Chapter 11 Clues to Earth's Past

Multiple Select

What did early scientists believe caused the formation of fossils?

• Gradual processes

• Catastrophic disasters

• Alien intervention

• Magic

Multiple Choice

True or False: Microfossils are larger than dinosaur bones.

• True

• False

Multiple Choice

Fill in the blank: _______ are remains of ancient creatures that can be found in various sizes.

• Fossils

• Rocks

• Plants

Multiple Choice

Fill in the blank: For an organism to be preserved, it must be completely enclosed in some material over a ______ period of time.

• short

• long

• medium

• indefinite

Multiple Choice

Which of the following is an example of preserved remains?

• A fossilized bone

• An insect in amber

• A dried leaf

• A rock

Multiple Choice

Petrified wood is an example of ______.

• mineral evaporation

• mineral replacement

• mineral melting

• mineral dissolving

Multiple Choice

Petrified wood is an example of minerals filling in ______ spaces.

• air

• pore

• water

• empty

Multiple Choice

Mineral replacement is the process of minerals ______ the tissues of dead organisms.

• evaporating

• replacing

• melting

• dissolving

Multiple Choice

What is an example of mineral replacement?

• Petrified wood

• Fossilized bone

• Amber

• Coal

Multiple Choice

How many years ago did a shallow ocean cover much of North America?

• 450 million years

• 300 million years

• 200 million years

• 100 million years

Multiple Choice

Fill in the blank: The document discusses how shallow seas have ________ Earth's continents in the past.

• destroyed

• covered

• ignored

• forgotten

Multiple Choice

True or False: Plants are not useful in understanding past climates.

• True

• False

Multiple Choice

Which layer of rocks is older?

• Top layer

• Middle layer

• Bottom layer

• None of the above

Multiple Choice

Geologists use a set of principles to compare the ages of rock layers by ______.

• absolute age

• relative age

• chemical composition

• color

Multiple Choice

What is the first principle of relative age dating?

• Older layers are on top

• Younger layers are on top unless disturbed

• Layers are always horizontal

• Layers are always vertical

Multiple Choice

In the diagram, which layer is the youngest?

• Layer 1

• Layer 2

• Layer 3

• Layer 4

Multiple Choice

What does the principle of original horizontality imply about the age of rock layers?

• They are always the same age

• They are deposited in horizontal layers

• They are deposited in vertical layers

• They are deposited in random layers.

Multiple Choice

What are dikes in geological terms?

• Horizontal intrusions

• Vertical intrusions

• Circular formations

• Erosional features

Multiple Choice

What is the principle of cross-cutting in geology?

• The feature that cuts across is older

• The feature that cuts across is younger

• Both features are the same age

• Age cannot be determined

Multiple Choice

In the diagram, which layer is the oldest?

• Layer A

• Layer B

• Layer C

• Layer D

Multiple Choice

Which layer in the diagram is the youngest?

• Layer A

• Layer B

• Layer C

• Layer E

Multiple Choice

In the diagram, which layer does the fault cut through?

• Layer A

• Layer B

• Layer C

• All of the above.

Multiple Choice

In the diagram, which layer is directly above Layer B?

• Layer A

• Layer C

• Layer D

• Layer E

Multiple Choice

In the diagram, which layer is directly below Layer D?

• Layer A

• Layer B

• Layer C

• Layer E

Multiple Choice

Which period does the fossil Nerinea trinodosa belong to?

• Tertiary

• Quaternary

• Cretaceous

• Jurassic

Multiple Choice

Isotopes are elements of the same type with different numbers of ______.

• protons

• electrons

• neutrons

• atoms

Multiple Choice

The release of energy from unstable atoms is known as ______.

• combustion

• radioactivity

• fusion

• fission

Multiple Choice

What makes hydrogen-3 unstable?

• Extra proton

• Extra neutron

• Lack of electrons

• Lack of protons

Multiple Choice

What is the percentage of daughter isotopes after three half-lives?

• 50%

• 75%

• 87.5%

• 100%

Multiple Choice

What is the purpose of using radioactive isotopes in measuring the age of materials?

• To determine the color

• To measure the weight

• To act like clocks

• To find the volume.

Multiple Choice

Which element does radiocarbon break down into after the death of an organism?

• Oxygen

• Hydrogen

• Nitrogen-14

• Carbon-12

Multiple Choice

What is radiocarbon dating primarily used for?

• Dating igneous rocks

• Dating organic material

• Dating sedimentary rocks

• Dating minerals.

Multiple Choice

Which isotope decays into lead-207?

• Uranium-235

• Potassium-40

• Uranium-238

• Thorium-232

Multiple Choice

The individual crystals of the mineral zircon in igneous rocks in Australia have been dated at ____.

• 3.5 billion years

• 4.0 billion years

• 4.4 billion years

• 5.0 billion years

Multiple Choice

What dating method is used to determine the age of the oldest known rock formation?

• Carbon dating

• Radiometric dating

• Fossil dating

• Ice core dating

Multiple Choice

The oldest known rock formation is located in which country?

• USA

• Canada

• Australia

• India

Multiple Choice

The oldest known rock formation is dated between ____. A) 3.03 and 3.28 billion years B) 4.03 and 4.28 billion years C) 5.03 and 5.28 billion years D) 6.03 and 6.28 billion years.

• 3.03 and 3.28 billion years

• 4.03 and 4.28 billion years

• 5.03 and 5.28 billion years

• 6.03 and 6.28 billion years

Multiple Choice

Radiometric dating shows Earth is ____ billion years old.

• 3.56

• 4.56

• 5.56

• 6.56