portfolio 1

This module covered material in chapter 4 of the textbook regarding igneous rocks. I learned about the different textures associated with igneous rocks as well as the method in which they are created by the Earth. The diagrams were colorful and creative, but I still struggled understanding the flow of the charts like Bowen’s reaction scale. Learning assignment four was the module I feel that I have struggled with the most so far.

After learning about how igneous rocks were formed from minerals out of magma and lava it got me thinking about my last trip to Hawaii. My oldest brother has made a home for himself on the island of Oahu and every year my family makes a point to take a flight to visit him. I had never seen volcanic rock in person until I visited. The vesicular shape of the rocks in the tidal pools and tunnels are remnants of a much more violent history of Makua beach (my favorite spot). The island of Oahu is made up of four volcanoes and the system of tunnels in Makua beach made me think of lava flow and lava tubes. The rocks at this beach resemble extrusive rocks being that they were created by lava after it cooled above the surface of the ground. All in all, Module D showed me the basic building blocks for igneous rocks and how different stages/places of cooling effects how the minerals will crystalize and form different patterns to create different rocks.