Earth Sciences 1089F/G Study Guide - Final Guide: Polynesians, Parent Material, Chalcolithic

• School: Western University
• Department: Earth Sciences
• Course: Earth Sciences 1089F/G
• Professor: Cameron Tsujita

Document Summary

Mother nature"s chisel: processes of weathering and erosion. Some of the most striking geological features on earth are physiographic features that result from erosion. Erosion is the physical removal of material by mobile agents such as water, wind, ice, or gravity. Erosion is aided by weathering (physical or chemical breakdown of materials at o rear the earth"s surface) Weathering enhances the ability of erosion processes to remove components of the material (either as solid particles or as dissolved ions) Mechanical weathering- physical breakup or disintegration of material (without changes in the composition of the material) Forms of mechanical weathering: frost wedging, root wedging, unloading, frost wedging - when water ows and penetrates cracks within a rock and freezes. Water expands when it converts to ice which widens the cracks. With repeated cycles of this, cracks get increasingly large, which results in the breakup of the material: root wedging - when roots of plants (ex. trees) penetrates into small cracks.