Question 1

This figure shows a disconformity between an upper dark layer (being deposited by the sea)and a lower light-colored layer.What happened to form this disconformity?

Accepted Answer

A) The lower layers were tilted and untilted before deposition of the upper layers. 
B) The boundary between the two units indicates that for a time there was either erosion or no deposition. 
C) The lower limestones were converted into another rock type by seawater. 
D) The upper layer must have been deposited by volcanic eruptions. 
A) The lower layers were tilted and untilted before deposition of the upper layers. 
B) The boundary between the two units indicates that for a time there was either erosion or no deposition. 
C) The lower limestones were converted into another rock type by seawater. 
D) The upper layer must have been deposited by volcanic eruptions.

Question 2

From this cross section of the Grand Canyon,what is the youngest rock or structure of the ones listed below?

Accepted Answer

A) Late Cenozoic basalts 
B) Mesozoic sedimentary rocks 
C) Precambrian sedimentary and igneous rocks 
D) Precambrian metamorphic rocks and granite 
E) Hurricane fault and faults along the Grand Wash Cliffs 
A) Late Cenozoic basalts 
B) Mesozoic sedimentary rocks 
C) Precambrian sedimentary and igneous rocks 
D) Precambrian metamorphic rocks and granite 
E) Hurricane fault and faults along the Grand Wash Cliffs

Question 3

This figure shows two sections of rocks.What is the surest way to correlate a unit in one section to a unit in the other section?

Accepted Answer

A) match the similar sequence of rocks 
B) find a distinctive unit in both sections 
C) find two layers that both contain fossils 
D) physically trace a unit through the landscape from one section to another 
A) match the similar sequence of rocks 
B) find a distinctive unit in both sections 
C) find two layers that both contain fossils 
D) physically trace a unit through the landscape from one section to another

Question 4

This figure shows the geologic timescale.Which period listed below would be part of the Paleozoic?

Accepted Answer

A) Permian 
B) Pennsylvanian 
C) Mississippian 
D) Cambrian 
E) all of these 
A) Permian 
B) Pennsylvanian 
C) Mississippian 
D) Cambrian 
E) all of these

Question 5

Which of the following did NOT live during the Mesozoic era?

Accepted Answer

A) dinosaurs that had a bird-like hip 
B) dinosaurs with a hip structure similar to lizards 
C) large flying reptiles 
D) large marine reptiles 
E) all of these lived during the Mesozoic 
A) dinosaurs that had a bird-like hip 
B) dinosaurs with a hip structure similar to lizards 
C) large flying reptiles 
D) large marine reptiles 
E) all of these lived during the Mesozoic

Question 6

This figure shows two sections of rocks.Which of the following is NOT a valid way to correlate one of the numbered units from one section to another?

Accepted Answer

A) Units at the top of two sections will automatically be correlative. 
B) A distinctive rock type (breccia in unit 4)is probably equivalent to the same rock type in the other section. 
C) Match units that contain the same types of index fossils (as in unit 3). 
D) The shale in unit 2 is part of a distinctive sequence that is overlain by the same type of fossils. 
A) Units at the top of two sections will automatically be correlative. 
B) A distinctive rock type (breccia in unit 4)is probably equivalent to the same rock type in the other section. 
C) Match units that contain the same types of index fossils (as in unit 3). 
D) The shale in unit 2 is part of a distinctive sequence that is overlain by the same type of fossils.

Question 7

The fossil fern in this photograph probably indicate that the rock was deposited:

Accepted Answer

A) by the wind 
B) in the deep ocean 
C) in the shallow ocean 
D) on land 
A) by the wind 
B) in the deep ocean 
C) in the shallow ocean 
D) on land

Question 8

Which of the following forms different layers from season to season and can be used to determine how many years the layers represent?

Accepted Answer

A) tree rings 
B) layers in ice cores 
C) varves 
D) all of these 
A) tree rings 
B) layers in ice cores 
C) varves 
D) all of these

Question 9

What time period is represented by this scene?

Accepted Answer

A) Mesozoic 
B) Cenozoic 
C) Precambrian 
D) Paleozoic 
A) Mesozoic 
B) Cenozoic 
C) Precambrian 
D) Paleozoic

Question 10

Why don't these two sequences of fossil-bearing rocks match exactly?

Accepted Answer

A) they represent different parts of geologic time 
B) one section was tilted but not the other 
C) they have different histories of erosion and deposition 
D) one represents a transgression whereas the other represents a regression 
A) they represent different parts of geologic time 
B) one section was tilted but not the other 
C) they have different histories of erosion and deposition 
D) one represents a transgression whereas the other represents a regression

Question 11

Which of the following features look like fossils but are not?

Accepted Answer

A) footprints from dinosaurs and other creatures 
B) burrows excavated by worms and other creatures and filled by other sediment 
C) leaves and other plants formed on land 
D) dark minerals that grow in branching patterns 
E) all of these are fossils 
A) footprints from dinosaurs and other creatures 
B) burrows excavated by worms and other creatures and filled by other sediment 
C) leaves and other plants formed on land 
D) dark minerals that grow in branching patterns 
E) all of these are fossils

Question 12

Which of the following is evidence that Earth's history is not short?

Accepted Answer

A) millions of layers of light- and dark-colored sediment that record yearly cycles 
B) rates of seafloor spreading compared to the width of the Atlantic Ocean 
C) a 4-billion-year age on a rock in Canada 
D) thousands of isotopic ages measured by different methods 
E) all of these 
A) millions of layers of light- and dark-colored sediment that record yearly cycles 
B) rates of seafloor spreading compared to the width of the Atlantic Ocean 
C) a 4-billion-year age on a rock in Canada 
D) thousands of isotopic ages measured by different methods 
E) all of these

Question 13

What time period is represented by this scene?

Accepted Answer

A) Mesozoic 
B) Cenozoic 
C) Precambrian 
D) Paleozoic 
A) Mesozoic 
B) Cenozoic 
C) Precambrian 
D) Paleozoic

Question 14

From this cross section of the Grand Canyon,what are the oldest rocks or structures?

Accepted Answer

A) Late Cenozoic basalts 
B) Mesozoic sedimentary rocks 
C) Precambrian sedimentary and igneous rocks 
D) Precambrian metamorphic rocks and granite 
E) Hurricane fault and faults along the Grand Wash Cliffs 
A) Late Cenozoic basalts 
B) Mesozoic sedimentary rocks 
C) Precambrian sedimentary and igneous rocks 
D) Precambrian metamorphic rocks and granite 
E) Hurricane fault and faults along the Grand Wash Cliffs

Question 15

This photograph shows an upper unit with fragments and a lower unit with tilted layers.Which of the following statements is true?

Accepted Answer

A) the upper unit is younger because it is on top 
B) the upper unit is younger because it contains pieces of the underlying unit 
C) the lower unit is older because it was tilted and eroded before deposition of the upper unit 
D) all of these 
A) the upper unit is younger because it is on top 
B) the upper unit is younger because it contains pieces of the underlying unit 
C) the lower unit is older because it was tilted and eroded before deposition of the upper unit 
D) all of these

Question 16

What factors are the most critical in determining whether a fossil is preserved?

Accepted Answer

A) the age of the fossil and the age of sediments in which it is preserved 
B) the temperature of the granite and how fast it cooled 
C) whether the creature had hard parts and how fast it was buried 
D) the color of the original organism compared to the color of the sediments in which it is found 
E) whether the creature was a predator or was prey 
A) the age of the fossil and the age of sediments in which it is preserved 
B) the temperature of the granite and how fast it cooled 
C) whether the creature had hard parts and how fast it was buried 
D) the color of the original organism compared to the color of the sediments in which it is found 
E) whether the creature was a predator or was prey

Question 17

If the contact between the upper light-colored sedimentary layers and the lower dark-colored metamorphic rocks is a depositional contact,what type of feature is present?

Accepted Answer

A) a surface representing missing geologic time 
B) an angular unconformity 
C) an ancient erosion surface 
D) all of these 
A) a surface representing missing geologic time 
B) an angular unconformity 
C) an ancient erosion surface 
D) all of these

Question 18

In which of the following time periods did coral,clams,fish,plants and insects become abundant?

Accepted Answer

A) Cenozoic 
B) Mesozoic 
C) Paleozoic 
D) Precambrian 
A) Cenozoic 
B) Mesozoic 
C) Paleozoic 
D) Precambrian

Question 19

This photograph shows light-colored granite and darker diorite (both igneous rocks).Which of the following statements is true?

Accepted Answer

A) the light-colored unit is younger because granite is more continental than diorite 
B) the diorite is older because its weathered surfaces are darker 
C) the granite is younger because it crosscuts the diorite 
D) all of these 
A) the light-colored unit is younger because granite is more continental than diorite 
B) the diorite is older because its weathered surfaces are darker 
C) the granite is younger because it crosscuts the diorite 
D) all of these

Question 20

In which of the following time periods were mammals the dominant type of life?

Accepted Answer

A) Cenozoic 
B) Mesozoic 
C) Paleozoic 
D) Precambrian 
A) Cenozoic 
B) Mesozoic 
C) Paleozoic 
D) Precambrian

This figure shows a disconformity between an upper dark layer (being deposited by the sea)and a lower light-colored layer.What happened to form this disconformity?

From this cross section of the Grand Canyon,what is the youngest rock or structure of the ones listed below?

This figure shows two sections of rocks.What is the surest way to correlate a unit in one section to a unit in the other section?

This figure shows the geologic timescale.Which period listed below would be part of the Paleozoic?

Which of the following did NOT live during the Mesozoic era?

This figure shows two sections of rocks.Which of the following is NOT a valid way to correlate one of the numbered units from one section to another?

The fossil fern in this photograph probably indicate that the rock was deposited:

Which of the following forms different layers from season to season and can be used to determine how many years the layers represent?

What time period is represented by this scene?

Why don't these two sequences of fossil-bearing rocks match exactly?

Which of the following features look like fossils but are not?

Which of the following is evidence that Earth's history is not short?

What time period is represented by this scene?

From this cross section of the Grand Canyon,what are the oldest rocks or structures?

This photograph shows an upper unit with fragments and a lower unit with tilted layers.Which of the following statements is true?

What factors are the most critical in determining whether a fossil is preserved?

If the contact between the upper light-colored sedimentary layers and the lower dark-colored metamorphic rocks is a depositional contact,what type of feature is present?

In which of the following time periods did coral,clams,fish,plants and insects become abundant?

This photograph shows light-colored granite and darker diorite (both igneous rocks).Which of the following statements is true?

In which of the following time periods were mammals the dominant type of life?

The Nature of Geology

Investigating Geologic Questions

Plate Tectonics

Earth Materials

Igneous Environments

Volcanoes and Volcanic Hazards

Sedimentary Environments and Rocks

Deformation and Metamorphism

The Seafloor and Continental Margins

Mountains, basins, and Continents

Earthquakes and Earths Interior

Climate, weather, and Their Influences on Geology

Glaciers, shorelines, and Changing Sea Levels

Weathering, soil, and Unstable Slopes

Streams and Flooding

Water Resources

Energy and Mineral Resources

Geology of the Solar System

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Exam 9: Geologic Time

This figure shows a disconformity between an upper dark layer (being deposited by the sea)and a lower light-colored layer.What happened to form this disconformity?

From this cross section of the Grand Canyon,what is the youngest rock or structure of the ones listed below?

This figure shows two sections of rocks.What is the surest way to correlate a unit in one section to a unit in the other section?

This figure shows the geologic timescale.Which period listed below would be part of the Paleozoic?

Which of the following did NOT live during the Mesozoic era?

This figure shows two sections of rocks.Which of the following is NOT a valid way to correlate one of the numbered units from one section to another?

The fossil fern in this photograph probably indicate that the rock was deposited:

Which of the following forms different layers from season to season and can be used to determine how many years the layers represent?

What time period is represented by this scene?

Why don't these two sequences of fossil-bearing rocks match exactly?

Which of the following features look like fossils but are not?

Which of the following is evidence that Earth's history is not short?

What time period is represented by this scene?

From this cross section of the Grand Canyon,what are the oldest rocks or structures?

This photograph shows an upper unit with fragments and a lower unit with tilted layers.Which of the following statements is true?

What factors are the most critical in determining whether a fossil is preserved?

If the contact between the upper light-colored sedimentary layers and the lower dark-colored metamorphic rocks is a depositional contact,what type of feature is present?

In which of the following time periods did coral,clams,fish,plants and insects become abundant?

This photograph shows light-colored granite and darker diorite (both igneous rocks).Which of the following statements is true?

In which of the following time periods were mammals the dominant type of life?

The Nature of Geology

Investigating Geologic Questions

Plate Tectonics

Earth Materials

Igneous Environments

Volcanoes and Volcanic Hazards

Sedimentary Environments and Rocks

Deformation and Metamorphism

The Seafloor and Continental Margins

Mountains, basins, and Continents

Earthquakes and Earths Interior

Climate, weather, and Their Influences on Geology

Glaciers, shorelines, and Changing Sea Levels

Weathering, soil, and Unstable Slopes

Streams and Flooding

Water Resources

Energy and Mineral Resources

Geology of the Solar System

Filters