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Directed Reading
Section: Earth: A Unique Planet
1. List three reasons that Earth is unique.
2. Why do scientists study the characteristics that make life on Earth possible?
EARTH BASICS
Use the terms from the list below to complete the sentences that follow. Each term
may be used only once. Some terms may not be used.
rock
global ocean
points
ellipse
Earth
diameter
oblate spheroid
radius
mountains
3. The third planet from the sun in our solar system
is
.
4. Formed about 4.6 billion years ago, Earth is made mostly
of
.
5. About 70 percent of Earth’s surface is covered with water, called
the
.
6. Earth appears to be a perfect circle, but it is actually a slightly flattened
sphere called a(n)
.
7. Earth’s surface is relatively smooth; that is, the distance between Earth’s high
and low
are small relative to its size.
8. Earth’s average
is 12,756 km.
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EARTH’S INTERIOR
9. Define seismic waves.
10. What have scientists learned about Earth by studying seismic waves?
In the space provided, write the letter of the definition that best matches the term
or phrase.
______ 11. crust
______ 12. oceanic crust
______ 13. continental crust
______ 14. Moho
______ 15. mantle
______ 16. core
a. the solid, outer layer of Earth that consists of the
crust and the rigid upper part of the mantle
b. the central part of Earth below the mantle
c. the strong, lower part of the mantle between
the asthenosphere and the outer core
d. the thin, solid, outermost layer of Earth above
the mantle
e. the crust beneath the oceans
f. the lower boundary of the crust
______ 17. lithosphere
______ 18. asthenosphere
______ 19. plasticity
______ 20. mesosphere
______ 21. outer core
g. the layer of rock between Earth’s crust and core
h. the crust that makes up the continents
i. the solid, plastic layer of the mantle beneath
the lithosphere; made of mantle rock that
flows very slowly, which allows tectonic
plates to move on top of it
j. a dense liquid below the mantle
k. the ability of a solid to flow
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EARTH AS A MAGNET
______ 22. The lines of force of Earth’s magnetic field extend between
a. the North Pole and the South Pole.
b. the poles and the equator.
c. the North geomagnetic pole and the South
geomagnetic pole.
d. the core and the crust.
______ 23. Earth’s magnetic field extends beyond the atmosphere and affects a
region of space called the
a. mesosphere.
b. atmosphere.
c. electrosphere.
d. magnetosphere.
______ 24. The source of Earth’s magnetic field may be
a. the liquid iron in Earth’s outer core.
b. the solid rock in the asthenosphere.
c. Earth’s dense, rigid inner core.
d. The rocky mantle.
______ 25. Scientists have learned that, in addition to Earth, the sun and moon
also have
a. magnetic fields.
b. liquid outer cores.
c. large amounts of iron.
d. a magnetosphere.
EARTH’S GRAVITY
26. Define gravity.
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27. Explain Isaac Newton’s law of gravitation.
28. What is weight, and what unit is used to measure it?
29. On Earth, how much does a kilogram of mass weigh?
30. Explain how the location of an object affects its mass and weight.
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31. According to the law of gravitation, how does the force of gravity relate to an
object’s distance from Earth’s center?
32. Explain why a single object would weigh more at the either the North or
South Pole than it would at the equator.
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Section: Energy in the Earth System
1. Traditionally, how have different fields of earth science been studied?
2. How are scientists approaching the study of Earth today?
EARTH-SYSTEM SCIENCE
In the space provided, write the letter of the description that best matches the
term or phrase.
______ 3. system
a. the ability to do work
______ 5. energy
b. a set of particles or interacting components
considered to be a distinct physical entity for the
purpose of study
______ 6. closed system
c. a system in which energy, but not matter, is
exchanged with the surroundings
______ 4. matter
______ 7. open system
d. a system in which both energy and matter are
exchanged with the surroundings
e. anything that has mass and takes up space
8. What is true of systems in terms of their size and boundaries?
9. How does a large, complex system like the Earth system operate?
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10. In what four ways can energy be transferred?
11. How might a system be described in terms of matter and energy?
12. Give one example of a closed system and explain what makes it a closed system.
13. Give one example of an open system and explain what makes it an open system.
14. Why does the Earth system resemble a closed system, even though it is technically an open system?
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EARTH’S FOUR SPHERES
15. Matter on Earth occurs in what three states?
16. The Earth system is composed of four
that are
storehouses of all of the planet’s matter.
17. A mixture of gases that surrounds a planet or moon is called
its
.
18. The portion of Earth that is water is called the
.
19. The mostly solid, rocky part of Earth that extends from the center of the core
to the surface of the crust is called the
.
20. The part of Earth where life exists and that includes all of the living
organisms on Earth is called the
.
21. What purpose does the atmosphere serve?
22. Where can Earth’s fresh water supply be found?
23. What parts of Earth are included in the geosphere?
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24. What is the biosphere composed of?
EARTH’S ENERGY BUDGET
In the space provided, write the letter of the description that best matches the
term or phrase.
______ 25. first law of
thermodynamics
______ 26. energy budget
______ 27. second law of
thermodynamics
______ 28. convection
a. additions in energy as well as subtractions are
balanced in the transfer of all energy among
Earth’s spheres
b. energy is transferred between systems, but it
cannot be created or destroyed
c. material is heated, the material’s density
decreases, and the hot material rises and
releases heat; cooler, denser material sinks
and displaces the hot material
d. energy transfer takes place, and matter
becomes less organized with time
29. Like energy,
can be transferred, but cannot be
created or destroyed.
30. The overall effect of the second law of thermodynamics is that the
universe’s
is spread out more and more
uniformly over time.
31. Earth’s four main spheres are
that can be
thought of as huge storehouses of matter and energy.
32. How are matter and energy exchanged between the spheres?
33. When Earth formed, its interior was heated by what two processes?
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34. Because Earth’s interior is warmer than its surface layers, hot materials
move toward the surface in a process called
.
35. Earth’s most important external energy source is
the
.
36. The heat generated by solar radiation causes the movement of air masses,
which in turn creates
and ocean currents.
37. What is another important source of external energy from the sun and moon?
38. The pull of the sun and the moon, combined with Earth’s rotation, generates
that cause currents and drive the mixing
of ocean water.
CYCLES IN THE EARTH SYSTEM
39. Define reservoir.
40. Define cycle.
41. What happens to nitrogen as it passes through the nitrogen cycle?
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42. What happens to carbon in the short-term carbon cycle?
43. What happens to carbon in the long-term carbon cycle?
44. Through which spheres does phosphorus move during the phosphorus cycle?
45. Describe the sequence of the phosphorus cycle.
46. Describe the water cycle.
47. What is transpiration?
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HUMANS AND THE EARTH SYSTEM
48. The carbon cycle is affected when humans use
49. When humans burn fuels,
.
is rapidly returned
to the atmospheric reservoir.
50. Both the nitrogen and phosphorus cycles are affected
by
.
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Section: Ecology
1. Define ecology.
2. What word also means “non-living?”
ECOSYSTEMS
In the space provided, write the letter of the description that best matches the
term or phrase.
______ 3. ecosystem
______ 4. producers
a. organisms that get their energy from eating
other organisms
______ 5. consumers
b. a community of organisms and their abiotic
environment
______ 6. decomposers
c. organisms that make their own food; a source
of food for other organisms
d. organisms that get energy by breaking down
dead organisms
BALANCING FORCES IN ECOSYSTEMS
7. What else becomes limited because amounts of matter and energy in an ecosystem are limited?
8. The largest population that an environment can support at any given time
is called the
.
9. In general, ecosystems react to changes in ways that maintain or restore
in the ecosystem.
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10. When might an ecosystem be unable to restore a community of organisms to
its original state?
11. The ultimate source of energy for almost every ecosystem is
the
.
12. Plants capture solar energy by a chemical process
called
.
13. Chemical changes that take place as energy and matter are cycled through an
ecosystem result in what?
14. On the energy pyramid, where is the least amount of energy available to
organisms found?
15. The sequence in which organisms consume other organisms can be
represented by a(n)
.
16. A diagram that shows the complex feeding relationships among organisms
in an ecosystem is a(n)
.
HUMAN STEWARDSHIP OF THE ENVIRONMENT
17. What effect might changes in an ecosystem have on a human population?
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18. Identify three ways in which human activity can disrupt ecological balances.
19. Define pollution.
20. How can people help keep Earth’s ecosystems in balance?
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