MHS Geology - Ch. 13: Earth's History

Question 1

The most common Precambrian fossils are layered mounds of calcium carbonate called

Accepted Answer

stromatolites

Question 2

Which era immediately follows the Precambrian?

Accepted Answer

Paleozoic

Question 3

Free oxygen in Earth's atmosphere can be attributed to what source?

Accepted Answer

Photosynthesis

Question 4

Why did many plants die at the end of the Mesozoic Era?

Accepted Answer

dust from a meteorite collision blocked sunlight

Question 5

What are the group of plants called with seeds that lack a protective outer coat?

Accepted Answer

gymnosperms

Question 6

During the early Paleozoic era, what was the name of the Southern continent?

Accepted Answer

Gondwana

Question 7

Which is NOT true about the rift that developed between Eastern US and western Africa in the late Triassic?

Accepted Answer

It led to the formation of one global supercontinent

Question 8

How did Earth's oceans form?

Accepted Answer

Water vapor condensed and rained on to the surface

Question 9

Which region was tectonically active during the Cenozoic Era?

Accepted Answer

western North America

Question 10

During the Carboniferous period, large swamp forests extended across tropical regions, eventually forming..

Accepted Answer

vast coal deposits

Question 11

What important event in animal evolution marks the beginning of the Cambrian?

Accepted Answer

the appearance of hard parts

Question 12

Which span of geologic time covers the majority of Earth's history?

Accepted Answer

Precambrian

Question 13

What caused many events of mountain building in western North America, Europe, and Asia

Accepted Answer

plate movements

Question 14

Mammals became widespread and abundant only after

Accepted Answer

dinosaurs became extinct

Question 15

Which of the following gases was NOT part of Earth's original atmosphere?

Accepted Answer

oxygen

Question 16

Which animals did NOT survive the Mesozoic extinction?

Accepted Answer

dinosaurs

Question 17

One group of reptiles, characterized by the fossil Archaeopteryx, led to the evolution of

Accepted Answer

birds

Question 18

In the early Paleozoic, life was restricted to the

Accepted Answer

seas

Question 19

Which title best describes the current geologic age?

Accepted Answer

Age of Mammals

Question 20

Which period is knows as the "Age of Fishes"?

Accepted Answer

Devonian

Question 21

According to the Precambrian rock record, much of Earth's first free oxygen combined with

Accepted Answer

iron

Question 22

What are the group of plants called that produce flowers and have a protective coat?

Accepted Answer

angiosperms

Question 23

Laurasia was made up of which modern continents?

Accepted Answer

North America, Europe, and western Asia

Question 24

As the North American plate overrode the Pacific plate, what began to form?

Accepted Answer

Rocky Mountains and Sierra Nevada Mountains

Question 25

What did Milankovitch propose as the main cause of ice ages?

Accepted Answer

cycles related to Earth's tilt and revolution

Question 26

Which of the following made it difficult for geologists to learn about Precambrian time?

Accepted Answer

all of these are correct

Question 27

The current geologic period is called the

Accepted Answer

Quaternary

Question 28

Some continents contain large core areas of Precambrian rocks at the surface called

Accepted Answer

shields

Question 29

What likely contributed to the extinction that marks the end of the Mesozoic Era?

Accepted Answer

a meteorite collision

Question 30

Earth's original atmosphere was made up of gases similar to those

Accepted Answer

released in volcanic eruptions

Question 31

During which time period did the first dinosaurs and first mammals evolve?

Accepted Answer

Triassic Period

Question 32

Which of the following statements is true?

Accepted Answer

Prokaryotes, which have no nucleus, were the first organisms

Question 33

Why did amphibians diversify so rapidly during the late Paleozoic?

Accepted Answer

They had little competition from other land dwellers

Question 34

How are mammals distinct from reptiles?

Accepted Answer

mammals have body hair

Question 35

Many new groups of organisms evolved in a relatively short time in an event called the

Accepted Answer

Cambrian Explosion

Question 36

What happened to all the continents by the close of the Paleozoic?

Accepted Answer

They fused into Pangaea

Question 37

Why do scientists think that birds evolved from dinosaurs?

Accepted Answer

some dinosaurs had feathers

Question 38

Which period makes up nearly all of the Cenozoic Era?

Accepted Answer

Teritary

MHS Geology - Ch. 13: Earth's History

Questions 38

MHS Geology - Ch. 13: Earth's History

Questions 38