GEOLOGY 12
CHAPTER 8 WS #3
GEOLOGIC TIME & THE FOSSIL RECORD
KEY
Multiple Choice
1.
Fossils are most commonly found in
A.
B.
C.
D.
2.
The actual removal of the original hard parts of an organism by the dissolving action of
ground water, followed by deposition of mineral matter in their place is
A.
B.
C.
D.
3.
ferns.
flowering plants.
calamites.
stromatolites.
By far the greatest number of fossils are those of
A.
B.
C.
D.
7.
Fossils are natural resources.
Fossils help correlate strata.
Fossils plot ancient geography and climate.
Fossils prove evolution beyond any doubt.
Earliest fossil plants are
A.
B.
C.
D.
6.
gastroliths.
coprolites.
borings.
artifacts.
Which of the following statements about fossils is least acceptable?
A.
B.
C.
D.
5.
substitution.
distillation.
mummification.
replacement.
Fossil excreta which give clues to the diet of ancient animals are called
A.
B.
C.
D.
4.
sedimentary rocks.
metamorphic rocks.
igneous rocks.
all kinds of rocks.
shallow-water marine animals.
deep-sea animals.
land plants and animals.
fresh-water plants and animals.
A geologic time poor in fossils but rich in minerals is the
A.
B.
C.
D.
Cambrian
Devonian
Precambrian
Cretaceous
8.
Petrifaction of organisms is accomplished by all these processes except
A.
B.
C.
D.
9.
During the Cenozoic time, which of the following did not exist?
A.
B.
C.
D.
10.
Appalachians.
Catskills.
Rockies.
Adirondacks.
Archeopteryx was the prototype of the
A.
B.
C.
D.
15.
Archeozoic era.
Paleozoic Era.
Triassic Period.
Mesozoic Era.
A mountain range that began to form at the close of the Mesozoic Era is the
A.
B.
C.
D.
14.
corals.
brachiopods.
sponges.
trilobites.
A time in the earth’s history when the earth’s atmosphere probably did not contain
oxygen was the
A.
B.
C.
D.
13.
they did not exist.
they were very rare.
they lacked hard parts necessary for preservation.
they exist, but haven’t been found.
At least half of all Cambrian fossils are
A.
B.
C.
D.
12.
trilobites
eohippus
foraminifera
elephants
The fossil record of marine protozoa in the Cambrian era is poor. This is probably
because
A.
B.
C.
D.
11.
permineralization.
mummification.
replacement.
carbonization.
reptile.
amphibian.
bird.
fish.
Which of the following became extinct at the close of the Cretaceous period?
A.
B.
C.
D.
dinosaurs
trilobites
camels
birds
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16.
Measurements of radioactivity in rocks places the age of the earth in the
A.
B.
C.
D.
17.
Which of the following was a period of glaciation for the southern continents?
A.
B.
C.
D.
18.
Pleistocene
Pennsylvanian
Ordovician
Silurian
The Cenozoic Era is called the
A.
B.
C.
D.
23.
water.
oil.
gold.
uranium.
In North America and Europe four glacial periods occurred during the
A.
B.
C.
D.
22.
brachiopod
leaf
turtle
garden slug
Fossils would be useful in the discovery of
A.
B.
C.
D.
21.
Eocene
Pennsylvanian
Triassic
Jurassic
Which of the following would be least likely to form a fossil?
A.
B.
C.
D.
20.
Cambrian
Pennsylvanian
Ordovician
Permian
Most of our great coal deposits were formed during the
A.
B.
C.
D.
19.
millions of years
billions of years
thousands of years
hundreds of years
Age of Invertebrates.
Age of Reptiles.
Age of Fishes.
Age of Mammals.
Which of the following had not evolved by the end of the Paleozoic?
A.
B.
C.
D.
reptiles
mammals
amphibians
fish
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24.
The lobe-finned fish was probably
A.
B.
C.
D.
25.
During which period did the first land plants probably appear?
A.
B.
C.
D.
26.
dinosaur
land plant
Devonian fish
Permian continent
The rapid development of mammals at the end of the Cretaceous is partly accounted for
by the
A.
B.
C.
D.
31.
trilobite
gastropod
belemnites
crinoid
Gondwanaland is the name given to a
A.
B.
C.
D.
30.
dinosaur
therapsid
neuropteris
eurypterid
Because of their rapid evolution and sudden disappearance during the Mesozoic, an
excellent index fossil of this period was the
A.
B.
C.
D.
29.
Silurian
Cambrian
Permian
Recent
A Permian reptile thought to be the link between reptiles and mammals was the
A.
B.
C.
D.
28.
Silurian
Cambrian
Mississippian
Pliocene
The “period of great extinction” refers to the
A.
B.
C.
D.
27.
an ancestor to the amphibians
a primitive type of invertebrate
a descendent of the trilobite
a vertebrate restricted to the Ordovician
disappearance of fish
spread of marine waters
spread of flowering plants
intense igneous activity
Unaltered fossils may be preserved by all these methods except
A.
B.
C.
D.
freezing
preservation in amber
preservation in volcanic ash
petrification
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32.
A 19th century Englishman recognized the value of index fossils as a means of
identifying and correlating rock strata was
A.
B.
C.
D.
33.
The last complete epoch of the Cenozoic is the
A.
B.
C.
D.
34.
photosynthesis
osmosis
chemosynthesis
metabolism
All of the following are considered fossils except
A.
B.
C.
D.
39.
Oligocene
Paleocene
Pliocene
Pleistocene
A form of autotrophic nutrition in certain bacteria which triggered the precipitation of iron
and sulfur is
A.
B.
C.
D.
38.
Jurassic
Triassic
Cretaceous
Paleocene
Man’s first ancestors appeared during the
A.
B.
C.
D.
37.
not inhabited by scavengers
flat, high, and dry
densely populated
relatively free of bacteria
Dinosaurs and ammonites became extinct at the end of the
A.
B.
C.
D.
36.
Holocene
Pleistocene
Pliocene
Paleocene
Frozen tundra offers a suitable environment for fossil preservation because it is
A.
B.
C.
D.
35.
William Smith
Archbishop Ussher
Francis Bacon
G.V. Brocchi
carbonized leaf
insect in amber
petrified wood
concretions containing amethyst
The most common fossil in Proterozoic rocks is the
A.
B.
C.
D.
calamite
stromatolite
stalagmite
gastrolith
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40.
Multi-cellular organisms came into existence in large numbers after the development of
A.
B.
C.
D.
41.
What was responsible for the large salt deposits during the late Silurian time?
A.
B.
C.
D.
42.
amphibian, fish, invertebrate, reptile
fish, reptile, invertebrate, amphibian
invertebrate, fish, amphibian, reptile
reptile, invertebrate, amphibian, fish
The type of fossil preservation which is most likely to preserve the original blood and
DNA of an organism is
A.
B.
C.
D.
46.
Precambrian algal remains.
wood from an archeological site.
a Paleozoic igneous intrusion.
Cambrian carbonates.
Which is the correct order for the changes in life that occurred during the Paleozoic era?
A.
B.
C.
D.
45.
Archeozoic
Oligocene
Recent
Silurian
Carbon-14 dating would be most useful for dating
A.
B.
C.
D.
44.
Appearance of land plants.
Uplift of the eastern coast.
Evaporation of an inland sea.
Extensive inundations.
The first time the earth’s atmosphere had an oxygen level approximating today’s 21%
was probably during the
A.
B.
C.
D.
43.
internal fertilization
aerobic respiration
anaerobic respiration
transpiration
carbonization.
preservation in amber.
permineralization.
replacement by calcite.
The geological period when early humans; e.g., Australopithecus afarensis, first
appeared in the fossil record was the
A. Jurassic.
B. Cretaceous.
47.
C. Tertiary.
D. Quaternary.
The age of Earth is thought to be 4.6 billion years. However, the oldest rocks are dated
at almost 4.0 billion years. The most likely reason for the different ages is that rocks
older than 4.0 billion years
A. have all been destroyed.
B. never existed on the earth.
C. have sunk to the center of the earth.
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D. are too old to date using current methods.
Use the fossil chart provided on the next page to answer questions 48 to 53.
The chart shows the occurrence and time range of 9 different Paleozoic fossils.
The arrows indicate the geological periods in which the fossil lived.
Before you begin, remember to identify the type of fossils shown.
48.
Two fossils which belong to phylum arthropoda are
A.
B.
C.
D.
49.
The fossil which indicates a land environment is
A.
B.
C.
D.
50.
Silurian.
Devonian.
Ordovician.
Carboniferous.
The geological principle applied when a collection of fossils is used to determine the
relative age of a rock layer is
A.
B.
C.
D.
53.
S
T
X
Z
A fossil collection consisting of R, T and U was found in a rock layer. The likely age
of the rock layer is
A.
B.
C.
D.
52.
S
T
V
Y
The best guide (index) fossil for the Carboniferous period would be
A.
B.
C.
D.
51.
T and X
S and V
R and Z
U and W
superposition.
faunal succession.
uniformitarianism.
cross cutting relations.
From the data shown in the chart, the fossil most likely to be found in present-day
oceans is
A.
B.
C.
D.
S
U
X
Z
7
This chart is to be used with questions 48 to 53.
Before you begin, remember to identify the type of fossils shown.
8
Use the Geologic Time Scale and the Geologic Cross Section
shown below to answer questions 54 to 58.
Before you begin, remember to identify each strata and timeframe.
9
Before you begin, remember to identify each strata and timeframe on the previous page.
54.
The fault (F) occurred
A.
B.
C.
D.
55.
The age of unit Z is
A.
B.
C.
D.
56.
relation.
connection.
correlation.
extrapolation.
Intrusive rock X has been radiometrically dated and found to be 170 million years old.
The most accurate estimate of the age of unit Y is
A.
B.
C.
D.
58.
Silurian.
Ordovician.
Devonian.
Carboniferous.
The process of matching rock layers across the river canyon using fossils is called
A.
B.
C.
D.
57.
after the Ordovician.
between the Ordovician and the Silurian.
between the Cambrian and the Ordovician.
between the Precambrian and the Cambrian.
245-170 million years.
208-170 million years.
older than 245 million years.
younger than 170 million years.
The location where an unconformity exists is
A.
B.
C.
D.
I
II
III
IV
This is the end of the multiple-choice section.
Complete the following written response questions in the space provided.
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Written Response
Use the following sketch of a tooth, which has been buried in fine-grained sediment, to
answer questions 1 and 2.
What is this?
1.
A fossil cast was formed from the original tooth. Describe what details of the internal
structure of the tooth could be seen if the resulting fossil cast were sawn in half. (2 marks)
A cast is a sediment filled mold. NO internal structures will be preserved.
2.
Referring directly to the specimen shown, what was the lifestyle of the organism from which
it came? (2 marks)
The specimen above looks like a shark’s tooth, therefore the lifestyle can be assumed to be
a free-swimming carnivore in a marine environment. (pelagic)
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3.
Consider the following fossil collection below. (4 marks)
Before you begin, remember to identify each fossil and timeframe.
a)
Which fossil seems out of place with the others? D
b)
Give two reasons for your conclusion.
i)
A, B, C are animal fossils or
A, B, C are marine fossils or
A, B, C appeared during the Mississippian Period
ii)
c)
D is a plant fossil
What is the maximum time-span, in millions of years, represented by this collection?
74my or 360my to 286my
4.
Identify the unconformity in this section. Show how
you determined your answer. (3 marks)
Before you begin, remember to identify each
fossil and timeframe.
Unconformity = I
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