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earth history > unit 2 1-63 test 64-68 weekly quiz 3 69-73 weekly quiz 4 > Flashcards

unit 2 1-63 test 64-68 weekly quiz 3 69-73 weekly quiz 4 Flashcards

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1
Q

what is the concept of deep time

A

the concept is that earth has had a multi-billion year history

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2
Q

what sets the study of geology apart from all other sciences except astronomy?

A

applying vast amounts of time (billions of years) to scientific principles set geology apart from all other sciences except astronomy.

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3
Q

compare absolute age dating to relative age dating.

A

absolute age dating specific dates or specific units of time.
relative age dating placing events in sequential order (which came first, second, ect.)

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4
Q

what type of time indicator are fossils - relative time or absolute time?

A

fossils are relative time indicators

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5
Q

what are the three characteristics of a guide fossil?

A

easy to identify, were geographically widespread but existed only for a relatively short time period (quick appearance and quick extinction).

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6
Q

which two geologic principles were used to create the first maps of the earths history?

A

the principle of superposition and the principle of fossil succession and logic

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7
Q

what is the main difference between time units and time stratigraphic units

A

time unit is an interval of relative time based on specific fossil assemblages.
time stratigraphic units is units of rocks (layers of rocks) that were deposited during specific relative time intervals (according to the fossil record)

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8
Q

place the following in order from the longest to shortest time intervals: eons, eras, periods, epochs, and ages.

A

eon, era, period, epoch, and age.

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9
Q

sort the names in correct order, from oldest to youngest, for the four eons

A

hadean eon (4.56-4.0 billion years), archean eon (4.0-2.5 billion years), proterozoic eon (2.5-0.542 billion years), and phanerozoic eon (542 million years to today)

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10
Q

how are the eras generally separated or classified?

A

generally separated by catastrophic life extinctions boundaries

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11
Q

list the names in correct order, from oldest to youngest, the three eras of the phanerozoic eon.

A

paleozoic era (paleo=older)(542-251 million years) mesozoic era (meso=middle)(251-65 million years) cenozoic era (ceno=younger)(65 million years to today)

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12
Q

eras are subdivided into multiple time units called __?

A

periods

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13
Q

what are the three modifiers used to divide a time unit?

A

late(last), middle, early(first)

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14
Q

what defines a time stratigraphic unit?

A

units of rocks (layers of rocks) that were deposited during a specific time interval (jurassic, etc.)

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15
Q

which of the following pairs are equivalent to one another; period, epoch, system, series?

A

epoch and period are time units based on life and age

series and system are time stratigraphic units based on life and rocks stage - ignore.

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16
Q

compare the informal modifiers of time units with modifiers of time stratigraphic units.

A

informal time modifiers late (last), middle, early(first) are based on life and extinctions.
time stratigraphic units upper, middle, and lower are based on units of rocks (layers of rocks) that were deposited during a specific time interval.

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17
Q

define a rock stratigraphic unit.

A

rocks defined by the physical attributes and characteristics of the described rocks (time is ignored)

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18
Q

give a simple definition for a geologic formation?

A

a mappable rock unit with distinctive upper and lower boundaries

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19
Q

in general, how are formations named?

A

formations have a two-part name
first part= geographic location (type section locality)
second part= rock type of the formation

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20
Q

what is a stratigraphic unit?

A

any sequence of rock units found in a given region.

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21
Q

what is a type section?

A

a rock unit (stratigraphic section) at a location that is most representative for comparison purposes

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22
Q

about what year did bishop james ussher assign to the earths creation?

A

6,000 years ago on october 26, 4004 bc

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23
Q

what was the heat source that buffon and kevin missed while they were trying to calculate earths age

A

the radioactive decay that is heating the earth

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24
Q

what fact did joly not take into account while trying to calculate earths age using salinity?

A

the huge deposits of salt from evaporated seawater; these deposits occur throughout geologic time. ocean salts other than NaCl give a totally different time.

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25
Q

what is dendrochronology?

A

tree ring dating

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26
Q

how far in time is dendrochronology useful?

A

can extend time back to 12,000 years

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27
Q

what are varves?

A

thin layers of sediments that are added during the various seasons.

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28
Q

what rock type was used in counting the evaporate lake varves of west texas for age dating?

A

permian-aged casteel gypsum formation

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29
Q

what is the ice coring program in greenland and antarctica can possibly explain about the earth?

A

reenland can stretch back 250,000 years and antarctca backto 740,000 years.
trpped gases can give us a record of pas greenhouse gases on earth.
scientific study of ice cores can reveal ancient climates going back 250,000 years.

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30
Q

what is radioactive decay?

A

elements that break down into new elements at a known rate of time (a breakthrough for age dating)

31
Q

what was boltwoods contribution to geology?

A

1907 published a rck date of 2.2 billion yers, using radioactive dating of rocks and minerals.

32
Q

what is an isotope?

A

are created by adding a neutron(s) to an atom

  • isotopes are variations of the same type of parent element
  • most elements can have isotopes
  • some isotopes are radioactive(unstable nuclei)
  • other isotopes are not radioactive (stable nuclei)
33
Q

are all isotopes radioactive

A

no not all isotopes are radioactive

34
Q

what is the product called when a parent element changes because of radioactive decay?

A

a daughter product

35
Q

which instrument can detect radioactive decay?

A

can see some radioactive decay within “cloud chambers”

can hear some radioactive decay with geiger counters, best with uranium-rich rocks

36
Q

what is radon gas and where can it be found within houses?

A

invisible, odorless, tasteless cancer-causing radioactive gas. created by the natural breakdown of uranium in rocks and soil.
basement in an area of granite sands and soils, proper venting is critical for safety

37
Q

discuss the health problems associated with radon gas.

A

rado gas is the second leading cause of lung cancer in the us

38
Q

what is a decay constant?

A

actual rate of decay (this information is needed to age date an isotope)
can be determined by graphing and is unaffected by temperature or pressure

39
Q

what is half-life of an isotope or atom?

A

the amount of time it takes for one half of the atoms in a sample to decay into something else

40
Q

which is a convenient way to specify rates of decay?

A

half life is the most common and convenient way to specify rates of decay, especially with isotopes

41
Q

are half-life curves geometric or linear?

A

they are geometric not linear

42
Q

what two items are compared to get a radiometric age date?

A

ratio of the relative amounts of a radioactive parent isotope and radiogenic daughter product in a mineral.

43
Q

recognize at least three isotope pairs used for radiometric dating.

A

uranium to lead half life= 4.5 by; minerals=zircon, monazite, sphene, apatite
potassium to argon-half life= 1.3 by; minerals=micas, hornblende, orthoclase, glauconite
Rubidium to Strontium-half life= 49 by; minerals= micas, hornblende, orthoclase, glauconite
Samarium to Neodymium- half life=106 by; minerals= garnets, meteorites, old basalts

44
Q

approximately, what is the maximum age that can be derived from carbon dating?

A

about 75,000 years

45
Q

what materials can be used with the carbon 14 dating method?

A

all living plants and animals only organic material can be used

46
Q

which rock types are best for radiometric age dating? worst for age dating?

A

igneous and metamorphic rocks are best.

sedimentary rocks are the worst

47
Q

where do we find the oldest know rocks?

A

in outer space

48
Q

what is a simple definition of the theory of evolution?

A

organisms descended with modifications of ancestors that live in the past

49
Q

define paleontology.

A

the geological study of life history as revealed by fossils

50
Q

what was wrong with lamarck proposal?

A

it was based on the false assumption that acuired traits are inherited (genetics not yet discovered).

51
Q

what are the units of heredity?

A

they are called genes, cannot be altered by any physical effort by an organism during its lifetime.

52
Q

why was darwin given credit for the theory of evolution?

A

he was the “first” to make the proposal (via a read correspondence) and was given credit for first presenting the teory of evolution

53
Q

who is credited with the discovery of the theory of genetics?

A

gregor mendel (1860)

54
Q

how is natural selection affected by genes?

A

only the genes in the chromosomes of sex cells are inheritable (natural selection)
natural selection works on variations of genetic material within populations that can survive

55
Q

what is a mutation?

A

a change in chromosomes or genes. this is a change in heredity information.

56
Q

what positive and negative effect might mutations have on an organism?

A

mutations are random in regards to fitness. the mutation could be beneficial, neutral or harmful.
if a species is well adapted to its environment, most mutations would not be beneficial and could be harmful.
if the environment changes, the harmful mutation may become useful and can lead to the survival of the species.

57
Q

what are mutagens?

A

agents that bring higher mutation rates.

58
Q

what is spontaneous mutation?

A

taking place in the absence of any known mutagen.

59
Q

define species.

A

a biological term for a population of smilar individuals that in nature interbreed and produce fertile offspring

60
Q

what is allopathic speciation?

A

species that arise when a small part of its population is isolated from its parent population. the isolated group is subjected to a different selection pressures.

61
Q

what is punctuated equilibrium in regards to evolution?

A

evolution that occurs rapidly through mutations, giving rise to a new species within a few thousand years

62
Q

distinguish between divergent- convergent evolution.

A

divergent descendants adapted to various aspects of the environment (freshwater fish and saltwater fish examples)
convergent is the development of similar characteristics in distantly related organisms (camel and llama example)

63
Q

distinguish between background extinctions and mass extinctions.

A

background extinctions continual extinctions of species like we have today
mass extinctions marked decreases in earths biodiversity have occurred several times.

64
Q

darwin determined that all of the species of finches in the galapagos islands were derived from one parent species. count the number of species that exist on the islands today;____

A

14 species exist on the island

65
Q

the soviets top scientific bureaucrat T.D.Lysenko accepted lamarcks theory of “inheritance of acquired traits” because;_______

A

he thought it was compatible with marxist-leninist philosophy.

66
Q

when mendel crossed red-flowered peas with white-flowered peas, only red-flowered peas were produced in the second generation- why?

A

one alleles was dominant over another and that offspring receive one allele of each pair from each parent.

67
Q

according to the linnaen classification scheme what “family” does the coyote belong?

A

canidae the doglike carnivores including domestic dogs, wolves, coyotes, and foxes

68
Q

how many pictures show examples of fossil insects on these pages? 454-455

A

just 1 picture of a spider

69
Q

what does einstein say about the space-time continoum?

A

without space there can be no time

70
Q

what is the temperature of the background radiation?

A

2.7 kelvin (k) above absolute zero (absolute zero equals -273 degrees c, 2.7 k = -270.3degrees c) everywhere in the universe.

71
Q

at the moment of the big bang, how much matter existed?

A

there was no matter before the big bang only after it

72
Q

initially the universe was composed of___

A

100% hydrogen and helium, whereas today it is 98%hydrogen and helium and 2% all other elements by weight.

73
Q

how is the composition of the universe gradually enhanced by heavier elements?

A

stars undergo many nuclear reactions in which lighter elements are converted into heavier elements by nuclear fusion. when a star dies, often explosively, the heavier elements that were formed in its core are returned to interstellar space and are available for inclusion in new stars

earth history (7 decks)

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