Laboratory Studies in Earth History

About this book

Utilizing actual case studies and field photographs, this successful lab manual Laboratory Studies in Earth History covers the full spectrum of historical geology sediments, plate tectonics, paleontology, and petrology in flexible, self-contained units. Laboratory Studies in Earth History has been developed for use in both non-majors and combined courses in historical geology.

The exercises emphasize the principles and methods by which geologists discover the origins and changing nature of our planet. These exercises or "studies" will help students understand how ancient conditions can be read from rocks and fossils, how geologic forces at the surface and within the planet can alter the environment, and how events of the past can be placed within an integrated chronological sequence.

The exercises in Laboratory Studies in Earth History are designed for students who may not intend to specialize in geology. This does not mean, however, that the treatment is superficial, nor that it cannot give adequate preparation for students pursuing an academic major in the earth sciences.

Contents

1 Introduction to Sedimentary Rocks
2 Textural Clues to the History of Sediment
3 Sedimentary Rocks under the Microscope
4 Ancient Sedimentary Environments
5 Tectonic Settings
6 Sea-Floor Spreading and Plate Tectonics
7 Age Relations and Unconformity
8 Rock Units and Time-Rock Units
9 The Advance and Retreat of Ancient Shorelines
10 Fossils and Their Living Relatives: Protists, Sponges, Corals, Bryozoans, and Brachiopods
11 Fossils and Their Living Relatives: Mollusks, Arthropods, Echinoderms, Graptolites, and Plants
12 Fossil Indicators of Age, Environment, and Correlation
13 A Brief Survey of the Vertebrates
14 Geologic Maps and Geologic Structures
15 Canadian Shield and Basement Rocks of North America
16 Mountain Belts of North America
17 The Interior Plains and Plateaus
18 Identification of Minerals
19 Igneous Rocks
20 Metamorphic Rocks

List of Tables
List of Colorplates
List of Plates
Preface

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