earth science

Los Bastos Formation

Los Bastos Formation is a earth science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Los Bastos Formation rather than just read about it. In short: Los Bastos Formation is a geologic formation of the Neuquén Basin in the northern Patagonian provinces of Mendoza and Neuquén. The formation dates to the Late Cretaceous, early to middle Coniacian, and belongs to the Río Neuquén Subgroup of the Neuquén Group.

Key takeaways

Los Bastos Formation belongs to earth science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Los Bastos Formation to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Los Bastos Formation from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Los Bastos Formation is a geologic formation of the Neuquén Basin in the northern Patagonian provinces of Mendoza and Neuquén. The formation dates to the Late Cretaceous, early to middle Coniacian, and belongs to the Río Neuquén Subgroup of the Neuquén Group. The formation overlies the Portezuelo Formation, in which it was formerly included and is overlain by the Sierra Barrosa Formation. Los Bastos Formation comprises mudstones and sandstones deposited in a fluvial environment. A meridiolestid mammal were recovered from the formation.

Description The formation was named by Garrido in 2010 as shaly unit conformably and transitionally overlying the Portezuelo Formation, to which the layers were formerly defined and in the same manner underlying the Sierra Barrosa Formation, all belonging to the Río Neuquén Subgroup of the Neuquén Group in the Neuquén Basin. The unit now known as Los Bastos Formation was included in the original definition by Herrero Ducloux (1938, 1939) as "Portezuelo Medio", as part of the "Portezuelo Beds" he described. The type locality of the formation is located at the foot of the outcrop of the eponymous Los Bastos Field, between the localities of Sierra Barrosa and Cerro Senillosa. The formation at its type section reaches a thickness of 35 metres (115 ft). The formation comprises red mudstones intercalated by thin levels of siltstones and fine well-sorted yellowish to greenish grey sandstones. The formation has similar lithological characteristics as the Lisandro Formation and was deposited in a fluvial environment characterized by sinuous channels. Based on the stratigraphic relations with the overlying and underlying units, the age has been estimated to be early to middle Coniacian.

Fossil content The formation has provided fossils of:

Mammals Meridiolestida indet.

See also List of dinosaur bearing rock formations

References

Bibliography Forasiepi, A. M.; Coria, R. A.; Hurum, J.; Currie, P. J. (2012), "First dryolestoid (Mammalia, Dryolestoidea, Meridiolestida) from the Coniacian of Patagonia and new evidence on their early radiation in South America", Ameghiniana, 49 (4): 497–504, doi:10.5710/AMGH.8.8.2012.581 Garrido, Alberto C (2011), El Grupo Neuquén (Cretácico Tardío) en la Cuenca Neuquina, XVIII Congreso Geológico Argentino, pp. 231–244, retrieved 2020-07-07

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Los Bastos Formation

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Los Bastos Formation claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In earth science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Los Bastos Formation before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Los Bastos Formation ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Los Bastos Formation

In research: Los Bastos Formation appears in earth science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Los Bastos Formation in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Los Bastos Formation is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Coniacian Stage, Cretaceous Argentina, Fluvial deposits, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Los Bastos Formation outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Los Bastos Formation in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Los Bastos Formation means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Los Bastos Formation out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Los Bastos Formation in simple terms?

Why does Los Bastos Formation matter?

Because it connects several earth science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Los Bastos Formation?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Los Bastos Formation.