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Major Events in Earth's History

Total questions: 43

Worksheet time: 25mins

Name
Class
Date
1.
Earth is a fiery ball of molten rock.  There is no air or life on Earth
a)
Precambrian Era
b)
Paleozoic Era
c)
Mesozoic Era
d)
Cenozoic Era
2.
Homo sapiens evolved during the 
a)
Precambrian 
b)
Paleozoic
c)
Mesozoic
d)
Cenozoic
3.
What era do we live in?
a)
Cenozoic
b)
Paleozoic
c)
Mesozoic 
d)
Pre Cambrian 
4.
Which of the following places the geologic time eras in order from oldest to most recent?
a)
Precambrian, Paleozoic, Mesozoic, Cenozoic
b)
Mesozoic, Cenozoic, Paleozoic, Precambrian
c)
Cenozoic, Mesozoic, Paleozoic, Precambrian
d)
Paleozoic, Cenozoic, Precambrian, Mesozoic
5.
Eras of the geologic time scale are
divided into ______.
a)
periods
b)
ages
c)
units
d)
epochs
6.
The Cenozoic Era is often called "the Age of the ____"
a)
Dinosaurs
b)
Mammals
c)
Amphibians
d)
Reptiles
7.
This part of earth's history is when bacteria, the first living organism,  first appeared on earth
a)
Pre-Cambrian
b)
Cambrian
c)
Jurassic
d)
Devonian
8.

how did the middle Paleozoic end?

a)

they ran into a rock

b)

they ran off

c)

the mass extinction event

d)

they got eaten by bigger predators

9.

how did the middle Paleozoic end?

a)

they ran into a rock

b)

they ran off

c)

the mass extinction event

d)

they got eaten by bigger predators

10.
Which portion of the timeline is known as the "Age of Dinosaurs"?
a)
Precambrian Time
b)
Paleozoic Era
c)
Mesozoic Era
d)
Cenozoic Era
11.
Which portion of the timeline is known as the "Age of Mammals"?
a)
Precambrian Time
b)
Paleozoic Era
c)
Mesozoic Era
d)
Cenozoic Era
12.
Which is closest to the accepted age of the Earth?
a)
4,000
b)
4 million 
c)
4 billion 
d)
4 trillion
13.
Precambrian Time accounts for ___% of Earth's History.
a)
10%
b)
25%
c)
50%
d)
90%
14.
Which type of animal appears earliest in the fossil record?  (OLDEST)
a)
Reptiles
b)
Birds
c)
Dinosaurs
d)
Fish
15.
Which type of animal appears earliest in the fossil record?  (OLDEST)
a)
Humans 
b)
Dinosaurs
c)
Birds
d)
Amphibians
16.
Cavemen lived at the same time as the dinosaurs.
a)
TRUE
b)
FALSE
17.
Which type of life dominates the Precambrian Time?
a)
Dinosaurs
b)
Mammals
c)
Bacteria
d)
Humans
18.
The mostly deadly Mass Extinction (90% of species) occurs at the end of the...
a)
Paleozoic Era 
b)
Mesozoic Era
c)
Cenozoic Era
d)
Precambrian Time
19.
The geologic time scale is subdivided into _____.
a)
Relative ages
b)
Absolute ages
c)
BC and AD
d)
Eras, periods, and epochs
20.
Which of the following is in the correct order?
a)
Cambrian explosion,Most complex life forms evolved, Single celled organisms appeared,Oceans formed
b)
Cambrian explosion, Oceans formed, Most complex life forms evolved, Single celled organisms appeared
c)
Single celled organisms appeared, Cambrian explosion, Oceans formed, Most complex life forms evolved
d)
Oceans formed, Single celled organisms appeared, Cambrian explosion, Most complex life forms evolve
21.

What happened during the Devonian time

a)

Corals grouped together

b)

Fishes evolved

c)

Beginning of most life

d)

Huge bugs

22.

What happened when the Cambrian Explosion took place?

a)

Everything dies

b)

Trees appear

c)

Things started to grow

d)

Oxygen and most life began

23.

This is the beginning of time on Earth until the Cambrian explosion.

a)

Paleozoic

b)

Cenozoic

c)

Precambrian

24.

This era contains the most mammals that ever lived on Earth.

a)

Cenozoic

b)

Mesozoic

c)

Paleozoic

d)

Precambrian

25.
What type of dating is believed to be the most accurate for determining the age of fossils?
a)
Biological Dating
b)
Geologic Dating
c)
Radioactive Dating
d)
Relative Dating
26.
The first organisms on Earth were most like today's:
a)
bacteria.
b)
DNA molecules.
c)
eukaryotes.
d)
multi-cellular organisms
27.
We are fairly confident that a meteorite/asteroid struck the Earth and Earth and killed the dinosaurs because of evidence found in the _________________.
a)
Cenozoic Era
b)
K-T Boundary
c)
Geologic Time Scale
d)
Cambrian Explosion
28.

The Cambrian explosion was...

a)

a theory as to why dinosaurs disappeared

b)

when most major animal groups appeared in the fossil record.

c)

an explosion that created the Grand Canyon

29.

The Principle that states the oldest rocks are at the bottom of any rock layer is called...

a)

the Principle of Superposition

b)

The Principle of Crosscutting

c)

The Principle of Pate Tectonics

30.
Invertebrates are animals
a)
with a backbone
b)
without a backbone
31.

The coloured circles in the blue vertical bar on this phylogenetic tree show that most extant animal groups originated....

a)

before the Cambrian

b)

during the Cambrian

c)

after the Cambrian

d)

none of the above

32.
What is an invertebrate?
a)
An animal with a backbone
b)
a mammal
c)
An animal without a backbone
d)
birds
33.
This group feeds milk to its young.
a)
birds
b)
mammals
c)
fish
d)
reptile
34.

cold blooded vertebrate animals with dry, scaley skin

a)

amphibians

b)

reptiles

c)

birds

d)

fish

35.

When did jawfish, a veterbrate, develop?

a)

Paleozoic

b)

Mesozoic

c)

Cenozoic

d)

Precambrian

36.

When did the first land animals appear?

a)

The Devonian of the Paleozoic

b)

The Devonian of the Mesozoic

c)

The Devonian of the Cenozoic

d)

In the Precambrian era

37.

What does the scientific evidence support as the first land animal?

a)

Amphibians

b)

Lungfish

c)

Humans

d)

Lizards

38.

A bird-like feathered dinosaur who's name means "Old Wing"

a)

Pterodactyl

b)

Batman

c)

Archaeopteryx

d)

Hummingbird

39.

Why is the amniotic egg considered an important evolutionary breakthrough?

a)

It has a shell that increases gas exchange.

b)

It allows deposition of eggs in a terrestrial environment.

c)

It prolongs embryonic development.

d)

It provides insulation to conserve heat.

40.
In what era were dinosaurs the dominant species?
a)

Cenozoic
b)
Paleozoic
c)
Mesozoic
d)
Quarternary
41.
What is the final span of geologic time?
a)
Mesozoic
b)
there is none - geologic time is ongoing
c)
the modern period
d)
the post-Cenozoic epoch
42.
During which Era appeared the earliest reptiles?
a)
Cenozoic
b)
Paleozoic
c)
Mesozoic
d)
Precambrian
43.

What is a mass extinction?

a)

When all the species in a particular area on earth suddenly go extinct

b)

When 50% of species from all over the earth suddenly go extinct

c)

When one species goes extinct due to habitat changes

d)

When all life on earth is wiped out

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