Geology Final

Front 1

"Relative time" refers to the time sequence in which geologic events occured

Back 1

true

Front 2

"Uniformitarianism" reflects the belief among geologists that the Earth remains uniform and unchaing through time

Back 2

false

Front 3

The principle of superposition states that within a sequence of undisturbed sedimentary rocks, the layers get older going from bottom to top

Back 3

false

Front 4

According to the principle of cross-cutting relationships, a fault that cuts across a given layer muc be younger than the layer it displaces

Back 4

true

Front 5

Sedimentary beds that are deposited in water are generally horizontal or nearly horizontal

Back 5

true

Front 6

Sedimentary formations may be in contact with other sedimentary formations, but not with igneous rocks

Back 6

false

Front 7

A formation containing a particular rock type found in one location is assumed by geologists to be the same as any other formation of that same rock type found elsewhere

Back 7

false

Front 8

A formation containing a set of index fossils is assumed by geologist to be the same age as any other formation containing the same set of index fossils

Back 8

true

Front 9

The oldest fossil evidence of life on Earth is approximately 540 million years olds

Back 9

false

Front 10

Geologists use the fossils in rocks to refer the rocks to the standard geologic time scale

Back 10

true

Front 11

The Mesozoic Era follows (is younger than) the Cenozoic Era

Back 11

false

Front 12

The oldest rock yet found on Earth is approximately 4 billion years old, but older individual mineral grains have been found

Back 12

true

Front 13

THe product of the radioactive decay of a parent isotope is called a son

Back 13

false

Front 14

All isotopes of a given element have the same number of protons, but may differ in the number of nuclei they contain

Back 14

false

Front 15

The rate of radioactive decay of a given element varies with changes in Earth's gravity and magnetic fields

Back 15

false

Front 16

"Relative time" refers to the time sequence in which geologic events occured

Back 16

true

Front 17

"Uniformitarianism" reflects the belief among geologists that the Earth remains uniform and unchaing through time

Back 17

false

Front 18

The principle of superposition states that within a sequence of undisturbed sedimentary rocks, the layers get older going from bottom to top

Back 18

false

Front 19

According to the principle of cross-cutting relationships, a fault that cuts across a given layer muc be younger than the layer it displaces

Back 19

true

Front 20

Sedimentary beds that are deposited in water are generally horizontal or nearly horizontal

Back 20

true

Front 21

Sedimentary formations may be in contact with other sedimentary formations, but not with igneous rocks

Back 21

false

Front 22

A formation containing a particular rock type found in one location is assumed by geologists to be the same as any other formation of that same rock type found elsewhere

Back 22

false

Front 23

A formation containing a set of index fossils is assumed by geologist to be the same age as any other formation containing the same set of index fossils

Back 23

true

Front 24

The oldest fossil evidence of life on Earth is approximately 540 million years olds

Back 24

false

Front 25

Geologists use the fossils in rocks to refer the rocks to the standard geologic time scale

Back 25

true

Front 26

The Mesozoic Era follows (is younger than) the Cenozoic Era

Back 26

false

Front 27

The oldest rock yet found on Earth is approximately 4 billion years old, but older individual mineral grains have been found

Back 27

true

Front 28

THe product of the radioactive decay of a parent isotope is called a son

Back 28

false

Front 29

All isotopes of a given element have the same number of protons, but may differ in the number of nuclei they contain

Back 29

false

Front 30

The rate of radioactive decay of a given element varies with changes in Earth's gravity and magnetic fields

Back 30

false

Front 31

Fossils of the first animals with the ability to grow hard body parts appear in rocks that are appoximately ____ years old

Back 31

545 million

Front 32

The geologic time interval before the appearance of abundant animals with hard parts (skeletons) is called the _____

Back 32

Precambrain

Front 33

The time interval in which the first animals with hard parts is called the _____

Back 33

Paleozoic

Front 34

The ___ Era is the "Age of Mammals"

Back 34

Cenozoic

Front 35

THe end of the _____ was marked by one of the greatest mass extinctions in history, with the end of more than 95% of all species

Back 35

Paleozoic Era

Front 36

Prior to the development of the atomic mass spectrometer, the geologic time scale was based on ____found in sedimentary rocks

Back 36

fossils

Front 37

The relative-dating principle of ____ states that fragments included in a host rock are older than the host rock

Back 37

inclusion

Front 38

The half-life of the carbon 14 isotope is 5730 years. If there are 4 billion atoms of C14 in a particular organism at the time it died, how many atoms of C14 would there be in the remains of that organism 11,460 years after it died?

Back 38

1 billion

Front 39

A vast amoung of basalt was extruded onto the surface of Earth in Siberia approximately 250 million years ago. In fact, there are simliar flood basalts that correlate with many of the mass extinctions in Earth history. The occurence of flood basalts has lead some scientists to infer that ___is a major cause of mass extinctions

Back 39

massive volcanism

Front 40

When a marine geologist collects a core of undeformed ocean-floor sediment, she knows that the youngest layer is the top of the core and the oldest is at the bottom because of the principle of _____

Back 40

superposition

Front 41

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

Back 41

Cross-cutting relationships....younger

Front 42

The truncation of bedding where sedimentary rock layers abut a granite pluton suggest a(n) ______

Back 42

intrustive contact

Front 43

The principle of ____ states that the fragments included in a host rock must be _____ than the host rock

Back 43

inclusion....older than

Front 44

Two rock bodies that are____ one another are the same age

Back 44

correlated with

Front 45

In the radioactive decay process of alpha decay, two protons and two neutrons are emitted from the nucleus, leading to _____

Back 45

change to a daughter product that is two atomic numbers smaller than the parent isotope

Front 46

In the radioactive decay process of BETA DECAY, an electron is emitted from the nucleus of the parent isotope, resulting in ____

Back 46

change to a daughter product that is ONE atomic number LARGER than the parent isotope with no significant change in mass

Front 47

In the radioactive decay process of ELECTRON CAPTURE, an electron is added to the nucleus of the parent isotope, resulting in _____

Back 47

change to a daughter product that is one atomic number smaller than the parent isotope with no significant change in mass

Front 48

The proportional rate of decay of a parent isotope to a stable daughter product ____ by chemical reactions or the high pressures/temperatures of Earth's interior

Back 48

is not changed at all

Front 49

Radiocarbon dating is useful in dating events that occurred in the past ____ years

Back 49

40 thousand

Front 50

The carbon-14 isotope is produced ____ and is incorporated in the tissue of living organisms up until the organism dies

Back 50

in the atmosphere

Front 51

The term "mass wasting" refers to the improper use of Earth materials in a manner that is in conflict with the principles of conservation and enviromental stewardship

Back 51

false

Front 52

The primary driving force for landslides is gravity

Back 52

true

Front 53

When debris is more saturated with water it is more likely to flow downslope

Back 53

true

Front 54

Granular material that's absolutely dry is less susceptible to failure down a slope than if it were slightly wet (not saturated)

Back 54

false

Front 55

In a translational rock slide, the rock material may remain largely intact as it moves

Back 55

true

Front 56

The term "creep" implies a rate of motion that is usually less than 1 centimeter per year

Back 56

true

Front 57

Debris flow may damage property, but do not pose direct threats to people because they move so slowly

Back 57

false

Front 58

Steep mountain slopes indiciate that the hillslope material is so strong that it is unlikely to be involved in any sort of landsliding

Back 58

false

Front 59

The term "debris," as applied to mass wasting, includes any unconsolidated material at Earth's surface such as soil and rock fragments, regardless of grain size

Back 59

true

Front 60

Landslides are natural phenomena that humans can neither cause nor prevent

Back 60

false