Question

objective 5: rewind your mind

1. how are minerals place into families/groups?
2. how are rocks classified?
3. give an example of a rock cycle process and how it impacts the appearance of the rock it forms
4. describe the mechanism for plate motion.
5. list and describe the movements of the 3 major plate boundary types. what landforms are created at each?
6. list and describe the motion (of the waves & the material they pass through) of the 3 types of seismic waves.

Explanation:

1. Minerals are grouped based on their chemical composition and crystal structure. For example, silicates have a silicon - oxygen structure.
2. Rocks are classified into three main types: igneous (formed from cooling magma/lava), sedimentary (formed from sediment compaction and cementation), and metamorphic (formed from existing rocks under heat and pressure).
3. An example of a rock - cycle process is the melting of metamorphic rock into magma. When magma cools and solidifies to form igneous rock, it can have a crystalline texture depending on the cooling rate. Slow cooling allows for large crystals to form.
4. The mechanism for plate motion is thought to be driven by convection currents in the Earth's mantle. Hot, less - dense material rises, while cooler, denser material sinks, creating a circular motion that drags the tectonic plates above.
5. The three major plate - boundary types are divergent (plates move apart, creating mid - ocean ridges and rift valleys), convergent (plates move together, creating mountains, trenches, and volcanic arcs depending on the type of plates involved), and transform (plates slide past each other, creating faults like the San Andreas Fault).
6. The three types of seismic waves are P - waves (primary waves, which are compressional waves that can travel through solids, liquids, and gases, moving material in the direction of wave propagation), S - waves (secondary waves, which are shear waves that can only travel through solids and move material perpendicular to the wave propagation), and surface waves (which travel along the Earth's surface and cause the most damage during an earthquake, with a rolling or shaking motion).

Answer:

1. Based on chemical composition and crystal structure.
2. Igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic.
3. Melting of metamorphic rock into magma; when magma cools to form igneous rock, texture depends on cooling rate (slow cooling gives large crystals).
4. Driven by convection currents in the mantle.
5. Divergent: plates move apart, mid - ocean ridges and rift valleys formed; Convergent: plates move together, mountains, trenches, volcanic arcs formed; Transform: plates slide past each other, faults formed.
6. P - waves: compressional, travel through solids, liquids, gases, material moves in wave direction; S - waves: shear, travel through solids, material moves perpendicular to wave; Surface waves: travel along Earth's surface, rolling or shaking motion.