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WorksheetsGeologic History Pre-Unit Quiz
Total questions: 34
Worksheet time: 21mins
Name
Class
Date
1.
The cartoon below is a humorous look at geologic history. If Early Pleistocene mermaids had existed, their fossil remains would be the same age as fossils of...
a)
armored fish
b)
trilobites
c)
mastodonts
d)
dinosaurs
2.
The fossil shown below was found int he surface bedrock in New York State. In which landscape region was this fossil most likely found?
a)
Adirondack Mountains
b)
Hudson Highlands
c)
Erie-Ontario Lowlands
d)
Newark Lowlands
3.
Which geologic event occurred most recently?
a)
initial opening of the Atlantic Ocean
b)
formation of the Hudson Highlands
c)
formation of the Catskill delta
d)
collision of North America and Africa
4.
The index fossils shown below are the remains of organisms that lived during which geologic era?
a)
Precambrian
b)
Cenozoic
c)
Paleozoic
d)
Mesozoic
5.
According to the Earth Science Reference Tables, when did the Jurassic Period end?
a)
66 million years ago
b)
163 million years ago
c)
144 million years ago
d)
190 million years ago
6.
The table below shows the fossils found in three layers of sedimentary bedrock. According to the Earth Science Reference Tables, the relative age of the rock layers from oldest to youngest is...
a)
A, B, C
b)
B, A, C
c)
A, C, B
d)
C, A, B
7.
According to the Earth Science Reference Tables, studies of the rock record suggest that...
a)
the period during which humans have existed is very brief compared to geologic time
b)
evidence of the existence of humans is present over much of the geologic past
c)
humans first appeared at the time of the intrusion of the Palisades sill
d)
the earliest humans lived at the same time as the dinosaurs
8.
In order for an organism to be used as an index fossil, the organism must have been geographically widespread and must have
a)
lived on land
b)
lived in shallow water
c)
been preserved by volcanic ash
d)
existed for a geologically short time
9.
In which way are index fossils and volcanic ash deposits similar?
a)
Both can usually be dated with radiocarbon
b)
Both normally occur in nonsedimentary rocks
c)
Both strongly resist chemical weathering
d)
Both often serve as geologic time markers
10.
Geologists have subdivided geologic time into periods that are based on...
a)
carbon dating
b)
rock types
c)
fossil evidence
d)
landscape regions
11.
Trilobite fossils were recently discovered in Himalayan Mountain bedrock. During which geologic period could these organisms have lived?
a)
Tertiary
b)
Triassic
c)
Cretaceous
d)
Cambrian
12.
A well was drilled in Syracuse, New York. The first bedrock layer reached by the drill formed during which period?
a)
Silurian
b)
Devonian
c)
Cambrian
d)
Ordovician
13.
According to the Earth Science Reference Tables, which type of fossil could be found in the bedrock near Elmira, New York?
a)
early mammal
b)
dinosaur
c)
flowering plant
d)
fish
14.
According to the Earth Science Reference Tables, when did the last dinosaurs become extinct?
a)
66 million years ago
b)
187 million years ago
c)
97 million years ago
d)
230 million years ago
15.
According to the Earth Science Reference Tables, near the end of which era did the dinosaurs become extinct?
a)
Precambrian
b)
Mesozoic
c)
Paleozoic
d)
Cenozoic
16.
How old do Paleontologists believe the Earth is?
a)
2015 years old
b)
3.6 billion years old
c)
4.6 billion years old
d)
4.6 million years old
17.
Relative dating of rock layers tells us that the deeper we dig, _______.
a)
the younger the rocks get
b)
the smellier the rocks get
c)
the harder the rocks get
d)
the older the rocks get
18.
According to the law of superposition, which layer is the youngest?
a)
A
b)
B
c)
C
19.
How long in a geologic time period?
a)
3 million years
b)
4.6 billion years
c)
a period doesn't have an exact length
d)
they are all the same length
20.
Fossils are most common in what rock types?
a)
Sedimentary
b)
Igneus
c)
Metamorphic
d)
All rocks contain fossils
21.
We are currently in the cenozoic era.
a)
True
b)
False
22.
How do fossils form?
a)
Living things die and their remains are covered by sediment
b)
insects are covered in tree sap
c)
all of these are correct
d)
Freezing preserves the remains of an organism
23.
Why don't we know what many ancient plants looked like?
a)
They had too many soft parts.
b)
They were all eaten by dinosaurs.
c)
There weren't ancient plants.
d)
They had too many hard parts.
24.
Which layer is the oldest?
a)
D
b)
C
c)
B
d)
A
25.
Which of the following is the oldest?
a)
Layer L
b)
Intrusion D
c)
Intrusion H
d)
Layer E
26.
After four half-lives, what fraction of the original parent isotopes remain?
a)
1/4
b)
1/16
c)
1/8
27.
Precambrian, Paleozoic, Mesozoic, and Cenozoic all belong to:
a)
Epochs
b)
Eras
c)
Periods
d)
Eons
28.
Which is the correct order for the 3 eras on geologic time scale. This order is from oldest to current.
a)
Paleozoic, Mesozoic, Cenozoic
b)
Mesozoic, Paleozoic, Cenozoic
c)
Cenozoic, Mesozoic, Paleozoic
29.
Dinosaurs ruled this era.
a)
Paleozoic
b)
mesozoic
c)
precambrian
d)
cenozoic
30.
After the extinction of dinosaurs this class of animals thrived.
a)
reptiles
b)
mammals
c)
amphibians
d)
molluscs
31.
Which of the following animals lived at the same time as birds?
a)
placoderm fish
b)
trilobites
c)
dinosaurs
d)
graptolites
32.
Which of the following events in the geologic history of New York State occurred 458 million years ago?
a)
Taconian orogeny
b)
Alleghenian orogeny
c)
Grenville orogeny
d)
Dome-like uplift of the Adirondack mountains
33.
Which group of organisms was not on earth to during the intrusion of the Palisades Sill?
a)
Birds
b)
Dinosaurs
c)
Mammals
d)
Corals
34.
What was the most recent geologic event in New York State?
a)
Pangaea begins to break up
b)
Advance and retreat of last continental ice
c)
Catskill delta forms
d)
Pangaea begins to break up
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