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WorksheetsGeologic History
Total questions: 20
Worksheet time: 13mins
During which period did the earliest insects appear on Earth?
Jurassic
Ordovician
Devonian
Silurian
When did a mass extinction of dinosaurs and many land plants occur?
65.5 mya
251 mya
300 mya
440 mya
Which group of organisms is still in existence today?
Graptolites
Crinoids
Eurypterids
Trilobites
Which letter best represents an index fossil?
A
B
C
D
Fossil pollen has been recovered from sediments deposited in late-Pleistocene lakes. The pollen’s geologic age can most accurately be measured by using...
rubidium-87
potassium-40
oxygen-18
carbon-14
Evidence indicates that 251 million years ago a mass extinction of many life-forms occurred on Earth. Which form of life became extinct at this time?
trilobites
dinosaurs
mammoths
eurypterids
The diagram below represents three bedrock outcrops. The layers have not been overturned. Letters A through E identify different rock layers. Fossils found in the rock layers are shown.
Which fossil could be classified as an index fossil?
The geologic time scale is divided into units of time based on
seismic data
fossil evidence
global temperature
absolute dating techniques
We know the folding of these rock layers occurred AFTER they were deposited due to the principle of:
Lateral Continuity
Superposition
Original Horizontality
Crosscutting Relationships
We know oldest rock layers are always on the bottom and youngest are on top due to the principle of
Lateral Continuity
Crosscutting Relationships
Superposition
Original Horizontality
The diagram to the right shows a geologic cross section. Letters A through D represent different rock units.
Which sequence correctly shows the age of the lettered rock units, from oldest to youngest?
A B C D
C D A B
D B A C
D C B A
Valcouroceras is a New York State index fossil. Which mountain-building event occurred in New York State during the time when Valcouroceras was living in oceans covering parts of New York State?
Alleghenian orogeny
Acadian orogeny
Taconian orogeny
Grenville orogeny
During which period in geologic history did the uplifting of the Adirondack Mountains begin?
Quarternary
Cretaceous
Triassic
Cambrian
Which characteristics make a good index fossil?
lived over a LARGE area for a short time
lived over a small area for a short time
lived over a LARGE area for a LONG time.
lived over a small area for a LONG time.
Volcanic ash deposits found in the geologic record are most useful in correlating the age of rock layers if the volcanic ash was distributed over a
large area during a short period of time
large area during a long period of time
small area during a short period of time
small area during a long period of time
Potassium-40 is useful for radioactive dating of the Palisades sill because the half-life of potassium-40
decreased as the amounts of 40Ar and 40Ca in the sill increased
remained constant during the radioactive decay process
increased as pressure from the overlying sedimentary rock increased
was shortened by the high temperature of the magma that formed the sill
A graph of the radioactive decay of carbon-14 is shown in the diagram.
Which graph below correctly shows the accumulation of nitrogen-14, the decay product of carbon-14, over the same period?
The graph below shows the decay of a radioactive material over time.
How long does it take for this radioactive material to decay through 2 half-lives?
1 × 103 years
5 × 103 years
10 × 103 years
40 × 103 years
Approximately 2.2 billion years ago, which gas was first added in large amounts to Earth’s atmosphere from life-forms that evolved in the oceans?
carbon dioxide
water vapor
oxygen
nitrogen
Which geologic event occurred in New York State at approximately the same time as the extinction of dinosaurs and ammonoids?
formation of the Queenston Delta
deposition of the sands and clays underlying Long Island
initial opening of the Atlantic Ocean
advance and retreat of the last continental ice sheet
