Geology Exam 4

Front 1

Runoff

Back 1

stays on surface, flows across surface

Front 2

Infiltration

Back 2

soaks in soil by gravity

Front 3

Porosity

Back 3

pores in layers of material

Front 4

Intergranular Pores

Back 4

between rocks and pores

Front 5

Fractures

Back 5

cracks/fractures in rocks and materials

Front 6

Vugs

Back 6

opening that forms by dissolution (dissolved)

Front 7

Permeability

Back 7

measurement of how easy it will be for water to travel through space

Front 8

Water Table

Back 8

point between ground where all pores become water-filled

Front 9

Aquifer

Back 9

layers below ground that we are able to take water out of

Front 10

Unconfirmed Aquifer

Back 10

all water that is around it does not infiltrate and goes straight to aquifer

Front 11

Confirmed Aquifer

Back 11

water gets trapped between sand and bedrock. Does not fully infiltrate into soil. Layer in between stops water from infiltrating (impermeable)

Front 12

Artesian Well

Back 12

when water is too confined (high water pressure), water is forced to push out through surface

Front 13

Perched Aquifer

Back 13

(AKA perched water table) stuck on top of an impervious layer

Front 14

Recharge

Back 14

amount of water you keep in/add to supply

Front 15

Discharge

Back 15

amount of water you take out of supply

Front 16

Overdrafting

Back 16

If Recharge is less than Discharge (R<D)

Front 17

Cone of Depression

Back 17

water from saturation zone is taken out and not replaced. Draw down

Front 18

Subsidence

Back 18

ground sinks

Front 19

Salinity Contamination

Back 19

problem along coast line. salt water infiltrates depleted aquifers. (Desalinization)

Front 20

Drainage Basin

Back 20

area that contains all water flowing down into the river channel

Front 21

Channels

Back 21

area where water is contained

Front 22

Tributaries

Back 22

small streams that funnel water into bigger streams (Branching/dendritic, radial, trellis/rectangular)

Front 23

Levee

Back 23

slightly raised "wall" next to water channel

Front 24

Floodplain

Back 24

flat, like a plain, and when water gets too high, it floods

Front 25

Braided Streams

Back 25

overlapping/crossing streams

Front 26

Meanders

Back 26

water on the 'outside' of the meander must move faster to keep up with water on the 'inside' of the turn

Front 27

Cut Bank

Back 27

side where erosion is occuring

Front 28

Point Bar

Back 28

side where deposition is occuring

Front 29

Oxbows

Back 29

river that has been cut-off from channel due to erosion and deposition

Front 30

Discharge

Back 30

=Velocity*Area

Front 31

Recurrence Interval

Back 31

time between two floods of the same size (ex. 5 yr flood should occur once every 5 years)

Front 32

50 year flood probability?

Back 32

1/50=0.02=2%

Front 33

Mouth

Back 33

beginning of river;head

Front 34

Distributaries

Back 34

distribute water out of channel

Front 35

Deltas

Back 35

triangular shaped area of rivers

Front 36

Lobe

Back 36

one part of delta

Front 37

Lobe switching

Back 37

switch one lobe from active to inactive and vice versa.

Front 38

Fecal Coliform Count

Back 38

direct measurement of coliform bacteria

Front 39

Chemical Contamination

Back 39

chemicals commonly added to water via infiltration&runoff. Radiation can also enter water supplies

Front 40

Tides

Back 40

rhythmic change in sea level

Front 41

High Tide

Back 41

sides facing towards and away from moon

Front 42

Low Tide

Back 42

the in between sides

Front 43

Spring Tide

Back 43

full moon, new moon

Front 44

Neap Tide

Back 44

1st and 3rd quarter moons

Front 45

Waves

Back 45

generated by wind moving water

Front 46

Wavelength

Back 46

distance between 2 waves

Front 47

Wave Height

Back 47

distance from wave base to crest

Front 48

Longshore Drift

Back 48

many waves still hit shore at a small angle. creates a current running along the coast

Front 49

Beach

Back 49

shoreline comprised of sediment

Front 50

Shoreline features depend on...

Back 50

tectonics, rock type, sea level fluctuations, and tidal&storm size/strength

Front 51

Emergent Coastlines

Back 51

Tectonic uplift and erosion. (stacks-small, steep, mini island) (terraces-flat, wave-cut areas, "stairs")

Front 52

Submergent Coastlines

Back 52

Tectonic subsidence and deposition (long, wide beaches&coastal plains, sandbars, spits [sandbar attached to coast at one end], barrier islands)

Front 53

Barrier Types

Back 53

seawalls. groins(perpendicular to shore).

Front 54

Beach (Re)nourishment

Back 54

replacing sand after it's eroded away (nonbarrier approach)

Front 55

Continental Margins

Back 55

Passive-edge of plate does not meet edge of continent. Active-tectonic plate edge and continent edge meet

Front 56

Continental Shelf

Back 56

Carbonates-carbonate based remains from animals with carbon shells. Terrigenous-all sediment that comes from on land

Front 57

Turbidity Currents

Back 57

underwater avalanche along continental shelf

Front 58

Turbidites

Back 58

deposit that forms when turbidity current stops

Front 59

The Continental Rise

Back 59

small 'bulge' at the base of the slope formed by sediments being deposited

Front 60

Abyssal Plain

Back 60

wide, flat, featureless

Front 61

Calcite Compensation Depth

Back 61

temperature is cold, pressure is high~ carbonate breaks down

Front 62

Mid-Ocean Ridge

Back 62

formation of new oceanic crust. ridge split by mid-ocean trench/valley.

Front 63

Hurricanes

Back 63

AKA typhoon, cyclone, etc. To form: low wind, high humidity, warm surface water.

Front 64

Storm Surge

Back 64

'hill' of water underneath eye of storm (hurricane hazard)

Front 65

Storm Tides

Back 65

worst case scenario: high tide and storm surge hitting land at same time (hurricane hazard)

Front 66

Renewable Energy

Back 66

solar, wind, hydro, forests

Front 67

Nonrenewable Energy

Back 67

coal, oil, uranium

Front 68

Fossil Fuels Advantages

Back 68

1. Historically cheap&abundant
2. Technology well developed
3. Infrastructure built to run on them

Front 69

Fossil Fuels Disadvantages

Back 69

1. Nonrenewable
2. Deposits not uniformly distributed
3. Costs going up
4. Environmental damage (CO2 build-up)

Front 70

Methane (natural gas) Advantages

Back 70

1. Resources growing in recent years
2. Burns much cleaner than other FFs
3. Price often cheaper than oil

Front 71

Methane (natural gas) Disadvantages

Back 71

1. Safety issues
2. Still contributes to atmospheric CO2 build-up

Front 72

Pro-Drilling Side (Oil)

Back 72

1. 30 bbls=enough to last the US about 60 years
2. Lower gas prices
3. Tiny area affected

Front 73

No-Drilling Side (Oil)

Back 73

1. only 12 bbls (that's not even enough to fuel the US for even 2 years)
2. Spills devastate the environment

Front 74

Coal Advantages

Back 74

1. US coal reserve big enough to last 100+ years at current rate of use (1 bill. ton/yr). [Coal usage incr 3% 2007-8] [Energy as National Security]

Front 75

Coal Disadvantages

Back 75

1. Infrastructure incompatability
2. Creates more pollution than other fossil fuels

Front 76

Effects of Acid Rain

Back 76

1. Speeds up weathering= damage/deface buildings
2. pH changes are harmful to many organisms
3. Fewer nutrients retained in soil

Front 77

Clean Coal Approaches

Back 77

1. burn higher grade coal
2. revamp power plants to pollute less

Front 78

Clean Coal Problems

Back 78

1. Anthracite is rare and expensive
2. Tech. upgrades would likely double the cost of coal generated electricity
3. Where to store CO2 captured in power plants

Front 79

Oil Shales (OS) & Tar Sands (TS) Advantages

Back 79

1. Extensive deposits (OS has 4x more oil than Saudi Arabia) (TS resource is 2x the global oil resource)

Front 80

Oil Shales (OS) & Tar Sands (TS) Disadvantages

Back 80

1. Big resource, but reserve size debated
2. Produce more GGs than other FFs
3. Not profitable at low oil prices
4. Cooking=use energy to make energy
5. Extensive mining operations
6. Uses lots of water

Front 81

Fission

Back 81

splitting apart an atom

Front 82

Nuclear Power Generation Advantages

Back 82

1. Large US Reserve
2. Reduce carbon emissions
3. Decrease fossil fuel dependence
4. Produces tremendous amounts of energy
5. Good safety record (few exceptions)

Front 83

Nuclear Power Generation Disadvantages

Back 83

1. Nuclear electric price tripled between 1970-1990
2. Reactor Safety
3. Nuclear Proliferation
4. Nuclear waste disposal

Front 84

Types of Nuclear Waste

Back 84

Low Level (LL) Waste, High Level (HL) Waste, Class A-C and GTCC (Greater Than Class C)

Front 85

Types of HL Waste

Back 85

1. Spent Nuclear Fuel (most common)
2. Trans-uranic-beyond uranium on periodic table

Front 86

What to do with radioactive waste

Back 86

store it (problems in US) or use it (dangerous)

Front 87

Rem

Back 87

'dose' (amount) * 'quality factor' (how likely it will cause biological problems)

Front 88

Advantages from Alternative Energy

Back 88

1. Renewable and Abundant
2. Produce little pollution
3. Low maintenance
4. Safe

Front 89

Disadvantages from Alternative Energy

Back 89

1. Technology still being developed
2. Expensive
3. Infrastructure compatibility
4. Acceptance by society

Front 90

Solar Energy Advantages

Back 90

1. Widely available on a long timescale
2. Energy Payback (EPB)
3. EPB dropped to 2-3 years

Front 91

Solar Energy Disadvantages

Back 91

1. Insolation Variation
2. Generates DC current only
3. Some pollution from making PV cells
4. Where to put solar farms

Front 92

Hydro-electric Advantages

Back 92

1. Widely available
2. Doesn't pollute the water
3. Quick profit

Front 93

Hydro-electric Disadvantages

Back 93

1. Reservoir creation floods areas
2. Dams alter downstream environments
3. Best sites have been used
4. Fears about dam failure

Front 94

Hydro-electric buoy Advantages

Back 94

1. Simple device
2. Very consistent

Front 95

Hydro-electric buoy Disadvantages

Back 95

1. Rough environment
2. Changes coastal environment
3. Some areas far from coasts
4. Effects on wildlife

Front 96

Wind Power Advantages

Back 96

1. Cost down 80% in the last 20 years
2. EPB only ~ 1 year
3. Safe for birds

Front 97

Wind Power Disadvantages

Back 97

1. Not consistent in many areas
2. Few places currently make the equipment
3. Best sites often far from population centers
4. 'Not in my backyard' syndrome

Front 98

WARP Turbines

Back 98

Wind Amplified Rotor Platform. Focuses wind into smaller area and accelerates it.

Front 99

Geothermal Big Advantage

Back 99

more consistent than wind, solar, or hydro energy

Front 100

Geothermal Disadvantages

Back 100

1. Geothermal gradient varies
2. Fluids can contain unsafe/corrosive dissolved substances
3. Much heat energy lost during movement of fluids/steam
4. Subsidence (if using groundwater)
5. Can be depleted if poorly managed

Front 101

Geothermal Heat Pumps

Back 101

Temperature below ground is more constant than at surface

Front 102

Ethanol (Biofuel) Advantages

Back 102

1. Mix with regular gas to reduce pollution and the amount of gas needed
2. Big new source of income for farmers

Front 103

Ethanol (Biofuel) Disadvantages

Back 103

1. Not yet cost-effective without government subsidies
2. Takes a lot of energy to produce
3. Ethics-grow fuel instead of food?

Front 104

Algea (Biofuel) Advantages

Back 104

1. Doesn't need freshwater
2. Doesn't need cropland/soil
3. Waste is biodegradable
4. Multiple harvests per year

Front 105

Algea (Biofuel) Disadvantages

Back 105

1. Doesn't lower atmospheric CO2 levels as some claim
2. Currently expensive
3. Production estimates vary a lot