Читать книгу Geology For Dummies - Alecia M. Spooner - Страница 3

1  Cover

2  Introduction About This Book Foolish Assumptions Icons Used in This Book Beyond the Book Where to Go from Here

3  Part 1: Studying the Earth Chapter 1: Rocks for Jocks (and Everybody Else) Finding Your Inner Scientist Focusing on Rock Formation and Transformation Mapping Continental Movements Moving Rocks around on Earth’s Surface Interpreting a Long History of Life on Earth Chapter 2: Observing Earth through a Scientific Lens Realizing That Science Is Not Just for Scientists Using a Methodical Approach: The Scientific Method Building New Knowledge: A Scientific Theory Speaking in Tongues: Why Geologists Seem to Speak a Separate Language Chapter 3: From Here to Eternity: The Past, Present, and Future of Geologic Thought Catastrophe Strikes Again and Again Early Thoughts on the Origin of Rocks Developing Modern Geologic Understanding Uniformi-what? Understanding the Earth through Uniformitarianism Pulling It All Together: The Theory of Plate Tectonics Forging Ahead into New Frontiers Chapter 4: Home Sweet Home: Planet Earth Earth’s Spheres Examining Earth’s Geosphere

4  Part 2: Elements, Minerals, and Rocks Chapter 5: It’s Elemental, My Dear: A Very Basic Chemistry of Elements and Compounds The Smallest Matter: Atoms and Atomic Structure Chemically Bonding Formulating Compounds Chapter 6: Minerals: The Building Blocks of Rocks Meeting Mineral Requirements Making Crystals Identifying Minerals Using Physical Characteristics Realizing Most Rocks Are Built from Silicate Minerals Remembering the Nonsilicate Minerals Gemstones Chapter 7: Recognizing Rocks: Igneous, Sedimentary, and Metamorphic Types Mama Magma: Birthing Igneous Rocks Merging Many Single Grains of Sand: Sedimentary Rocks Stuck between a Rock and a Hard Place: Metamorphic Rocks Tumbling through the Rock Cycle: How Rocks Change from One Type to Another

5  Part 3: One Theory to Explain It All: Plate Tectonics Chapter 8: Adding Up the Evidence for Plate Tectonics Drifting Apart: Wegener’s Idea of Continental Drift Coming Together: How Technology Sheds Light on Plate Tectonics Chapter 9: When Crustal Plates Meet, It’s All Relative Density Is Key Two of a Kind: Continental and Oceanic Crust Understanding Why Density Matters: Isostasy Defining Plate Boundaries by Their Relative Motion Shaping Topography with Plate Movements Chapter 10: Who’s Driving This Thing? Mantle Convection and Plate Movement Running in Circles: Models of Mantle Convection Using Convection to Explain Magma, Volcanoes, and Underwater Mountains Shake, Rattle, and Roll: How Plate Movements Cause Earthquakes

6  Part 4: Superficially Speaking: About Surface Processes Chapter 11: Gravity Takes Its Toll: Mass Wasting Holding Steady or Falling Down: Friction versus Gravity Focusing on the Materials Involved Triggering Mass Movements Moving Massive Amounts of Earth, Quickly A More Subtle Approach: Creep and Soil Flow (Solifluction) Chapter 12: Water: Above and Below Ground Hydrologic Cycling Streams: Moving Sediments toward the Ocean Eroding a Stream Channel to Base Level Seeking Equilibrium after Changes in Base Level Leaving Their Mark: How Streams Create Landforms Flowing beneath Your Feet: Groundwater Chapter 13: Flowing Slowly toward the Sea: Glaciers Identifying Three Types of Glaciers Understanding Ice as a Geologic Force Eroding at a Snail’s Pace: Landforms Created by Glacial Erosion Leaving It All Behind: Glacial Deposits Where Have All the Glaciers Gone? Chapter 14: Blowing in the Wind: Moving Sediments without Water Lacking Water: Arid Regions of the Earth Transporting Particles by Air Deflating and Abrading: Features of Wind Erosion Just Add Wind: Dunes and Other Depositional Wind Features Paving the Desert: Deposition or Erosion? Chapter 15: Catch a Wave: The Evolution of Shorelines Breaking Free: Waves and Wave Motion Shaping Shorelines Categorizing Coastlines

7  Part 5: Long, Long Ago in This Galaxy Right Here Chapter 16: Getting a Grip on Geologic Time The Layer Cake of Time: Stratigraphy and Relative Dating Show Me the Numbers: Methods of Absolute Dating Relatively Absolute: Combining Methods for the Best Results Eons, Eras, and Epochs (Oh My!): Structuring the Geologic Timescale Chapter 17: A Record of Life in the Rocks Explaining Change, Not Origins: The Theory of Evolution The Evolution of a Theory Putting Evolution to the Test Against All Odds: The Fossilization of Lifeforms Correcting for Bias in the Fossil Record Hypothesizing Relationships: Cladistics Chapter 18: Time before Time Began: The Precambrian In the Beginning … Earth’s Creation from a Nebulous Cloud Addressing Archean Rocks Originating with Orogens: Supercontinents of the Proterozoic Eon Single Cells, Algal Mats, and the Early Atmosphere Questioning the Earliest Complex Life: The Ediacaran Fauna Chapter 19: Teeming with Life: The Paleozoic Era Exploding with Life: The Cambrian Period Building Reefs All Over the Place Spinal Tapping: Animals with Backbones Planting Roots: Early Plant Evolution Tracking the Geologic Events of the Paleozoic Chapter 20: Mesozoic World: When Dinosaurs Dominated Driving Pangaea Apart at the Seams Repopulating the Seas after Extinction The Symbiosis of Flowers Recognizing All the Mesozoic Reptiles Climbing the Dinosaur Family Tree Flocking Together: The Evolutionary Road to Birds Laying the Groundwork for Later Dominance: Early Mammal Evolution Chapter 21: The Cenozoic Era: Mammals Take Over Putting Continents in Their Proper (Okay, Current) Places Entering the Age of Mammals Living Large: Massive Mammals Then and Now Right Here, Right Now: The Reign of Homo Sapiens Arguing for the Anthropocene Chapter 22: And Then There Were None: Major Extinction Events in Earth’s History Explaining Extinctions End Times, at Least Five Times Modern Extinctions and Biodiversity

8  Part 6: The Part of Tens Chapter 23: Ten Ways You Use Geologic Resources Every Day Burning Fossil Fuels Playing with Plastics Gathering Gemstones Drinking Water Creating Concrete Paving Roads Accessing Geothermal Heat Fertilizing with Phosphate Constructing Computers Building with Beautiful Stone Chapter 24: Ten Geologic Hazards Changing Course: River Flooding Caving In: Sinkholes Sliding Down: Landslides Shaking Things Up: Earthquakes Washing Away Coastal Towns: Tsunamis Destroying Farmland and Coastal Bluffs: Erosion Fiery Explosions of Molten Rock: Volcanic Eruptions Melting Ice with Fire: Jokulhlaups Flowing Rivers of Mud: Lahars Watching the Poles: Geomagnetism

9  Index

10  About the Author

11  Supplemental Images

12  Advertisement Page

13  Connect with Dummies

14  End User License Agreement