Vocab
This term describes preserved remains or evidence of past life.
What is a fossil?
Which era is known as the “Age of Dinosaurs”?
What is the Mesozoic Era?
These fossils show evidence of an organism’s activity, like footprints or burrows.
What are trace fossils?
According to Figure 2, there were 7 major events within the Mesozoic Era.
What is true.
True or False: There are 10 types of fossils.
What is false? There are 5.
This law states that, in undisturbed rock layers, the oldest layers are found at the bottom.
What is the Law of Superposition?
Which era is the one we are currently living in?
What is the Cenozoic Era?
What fossil type forms when an imprint of an organism is left behind in rock?
What are mold fossils?
True or False: A fossil is found deeper underground than another. Scientists infer it is older. This is show in Figure 3.
What is true?
True or False: Fossils never move.
What is false?
What do we call the method scientists use to compare which rocks are older or younger without knowing exact ages?
What is relative dating?
Put these eras in order from oldest to newest: Paleozoic, Precambrian, Mesozoic, Cenozoic.
What is: Precambrian → Paleozoic → Mesozoic → Cenozoic
Which fossil type forms when a mold fills in with minerals and hardens?
What are cast fossils?
According to figure 4, which era does the Jurassic period belong to?
What is the Mesozoic Era?
Which lived closer in time to humans: T-Rex or Stegosaurus?
What is T-Rex?
This term refers to the study of rock layers and how they are arranged over time.
What is stratigraphy?
During which era did oxygen begin to build up in Earth’s atmosphere?
What is the Precambrian Era?
Why are trace fossils useful for understanding how organisms lived?
What is: They show behavior (how an organism moved, lived, or hunted), not just body parts.
According to Figure 4, during which period did amphibians first appear?
What is the Devonian Period?
Why is absolute dating more precise than relative dating?
What is: Absolute dating gives an exact age using scientific methods.
This timeline organizes Earth’s history into eras based on major changes in life and environment.
What is the Geological Time Scale?
Which era saw mammals become the dominant land animals?
What is the Cenozoic Era?
Which type of fossil is the most common and why do scientists value it?
What are trace fossils?
(They are common and give clues about behavior.)
According to Figure 2, the Cretaceous Period lasted how long.
What is 79 million years.
Explain one reason fossils are important for understanding Earth’s history.
What is: Fossils show how life has changed over time.
(Accept: evidence of evolution, environments, extinction, past organisms)