QUIZ – CHANGE OVER TIME – WRITE ANSWERS ON ANSWER SHEET
1.
Which sequence of New York State index fossils shows the order in which the organisms appeared
on Earth?
2. Which geologic event occurred during the same geologic period as the first appearance of modern
corals in Earth’s oceans?
(1) Grenville Orogeny
(3) intrusion of the Palisades Sill
(2) Acadian Orogeny
(4) formation of the Catskill Delta
3. Which group of organisms is inferred to have existed for the least amount of time in geologic history?
(1) trilobites
(3) eurypterids
(2) dinosaurs
(4) placoderm fish
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QUIZ – CHANGE OVER TIME – WRITE ANSWERS ON ANSWER SHEET
4. The division of Earth’s geologic history into units of time called eons, eras, periods, and epochs is based
on
(1) absolute dating techniques
(3) climatic changes
(2) fossil evidence
(4) seismic data
The geologic cross section below shows an unconformity in New York State bedrock layers that have not
been overturned. Index fossils found throughout some rock layers are shown.
5. Which New York State index fossil may have been present in a rock layer that is missing due to the
unconformity?
6. Which statement is best supported by the fossil record?
(1) Fossils are found in nearly all rocks.
(2) Fossils are found only in areas that were once under water.
(3) Most early life-forms that left fossil remains are now extinct.
(4) Most early life-forms that left fossil remains still exist today.
7. According to the fossil record, which group of organisms has existed for the greatest length of time?
(1) gastropods
(3) mammals
(2) corals
(4) vascular plants
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QUIZ – CHANGE OVER TIME – WRITE ANSWERS ON ANSWER SHEET
8. Based on fossil evidence, most scientists infer that
(1) life has not changed significantly throughout Earth’s history
(2) life has evolved from complex to simple forms
(3) many organisms that lived on Earth have become extinct
(4) mammals developed early in the Precambrian time period
9. Fossils of trilobites, graptolites, and eurypterids are found in the same bedrock layer in New York State.
During which geologic time interval could this bedrock layer have formed?
(1) Late Ordovician to Early Devonian
(2) Late Silurian to Early Cretaceous
(3) Early Permian to Late Jurassic
(4) Early Cambrian to Middle Ordovician
On the map below, the darkened areas represent locations where living corals currently exist. The arrow
points to a location where coral fossils have been found in Devonian-age bedrock in New York State.
10. Devonian-age coral fossils found in some New York State bedrock are not located in the same general
region that present-day corals are living because during the Devonian Period
(1) corals migrated to New York State
(2) corals lived everywhere on Earth
(3) New York State was closer to the equator
(4) New York State had a colder climate
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QUIZ – CHANGE OVER TIME – WRITE ANSWERS ON ANSWER SHEET
11. Which index fossil may be found in the surface bedrock near Ithaca, New York?
12. A whalebone that originally contained 200 grams of radioactive carbon-14 now contains 25 grams of
carbon-14. How many carbon-14 half-lives have passed since this whale was alive?
(1) 1
(3) 3
(2) 2
(4) 4
The models below represent the decay of radioactive atoms to stable atoms after their first and second
half-lives.
13. Which model best represents the number of undecayed and decayed atoms after three half-lives?
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QUIZ – CHANGE OVER TIME – WRITE ANSWERS ON ANSWER SHEET
Base your answers to questions 3 and 4 on the graph
below, which shows the generalized rate of decay of
radioactive isotopes over 5 half-lives.
14. If the original mass of a radioactive isotope was
24 grams, how many grams would remain after 3
half-lives?
(1) 12
(3) 3
(2) 24
(4) 6
15. Which radioactive isotope takes the greatest amount of time to undergo the change shown on the
graph?
(1) carbon-14
(3) uranium-238
(2) potassium-40
(4) rubidium-87
The table below shows information about the radioactive decay of carbon-14.
16. What is the amount of carbon-14 remaining
after 28,500 years?
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QUIZ – CHANGE OVER TIME – WRITE ANSWERS ON ANSWER SHEET
Base your answers to questions 17 through 20 on the diagrams below, which represent two bedrock
outcrops, I and II, found several kilometers apart in New York State. Rock layers are lettered A through F.
Drawings represent specific index fossils. Record all answers on student answer sheet!!!
17. During which geologic time period was rock layer C deposited?
18. Identify two processes that produced the unconformity in outcrop I.
19. Describe one characteristic a fossil must have in order to be considered a good index fossil.
20. Explain why carbon-14 can not be used to find the geologic age of these index fossils.
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QUIZ – CHANGE OVER TIME – WRITE ANSWERS ON ANSWER SHEET
Name___________________________
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Earth Science – Change over Time
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QUIZ – CHANGE OVER TIME – WRITE ANSWERS ON ANSWER SHEET
21.
Teacher Answer Key
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17. Cambrian
18. Weathering and erosion or uplift (any two of these three processes)
19. A good index fossil must be easily recognizable, have lived for a relatively short period of time,
or been a water dwelling organism that was widespread across the Earth.
20. The half life of carbon – 14 is such that by the time all of the carbon-14 has degraded to carbon12, we had not yet discovered the fossils. In other words, the fossils lived so long ago that there
is no carbon-14 remaining in them.
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