Earth's Layers
This layer is liquid and generates Earth's magnetic field.
Outer Core
A frozen woolly mammoth with skin and hair still preserved is this type of fossil.
Body Fossil
This is the very first stage of fossilization.
Death
According to the Law of Superposition, where is the oldest layer found in an undisturbed sequence?
Bottom
True or False: If no fossils are found in a rock layer, it proves no life existed then.
False; conditions may not have allowed fossilization, or the fossils simply haven't been discovered yet
This is the thin layer we live on
Crust
Footprints, tracks, and burrows are examples of this fossil type.
Trace Fossil
This stage happens right after burial, before minerals replace the remains.
Decay
This dating method tells you the order events happened, but not the exact year.
Relative Dating
A fossilized coral reef is found near a mountain summit. What does this tell scientists about that location's past?
It was once underwater. Earth's surface changes dramatically over time
Explain why the inner core stays solid despite being the hottest layer.
Extreme pressure at Earth's center forces it to stay solid.
This fossil forms when an organism dissolves away, leaving only a hollow shape behind.
Mold Fossil
Name the steps in order
Death, Burial, Decay, Mineralization, Discovery
This dating method uses radioactive decay to find a rock's exact age in years.
Absolute Dating
Explain how relative dating and absolute dating work together to build a complete timeline.
Relative dating gives the order of events, absolute dating gives exact ages; together they create a full timeline
This term describes the rigid crust plus the uppermost mantle combined. (Hint: tectonic plates)
Lithosphere
This fossil forms when minerals fill a hollow and harden into the original organism's shape.
Cast Fossil
This process happens over millions of years as minerals slowly replace bone or shell material.
Mineralization
The time it takes for half of a radioactive element to decay is called this.
This layer of Earth is liquid, made of moving metal, and is believed to generate the magnetic field.
Outer core
A volcano erupts, releasing melted rock. Which layer did this magma most likely come from
Mantle
A rock has a hollow shell-shaped indent with nothing inside it. What type of fossil is this
Mold fossil
Explain why quick burial after death is critical for fossilization to happen at all.
Quick burial protects remains from decay, scavengers, and erosion, giving them a chance to fossilize
The same index fossil is found in rock layers on two different continents. What does this tell scientists?
Those layers are roughly the same age
A student finds a solid rock in the exact shape of an ancient seed. Is this a mold or cast fossil, and how do you know?
Cast fossil; solid material filled in a mold and hardened into that shape