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WorksheetsInvestigation 4 Review
Total questions: 36
Worksheet time: 26mins
When rock layers get older the closer they are to the bottom.
Principle of Superposition
Principle of Original Horizontality
Principle of Uniformitarianism
Geological Time
When layers of sediment are deposited in a horizontal pattern.
Principle of Superposition
Principle of Original Horizontality
Principle of Uniformitarianism
Geological Time
Rocks form by the same processes today as in the past.
Principle of Superposition
Principle of Original Horizontality
Principle of Uniformitarianism
Geological Time
The measurement of time from the formation of Earth (4.6 bya) to the present, based on significant evolutionary events in Earth’s history.
Principle of Superposition
Principle of Original Horizontality
Principle of Uniformitarianism
Geological Time
Determines the age of a rock.
Index Fossils
Time Divisions
Unconformity
Geological Time
The divisions between each era or period are not regular, but appear to come at irregular intervals.
Index Fossils
Time Divisions
Unconformity
Geological Time
An interruption in the normal sequence of deposition of sedimentary rocks.
Index Fossils
Time Divisions
Unconformity
Geological Time
The time between the beginning of Earth and the appearance of the first easily fossilized, complex forms of life.
Precambrian Era
Paleozoic Era
Mesozoic Era
Cenozoic Era
The age of ancient life, which ended with a great extinction, during which 90% of the species living in the ocean disappeared.
Precambrian Era
Paleozoic Era
Mesozoic Era
Cenozoic Era
The middle age of life, including the time of the dinosaurs.
Precambrian Era
Paleozoic Era
Mesozoic Era
Cenozoic Era
The age of recent life, during which mammals thrived.
Precambrian Era
Paleozoic Era
Mesozoic Era
Cenozoic Era
We live in this era!
Precambrian Era
Paleozoic Era
Mesozoic Era
Cenozoic Era
How do fossils get in rocks?
Remnants of organisms that form fossils are embedded in sediments before the rocks form.
The timeline represents the history of life on Earth from the time of its formation, about 4.6 bya.
No rocks or sediments were being deposited because there was no ocean or sand dunes
Rocks or sediments were deposited and then eroded away before the next layer was deposited
Bodies of organisms become fossilized over (a) periods of time.
Fossils are animals, plants, and (a) of organisms.
What is our evidence that ancient environments existed in the Grand Canyon in the past?
The rocks are still here
Human history is a tiny, recent piece of the vast history of life on Earth.
Fossils form shortly after an organism dies.
No rocks or sediments were being deposited because there was no ocean or sand dunes
What could have caused environments to change from swamp to beach to ocean and back?
Catastrophic events
The rocks are still here
Human history is a tiny, recent piece of the vast history of life on Earth.
Fossils are as old as the rocks in which they are found.
What main ideas about the history of life on Earth does the timeline communicate?
The timeline represents the history of life on Earth from the time of its formation, about 4.6 bya.
The timeline represents the history of life of humans on Earth.
The timeline represents the history of life of plants on Earth.
The timeline represents the history of life of fossils on Earth.
How old are fossils?
Fossils are as old as the rocks in which they are found.
Fossils are as old as Earth.
Fossils are young.
Fossils are not old, they were alive for a short period of time.
Fossils form (a) after an organism dies.
The timeline represented the history of life, based on evidence from (a) .
An index fossil must have lived:
• For a relatively short period of time
• For a relatively long period of time
• In many places around the world
• In few places around the world
1. Which would make a better index fossil, a fern that has lived on Earth since the Pennsylvanian period and isn’t extinct yet, or a trilobite that lived in many areas for only a few million years during the Cambrian period?
(a)
2. Imagine a car as an index fossil. You dig up a car from where it sank in a lake and find a VW Beetle (1938-2003) or a DeLorean (1981-1982). Which one makes a better index fossil?
(a)
The following could explain the cause of an unconformity:
No rocks or sediments were being deposited because there was no ocean or sand dunes
No rocks or sediments were being deposited because there was only 1 ocean
Rocks or sediments were deposited and then eroded away before the next layer was deposited
Rocks or sediments were deposited and then eroded away after the next layer was deposited
Which statement best describes the principle of uniformitarianism?
Deposition occurs faster today than it did in ancient environments.
Rocks form by the same processes today as in the past
Weathering and erosion can be fast or slow, depending on the type of rock.
Earth’s geological features were formed by a few catastrophic events.
Why is uniformitarianism an important principle to consider when making inferences about how Earth’s geology has changed over millions of years?
What are reasons for gaps in the fossil record?
Many organisms do not have structures that can be fossilized
There were periods of time when no organisms died.
Some environments do not provide conditions favorable to fossil formation
There are lots of fossils that we haven’t found yet.
Some geological events destroyed fossils that were in the rock layers
Geological time is described in eras and periods. Those segments of time are based on _______.
whoever discovered them
significant evolutionary events in Earth’s history
the thickness of certain rock layers
the number of layers of rock that can be counted in 10 meters of a rock column
To a geologist, the most important use of index fossils is _______.
to show what kind of life existed long ago
to show that the sediments were deposited horizontally
to determine the age of the rock
to tell the story of the ancient environment
Do scientists think that new rocks are still forming today?
(a)
If rocks were not still forming today, the Earth’s surface would probably be _________ and _______ due to constant weathering, with thick layers of sediments.
(a)
Based on the information given, which of the following is most likely the index fossil?
Which layer is older, Reservoir Limestone or Desert Sandstone?
Reservoir Limestone
Desert Sandstone
Which drawing best represents the basin layers and water at the end of our investigation?
How does the class basin investigation apply to the formation of rock layers in the real world?
An entire basin can become tilted.
Layers always form horizontally
Layers gradually tilt until they become horizontal.
Newer layers form on top of older layers
Larger sediments are found in the bottom layers.
