Different soil types are variably distributed across Earth's continents, dependent upon the varying relative influence of the state factors of soil formation. These varying soil types are recognized by the characteristics you studied when considering soil description and classification. The various soil types are mappable units; that is, they exist as coherent bodies of similar soil material which eventually merge laterally with other soil types, bedrock, or unaltered sediment. The process by which the distribution of the different soil types are mapped in the field is called soil surveying or soil mapping [1].
The term "soil survey" is also used to describe the published results of soil mapping efforts. Typically these published reports include information about slope, permeability, and drainage characteristics, to name a few and are therefore very important reference manuals in land-use planning and decision making. In the United States, we are fortunate to have a Federal agency which oversees soil mapping, currently named the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS).
For this assignment, you will need to record your work on a word processing document. Your work must be submitted in Word (.doc) or PDF (.pdf) format so I can open it. In addition, documents must be double-spaced and typed in 12 point Times Roman font.
You will be graded on the quality of your writing. You should not simply write responses to the questions and submit them to me. Instead plan on writing a short stand-alone paragraph (or page or whatever you decide is necessary considering any constraints I might have placed on you) so that anyone can read what you've written and understood it. You should strive to be specific and complete in responding to the questions. Your answers should be analytic, thoughtful and insightful, and should provide an insightful connection between ideas. The writing should be tight and crisp with varied sentence structure and a serious, professional tone.