Question 1

Fossils are common in __.

Accepted Answer

A)  all rock types 
B)  plutonic rocks 
C)  sedimentary rocks 
D)  metamorphic rocks 
E)  volcanic rocks

Question 2

The half-life of the carbon 14 isotope is 5730 years. If there were 4 billion atoms of C-14 in a particular organism at the time it died, how many atoms of C-14 would there be in the remains of that organism 11,460 years after it died?

Accepted Answer

A)  1 billion 
B)  2 billion 
C)  3 billion 
D)  4 billion 
E)  8 billion

Question 3

Under some circumstances, correlation between two regions can be made by assuming that similar rock types in the two regions formed at the same time.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 4

In an unconformity the contact represents a gap in the geologic record.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 5

The ___ Era began with the appearance of complex life, as indicated by fossils like trilobites.

Accepted Answer

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

Question 6

The principle of crosscutting relationships states that a disrupted pattern is older than the cause of disruption.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 7

In the radioactive decay process of __ decay, an electron is emitted from the nucleus of the parent isotope.

Accepted Answer

A)  omega 
B)  gamma 
C)  beta 
D)  alpha 
E)  delta

Question 8

The Mesozoic Era precedes (is older than) the Paleozoic Era.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 9

The proportional amount of atoms that decay with time _____ by the high pressures and temperature of Earth's interior.

Accepted Answer

A)  can be slightly accelerated 
B)  can be slightly decelerated 
C)  can be greatly accelerated 
D)  can be greatly decelerated 
E)  is not changed at all

Question 10

The principle of original horizontality states that beds of sediment are nearly always deposited as nearly horizontal layers.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 11

Radon is an intermediate product of uranium-238 decay.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 12

When marine geologists collects a core of undeformed ocean-floor sediment, they know that the youngest layer is on the top of the core and the oldest is at the bottom because of the principle of __.

Accepted Answer

A)  supposition 
B)  suspension 
C)  superposition 
D)  inclusion 
E)  cross-cutting relationships

Question 13

By the principle of __, the surface feature known as the Grand Canyon is ___ than the sedimentary formations that are exposed in the side walls of the Grand Canyon.

Accepted Answer

A)  superposition; younger 
B)  inclusion; older 
C)  superposition; older 
D)  cross-cutting relationships; younger 
E)  cross-cutting relationships; older

Question 14

The ____ is based upon the observation that fossil species succeed one another through layers in a predictable order.

Accepted Answer

A)  principle of lateral continuity 
B)  principle of faunal succession 
C)  principle of original horizontality 
D)  principle of unconformities 
E)  principle of radioactivity

Question 15

The _____ is the principle says that the same processes and natural laws that operated in the past are those we can actually observe or infer from observation as operating at present.

Accepted Answer

A)  Uniformitarianism 
B)  Numericalism 
C)  Relativism age 
D)  Actualism 
E)  Absolutism

Question 16

Another term for cosmogenic isotope dating is surface exposure dating.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 17

The principle of ______ states that fragments included in a host rock must be _______ than the host rock.

Accepted Answer

A)  intrusion; older than 
B)  inclusion; older than 
C)  intrusion; younger than 
D)  inclusion; younger than 
E)  inclusion; the same age as

Question 18

Radiocarbon dating is useful in dating an event that occurred in the past ________ years.

Accepted Answer

A)  4 thousand 
B)  40 thousand 
C)  400 thousand 
D)  4 million 
E)  40 million

Question 19

Relative time refers to the time sequence in which events take place rather than the number of years involved.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 20

Alvarez and others proposed a hypothesis that dinosaur extinction occurred because __.

Accepted Answer

A)  they sickened and died because of a cross-species epidemic 
B)  the continents were flooded with seawater and they drowned 
C)  all their eggs were eaten by birds and mammals 
D)  the climate changed as the Ice Age began 
E)  one or more asteroids impacted Earth, resulting in environmental change

Exam 8: Time and Geology

Fossils are common in __.

The half-life of the carbon 14 isotope is 5730 years. If there were 4 billion atoms of C-14 in a particular organism at the time it died, how many atoms of C-14 would there be in the remains of that organism 11,460 years after it died?

Under some circumstances, correlation between two regions can be made by assuming that similar rock types in the two regions formed at the same time.

In an unconformity the contact represents a gap in the geologic record.

The ___ Era began with the appearance of complex life, as indicated by fossils like trilobites.

The principle of crosscutting relationships states that a disrupted pattern is older than the cause of disruption.

In the radioactive decay process of __ decay, an electron is emitted from the nucleus of the parent isotope.

The Mesozoic Era precedes (is older than) the Paleozoic Era.

The proportional amount of atoms that decay with time _____ by the high pressures and temperature of Earth's interior.

The principle of original horizontality states that beds of sediment are nearly always deposited as nearly horizontal layers.

Radon is an intermediate product of uranium-238 decay.

When marine geologists collects a core of undeformed ocean-floor sediment, they know that the youngest layer is on the top of the core and the oldest is at the bottom because of the principle of __.

By the principle of , the surface feature known as the Grand Canyon is _ than the sedimentary formations that are exposed in the side walls of the Grand Canyon.

The ____ is based upon the observation that fossil species succeed one another through layers in a predictable order.

The _____ is the principle says that the same processes and natural laws that operated in the past are those we can actually observe or infer from observation as operating at present.

Another term for cosmogenic isotope dating is surface exposure dating.

The principle of states that fragments included in a host rock must be _ than the host rock.

Radiocarbon dating is useful in dating an event that occurred in the past ________ years.

Relative time refers to the time sequence in which events take place rather than the number of years involved.

Alvarez and others proposed a hypothesis that dinosaur extinction occurred because __.