CENOZOIC GEOLOGY

OBJECTIVES

Upon completion of this unit you should be able to:

• 1. Analyze the effect of the formation of the circumpolar currents and the conveyor belt current in the North Atlantic;
• 2. discuss the physical evidences analyzed by scientists to estimate the extent and reaches of glaciation;
• 3. examine the effect of the alternation of glacial maxima and minima on the continental shelves and on the biological communities;
• 4. explain how the African continent was affected by glacier expansion and why;
• 5. elaborate on the relationship between the formation of the Isthmus of Panama and the start of glaciation;
• 7. discuss relevant aspects of Cenozoic history of the Gulf of Mexico and relate them to economic deposits;
• 8. illustrate the geology of the Western Atlantic coast, pointing out key locations and fossil content;
• 9. relate the geology to the elements in present physiography;
• 10. elaborate on how the Laramide orogenic style was different from the one of previous orogenies in the west and give the likely explanation for this difference;
• 11. describe the changes produced by the Laramide Orogeny, the areas it influenced and the resources of Cenozoic age found in those areas;
• 12. characterize the geologic processes which took place in the physiographic units of the American West;
• 13. understand the impact of the Neogene uplift in the Sierra Nevada and the Rocky Mountains on the areas that surround them.