Science midterm VoCAB

Abrasion

________- the grinding away of rock by other rock particles carried in water, ice, or wind.

Runoff

________- water that flows over the ground surface rather than soaking into the ground.

Bedrock

________- rock that makes up Earths crust; also the solid rock layer beneath the soil.

Sediment

________- small, solid pieces of material that come from rocks or the remains of organisms; earth materials deposited by erosion.

Fault

________- a break in Earths crust along which rocks move.

Loam

________- rich, fertile soil that is made up of about equal parts of clay, sand, and silt.

Compression

________- Stress that squeezes rock until it folds or breaks.

Permeable

________- characteristic of a material that contains connectef air spaces, or pores, that water can seep through easily.

Pangaea

________- the name of the single landmass that began to break apart 200 million years ago and gave rise to todays continents.

Tension

________- Stress that stretches rock so that it becomes thinner in the middle.

Oxidation

________- a chemical change in which a substance combines with oxygen, as when iron oxidizes, forming rust.

Seismograph

________- A device that records ground movements caused by seismic waves as they move through Earth.

Period

________- one of the units of geologic time into which geologists divide eras.

Plate

________- a section of the lithosphere that slowly moves over the asthenosphere, carrying pieces of continental and oceanic crust.

Deposition

________- process in which sediment is laid down in new locations.

Fossil

________- the reserved remains or traces of an organism that lived in the past.

Soil

________- the lose, weathered material on Earths surface in which plants can grow.

Humus

________- dark- colored organic material in soil.

Epicenter

________- The point on Earths surface directly above an earthquakes focus.

Era

________- one of the three long units of geologic time between Precambrian and the present.

Focus

________- The point beneath Earths surface where rock first breaks under stress and causes an earthquake.

Earthquake

________- The shaking that results from the movement of rock beneath Earths surface.

Surface

________ wave- A type of seismic wave that forms when P waves and S waves reach Earths surface.

Geologic time

________ scale- a record of the geologic events and life forms in Earths history.

Pangaea

the name of the single landmass that began to break apart 200 million years ago and gave rise to todays continents

Fossil

the reserved remains or traces of an organism that lived in the past

Plate

a section of the lithosphere that slowly moves over the asthenosphere, carrying pieces of continental and oceanic crust

Compression

Stress that squeezes rock until it folds or breaks

Earthquake

The shaking that results from the movement of rock beneath Earths surface

Epicenter

The point on Earths surface directly above an earthquakes focus

Focus

The point beneath Earths surface where rock first breaks under stress and causes an earthquake

P wave

A type of seismic wave that compresses and expands the ground

S wave

A type of seismic wave in which the shaking is perpendicular to the direction of the wave

Seismograph

A device that records ground movements caused by seismic waves as they move through Earth

Shearing

Stress that pushes masses of rock in opposite directions, in a sideways movement

Stress

A force that acts on rock to change its shape or volume

Surface wave

A type of seismic wave that forms when P waves and S waves reach Earths surface

Tension

Stress that stretches rock so that it becomes thinner in the middle

Abrasion

the grinding away of rock by other rock particles carried in water, ice, or wind

Bedrock

rock that makes up Earths crust; also the solid rock layer beneath the soil

Erosion

the process by which water, ice, wind, or gravity moves weathered particles of rock and soil

Humus

dark-colored organic material in soil

Loam

rich, fertile soil that is made up of about equal parts of clay, sand, and silt

Oxidation

a chemical change in which a substance combines with oxygen, as when iron oxidizes, forming rust

Permeable

characteristic of a material that contains connected air spaces, or pores, that water can seep through easily

Soil

the lose, weathered material on Earths surface in which plants can grow

Weathering

the chemical and mechanical processes that break down rock and other substances

Deposition

process in which sediment is laid down in new locations

Erosion

the process by which water, ice, wind, or gravity moves weathered particles of rock and soil

Runoff

water that flows over the ground surface rather than soaking into the ground

Sediment

small, solid pieces of material that come from rocks or the remains of organisms; earth materials deposited by erosion

Geologic time scale

a record of the geologic events and life forms in Earths history

Era

one of the three long units of geologic time between Precambrian and the present

Period

one of the units of geologic time into which geologists divide eras