GEOL 5 - Historical Geology (with Lab) Exam # 1 Study Guide - Spring 2007 March 20, 2007 Professor: Dr. Alessandro Grippo, Ph.D.   General Information Last Updated  •  March 8, 2007 NOTE: 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 study 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 and your notes, including those you have taken during the projection of movies, if any. I would also 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 your textbook); 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 wiiith others if you find it useful never hesitate to ask me questions in class or during the lab   Study Guide: part 1 - LECTURE Last Updated  •  March 8, 2007 Chapter 1 - Earth as a System Study the whole chapter, but in particular: Be sure to know the concepts of Uniformitarianism, Actualism and Catastrophism Know the Nature and Origin of Rocks (Igneous, Sedimentary and Metamorphic); also in Chapter 2 Know what Stratigraphy is Know the three principles of Steno (superposition, original horizontality and lateral continuity) Know the rock cycle Know global dating of the rock record, including the use of fossils and radioactive decay >li>Know what eons, eras, periods and epochs are; 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; 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 paragraphs on Imaging Earth Below (Earth's core, mantle and crust, and the concepts of lithosphere and asthenosphere) and on Plate Tectonics Know the Water Cycle Know Directional Change and Episodic Change in Earth's History Chapter 2 - Rock-Forming Minerals and Rocks Know elements, atoms, ions, isotopes, subatomic particles, types of chemical bonds Know the main properties and the main families of minerals Know all the textbook material on rocks 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 Read for completeness of information and better understanding of present and future materials the paragraphs on Taxonomy (know what a species is) and Clades, but there will be no direct questions on them (except for the concept of species) Know the main organisms for each kingdom; in particular, know all of the Protista in detail (they are basic constituents of certain pelagic rocks, see Chapter 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-rotaing and a rotating earth with no land masses, the Coriolis effect, the main winds Know the main terrestrial environments; be aware of climate change with altitude and not only with latitude Know about the Marine realm: surface, wind-driven currents and deep, density-driven currents; know patterns of surface ocean currents; 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 freshwater environments Chapter 5 - Sedimentary Environments Know all of the environments detailed in this chapter Know how stratigraphic studies are done, in termms of where do you 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) Chapter 6 - Correlation and Dating of the Rock Record Know the Geologic Time Scale Know Stratigraphic Units Know Earth's Absolute Age Know Event Stratigraphy   Study Guide: part 2 - LAB Last Updated  •  March 8, 2007 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 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 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 Chapter 4 - Ancient Sedimentary Environments Know the Kind of Environments Know Bedding and Related Features Know Color Go back to the home page Go back to the spring 2007 page