Vocabulary
Types of Fossils
Relative or Absolute
Eras
Extinctions
100
__________________________ are the remains or traces of once-living organisms.
Fossils
100
A _______________________________ is a record of the activity of an organism, including burrows, scratches, or footprints.
Trace Fossil
100
True or False:
Scientists use Radiometric Dating directly on Fossils to determine the exact age of the fossil.
False
They use Radiometric Dating on Igneous Rocks located near Fossils
100
True or False:
The time period of the Proterozoic was an ERA.
(Found on page 15)
False. The time period of the Proterozoic is known as an EON.
100
This occurs when a species dies out and there are no members of the species left on Earth.
Extinction
200
The collection of all known fossils and their placement in order form earliest to most recent is known as what?
Fossil Record
200
________________________ organisms are more likely to fossilize than land organisms
Marine
200
What is the Law of Superposition?
A law that states that older sedimentary rock layers sit below younger rock layers, which are closer to the surface.
200
What period are we currently in?
Quatemary Period
200
Which extinction event(s) was possibly believed to be the result of a comet strike, according to our textbook?
(2 possible correct answers)
Late Devonian Extinction Event or Cretaceous-Tertiary Extinction Event
300
What does "mya" stand for?
Million Years Ago
300
These types of fossils only appear in a specific layer of rock for a short period of time.
Index Fossil
300
Carbon Dating uses what substance to determine the absolute age of a fossil?
Carbon-14
300
What Eon were the first possible multicellular organisms discovered in?
Proterozoic Eon
300
What percent of all marine and land vertebrate species died out as a result of the Permian-Triassic Extinction?
80%-85%
400
The time needed for half of a sample of a radioactive substance to decay is known as what?
Half-Life
400
It is rare for the remains of these organisms to fossilize.
Soft-Bodied Organisms
400
Which fossil is an example of an Index Fossil?
Trilobite Fossil
400
About how long ago was the Cambrian Period, and how long did it last?
(2 answers needed)
500mya
About 50 million years
400
Can the fossil of a Marine Organism be found at the top of a mountaintop? Explain your reasoning.
Yes, if the mountaintop was once flooded and underwater.