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An unconformity involving older metamorphic rocks and younger sedimentary strata is termed a ______.


A) disconformity
B) angular unconformity
C) nonconformity
D) conformity

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In an undeformed sequence of sedimentary rocks, each bed is older than the one above and younger than the one below. The preceding is a statement of the law of______ .


A) inclusions
B) superposition
C) lateral continuity
D) original horizontality

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The ______is the idea or concept that ancient life forms succeeded each other in a definite, evolutionary pattern and that the contained assemblage of fossils can determine geologic ages of strata.


A) law of correlative indexing
B) principle of cross correlation
C) principle of fossil succession
D) law of fossil regression

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In the last few years improvements in technology have allowed geologists to date single grains of some minerals in rocks. A geologist separates 5 grains of the mineral zircon, which can be dated by the Uranium- lead method, and the crystal retains parent and daughter through weathering, erosion, and deposition. Thus, dating each mineral grain only gives the age of the source rock that was eroded, to produce that sand, from which the zircon grain is derived. The 5 grains yield ages of 160, 110, 2020, 66, and 162 million years. What do these ages tell you about the age of the sedimentary strata?


A) They are younger than 66 million years.
B) There are no age constraints from this data; sedimentary rocks cannot be dated by geochronology.
C) They are between 160 and 162 million years.
D) They are Precambrian rocks, older than 2020 million years.

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Who made the first clear statement of the law of superposition? When?


A) John Stuart Priestly, 19thcentury
B) William Smith, 18th century
C) Nicolaus Steno, 17th century
D) John Wesley Powell, 19th century

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What are the mass and charge of an alpha particle?


A) 3; neutral
B) 2; +2
C) 4; +2
D) 2; - 1

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If you observe a disconformity, you would infer that the region had experienced______ .


A) deposition in shallow water, uplift or lowering of sea level enough to expose the rocks to erosion and non- deposition for a period of time, and subsequent resubmergence of the remaining sedimentary units where they experience new deposition
B) uplift and tilting of sedimentary units that exposes them to erosion over a period of time with subsequent renewed deposition
C) deposition of sedimentary layers on crystalline igneous or metamorphic rocks that are exposed at the surface of the earth
D) intrusion of igneous rocks into a depositional setting, forcing the sedimentary layers upward and possibly deforming them, followed by subsidence of the remaining sedimentary layers and renewed deposition

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One method to obtain the absolute age of a sedimentary rock is to obtain a radiometric date on an interbedded ______rock.


A) chert
B) sandstone
C) volcanic
D) shale

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What is amber?


A) a prehistoric plant stem
B) permineralized wood
C) hardened tree resin
D) fossilized bone marrow

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Which of the following denotes the divisions of the geologic time scale in correct order of decreasing lengths of time beginning with the longest time interval and ending with the shortest?


A) eon, era, period, epoch
B) eon, epoch, period, era
C) era, period, epoch, eon
D) eon, era, epoch, period

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The principle of lateral continuity proposes that sedimentary rock layers continue in all directions until they grade into a different rock type or thin out on the edge of a basin is important because______ .


A) it showed that catastrophism could not explain the flat layers of the earth
B) it allowed geologists to correlate sedimentary rock units over large distances
C) it provided an explanation how rocks behave in a depositional setting
D) it provided a way to recognize if rocks had been deformed

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Rare, but complete preservation of organism occurs in______ .


A) shale
B) amber
C) limestone
D) mudstone

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Examine the words and/or phrases below and determine the relationship among the majority of words/phrases. Choose the option that does not fit the pattern.


A) delta capture
B) alpha emission
C) electron capture
D) beta emission

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______dating based on radioactivity are very important for studying Precambrian geologic history because______ in such strata.


A) Absolute; fossils are rare
B) Relative; fossils are rare
C) Relative; fossils are abundant
D) Absolute; fossils are abundant

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An______ is an erosional unconformity with parallel beds or strata above and below.


A) nonconformity
B) conformity
C) disconformity
D) angular unconformity

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One reason that Catastrophism was popular was______


A) there were many real catastrophes, like earthquakes and volcanic eruptions, to support the Catastrophism idea
B) Ussher's estimated age of the earth required catastrophic events to form mountains and canyons
C) Hutton's observations of great geologic time could not explain the rise of mountains or formation of deep canyons
D) everyone loves a disaster and as a result, the hypothesis that supported disasters was a favorite

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A child from down the street from your house brings an object that looks like a bone, and says "look, I found a dinosaur bone." Which of the following would not be useful in evaluating their claim?


A) Examine the object for hardness to determine if the sample is permineralized.
B) Evaluate the object for fine textures indicative of bone material or replaced bone material.
C) Extract charcoal from the object and use carbon- 14 dating.
D) Ask if the object was found embedded in rock.

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What is the name of a Phanerozoic era that means ancient life?


A) Phanerozoic
B) Paleozoic
C) Mesozoic
D) Cenozoic

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When a radioactive isotope decays by electron capture, the electron______ .


A) makes the parent isotope into an ion with a charge of negative one
B) combines with a proton in the nucleus; the atomic number of the daughter is one less than the parent
C) combines with a neutron in the nucleus, raising the mass number of the daughter isotope by one
D) makes the daughter isotope into an ion with a charge of positive one

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After two half- lives, there is ______percent of radioactive material remaining.


A) 75
B) 25
C) 50
D) 100

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