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Geology 100--General Geology Final Exam Study Guide

Note: The final exam is comprehensive. Approximately 60% will focus on course material presented since the last exam, with the other 40% on previous material.

To prepare for the final exam, you should do several things: (1) review the chapter study guides, homework assignments, and previous exams; (2) make sure you can answer every question on the study guides for Exams #1 and #2, in addition to the questions below; and (3) review the textbook readings listed in the course syllabus and the third homework assignment.

Why is oceanic crust generally young in comparision with continental crust? Be able to distinguish passive continental margins from subduction-type and transform-type active continental margins.  Be familiar with the following continental margin features: shelf, slope, rise, submarine canyons, abyssal (submarine) fans. Be familiar with the following deep-ocean basin features: mid-ocean ridges, axial (rift) valleys, deep marine trenches, seamounts, guyots, transform faults, fracture zones, abyssal plains, hydrothermal vents (black smokers).  Where on Earth can organisms be found that derive their energy from Earth's interior rather than the sun?

What lines of indirect evidence give us information about Earth’s interior? How do we know that the Earth’s interior is layered? How do we know that the outer core is liquid? How do we know that the mantle is solid? Where does Earth’s magnetic field originate? How do we know that Earth’s magnetic field hasn’t always been oriented toward the present-day North Pole? Explain.

Contrast Andean-type and Himalayan-type mountain belts. Which type results from plate subduction? Which type results from plate collision? Which type is generally associated with widespread, active volcanism in its initial stages? Which type is typically associated with continental margins? Which type is typically associated with continental interiors? Understand how accretion results in the lateral growth of continents. Understand the principal of isostasy, and how it applies to orogenesis. In which type of mountain belt does isostatic rise occur due to the addition of hot, buoyant material from below (a process called magmatically underplating)? In which type of mountain belt does isostatic rise occur mainly due to crustal & lithospheric shortening without significant magmatic underplating?

Be able to explain the term, “mass movement" (also called "mass wasting"), and summarize the principal types of mass movement. Be able to summarize the hydrologic cycle.

Describe the three ways in which a stream may erode its channel. Which one of these is responsible for creating potholes? Describe the three ways in which a stream transports its load. Understand the difference between discharge, capacity, and competence. How do capacity, competence, and water velocity change with increasing discharge? Contrast braided streams and meandering streams. Understand how the following fluvial landforms are produced: floodplains, terraces, oxbow lakes, point bars, and cut banks. Understand the concept of base level. Discuss the ways that a stream may modify the shape of its valley.

Why is groundwater such an important resource? Understand the difference between porosity and permeability. What is an aquifer, and what geologic materials make good aquifers? What causes groundwater to flow? Explain the difference between an unconfined and a confined aquifer. What factors affect the velocity of flowing groundwater?

Understand the processes of coastal wave refraction, longshore current development, and longshore sediment drift. Why does erosion occur at headlands, verses deposition in bays? What typically happens to an irregular coast with time? Be able to identify/describe the depositional and erosional coastal landforms discussed in your text. What concerns are associated with the construction of engineered coastal structures such as jetties, groins, and seawalls?  

Important Vocabulary