Geologic Time and Earth’s Biological History Quiz

What is the Geologic Time Scale based on?

• Climate shifts

• Volcanic activity

• Fossil records

• Rock formations

Which principle states that the layer on the bottom was deposited first and is the oldest?

• Principle of Cross-Cutting Relationships

• Principle of Biologic Succession

• Principle of Original Lateral Continuity

• Principle of Superposition

Who proposed the theory of uniformitarianism, stating that the present is the key to the past?

• William Smith

• James Hutton

• Charles Lyell

• Charles Darwin

What is the process of assigning actual age in years to rock based on properties of atoms?

• Index Fossil Dating

• Relative Age Dating

• Absolute Age Dating

• Biostratigraphy

What is the time it takes for half of the parent atoms in a radioactive isotope to decay called?

• Isotopic Decay

• Radioactive Period

• Half-Life

• Decay Time

What is the process by which helpful variations appear in a species while unfavorable ones disappear over long periods of time?

• Mutation

• Natural Selection

• Genetic Drift

• Adaptation

What is the most well-known extinction event that is thought to have been caused by a large comet impact?

• Extinction of the Giant Sloth

• Extinction of the Saber-Toothed Tiger

• Extinction of the Dinosaurs

• Extinction of the Woolly Mammoth

Which environmental change is thought to have caused the extinction of the dinosaurs?

• Volcanic Activity

• Climate Change

• Impact of an Asteroid or Comet

• Global Warming

What is the main factor contributing to the extinction of a species?

• Climate Change

• Genetic Drift

• Habitat Loss

• Natural Disasters

What is the process by which a species disappears from the Earth due to natural or man-made factors?

• Evolution

• Extinction

• Mutation

• Adaptation