Geology UnitReview

Charles Darwin suggested that organisms could change over time through what process?

Natural selection

The continual creation and destruction of rocks in the Earth

is known collectively as what?

The Rock Cycle

Scientists originally dismissed Wegener’s theory of Continental Drift

because there was no known mechanism for the movement of continents. What

discovery changed that?

Sea floor spreading

Certain fossils are only found in the lowest layer of sedimentary rock and not in any other layer,

what might account for that?

The organism became extinct

The scientific principle which states that the closer to the surface a rock layer is, the

younger it tends to be is known as what?

The Law of Superposition

What Geological Era are Dinosaurs most closely

associated with?

Mesozoic Era

What kind of rocks are most closely associated with

volcanic activity?

Igneous Rock

If you start with 64 kilograms of a radioactive element with a half life of 10,000 years, how much of

that material will be left after 30,000 years?

8 Kilograms

A mutation which results in increased survivability of an

organism, which is then successfully passed on to future generations is known as what?

An adaptation

What do we call a tectonic plate boundary where the

plates are separating?

Divergent boundary

Magnetic reversals provide evidence to

support what theory?

Sea floor spreading or continental drift

A break in the original sequence of rock layers in a given geologic

column is known as what?

Unconformity or disconformity

Who was the first scientist to propose the theory of

continental drift based on the fossil record?

Wegener

If you start with 24 kilograms of a radioactive element with a half life of 10,000 years, how many years

will it take until only 3 kilograms of the material remain?

30,000 years

The idea that most change we have noted over the history of the

Earth has been caused by gradual change involving the same geologic processes we

witness to day is known as what?

Uniformitarianism

What do we call the area where sea floor

spreading occurs?

Mid ocean ridge

Wegener concluded that Africa and South America were once

connect based on what?

Fossil evidence

The fossil record shows the same species of organisms in Africa

and South America but the current organisms on the two

continents are very different, why would that be?

Separation of continents caused organisms to evolve separately on the different continents.

What do we call a tectonic plate boundary where the plates are sliding past one

another?

Transform

A rock sample has 25% of its original radioactive element and

the half-life of the element I 500,000 years. How old is the

rock sample?

1 million years

What do we call the area where two tectonic plates

meet?

Plate boundaries

Based on the fossil record, what can we say for sure

about the history of life on the Earth?

Life forms have changed significantly over time

Selection of successful adaptations for future

generations is made by what?

Environmental conditions

According to the theory of continental drift, a single

super continent once existed called what?

Pangaea

How do upper layers of sedimentary rock compare to lower layers of sedimentary

rock?

Upper layers are younger

A layer of rock contains index fossils that are not found in any upper layers

of the rock. How do fossils found above that layer of rock compare in

age to the index fossil?

They are younger

What rock type is most likely to contain fossils?

Sedimentary Rock

The idea that most important change in the Earth over its history has been caused by

sudden, catastrophic events such as asteroid impact is know as

what?

Catastrophism

The rock type formed by the freezing of magma or lava is

called what?

Igneous Rock

Which part of the history of the Earth is best investigated

by analysis of Ice Cores?

Changes in Climate

What do we call the outermost layer of the

Earth?

The Crust

Structures in organisms which work the same way but may or may not perform the same function are known as

what?

Homologous structures

Whales, humans, lions and bats all have humerus bones in their

appendages. What might account for that?

They all had a common ancestor

The shorter the geologic time frame an organism which is

commonly fossilized is associated with, the better it

would be as what?

Index Fossil

Structures in organisms which perform the same

function but use a different structure to do it are know as

what kind of structures?

Analogous

What is the most important conclusion scientists take

from the discovery of Homologous Structures

between organisms?

They had a common ancestor or origin

The better an organism is able to adapt to changes in the

environment, the better the organism is able to do what?

survive

Where on Earth would you expect to find the most earthquake activity?

Along faults, near Transform boundaries

What is the ultimate reason why large scale extinctions have

occurred on Earth?

Climate change

What kind of currents contributes to tectonic plate

motion?

Convection currents

What method of dating would be best to use to determine the actual age of a fossil?

Absolute datingRadiometric dating

Rocks which were formed by long periods of intense heat and pressure are known as

what?

Metamorphic Rock

What might best explain homologous structures between the fins of whales and wings of

bats?

They had a common ancestor

When the genetic variation is low in a population, how does that

impact the population’s ability to adapt?

It lowers the population’s ability to adapt

Why do organisms which blend into their environment have a survival advantage over other organisms which stand out?

Predators are less likely to see them

Rock that is formed by deposition of sediment is know as what?

sedimentary

What is the most important factor for the long term survival

of any species of organism?

Genetic variability or the ability to adapt

How do rock intrusion compare in age to the rock

layers they cut across?

They are younger