Download Module 03

I. Earth’s Resources
A
Renewable Resources - can be reproduced / replenished within our lifetime - animals, plants, air, water
B
Non-renewable Resources - cannot be reproduced / replenished within our lifetime - take millions of years
to form - once they are gone, they are gone for good! Generally known as fossil fuels:
1 Oil (petroleum) - made of dead marine/aquatic plants and animals
2 Natural gas - made of dead marine/aquatic plants and animals
3 Coal - made of dead swamp plants
C
Alternative Energy Resources - energy from renewable resources
1 Solar - energy from the Sun - harvested through solar panels
2 Wind - energy from wind - harvested through wind mills
3 Biofuels - fuels from crops
4 Hydroelectric - energy from running water - harvested through dams
5 Geothermal - energy gathered from heat within the Earth
II. FOSSILS & SEDEMENTARY ROCKS
A
Sedimentary Rocks - rocks formed by layers of sediment
B
Process of Sedimentary Rock Formation
1 Sedimentation - eroded sediments end up in the water and begin to build up and settle
2 Compaction - with time, more layers pile up and press down the lower layers
3 Stratification - more layers (strata) and more compaction force out the water in the sediment
4 Cementation - Salt crystals glue the layers together forming a mass of rock
C
Fossils - evidence from past organisms and their environment - formed over millions of years
a
Most are covered by layers of silt, compacted and cemented through heat and
pressure
b
Bone fossils - made from fossilized bones of organisms
c
Carbon film fossils - made from the carbon organisms leave behind - usually
very detailed
d
Whole body fossils - made from bugs and small plants trapped in amber or
large animals trapped in ice
e
Trace fossils - fossilized traces of organisms (footprints, boroughs) that show
us how they lived or how they moved
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III. CHANGES ON EARTH’S SURFACE
A
Processes that change Earth’s surface slowly:
1 Weathering - breaking down of rock and sediment due to water, wind, ice, and organisms
2 Erosion - movement of rocks and sediments by water and wind
3 Deposition - dropping of rocks and sediments in a new place
B
Processes that change Earth’s surface rapidly:
1 Volcano - petrified lava changes the landscape after volcanoes erupt
2 Earthquake - the movement of plates under the surface of the Earth, causes the Earth to
move and may cause rapid changes in landscapes
3 Landslide
C
Landforms
1 River Deltas - caused by deposition of sediments at the mouth or opening of the rivers over
many years
2 Sand Dunes - caused by erosion and deposition of sand when there is wind - landscapes
may vary from one moment to another
3 Canyons - caused by weathering and erosion of rocks and sediment by wind and water over
many, many years
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