Your Name: __________________________________________

How the Earth Was Made: NYC (2009)

1. What is the type of bedrock found in downtown and midtown Manhattan where
skyscrapers are tallest?

Answer (Timestamp): Manhattan Schist (3:14:00)

2. The bedrock in Manhattan was formed deep under earth’s surface but these rocks are
now at the surface. What gigantic weight was on top of these rocks in the geologic past?

Answer (Timestamp): The crushing weight of a chain of massive mountains (5:52:00)

3. 250 million years ago there was a mass extinction event on earth. Half of all plant and
animal species disappeared. What evidence in the NYC area supports the existence of
the event?

Answer (Timestamp): Lots of reptile fossils in the NYC area (12:54:00)

4. What was the natural disaster that caused the extinction event 250 million years ago?
Give details including evidence in the NYC area.

Answer (Timestamp): Global volcanic disaster: volcanic eruption caused massive flow of hot
lava (14:16:00)

5. What geologic process left boulders in Central Park that originated far away and also
smoothed and created grooves in the hard metamorphic rock found there?

Answer (Timestamp): Melting of glacial ice (22:23:00)

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6. What forces created the Hudson River of today from the small stream millions of years
ago? What did the forces do to the shape of the Hudson Valley?

Answer (Timestamp): Forces of strange boulders that scattered throughout Manhattan’s

Central Park (21:28:00)

7. What powerful force destroyed the rock ridge that was across today’s NY Harbor and
when did this occur? What evidence supports this force?

Answer (Timestamp): Gigantic glacial ice movement (24:07:00)

8. What is the name of the trees found on top of Covey Hill in the northern Adirondacks?

Answer (Timestamp): Jack pine (31:40:00)

9. What is the name of the bridge that spans the channel that was created during the event
that destroyed the ridge that was across today’s NY Harbor?

Answer (Timestamp): Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge (34:51:00)

10. What could happen if a north-moving hurricane approached NYC? Discuss details and
be sure to include information how Long Island relates.

Answer (Timestamp): Flooding will occur and make the Canal Street an island since it is
sandwiched between the Hudson River and the East River (36:45:00). The New York is
additionally located on the coastline with the Long Island to the North and New Jersey to the
south making NYC vulnerable to flooding from the north-moving hurricane.

11. When was the last earthquake in NYC and what was its intensity?

Answer (Timestamp): January 17 2001, Intensity: 2.4 (39:50:00)

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