MIDTERM_FORENSIC_

• Soil 


  is the substance on the surface of the earth in which plants grow, and it is a major component of the earth's ecosystem.
• Oil is the largest sufficient global carbon reservoir on earth.
• Pedosphere each body of soil, which is called the pedosphere. It is also commonly referred to as earth or dirt.
• Pedolith

  • use commonly to refer to the soil, translates to ground stone in the sense of “fundamental stone.”
• Petrology


  is the branch of geology that studies rocks in the condition under which they form. It has three subdivisions: igneous, metamorphic, and sedimentary petrology.
• Petrography

  is a branch of petrology that focuses on detailed description of rocks, which is based on the information acquired during the petrographic analysis.
• Forensic Soil Science


  is the science or study of soil that involves the application of soil science, especially studies that involve soil morphology soil mapping, mineralogy, chemistry, geophysics, biology, and molecular biology.
• Pedology

  or a field of discipline within soil science which focuses on characterizing formation, evolution, and the theoretical frameworks to understand a soil body.
• Edaphology


  which is traditionally more agronomically oriented and focuses on how soil properties influence plant communities, whether natural or cultivated soils
• Forensic Analysis of Soil


  the use of soil sciences and other disciplines to aid in criminal investigation.
• Mineralogical Examination


  is essential in the conduct of forensic analysis of soil.
• Alluvial Soil

  Alluvium, from the Latin "alluvius," from alluere, meaning “to wash against,” is loose, unconsolidated, or not cemented together into a solid rock, this is a soil or sediment that has been eroded, reshaped by water in some form, and redeposit in a non-marine setting.
• Colluvial Soil

  also called colluvial material or colluvial soil, is general name for loose, and consolidated sediments that have been deposited at the base of hill slopes by either rain wash, sheet wash, slow continuous downslope creep, or a variable combination of these processes.
• Sedimentary Soil

  this is inactive, not migratory soil. These are also some mineral soils develop from a parent material which is broken down on location into small particles through weathering.
• Sandy Soil

  is light, warm, dry and tends to be acidic and low in nutrients. This category of soil is often known as light soils due to their high proportion of sand and little clay, or clay that weighs more than sand.
• Clay Soil


  Is a heavy soil type that benefits from high nutrients. Clay soil remains wet and cold in winter and dry out in summer. This soil is made of over 25% clay. Is soil that is comprised of very fine mineral particles and not much organic material.
• Silt Soil


  is a light and moisture retentive soil type with a high fertility rating seal soil compromise of medium sized particles, they are well drained and hold moisture well.
• Peat Soil


  it is a high inorganic matter and retains a large amount of moisture. This type of soil is very rarely found in a garden and often imported into a garden to provide an optimum soil base for planting.
• Chalk Soil

  can be either light or heavy but always highly alkaline due to the calcium carbonate or lime within its structure.
• Loam Soil

  is a mixture of sand, silt and clay that are combined to avoid the negative effects of each type.
• Sediment

  the original solid particles that were weathered and transported. This could be in the form of a grain of rock that breaks off the larger parent materials, or a larger version of rock.
• Color


  this indicates its history as well as the compounds present in soil
• Structure


  this indicates whether a soil is composed of single grain particle or not.
• Peds are form due to cementing agents such as calcium carbonate attracting the soil particles…
• Bulky Peds

  • which are small conglomerates or masses.
• Platy Peds which are flat and sheet like.
• Horizonation


  is a layer parallel to the soil surface whose physical, chemical, and biological characteristics differ from the layers above and beneath
• Soil Color


  this varies with the ecosystem in which the soils formed and is influenced by parent material and some other factors.
• Soil Texture


  is a classification instrument used both in the field and laboratory to determine soil classes based on their physical texture
• Soil Structure

  describes the arrangement of the solid parts of the soil and of the pore space located between them.
• Soil Consistence


  provides a means of describing the degree and kind of cohesion and adhesion between the soil particles as related to the resistance of the soil to deform or rupture
• Bulk Density


  is an indicator of soil compaction.
• Cation Exchange Capacity


  is a useful indicator of soil fertility because it shows the soil's ability to supply three important plant nutrients: calcium, magnesium, and potassium
• Soil Reaction or Ph

  is an indicator of the acidity or alkalinity of soil and is measured in pH units.
• Soil Morphology

  is the study of the formation and description of soil types within various soil horizons.
• Pedon


  smallest unit, containing all soil horizons
• Soil Mapping

  is a geographical representation showing diversity of soil types or soil properties in the area of interest.
• Soil Mineralogy

  is concerned with the inorganic minerals found in the pedosphere and to the depth of weathering.
• Chemistry


  is the study of the chemical characteristics of soil.
• Geophysics

  are used to study science samples based on their physical properties obtained in real time.