A Trip Through Time (Pendleton)

Question 1

Australian Zircon crystals estimated at 4.2 billion. Which statement describes period it formed

Accepted Answer

formed shortly after Earth formed

Question 2

Which isotope has been used most often to deterimine the age of fossils in the past 50,000 y?

Accepted Answer

carbon 14

Question 3

Based on the fossil record, which organisms were most likely to have existed first?

Accepted Answer

bacteria

Question 4

What happens when an organism fails to adapt?

Accepted Answer

it becomes extinct

Question 5

What can fossil pollen in an ice core tell you about the past?

Accepted Answer

type of ecosystem that existed

Question 6

The 1/2 life of K 40 is 1.3 bya. If found with 25% potassium 40, what's the absolute age?

Accepted Answer

2.6 billion years

Question 7

The Paleozoic, Mesozoic, and Cenozoic are divisions in the geologic time scale called

Accepted Answer

eras

Question 8

Where would fossilized evidence of unicellular (simple) organisms most likely be found?

Accepted Answer

buried deep within layers of rock

Question 9

The Cenozoic era is often called the Age of the

Accepted Answer

Mammals

Question 10

What evidence must be carfully examined to determine that organisms changed over time?

Accepted Answer

fossils

Question 11

Radioactive dating works best with what type of rocks?

Accepted Answer

igneous rock

Question 12

Which makes a good index fossil?

Accepted Answer

fossil that lived during only 1 geologic time period

Question 13

Earth's atmosphere, oceans, and continents began to form during

Accepted Answer

Precambrian Time

Question 14

Which can scientists infer when they find marine fossils on top of mountains?

Accepted Answer

mountains were created by an uplifting of tectonic plates

Question 15

The process by which all the different kinds of living things have changed over time is called

Accepted Answer

evolution

Question 16

Which evidence would best support the extinction of a past species?

Accepted Answer

disappearance of a species fossils

Question 17

Precambrian Time, which includes most of Earth's history, began with

Accepted Answer

Earth forming from a mass of dust and gas

Question 18

Scientists classify rock layers (top layer is most recent). Which law explains this?

Accepted Answer

law of superposition

Question 19

What can be concluded about the age of fossils in undistrubed rock layers?

Accepted Answer

bottom layer has the oldest fossils

Question 20

Which method provides the most accurate age of a rock sample?

Accepted Answer

radioactive dating

Question 21

Which best explains why the wing of a bat and the fin of a whale are similar?

Accepted Answer

common ancestor between the bat and whale

Question 22

This type of fossil can provide evidence for individual, family behavior, or social behavior.

Accepted Answer

trace fossil

Question 23

What's the benefit of using the superposition/index fossils instead of radiometric dating?

Accepted Answer

radiometric dating is inaccurate when used on sedimentary

Question 24

Radioactive decay occurs when atoms of an unstable element

Accepted Answer

break down to form atoms of another element

Question 25

Fossils of land dwelling mammals are found on 2 continents: What does the evidence suggest?

Accepted Answer

The 2 continents were once part of a larger continent

Question 26

A scientists finds Trphite fossils. According to the chart, what era and period was it?

Accepted Answer

Mesozoic Era; Triassic Period

Question 27

Certain fossils are used to dtermine the age of rock layers. Which type of fossil is best?

Accepted Answer

index fossil

Question 28

Rich beds of marine fossils have been found in FL. By dating these fossils, scientists can?

Accepted Answer

the period during which FL was covered in water

Question 29

During the Cambrian Explosion that began the Paleozoic Era, the many new forms of life

Accepted Answer

were invertebrates that lived in the sea

Question 30

Some 600 yo sediments found below a rock layer. What would they most likely find above?

Accepted Answer

450 yo sediments

Question 31

Which is most likely to provide information about the Earth's past climates?

Accepted Answer

ice cores

Question 32

What information can scientists gather from ice cores?

Accepted Answer

all answers are correct

Question 33

Radioactive dating enables geologists to determine

Accepted Answer

the absolute ages of rocks

Question 34

What generally causes mass extinction?

Accepted Answer

major climatic changes

Question 35

Which is the most accurate method scientists can use to estimate Earth's age?

Accepted Answer

radioactive dating

Question 36

Time it takes for half of the radioactive atoms in a sample of radioactive element to decay

Accepted Answer

half-life

Question 37

Why are fossils commonly found in sedimnetary rocks but not igneous rock?

Accepted Answer

Igneous rocks=molten rock and sedimentary=sediment

Question 38

The Mesozoic Era is divided into the Triassic, Jurassic, and Cretaceous. These are known as

Accepted Answer

periods

Question 39

Petrified palm trees in sedimentary rock near glaciers provides evidence of what?

Accepted Answer

The climate in the area was once tropical

Question 40

Life on Earth has changed over time. Scientists have found that older rocks contain fossils of

Accepted Answer

organisms that are simpler than those alive today

Question 41

Scientists conclude that forested ecosystems existed in Antarctica mya by studying?

Accepted Answer

fossil record

Question 42

The geologic time scale is a record of

Accepted Answer

the life forms and geologic events in Earth's history

Question 43

Which characteristics of C14 dating helps determine approximate time a species became extinct?

Accepted Answer

C14 decreases at a constant rate over time

Question 44

The fossils of organisms that were widely distributed but only lived for a short period of time

Accepted Answer

index fossils

Question 45

What method fo scientists most often use to determine the age of Earth?

Accepted Answer

comparing how much uranium remains in rock layers

Question 46

Which best describes the ages of four undisturbed rock layers relative to one another?

Accepted Answer

youngest layer found on top, oldest closer to Earth's center

Question 47

What type of rock most likely contains index fossils?

Accepted Answer

sedimentary

Question 48

How do most fossils form?

Accepted Answer

they die and remains are buried by sediment

Question 49

The most recent rocks of the Grand Canyon formed during which geologic period?

Accepted Answer

Permian

Question 50

What can be used to find the exact age of a rock specimen?

Accepted Answer

radioactive dating

A Trip Through Time (Pendleton)

Questions 50

A Trip Through Time (Pendleton)

Questions 50