Unit 7 Earth’s Resources
Study Guide
Overarching Concept: 9.7 - Elements on Earth move among reservoirs in the solid earth, oceans, atmosphere
and organisms as part of biogeochemical cycles.
 Elements on Earth exist in essentially fixed amounts and are located in various chemical reservoirs.
 The cyclical movement of matter between reservoirs is driven by the Earth’s internal and external sources of
energy.
D. 19 Explain how chemical and physical processes cause carbon to cycle through the major earth
reservoirs.
Where are the major carbon reservoirs and in what form is carbon stored there? If you can give chemical formulas,
you have excellent understanding.
Reservoir Name
Carbon is stored as:
Process:
Carbon was
in
Photosynthesis
Respiration
Feeding
Decomposition
Sedimentation
Surface Transfer
Combustion
Carbon now
stored in
Equation for
this process
Rate of
Process
Energy
transformations
How have humans altered combustion? What effects is it having on the Earth’s environment?
How have humans altered sedimentation? What effects is it having on the Earth’s fossil fuel reservoirs?
How have humans altered photosynthesis in terms of plant populations? What effects is it having on the Earth’s
environment?
What kinds of processes drive the carbon cycle? Where does the energy come from? What would it take to make
carbon STOP cycling completely? (This will help you identify what drives the carbon cycle to begin with.)
D. 20 Explain how solar energy causes water to cycle through the major earth reservoirs.
Compare water’s major reservoirs using the table below.
illustration Reservoir
How water
enters
How water exits
Atmosphere
(clouds)
Oceans
Rivers/ Lakes/
Surface water
Ground water
Plants
What does the sun’s energy do to create evaporation?
What does the sun’s energy do to create wind?
How humans affect Energy transformations?
this reservoir
D. 21 Explain how internal energy of the Earth causes matter to cycle through the magma and the solid earth.
Draw and label the layers of the Earth.
Where is the Earth the hottest?
Which layers are solid? Liquid?
What causes magma to form convection cycles?
Draw the convection cycles on your picture above.
How does matter cycle through the earth surface? Fill in the rock cycle chart: (remember, rounded rectangles are
names of rocks. Regular rectangles are processes.
Describe/ compare these processes in the following chart:
Name of Rock
Formed by
Location found
Igneous
Sedimentary
Metamorphic
Looks like
Examples
The Earth’s crust is broken. We call the large piece of crust “plates.” There are seven major plates and about 7
minor plates. What kinds of structures can form along plate boundaries?
What is the ocean floor made of?
What are the continents made of?
Why does the ocean floor subduct
while continents tend to float?
Compare the ways plates can move
by filling in the chart
Boundary type
Draw arrows to represent
the motion
Whole Unit Concepts:
What is a reservoir?
What is a source?
What is a sink?
Which processes are endothermic (take energy to happen)?
Which processes are exothermic (give off energy)?
How are the three cycles similar?
Associated landforms
Examples in the world