Fossil Record Vocabulary

Question 1

The principle or assumption that the same natural laws and processes that operate in the universe now have always operated in the universe in the past and apply everywhere in the universe.

Answer 1

Uniformitarianism

Question 2

The theory that the Earth has been affected in the past by sudden, short-lived, violent events, possibly worldwide in scope.

Answer 2

Catastrophism

Question 3

The study of fossils.

Answer 3

Paleontology

Question 4

The science of determining the relative order of past events

Answer 4

Relative Dating

Question 5

The process of determining an age on a specified time scale in archaeology and geology.

Answer 5

Absolute Dating

Question 6

A principle of quantum theory that describes a challenging concept about the nature and behavior of matter and forces at the sub-atomic level.

Answer 6

Superposition

Question 7

An atom of a given element may have a wide range in its number of neutrons.

Answer 7

Isotope

Question 8

The process by which a nucleus of an unstable atom loses energy by emitting radiation.

Answer 8

Radioactive Decay

Question 9

The time taken for the radioactivity of a specified isotope to fall to half its original value.

Answer 9

Half-Life

Question 10

The remains or impression of a prehistoric organism preserved in petrified form or as a mold or cast in rock.

Answer 10

Fossil

Question 11

Provide us with indirect evidence of life in the past, such as the footprints, tracks, burrows, borings, and feces left behind by animals, rather than the preserved remains of the body of the actual animal itself.

Answer 11

Trace Fossil

Question 12

A mold or mould is a fungus that grows in the form of multicellular filaments called hyphae. In contrast, fungi that can adopt a single-celled growth habit are called yeasts.

Answer 12

Mold