Science project

4. The breakdown of rocks and minerals by chemical reactions, the dissolving of chemical elements from rocks, or both.
7. The mechanical breakdown of rocks and minerals.
9. The ability of a particular soil to adsorb and release cations.
10. The underlying rock material from which the inorganic components of a soil are derived.
12. A soil horizon composed primarily of mineral material with very little organic matter.
14. Unwanted waste material created during mining including mineral and other residues that are left behind after the desired metal or ore is removed.
15. The proportion of soil bases to soil acids, expressed as a percentage.
19. The loss of some or all of a soil's ability to support plant growth.
21. The least-weathered soil horizon, which always occurs beneath the B horizon and is similar to the parent material.
23. The process of looking for minerals, metals, and precious stones in river sediments.
24. The organic horizon at the surface of many soils, composed of organic detritus in various stages of decomposition.
25. A mining technique in which the entire top of a mountain is removed with explosives.

1. also known as
2. A mining technique that creates a large visible pit or hole in the ground.
3. Mining techniques used when the desired resource is more than 100 m (328 feet) below the surface of Earth.
5. The most fully decomposed organic matter in the lowest section of the O horizon.
6. The physical removal of rock fragments from a landscape or ecosystem.
8. Precipitation high in sulfuric acid and nitric acid from reactions between water vapor and sulfur and nitrogen oxides in the atmosphere.
11. Frequently the top layer of soil, a zone of organic material and minerals that have been mixed together. Also known as Topsoil.
13. A concentrated accumulation of minerals from which economically valuable materials can be extracted.
14. An element with properties that allow it to conduct electricity and heat energy, and to perform other important functions.
16. The removal of strips of soil and rock to expose ore.
17. The average concentration of an element in Earth's crust.
18. In resource management, the known quantity of a resource that can be economically recovered.
20. A zone of leaching, or eluviation, found in some acidic soils under the O horizon or, less often, the A horizon.
22. A horizontal layer in a soil defined by distinctive physical features such as texture and color.