Protoctista, Sponges, Corals, Bryozoans and Brachiopods)

  1. Review the Introduction, with special attention to the paragraphs on
    • What is a Fossil?
    • Preservation of Fossils
    but also be able to discuss the main points of "Classification and Nomenclature"
    Study these paragraphs together with materials on the Textbook and on the web
  2. Fossils and Living Protoctista: main characteristics and range of Coccoliths, Diatoms, Foraminifera, and Radiolaria
  3. Sponges: main characteristics (structure, environments) and range
  4. Corals and related Cnidarians: main characteristics (structure, environments) and range
    know, among other things, about the structure of cnidarians; know the conditions for coral existence, and what symbiosis is (page 112)
  5. Bryozoa: main characteristics (structure, environments) and range
  6. Brachiopoda: main characteristics (structure, environments) and range

Chapter 11 - Fossils and Their Living Relatives (Mollusks, arthropods, echinoderms, Graptolites, and Plants)

  1. Mollusca: main characteristics (structure, environments), and range (pages 125 and 133), with special attention to Cephalopods
  2. Arthropoda: main characteristics (structure, environments), and trilobites range (page 139)
  3. Echinodermata: main characteristics (structure, environments)
  4. Graptolites: main characteristics (structure, environments)
  5. Fossil Plants: main types (non-vascular vs. vascular plants, including seedles plants, gymnosperms, and angiosperms), characteristics (structure, environments) and range (page 151)

Chapter 12 - Fossils Indicators of Age, Environment, and Correlation
This chapter lets you apply the principles of biostratigraphy. We have already studied all the materials in this chapter during the semester, except the section on The Habitat of Marine Life and part of the Trace Fossils section. Be sure to include those in your study materials.

  1. Fossils and Age Determinations
  2. Biozones and Biostratigraphy
  3. skip A Graphic Method of Correlation
  4. review the concepts for Interpretation of an Outcrop in Southern Illinois
  5. review the concepts for Interpretation of an Outcrop in Central Illinois
  6. Fossil and Paleoenvironments
  7. The Habitat of Marine Life (very important! this section names marine environments)
  8. Invertebrate Trace Fossils

Chapter 14 - Geologic Maps and Geologic Structures
All of the materials from this chapter have been covered in Chapters 8 and 9 from the Textbook. Stop at page 194

  1. Know the Introduction
  2. Know Attitude, Strike and Dip
  3. Know Folds
  4. Know Faults
  5. There will be no questions from the other paragraphs (stop at page 194, no questions out of pages 195-212)

Chapter 15 - Canadian Shield and Basement Rocks of North America

  1. Know The Basement Rocks
  2. There will be no questions from the other paragraphs (stop at page 215, no questions out of pages 195-226)

Chapter 16 - Mountain Belts of North America

  1. Know Hypothesis for the Origin of Mountain Belts
  2. Read and review The Appalachian Orogenic Belt
  3. Read and review The Cordilleran Orogenic Belt: Pacific Ranges
  4. Read and review The Cordilleran Orogenic Belt: Colorado and Wyoming Rocky Mountains
  5. Skip Map Interpretation of Mountain Belts

Chapter 17 - The Interior Plains and Plateaus

  1. Know Major Structural Features
  2. There will be no questions from the other paragraphs (stop at page 239, no questions out of pages 239-247)

Chapters 1 through 5 and chapter 7: review the main concepts
There will be no questions from chapter 13 and chapters 18 through 20.
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