🪨 Geology — Intro#

Scope — Earth materials, basic rock types, and the processes that shape the planet’s surface and interior.

Key concepts#

• Geology — study of Earth’s solid materials and the processes acting on them over time.
• Rocks and minerals — minerals are crystalline solids with defined composition; rocks are aggregates of minerals.
• Rock cycle — continuous transformation among igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic rocks.

Seed Q&A triads#

• Q: What is the difference between a mineral and a rock?
  A: A mineral has a specific chemical composition and crystal structure; a rock is a mixture of one or more minerals.

• Q: How do igneous rocks form?
  A: From the cooling and solidification of molten material (magma below ground, lava at the surface).

• Q: Why is the rock cycle described as a cycle rather than a sequence?
  A: Any rock type can transform into another through melting, erosion, burial, or metamorphism, without a fixed order.

Quick activities#

• Identify common household or outdoor materials and classify them as mineral, rock, or neither.