Frontmatter Introduction
Meet the Authors
Preface
Chapter Introduction
The Scientific Method
Geology as a Science
Earth’s Shape and Surface
Peeling the Onion: Discovery of a Layered Earth
Earth as a System of Interacting Components
An Overview of Geologic Time
Welcome to Google Earth
Summary
Key Terms and Concepts
Practicing Geology Exercise
Exercises
Thought Questions
Media Support
Chapter Introduction
The Discovery of Plate Tectonics
The Plates and Their Boundaries
Rates and History of Plate Movements
The Grand Reconstruction
Mantle Convection: The Engine of Plate Tectonics
The Theory of Plate Tectonics and the Scientific Method
Summary
Key Terms and Concepts
Practicing Geology Exercise
Exercises
Thought Questions
Media Support
Chapter Introduction
What are Minerals?
The Structure of Matter
The Formation of Minerals
Classes of Rock-Forming Minerals
Physical Properties of Minerals
What Are Rocks?
The Rock Cycle: Interactions Between the Plate Tectonic and Climate Systems
Concentrations of Valuable Mineral Resources
Summary
Key Terms and Concepts
Practicing Geology Exercise
Exercises
Thought Questions
Media Support
Chapter Introduction
How Do Igneous Rocks Differ from One Another?
How Do Magmas Form?
Magmatic Differentiation
Forms of Igneous Intrusions
Igneous Processes and Plate Tectonics
Summary
Key Terms and Concepts
Practicing Geology Exercise
Exercises
Thought Questions
Media Support
Chapter Introduction
Surface Processes of the Rock Cycle
Sedimentary Basins: The Sinks for Sediments
Sedimentary Environments
Sedimentary Structures
Burial and Diagenesis: From Sediment to Rock
Classification of Siliciclastic Sediments and Sedimentary Rocks
Classification of Chemical and Biological Sediments and Sedimentary Rocks
Summary
Key Terms and Concepts
Practicing Geology Exercise
Exercises
Thought Questions
Media Support
Chapter Introduction
Causes of Metamorphism
Types of Metamorphism
Metamorphic Textures
Regional Metamorphism and Metamorphic Grade
Plate Tectonics and Metamorphism
Summary
Key Terms and Concepts
Practicing Geology Exercise
Exercises
Thought Questions
Media Support
Chapter Introduction
Plate Tectonic Forces
Mapping Geologic Structure
How Rocks Deform
Basic Deformation Structures
Styles of Continental Deformation
Unraveling Geologic History
Summary
Key Terms and Concepts
Practicing Geology Exercise
Exercises
Thought Questions
Media Support
Chapter Introduction
Reconstructing Geologic History from the Stratigraphic Record
The Geologic Time Scale: Relative Ages
Measuring Absolute Time with Isotopic Clocks
The Geologic Time Scale: Absolute Ages
Recent Advances in Timing the Earth System
Summary
Key Terms and Concepts
Practicing Geology Exercise
Exercises
Thought Questions
Media Support
Chapter Introduction
Origin of the Solar System
Early Earth: Formation of a Layered Planet
Diversity of the Planets
What’s in a Face? The Age and Complexion of Planetary Surfaces
Mars Rocks!
Exploring the Solar System and Beyond
Summary
Key Terms and Concepts
Practicing Geology Exercise
Exercises
Thought Questions
Media Support
Chapter Introduction
The Structure of North America
Tectonic Provinces Around the World
How Continents Grow
How Continents Are Modified
The Origins of Cratons
The Deep Structure of Continents
Summary
Key Terms
Practicing Geology Exercise
Exercises
Thought Questions
Media Support
Chapter Introduction
The Biosphere as a System
Microorganisms: Nature’s Tiny Chemists
Geobiological Events in Earth’s History
Evolutionary Radiations and Mass Extinctions
Astrobiology: The Search for Extraterrestrial Life
Summary
Key Terms and Concepts
Practicing Geology Exercise
Exercises
Thought Questions
Media Support
Chapter Introduction
Volcanoes as Geosystems
Lavas and Other Volcanic Deposits
Eruptive Styles and Landforms
Interactions of Volcanoes with Other Geosystems
The Global Pattern of Volcanism
Volcanism and Human Affairs
Summary
Key Terms and Concepts
Practicing Geology Exercise
Exercises
Thought Questions
Media Support
Chapter Introduction
What Is an Earthquake?
How Do We Study Earthquakes?
GPS Measurements and “Silent” Earthquakes
Earthquakes and Patterns of Faulting
Intraplate Earthquakes
Earthquake Hazards and Risks
Earthquake Early Warning Systems
Can Earthquakes Be Predicted?
Summary
Key Terms and Concepts
Practicing Geology Exercise
Exercises
Thought Questions
Media Support
Chapter Introduction
Exploring Earth’s Interior with Seismic Waves
Layering and Composition of Earth’s Interior
Earth’s Internal Temperature
Visualizing Earth’s Three-Dimensional Structure
Earth’s Magnetic Field and The Geodynamo
Summary
Key Terms and Concepts
Practicing Geology Exercise
Exercises
Thought Questions
Media Support
Chapter Introduction
Components of the Climate System
The Greenhouse Effect
Climate Variation
The Carbon Cycle
Twentieth-Century Warming: Fingerprints of Anthropogenic Global Change
Summary
Key Terms and Concepts
Practicing Geology Exercise
Exercises
Thought Questions
Media Support
Chapter Introduction
Weathering, Erosion, Mass Wasting, and the Rock Cycle
Controls on Weathering
Chemical Weathering
Physical Weathering
Soils: The Residue of Weathering
Mass Wasting
Classification of Mass Movements
Understanding the Origins of Mass Movements
Summary
Key Terms and Concepts
Practicing Geology Exercise
Exercises
Thought Questions
Media Support
Chapter Introduction
The Geologic Cycling of Water
Hydrology and Climate
The Hydrology of Groundwater
Erosion by Groundwater
Water Quality
Water Deep in the Crust
Summary
Key Terms and Concepts
Practicing Geology Exercise
Exercises
Thought Questions
Media Support
Chapter Introduction
The Form of Streams
Where Do Channels Begin? How Running Water Erodes Soil and Rock
How Currents Flow and Transport Sediment
Deltas: The Mouths of Rivers
Streams as Geosystems
Summary
Key Terms and Concepts
Practicing Geology Exercise
Exercises
Thought Questions
Media Support
Chapter Introduction
Global Wind Patterns
Wind as a Transport Agent
Wind as an Agent of Erosion
Wind as a Depositional Agent
The Desert Environment
Summary
Key Terms and Concepts
Practicing Geology Exercise
Exercises
Thought Questions
Media Support
Chapter Introduction
How Ocean Basins Differ from Continents
Coastal Processes
The Shaping of Shorelines
Continental Margins
Topography of the Deep Seafloor
Ocean Sedimentation
Summary
Key Terms and Concepts
Practicing Geology Exercise
Exercises
Thought Questions
Chapter Introduction
Ice as a Rock
How Glaciers Form
How Glaciers Move
Glacial Landscapes
Glacial Cycles and Climate Change
Summary
Key Terms and Concepts
Practicing Geology Exercise
Exercises
Thought Questions
Media Support
Chapter Introduction
Topography, Elevation, and Relief
Landforms: Features Sculpted by Erosion and Sedimentation
How Interacting Geosystems Control Landscapes
Models of Landscape Development
Summary
Key Terms and Concepts
Practicing Geology Exercise
Exercises
Thought Questions
Chapter Introduction
Civilization as a Global Geosystem
Fossil-Fuel Resources
Alternative Energy Resources
Global Change
Earth System Engineering and Management
Summary
Key Terms and Concepts
Exercises
Thought Questions
Media Support
Appendix 1: Conversion Factors
Appendix 2: Numerical Data Pertaining to Earth
Appendix 3: Chemical Reactions
Appendix 4: Properties of the Most Common Minerals of Earth’s Crust
Appendix 5: Practicing Geology Exercises: Answers to Problems
Index