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Rocks and Minerals Study Guide - use the study guide, class notes, labs, and homework to prepare for the test
PART 1: MINERALS
1. What is the least reliable mineral identification property?
2. What are two reasons why color is so unreliable?
3. A mineral sample that is colorful, reflective, rare and beautiful is called what?.
4. What are the 4 parts of the definition of a mineral?
5. In terms of chemical composition, all minerals could be described as either one of what two types?
6. What is the mineral identification property that describes color of a powdered mineral?
7. What are two reasons air is not a mineral?
8. Name a magnetic mineral.
9. What’s it called when a mineral glows under ultraviolet light?
10. Name a flammable mineral.
11. What is the mineral identification property that involves scratching minerals together?
12. What scale is used to rate hardness?
13. What minerals are on the Moh's scale? What is the hardness of each mineral?
14. The property of a mineral that allows it to be flattened into a sheet is called _?_.
15. What has an orderly arrangement of atoms and flat sides?
16. In which crystal system is quartz?
17. In which crystal system is halite?
18. In which crystal system is a 6 sided snowflake?
19. Color change in a mineral like quartz is caused by what?
20. The property of a mineral that can be drawn into a wire is called what?
21. Name a mineral that reacts with acid.
22. Describe 3 ways can minerals form
23. How is density calculated?
24. What is a property that is similar to density but has no units?
25. A mineral mined for profit is called _?
26. What are the two major types of ores?
27. What are two examples of metallic ores?
28. What are two examples of nonmetallic ores?
29. How a mineral breaks along flat planes is called _
30. When a mineral breaks without cleavage, it's called _
31. Name two common types of fracture.
32. How a mineral reflects light is called what?
33. Name a mineral that shows double refraction through a clear sample.
34. A common light-colored (pretty much clear) type of mica is called what?
35. When a mineral glows after ultraviolet is turned off, it's called what?
36. Name a mineral you need to eat to survive.
37. Name the type of cleavage where a mineral splits in one direction only.
38. What is the most common mineral of earth's crust?
39. Name an ore of zinc
40. What mineral makes up most sand?
Part 2: ROCKS
1. What are rocks composed of?
2. Sandstone is composed mostly of what mineral?
3. What type of rock is formed from lava or magma?
4. Limestone is mostly what mineral?
5. Minerals that are always found in a particular rock; without any one of them, the rock would have a
different name.
6. Type of rock formed from weathered bits of other rocks and occasionally bits of plants and animals.
7. Any rock changed by heat and/or pressure would be a/an __ rock.
8. The process where sediments are held together by minerals dissolved from overlying sediments or ground
water is called what?
9. What do the different layers of sedimentary rock tell us about the earth?
10. What is the most common rock of Earth’s crust?
11. What is the most common rock of the continents?
12. What is the process that shows how the different types of rocks are related and how rock material is used
and reused?
13. Any process that breaks rock down into pieces and dissolved salts would be called what?
14. Any process that moves and deposits sediments would be called what?
15. What metamorphic rock is almost all calcite?
16. Texture in igneous rock refers to what?
17. Color in igneous rock is due to what?
18. Liquid rock that is on Earth’s surface is called what?
19. Any igneous rock that forms on the Earth’s surface is called what?
20. What is another name for any igneous rock that forms on the Earth’s surface?
21. Liquid rock underground is called what?
22. Any igneous rock that forms under Earth’s surface is called what?
23. What is another name for any igneous rock that forms under Earth’s surface?
24. What is the name of the process where rocks are changed by being near magma or lava?
25. What is the name of the process where rocks are changed by mountain-building?
26. What is the sedimentary process where sediments are pressed into rock?
27. Minerals that may be found in a type of rock sometimes, but are not essential are called what?
28. Name a rock that floats in water.
29. Volcanic glass is called what?
30. Sandstone metamorphoses into what?
31. Shale metamorphoses directly into what?
32. Define foliation.
33. What causes foliation in metamorphic rocks?