Brainscape's Knowledge GenomeTM

Browse over 1 million classes created by top students, professors, publishers, and experts.


See full index

Bio > 9. History of Life on Earth > Flashcards

9. History of Life on Earth Flashcards

You may prefer our related Brainscape-certified flashcards:
Biology 101 flashcards
1
Q

What is Palaeontology?

A

Study of fossils

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
2
Q

What does Palaeontology involve?

A
  • Reconstruction
  • Determine age of fossils
  • Classify according to structure.
  • Info on relations between organisms.
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
3
Q

What is Archaeology?

A

Study of origin and development of human history and prehistory.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
4
Q

What does Archaeology involve?

A
  • Excavation of sites
  • Analysis of physical remains
  • Study human artifacts
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
5
Q

What is Anthropology?

A

Study of human cultures

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
6
Q

What does Anthropology involve?

A
  • Origin, development and behaviour of humans.
  • Languages, archaeological remains and physical characteristics of people.
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
7
Q

What is a Geological Timescale?

A

Calendar of events in the Earth’s history.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
8
Q

What is an Eon?

A

Longest time periods, hundreds of millions years

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
9
Q

What are Eras?

A

Smaller time periods that eons are divided into.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
10
Q

What are Periods?

A

Eras made up of varying numbers of periods of dif lengths of time.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
11
Q

How long ago was the Earth formed?

A

4,5 billion years ago

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
12
Q

How old is the oldest eukaryotic fossil?

A

2 billion years old

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
13
Q

What is Cynobacteria?

A

Photosynthetic prokaryotes

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
14
Q

What is the Cambrian explosion?

A

Short period of time marking origins of early forms of all animal groups.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
15
Q

How long did the Cambrian explosion last?

A

38 million years

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
16
Q

What is the cause of the Cambrian explosion?

A

Oxygen levels rose because of photosynthesising bacteria and algae.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
17
Q

What is a Mass extinction?

A

A large number of species die out over a relatively small period of time.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
18
Q

List the 5 Mass extinctions.

A
  • Ordovician
  • Devonian
  • Permian
  • Triassic
  • Cretaceous
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
19
Q

How long ago was the Ordovician extinction?

A

444m years ago

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
20
Q

How long ago was the Devonian extinction?

A

383-359m yrs ago

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
21
Q

How long ago was the Permian extinction?

A

252m yrs ago

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
22
Q

How long ago was the Triassic extinction?

A

201m yrs ago

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
23
Q

How long ago was the Cretaceous extinction?

A

66m yrs ago

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
24
Q

What are the possible causes of the Sixth mass extinction?

A
  • Industrial activity
  • Deforestation and desertification
  • Increase in agricultural land and urban areas.
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
25
Q

Give examples of Industrial activity.

A
  • Global warming
  • Pollution
  • Acid rain
  • Climate change
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
26
Q

What are the 2 causes of Mass extinctions?

A
  • Environmental disasters
  • Organisms fail to adapt to habitat or environmental changes.
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
27
Q

What kind of Environmental disasters?

A
  • Meteor/asteroid
  • Severe volcanism
  • Radiation from exploding stars
  • Killer diseases
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
28
Q

What type of Habitat/Environmental changes?

A
  • Changing temps of ice/warm ages
  • Global sea level changes
  • Continental drift
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
29
Q

Explain how Asteroid impact can cause a mass extinction.

A
  • Massive amounts of stone,dust,ash,smoke lifted into air.
  • Sunlight blocked out,preventing photosynthesis.
  • Food chains collapse
  • Earthquakes, tsunamis,wildfires may have followed.
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
30
Q

List the 5 Mass extinctions from oldest to most recent.

A
  1. Ordovician
  2. Devonian
  3. Permian
  4. Triassic
  5. Cretaceous
31
Q

What is the evidence of Asteroid impact?

A
  • Large crater near Mexico
  • Glass particles at impact site,from sand
  • Rocks contain Iridium
32
Q

What is Continental Drift?

A

Movement of separate parts of the earth’s crust over a period of time.

33
Q

What can Tectonic plate movement cause?

A
  • Continous rearrangement of continents
  • Thrusting up of mountains
  • Earthquakes
  • Volcanoes
34
Q

What was the name of the one big super continent?

A

Pangea

35
Q

When did Pangea break up?

A

225-200 mya

36
Q

What was the North continent called?

A

Laurasia

37
Q

What was the South continent called?

A

Gondwanaland

38
Q

Provide the definition of a Fossil.

A

Remains, impressions or traces of ancient life forms that have been preserved in Earth’s crust for thousands of years.

39
Q

What is Fossilisation?

A

Slow processes of replacement of hand parts of animals and plants with minerals.

40
Q

Give 3 conditions for the best preservation of fossils.

A
  • Organism must be buried immediately after it dies.
  • Condition in sediment must be acidic with no oxygen
  • Organism must have a few hard parts.
41
Q

Explain how fossils form?

A
  • Organism dies and is buried.
  • Layers of sediment build up and press down on buried remains.
  • Dissolved minerals fill tiny spaces in bones.
  • Pressure, chemical reactions and time turn sediments into rock and bones into mineralised fossils- permineralisation
  • Uncovered through erosion or excavation.
42
Q

Give 3 examples of fossils.

A

Bones, Shells, Petrified tree trunks

43
Q

Give 3 examples of fossils in tar and ice.

A
  • Wooly mammoth
  • Some insects
  • Pits of tar containing bones of sabre toothed cats
44
Q

Name the 2 methods used to date fossils?

A
  • Relative dating
  • Radiometric dating
45
Q

What is an Index fossil?

A

Typical of a particular period, possible to tell age of rock found in.

46
Q

Name 2 Index fossils?

A

Trilobites and Ammonites

47
Q

What is Relative dating?

A

Older fossils occur in deeper sedimentary layers unlike younger fossils.

48
Q

What is Radiometric dating?

A

Radioactive elements are used. The more the radioactive element has decayed, the older the fossil.

49
Q

What is Half-life?

A

Amount of time it takes the parent isotope to decay into atoms of the daughter isotope.

50
Q

Give 3 reasons to why there are gaps in the fossil record.

A
  • Only a few ancient organisms are preserved as fossils.
  • Not found all fossils
  • Only organisms with solid and resistant skeleton are easily preserved.
51
Q

Provide the definition of a transition fossil?

A

Organism found that is the intermediate between old groups and new groups.

52
Q

Give 3 examples of transition fossils?

A
  • Coelacanth
  • Archaeopteryx
  • Thrinaxodon
53
Q

How is a Coelacanth a transition fossil?

A

Link between fish and amphibian

54
Q

How is a Archaeopteryx a transition fossil?

A

Link between dinosaurs/reptiles and birds

55
Q

How is a Thrinaxodon a transition fossil?

A

Link between reptiles and mammals

56
Q

Explain the major phases of hominin evolution.

A

Hominins survived, flourished because of their ability to walk upright, ability to communicate, problem-solve and make tools.

57
Q

From what genus does the development of hominins arise?

A

Ardipithecus

58
Q

What is the only hominin species currently living?

A

Homo sapiens

59
Q

How long ago did Ardipitheucs exist?

A

5-4 mya

60
Q

Give 3 physical features of Ardipithecus.

A
  • Foramen magnum is more forward=bipedalism
  • Large brow ridges
  • Very protruding jaw
61
Q

How long ago did Australopithecus exist?

A

4-1.6 mya

62
Q

Name the 3 types of Australopithecus.

A
  • A.afarensis
  • A.africanus
  • A.sediba
63
Q

What is A.afarensis known as?

A

Lucy

64
Q

What is A.africanus known as?

A

Mrs Ples

65
Q

What is A.sediba known as?

A

Karabo

66
Q

Give the physical features of A.afarensis.

A
  • foramen magnum more forward
  • Brow ridges large
  • Jaws very prognathous
67
Q

Give the physical features of A.africanus.

A
  • Foramen magnum more forward
  • Brow ridges smaller
  • Jaws prognathous
68
Q

Give the physical features of A.sediba.

A
  • Foramen magnum more forward
  • Brow ridges smaller
  • Jaws less prognathous
69
Q

How long did ago Homo exist?

A

2.2 mya to present

70
Q

Name the 3 types of Homo.

A
  • H.habilis
  • H.erectus
  • H.sapiens
71
Q

Give the physical features of H.habilis.

A
  • Foramen magnum more forward
  • Brow ridges present but not pronounced
  • Jaw reduced prognathous
72
Q

Give the physical features of H.erectus.

A
  • Foramen magnum more forward
  • Brow ridges distinct
  • Jaw reduced prognathous
73
Q

Give the physical features of H.sapiens.

A
  • Foramen magnum more forward
  • No brow ridges
  • No jaw prognathous

Bio (11 decks)

Brainscape helps you reach your goals faster, through stronger study habits.
© 2024 Bold Learning Solutions. Terms and Conditions