Earth History Test

Front

What is radiometric dating?

Back

A method used to determine the age of fossils and rocks by measuring the decay of radioactive isotopes.

Front

What is absolute dating?

Back

A technique used to determine the actual age of a fossil or rock, often through methods like radiometric dating.

Front

What is relative dating?

Back

A method of determining the age of fossils or rocks by comparing them to other fossils or rocks.

Front

What is the law of superposition?

Back

A principle stating that in undisturbed sedimentary rock layers, the oldest layers are at the bottom and the youngest are at the top.

Front

What is the geologic column?

Back

A representation of the layers of rock and fossils in Earth's crust, used to understand the relative ages of rock layers.

Front

How do scientists determine the age of the Earth?

Back

By using radiometric dating of meteorites and the oldest rocks on Earth, scientists estimate the Earth is about 4.6 billion years old.

Front

What is carbon-14 dating?

Back

A method of absolute dating that measures the amount of carbon-14 in organic materials to determine their age.

Front

Why does carbon-14 decrease over time?

Back

Carbon-14 is radioactive and decays at a constant rate, allowing scientists to estimate the time since the organism's death.

Front

What is an igneous rock intrusion?

Back

A body of igneous rock that has formed by the cooling and solidification of magma beneath the Earth's surface.

Front

What does it mean if an igneous rock intrusion is younger than surrounding sedimentary layers?

Back

It means the intrusion occurred after the sedimentary layers were deposited.