Geologic Time Review

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What is Geologic Time?

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Geologic Time refers to the vast time scale used by geologists and other Earth scientists to describe the timing and relationships of events in Earth's history.

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What is the difference between Absolute Age and Relative Age?

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Absolute Age is the exact age of a rock or fossil in years, while Relative Age is the age of a rock or fossil in comparison to other rocks or fossils.

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What is Absolute Age?

Back

Absolute Age is the precise, exact age of a rock or fossil given in years.

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What is Relative Age?

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Relative Age is the age of a rock or fossil in relation to the ages of other rocks or fossils.

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What is Radioactive Dating?

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Radioactive Dating is a method used to determine the age of an object by measuring the amount of radioactive isotopes present.

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What is the Law of Superposition?

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The Law of Superposition states that in undisturbed sedimentary rock layers, the oldest layers are at the bottom and the youngest layers are at the top.

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What is Half-Life?

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Half-Life is the time required for half of the radioactive isotopes in a sample to decay.

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What is Fossil Comparison?

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Fossil Comparison is a method of determining the age of rocks by comparing the fossils found within them.

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Why do scientists use Radioactive Dating?

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Scientists use Radioactive Dating to obtain a specific age of a rock formation, which is more precise than methods like Relative Dating.

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What is an Isotope?

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An Isotope is a variant of a chemical element that has the same number of protons but a different number of neutrons.