Grand Canyon Detectives
What is a feature?
An important or unique part
If scientists find a fossil of a fish in a rock layer, what can the fossil tell them?
It can give scientists evidence that the area had an environment where fish could live when that rock layer formed.
Which rock layer is generally older: a layer at the bottom or a layer at the top?
The layer at the bottom.
What is weathering?
The process in which forces break rock into smaller pieces.
Scientists discover a Grand Canyon rock layer containing fossils of organisms that lived in an environment very different from the environment there today.
What does this evidence tell scientists, and why is it useful for understanding the Grand Canyon?
The fossils provide evidence about what the environment was like when the rock layer formed. This shows that the environment of the Grand Canyon has changed over time.
Name one distinctive feature you might observe in the Grand Canyon.
Answers may include rock layers, cliffs, a river, or canyon walls.
What can fossils tell scientists about the past?
They can provide evidence about organisms and environments from the past.
Which layer generally formed first: a lower layer or a higher layer?
The lower layer.
Does weathering move rock from one place to another?
No. Weathering breaks rock apart.
What do scientists do first when they are investigating something they don't understand?
Make observations and ask questions
If you find fossils of ocean organisms in a rock layer, what might that tell you about the environment when the layer formed?
The area may have been an ocean or underwater environment.
If Layer A is below Layer B, which layer is generally older?
Layer A.
Name one natural force or material that can cause weathering.
Answers may include water, ice, wind, plants, or other natural forces/materials.
Why do scientists make observations when studying the Grand Canyon?
Observations provide evidence about what they see.
Why are fossils useful evidence when scientists study the Grand Canyon?
Fossils can provide evidence about what the environment was like when the rock layer formed.
Why can scientists use the position of rock layers to determine their relative ages?
Layers are deposited over time, so lower layers generally formed before the layers above them.
A large rock breaks into several smaller pieces. Is this an example of weathering or erosion?
weathering
A scientist notices that the Grand Canyon has many layers of rock. What is a good question the scientist might ask?
Answers will vary, but should be a question about the layers
Two different rock layers contain different fossils. What could this evidence tell scientists?
The environments in which the layers formed may have been different or changed over time.
Scientists find three layers: A is on the bottom, B is in the middle, and C is on top. Put them in order from oldest to youngest and explain how you know.
A → B → C. The lower layers generally formed before the layers above them.
Explain the difference between weathering and erosion.
Weathering breaks rock into smaller pieces. Erosion moves those pieces from one place to another.