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Note that I posted some questions to work on along with the handout you received during our Discussion Meeting about sedimentary rocks (on the homepage). Please use these questions as "homework" to help you review sedimentary rocks for the 2nd midterm.
We used the idea that sedimentary rocks of differing types are deposited and lithified in different 'parts' of the sediment transportation system. The resulting change in sedimentary rocks at a given location (i.e. vertical change) can tell us things like the change in sea-levels and shorelines. We saw this applied to the Western Interior Seaway, for example.
The concept of how sediment is transported and deposited is very important in learning how to reason about sedimentary rocks and processes.
We can see in the study of metamorphic rocks that the so-called boring looking shale or mudstone can under metamorphism create rocks with all sorts of recrystallized minerals (e.g. in a schist or gneiss).
how is this possible if the protolith doesn't appear to have any variation in it - i.e. it appears uniform?
how is is that large, for example, micas can be present in a schist?
how is it that the mineral garnet can be present in a schist (for example), even though garnet is not present in the protolith?