What principle states that the oldest layer is on the bottom and that each layer above it gets younger and younger?

What principle states that Earth has been shaped by sudden, rare events called catastrophes?

What principle states that a feature cutting across layers of rock is younger than the layers it cuts across?

What 3 reasons explain why the fossil record is incomplete?

An ideal sequence of rock layers that contains all known fossils and rock layers from oldest to youngest.

A core sample that is typically removed from an ice sheet.

A break in the Earth's crust along which blocks of Earth's crust slide relative to one another.

Occurs when rock layers bend and buckle due to Earth's internal forces.

Occurs when rock layers slant, but not fold, due to Earth's internal forces.

A wavy line in diagrams that indicates a missing part of the geologic column.

Molten rock from Earth's interior that squeezes into existing rock and cools.

A fossil of an organism that lived during a relatively short, well-defined time span and can be used to determine absolute age.

Determining the absolute age of a sample based on the ratio of parent material to daughter material.

Determining whether an object or event is older or younger than another object or event.

A process of establishing the age of an object by determining the number of years it has existed.

Any naturally preserved evidence of life.

Any naturally preserved evidence of an animal's activity (footprints, burrows, etc.)

A cavity in the ground where a plant or animal were buried.

An object created when sediment fills a mold and becomes a rock.

What are 2 ways scientists can use fossils to learn about the past?

You discover a brand new fossil in the same rock layer as an index fossil that lived 34 million years ago. What do you know about the brand new fossil?

Heavy flooding in Iowa revealed the fossils you see in the diagram. What do these fossils most likely suggest about Iowa's past?

Is the following statement an example of relative dating or absolute dating?

The dinosaur died 65 million years ago.

Is the following statement an example of relative dating or absolute dating?

In between the Precambrian and Mesozoic eras, marine life dominated.

Which fossil would make a good index fossil?

Which of the following events occurred last?

Of the rock layers C, D, H, and A, which layer is the youngest?

According to the Law of Superposition, the oldest fossil in this diagram would be:

The diagram represents a cross-section of some rock layers. A fault is present in these rock layers.

Determine the relative ages of the rock layers and the fault. Choose the answer that correctly lists the layers in order from oldest to youngest.

Layer A is an example of

H is an example of

Which statement below is an example of using the Law of Superposition?

The image below shows fossil layers at different locations in the Grand Canyon and evidence of an unconformity.

Based on the image and your understanding of rock layers, why is Layer B not present at Location 4?

The diagram shows rock layer C, fault AB, and intrusion D. Choose the option below that correctly lists them from oldest to youngest.

What is the absolute age of the primitive fish?

What is the relative age of the Brachiopods to the Quarry dinosaurs?

What are the oldest fossils shown in the chart?

A scientist finds the bones of a dinosaur. What could help the scientist determine the approximate age of the dinosaur bones?

This diagram shows a cross-section of land that has not been overturned and includes a fossil.

What can be concluded about the relative age of the fossil? Select 3 of the following.

Which of the following is the best scientific evidence that mammals evolved from reptiles?

Monte Bolca is located high in the mountains of northern Italy. This site is one of the world's largest deposits of coral reef fish fossils. There are fossils of more than 160 fish species dating back 49 million years.

Which statement is consistent with this evidence and explains how ancient coral reef fossils can be found high in the mountains far from any sea?

Which radioisotope from the table can be used to calculate the absolute age of a fossil that is more than 800 million years old?

Which best describes how ice cores are important to the study of geologic history?