69 Minerals, Rocks, and Soil-Low

Minerals, Rocks, and Soil Written by Rachel Kamb

《矿物、岩石和土壤》Rachel Kamb著

Introduction Earth has everything you need to stay alive. It has water, air, plants, and animals. Earth also has land! Land is where you walk and play. Your home sits on land, too. What is land made of? Why is it important? In this book, you will learn about nonliving Earth materials that make up the land. Nonliving materials come in many colors and shapes. They come in many sizes, too. They can change in many ways.

地球上有你生存所需的一切。 它有水、空气、植物和动物。 地球也有陆地!土地是你散步和玩耍的地方。 你的家也坐落在陆地上。 陆地是由什么构成的?为什么它很重要? 在这本书中，你将了解构成陆地的无生命物质。 无生命物质有许多颜色和形状。 它们也有很多尺寸。 他们可以在很多方面改变。

Elements and Minerals Let's start with elements. They make up everything on Earth They are very, very small. Do You Know? Elements are not the smallest parts of matter. The tiniest bits of each element are called atoms.

元素和矿物质让我们从元素开始。 它们构成了地球上的一切。它们非常非常小。 你知道吗?元素不是物质的最小组成部分。 每一种元素的最小部分被称为原子。

A mineral is made of elements. Minerals are solid and inorganic They were never alive. Some minerals have just one element. For example, silver is just made of silver. Iron is only made of iron Other minerals, such as quartz, have two or more elements. Earth has about 4,000 kinds of minerals. Each mineral has its own mix of elements.

矿物是由元素构成的。 矿物是固体和无机的它们从来就没有生命。 有些矿物只有一种元素。 例如，银就是由银构成的。 其他矿物，如石英，有两种或两种以上的元素。 地球上大约有4000种矿物。 每种矿物都有自己的元素组合。

Rocks A rock is made of minerals. It is hard solid and natural. A rock can have many colors and patterns. The bits and pieces of minerals give a rock its colors and patterns.

岩石是由矿物构成的。 它坚硬、坚固、自然。 石头可以有许多颜色和图案。 矿物的碎片赋予了岩石颜色和图案。

Look at the chart. It shows you many ways to compare rocks. HOW TO DESCRIBE AND COMPARE ROCKS Mineral composition Rocks have a special mix of minerals. Size Rocks can be huge boulders or small pebbles. They can be as big as a mountain or as tiny as a speck of dust. Shape Rocks can be flat, round, square, or almost any other shape. Color Rocks come in every color you can imagine. Many rocks have more than one color. It depends on the colors of their minerals. Texture Some rocks are rough while others are smooth. They can have tiny grains or large, smooth chunks. Some have long crystals. Others are full of airholes. Hardness The Mohs Scale of Hardness compares how hard each mineral is within a rock. Talc is rated a 1 (very soft), and diamonds are rated a 10 (very hard). Patterns Rocks may have streaks, waves or lines. They may have dots or be built layer upon layer. Some rocks do not have a clear pattern. Location An important way to describe a rock is by where you find it. A beach may have different rocks than a forest, desert, or volcano.

看这张图表。它向你展示了许多比较岩石的方法。 如何描述和比较岩石矿物成分岩石由多种特殊的矿物组成。 岩石可以是巨大的卵石，也可以是小卵石。 它们可以大如一座山，也可以小如一粒尘埃。 岩石的形状可以是平的、圆的、方的或几乎任何其他形状。 彩色石头有你能想象到的各种颜色。 许多岩石不止一种颜色。 这取决于矿物的颜色。 一些岩石粗糙，而另一些则光滑。 它们可以是细小的颗粒，也可以是光滑的大块。 有些有很长的晶体。其他的则充满了气孔。 莫氏硬度比较法比较岩石中每种矿物的硬度。 滑石粉被评为1级(非常软)，钻石被评为10级(非常硬)。 岩石可能有条纹、波浪或线条。 它们可能是点状的，也可能是一层一层的。 有些岩石没有清晰的图案。 描述一块岩石的一个重要方法是看它是在哪里找到的。 海滩上的岩石可能与森林、沙漠或火山不同。