Geology Triathlon
Grade Level: Grades 11 and 12
Description
Teams of students will be given fifteen minutes to identify a variety of minerals, rocks, and fossils presented to them.
Participants
A team of up to four members.
Caution:This event requires training and practice beforehand. Do not enter this event without any preparation. Please study the enclosed material to prepare for this event.
Materials
Teams will be provided with a specified set of testing materials: a hand lens, magnet, steel nail, copper nail, glass plate, and porcelain plate. Twelve unknown mineral, rock and fossil samples will be provided for identification by the team.
Safety
Some specimens contain elements that should not be consumed. Please make sure to wash your hands after completing the challenge, and do not lick or ingest any of the specimens.
Judging
Teams will be judged on the number of samples identified correctly. In the case of a tie, the team who completed the identification faster will be ranked ahead of the slower team.
Rules
The team will be given 15 minutes to identify the samples they are given. A manual will be provided to the team for reference during the event. The manual will contain a table of mineral, rock, and fossil properties, but will NOT contain example photographs or instructions on how to test mineral properties. Students will be presented with 12 samples to identify in 15 minutes. Each sample will be labelled with a number that corresponds to the number on the answer page (eg. Fossil #1, Rock #2).
- Students can use the hardness, streak, cleavage, colour, lustre, and crystal system properties to identify the mineral samples.
- Grain size, colour and specific gravity can be used to determine the identity of each rock sample.
- Common features and previous knowledge from practice before the event can be used to identify the fossil samples.
The hand lens, magnet, steel nail, copper nail, glass plate, and porcelain plate are for use for mineral testing only. Do not use them on the rocks or fossils.
