Question 1

The absolute dating method that involves counting the annual rings visible in the cross-section of a tree is called

Accepted Answer

A) fission track dating. 
B) arborchronology. 
C) luminescence dating. 
D) dendrochronology.

Question 2

If fossil species A is consistently recovered from geological deposits beneath layers containing fossil species B, then A is considered older than B.This relative dating technique is based on the principle of

Accepted Answer

A) superposition. 
B) paleomagnetism. 
C) fluorine analysis. 
D) geolayering.

Question 3

High levels of ¹⁸O in now-fossilized foraminifera shells indicate

Accepted Answer

A) an increase in temperature. 
B) a decrease in temperature. 
C) an increase in oxygen. 
D) a decrease in oxygen.

Question 4

Phylogeny is important to the study of human evolution because

Accepted Answer

A) in order to understand modern human anatomy and behavior, we must understand our evolutionary relationships to other extinct and living organisms. 
B) in order to account for changes in our species over time, we need to know what processes drove natural selection. 
C) it allows us to study our closest living relative in order to better understand how natural selection acted in previous environments. 
D) all of the above.

Question 5

Ocean-dwelling microorganisms called foraminifera are important in evolutionary studies mainly because

Accepted Answer

A) the chemical composition of their shells records past temperatures. 
B) they can be dated using uranium series methods. 
C) primates use them as a key food source. 
D) they are strong indicators of past changes in the earth's magnetic polarity.

Question 6

The time it takes for 50% of an unstable isotope to decay to a stable form is called the

Accepted Answer

A) semichron. 
B) middlemorph. 
C) demi-dose. 
D) half-life.

Question 7

At a site in the American Southwest, you find only a single ceramic pot in association with an individual within a burial.You can use the pot to date the burial based on

Accepted Answer

A) biostratigraphic dating, because there may be animal remains inside the pot. 
B) cultural dating, since the pot must be specific to a known culture and time period. 
C) radiopotassium dating of the material used to make the pot. 
D) fission track dating of the pot itself.

Question 8

Biostratigraphic dating relies on

Accepted Answer

A) the first and last appearances of species in the fossil record. 
B) magnetic shifts in the earth's interior. 
C) radioactive decay of carbon to nitrogen. 
D) the concentration of fluorine in the soil and in groundwater.

Question 9

Which type of plants is associated with open grasslands typical of tropical savannas?

Accepted Answer

A) C3 plants 
B) 18O plants 
C) C4 plants 
D) none of the above

Question 10

The significant drying up of the Mediterranean Basin at the end of the Oligocene epoch was probably due to

Accepted Answer

A) an intense period of global warming. 
B) the African Plate rotating away from the Eurasian Plate. 
C) the appearance of huge ice sheets in Antarctica. 
D) the formation of the Alps.

Question 11

The absolute dating technique that emerged as a result of research into constructing the atomic bomb during World War II is

Accepted Answer

A) fission track dating. 
B) 14C dating. 
C) 40K/40Ar dating. 
D) thermoluminescence dating.

Question 12

Based on the molecular clock, it is estimated that the hominid lineage diverged from that of the chimpanzee about

Accepted Answer

A) 1-2 mya. 
B) 3-4 mya. 
C) 6-8 mya. 
D) 10-12 mya.

Question 13

Paleomagnetic dating relies on

Accepted Answer

A) dating unstable iron isotopes. 
B) the periodic reversal of the earth's magnetic poles. 
C) chemical reactions between iron-bearing rocks and acidic groundwater. 
D) the use of hand magnets to draw sediments out of the ground.

Exam 8: Fossils and Their Place in Time and Nature