Fossils/ Rocks
In what type of rock would a geologist MOST likely find evidence of ancient life?
Sedimentary
What is relative dating?
Rocks age compared to ages of other rocks.
Ex) Rock A is younger than Rock B.
Carbon-14 is involved in which type of dating?
Absolute
A student is visiting a local limestone quarry and finds fossils of seashells. The quarry is located hundreds of miles from the ocean. The fossils BEST indicate that
This area was once covered by an ocean
What evidence do fossils provide geologists about the history of the Earth?
life forms and environmental conditions have changed over time
Around which landforms can scientists most likely find igneous rocks?
volcanoes
What is the Law that states that the oldest rock layers are at the bottom and the newest rock layers are at the top?
Law of Superposition
Which method can BEST be used by the students to determine the relative age of rock layers?
Cenozoic
Scientists find dinosaur fossils in the bottom rock layers of a cliff and mammal fossils in the middle rock layer of the cliff. Which could best be concluded from this evidence?
Dinosaurs lived on Earth before mammals
What type of rock are intrusions and extrusions?
igneous
A geologist found 600-year-old sediments below a particular rock layer. Which will the geologist most likely find above the rock layer?
Less than 600-years old...
Ex) 550, 500, 450 etc.
Which describes the age of an igneous intrusion relative to the rock layers it cuts through?
An intrusion is younger than all of the layers it cuts through.
Cyanobacteria, Precambrian
A fish lived 500 million years ago was found in layer Y.
A fern lived 700 million years ago was found in layer Z.
A shell was found in layer X that existed 200 million years ago.
Which best describes the age of the fish relative to the age of the fern and the age of the shell?
The fish is older than the shell but younger than the fern.
how is metamorphic rock formed?
If a fault cuts through multiple layers of rock, which is most likely true?
An earthquake happened after the layers were formed
Carbon 14, a radioactive isotope, decays with a half-life of approximately 5,730 years. Approximately what percentage of carbon 14 originally present in a clam shell will be present after 11,460 years?
25%
What mass extinction occurred during the Mesozoic era?
Dinosaurs/ asteroid
Fossil A was found 200 million years ago.
Fossil B was found 1.6 billion years ago.
What best describes the age of fossil A compared to fossil B & C?
Fossil A is younger than fossil B and C.
3 characteristics of an INDEX FOSSIL are..
1. Short-lived
2. Widespread
3. Abundant
What can ice cores most accurately tell you about Earth’s history for a given location?
the climate at that time
Which provides the most information for climate studies if trapped in ice cores?
Carbon dioxide
A timeline of events arranged in time intervals from oldest to most recent is called....
The amount of radioactive content (carbon) of a rock can be used to identify..
The absolute age of the rock (amount of time passed since the rock formed)