Geological Science Quiz

Refer to Figure 1 and answer the following Question: Which characteristic of the volcanic ash layer is most useful for correlating rock layers in outcrops A, B, and C?

• The ash was deposited over a large geographic area.

• The ash layer varies in thickness.

• Carbon-14 can be used to determine the age of the ash.

• Igneous rock particles are found in the ash.

Which conclusion can be drawn from the pattern of fossils found in Earth’s rock record?

• Humans have existed for a longer period of time than dinosaurs.

• Complex land organisms have been replaced by simpler marine forms.

• Many species have existed in the past, and most have become extinct.

• Few life forms existed before the late Cretaceous period.

A cross section of Earth’s crust is represented below. Index fossils are present in some of the rock layers. These rock layers indicate evidence of past crustal movement based on the principle of

• down-warping

• crosscutting

• original horizontality

• contact metamorphism

Geologic history is divided into eras, periods, and epochs based on the

• type of rock deposited at different times throughout history

• half-life of radioactive isotopes found in rocks

• inferred movements of Earth’s landmasses

• fossil evidence found in bedrock

During the late Silurian epoch, very salty seas extended from New York State to Michigan. These environmental conditions resulted in the formation of halite layers. At the same time, Eurypterus remipes lived in nearby environments. Both the halite layers and Eurypterus remipes fossils can now be used to identify a specific geologic time interval because both formed over a

• large geographic area and in a short geologic time

• large geographic area and in a long geologic time

• small geographic area and in a short geologic time

• small geographic area and in a long geologic time

Which life-form existed on Earth for the shortest period of time?

• dinosaurs

• trilobites

• ammonoids

• placoderm fish

Refer to Figure 2 and the accompanying data table and diagrams. Which graptolite lived at the same time that large amounts of salt and gypsum were deposited in evaporate basins in New York State?

• Climacograptus

• Cyclograptus

• Didymograptus

• Dimorphograptus

• Goniograptus

Refer to Figure 2 and the accompanying data table and diagrams. A Clonograptus fossil was found in the surface bedrock at 43° N 73°30' W. In which New York State landscape region was this fossil found?

• Adirondack Mountains

• Taconic Mountains

• Allegheny Plateau

• Champlain Lowlands

Refer to Figure 2 and the accompanying data table and diagrams. Which graptolite from the data table would best serve as an Early Ordovician index fossil?

• Climacograptus

• Clonograptus

• Didymograptus

• Goniograptus

Which fossil has not been found in the New York State rock record?

• Silurian eurypterids

• Triassic dinosaur footprints

• Permian trilobites

• Pleistocene mastodon bones