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WorksheetsGeologic Time
Total questions: 48
Worksheet time: 48mins
Which type of rocks are associated with the Law of Superposition?
Sedimentary
Igneous
Fossils
Metamorphic
How old do Paleontologists believe the Earth is?
2019 years old
3.6 billion years old
4.6 billion years old
4.6 million years old
Analyze the layers of undisturbed sedimentary rock. Which layer of sedimentary rock is oldest?
Q
R
S
T
U
What is the oldest organism on the geologic time scale?
primitive horses
sea scorpions
giant insects
trilobites
Which of the following orders the rock layers accurately from oldest to youngest?
1, 2, 3, 4, 5
5, 4, 3, 2, 1
2, 3, 4, 5, 1
1, 2, 3, 5, 4
Which of the following occurred relatively most recently?
Fault A
Intrusion B
Folding
Intrusion D
Which of the following offers a possible list of the layers in order from oldest to youngest?
A, B, C, D, E
E, C, B, D, A
E, D, C, B, A
C, B, A, D, E
Which rock layer was deposited first, and is the oldest rock, in this diagram?
B
C
D
E
What is the youngest layer in the diagram?
A
B
C
D
Which of the following answer choices happened most recently?
Deposition of Units E and F
Deposition of Units A and B
Tilting of Units C, D, E, and F
Deposition of Units C and D
Look at the diagram, what layer did animal E first show up in?
Layer #4
Layer #5
Layer #6
Layer #8
The number of years that have passed since the rock formed is the rock's ____ age, or its actual age.
relative
law of superposition
absolute
index fossil
The age of a rock compared to the ages of other rocks is the rock's
absolute age
geologic age
sedimentary age
relative age
A break or a gap in the geologic record when rock layers are eroded over a long period of time, "losing" those rocks
fault
fold
unconformity
cross-cutting
Layer B on Site #1 (left) is a match to which layer on Site #2 (right)?
z
y
w
there is no match
Most geologists rejected Wegener's idea of Continental Drift because _________.
He used too many pieces of evidence to support the idea.
He wanted to know what Earth looked like millions of years ago, which is impossible.
He couldn't identify what would cause continents to move around.
They were afraid of the new idea.
Who first proposed the idea of Continental Drift?
Harry Hess
Alfred Wegener
Albert Einstein
Galileo Galilee
What did Wegener name the large supercontinent where all the continents were joined together?
Wegenerland
Gondwanaland
Laurasia
Pangaea
Wegener used matching matching fossils of the same organisms on different continents as evidence to support his hypothesis of Continental Drift.
true
false
Which of the following were peices of evidence used by Alfred Wegener to support his hypothesis of Continental Drift? (choose ALL that apply)
fit of the continents
matching rocks and mountains across continents
matching fossils across continents
evidence of glaciers in places now too warm
magnetic striping on the seafloor showing seafloor spreading
Index fossils allow geologists to
determine why some organisms became extinct.
identify organisms that did not leave fossil evidence behind.
determine the exact age of rocks.
match rocks of the same age in different regions.
A geologist finds an area of undisturbed sedimentary rock. The _________________ layer is the oldest.
top layer
bottom layer
middle layer
extrusion
Scientists can determine the absolute age of rocks using
the law of superposition
radioactive dating
fault lines
index fossils
What are fossils?
The preserved remains or traces of organisms that lived in the past.
Footprints or burrows of small animals that are alive today.
Molds and casts of organisms that are alive today.
Drawings of ancient animals and other organisms.
To determine Earth’s age, scientists used radioactive dating on rocks from
Volcanoes
Atlantic Ocean
Grand Canyon
The Moon and Meteorites
The youngest rock layers at each location are:
A and W
Z and G
D and Y
E and Y
According to the Law of Superposition, the oldest rock layers at each location are:
A and W
Z and G
D and Y
E and Y
The process by which an unstable element naturally changes into another element that is stable is
isotopes
radioactive decay
half-lives
fossilizing
Review the diagram showing a fault located among layers of sedimentary rock. What is the relative age of the fault?
The fault is older than layer B
The fault is older than layer C..
The fault is older than layer E.
The fault is older than layer F.
Trilobite fossils from different time periods show small changes in appearance. What might account for the changes?
catastrophic geologic events
weathering and erosion
increase in greenhouse gases
response to environmental changes
Scientists know that trilobites lived in an era earlier than the one in which dinosaurs lived. What information helped the scientists infer this?
There were rock layers that had fossils of both trilobites and dinosaurs.
Fossils of dinosaurs were found below the layers of rock containing fossils of trilobites.
There were more fossils of dinosaurs in the rock layers than fossils of trilobites.
Fossils of trilobites were found below the layers of rock containing fossils of dinosaurs.
Which explanation best describes why marine fossils have been discovered in rock layers in a desert environment?
A catastrophic event occurred in the area in the past.
Continental drift moved the rock layers from the coast to the desert.
The area was once completely covered by water.
Volcanic activity had once occurred in the area.
A geologist studies two layers of sandstone that exist along opposite coasts of North America. Which characteristic of the layers provides the best evidence that they were deposited about the same time>
particle sizes of the sand in the rock layer
the rock layers' chemical composition
the depth of the rock layers from the surface layer
the fossils found in the rock layer
The diagram represents fossils found in sedimentary rock in one location. Which was most likely the effect of the climate change on the environment.
The environment most likely changed from cold to desert.
The environment most likely changed from tropical to tundra.
The environment most likely changed from arid or desert to cold (ice or snow).
The environment most likely changed from arid or desert to tropical.
The diagram represents fossils found in sedimentary rock in one location. Which statement most likely explains what happened to the archaeopteryx as a result of the change in climate.
It adapted and is still a surviving species.
It is now an endangered species.
It became extinct.
