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60 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
"Relative time" refers to the time sequence in which geologic events occured
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true
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"Uniformitarianism" reflects the belief among geologists that the Earth remains uniform and unchaing through time
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false
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The principle of superposition states that within a sequence of undisturbed sedimentary rocks, the layers get older going from bottom to top
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false
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According to the principle of cross-cutting relationships, a fault that cuts across a given layer muc be younger than the layer it displaces
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true
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Sedimentary beds that are deposited in water are generally horizontal or nearly horizontal
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true
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Sedimentary formations may be in contact with other sedimentary formations, but not with igneous rocks
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false
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A formation containing a particular rock type found in one location is assumed by geologists to be the same as any other formation of that same rock type found elsewhere
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false
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A formation containing a set of index fossils is assumed by geologist to be the same age as any other formation containing the same set of index fossils
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true
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The oldest fossil evidence of life on Earth is approximately 540 million years olds
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false
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Geologists use the fossils in rocks to refer the rocks to the standard geologic time scale
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true
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The Mesozoic Era follows (is younger than) the Cenozoic Era
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false
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The oldest rock yet found on Earth is approximately 4 billion years old, but older individual mineral grains have been found
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true
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THe product of the radioactive decay of a parent isotope is called a son
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false
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All isotopes of a given element have the same number of protons, but may differ in the number of nuclei they contain
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false
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The rate of radioactive decay of a given element varies with changes in Earth's gravity and magnetic fields
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false
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"Relative time" refers to the time sequence in which geologic events occured
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true
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"Uniformitarianism" reflects the belief among geologists that the Earth remains uniform and unchaing through time
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false
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The principle of superposition states that within a sequence of undisturbed sedimentary rocks, the layers get older going from bottom to top
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false
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According to the principle of cross-cutting relationships, a fault that cuts across a given layer muc be younger than the layer it displaces
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true
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Sedimentary beds that are deposited in water are generally horizontal or nearly horizontal
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true
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Sedimentary formations may be in contact with other sedimentary formations, but not with igneous rocks
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false
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A formation containing a particular rock type found in one location is assumed by geologists to be the same as any other formation of that same rock type found elsewhere
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false
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A formation containing a set of index fossils is assumed by geologist to be the same age as any other formation containing the same set of index fossils
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true
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The oldest fossil evidence of life on Earth is approximately 540 million years olds
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false
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Geologists use the fossils in rocks to refer the rocks to the standard geologic time scale
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true
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The Mesozoic Era follows (is younger than) the Cenozoic Era
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false
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The oldest rock yet found on Earth is approximately 4 billion years old, but older individual mineral grains have been found
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true
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THe product of the radioactive decay of a parent isotope is called a son
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false
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All isotopes of a given element have the same number of protons, but may differ in the number of nuclei they contain
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false
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The rate of radioactive decay of a given element varies with changes in Earth's gravity and magnetic fields
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false
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Fossils of the first animals with the ability to grow hard body parts appear in rocks that are appoximately ____ years old
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545 million
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The geologic time interval before the appearance of abundant animals with hard parts (skeletons) is called the _____
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Precambrain
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The time interval in which the first animals with hard parts is called the _____
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Paleozoic
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The ___ Era is the "Age of Mammals"
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Cenozoic
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THe end of the _____ was marked by one of the greatest mass extinctions in history, with the end of more than 95% of all species
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Paleozoic Era
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Prior to the development of the atomic mass spectrometer, the geologic time scale was based on ____found in sedimentary rocks
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fossils
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The relative-dating principle of ____ states that fragments included in a host rock are older than the host rock
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inclusion
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The half-life of the carbon 14 isotope is 5730 years. If there are 4 billion atoms of C14 in a particular organism at the time it died, how many atoms of C14 would there be in the remains of that organism 11,460 years after it died?
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1 billion
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A vast amoung of basalt was extruded onto the surface of Earth in Siberia approximately 250 million years ago. In fact, there are simliar flood basalts that correlate with many of the mass extinctions in Earth history. The occurence of flood basalts has lead some scientists to infer that ___is a major cause of mass extinctions
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massive volcanism
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When a marine geologist collects a core of undeformed ocean-floor sediment, she knows that the youngest layer is the top of the core and the oldest is at the bottom because of the principle of _____
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superposition
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By the principle of ____, the surface feature known as the Grand Canyon is ____ than the sedimentary formations that are exposed in the side walls of the Grand Canyon
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Cross-cutting relationships....younger
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The truncation of bedding where sedimentary rock layers abut a granite pluton suggest a(n) ______
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intrustive contact
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The principle of ____ states that the fragments included in a host rock must be _____ than the host rock
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inclusion....older than
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Two rock bodies that are____ one another are the same age
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correlated with
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In the radioactive decay process of alpha decay, two protons and two neutrons are emitted from the nucleus, leading to _____
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change to a daughter product that is two atomic numbers smaller than the parent isotope
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In the radioactive decay process of BETA DECAY, an electron is emitted from the nucleus of the parent isotope, resulting in ____
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change to a daughter product that is ONE atomic number LARGER than the parent isotope with no significant change in mass
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In the radioactive decay process of ELECTRON CAPTURE, an electron is added to the nucleus of the parent isotope, resulting in _____
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change to a daughter product that is one atomic number smaller than the parent isotope with no significant change in mass
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The proportional rate of decay of a parent isotope to a stable daughter product ____ by chemical reactions or the high pressures/temperatures of Earth's interior
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is not changed at all
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Radiocarbon dating is useful in dating events that occurred in the past ____ years
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40 thousand
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The carbon-14 isotope is produced ____ and is incorporated in the tissue of living organisms up until the organism dies
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in the atmosphere
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The term "mass wasting" refers to the improper use of Earth materials in a manner that is in conflict with the principles of conservation and enviromental stewardship
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false
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The primary driving force for landslides is gravity
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true
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When debris is more saturated with water it is more likely to flow downslope
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true
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Granular material that's absolutely dry is less susceptible to failure down a slope than if it were slightly wet (not saturated)
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false
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In a translational rock slide, the rock material may remain largely intact as it moves
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true
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The term "creep" implies a rate of motion that is usually less than 1 centimeter per year
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true
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Debris flow may damage property, but do not pose direct threats to people because they move so slowly
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false
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Steep mountain slopes indiciate that the hillslope material is so strong that it is unlikely to be involved in any sort of landsliding
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false
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The term "debris," as applied to mass wasting, includes any unconsolidated material at Earth's surface such as soil and rock fragments, regardless of grain size
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true
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Landslides are natural phenomena that humans can neither cause nor prevent
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false
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