Notes, summaries, assignments, exams, and exercises for Geology for Baccalaureate

Hurricanes and Typhoons (or Cyclones)

These terms, used in different parts of the world, mean the same thing. A very large group of storms forms, with a diameter of around 500 km, and spiral around a central eye of about 40 km in diameter, which is calm. They originate in the vicinity of the Ecuador coast. Below the eye, as a consequence of the suction force exerted on the sea, squalls are produced that lift water, giving rise to waves that can reach the ground and lay waste to coasts.

They have a rotational movement due to the Coriolis force and other factors. Their displacement is toward the west, later turning toward the north in the Northern Hemisphere and then toward the northeast, and south in the Southern Hemisphere. When they make landfall,...

Conditions for a Habitable Planet

• Suitable Temperature: Must allow metabolic processes to function.
• Tectonic Activity: Volcanic eruptions and magmatic intrusions bring essential elements for life to the surface.
• Presence of Liquid Water.
• Radiation Protection: Shielding against high-frequency photochemical radiation (e.g., magnetosphere, ionosphere, ozone layer).

Earth Systems and Human Interactions

System Components

• Nature: Biosphere, Atmosphere, Geosphere, Hydrosphere.
• Society: Population, Lifestyles, Science, Technology, Culture.
• Economy: Agriculture, Industry, Transport, Housing.

Inter-System Exchanges

• Nature to Society (NS): Provides air, water, energy, protection.
• Society to Nature (SN): Generates waste, causes impacts.
• Nature to Economy (NE): Provides

Seismic Waves

Seismic waves are the vibrations produced by earthquakes that can travel long distances through the interior of our planet.

Seismographs

Seismographs: instruments where seismic waves are recorded.

Types of seismic waves

P waves

P waves are the most rapid. They spread more rapidly in solid media than in liquid media or in molten material.

S waves

S waves travel more slowly than P waves. They propagate less effectively through liquid media and are often attenuated.

The internal structure of our planet consists of

• Core (core)
• Mantle (composed of dense rock)
• Crust (rocks formed by lighter materials)

Lithosphere

The lithosphere is the outermost layer of the geosphere. It is formed by the Earth's crust and the outermost part of the mantle.

What forms

UN Resolution of 9 February 1946 on Spain's International Relations

The introduction of this topic is the political history that surrounded the General Assembly of the United Nations (New York, 1946), which affected Spain's international relations. After the end of World War II (1939-1945), Great Britain, France, the United States and the Soviet Union would become the new world political map. In 1945, the organization of the United Nations (UN) was created. Western parliamentary democracies did not want to support the global conflict, and Spain under Francoism, which had been an ally of Hitler and Mussolini's Italy, was not admitted to the UN or to participate in the international order.

Marginalization of Francoist Spain

The main cause of the...

Urban Morphology

Site: The physical location of a city, including the stem (rivers, coastlines, etc.) and topography (hills, valleys, etc.) upon which it sits.

Situation: The broader geographical environment, including communication routes, territorial connections, and regional context.

The construction process affects morphology, resulting in a distinct urban fabric and various types of built space. Ultimately, morphology depends on the designated uses of urban land, whether for services, residential areas, or industrial zones.

The Structure of the Urban Level

a) The Historical Center

This represents the heritage of the pre-industrial city. It possesses an irregular plot plan with closed blocks and diverse uses. During industrialization, the historic...

Accretion Theory

The Sun passed through a huge cloud of interstellar dust and gas, which led to the separation and formation of the Sun and planets. After its formation, the Earth had a core, stratified mantle, and crust. It was bombarded by meteorites and asteroids, which generated internal heat that melted the dust. As the crust formed, it was at a high temperature but eventually cooled, allowing water vapor to condense and begin to form rain and oceans through volcanism. Subsequently, gas emission created a primitive secondary atmosphere in which water vapor was abundant, along with carbon dioxide and other gases.

Layers of the Sun

• Nucleus: Thermonuclear reactions provide energy. It consists of approximately 49% Hydrogen, 49% Helium, and 2%

Human Prehistory and the Hunter-Gatherer Era

Between roughly 1 million and 10,000 years ago, the hunter-gatherer stage dominated human existence. Several australopithecine species were gradually replaced by Homo habilis and then Homo erectus. Modern humans, Homo sapiens, originated in Africa.

Early humans lived in savannahs and forests, moving in small groups and competing with other animals. They were omnivorous, with a broad diet, and their ability to make tools was a key factor in their success. Over time, they learned to find shelter, locate water, use medicinal plants, predict weather, make clothing, and hunt with increasingly sophisticated tools. Their rudimentary means made them comparable to intelligent predators.

The discovery of fire...

Modernismo Concept

Modernismo is a set of European and American trends that emerged in recent years of the 19th century. It presents common features:

• Nonconformism
• Desire for renovation
• Cosmopolitanism
• Opposition to naturalism

Scholars have given different interpretations of modernismo:

• Some consider modernismo a literary movement that developed between 1855 and 1915, marked by aestheticism and escapism.
• Others, such as Ricardo Gullón, think modernismo is not a literary movement but a renewal of attitudes and sensibilities, with many different manifestations marked by aestheticism and escapism.
• Fernando Lázaro believes the true character of modernismo as a break with the movement of its aesthetic begins around 1880, and its peak reaches its height

Descartes Philosophical Concepts

Descartes: Soul substance, the parts composing the human structure together with the entirely proper body.

Core Philosophical Terms

• Analysis: Process of thought and part of the mathematics.
• Aptitude: Inclination toward something, a series that depends on personal own knowledge.
• Good Sense: Consists in the inherent power and effect of distinguishing what is true and false.
• Chain of Reasons: Deductive process followed in mathematics; all reasoning truths are derived from these evident principles, clear and distinct.
• Certainty: The firm state of the mind that assures knowledge of the truth.
• Science: Knowledge that is a mode of being able to formulate principles, laws, and true theories.
• Circumspection: Analyzing with all

Catalan Coastal Mountain Range

The Catalan Coastal Mountain Range extends from the Pyrenees to the Ebro Delta, in a northeast-southwest direction. The sector with siliceous material is formed by the rest of the Catalan-Balearic solid. The southern sector includes Montseny. The sector with calcareous materials includes the mountains of Montserrat and Montsant.

Ebro Depression

The Ebro Depression, with a northwest-southeast direction, originates in the Cantabrian Mountains. However, it mainly flows through the Pyrenees and the Iberian System, leading to the Catalan Coastal System in the northeast and forming the main delta of the peninsula. The relief of the depression is derived from eroded material from the surrounding mountains. In turn, erosion...