Quiz about Unit 8 Geologic Time Review

Question 1

In order to determine the relationship between fossils, the ages of the fossils need to be determined. Which process will most accurately dedetermine the ages of two similar fossils?

Accepted Answer

by using radioactive dating

Answer

by using seismic waves

Answer

by comparing the two fossils to index fossils

Answer

by looking at the geographic locations where the fossils were found

Question 2

The diagram represents layers of exposed rocks where paleontologists have found fossils of early horses. The characteristics of five horse species are listed in the table.

Which conclusion about the evolutionary history of horses is best supported by the fossil record evidence?

Accepted Answer

Over time, the horse has experienced a reduction in toe number.

Answer

Over time, the horse has experienced a reduction in body size.

Answer

Over time, the horse has experienced a reduction in tooth crown size.

Answer

Over time, the horse has experienced a reduction in tooth cement covering.

Question 3

The diagram shows the skeletal systems of a theropod dinosaur, an archaeopteryx, and a modern chicken.

Which statement is supported by the evidence shown in the diagram?

Accepted Answer

Chickens and theropod dinosaurs share a common ancestor.

Answer

Chickens evolved directly from theropod dinosaurs.

Answer

Archaeopteryx is the first animal that developed the ability to fly.

Answer

Theropod dinosaurs and archaeopteryx filled similar ecological niches.

Question 4

Which graph below correctly depicts how the concentration of oxygen changed from early earth to later atmosphere conditions?

Accepted Answer

D

Answer

A

Answer

B

Answer

C

Question 5

The fossil record shows that some organisms have become extinct. However, some of these extinct organisms closely resemble organisms that are still alive today. Which of the following best describes why some extinct species in the fossil record are similar to organisms living today?

Accepted Answer

Organisms are related by a common ancestor that evolved over a very long period of time

Answer

All organisms have identical genetic codes and therefore produce similar features.

Answer

Organisms adapted the same way to their environments in order to produce beneficial traits.

Answer

Following mass extinctions, new organisms followed the genetic path of the previous extinct organisms.

Question 6

The scientific explanation of the origin of life on Earth is based on evidence gathered throughout the physical and life sciences. What is the common thread of the different theories of the origin of life on Earth?

Accepted Answer

The earliest life-building compounds contained carbon.

Answer

Lightning caused living organisms to form.

Answer

Lightning provided energy for cell membranes to form.

Answer

The early Earth's atmosphere was similar to what we see now

Question 7

According to most current theories about the origin of life, in which location did life most likely form first?

Accepted Answer

in the ocean

Answer

in the desert

Answer

in a swamp

Answer

in the atmosphere

Question 8

According to the graph what fraction of the original parent isotope still exists after 4 halflives have passed?

Accepted Answer

1/16

Answer

1/2

Answer

1/4

Answer

1/8

Question 9

What is the currently accepted age of Earth?

Accepted Answer

about 4.6 billion years old

Answer

about 4.6 million years old

Answer

about 10 billion years old

Answer

about 5.6 billion years old

Question 10

Scientists use the term evolution to define changes in groups of organisms through time. Which type of evidence most likely provides direct insight into the age, location, and environment in which an organism lived in the past?

Accepted Answer

fossil record

Answer

biogeography

Answer

comparative anatomy

Answer

comparative embryology

Question 11

Plants, animals, and even bacteria can form fossils. What evidence does the fossil record provide about evolution?

Accepted Answer

Most species that have lived on Earth are extinct.

Answer

Most species evolved recently.

Answer

Most species become less complex over time.

Answer

Most species have left a complete fossil history.

Question 12

Paleontologists are scientists who study the fossil record. They can use the fossil record to identify a common ancestor. What is a common ancestor?

Accepted Answer

species from which two or more species evolved

Answer

species that became extinct as the environment changed

Answer

species that left a complete history of its existence in the fossil record

Answer

species that suddenly appears in the fossil record and then just as quickly disappears

Question 13

The diagram shows layers of rock and rock features labeled A-E. Place the letters of the features in the correct order from oldest to youngest

Accepted Answer

D-E-C-A-B

Answer

B-C-D-E-A

Answer

A-D-E-C-B

Answer

B-A-C-E-D

Question 14

What does the principle of superposition state about the age of rock layers?

Accepted Answer

that sedimentary rock formations are deposited such that the oldest layer is on the bottom and the youngest layer is on the top

Answer

that sedimentary rock formations were originally deposited horizontally

Answer

that rock formations that have been subdivided since their formation can be assumed to have originally been laterally continuous.

Answer

that any geologic feature that cuts across another geologic feature is the younger of the two features

Question 15

A student examines a sedimentary rock outcrop on a field trip to a national park. The student finds a fossil of a fish in a layer near the bottom of the outcrop. Later in the day, the same student finds a fossil of a land mammal in a layer higher up in the rock sequence. Which of the following conclusions is best justified by the student's discoveries?

Accepted Answer

This area was once covered by an inland sea that eventually dried up.

Answer

Millions of years ago, a land animal caught a fish and buried the remains, which eventually fossilized.

Answer

A river that once flowed through this area deposited a fish fossil at the base of what becomes a sedimentary rock outcrop.

Answer

None of these conclusions are justified by the student's discoveries.

Question 16

Which analogy best explains the concept of superposition?

Accepted Answer

a brick house

Answer

a cracked windshield

Answer

a road

Answer

a chocolate chip cookie

Question 17

Which of the following would be categorized as a fossil?

Accepted Answer

a mammoth preserved in ice

Answer

the skeleton of a mouse that has just died

Answer

a dog's footprints in the sand at the beach

Answer

a layer of ash from a volcanic eruption millions of years ago

Question 18

The fossil record provides evidence of which of the following ideas about life on earth?

Accepted Answer

all of the above

Answer

evolution

Answer

the existence of past life forms

Answer

changes in past environments

Question 19

Geologists believe that a vast saltwater sea once covered the entire state of New Mexico, in the Southwestern United States. Geological investigations of the Jemez Mountains of New Mexico support this theory. Which evidence from the Jemez Mountains most strongly supports the inland sea theory?

Accepted Answer

The mountains contain fossils from shallow water organisms.

Answer

The mountains contain volcanic rock.

Answer

The mountains contain layers of sandstone.

Answer

The mountains show evidence of earthquake activity.

Question 20

Fossils of hominid skulls reveal that as hominids evolved, the size and shapes of their skulls changed. The drawings show four skulls that represent different species of hominids.

Based upon the trends in hominid evolution, what is the proper sequence of the skulls shown from earliest to most recent hominid species?

Accepted Answer

1,3,2,4

Answer

1,2,3,4

Answer

3,1,2,4

Answer

4,2,1,3

Question 21

Fossil evidence and other observations have enabled scientists to recognize several trends in hominid evolution. Which of the following trends appeared earliest in hominid evolution?

Accepted Answer

the ability to walk upright on two legs

Answer

the ability to make and use tools

Answer

the ability to use language

Answer

an increase in the size of the teeth

Question 22

The oldest clear evidence of life, microfossils in ancient rock, are 3.5 billion years old. What type of cell known today is most similar to the cell found in these microfossils?

Accepted Answer

bacteria

Answer

hydra

Answer

paramecium

Answer

virus

Question 23

Scientists investigating scientific explanations of the origins of life on Earth have used evidence to support a hypothesis that organic compounds originated in space, and first arrived on Earth on a meteorite. This hypothesis is based on the discovery of a meteorite that landed in Australia that contains traces of many organic compounds. Which of the following best summarizes how additional investigations might affect this hypothesis?

Accepted Answer

This hypothesis, if supported by the work of many scientists over time, might lead to the formation of a scientific theory.

Answer

Added evidence might allow this hypothesis to become a scientific law.

Answer

Over time, the hypothesis will change to a theory, and then to a scientific law.

Answer

This hypothesis cannot be further investigated.

Question 24

Scientists have been investigating the origins of life on Earth for many years. Which of the following best describes current scientific knowledge of the origins of life on Earth?

Accepted Answer

Several hypotheses about the origin of life on Earth exist, each with supporting evidence.

Answer

A unified scientific theory of the origin of life on Earth exists.

Answer

A proven scientific law explains the origin of life on Earth.

Answer

Scientists have gathered no evidence about the origins of life of Earth.

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