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2. Reading comprehension Read the text «What is Geology?»

2. 1 Vocabulary

1.Pay attention to the pronunciation of the following terms:

geology

Earth

palaeoclimatology

Mesozoic Era

knowledge

structure

microscopic

palaeonotology

geochemical

discipline

mammoth

technological

geophysical

stratigraphy

dinosaur

uniformitarianism

2. Read the following word formations and remember their pronunciation:

apply-applicable-application

transport-transportive-transportation

destroy-destructive-destruction

develop-development

literally- дословно

principally- принципиально

relatively- относительно

essentially- существенно

primarily- главный, основной

completely- полностью, совершенно

particularly- особенно

firstly- во-первых

especially- особенно

daily- постоянно

constantly- постоянно

considerably- значительно

reconstruct- восстанавливать

irregularity- неровность

predominant- преобладающий

3. Pay attention to the underlined terms and expressions in the text:

crust (Earth)

кора (земная)

force (s)

сила

endogenous

эндогенный

exogenous

экзогенный

weathering

выветривание

erosion

эрозия

transport (of rock material)

перенос

to level (v) / level (n)

выравнивать; уровень, горизонт

sedimentary rock

осадочная порода

geological time

геологическое время

remain ( trace)

остаток, след

geological process

геологический процесс

horizontal movement

горизонтальное движение

vertical movement

вертикальное движение

earthquake

землетрясение

agent

агент

alga

водоросль

in terms of

in particular

it is possible (to+V)

only recently

summing up

by contrast

      1. Text: What is Geology?

The word geology comes from the Greek language and means literally “science or knowledge of the Earth”. Only recently, this term has been applicable to the Earth as a whole because it is only recently that geochemical and geophysical work has yielded information about the interior of our planet. Geology has to do with the nature and development of the Earth’s crust and particularly with those parts that are accessible or exposed. The structure of the crust is not simple and in the mountain ranges can even be very complex. Events, which happened hundreds of millions of years ago, have to be reconstructed from evidence-direct or indirect- is available.

Geology has been subdivided into several specialized disciplines and only drawing on information from several disciplines can often solve problems.

Classical geology seeks to interpret the events of the past in terms of processes, which occur at present, and thereby it is possible to attempt to reconstruct the forces that were at work in the past.

The uppermost part of the crust is affected by two different kinds of forces. Firstly, there are endogenous forces that originate within the Earth. The crust is never completely at rest because of movements resulting from these endogenous forces. Everything is in motion. Volcanic activity, earthquakes and the fact that the crust is constantly subjected to vertical and horizontal movements that can be observed from satellites are among the more obvious expressions of these endogenous forces.

The form of the Earth’s surface is the result of a balance between the endogenous forces and exogenous forces that act at the Earth’s surface and do not derive from within it. The most obvious effects of such forces are the destructive effects of the weathering, erosion and transport of rock material that tends to level the landscape and even out the irregularities of the surface. The principal agents of this process are water, wind and in the polar and mountain ranges, ice.

Although endogenous forces can result in the formation of new rocks (for example, in volcanoes), the exogenous forces, by contrast, are predominantly destructive and transportive. The study of the Earth’s geological history, as revealed principally by the succession of sedimentary rocks, is called stratigraphy. It is possible to trace changes in the distribution of land and sea, different climates and even changes in the constitution of the atmosphere during geological time; further the origin and development of past mountain belts can be determined.

People have long been fascinated by the almost daily discovery in rocks of the remains of past plants and animals. The oldest known traces of life are microscopic structures (predecessors of algae) about 4000 million years old. These lowly organisms stand in stark contrast to the giant dinosaurs of the Mesozoic Era or the ice age mammoths. The observation and classification of the organic remains that occur in rocks and the reconstruction of their evolution is the subject of paleontology (which is subdivided into paleobotany and paleozoology).

Regional geology aims at the integration of all the geological information pertaining to a particular area and this is expressed in the form of geological map. Such maps are the essential basis of all kinds of practical geological work.

Applied geology is concerned with the practical use of geological knowledge (discovery of mineral resources, oil and water, etc.). Applied geology finds further important applications in nature conservation. The study of present day processes is basic of all geological work – the principle of uniformitarianism is often expressed in the form “the present is the key to the past”. The natural laws controlling geological processes have remained essentially the same for thousands of millions of years.

Summing up, geology is the study of the Earth’s history and draws on all the technological resources of modern science in deciphering the record of the rocks as documents of Earth history. The geologists use his experience to correlate sequences of geological events established in separate areas into a general temporal sequence.

The present state of geology has been attained as a result of much work spread over many years and even now, views on the Earth’s evolution and Man’s ideas of his own development are far from complete. In particular, the concept of geological time has changed considerably over the past 2300 years and it is necessary now to trace the development of the geological sciences.

(Robert Lauterbach “The World of Geology -The Earth then and now” 1983 Leipzig)

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