UNIT 10 EVOLUTION VOCAB TOPIC 1 Flashcards
determining the relative ages of fossils without actually determining their precise age; in other words, knowing that one fossil is older than another because it is located deeper in the rock layers
relative dating
evidence of an organism from the past: must be at least 10,000 years old
fossil
using the known decay rate of certain isotopes (like carbon 14) to determine the age of rocks and thus the age of fossils contained within the rock
radiometric dating
the time required for half of a sample of isotope to decay
half life
theory that explains how the large blocks of Earth’s crust move around
plate tectonics
a system of measurement to describe the history of Earth
Geologic time scale
The oldest Era; made up of simple, single- celled organisms; 4.6 bya- 540 mya
precambrian
the era after the precambrian; 540 mya- 245 mya; begins with an explosive radiation of new life forms and ends with a mass extinction event that coincides with the formation of the supercontinent Pangaea
Paleozoic
that era after the Paleozoic 245 mya-65 mya; begins with an explosive radiation of new life forms (particularly reptiles) and ends with the mass extinction of the dinosaurs that coincides with the meteor impact
Mesozoic
the most recent era; 65 Mya- present; begins with an explosive radiation of new lifeforms (particularly birds and mammals) and is still going
Cenozoic
An event in the fossil record in which large majority of the species present go extinct and are not seen in the fossil record again
mass extinction
events in the fossil record in which a large number of new species or forms appears in the fossil record in a very short period of time
explosive radiation/ adaptive radiation
BYA
billion years ago
MYA
million years ago
The large continent formed at the end of the Paleozoic that is made up of all of the modern continents
pangea
