Exploring Creation With General Science (2nd Edition) Module 7 Flashcards
What is a fossil?
The preserved remains of a once-living organism
What is petrifaction?
The conversion of organic material into rock
What is resin?
A thick, slowly flowing liquid produced by plants that can harden into a solid
What does “extinct” mean?
A term applied to a species that was once living but now is not
When a plant or animal dies, what is the most likely thing that will happen to its remains?
It’s remains will decay
Which forms first: a fossil mold or a fossil cast?
Fossil mold
Describe the process of a cast forming, indicating when the mold has formed and when the cast has formed.
Mold: Organism becomes covered in sediment, sediment hardens, organism leaves an indention.
Cast: mold fills with sediment or magma and hardens to form a cast
What is required in order for petrifaction to occur?
Mineral-rich water
Why does petrifaction usually produce fossils with more information than fossil casts?
Petrified organisms are the whole organism while a cast and mold only takes on the outside features
Can you learn much about the thickness of an organism from carbonized remains?
No
What type of organism is most likely to leave carbonized remains?
Plants
What is so nice about fossils that have been encased in amber or ice?
The soft parts of the organism are preserved.
What are the four general features of the fossil record?
- Found in sedimentary rock which is laid down by water
- Majority are hard shelled, followed by fish then insects
- Many fossils have a living counterpart
- Different layers have different fossils
What kinds of creatures make up the vast majority of the fossil record?
Hard-shelled organisms
Approximately how many species of plants and animals have gone extinct int be last 400 years: a hundred, a thousand, ten thousand, or a hundred thousand?
1000
