While driving West cross country decades ago, I noticed a section where it looked like someone had plopped down hundreds if not thousands of spherical boulders so that only the upper half was visible. I thought it was in Wyoming, but not even my best Google foo has allowed me to re-find where this geographic phenomena is located.

I'm retired and want to drive I-80 again with intent to stop and observe this site more closely. Any clues, or am I chasing a hallucination that resulted from to many hour driving?

TIA

Hear me out. I understand that plate tectonics and some sort of vulcanic eruptions create new stuff but shouldn’t all the rest of it be the age of the whole planet. I’m trippin

Cross posting this with the r/soil community. I want to understand the origins of soils in terms of long term geological processes, to place their physical and nutritional qualities in context of the Earth's geoevolution. In reading about the formation and structure of clays, I found myself asking questions that seem to indicate some fundamental misunderstandings on my part...

My impression is that clays are formed from the weathering of silicate minerals, as part of various rocks... phyllosilicates can crystalize from igneous activity directly, then weather to smaller bits of phyllosilicate until they are classed as clays? I suppose other classes of silicate minerals.. tectosilicates like feldspar.. also originate from igneous activity, and can be chemically weathered to release SiO4, which can independently bond together to form clays, or attach to preexisting compatible clays?

That simple series of confusions leads me to an even more simple question... what makes a 1:1 clay a distinct and stable category, and not a partial or intermediate stage in the formation of a 2:1 clay? It seems, from the molecular diagrams of 1:1 clays.. a layer of silica tetrahedra sharing oxygens with a layer of aluminum octahedra.. that they are identical to a 2:1 clay, but lacking the third layer. What, if anything, prevents another layer of silica from beginning to form a new layer on the aluminum, creating a 2:1 clay?

I appreciate any time that people might take to help set me on the right track here. I realize that the breadth of my ignorance of geology may necessitate some lengthy explanations, which I would, of course, appreciate. However, if there are any texts or resources that could help with a more thorough understanding, I would appreciate those equally, since time can be spent in other ways than helping laypeople fumble with basic geology.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2024/11/16/geology-is-racist-claims-university-professor/

Remind me of the old joke that a geographer can describe the earth but only a geologist can explain it.

https://jaysbrickblog.com/news/minerals-display-announced-as-your-next-lego-ideas-set/

Hi all. I am a first year MSc student in economic geology from South Africa. Focusing on upper mantle petrology and economic geology. My supervisor gave me an option to upgrade my MSc to a PhD and expand the project however I want it. My funding will continue until I either graduate with MSc or PhD.

I'd like to get some advice. I'm interested in academia and research as a career path, but am also keeping my options open for the industry (my 2nd option). 1. Can I still do internships etc with a PhD, or will I be limited? 2. Is a PhD in geology worth it? Any advice will be greatly appreciated.

when i look it up how many tectonic plates are there the main result is 7 major plates and 8 minor plates plates while this photo is from this source shows otherwise https://www.lyellcollection.org/doi/10.1144/SP544-2024-28 why is that did the plates in the photo merge to form a super tectonic plate?

Found along Table Rocks Trail at Mohonk Preserve

Hello, folks. I've been struggling to decide whether I go do CE or GE. I love Geology, paleontology, earth sciences and I've been having a lot of interest in astrogeology. However, I do have a thing for chemistry as well and I feel like Chemical Engineering would have more field of work. Honestly, sometimes I start thinking that I would out of jobs if mining industry "slowed down" or got smaller is certain minerals weren't necessary anymore. (forgive me, I am ignorant in this topic).

Mind you, I don't want to just go to Geology, bur Geological Engineering. I don't live in a developed country, but my course/institution wouldn't be so bad. Anyways, the geological engeneering choice has a lot of math, chesmistry, geophysics. If I go towards that route, should I get a masters in a field that has an emphasis on chemistry?

I still have time to decide, but I wanr your opinion. Thank you so much in advance and I'm sorry for any mistakes, I'm not a native English speaker.

Hi, is there anything in literature, book or publication, that deals with paleogeology and evolution in tandem? Thank you!