Earth Science Final Exam

Which best describes a fossil that helps determine the relative age of a rock layer?

• trace fossil
• index fossil
• radioactive fossil
• unconformity fossil

Which characteristic of carbon-14 dating helps scientists determine the approximate time a species became extinct?

• Carbon-14 is not present in more recent fossils
• Carbon-14 increases at a constant rate over time
• Carbon-14 decreases at a constant rate over time
• Carbon-14 can only be found in fossils of a certain period

Fossil remains of a trilobite are most likely to be found in which type of rock?

• igneous
• volcanic
• sedimentary
• metamorphic

The period of geologic time when the biodiversity of life on the planet increased dramatically was

• Jurassic

• Triassic

• Permian

• Cambrian

The worst mass extinction event in the history of the Earth wiping out 96% of all life was the

• Permian-Triassic

• Holocene

• Triassic-Jurassic

• Ordovician-Silurian

Known as the age of reptiles

• Mesozoic

• Cenozoic

• Phanerozoic

• Cambrian

How old do Paleontologists believe the Earth is?

• 2019 years old

• 3.6 billion years old

• 4.6 billion years old

• 4.6 million years old

What type of event usually marks the end of an Era

• A Mass Extinction

• A Quinceanera

• An earthquake

• A Volcanic Eruption

What are the four eras in order from OLDEST to NEWEST?

• Pre-Cambrian, Paleozoic, Mesozoic, Cenozoic

• Pre-Cambrian, Mesozoic, Paleozoic, Cenozoic

• Cenozoic, Mesozoic, Paleozoic, Pre-Cambrian

• Mesozoic, Pre-Cambrian, Cenozoic, Paleozoic

90% of Earth’s history occurred during which era?

• Precambrian

• Paleozoic

• Mesozoic

• Cenozoic