Year 10 Minerals homework :)

To extend your knowledge of a number of different minerals you will need to research the following:

1.Galena, Haematite and Cassiterite are important ore minerals.
a. What is an Ore Mineral?
b. What metal ore can we get from these minerlas?

2.There are a number of important Ore Minerals.
Download the 'Minerals TopTrumps' cards from the Resources section of the side bar and using these to gather information research 4 more Ore Minerals.

This needs to be completed by next Thursday, any questions see me :-)

The following websites might be useful:
Mineral Society of America
Ore - Wikipedia

Landslide destroys part of Los Angeles coastal highway.

A huge landslide which lead to a large part of the highway running along the coast around Los Angeles has been deemed irrepairable by engineering geologists.


Geologists have begun the investigations into what happened and have also started to look for an alternative route for the road.
Here for more:
Los Angeles unlikey to be repaired

Year 11 Geology mock exam

Hi folks,
Hopefully you have all managed to successfully navigate to this spot, if so you will hopefully find a number of useful links and resources to help in your studies.

During the last week of term you are going to sit your Mock exam (Tuesday 13th Dec).
We will be assessing some of the first topics studied, so you will definately need to go over the material from Year 10. This should include:
Tectonics
Earth History
Sedimentary Rocks & Processes
Metamorphic Rocks & Processes
Igneous Rocks & Processes
Fossils

Some of the links on the left will be useful to you, but as ever, if you have any questions ASK!!!

20 predictions for the next 25 years

From the web to wildlife, the economy to nanotechnology, politics to sport, the Observer's team of experts prophesy how the world will change – for good or bad – in the next quarter of a century.

20 predictions for the next 25 years

Now there's some food for thought!

People being paid to have babies?!

Despite reportedly tipping the 7 Billion mark this month, there are still some countries who are experiencing instability in their population growth. The solution? Governments are paying for families to have more children. No, really.
When Governments pay people to have babies

Why do you think this might be?
What would be the impact of a country with a low fertility rate?

So we've reached 7 Billion, what next?

A nice video and report from Adam Cole to demonstrate how population has increased (the buffering is a bit jumpy sadly): Visualising how a Population grows to 7 Billion

Does the Earth have enough resources to support 8 Billion, or 9 or 10 Billion?
How have some countries acted to slow down Population increase?

Wild weather due to become commonplace?

According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (gratefully shortened to IPCC), the recent extreme weathers from around the world are set to become more common. From the freak snow blizzards in New York in October (a colleague was there when they hit at half term - the weight of snow was bringing trees down!) to the recent flooding in Thailand, these events are likely to continue if the world continues to warm, according to Scientists.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-15745408

An American view on the issue:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zj6QOFbMftg

Long term impacts of Tsunami's

Following the Tsunami that struck North East Japan earlier this year, the long term impacts are starting to emerge as quite significant. Rebuilidng the damaged coastal communities is expected to take many years.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/in-pictures-15789694

What causes Tsunami's?
What are the short term and long term effects of a tsunami?
Would it be possible to make 'Tsunami Proof' buildings? (Why do some survive and others don't? Is this pure luck?)
Is the cost of rebuilding communities worth the risk of having them destroyed by an event in one of the most sesmically active places on the planet?

Predicting Earthquakes?!

Wouldn't that be awesome?! Scientists believe they are one step closer to predicting an earthquake event based on ozone being released from fracturing rock: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111117154635.htm

I wonder how much of a warning in terms of time this gives? Enough to evacuate an urban area?

Mass extinction events

The mass extinction of the dinosaurs is something most young people are aware of from an early age. Yet this event 65million years ago (the Cretaceous - Tertiary or K-T boundary) was far from being the worst mass extinction event the Earth has seen.

250 Ma a much larger event led to the extinction of 95% of Marine Life and 70% of land based life. Scientist have recently been able to pinpoint the exact rate and time of the extinction.

Through the analysis of various types of dating techniques on well-preserved sedimentary sections from South China to Tibet, researchers determined that the mass extinction peaked about 252.28 million years ago and lasted less than 200,000 years, with most of the extinction lasting about 20,000 years.
Read more here: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111117143955.htm

In addition, research has also shown that the Mass-Extinction event at the K-T boundary that killed off the dinosaurs was caused by a double blow of mass volcanic eruption and a massive meteorite impact. Scientists have charted the demise of species of planktonic foraminifera found in marine sediments trapped between layers of lava in an area of India known as the Deccan Traps. More here: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111117141201.htm

Some food for thought:
How does a large volcanic eruption lead to the extinction of species right around the globe?
What is the effect of a large Meteor impact on the planet and how does this lead to the extinction of species around the globe?
What would be the impact of the eruption of a supervolcano on the Human race? How would we survive such an event?

Africa's Largest Volcano is still going after a week of eruptions.

A ranger stands before the 65-story-tall lava plume of Nyamulagira volcano, Africa's most active, which roared back to life last week in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

Virunga National Park, famed for its rare mountain gorillas, has quickly seized on the display as a way to boost tourism, establishing an overnight tent camp nearby (but not too near), officials announced this week.

(See an interactive cutaway of the Nyamulagira volcano region.)

Sitting up through the night and watching enormous geysers of liquid lava dance in dark skies was "the coolest thing I've ever seen," said Cai Tjeenk Willink, head of development at the park.

Virunga National Park, embattled by a 12-year civil war and persistent political instability, is patrolled by 360 armed park rangers, who guard against wildlife traders as well as militia and rebel groups. Safety has improved dramatically in the past several years, Willink said.
"The main function of the guards is to act as a deterrent," he said. "We always bring armed guards with our visitors. We value the safety of our visitors and invest in supplying this safety."

Photo's courtesy of National Geographic.com!

Some things to think about!
What is the cause of this eruption?
What is the impact of eruptions like this on an LEDC (Environmental, Social and Economic)?
Is it right that the National Park encourages visitors to this danger zone?
Why do the people living in nearby Goma continue to live in the shadow of Africa's most active volcano?
Do the advantages of living in the Rift Valley outweigh the dangers present?

Here we go!

This is my first blog! There are a number of inspirations behind starting this, but ultimately I want it to be somewhere where I can share some news and ideas as wel as resources and revision material, and hopefully some inspirations too. The focus is inevitably going to be towards the Earth Sciences, and I hope that some of my students may find some useful thoughts and ideas that they can use in their studies (obviously no plan survives contact intact, so there may be some quiet periods!).
Blog on!