Read rock-cycle diagrams in ManYue: distinguish metamorphism from melting

The rock cycle is not a required igneous-sedimentary-metamorphic queue, and heating does not establish melting. Read original process cards in ManYue, separating rock states from changes before tracing two pathways. Focus on solid-state metamorphism versus melting and crystallisation. It provides no field identification or automatic rock recognition.

Separate rock classes and material states

Use rock-class boxes for igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic rocks, with separate sediment and magma states. Loose particles and melt are not silently treated as the same rock. Vertical order supplies no age and arrows no equal durations. Record file, legend and schematic conditions without invented temperature/pressure measurements. Three coloured stones alone cannot establish a cycle, history or mineral composition.

Distinguish weathering from transport

Weathering produces particles or alters material, transport moves it and deposition accumulates it. A flow arrow does not automatically establish all stages; unpack combined labels in notes. Different rock classes can weather, not only igneous rock. Smaller drawn fragments do not establish younger strata, equal transport distances or measured size/time/amount. Keep unavailable quantities blank instead of extracting field measurements from cartoon appearance.

Keep lithification distinct from melting

Compaction and cementation can explain sediment becoming sedimentary rock; do not replace this with melting and solidifying. Real cements and conditions vary, so no identical mineral or pressure is prescribed for every sedimentary rock. Neat coloured bands are schematic evidence, not definitive sedimentary classification: metamorphic structures can also be banded. Use process labels and other information rather than texture alone.

Retain the no-melting condition for metamorphism

USGS describes heat, pressure and mineral-rich fluids in metamorphism without melting the rock. Label the protolith-to-metamorphic arrow within that solid-state scope, rather than equate all heating with igneous formation. A metamorphic protolith can metamorphose again without first becoming igneous. Red heat symbols do not measure a fixed threshold. Without pressure, composition and time, an arrow cannot establish one inevitable resulting rock type.

Treat melting and cooling as another pathway

Melting enters the magma state, followed by cooling and crystallisation into igneous rock, distinct from nonmelting metamorphism. Read whether a flame symbol labels heating, metamorphism or melting rather than classify by icon alone. Surface eruption, cooling rate and crystal size need their own evidence. A metamorphic source does not make the subsequently melted-and-crystallised product permanently metamorphic; use the current formation process and evidence rather than its earliest origin.

Use two original routes to test nonfixed cycling

Route A takes igneous rock through weathering, sediment, lithification and nonmelting metamorphism. B goes from igneous directly to metamorphic, then melting, magma and crystallisation. Label actions, not only classes. These are possible conceptual paths, not a tracked specimen or equal-duration sequence. Missing arrows remain omissions rather than invented events. Cycling connects processes without requiring one fixed itinerary.

Check icons and arrow connections in the reader

Read the original PDF whole, then enlarge process labels and check endpoints and whether paths enter magma. Crossed lines need not connect; follow nodes and legends so metamorphism is not accidentally joined to melting. Consult a clear source for unreadable labels rather than guess from stratigraphy. Share original cards without valuing or assigning uses to field stones. Displayed colours do not establish mineral analysis, and unperformed import/return checks remain unperformed.

Reopen and explain processes rather than colours

Reopen and hide class names, reconstructing both routes from process words before restoring labels. Keep sediment/magma states, lithification, nonmelting metamorphism and missing environmental parameters. Explain why banding is not unique classification and heating is not melting rather than merely recite three classes. Re-trace changed diagrams and evidence; bookmarks locate material without identifying specimens or reconstructing a region’s full geological history.

Related guides and sources

Read strata in ManYue: separate deposition order from cross-cutting events; ManYue pictured flowcharts: distinguish branches, merges and loops from page order.

Checked on November 15, 2026: Apple public information lists ManYue 2.0.5, requiring iOS / iPadOS 15.0 or later. See the official App Store for published capabilities; verify controls in the installed version.

Method reference: USGS: metamorphic-rock formation. Materials and numbers are original exercises. Record external reports, paper reasoning and actual reading observations separately, without inventing missing conditions. Sources do not establish new automatic analysis by the app. No step-by-step physical-device, private-server or all-output-environment testing is claimed.