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WorksheetsGeologic Time Scale and Fossils
Total questions: 51
Worksheet time: 37mins
Name
Class
Date
1.
Identify the Era:
name means "recent" life
name means "recent" life
a)
Precambrian
b)
Paleozoic
c)
Mesozoic
d)
Cenozoic
2.
Identify the Era:
Amphibians first developed in this era.
Amphibians first developed in this era.
a)
Precambrian
b)
Paleozoic
c)
Mesozoic
d)
Cenozoic
3.
Identify the Era:
First forms of life appeared in this era.
First forms of life appeared in this era.
a)
Precambrian
b)
Paleozoic
c)
Mesozoic
d)
Cenozoic
4.
Identify the Era:
This era contains the Triassic, Jurassic, and Cretaceous Periods
This era contains the Triassic, Jurassic, and Cretaceous Periods
a)
Precambrian
b)
Paleozoic
c)
Mesozoic
d)
Cenozoic
5.
The process by which all the different kinds of living things have changed over long periods of time,
a)
sedimentation
b)
erosion
c)
evolution
d)
deposition
6.
The Cenozoic Era is often called "the Age of the ____"
a)
Dinosaurs
b)
Mammals
c)
Amphibians
d)
Reptiles
7.
The dinosaurs died out ____million years ago.
a)
57
b)
125
c)
65
d)
250
8.
What do most scientists think caused the mass extinction of dinosaurs and other organisms at the end of the Cretaceous period?
a)
an object from space struck Earth
b)
volcanic eruptions covered large areas with lava
c)
an ice age covered most of Earth with ice
d)
The dinosaurs ate too many other organisms and then starved
9.
During the Cambrian Explosion that began the Paleozoic Era, the many new forms of life that evolved ____
a)
lived on land
b)
were invertebrates that lived in the sea
c)
were vertebrates covered with fur or scales
d)
were single-celled
10.
The Paleozoic, Mesozoic, and Cenozoic are divisions in the geologic time scale called ____
a)
centuries
b)
layers
c)
periods
d)
eras
11.
Identify the Era in which each of the events occurred:
Jurassic period
Jurassic period
a)
Mesozoic
b)
Paleozoic
c)
Cenozoic
d)
Precambrian
12.
Identify the Era:
called the "Age of Mammals"
called the "Age of Mammals"
a)
Precambrian
b)
Paleozoic
c)
Mesozoic
d)
Cenozoic
13.
The earliest life found by scientists was ___
a)
reptiles
b)
cyanobacteria
c)
invertebrates
d)
amphibians
14.
Identify the Era:
Humans live in this era
Humans live in this era
a)
Precambrian
b)
Paleozoic
c)
Mesozoic
d)
Cenozoic
15.
Identify the Era:
that was the longest of all eras
that was the longest of all eras
a)
Precambrian
b)
Paleozoic
c)
Mesozoic
d)
Cenozoic
16.
The geologic time scale is a record of___
a)
the thickness of sedimentary rock layers
b)
the rate of fossil formation
c)
the life forms and geologic evnts in Earth's history
d)
the time since the evolution of dinosaurs
17.
Identify the Era:
where dinosaurs thrived
where dinosaurs thrived
a)
Precambrian
b)
Paleozoic
c)
Mesozoic
d)
Cenozoic
18.
Identify the Era:
Pangea FORMED
Pangea FORMED
a)
Precambrian
b)
Paleozoic
c)
Mesozoic
d)
Cenozoic
19.
Paleontologists infer that the earth is approximately how many years old?
a)
4.5 million years
b)
450 million years
c)
450 billion years
d)
4.5 billion years
20.
The geologic time scale is a record of....
a)
the history of fossils only
b)
the history of rocks
c)
the history of rock layers and fossils
d)
geologist notes
21.
Which era is the longest?
a)
Cenozoic
b)
Cambrian
c)
Precambrian
d)
Phanerozoic
22.
Which period are we currently in?
a)
Quaternary
b)
Holocene
c)
Jurassic
d)
Tertiary
23.
The picture is an example of .......
a)
trace fossil.
b)
carbonization.
c)
original fossil.
d)
cast.
24.
Which of the following correctly lists the layers of rock in order from youngest to oldest?
a)
A, B, C, D, E
b)
B, C, D, E, A
c)
E, D, A, B, C
d)
C, B, A, D, E
25.
"ancient life"
a)
Precambrian Era
b)
Mesozoic Era
c)
Cenozoic Era
d)
Paleozoic Life
26.
Trilobites were alive during the _____________.
a)
Cenozoic
b)
Mesozoic
c)
Paleozoic
d)
Cretaceous
27.
What are the dominant animals of the Cenozoic Era?
a)
fish r
b)
reptiles
c)
mammals
d)
bacteria
28.
During which era did the ice ages occur?
a)
Precambrian
b)
Paleozoic
c)
Mesozoic
d)
Cenozoic
29.
Define radioactive dating
a)
A method to find a rock's absolute age
b)
a rocks relative age
c)
Using radio waves to find the age of a rock
d)
Listening to the radio
30.
What is relative dating
a)
The absolute age of a rock
b)
A range used to compare a rocks age to other rocks
c)
When a rock is similar to other rocks its called a relative
d)
When you go on a date with a rock (dinner and movie)
31.
Footprints, nests, burrows and fossilized poop are examples of what kind of fossils?
a)
Trace Fossils
b)
preserved remains
c)
Erosion
d)
sedimentary rock
32.
Which is the most recent time frame?
a)
Mesozoic
b)
Precambrian
c)
Holocene
d)
Cretaceous
33.
Put this in order of smallest to largest time frame.
a)
Eon, Era, Periods, Epoch
b)
Periods, Epoch, Eon, Era,
c)
Epochs, Periods, Eras, Eons
d)
Eras, Periods, Epochs, Eons
34.
Barium-122 has a half-life of 2 minutes. A fresh sample weighing 80 g was obtained. If it takes 10 minutes to set up an experiment using barium-122, how much barium-122 will be left when the experiment begins?
a)
0.25g
b)
2.5g
c)
25g
d)
80g
35.
If 10 mg of iodine 131 is given to a patient, how much is left after 24 days? The half-life of iodine-131 is 8 days.
a)
1.25mg
b)
1.25g
c)
10g
d)
10mg
36.
If the half-life of uranium-232 is 70 years, how many half-lives will it take for 10 g of it to be reduced to 1.25 g?
a)
1 half-life
b)
2 half-lives
c)
3 half-lives
d)
4 half-lives
37.
After the third half-life, how much of the sample is left?
a)
1/2
b)
1/3
c)
1/16
d)
1/8
38.
The half life of iodine-131 is 8.040 days. What percentage of an iodine-131 sample will remain after 40.20 days?
a)
312.5%
b)
31.25%
c)
.3125%
d)
3.125%
39.
If a fossil is found to have one-eighth of Carbon-14 remaining then how old is the fossil?
a)
11,460 years
b)
5,730 years
c)
28,650 years
d)
17,190 years
40.
If one-fourth of the carbon-14 is remaining then how many half-lives have passed?
a)
1
b)
2
c)
3
d)
4
41.
What is Half-life?
a)
The amount of time it takes for some of the nuclei in a sample of the isotope to decay
b)
The amount of time it takes for half the electrons in a sample of the isotope to decay
c)
The amount of time it takes for half the nuclei in a sample of the isotope to decay
d)
the amount of time it takes to double the nuclei in a sample of the isotope to decay
42.
After 4 half-lives, 1g of a sample of Krypton-85 remains unchanged. What was the original mass of the sample?
a)
16g
b)
32g
c)
0.0625g
d)
4g
43.
Placing the older rock layers on the bottom and the younger layers on top, is called:
a)
Principle
of original horizontality
b)
Principle
of original lateral continuity
c)
Principle
of Superposition
44.
The idea that sedimentary rocks are deposited in horizontal layers unless disturbed by forces within the Earth can best be explained by which of Steno's principles?
a)
Principle of horizontality
b)
Principle of Superposition
c)
Principle of original lateral continuity
45.
A gap in the rock record is referred to as ___________.
a)
erosion
b)
faulting
c)
unconformity
d)
folding
46.
What is the scientific name for fossilized poop?
a)
Feces
b)
Coprolites
c)
DNA
d)
None of these
47.
Which rock layer in the diagram seems to be the oldest?
a)
F
b)
E
c)
B
d)
A
48.
Which type of scientist studies fossils?
a)
meteorologist
b)
chemist
c)
paleontologist
d)
fossilologist
49.
Cyanobacteria created this gas during the Precambrian Era.
a)
Carbon Dioxide
b)
Hydrogen
c)
Nitrogen
d)
Oxygen
50.
Why are fossils rarely found in Precambrian rock?
a)
There was no evidence of life in Precambrian time
b)
Rocks from Precambrian have yet to be discovered.
c)
Most Precambrian organisms did not have hard body parts that commonly form fossils.
d)
Precambrian rock is buried too deeply for geologists to study it.
51.
We know very little about precambrian time because:
a)
Too many fossils existed
b)
Cyanobacteria destroyed the evidence
c)
Rocks are severely deformed with limited fossils available
d)
It is a conspiracy from the Obama administration to keep us in the dark
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