Fossils
This term refers to preserved evidence of an organism.
What is a fossil?
Earth’s early atmosphere was made mostly of these gases.
What are volcanic gases?
The idea that life arises from nonliving things is called this.
What is spontaneous generation?
Scientists believe the first cells were this type.
What are prokaryotes?
Genesis describes Earth as “formless and empty” and covered in this.
What is water?
According to the law of superposition, these rock layers are the oldest.
What are the bottom layers?
Early Earth began in this physical state before forming a crust.
What is molten rock?
This scientist disproved spontaneous generation using meat and maggots.
Who is Francesco Redi?
These organisms produced oxygen that changed Earth’s atmosphere.
What are photosynthetic prokaryotes?
Both the Bible and the textbook agree that Earth had this before life appeared.
What is the beginning?
This type of fossil forms when an organism leaves an impression that later fills with sediment.
What is a cast?
This time period makes up the first 4 billion years of Earth’s history.
What is the Precambrian?
This experiment simulated early Earth’s atmosphere and produced organic molecules.
What is the Miller–Urey experiment?
These unique rock formations formed due to oxygen reacting with iron in the oceans.
What are banded iron formations (BIFs)?
Some Christians believe fossils formed during this biblical event.
What is the flood?
Tree sap that hardens and preserves entire organisms is called this.
What is amber?
This era is known as the “Age of Dinosaurs.”
What is the Mesozoic?
Oparin and Haldane proposed this hypothesis about early organic molecule formation.
What is the primordial soup hypothesis?
These modern organisms living in hot springs resemble Earth’s earliest cells.
What are archaea?
The Bible describes God creating all major “kinds” of life during this time period.
What is Creation Week?
This fossil type forms when minerals replace the original material of an organism.
What is replacement?
This era is known for mammals becoming dominant on land.
What is the Cenozoic?
Some scientists believe the first organic molecules may have come from these space objects.
What are meteorites?
This theory explains how eukaryotic cells may have evolved from prokaryotic cells.
What is the endosymbiont theory?
The Bible does not describe these scientific time divisions such as Paleozoic or Mesozoic.
What are eras (or geological time periods)?