If you are going to be employed as a geologist, chances are you will work in the state of Tennessee, or in the "oil patch." If you work as a geologist in this state (or practically anywhere else for that matter), the odds are also good you are going to be working in: (1) environmental geology and (2) sedimentary rocks. If you work in the oil patch, you'll obviously have to know a LOT about sedimentary rocks. Your first employer will surely expect to train you in your new field of endeavour as that is simply the nature of geology. However, your employer will just as surely expect you to already know quite a lot about sedimentary rocks.

Unfortunately, sedimentology and stratigraphy isn't really intended to provide you with the full range of knowledge that you may require. Rather, Sed/Strat (as it is fondly called) is -- and always has been -- a "capstone" course, building on knowledge acquired in other classes. These include: Physical Geology, Historical Geology, and Petrology/Petrography. It has come to my attention that -- for a variety of reasons -- students at MTSU often enter Sed/Strat with a bit of a void compared to the knowledge that is generally considered "par for the course" (pun intended). This exercise is designed to help fill that void.

Elementary concepts: The following websites contain information that you would have learned if you had taken a typical Physical Geology - Historical Geology class sequence. In fact, practically every sophomore geology major in the nation is already acquainted with this material. Visit all of these websites and review their content.

Sedimentary rock overview (each has a different approach and different information):

http://facstaff.gpc.edu/~pgore/geology/geo101/sedrx.htm

http://www.geology.sdsu.edu/visualgeology/geology101/Geology101Labs/sedimentaryLab5.pdf

http://www.geology.sdsu.edu/visualgeology/geology101/geo100/sedimentary.htm

http://www.homepage.montana.edu/~esci111/RockCycle-1/sedimentary.htm

http://highered.mcgraw-hill.com/sites/0072402466/student_view0/chapter6/objectives.html

A model for sedimentary rock formation (very important):

http://csmres.jmu.edu/geollab/Fichter/SedRx/SimpModl.html

Sedimentary rock classification (table):

http://www.utm.edu/departments/ggp/sedrocktable.htm

Sedimentary rocks, textures, and features: (NOTE: the next two links are archived pages, so the imbedded links may not work, or may be VERY slow. I will eventually try to find fresh links, but I've not yet found comparable material online.)

http://web.archive.org/web/20080212224628/http://www.geology.pitt.edu/GeoSites/sedstructures.htm
Sea level variation:

http://web.archive.org/web/20070914024654/http://www.geology.pitt.edu/GeoSites/transgressions_and_regressions.htm

Characteristics of sedimentary environments:

http://facstaff.gpc.edu/~pgore/geology/historical_lab/environmentchart.htm

Basic stratigraphy overview (i.e. Walther's law, chronostratigraphic units, etc.):

http://www.arches.uga.edu/~rfreeman/%27GEOL1260_%273C_Strat_term.html

Advanced concepts: The following websites are more like what you would have learned in the sedimentary portion of a typical Petrology class. You should look over these websites and become acquainted with the general ideas that they present.

http://faculty.gg.uwyo.edu/heller/Sed%20Strat%20Class/SedStratL1/sedlect_1.htm

http://csmres.jmu.edu/geollab/Fichter/SedRx/Clastic.html

http://web.earthsci.unimelb.edu.au/TeachingSupport/2002PDF%20files/102%20Lect%2010.pdf

http://tesla.jcu.edu.au/Schools/Earth/EA1001/Sedimentary/Sedimentary_Rocks.html

Hopefully, with the help of all of these websites, you can at least become familiar with the concepts that most junior/senior geology students have already encountered in the more-or-less standard prerequisites for Sed/Strat.

Now you are probably wondering "how much of this do I need to know for the quiz?" Well, there is certainly a lot of information contained in these sites, so I probably should give you an idea of what I expect of you, and let you decide for yourself how much time to invest looking at these websites. Perhaps the best way to approach this is not with a summary (outline) of topics, but rather with a series of typical questions. So here goes.

Note: Not all of these questions will be directly answered in the websites. Some of these are thinking questions. Likewise, not all of the terms will be defined there either. You may have to turn to a geology dictionary, or the Glossary of Geology. Incidentally, I STRONGLY suggest that every geoscience student own a good geology dictionary to serve as a reference.

Example questions - have typed answers prepared for next class period.

1. There are arithmetic patterns to the subdivisions of both sedimentary grain sizes and bedding thicknesses that are fairly simple and straight-forward. Can you reproduce these patterns and subdivisions?

2. What are the three main subcategories of sedimentary rocks?

3. What are the textural and compositional characteristics of an arkosic arenite, a lithic breccia, a micritic limestone, etc.?

4. From an onshore to offshore marine setting, what is the general trend of sediment texture? How about from the headwaters to the mouth of a fluvial system? (Note: this isn't just asking about grain size.) Explain why.

5. If sea level rises, what would happen to the average grain size deposited at a particular location on the inner continental shelf? During a storm, how would suspended load change on a nearshore sand bar? Explain why.

6. Detail a typical life history (including provenance) for: quartz arenite, lithic wacke, and arkosic wacke.

7. List five examples of sedimentary structures and describe how each forms.

8. Explain the statement: "Siliciclastic sediments are made, not born; carbonate sediments are born, not made."

In addition to answering the questions above, you will define six of the following terms with respect to sedimentary geology. Your specific terms will be assigned to you in class.