Chapter 1. Introduction to Geology

Adapted by Karla Panchuk from Physical Geology by Steven Earle

Badlands in southern Saskatchewan. Erosion has exposed layers of rock going back more than 65 million years.
Figure 1.1 Badlands in southern Saskatchewan. Erosion has exposed layers of rock going back more than 65 million years. Source: Karla Panchuk (2017) CC BY-SA 4.0. Click the image for more attributions.

Learning Objectives

After reading this chapter and answering the review questions at the end, you should be able to:

  • Explain what geology is, and why we study Earth.
  • Describe the kinds of work that geologists do.
  • Explain what is meant by geological time.
  • Explain how the principle of uniformitarianism allows us to translate observations about Earth today into knowledge about how Earth worked in the past.
  • Summarize the main idea behind the theory plate tectonics.

 

License

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Physical Geology, First University of Saskatchewan Edition Copyright © 2019 by Karla Panchuk is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License, except where otherwise noted.