Notes, summaries, assignments, exams, and problems for Geology

Ozone Depletion

Problem

Ozone hole

The ozone layer

Causes

Chemicals

• Destructive agents: Freon and similar gases used in fridges, air conditioners, aerosols, etc.

Effects

• Skin cancer
• Death of ocean plankton
• Death of crustaceans
• Reduced harvest
• Increased smog
• Destruction of the ozone layer: More ultraviolet rays with an increase in skin cancer

Solutions

Substitution/replacement of these products.

Greenhouse Effect

Problem

Greenhouse effect

Causes

• Chemicals, gases
• Deforestation
• Burning of fossil fuels (coal, oil, peat)

Effects

• Melting of the polar ice caps
• Increase in the world sea level
• Floods
• Changes in the world climate
• Changes in world agriculture
• Droughts (long periods of very dry weather)
• Raising of average temperatures
• Increase in the Earth's global temperature

Solutions

• Reforestation
• Energy

Chapter 7: Volcanoes & Chapter 10: Restless Ocean

Volcanic Eruptions

Eruptions can be explosive (gases escape from melt) or quiescent ("Hawaiian" very fluid basaltic lavas).

Volcano Types

Volcano types include shield volcanoes (accumulation of fluid basaltic lavas, exhibit shape of broad domed structure) and composite volcanoes (large, nearly symmetrical, persistent eruption of viscous lava, conical shape).

Viscosity: Determined by temperature, composition, and amount of dissolved gases – how resistant to flow.

Pyroclastics: Pulverized rock, lava, and glass fragments ejected from vent.

Chapter 9: Oceans

Ocean Features

Continental Shelf: The gently sloping submerged portion of the continental margin that extends from the shoreline to the continental... Continue reading "Volcanoes, Oceans, and Seawater Composition: Key Concepts" »

Benefits of Composting

• Keeps organic wastes out of landfills
• Provides nutrients to the soil
• Increases beneficial soil organisms, e.g., worms
• Suppresses some plant diseases
• Reduces the need for fertilizer and pesticides

Types of Hazardous Waste

• Dyes, cleansers, and solvents
• PCBs from older electrical equipment, heating systems, and TV sets
• Solvents, lubricants, and sealants
• Toxic heavy metals, e.g., lead, mercury, zinc
• Pesticides
• Radioactive wastes from spent fuel

Preventing Hazardous Waste

• Produce less of it
• Find a way to recycle or reuse it

Biodegradable vs. Non-Biodegradable

• Biodegradable products: Newspapers, leather
• Non-biodegradable products: Polyester, plastic

Incinerating Solid Waste

• Advantage: Reduces the amount of solid waste sent to landfills.
• Disadvantage:

Speech Sound Classification

Speech sounds can be categorized into vowels, consonants, and approximants. Approximants (glides: /j, w/ and liquids: /l, r/) share characteristics of both vowels and consonants.

Differences between Vowels and Consonants

There are three main differences between vowels and consonants:

1. Articulatory: Vowels are articulated with a stricture of open approximation (no blockage to the airflow). Consonants are articulated with various degrees of stricture:
   • a) Complete -> plosives /p, b, t, d, k, g, ʔ/
   • b) Close approximation -> fricatives /f, v, s, z,.../
   • c) Open approximation -> approximants /j, w, l, r/
2. Acoustic: Vowels are more sonorous than consonants. There are seven levels of sonority: vowels, glides, liquids, nasals,

Logistics and Transport Terminology

Transport Contract Types

1) Multimodal Transport

This type of contract usually requires at least two different modes of transport, such as motor lorry by road and aircraft by air.

Intermodal Transport

Sometimes the freight is transported in the same loading unit, but more than one mode of transport is used.

Equipment and Vehicles

2) Road Railer Trailer

It is a vehicle in which goods are transported by land.

3) Reach Stacker

It is used in sectors of the port industry. The reach stacker can lift, load, move, and lower containers quickly, efficiently, and uniquely.

4) Flat Rack Container

These containers lack side walls and, as appropriate, even front and rear walls. They are used for atypical loads and pay supplements... Continue reading "Logistics Terminology: Transport Unit Definitions" »

HUMAN IMPACT

Acidic rain: It is a broad term that includes any form of precipitation with acidic components and results when dioxide (So2) and nitrogen oxides (NO) are emitted into the atmosphere and transported by wind and air currents. Acid rain is caused by the burning of fossil fuels to generate electricity, the chemical releases of vehicles and from manufacturing. There are two forms of acid rain: dry deposition which is crust in a sheltered area and wet depositions that are raindrops of sulphurous acid. Acid rain can be very harmful to the environment because it takes away minerals from the leaves and soil and without them plants cannot grow properly. Even if this rain doesn’t fall straight into lakes it can get there through rivers... Continue reading "Human Impact: Acid Rain, Climate Change, Overfishing, and More" »

EARTH INTERNAL LAYERS: Compositional : Crust (oceanic, continental) Mantle, Core. Phisical: Lithospere (rigid), Low velocity zone (ductile and partially molten), Lower molten (solid), Core (outer molten, inner solid).

 EV OF THE THEORY OF CONT DRIFT: Paleolithic evidence: Fossils. Biological ev: Living beings. Geological ev: Continents fit. Paleoclimatic ev: Glacier rests. BENIOFF ZONE: Area of seismic activity in a subducting plate. WILSON CYCLE: Rift Valley Stage: Magma rises up through fractures making the lithosphere thinner and lower. Red Sea St: Deep lakes are formed at the bottom of the valley, which spreads. Atlantic Ocean st: New oceanic lithosphere is being produced and the Atl Oc is expanding. Pacific Ocean st: The Oc lithosphere... Continue reading "Mnemonic for lithosphere,asthenosphere,mesosphere,outer core and inner core" »

Environmental Science Terminology

1. Core Ecological Concepts

• Albedo: The reflection of sunlight.
• Carrying Capacity: Maximum number of individuals of a species that can be sustained by an environment.
• Steady State Equilibrium: Condition of an open system in which there are no changes over the long term; stability remains despite potential fluctuations.
• R Strategist: Species that grow quickly and produce many offspring. They are highly adaptable and colonize quickly.

2. Atmospheric Processes and Warming

• Greenhouse Effect: Natural and necessary process in which gases allow infrared radiation to pass and trap heat, warming the Earth and allowing life.
• Enhanced Greenhouse Effect: Man-made accelerated effect. An increase of greenhouse gases leads to global

Understanding Plate Tectonics and Earth's Geological Features

Key Concepts in Plate Tectonics

Alfred Wegener

Proposed the theories of continental drift and plate tectonics in 1912.

Continental Drift

The theory that Earth's continents have moved over geological time relative to each other, appearing to drift across the ocean bed; they were once joined together as a single supercontinent.

Plate Tectonics

The scientific theory that the Earth's outer rigid layer, the lithosphere, is broken into large, rigid pieces called tectonic plates that are in constant motion over the Earth's mantle.

Lithosphere

The rigid outer layer of the Earth, consisting of the crust and the uppermost part of the mantle. Tectonic plates are made of the lithosphere.

Asthenosphere

The

Weathering and Erosion

Weathering is the process which causes rocks and minerals to break down and disintegrate into smaller pieces. This can occur through chemical, biological, and mechanical processes influenced by temperature and humidity. Erosion by water forms gullies in the land, which can gradually deepen into ravines and gorges.

Landscapes and Tectonic Plates

Landscapes produced under the surface of the earth are known as karst landscapes. The solid part of the earth is divided into different layers separated by areas known as discontinuities, such as the Mohorovičić discontinuity, Repetti, Gutenberg, and Lehmann. Tectonic plates, made up of the crust and the upper mantle, are massive slabs of solid rock. Volcanoes are cracks or openings... Continue reading "Understanding Weathering, Erosion, and Tectonic Plates" »