Earth Changing Over Time

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

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS1-4

How old is Earth?

• 100 billion years old

• 4.6 billion years old

• 3.5 billion years old

• 100,000,000,000 years old

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS1-4

An index fossil is most useful if it is a fossil of an organism that existed for a

• short time over a large area.

• long time over a large area.

• long time over a small area.

• short time over a small area.

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS4-1

A person that studies prehistoric life forms by investigating the fossils of plants, animals, and other organisms is known as a(n)

• paleontologist.

• geologist.

• science teacher.

• ethnobotanist.

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS4-1

NGSS.MS-ESS2-3

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.

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS4-1

The time it takes for half of a radioactive element’s atoms to decay is its

• era

• half-life

• relative age

• absolute age

Tags

NGSS.HS-PS1-8

To determine Earth’s age, scientists used radioactive dating on rocks from

• Volcanoes

• Atlantic Ocean

• Grand Canyon

• The Moon and Meteorites

Tags

NGSS.HS-ESS1-6

Which layers are extrusions?

• C and X

• F and G

• D and Y

• G and B