1.
Erg Chebbi
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Erg Chebbi is one of Moroccos two Saharan ergs – large seas of dunes formed by wind-blown sand. The other is Erg Chigaga near Mhamid, the nearest sizable town is Erfoud, about 60 kilometers further north. Although rainfall is very brief and uncommon, in 2006 flooding adjacent to the dunes destroyed many buildings, Merzouga The local tourist center, is located near the edge of the dunes. A number of companies offer trips from Merzouga and into the desert, taking tourists on overnight trips several kilometres into the erg. During the warmest part of the year, Moroccans come to Erg Chebbi to be buried neck-deep in the hot sand for a few minutes at a time and this is considered to be a treatment for rheumatism. Aeolian processes Blowout List of ergs •→ Safari Camel tripcamel-trek Media related to Erg Chebbi at Wikimedia Commons Erg Chebbi – Location map
2.
Force
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In physics, a force is any interaction that, when unopposed, will change the motion of an object. In other words, a force can cause an object with mass to change its velocity, force can also be described intuitively as a push or a pull. A force has both magnitude and direction, making it a vector quantity and it is measured in the SI unit of newtons and represented by the symbol F. The original form of Newtons second law states that the net force acting upon an object is equal to the rate at which its momentum changes with time. In an extended body, each part usually applies forces on the adjacent parts, such internal mechanical stresses cause no accelation of that body as the forces balance one another. Pressure, the distribution of small forces applied over an area of a body, is a simple type of stress that if unbalanced can cause the body to accelerate. Stress usually causes deformation of materials, or flow in fluids. In part this was due to an understanding of the sometimes non-obvious force of friction. A fundamental error was the belief that a force is required to maintain motion, most of the previous misunderstandings about motion and force were eventually corrected by Galileo Galilei and Sir Isaac Newton. With his mathematical insight, Sir Isaac Newton formulated laws of motion that were not improved-on for nearly three hundred years, the Standard Model predicts that exchanged particles called gauge bosons are the fundamental means by which forces are emitted and absorbed. Only four main interactions are known, in order of decreasing strength, they are, strong, electromagnetic, weak, high-energy particle physics observations made during the 1970s and 1980s confirmed that the weak and electromagnetic forces are expressions of a more fundamental electroweak interaction. Since antiquity the concept of force has been recognized as integral to the functioning of each of the simple machines. The mechanical advantage given by a machine allowed for less force to be used in exchange for that force acting over a greater distance for the same amount of work. Analysis of the characteristics of forces ultimately culminated in the work of Archimedes who was famous for formulating a treatment of buoyant forces inherent in fluids. Aristotle provided a discussion of the concept of a force as an integral part of Aristotelian cosmology. In Aristotles view, the sphere contained four elements that come to rest at different natural places therein. Aristotle believed that objects on Earth, those composed mostly of the elements earth and water, to be in their natural place on the ground. He distinguished between the tendency of objects to find their natural place, which led to natural motion, and unnatural or forced motion
3.
Particle
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A particle is a minute fragment or quantity of matter. In the physical sciences, a particle is a small localized object to which can be ascribed several physical or chemical properties such as volume or mass. Particles can also be used to create models of even larger objects depending on their density. The term particle is rather general in meaning, and is refined as needed by various scientific fields, something that is composed of particles may be referred to as being particulate. However, the particulate is most frequently used to refer to pollutants in the Earths atmosphere. The concept of particles is particularly useful when modelling nature, as the treatment of many phenomena can be complex. It can be used to make simplifying assumptions concerning the processes involved, francis Sears and Mark Zemansky, in University Physics, give the example of calculating the landing location and speed of a baseball thrown in the air. The treatment of large numbers of particles is the realm of statistical physics, the term particle is usually applied differently to three classes of sizes. The term macroscopic particle, usually refers to particles much larger than atoms and these are usually abstracted as point-like particles, or even invisible. This is even though they have volumes, shapes, structures, examples of macroscopic particles would include powder, dust, sand, pieces of debris during a car accident, or even objects as big as the stars of a galaxy. Another type, microscopic particles usually refers to particles of sizes ranging from atoms to molecules, such as carbon dioxide, nanoparticles and these particles are studied in chemistry, as well as atomic and molecular physics. The smallest of particles are the particles, which refer to particles smaller than atoms. These particles are studied in particle physics, because of their extremely small size, the study of microscopic and subatomic particles fall in the realm of quantum mechanics. Particles can also be classified according to composition, composite particles refer to particles that have composition – that is particles which are made of other particles. For example, an atom is made of six protons, eight neutrons. By contrast, elementary particles refer to particles that are not made of other particles, according to our current understanding of the world, only a very small number of these exist, such as the leptons, quarks or gluons. However it is possible some of these might turn up to be composite particles after all. While composite particles can very often be considered point-like, elementary particles are truly punctual, both elementary and composite particles, are known to undergo particle decay
4.
Sand
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Sand is a naturally occurring granular material composed of finely divided rock and mineral particles. It is defined by size, being finer than gravel and coarser than silt, Sand can also refer to a textural class of soil or soil type, i. e. a soil containing more than 85% sand-sized particles by mass. The second most common type of sand is calcium carbonate, for example aragonite, for example, it is the primary form of sand apparent in areas where reefs have dominated the ecosystem for millions of years like the Caribbean. Sand is a non renewable resource over human timescales, and sand suitable for making concrete is in high demand, in terms of particle size as used by geologists, sand particles range in diameter from 0.0625 mm to 2 mm. An individual particle in this size is termed a sand grain. Sand grains are between gravel and silt, a 1953 engineering standard published by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials set the minimum sand size at 0.074 mm. A1938 specification of the United States Department of Agriculture was 0.05 mm. Sand feels gritty when rubbed between the fingers. ISO14688 grades sands as fine, medium and coarse with ranges 0.063 mm to 0.2 mm to 0.63 mm to 2.0 mm. In the United States, sand is commonly divided into five sub-categories based on size, very fine sand, fine sand, medium sand, coarse sand, and very coarse sand. These sizes are based on the Krumbein phi scale, where size in Φ = -log2D, on this scale, for sand the value of Φ varies from −1 to +4, with the divisions between sub-categories at whole numbers. The composition of sand is highly variable, depending on the local rock sources. The gypsum sand dunes of the White Sands National Monument in New Mexico are famous for their bright, arkose is a sand or sandstone with considerable feldspar content, derived from weathering and erosion of a granitic rock outcrop. Some sands contain magnetite, chlorite, glauconite or gypsum, Sands rich in magnetite are dark to black in color, as are sands derived from volcanic basalts and obsidian. Chlorite-glauconite bearing sands are typically green in color, as are sands derived from basaltic with a high olivine content, many sands, especially those found extensively in Southern Europe, have iron impurities within the quartz crystals of the sand, giving a deep yellow color. Sand deposits in some areas contain garnets and other resistant minerals, the study of individual grains can reveal much historical information as to the origin and kind of transport of the grain. Quartz sand that is weathered from granite or gneiss quartz crystals will be angular. It is called grus in geology or sharp sand in the trade where it is preferred for concrete. Sand that is transported long distances by water or wind will be rounded, people who collect sand as a hobby are known as arenophiles
5.
Soil
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Soil is a mixture of minerals, organic matter, gases, liquids, and countless organisms that together support life on Earth. Soil is called the Skin of the Earth and interfaces with the lithosphere, the hydrosphere, the atmosphere, the term pedolith, used commonly to refer to the soil, literally translates ground stone. Soil consists of a phase of minerals and organic matter, as well as a porous phase that holds gases. Accordingly, soils are often treated as a system of solids, liquids. Soil is a product of the influence of climate, relief, organisms, Soil continually undergoes development by way of numerous physical, chemical and biological processes, which include weathering with associated erosion. Given its complexity and strong internal connectedness soil has been considered as an ecosystem by soil ecologists. Most soils have a dry bulk density between 1.1 and 1.6 g/cm3, while the particle density is much higher. Little of the soil of planet Earth is older than the Pleistocene and none is older than the Cenozoic, Soil science has two basic branches of study, edaphology and pedology. Edaphology is concerned with the influence of soils on living things, pedology is focused on the formation, description, and classification of soils in their natural environment. In engineering terms, soil is referred to as regolith, or loose material that lies above the solid geology. Soil is commonly referred to as earth or dirt, technically, as soil resources serve as a basis for food security, the international community advocates its sustainable and responsible use through different types of soil governance. Soil is a component of the Earths ecosystem. The worlds ecosystems are impacted in far-reaching ways by the carried out in the soil, from ozone depletion and global warming, to rainforest destruction. Following the atmosphere, the soil is the next largest carbon reservoir on Earth, as the planet warms, soils will add carbon dioxide to the atmosphere due to its increased biological activity at higher temperatures. Thus, soil carbon losses likely have a positive feedback response to global warming. Since soil has a range of available niches and habitats. A gram of soil can contain billions of organisms, belonging to thousands of species, mostly microbial, Soil has a mean prokaryotic density of roughly 108 organisms per gram, whereas the ocean has no more than 107 procaryotic organisms per milliliter of seawater. Since plant roots need oxygen, ventilation is an important characteristic of soil and this ventilation can be accomplished via networks of interconnected soil pores, which also absorb and hold rainwater making it readily available for plant uptake
6.
Gravel
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Gravel /ˈɡrævəl/ is composed of unconsolidated rock fragments that have a general particle size range and include size classes from granule- to boulder-sized fragments. Gravel is categorized by the Udden-Wentworth scale into granular gravel and pebble gravel, one cubic metre of gravel typically weighs about 1,800 kg. Gravel is an important commercial product, with a number of applications, many roadways are surfaced with gravel, especially in rural areas where there is little traffic. Globally, far more roads are surfaced with gravel than with concrete or tarmac, both sand and small gravel are also important for the manufacture of concrete. Large gravel deposits are a geological feature, being formed as a result of the weathering. The action of rivers and waves tends to pile up gravel in large accumulations and this can sometimes result in gravel becoming compacted and concreted into the sedimentary rock called conglomerate. Where natural gravel deposits are insufficient for human purposes, gravel is often produced by quarrying and crushing hard-wearing rocks, such as sandstone, limestone, quarries where gravel is extracted are known as gravel pits. Southern England possesses particularly large concentrations of them due to the deposition of gravel in the region during the Ice Ages. As of 2006, the United States is the leading producer and consumer of gravel. The word gravel comes from the Breton language, adding the -el suffix in Breton denotes the component parts of something larger. Thus gravel means the stones which make up such a beach on the coast. Many dictionaries ignore the Breton language, citing Old French gravele or gravelle, Gravel often has the meaning a mixture of different size pieces of stone mixed with sand and possibly some clay. American English also allows small stones without sand mixed in also known as crushed stone, types of gravel include, Bank gravel, naturally deposited gravel intermixed with sand or clay found in and next to rivers and streams. Also known as Bank run or River run, bench gravel, a bed of gravel located on the side of a valley above the present stream bottom, indicating the former location of the stream bed when it was at a higher level. Creek rock, this is rounded, semi-polished stones, potentially of a wide range of types. It is also used as concrete aggregate and less often as a paving surface. Crushed stone, rock crushed and graded by screens and then mixed to a blend of stones and fines and it is widely used as a surfacing for roads and driveways, sometimes with tar applied over it. Crushed stone may be made from granite, limestone, dolomite, also known as crusher run, DGA QP, and shoulder stone
7.
Coin
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A coin is a small, flat, round piece of metal or plastic used primarily as a medium of exchange or legal tender. They are standardized in weight, and produced in quantities at a mint in order to facilitate trade. They are most often issued by a government, Coins are usually metal or alloy, or sometimes made of synthetic materials. Coins made of metal are stored in large quantities as bullion coins. Other coins are used as money in transactions, circulating alongside banknotes. Usually the highest value coin in circulation is less than the lowest-value note. In the last hundred years, the value of circulation coins has occasionally been lower than the value of the metal they contain. Exceptions to the rule of face value being higher than content value also occur for some bullion coins made of copper, silver, or gold, while the Eagle, Maple Leaf, and Sovereign coins have nominal face values, the Krugerrand does not. The first coins were developed independently in Iron Age Anatolia and Archaic Greece, India, Coins spread rapidly in the 6th and 5th centuries BCE, throughout Greece and Persia, and further to the Balkans. Standardized Roman currency was used throughout the Roman Empire, important Roman gold and silver coins were continued into the Middle Ages. Fiat money first arose in medieval China, with the paper money. Early paper money was introduced in Europe in the later Middle Ages, the penny was minted as a silver coin until the 17th century. The first circulating United States coins were cents, produced in 1793, Coins were an evolution of currency systems of the Late Bronze Age, where standard-sized ingots, and tokens such as knife money, were used to store and transfer value. In the late Chinese Bronze Age, standardized cast tokens were made and these were replicas in bronze of earlier Chinese currency, cowrie shells, so they were named Bronze Shell. According to Aristotle and Pollux, the first issuer of coins was Hermodike of Kyme The earliest coins are associated with Iron Age Anatolia. Early electrum coins were not standardized in weight, and in their earliest stage may have been ritual objects, such as badges or medals, issued by priests. The first Lydian coins were made of electrum, a naturally occurring alloy of silver, most of the early Lydian coins include no writing, only an image of a symbolic animal. Anatolian Artemis was the Πὀτνια Θηρῶν, whose symbol was the stag, a small percentage of early Lydian/Greek coins have a legend
8.
Liquid
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A liquid is a nearly incompressible fluid that conforms to the shape of its container but retains a constant volume independent of pressure. As such, it is one of the four states of matter. A liquid is made up of tiny vibrating particles of matter, such as atoms, water is, by far, the most common liquid on Earth. Like a gas, a liquid is able to flow and take the shape of a container, most liquids resist compression, although others can be compressed. Unlike a gas, a liquid does not disperse to fill every space of a container, a distinctive property of the liquid state is surface tension, leading to wetting phenomena. The density of a liquid is usually close to that of a solid, therefore, liquid and solid are both termed condensed matter. On the other hand, as liquids and gases share the ability to flow, although liquid water is abundant on Earth, this state of matter is actually the least common in the known universe, because liquids require a relatively narrow temperature/pressure range to exist. Most known matter in the universe is in form as interstellar clouds or in plasma form within stars. Liquid is one of the four states of matter, with the others being solid, gas. Unlike a solid, the molecules in a liquid have a greater freedom to move. The forces that bind the molecules together in a solid are only temporary in a liquid, a liquid, like a gas, displays the properties of a fluid. A liquid can flow, assume the shape of a container, if liquid is placed in a bag, it can be squeezed into any shape. These properties make a suitable for applications such as hydraulics. Liquid particles are bound firmly but not rigidly and they are able to move around one another freely, resulting in a limited degree of particle mobility. As the temperature increases, the vibrations of the molecules causes distances between the molecules to increase. When a liquid reaches its point, the cohesive forces that bind the molecules closely together break. If the temperature is decreased, the distances between the molecules become smaller, only two elements are liquid at standard conditions for temperature and pressure, mercury and bromine. Four more elements have melting points slightly above room temperature, francium, caesium, gallium and rubidium, metal alloys that are liquid at room temperature include NaK, a sodium-potassium metal alloy, galinstan, a fusible alloy liquid, and some amalgams
9.
Friction
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Friction is the force resisting the relative motion of solid surfaces, fluid layers, and material elements sliding against each other. There are several types of friction, Dry friction resists relative lateral motion of two surfaces in contact. Dry friction is subdivided into static friction between non-moving surfaces, and kinetic friction between moving surfaces, fluid friction describes the friction between layers of a viscous fluid that are moving relative to each other. Lubricated friction is a case of fluid friction where a lubricant fluid separates two solid surfaces, skin friction is a component of drag, the force resisting the motion of a fluid across the surface of a body. Internal friction is the force resisting motion between the making up a solid material while it undergoes deformation. When surfaces in contact move relative to other, the friction between the two surfaces converts kinetic energy into thermal energy. This property can have consequences, as illustrated by the use of friction created by rubbing pieces of wood together to start a fire. Kinetic energy is converted to thermal energy whenever motion with friction occurs, another important consequence of many types of friction can be wear, which may lead to performance degradation and/or damage to components. Friction is a component of the science of tribology, Friction is not itself a fundamental force. Dry friction arises from a combination of adhesion, surface roughness, surface deformation. The complexity of interactions makes the calculation of friction from first principles impractical and necessitates the use of empirical methods for analysis. Friction is a non-conservative force - work done against friction is path dependent, in the presence of friction, some energy is always lost in the form of heat. Thus mechanical energy is not conserved, the Greeks, including Aristotle, Vitruvius, and Pliny the Elder, were interested in the cause and mitigation of friction. They were aware of differences between static and kinetic friction with Themistius stating in 350 A. D. that it is easier to further the motion of a moving body than to move a body at rest. The classic laws of sliding friction were discovered by Leonardo da Vinci in 1493, a pioneer in tribology and these laws were rediscovered by Guillaume Amontons in 1699. Amontons presented the nature of friction in terms of surface irregularities, the understanding of friction was further developed by Charles-Augustin de Coulomb. Coulomb further considered the influence of sliding velocity, temperature and humidity, the distinction between static and dynamic friction is made in Coulombs friction law, although this distinction was already drawn by Johann Andreas von Segner in 1758. Leslie was equally skeptical about the role of adhesion proposed by Desaguliers, in Leslies view, friction should be seen as a time-dependent process of flattening, pressing down asperities, which creates new obstacles in what were cavities before
10.
Slope stability
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Slope stability is the potential of soil covered slopes to withstand and undergo movement. Stability is determined by the balance of stress and shear strength. A previously stable slope may be affected by preparatory factors. Triggering factors of a failure can be climatic events which can then make a slope actively unstable. Mass movements can be caused by increase in stress, such as loading, lateral pressure. Alternatively, shear strength may be decreased by weathering, changes in water pressure. Slope stability investigation, analysis, and design mitigation is typically completed by geologists, engineering geologists, as seen in Figure 1, earthen slopes can develop a cut-spherical weakness area. The probability of this happening can be calculated in advance using a simple 2-D circular analysis package, a primary difficulty with analysis is locating the most-probable slip plane for any given situation. Many landslides have only been analyzed after the fact, more recently slope stability radar technology has been employed, particularly in the mining industry, to gather real time data and assist in pro-actively determining the likelihood of slope failure. Real life failures in naturally deposited mixed soils are not necessarily circular, nevertheless, failures in pure clay can be quite close to circular. This is combined with increased soil weight due to the added groundwater, a shrinkage crack at the top of the slip may also fill with rain water, pushing the slip forward. At the other extreme, slab-shaped slips on hillsides can remove a layer of soil from the top of the underlying bedrock, again, this is usually initiated by heavy rain, sometimes combined with increased loading from new buildings or removal of support at the toe. Stability can thus be improved by installing drainage paths to reduce the destabilising forces. Once the slip has occurred, however, a weakness along the slip circle remains, Slope stability issues can be seen with almost any walk down a ravine in an urban setting. An example is shown in Figure 3, where a river is eroding the toe of a slope, and there is a swimming pool near the top of the slope. If the toe is eroded too far, or the swimming pool begins to leak, the forces driving a slope failure will exceed those resisting failure, if the forces available to resist movement are greater than the forces driving movement, the slope is considered stable. A factor of safety is calculated by dividing the forces resisting movement by the forces driving movement, discontinuity layout optimization Mass wasting Mohr-Coulomb theory Slope stability analysis Slope stability radar Coduto, Donald P. Geotechnical Engineering, Principles and Practices. ISBN 0-13-576380-0 Fredlund, D. G. H. Rahardjo, unsaturated Soil Mechanics in Engineering Practice
