Chapter 4 - Introduction To Geological Time Flashcards
Which is the oldest era of the Geological Time Scale: A) Phanerozoic B) Archean C) Proterozoic D) Hadean E) Cenozoic
D) Hadean
When rock is melted within the earth, resulting in volcanic activity, which statement is true about the melting:
A) All the material is melted
B) Only a portion of the rock is melted - partial melting
B) Only a portion of the rock is melted - partial melting
A massive continental-scale glacier covered southern India and much of the land now south of the equator, during the later part of the \_\_\_\_\_\_\_ Era. A) Mesozoic B) Precambrian C) Hadean D) Cenozoic E) Paleozoic
E) Paleozoic
Which is the oldest unit of the Geological Time Scale? A) Hadean B) Cenozoic C) Archean D) Proterozoic E) Mesozoic
A) Hadean
Which is the youngest unit of the Geological Time Scale? A) Hadean B) Cenozoic C) Archean D) Proterozoic E) Mesozoic
B) Cenozoic
The oldest forms on planet Earth lived during which time unit? A) Hadean B) Cenozoic C) Archean D) Proterozoic E) Mesozoic
C) Archean
The most significant of the 3 major mass extinction events on Earth occurred at about: A) 65 Ka B) 6 Ma C) 65 Ma D) 245 Ma E) 550 Ma
D) 245 Ma
In terms of what happened to the rock below an unconformity, which represents the greatest (most significant) event(s)? A) Paraconformity B) Disconformity C) Angular unconformity D) All the same E) There is no way to tell
A) Paraconformity
The last of the major mass extinction events on Earth (the dinosaur killer) occurred at about: A) 65 Ka B) 6 Ma C) 65 Ma D) 245 Ma E) 550 Ma
C) 65 Ma
According to the concept of “Uniformitarianism”, _______.
A) Earth was once molten
B) Earth has always existed and will exist forever
C) The history of Earth is mainly a series of global catastrophes
D) The types of processes acting on Earth today are different than those that operated the geological past
E) The types of processes acting on Earth today have operated for all of geological time
E) The types of processes acting on Earth today have operated for all of geological time
In terms of geological history, which represents the most significant events? A) Paraconformity B) Disconformity C) Angular unconformity D) All the same E) There is no way to tell
C) Angular unconformity
Glacial episodes have occurred on Earth in every one of the time units listed below except for the \_\_\_\_\_\_\_. A) Hadean B) Paleozoic C) Archean D) Proterozoic E) Cenozoic
A) Hadean
Which of the following process(es) was/were likely of primary importance on Earth during the Hadeon?
A) Accretion and impacts by comets and asteroids
B) Planetary differentiation
C) The origin of life
D) All three of the above more-or-less equally
E) Mainly ‘a’ and ‘b’
E) Mainly ‘a’ and ‘b’
A major angular unconformity (with folds in the older rocks) represents:
A) A series of significant changes to the geological environment
B) An ancient deformation event
C) A period of major land-mass erosion
D) all of ‘a’ to ‘c’
E) Only ‘a’ and ‘c’ of the above
D) All of ‘a’ to ‘c’
Paraconformities differ from disconformities in that _______.
A) Paraconformities display evidence of erosion having taken place whereas disconformities do not
B) Disconformities display evidence of erosion having taken place whereas paraconformities do not
C) Disconformities occur only in sedimentary rocks whereas paraconformities occur only in volcanic rocks
D) Disconformities occur only in volcanic rocks whereas paraconformities occur only in sedimentary rocks
B) Disconformities display evidence of erosion having taken place whereas paraconformities do not
Imagine the following geological situation, as determined for a group of rock strata in a mountain belt. A sequence of horizontal beds of lava over lie a series of folded shale (clay) and limestone strata, displaying a number of anticlines and sync lines. The lava beds have an age of 200 Ma whereas the underlying sedimentary layers were deposited between 500 Ma and 540 Ma. The boundary between the lava and the sedimentary beds is called a(n) \_\_\_\_\_\_\_. (Assuming no faults). A) Intrusion B) Disconformity C) Paraconformity D) Volcano E) Angular unconformity
E) Angular unconformity
During which of the following time units did humans develop? A) Hadean B) Cenozoic C) Archean D) Proterozoic E) Mesozoic
B) Cenozoic
If an old topographic surface, produced by millions of years of erosion, becomes buried by younger deposits, but the underlying strata remain horizontal, the contact between the older and younger suites of rocks is called a(n): A) Conformity B) Non-conformity C) Angular unconformity D) Disconformity E) Topoconformity
D) Disconformity
The boundary between the Hadean and the Archean is at: A) 65 Ma B) 245 Ma C) 542 Ma D) 2.5 Ga E) 3.8 Ga
B) 245 Ma
If an old topographic surface, produced by millions of years of erosion, becomes buried by younger deposits, the contact between the older and younger suites of rocks is called a(n): A) Conformity B) Reconformity C) Unconformity D) Doconformity E) Topoconformity
C) Unconformity
The boundary between the Proterozoic and the Archean is at: A) 65 Ma B) 245 Ma C) 545 Ma D) 2.5 Ga E) 3.5 Ga
D) 2.5 Ga
The Paleozoic Era is often called the age of fishes. It (the Paleozoic) is the time period in Earth's history that ran from about \_\_\_\_\_\_\_. A) 2500 Ma to 545 Ma B) 545 am to 245 Ma C) 245 Ma to 65 Ma D) 65 Ma to 10 Ka E) 10 Ka to now
B) 545 Ma to 245 Ma
The development of an atoll involves a number of processes, but the three most important are: A) Volcanism, Isostasy, and coral growth B) Volcanism, wave action, and erosion C) Uplift, wave action, and coral growth D) Uplift, volcanism, and wave action E) Isostasy, wave action, and erosion
C) Uplift, wave action, and coral growth
In which geological time unit did dinosaurs populate the earth? A) Archean B) Mesozoic C) Hadean D) Cenozoic E) Pleistocene
B) Mesozoic
