Fossils Notes Flashcards

1
Q

catastrophism

A

todays geological formations result from catastrophic events in the past on a scale never observed today

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2
Q

uniformitarianism

A

geological processes taking place now worked similarly in the past

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3
Q

who is the “father of geology”

A

Hutton

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4
Q

relative dating

A

techniques for assigning relative ages to rock strata based on the relationships between newer and older rocks

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5
Q

what was used to create the geologic time table?

A

relative dating

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6
Q

examples of relative dating techniques

A
  • younger rocks are deposited on top of older rocks
  • certain fossils characterize certain rock types
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7
Q

Hadean + Archean + Proterozoic =

A

Precambrian

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8
Q

fossils in the 1800s

A

viewed as products of supernatural forces

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9
Q

did everyone believe in extinction

A
  • no
  • Thomas Jefferson did not believe
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10
Q

fossilization requires …

A

species circumstances

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11
Q

why would a lack of fossils make it more difficult to understand evolution?

A

it would be more difficult to deduce the particulars about how life evolved

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12
Q

fossilization

A

variety of processes that enables the preservation of organic remains within the geological record

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13
Q

conditions of fossilization

A
  • rapid and permanent burial/entombment
  • oxygen deprivation
  • continued sediment accumulation
  • absence of excessive heat or compression
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14
Q

rapid & permanent burial/entombment (fossilization)

A

protected specimen from biological disturbance

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15
Q

continued sediment accumulation (fossilization)

A

ensures organism remains buried

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15
Q

oxygen deprivation (fossilization)

A

limits decay

16
Q

absence of excessive heat or compression (fossilization)

A

geological processes that can destry fossils

17
Q

compression fossils

A
  • organism buried under sediment
  • makes an impression
  • analogous to a leaf pressed into wet cement
18
Q

casts and molds fossils

A
  • remains decay after an organic object is buried in sediment
19
Q

fossil mold

A

unfilled space

20
Q

fossil cast

A

new material fills the space

21
Q

permineralized fossils

A
  • organism bured in sediment
  • body parts infiltrated or replaced by minerals
22
Q

unaltered remains

A
  • 2000 yr old man buried in peat moss
  • woolly mammoths preserved in ice age permafrost
  • insects in amber
23
Q

weaknesses of the fossil record

A
  • fossils most easily formed in aquatic and low-land habitats
  • soft parts do not fossilize
  • recycling of crust
24
Q

strengths of the fossil record

A
  • fossils are remains of things that actually existed
  • excellent fossil records exist for some groups and structures