Midterm 3

Question 1

Paleoanthropology

Answer 1

the study of human evolution through fossil and archaeological records

Question 2

Paleontological site

Answer 2

location on the landscape where fossils are preserved

Question 3

Archaeological site

Answer 3

location on the landscape where the remains of past human activity are preserved (may contain fossilized animal or human bones)

Question 4

fossils

Answer 4

the preserved remains of plants and animals
- 2 types: body and trace

Question 5

fossilization

Answer 5

Fossils are formed after an animal dies, decomposes, and is covered in sediment

Question 6

taphonomy

Answer 6

the study of the processes that affect the state of an organism’s remains from the time an organism dies until the time the fossil remains are recovered

Question 7

favorable conditions of preservation

Answer 7

• rapid burial
• fine-grained sediment, airborn, or from still water environments

Question 8

Unfavorable conditions for preservation

Answer 8

• weathering (sunlight, rain)’
• consumption and trampling by animals
• acidic soil
• geologically active localities

Question 9

Depositional Environments

Answer 9

location where sediments are located

Question 10

aeolian

Answer 10

airborne (i.e.) volcanic ash, airborne sand

Question 11

lacustrine

Answer 11

lake (or near lake environment)

Question 12

alluvium

Answer 12

river, stream

Question 13

colluvium

Answer 13

hill

Question 14

Karstic Systems

Answer 14

dissolving bedrock (sinkholes, springs, etc.)

Question 15

stratigraphy

Answer 15

the branch of geology that studies rock layers (strata) and their formation, composition, and relationship over time

Question 16

stratigraphy principles

Answer 16

• horizontally (layers are deposited parallel to Earth’s surface
• superposition (younger layers are deposited on top of older layers)
• cross-cutting relationships (layer that cuts across others is younger than those it cuts)

Question 17

Relative Dating Techniques

Answer 17

how old something is in relation to something else

Question 18

lithostratigraphy

Answer 18

uses the correlation of rock units to estimate the relative age of different ages

Question 19

tephrostratigraphy

Answer 19

type of lithostratigraphy that uses volcanic ash layers to match rock layers across different sites and determine their relative age

Question 20

biostratigraphy

Answer 20

predictable sequences of fauna through time, associated w/ particular strata (helps us date geological layers)

Question 21

Paleomagnetism

Answer 21

the study of Earth’s past magnetic field recorded in rocks, which helps date rock layers based on changes in magnetic direction over time

Question 22

Absolute (Chronometric) Dating Techniques

Answer 22

how old something is in years before the present

Question 23

Potassium-Argon (K-Ar) dating

Answer 23

measures the decay of potassium into argon in volcanic rock

Question 24

Argon-Argon

Answer 24

advanced measurement of traditional K-Ar to date tiny samples

Question 25

Radiocarbon

Answer 25

measures the decay of Carbon-14 in once-living things

Question 26

Dendrochronology

Answer 26

study of tree ring patterns to determine the age of trees and calibrate radiocarbon dates

Question 27

Uranium Series

Answer 27

measures the decay of uranium into other elements in materials like cave formations