1. Why is weathering such a concern to the people responsible for maintaining the Mount Rushmore National Memorial?

2. Geothermal energy builds vertical relief. Where does the energy that reduces vertical relief come from?

3. Compare and contrast the processes of weathering and erosion. What does weathering do to rocks? What does erosion do to rocks and rock fragments?

4. What is denudation? What processes denude Earth’s surface?

5. What is physical weathering? Geographically, where is it most common? Give examples of physical weathering processes.

6. Why are joints important to the process of weathering?

7. What is exfoliation? Where does it occur?

8. What is frost wedging? Where does it take place?

9. Besides frost wedging, what two other types of physical weathering break rocks apart? Briefly explain each.

10. Describe chemical weathering and give examples of chemical reactions that cause it.

11. Geographically, where is chemical weathering the dominant weathering process?

12. What is differential weathering? How does it relate to jointing and bedding planes?

13. Give three examples of landforms created by differential weathering.

14. What is karst? What processes give rise to karst landforms?

15. In which type of bedrock is karst most commonly found?

16. What is a sinkhole and how does one form?

17. What is a collapse sinkhole and how does one form?

18. What is a sinkhole lake?

19. What is a karst cavern? Where do karst caverns form in relation to the water table?

20. Explain what a disappearing stream is and how it forms.

21. What is limestone pavement?

22. Explain how cockpit karst and tower karst form.

23. What are speleothems? Why do they form only when the water table drops below a karst cavern?

24. What are dripstones and flowstones?

25. Contrast stalactites, stalagmites, and limestone columns. How does each form?

26. What is a mass movement event? What single factor do all kinds of mass movements share?

27. What are resistance and downslope forces in the context of mass movement events? Give examples of how each force can change.

28. What happens when the resistance force exceeds the downslope force? What happens when the downslope force exceeds the resistance force?

29. Review the different types of mass movements and the settings in which each occurs.

30. What are the differences between flows and landslides?

31. Define an avalanche. Are all avalanches composed of snow?

32. What is talus? What is a talus cone? How do rockfall chutes relate to talus cones?

33. What natural and anthropogenic factors increase the chance of a mass movement event?

34. Can scientists predict landslides with accuracy?

35. Explain how scientific tools have helped reduce human vulnerability to mass movement disasters.