Download Relative and Absolute Dating

Relative and Absolute Dating
Name ______________________
1.
Four outcrops and some fossils are shown below.
Which fossil would be the best index fossil?
a.
b.
c.
2.
a.
d.
Which pie graph best represents the percentage of total time for the four major divisions of
geologic time?
b.
c.
d.
Use the following information to answer the next three questions. The letters in circles represent
fossils.
3.
What is the oldest layer shown?
a. glacial soil
b. brown sandstone
c. tan limestone
d. grey limestone
4.
When did fault XY in column 1 most likely occur?
a. during the formation of the green shale
b. before the grey limestone
c. during the formation of the grey limestone
d. during the formation of the black shale
5.
Fossil A in the tan limestone is a fossil of the first known coral. The tan limestone was most
likely deposited during which geologic time interval?
a. Precambrian
b. Paleozoic
c. Pleistocene
d. Quaternary
6.
The diagram below shows a geologic cross section. Letters A through D represent different
rock units.
Contact metamorphism occurs when magma
flows into or onto cooler rocks. The cool rock
is metamorphosed by the extreme heat
where the magma contacts it. The older rock
is “baked”.
Which sequence correctly shows the age of the lettered rock units, from oldest to youngest?
a. A  B  C  D
b. C  D  A  B
c. D  B  A  C
d. D  C  B  A
Use the following information to answer the next two questions.
Three stratigraphic columns are shown below.
7.
The volcanic ash layer is considered a good time marker for correlating rocks because the
volcanic ash layer
a. has a dark color
b. lacks fossils
c. can be dated using carbon-14
d. was rapidly deposited over a wide area
8.
The volcanic ash was dated using the concentrations of uranium-235 and lead-207
isotopes. It was found that 70% of the uranium remains. What is the approximate age of the
ash?