GLY 262 Practice Exam 1

For questions 1-4, please refer to this figure. (note: it opens in a new window)

Using the principle of cross-cutting relationships and the principle of superposition, place the sequence of depositional or structural events depicted in the figure above. The sequence should be from oldest to youngest.
1. A, B, C, D, E, F, G
2. F, C, A, G, B, D, E
3. D, C, E, A, B, F, G
4. B, G, A, E, D, C, F
5. C, B, A, G, F, D, E
What does line G represent?
1. A disconformity
2. A nonconformity
3. An angular unconformity
4. A depositional contanct
5. A fault
What does line E represent?
1. A disconformity
2. A nonconformity
3. An angular unconformity
4. A depositional contact
5. A fault
What does line F represent?
1. A disconformity
2. A nonconformity
3. An angular unconformity
4. A depositional contact
5. A fault
The principle of superposition states that in an undisturbed sedimentary sequence…
1. older beds are above younger beds
2. younger beds are above older beds
3. younger beds are below older beds
4. species evolve through time
5. none of the above
Evidence for ancient tropical environments includes ...
1. red beds
2. thrust faults
3. coral reefs
4. mud cracks
5. mafic lavas
Who named Cambrian period?
1. Murchison
2. Yin Hongfu
3. William Smith
4. Sedgwick
5. Baron von Cuvier
The “grandfather” of geology who FIRST developed the principle of uniformitarianism was…
1. Harry Hess
2. Charles Lyell
3. Alfred Wegener
4. Charles Darwin
5. Jame Hutton
Faunal succession reflects the ______ and _______ of a species through time
1. origination, extinction
2. advancement, progression
3. habitat, nature
4. homology, analogy
5. none of the above
Who is most often credited with the theory of natural selection ...
1. Steven J. Gould
2. Charles Darwin
3. Harry Hess
4. Alfred Wallace
5. Charles Lyell
You are given a mineral sample which contains 12.5% potassium-40 and 87.5% argon-40. Assuming all the assumptions are met, and knowing that potasium-40 decays to argon-40 with a half-life of 1.25 billion years, how old is the mineral sample?
1. 1.25 b.y.
2. 250 m.y.
3. 2.5 b.y.
4. 375 m.y.
5. 3.75 b.y.
Fossil bone is often preserved by _________
1. a casting
2. an internal mold
3. replacement with pyrite
4. external mold
5. permineralization
Which of the following is not a attribute of a good index fossil?
1. easy to identify
2. narrow ecologic tollerances
3. short temporal range
4. widely distributed
5. none of the above
which of the following is NOT an assumption with radiometric dating?
1. all parent isotopes are derived from daughter products
2. no parent isotopes or daughter products have entered or left the sample
3. the decay rate is constant
4. all daughter products are derived from parent isotpes
5. none of the above
Paleontologists usually define species as _____.
1. a group of populations that can or potentially interbreed and produce viable offspring
2. a group of specimens found in a musuem drawer labeled as a species
3. a polyphyletic group of individuals
4. a group of individuals with a distinct morphology
5. none of the above
Extinction is ___________
1. the mass die-off of many individuals
2. the dissappearance of a species in a particular region
3. the end of one species as it evolves into another
4. the termination of an evolving lineage
5. none of the above
A conglomerate sedimentary rock contains clasts of igneous rock. One of these igneous clasts was dated at 1 million years old. The conglomerate therefore is…
1. older than 1 million years old
2. 1 million years old
3. younger than 1 million years old
4. there is no way to know
5. none of the above
Sedimentary structures refer to...
1. sedimentary rock folded and faulted after lithification
2. only layering in sedimentary rocks
3. features that form as a result of physical or biological processes operating in the depositional environment
4. only grainsize and textural features in sedimentary rocks
5. none of the above
Walther's Law states that
1. older strata are below younder strata
2. sediments contain characteristics that are indicative of a particular environment
3. in an uninterrupted sedimentary sequence, laterally adjacent faces will succeed each other in vertical succession
4. evolution only works in one direction
5. none of the above
A landward shift in facies over time represents a ________.
1. progression
2. stipulation
3. altercation
4. transgression
5. regression
Fluvial is a term referring to ...
1. turbidity currents and turbidity deposits
2. glaciers and glacial deposits
3. waves and wave deposits
4. chemical processes and evaporites
5. river activity and deposits
The "Father" of modern geology, who published the book Principles of Geology popularizing the concept of uniformitarianism was...
1. James Ussher
2. Charles Lyell
3. Charles Darwin
4. James Hutton
5. James Smith
Which fossil is now used to define the base of the Triassic Period?
1. ammonoite
2. clam
3. conodont
4. dinosaur
5. trilobite
Which of the following may be indicative of sediment deposition in a non-marine terrestrial environment?
1. red colored sediments
2. mud cracks
3. plant fossils
4. all of the above
5. none of the above
Which of the following is NOT a period of the Mesozoic Era?
1. Cretaceous
2. Paleogene
3. Jurassic
4. Triassic
5. none of the above
Facies are defined as ...
1. any mappable rock formation
2. an ecological niche
3. body of sediment with certain characterisitcs that are indicative of a particular environment
4. naturally ocurring inorganic solid
5. none of the above
In geographic terms, species may arise by _______ and _______ speciation
1. allopatric and peripatric
2. parapatric and sympatric
3. allopatric and parapatric
4. sympatric and allopatric
5. peripatric and parapatric
A paraphyletic group is defined as a taxonomic group that...
1. comes from more than one ancestor and includes all descendants
2. comes from one ancestor and does not include all descendants
3. comes from more than one ancestor and does not include all descendants
4. comes from one ancestor and includes all descendants
5. none of the above
homologous traits are those...
1. traits that may or may not serve the same function, but have a common ancestral origin
2. traits that have the same function, but have a different ancestral origin
3. useful adaptations
4. tend to increase "fitness"
5. are useless in reconstructing phylogeny
A monophyletic group is defined as a taxonomic group that...
1. comes from more than one ancestor and includes all descendants
2. comes from one ancestor and does not include all descendants
3. comes from more than one ancestor and does not include all descendants
4. comes from one ancestor and includes all descendants
5. none of the above