ShmoopTube

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[Dino and Coop singing]

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Choosing a pet can be hard. [Dog asleep on a chair]

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Sure, dogs and cats are some of the most affectionate pets around, but who wants to pick up poop [Cat licking a girl's face]

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every day? Not us. [Cat litter]

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And fish are most certainly the easiest pet to care for, but you can't exactly play fetch

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with one, now can you? [Girl chucking a stick for a fish to fetch]

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But never fear. We have found the perfect pet for you… one that's

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often overlooked, but pretty much perfect… [Tortoise walking around]

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The pet rock.

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They're obedient, trust-worthy, and you can take them anywhere. They don't make a mess

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and you don't even need to feed them. What's not to love? [Bowl of cereal next to the pet rock]

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Best of all, rock can be found everywhere!

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In fact, one specific kind of rock covers 75% of the Earth's land surface – sedimentary rock.

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And no, that's not a type of relaxing soft rock music you might hear in a new age spa. [People relaxing in a spa]

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Sedimentary rock is rock formed by “sediment” - that is, the remains of rock getting moved [Coop pointing at a blackboard]

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from one place to another before settling and eventually combining with other sediments [Dino pointing at a blackboard]

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to form a new rock.

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Sedimentary rock includes the most common rock types you'll find on Earth, like chalk,

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limestone, sandstone, clay and shale. And as we all know, we humans are a resourceful

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bunch – if there's a whole lot of something just sitting around, well, we're not just [Wheelbarrow full of clay]

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gonna let it sit around doing nothing for much longer. We're going to put it to use! [Someone modelling clay]

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And throughout history, humans have put sedimentary rock to good use.

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One of the most famous examples of humans using rocks is when the ancient Egyptians [Picture of the pyramids]

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used limestone to build the pyramids over 4,000 years ago.

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Huge bricks of stone were carved from quarries of limestone before being pulled by thousands

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and thousands of slaves and stacked on top of one another to form the pyramids.

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It's thought that building the pyramids took approximately twenty years, and they remain

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one of the great wonders of the ancient world. [Tourist taking a picture of the pyramids]

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Plus, they're nice little toys for that giant cat to bat around.

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Other famous examples of structures built using sedimentary rock include... [Picture of the Sphinx]

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Machu Picchu, which was built in the 15th century in Peru and has nothing to do with Pokémon… [Picture of Pikachu appears]

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The Great Wall of China, completed in the 14th century in, you guessed it, China...

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Big Ben, built in 1859 in London...

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And the White House, finished in 1800 in Washington, D.C..

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These are just a few examples of the many amazing structures we've built using the Earth's [Examples of sedimentary rocks]

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sedimentary rock – making it the world's most important rock. [A 'most important rock' medal is stuck to one of the rocks]

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Well…except for rock and roll. Sorry, sedimentary rock. Rock and roll is always king. [Elvis dancing]

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