EARTH HISTORY 1404
UNIT 2
Possible Test Questions
Revised 7/12
UNIT 2 – GEOLOGIC TIME AND EVOLUTION
What Is Time
1. What is the concept of “Deep Time”?
2. What sets the study of geology apart from all other sciences except Astronomy?
Types of Time
3. Compare absolute age dating to relative age dating.
Using Fossils to Map Rock Sequences of the Earth
4. What type of time indicator are fossils – relative time or absolute time?
5. What are the three characteristics of a guide fossil?
Mapping Relative Geologic Time
6. Which two geologic principles were used to create the first maps of the Earth’s history?
Relative Geologic Time Scales – Two Subdivisions
7. What is the main difference between Time Units and Time Stratigraphic Units
Relative Time Units (Geochronologic units)
8. Place the following in order from the longest to shortest time intervals: Eons, Eras, Periods, Epochs,
and Ages.
9. Sort the names in correct order, from oldest to youngest, for the four Eons.
10. How are the Eras generally separated or classified?
11. List the names in correct order, from oldest to youngest, the three Eras of the Phanerozoic Eon.
12. Eras are subdivided into multiple time units called ______?
Informal Time Modifiers
13. What are the three modifiers used to divide a Time unit?
Time Stratigraphic Units
14. What defines a time stratigraphic unit?
15. Which of the following pairs are equivalent to one another: Period, Epoch, System, Series?
16. Compare the informal modifiers of time units with modifiers of time stratigraphic units.
Rock Stratigraphic Unit: Formations
17. Define a rock stratigraphic unit.
18. Give a simple definition for a geologic formation?
19. In general, how are formations named?
Stratigraphic Section
20. What is a stratigraphic unit?
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Type Section
21. What is a type section?
Age Dating and Time Scales
Early Attempts to Date Earth
22. About what year did Bishop James Ussher assign to the Earth’s creation?
Time Based on Earth Cooling Rates
23. What was the heat source that Buffon and Kevin missed while they were trying to calculate Earth’s
age?
Time Based on Seawater Salinities
24. What fact did Joly not take into account while trying to calculate Earth’s age using salinity?
Time Based on Seasonal Changes
25. What is dendrochronology?
26. How far in time is dendrochronology useful?
27. What are varves?
28. What rock type was used in counting the evaporate lake varves of West Texas for age dating?
Glacial Ice Cores
29. What is it the ice coring program in Greenland and Antarctica can possibly explain about the
Earth?
Chemistry and Actual Age Dating
Brief History of Radiometric Age Dating
30. What is radioactive decay?
31. What was Boltwood’s contribution to geology?
Atoms and Elements Review - Isotopes
32. What is an isotope?
33. Are all isotopes radioactive?
Radioactive Decay
34. What is the product called when a parent element changes because of radioactive decay?
Cloud Chambers and Geiger Counters
35. Which instrument can detect radioactive decay?
Radon 222
36. What is radon gas and where can it be found within houses?
37. Discuss the health problems associated with radon gas.
Decay Constant
38. What is a decay constant?
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Half Life
39. What is half-life of an isotope or atom?
40. Which is a convenient way to specify rates of decay?
41. Are half-life curves geometric or linear?
Radiometric Age Dating of Rocks and Minerals
42. What two items are compared to get a radiometric age date?
Isotope Pairs Used
43. Recognize at least three isotope pairs used for radiometric dating.
Carbon 14 Isotope Age Dating
44. Approximately, what is the maximum age that can be derived from carbon dating?
45. What materials can be used with the Carbon 14 dating method?
Incorporating Radiometric Age Dating with Relative Age Dating
46. Which rock types are best for radiometric age dating? Worst for age dating?
47. Where do we find the oldest know rocks?
REVIEW OF CHAPTER 18 Evolution – The Theory and Its Supporting Evidence
Definitions:
48. What is a simple definition of the Theory of Evolution?
49. Define Paleontology.
The Theory that Acquired Traits (or Characteristics) Are Inherited
50. What was wrong with Lamarck proposal?
Genes
51. What are the units of heredity?
Other Scientists And Evolutionary Studies
52. Why was Darwin given credit for the Theory of Evolution?
53. Who is credited with the discovery of the Theory of Genetics?
Genes and Heredity
54. How is natural selection affected by genes?
Mutations and Genes
55. What is a mutation?
56. What positive and negative effect might mutations have on an organism?
Causes of Mutations
57. What are mutagens?
58. What is spontaneous mutation?
Species and Speciation
59. Define species.
60. What is allopathic speciation?
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Speed of Evolutionary Changes
61. What is Punctuated Equilibrium in regards to evolution?
Directions of Evolution
62. Distinguish between divergent –convergent evolution.
Extinctions
63. Distinguish between background extinctions and mass extinctions.
EARTH HISTORY Weekly Quiz # 3
Page 451 Figure 18.1
A) Darwin determined that all of the species of finches in the Galapagos Islands were derived from one
parent specie. Count the number of species that exist on the islands today: __________
Page 453 The Tragic Lysenko Affair
B) The Soviet’s top scientific bureaucrat T. D. Lysenko accepted Lamarck’s theory of “inheritance of
acquired traits” because: ________
Page 456 Figure 18.4
C) When Mendel crossed red-flowered peas with white-flowered peas, only red-flowered peas were
produced in the second generation – why? ________
Page 465 Table 18.2
D) According to the Linnaen Classification Scheme what “family” does the coyote belong? ______
Page 454 – 455 Geo-Insight pictures
E) How many pictures show examples of fossil insects on these pages? ________
EARTH HISTORY Weekly Quiz # 4 (For Unit #3)
Page 10 Origin of the Universe
A) What does Einstein say about the space-time continuum? __________
Page 11 Origin of the Universe
B) What is the temperature of the background radiation? ________
Page 10 Origin of the Universe
C) At the moment of the Big Bang, how much matter existed? ________
Page 11 Origin of the Universe
D) Initially the Universe was composed of ______
Page 11 Origin of the Universe
E) How is the composition of the Universe gradually enhanced by heavier elements? ________
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