Earth Science review – Flashcards
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Select all the answers that apply. Types of evidence that astronomers use to estimate the age of the universe and stars include _____.
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radioactive dating of rocks fossil evidence movement of galaxies(ANS) molecular clocks chemical composition of the Sun(ANS)
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Select all the answers that apply. Geological evidence of the age of the earth includes _____.
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radiometric dating of rocks (ANS) fossil evidence(ANS) comparative anatomy molecular clocks gradual processes of rock (ANS)
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Select all the answers that apply. Biological evidence of the age of the earth includes _____.
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radioactive dating of rocks fossil evidence (ANS) comparative anatomy(ANS) molecular clocks(ANS) gradual processes of rock formation
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The theory that earth's rocks formed in a global flood followed by uplifting of some rock over a short period is called _____.
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Catastrophism
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The principle that the geologic processes that we see today have occurred throughout Earth's history is called _____.
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Uniformitarianism
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The idea that rocks form over long periods through the slow geologic processes is called _____.
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Gradualism
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A geologist is studying layers of rock. He finds a fossil with an imprint of a shelled animal. According to the law of faunal and floral succession, what kind of fossil would he most likely find next, in the layer of rock above it? Look back to the Fossil Succession Chart for help.
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A fossil of fishes
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A fossil that is widespread geographically but only occurs in one or a small number of rock layers is called _____.
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An index fossil
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In _____ you study rock strata, and in______ you study fossils.
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Statigraphy, Paleontology
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law of original horizontality
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Sediment gets pulled down by gravity in a horizontal and flat layer.
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law of superposition
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The youngest strata are at the top and the oldest are at the bottom.
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law of original lateral continuity
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Sediment continues to spread in a flat plane until it hits an edge or runs out of material.
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law of cross-cutting or intrusive relationships
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If there is a fracture or intrusive feature seen in rock strata, it is younger than the rock strata.
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To use a process, such as radioactive decay, to measure absolute time, you must know two things:
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how much change has occurred (e.g., how much uranium has changed) and the rate at which the process occurs (e.g., how fast radioactive uranium converts to a new element)
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absolute time
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geologic time measured in a specific duration of years
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Relative time
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placing events in chronological order without reference to their ages measured in years
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Radioactive decay
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spontaneous disintegration of the atoms of certain isotopes into new isotopes
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Radiometric dating
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dating a rock or mineral by measuring the proportions of an original radioactive material and its decay product
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Select all answers that apply. For radiometric dating, you need to know which of the following?
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the rate at which radioactive decay occurs(ANS) a collection of fossil shells from sedimentary rocks how much radioactive decay has occurred(ANS) the sequence of rock layers
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"Dinosaurs went extinct 65 million years ago." This statement is an example of _____.
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Absolute time
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The rate at which a parent atom creates daughter atoms is always _____.
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Constant and unique
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"Fish appear in the fossil record before amphibians." This statement is an example of _____.
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Relative time
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Biologists use molecular clocks to try to measure _____.
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When two species separated from a shared ancestor
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Select all answers that apply. Which of the following statements depend on the absolute dating of events?
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Dinosaurs went extinct before monkeys evolved. Birds separated from dinosaur relatives 120 million years ago.(ANS) The oldest Earth rocks are 3.9 billion years old.(ANS) In undisturbed rock layers, we find older rock layers beneath younger rock layers.
