| Absolute dating |
a quantitative measurement
allowing determination of the length of time, based on natural radioactivity.
In radioactive decay an atom spontaneously changes to another atom in a
measurable amount of time |
| Age date |
how long something has existed,
through absolute or relative methods of dating |
| Aggregates |
Uncemented gravel, pebbles,
and sand. Sometimes large stones are classified in this group |
| Amber |
A yellowish translucent fossil
tree resin that has achieved a stable state through loss of volatile constituents;
fossil insects are commonly found in this substance |
| Ammonites |
 one
of the coiled chambered fossil shells of extinct (cephalopod) mollusks |
| Ancestry |
the descendants of one individual |
| Anthracite |
A black, or brownish black,
solid, combustible substance, dug from beds or veins in the earth to be
used for fuel; the hardest type of coal |
| Atomic bomb |
A device of mass destruction
|
| Carbon |
Those compounds
commonly produced by animals and plants, and hence called organic compounds,
though their synthesis may be effected in many cases in the laboratory;
inorganic carbon can also exist |
| Carboniferous
period |
The Carboniferous
Period occurred from about 360 to 286 million years ago during the late
Paleozoic Era. The term "Carboniferous" comes from England, in reference
to the rich deposits of coal that occur there. These deposits of coal occur
throughout northern Europe, Asia, and midwestern and eastern North America. |
| Carbonization |
A chemical reaction
where water transforms the organic material of plant or animal to a thin
film of carbon. |
| Cenozoic |
The current geologic
era, which began 66.4 million years ago and continues to the present. |
| Chains |
a series of linked
atoms (generally in an organic molecule) |
| Coal |
carbonized vegetable
matter |
| Commodity |
That which affords
convenience, advantage, or profit, especially in commerce, including everything
movable that is bought and sold (except animals), -- goods, wares, merchandise,
produce of land and manufactures, etc. |
| Concretion |
A concretion is
a compact rock mass usually spherical or disk-shaped and embedded in a host
rock of a different composition. Concretions form by precipitation of mineral
matter (commonly a carbonate mineral such as calcite, but sometimes an iron
oxide or hydroxide such as goethite or sometimes an amorphous or microcrystalline
form of silica) about a nucleus such as a piece of shell or bone. |
| Coprolite |
A piece of petrified
dung; fossil excrement. |
| Coral reef |
a reef consisting
of coral consolidated into limestone |
| Core |
a cylindrical
sample of soil or rock obtained with a hollow drill. |
| Corporation |
A legal business
entity owned by shareholders with the ability to own property, incur debts,
and sue or be sued. |
| Correlation |
a matching between
two or more things |
| Corrosion |
to wear away gradually
usually by chemical action |
| Crinois |
any marine invertebrate
of the class Crinoidea (phylum Echinodermata) usually possessing a somewhat
cup-shaped body and five or more feathery arms. The arms are edged with
feathery projections (pinnules) that contain the reproductive organs and
carry numerous tube feet with sensory functions. The tentacles also have
open grooves, along which cilia (minute, hairlike projections) sweep food
particles toward the mouth. |
| Crude oil |
unrefined petroleum
in its natural form when taken from the ground. Crude oil is the basis for
gasoline, engine oil, diesel oil, kerosene and other petroleum-based products.
|
| Curing |
The process of
changing the physical properties of a resin or adhesive by chemical reaction,
which may be in the form of condensation, polymerization, or vulcanization,
and which is usually accomplished by the action of heat and catalytic action,
alone or in combination, with or without pressure. |
| Cycad |
any of the palm-like,
woody plants that constitute the order Cycadales. The order consists of
four families: Cycadaceae, Zamiaceae, Stangeriaceae, and Boweniaceae. Some
authorities use the term cycad to refer to all members of the division Cycadophyta.
Plants of this division are known to have existed in the Mesozoic Era, about
245 to 66.4 million years ago. Only the order Cycadales contains living
species. |
| Electromagnetic
wave |
Light, microwaves, x-rays,
and TV and radio transmissions are all kinds of electromagnetic waves. They
are all the same kind of wavy disturbance that repeats itself over a distance
called the wavelength |
| Eolian |
Relating to, caused by, or
carried by the wind. |
| Eon |
The largest division of geologic
time, embracing several Eras, for example, the Phanerozoic, 600 m.y. ago
to present); also any span of one billion years. |
| Eras |
A time period including several
periods, but smaller than an eon. Commonly recognized eras are Precambrian,
Paleozoic, Mesozoic, and Cenozoic. |
| Erosion |
Removal of material by water,
wind, or ice |
| Evolution |
A general name for the history
of the steps by which any living organism has acquired the morphological
and physiological characters which distinguish it; a gradual unfolding of
successive phases of growth or development. |
| Excavate |
To expose or uncover by or
as if by digging |
| Exploitation |
Utilization of another person
or group for selfish purposes |
| Extinct |
no longer in existence; lost
or especially having died out leaving no living representatives |
| Extraction |
to withdraw by physical or
chemical process |
| Malleable |
A term applied to a metal capable
of being beaten or rolled in all directions without breaking or cracking.
Since the molecules of the metal must remain locked to each other during
the beating or rolling, a malleable metal must exhibit a high degree of
structural plasticity. The most malleable of all metals is gold, which can
be beaten into a sheet (leaf) only 1/300,000 inch thick. |
| Mammoth |
An extinct, hairy, elephant,
of enormous size, remains of which are found in the northern parts of both
continents. The last of the race, in Europe, were coeval with prehistoric
man. |
| Mastodon |
An extinct genus of mammal
closely allied to the elephant, but having less complex molar teeth, and
often a pair of lower, as well as upper, tusks, which are incisor teeth.
The species were mostly larger than elephants, and their remains occur in
nearly all parts of the world in deposits ranging from Miocene to late Quaternary
time. |
| Mechanical |
Pertaining to, governed by,
or in accordance with, mechanics, or the laws of motion; pertaining to the
quantitative relations of force and matter, as distinguished from mental,
vital, chemical, etc.; as, mechanical principles; a mechanical theory; mechanical
deposits. |
| Mesozoic |
A major division of geologic
time, beginning approximately 245 million years ago and ending 66 million
years ago. The Mesozoic Era was the 2nd era in the Phanerozoic Eon. This
era can be subdivided into the following periods: Cretaceous, Jurassic,
Triassic. |
| Metals |
any of several chemical elements
that are usually shiny solids that conduct heat or electricity and can be
formed into sheets etc. |
| Meteorite |
stony or metallic object that
is the remains of a meteoroid that has reached the earth's surface |
| Methane gas |
composed of carbon and hydrogen
with formula CH4, the first member of the paraffin or alkane series of hydrocarbons.
It is lighter than air, colorless, odorless, and flammable. It occurs in
natural gas, as firedamp in coal mines, as a by-product of petroleum refining,
and as a product of decomposition of matter in swamps. |
| Microns |
A measure of length; the thousandth
part of one millimeter; the millionth part of a meter. |
| Mineral ore |
A native metal or its compound
with the rock in which it occurs |
| Molting |
To shed or cast the hair, feathers,
skin, horns, or the like, as an animal or a bird. |
| Monopoly |
a market in which there are
many buyers but only one seller |
| Monsoon |
a seasonal wind in southern
Asia; blows from the southwest (bringing rain) in summer and from the northeast
in winter |
| Morphology |
the branch of geology that
studies the characteristics and configuration and evolution of rocks and
land forms |
| Multi conglomerate |
a group of companies run as
a single organization |
| Multinational |
involving or operating in several
countries |
| Paleoecology |
is the study of ancient environments
and the interactions that most likely took place within them. |
| Paleontologist |
a specialist in paleontology. |
| Paleontology |
Paleontology is the study of
life of the past, the study of fossils. |
| Paleozoic |
Includes the time from about
570-245 million years ago. |
| Peat |
A substance of vegetable origin,
consisting of roots and fibers, moss, etc., in various stages of decomposition,
and found, as a kind of turf or bog, usually in low situations, where it
is always more or less saturated with water. It is often dried and used
for fuel. |
| Permeability |
Substances can pass through
it |
| Permineralization |
Or petrifaction takes place
in porous materials such as bones, plants and shells. The material is buried
and groundwater percolates through its pore spaces and precipitates minerals
in the spaces. The original wood or shell like material preserved. |
| Petroleum |
Rock oil, mineral oil, or natural
oil, a dark brown or greenish inflammable liquid, which, at certain points,
exists in the upper strata of the Earth, from whence it is pumped, or forced
by pressure of the gas attending it. It consists of a complex mixture of
various hydrocarbons, largely of the methane series, but may vary much in
appearance, composition, and properties. It is refined by distillation,
and the products include kerosene, benzene, gasoline, paraffin, etc. |
| Phanerozoic |
"abundant life" That part of
geologic time represented by rocks containing abundant fossil evidence.
The eon extending from the end of the Proterozoic eon (570 million years
ago) to the present. |
| Photosynthesis |
The process of constructive
metabolism by which carbohydrates are formed from water vapor and the carbon
dioxide of the air in the chlorophyll-containing tissues of plants exposed
to the action of light. |
| Placer |
A deposit found in sand, or
gravel, containing valuable mineral in particles, especially by the side
of a river, or in the bed of a mountain torrent. |
| Pleistocene |
beginning about 1.6 million
years ago and ending 10,000 years ago. Commonly known as the 'Ice Age',
a time with episodes of widespread continental glaciation. |
| Pollen |
a fine powder produced by the
anthers of seed-bearing plants; fine grains contain male gametes |
| Polyester fabrics |
A manufactured fiber in which
the fiber forming substance is any long-chain synthetic polymer composed
of at least 85% by weight of an ester of a substituted aromatic carboxylic
acid, |
| Polymer |
A large molecule consisting
of chains or rings of linked monomer units, usually characterized by high
melting and boiling points. |
| Polyp |
A single organisms in the Cnidaria
Phylum, and is sessile (attached to a surface). The upper, or free, end
of the body, which is hollow and cylindrical, typically has a mouth surrounded
by extensible tentacles that bear stinging structures called nematocysts. |
| Portland cement |
A cement made by heating a
limestone and clay mixture in a kiln and pulverizing the resulting material. |
| Precambrian |
the era that includes all geologic
time from the formation of the earth to the beginning of the Paleozoic era
(from about 4.6 billion to 570 million years ago). |
| Precious metals |
Any of several metals, including
gold and platinum, that have high economic value |
| Principle of
Faunal Succession |
fossil organisms preserved
in rock layers changes through time |
| Principle of
Original Horizontality |
layers of sedimentary rock
are initially deposited as horizontal layers of sediment |
| Principle of
Superposition |
principle follows, in part,
from the Principle of Original Horizontality. It states that in any succession
of sedimentary rock layers, the layers near the bottom are the oldest and
the layers near the top are the youngest. |
| Probability |
a measure of how likely it
is that some event will occur. |
| Productivity |
the quality of being productive
or having the power to produce |
| Prospecting |
To look over; to explore or
examine for something; as, to prospect a district for gold. |
| Radioactive
elements |
Elements that can change because
of lost of protons through a set amount of time |
| Radiolarian |
 Protists
which go back to the early Cambrian Period. They are abundance in many rocks,
their long geologic history, make them important sources of information
on the geologic age and structure of many deposits. Radiolaria can range
anywhere from 30 microns to 2 mm in diameter. |
| Recrystallization |
Changes the internal physical
structure of a fossil, because it changes the microstructure of the original
minerals. The composition of the mineral does not change, only the crystal
structure. |
| Reducing environment |
An environment without oxygen
available for organisms |
| Relative time |
Dating of events by place in
chronologic order of occurrence rather than in years. Compare with absolute
time. |
| Renewable energy |
Relating to or being a commodity
or resource, such as solar energy or firewood, that is inexhaustible or
replaceable by new growth. |
| Replacement |
Involves the complete removal
of original hard parts by solution and deposition of a new mineral in its
place. |
| Reservoir rocks |
Oil fields are formed when
oil is trapped in rocks underground (gas-fields are formed in the same way).
The oil can only be trapped if the rocks have enough gaps between the grains
to hold it and if the gaps are large enough to let it flow through. Porous
and permeable rocks are called 'reservoir rocks' because they can hold reserves
of oil or gas. |
| Rip rap |
A loose assemblage of broken
stones erected in water or on soft ground to support the slope |
| Sea urchins |
They have long spines to deter
predators. Sea urchin gets its name from an Old English word for the spiny
hedgehog. Some have poisonous sharp spines that can penetrate human skin
and break off. |
| Seams |
a stratum of ore or coal thick
enough to be mined for profit |
| Sedimentation |
Process by which broken rocks
(sediment) and organic matters are laid down. |
| Seismic profile |
The data collected from an
instrument that simulates earthquake type waves |
| Seismic stratigraphy |
The interpretation of seismic
profiles to determine how the inside of the Earth are layered |
| Seismic waves |
Seismic waves are generated
by energy related because of displacement of the Earth or any movement of
the Earth's crust. |
| Sequence |
succession; order of following;
arrangement. |
| Shelf |
Refers to the outer shores
of where land meets water |
| Sherman antitrust
act |
Source of all American anti
monopoly laws. The law forbids every contract, scheme, deal, conspiracy
to restrain trade. It also forbids conspiracies to secure monopoly of a
given industry. |
| Silica |
Silicon dioxide (SiO2). One
of the most common compounds in the Earth's crust. Common window glass is
made of silica. The building block of the mineral quartz and other silicate
minerals. |
| Silicoflagellates |
 Silicoflagellates
are planktonic marine chromists that are both photosynthetic and heterotrophic.
Their internal silica skeletons are composed of a network of bars, and resemble
those of radiolarians but are generally much less complex. |
| Source rocks |
rocks reflecting high productivity;
most common source rocks: shales and mudstones; basalts; and quartz sandstones
and limestones. |
| Spiral |
Winding or circling round a
center or pole and gradually receding from it; as, the spiral curve of a
watch spring. |
| Strata |
A bed or layer of sedimentary
rock having approximately the same composition throughout. |
| Stratigrapher |
A scientist that studies stratigraphy
or the layers of rock |
| Stratigraphy |
The study of rock strata, especially
the distribution, deposition, and age of sedimentary rocks. |
| Strip mine |
To pare off the surface of,
as land, in strips. |
| Subsidence |
Sinking of ground |
| Subsurface mining |
The extracting ore or minerals
from under the Earth's surface. |
| Taphonomy |
examination of the physical
evidence around a fossil to determine the cause of its death, the nature
of the interval between death and the fossilization of the remaining record
of a life form and the environment which produced its fossilization. |
| Tentacles |
A more or less elongated process
or organ, simple or branched, proceeding from the head or cephalic region
of invertebrate animals, being either an organ of sense or motion. |
| Tidal |
A horizontal displacement of
ocean water under the gravitational influence of Sun and Moon, causing the
water to pile up against the coast at high tide and move outward at low
tide. |
| Trace fossils |
Evidence of the organism's
behavior. Three types are Tracks and trails, foraging, and burrows and borings.
|
| Tracks and
trails |
A mark left by something that
has passed along. |
| Transform |
To change the form of; to change
in shape or appearance |
| Trilobites |
Any one of numerous species
of extinct arthropods belonging to the order Trilobita. Trilobites were
very common in the Silurian and Devonian periods, but became extinct at
the close of the Paleozoic. So named from the three lobes usually seen on
each segment. |
| Turbines |
Any of various machines in
which the kinetic energy of a moving fluid is converted to mechanical power
by the impulse or reaction of the fluid with a series of buckets, paddles,
or blades arrayed about the circumference of a wheel or cylinder. |
Foraminifera
are single-celled protists with shells. Depending on the species, the shell
may be made of organic compounds, sand grains and other particles cemented
together, or crystalline calcite. The dark brown structure is the test,
or shell, inside which the foram lives. Radiating from the opening are fine
hairlike reticulopodia, which the foraminifera uses to find and capture
food.